A review by yvo_about_books
Don't Look Behind You by Mel Sherratt

4.5

Finished reading: January 23rd 2017

“You don't see it coming. They manipulate you, they smother you with love and affection, making out you're the only thing that matters in their lives, and by the time you realise who they really are, it's too late. They have you.”

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Bookouture in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I read the first book of the Detective Eden Berrisford series some time last year, and when I saw the sequel was about to be published I couldn't help myself and grabbed a copy. I have to say Don't Look Behind You by no means suffers from the so-called 'weak-second-book-syndrome'! In fact, I enjoyed this psychological thriller sequel significantly better than the first book, and that says something. First of all, the writing style is excellent and really makes it that much easier to enjoy the ride. Don't Look Behind You reads like a train and the amount of plot twists is just right. And while I had some minor problems with the main character Eden in the first book, she is really starting to warm up to me despite the fact that the recent problems in her private life does make her look more like the typical cliche detective character. Is this bad? In this case I don't think so, because it makes her so much more 'real' and her private connection to the recent events is intriguing. I could also really appreciate the fact that the whole abuse theme was given such a big role and was portrayed so realistically. It's a very important topic not nearly enough people are aware of, and on top of that it's also refreshing to read about after one too many typical murder/missing person case. All in all a great read and I will be looking forward to the next installment of the series!

If you are looking for a fast-paced and well written psychological thriller with a slightly different angle than usual, Don't Look Behind You is without doubt a great choice. It's actually the second book of a series, but in this case can also be read as a standalone without missing too much background information. The writing style, realistic feel of the story and the whole abuse topic definitely turn this title both a refreshing and entertaining psychological thriller!