Sleep by C.L. Taylor #bookreview blog tour @callytaylor @AvonBooksUK

I’m delighted to be kicking off the blog tour for Sleep by C.L. Taylor today on my blog, I’ve been a fan of her novels for a while now, but this one I think, is her best yet.

BLURB

All Anna wants is to be able to sleep. But crushing insomnia, terrifying night terrors and memories of that terrible night are making it impossible. If only she didn’t feel so guilty…

To escape her past, Anna takes a job at a hotel on the remote Scottish island of Rum, but when seven guests join her, what started as a retreat from the world turns into a deadly nightmare.

Each of the guests have a secret, but one of them is lying – about who they are and why they’re on the island. There’s a murderer staying in the Bay View hotel. And they’ve set their sights on Anna.

Seven strangers. Seven secrets. One deadly lie.

Someone’s going to sleep and never wake up…

MY THOUGHTS

Sleep is my favourite book yet by C.L. Taylor. It’s a dark, claustrophobic read that will keep you gripped right from the first page.

C.L. Taylor always manages to hook me very early on in her novels, and she manages tension so well. The end of each chapter always leaves me wanting more. The novel opens as a horrific car accident takes place, taking the lives of two people and severely injuring another. Anna is the person who was at the wheel of the car involved in the accident. She is haunted by the deaths of her colleagues who were in the car with her and blames herself. Desperate for a fresh start, Anna relocates to a remote Scottish island. But someone is keen to make sure Anna hasn’t forgotten what she’s done, and they are eager to make sure that she pays for her role in her colleague’s deaths.

The claustrophobic setting of the hotel on the Scottish island, where Anna starts a new job made this book a real winner for me. There was a growing sense of alarm and danger, especially as they realised they were beginning to run out of food. The group of guests all have their own, well-crafted backstories and as Anna started to believe that she was being targeted, I didn’t know who I could trust. C.L. Taylor created a splendid locked room mystery, and she brought to life a truly isolated setting, especially when the storm struck leaving the guests and Anna stranded in the hotel.

This is an absolutely must-read for fans of psychological thrillers. I remember how chilling I found the ending of C.L. Taylor’s last book and she delivers another brilliant one here, after finishing it I’m still thinking about the characters and what they’re all getting up to. And I think I’m going to be thinking about them for a while.

A top read from C.L. Taylor. I was never sure how this book was going to pan out, and the tension kept me glued to the pages.

Thank you to Sabah Khan at Avon Books for the invitation to join the blog tour and for sending me a copy of the book to review.

Publisher: Avon

Publication date: 4th April 2019

Print length: 368 pages

If you would like to purchase Sleep, you can do so by clicking on one of the following links below.

Amazon UK  Kobo  Waterstones

FOLLOW THE BLOG TOUR

The Fear by C.L. Taylor Blog tour @callytaylor @AvonBooksUK

Source: Review Copy

BLURB

Sometimes your first love won’t let you go…

When Lou Wandsworth ran away to France with her teacher Mike Hughes, she thought he was the love of her life. But Mike wasn’t what he seemed and he left her life in pieces.

Now 32, Lou discovers that he is involved with teenager Chloe Meadows. Determined to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself, she returns home to confront him for the damage he’s caused.

But Mike is a predator of the worst kind, and as Lou tries to bring him to justice, it’s clear that she could once again become his prey…

MY THOUGHTS

The Fear is perhaps C.L. Taylor’s darkest novel yet. She explores some unsettling themes in her latest book and it has an ending which really gave me chills.

We are introduced to Lou Wandsworth, who, ten years ago, ran away with her teacher, Mike Hughes to France. But her dream of happiness turned into a living nightmare when Mike became a man unlike the one she thought she knew. Ten years later and she discovers that he could be grooming another young girl, a thirteen-year-old girl called Chloe. Lou is desperate to make sure that history doesn’t repeat itself, but how can she stop it when Chloe doesn’t want to listen to her advice?

The story is told through the narratives of Chloe, Lou and a mystery woman called Wendy. Wendy is one of the main sources of tension throughout the novel and what I found really interesting was how C.L. Taylor played around with her character. My perception of her changed throughout the book, in my opinion, I felt that she was the most engaging character.

Through Lou’s diary entries and Chloe’s narrative we can see how easily Mike grooms and manipulates them; there are some scenes in the book which do make for an uncomfortable read but the plot and C.L. Taylor’s writing compelled me to read on, she is an author who pulls no punches in her writing.

As with her previous books The Fear makes for an engaging read, once you’re hooked by C.L. Taylor’s writing you won’t want to put it down. She is a writer who really makes you have strong feelings about her characters; she will have you shaking your head and shouting at them for the decisions they’re making.

The Fear is a tense, rollercoaster of a read, if you have enjoyed C.L. Taylor’s previous novels then you are in for a treat. Thank you to Sabah Khan at Avon for sending me a copy of the book to review and for inviting me to take part in the blog tour.

Publisher: Avon

Publication date: 22nd March 2018

Print length: 416 pages

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE

FOLLOW THE BLOG TOUR