Originally published: June 2018

Author: Claire Allan

Published by: Avon

Genre: Thriller

Page count: 336

Reading dates: 30 June-2 July 2018

Star Rating: 3.5/5

Her life is yours for the taking…

Emily witnesses a fatal hit and run, which she blames herself for as she let the young mother, Rose step out before her.  Believing the car was meant for her she becomes obsessed with Rose, her husband Cian and their baby son Jack and end’s up obsessively checking Rose’s Facebook page and even attending her funeral.  Rose seems to have the perfect life, unlike Emily who is lonely, in a dead end job and is a borderline alcoholic.  She has a cute son, a husband who adores her, a beautiful home and a great job in a dental surgery.  After her last warning at work, Emily looses her job and her friend jokes about an opening in the dental surgery.  Emily starts to think that maybe she can fill the gap that Rose has left behind…

However, it soon transpires that the police think that Rose was targeted specifically in the hit and run and her husband is soon under suspicion.

This was a fast paced psychological thriller, one of those books that I pick up to read even if I only have a minute or two.  Mostly written from Emily’s point of view, she’s a convincing character, the sort you want to give a good talking too – she is paranoid, vulnerable and going nowhere in life, and takes an opportunity to turn her life around to try and make it perfect like Rose’s appears to be. We also hear from Rose, describing how she met Cian and how their life evolved together.  The Facebook stalking is an interesting angle – just because someone’s life appears to be wonderful, things aren’t always as they seem.

My only criticism is that some parts were a bit far fetched and left me with questions.  But I can overlook that as it was an enjoyable read and I look forward to what Claire Allen will do next!

Many thanks to Elke over at Avon Books for sending me a copy.

About the author:

Claire Allan was born on the longest day of the year in the hottest summer on record – the glorious drought ridden 1976, in the city of Derry ~ Londonderry in the North of Ireland.
In 1999 she started working as a staff reporter for the Derry Journal – covering an array of news from politics to human interest stories..
As Claire approached her 30th birthday she decided to give writing books a shot. Basing her first novel ‘Rainy Days and Tuesdays’ very loosely on her own experiences with Post Natal Depression following the birth of her son Joseph in 2004 she wrote a book never knowing if anyone would read it.
Thankfully someone did. It has been followed by Feels Like Maybe, Jumping in Puddles, It’s Got to Be Perfect, If Only You Knew, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted, The First Time I Said Goodbye and Still You.
In 2016 took the leap to become a full time writer, leaving behind her journalism career. She also decided to branch out to write psychological thrillers.
In 2017, she signed a two book deal with Avon Books, an imprint of Harper Collins. Her debut thriller, Her Name Was Rose was released in June 2018, followed by Apple of My Eye in January 2019.
​Claire is married and has two children.