#BlogTour ‘When They Find Her’ by Lia Middleton

About the book…

NAOMI ALWAYS WANTED TO BE A MOTHER.

But three years ago, her husband left, taking their child with him.

Now, her daughter has come to stay, and Naomi knows it’s her one chance to re-build her family. But the night ends in a terrible accident. And Naomi tells a lie she can never take back:

NAOMI REPORTS HER DAUGHTER MISSING.

Within hours, her home is invaded. Journalists crowd the driveway. Police search the woods at the foot of the garden. Her ex-husband paces the hall.

And Naomi can’t look away. Because the only thing worse than the lie she’s told is the truth:

NAOMI HAS NO MEMORY OF WHAT REALLY HAPPENED THAT NIGHT . . .
_______

‘Truly the stuff of nightmares. Couldn’t put it down’ Catherine Cooper
‘A tense and claustrophobic rollercoaster’ Nina Manning
‘Had me turning pages into the early hours. Truly superb’ Katie Lowe

Well, with an outline like that, how could this intrepid reader resist this book?

Huge thanks to Chrissie Antoniou at Michael J Books,for the blogtour invite and gifted review copy of debut thriller,‘When They Find Her’ which is available in hardcover and e-book formats from May 13th!

Where to begin?

Being very,very careful of revealing any spoilers as this is a book of twists and turns at break neck angles is a good place to start.

Naomi has achieved perfection in her life, or at least, she thinks she has.

The role she has always been ready and waiting for, that of mother to a beautiful baby, wife to a husband who adores her, a well established career and caring friends.

What could possibly go wrong?

From the exit from the maternity ward, the book takes a super sharp turn to now, where Naomi is living on her own in her family’s farmhouse, her daughter is 4 and living with her now ex-husband and his new wife.

This is where it starts and as you are trying to piece together just what has happened from Naomi’s memories and what is happening now, tragedy strikes.

One small lie, unbelievably falling from the narrator’s lips, escalates into an avalanche of accusations, misdirection and arrests.

Who is telling the truth and who is lying?

As the search for the missing child turns increasingly desperate, the ripple effects of years of anxiety, expectations and waiting to be found out takes it’s toll on a fragile woman and her distraught ex. This is such a moving, and terribly sad examination of the pressures which mothers place on themselves to attain perfection, the way that they view themselves is so heavily influenced by impossible standards, which, if truly examined with honesty, are absolutely unattainable.

All you can do is your absolute best, and admitting that parenting is so much harder than it is possible to anticipate that asking for help is not a sign of weakness, is the first step towards forgiving yourself for not being the pefect parent.

At its core, this is a police procedural, a whodunnit with an unreliable narrator that you nether the less feel so empathic towards.

As everything tightens around Naomi to the point where she is convinced the only solution to the events of the first time she has had her daughter over night are a total and abject failure to keep her daughter safe, your heart just breaks for her. At the same time, it is totally possible not to condemn her for actions taken when completely in shock, and it is totally believable that she finds herself backed into a corner by this.

I find it hard to say that I enjoyed this book, that feels like the wrong adjective to use given the nature of the story being told. ‘When They Find Her’ is a novel of suspense, heart, and a deep, abiding sense of humanity and ultimately, a sense of forgiveness. She, Freya, is waiting for resolution and justice, her very essence permeates the pages of an outstanding debut where reader and narrator alike, desperately sift through the available evidence for answers which make for uncomfortable, and uneasy reading.

Naomi is a flawed yet likeable character, her first person narration puts the reader inside her mindset creating an empathic link between both parties despite her apparent unreliability to recall the events that led up to her separation and alienation.

Highly recommended for those who enjoy the works of Fiona Cummins, Gytha Lodge and Jane Casey, I am very much looking forward to seeing what Lia writes next.

About the author….

Lia Middleton is a barrister who specialises in crime and prison law, and lives with her husband and two young children in Buckinghamshire.

When she isn’t writing, Lia enjoys reading, travelling, and discovering new food markets and festivals. ‘When They Find Her’, a psychological thriller about a panic-induced lie, is her first novel.

Twitter @liamiddlet0n @MichaelJBooks