Published By: Michael Joseph
Pages: 400
Released On: 03/08/2023
OLIVIA.
22 years old.
Last seen on CCTV, entering a dead-end alley.
And not coming back out again.
Missing for one day and counting . . .
Julia is the detective heading up the case. She knows what to expect. A desperate family, a ticking clock, and long hours away from her husband and daughter. But Julia has no idea how close to home it’s going to get.
Because there’s a man out there. And his weapon isn’t a gun, or a knife: it’s a secret. Her worst one.
He tells her that her family’s safety depends on one thing: Julia must NOT find out what happened to Olivia – and must frame somebody else for her murder . . .
What would you do?
*****
Thanks to Michael Joseph for my gifted proof of this title in return for an honest review.
Well, she’s done it again. But was there really any doubt about that?
Whenever I read a book like this, I sit there and try to figure out how I could write one like this, but I wouldn’t know where to start. To know the ending, the how’s and whatfores, but to be able to hide it convincingly and realistically…I’m in awe of anyone who can manage that, and she does with great aplomb (an underused word in my opinion). I also want to know if whodunnits are lost on her now – when reading one, can she figure it out beforehand because she has that mindset?
I like that it’s mainly set over a few days – there are skips in time, but for probably about 95% of the book, it’s just in those few days. It adds to the chaoticness and stress and panic that happens when a crime is committed or someone goes missing. Everything happens so fast, and yet time feels like it’s going so slow, and everyone sits and holds their breath.
Gillian has done an amalgamation of linear narrative post-disappearance from Julia’s POV, some flashbacks, linear narrative from other characters affected, plus text messages, Twitter posts, Instagram posts, emails – it adds to the chaos of a case like this, so many things a police officer has to root through, how things could be overlooked, and how seemingly innocent these things are that could have a darker undertone.
We all know how much I only like to read uplifting books in bed, but once I’d start this, even bedtime wasn’t getting in the way. I was so absorbed that I was thinking about it when I wasn’t even reading, it just felt so real and tangible, like it was really happening.
I like that it’s not solely about Olivia’s disappearance. I won’t spoil it, obviously, but it isn’t the only story going on. There’s layers upon layers in this book, affecting Julia predominately, but also some of the secondary characters. It gives it a sense of realism about it. Not the plot content themselves as such, but the fact that very rarely do we get the time in our professional lives to just focus on one thing. It’s chaotic and mad and busy, and this book found that balance.
Julia was an interesting character. Clearly good at her job, and clearly passionate about her job, but she is constantly fighting this battle between her job and her family. Each as equally important for different reasons. Would that dilemma have happened if it was a male officer, or would we assume their wife would be looking after the family? I don’t know. It’s a question, but now necessarily a question we need to look at now. Julia is a fabulous character and well-written, fighting with her – and others – demons. And this isn’t the first Gillian character to be like this. I think her ability to create complex characters in complex situations, but make them so well-rounded, and realistic and likeable is second to none.
Some of the quotes on the cover talk about how amazing the twists are. But I could never have guessed them. It is so twisty and turny already that it really springs out at you, which is the perfect way to format a twist. Hidden, unseen, silent, and then all of a sudden, very loud.
I’ve seen a few early reviews that say they felt the ending was slightly rushed, and I had a think about that, but I can’t say I agree. I can understand where people are coming from and value other people’s opinions on it, but I didn’t think there was anything else that could be there. If she’d stretched it out, I feel it would have read as unimportant filler. We got what we needed and what we wanted, and it was a satisfying conclusion in my books.
The only negative for me is that I felt it was over too quickly. The pacing was fabulous, the twists great, characters exciting, plot intriguing – but I wanted more. I could have kept reading it forever. I almost want to read it again, knowing what I know now about it, to see if the reading of it changes in any way.
Every so often you come across a book that makes you glad you’re a book reviewer, so it gives you the excuse to shout very loud about it. This is one of those books. I will shout it at anyone who happens to look my way.
Books By Your Bedside 