The Other Child Paperback – 4 Jun. 2015

I've been a huge fan of Lucy Atkins later books and recently realised I hadn't read this one.Whilst the book held my attention it wasn't my favourite of her novels.When Tess a photographer moves her life across to America to support her new husband, little does she know quite how quickly she will see signs that this has been a mistake.The storyline unfolds at pace, and as a reader I was unsure how the storyline would resolve, and whilst it wasn't a complete surprise there was plenty to keep me guessing along the way.I felt, as I always feel with this author's books, that the relationships were accurately drawn making even the more extreme decisions believable.A book I am pleased to have read, can't wait for the author's next offering.

I follow Lucy on twitter and when she asked if I would be interested in hosting her for part of the blog tour for The Other Child I jumped at the chance. I love reading contemporary novels and thrillers, especially psychological ones and The Other Child sounded right up my street. I was just about to go off on holiday so I headed to Amazon to download an ecopy of the book as I couldn't wait for the review copy to arrive in the post.There was no softly, softly introduction to this novel. Lucy dragged me straight into this edgy, psychological thriller, that had me looking behind doors and talking out loud to Tess on more than one occasion, willing her not to say or do something for my fear of the consequences. I felt uneasy from almost the first page. Tess and her situation just didn't sit right with me.The story begins when Tess and her son Joe arrive outside their new home in a Boston suburb that Greg, Tess's husband had rented for them. He had lived in the UK for 15 years but had applied and got his dream job back in his home country, America. As a result, he quickly proposed to Tess, not wanting to leave her behind. A whirlwind wedding and Tess found herself emigrating to begin married life with her new husband in another country at a time when her life was already in turmoil. Pregnant with Greg's child, despite him making it clear to Tess he never wanted to be a father. He was so good with Joe she was sure things would be ok once the baby was born. Everything should be hearts and flowers but tension and stress oozes out of the pages.Lucy's descriptive skills are brilliant, she got inside my head with both the characters and the physical descriptions of places, with the intricacies of what at first appeared a simple story. A story that got right under my skin. Half answered questions, situations that couldn't quite be explained, neighbours that blew hot and cold, an elusive husband who was vague and evasive yet at the same time loving and caring. Each of these saw me turning the pages faster and faster - wanting to calm my racing heartbeat. At the same time, holding my breathe - willing Tess not to do or say something for fear of the consequences.Time and time again I thought this would make such a good film - a jumpy, edge of the seat one - I held my breathe, untangled the story, decided what was happening and why only to change my mind again with the next chapter. Some things just can't be explained. I would recommend this book to anyone who like me, likes that heart pounding, clammy hand feeling that gets the adrenaline pumping. I loved this book so much and don't think I've ever read a book that had me contradicting my own thoughts so many times. Over and over again I veered from not believing a word that was written on the page to believing every one of the same words - I was so convinced by the story.Lucy you had me hook, line and sinker. So very rarely does a book leave me so drained. I, unlike Tess can't blame pregnancy hormones, absence of close family and friends or worry over an unhappy child to explain my state of mind - I blame you! This rib crushing, adrenaline inducing story held my attention, I never for a minute had to suspend believe as every scenario and character was so very plausible. Thank you so much for inviting me to be part of the blog tour for this amazing book.

There are lots of things to like about this novel, but a few things I didn't. First of all, Atkins writes very evocatively with a wonderful turn of phrase and very atmospheric scene setting. The mystery at the heart of it is a good one that unravels and keeps the reader guessing.However, half way through I was starting to think of it as a bit of chore. It picked up again after some perseverance, but it did sag a little at the halfway point.Some of what I write next may be spoilers if you haven't read the book yet.SPOILER ALERTThe first half of the book seems to consist of Tess wandering around the house on her own trying to get hold of her husband on the phone. It got pretty repetitive in places. There is also a lot of detail about her baby moving. I can see how this was supposed to mirror what was happening, or increase suspense, but I got a bit tired of it every second paragraph. Secondly, once I finished the book, I realised that much of what happens in the first half is red herring stuff and had no effect on the outcome of the story. It serves as a device to show how mysterious Greg is and how little Tess trusts him, but apart from that it kind of led nowhere.The ending was a bit of a disappointment and I surprised myself by feeling very sorry for Greg. He had lost so many people in his life that Tess rewards him by making sure he loses his wife and daughter as well. I get that she can't trust him and all, but it seemed like he had had enough blows throughout his life and very little of it was his fault at all.The mystery at the heart of it was unveiled in layers via third person sources; an artist Tess had never met, newspapers and a stranger from the beach. So far so good. There was just something vaguely unsatisfying about this though that I find hard to put my finger on. I was also unconvinced of the love affair between them. He was quite cold and distant and she didn't seem to know him very well (or at all as it transpired).There were few clues about what kept them together. The first Christmas they have together as the baby is due is their first ever Christmas so they knew each other only a couple of months before they were expecting a baby. I'm not judging that at all, but in the context of the book there was little passion or common ground between to explain why they were so passionately in love that they had a whirlwind romance.

I have read another book by Lucy Atkins called the Missing one and I liked that one better. This book was really rattling along at a good pace and had really kept my interest. I was really enjoying it, but I think that the ending could of had a bit more thought put into it. It sort of fizzled out and although it was all neatly sown up, it was somewhat of a disappointment and I felt sorry for her husband, which I don't think I was meant to feel. I would of given him another chance. I never like to say too much as I don't want to spoil the end of the plot if you decide to read it. It was worth a read.

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I don’t really agree with the title of the book.The main character, Tess, really got in my nerves. She is very egocentric and relates everything to her. She’s righteous and judgemental. And when she has got an idea she’s like a dog with a bone. In fact I can’t stand her.And all the belly rubbing and feeling was annoying.I enjoyed very much Magpie Lane (though the ending is a bit annoying) and am quite disappointed by this one.I found the style somewhat heavy, repetitive. It is certainly on purpose, but it didn’t make me sympathetic to Tess’s insecurities, the opposite in fact. She can’t stand being lied to, even for things which don’t really concern her, but she herself is quick to lie. She doesn’t respect other people’s privacy although she guards her own.I found her quite boring, fastidious.There are some editing mistakes.

I enjoyed this book. It certainly had enough twists and turns to keep me reading through to the end. The story did deliver suspense - mostly in the first half, where people were recognizing her husband when he'd never been there before. And then, as the gaps in his story were uncovered and lies exposed, I began to wonder what the husband was hiding. I think that the build-up of suspicion was intriguing - very well done.I would probably have given this 5-stars if the ending wasn't so strangely convoluted. Still, I would recommend the book to friends, and I'd like to read more by the author.

Si tratta comunque di un buon thriller, di piacevole lettura. Avrei solo voluto che la parte più "angosciante", alla "Rosemary's Baby", per intenderci, fosse un po' più sviluppata. Il personaggio negativo (non aggiungo altro per non spoilerare) potrebbe essere tratteggiato un po' meglio. Comunque, una lettura davvero di buona qualità.

I loved the book for the most part and kept guessing and reguessing how it will end.But the end was a huge disappointment. BEWARE - SPOILER!! I cannot understand why on earth Tess saw absolutely no other option than leaving Greg. Yes he lied about some things about his past. But he never did anything to harm Tess or the children and I do believe he really loved them and she always seemed to love him. So his mother was in fact his aunt, he once had a little sister who died and his name had once been different. Big deal. I seem to be missing something here and it totally ruined the book for me. What a pity.