The Other Twin
Author: L V Hay
Published by Orenda Books
Format Paperback
My Rating ★★★½
Published by Orenda Books
Format Paperback
My Rating ★★★½
‘Sharp, confident writing, as dark and twisty as the Brighton Lanes’ Peter James
‘A cracker of a debut! I couldn’t put it down’ Paula Daly
‘The writing shines from every page of this twisted tale… debuts don’t come sharper than this’ - Ruth Dugdall
‘This chilling, claustrophobic tale set in Brighton introduces an original, fresh new voice in crime fiction.’ - Cal Moriarty
When India falls to her death from a bridge over a railway, her sister Poppy returns home to Brighton for the first time in years. Unconvinced by official explanations, Poppy begins her own investigation into India’s death. But the deeper she digs, the closer she comes to uncovering deeply buried secrets. Could Matthew Temple, the boyfriend she abandoned, be involved? And what of his powerful and wealthy parents, and his twin sister, Ana? Enter the mysterious and ethereal Jenny: the girl Poppy discovers after hacking into India’s laptop, what exactly is she hiding, and what did India discover…?
A twisty, dark and sexy debut thriller set in the winding lanes and underbelly of Brighton, centering around the social media world, where resentments and accusations are played out, identities made and remade, and there is no such thing as the truth…
‘A cracker of a debut! I couldn’t put it down’ Paula Daly
‘The writing shines from every page of this twisted tale… debuts don’t come sharper than this’ - Ruth Dugdall
‘This chilling, claustrophobic tale set in Brighton introduces an original, fresh new voice in crime fiction.’ - Cal Moriarty
When India falls to her death from a bridge over a railway, her sister Poppy returns home to Brighton for the first time in years. Unconvinced by official explanations, Poppy begins her own investigation into India’s death. But the deeper she digs, the closer she comes to uncovering deeply buried secrets. Could Matthew Temple, the boyfriend she abandoned, be involved? And what of his powerful and wealthy parents, and his twin sister, Ana? Enter the mysterious and ethereal Jenny: the girl Poppy discovers after hacking into India’s laptop, what exactly is she hiding, and what did India discover…?
A twisty, dark and sexy debut thriller set in the winding lanes and underbelly of Brighton, centering around the social media world, where resentments and accusations are played out, identities made and remade, and there is no such thing as the truth…
My thoughts:
When Poppy is told that her younger sister India has committed suicide by jumping off a railway bridge, she returns to the family home in Brighton in a state of shock. Some five years before, something happened in Poppy’s life which made family relationships difficult but India’s death has totally shocked her and disbelief mixed with feelings of guilt, make her determined to discover the truth. India had an online blog and her blog posts have an unsettling feel to them and it’s these, together with some accompanying comments, which give Poppy most cause for concern.
There are a lot of characters here to be suspicious of – both family and friends, and the book really delves into exploring the relationships India had been a part of leading up to her untimely death. This is where Poppy’s suspicion really deepens the more she investigates, and she is adamant that India did not commit suicide.
The Other Twin is described as a psychological thriller, and in some ways, I feel it works as a dark tale of complicated family relationships and secrets. In other ways though, I felt as though the book could more accurately be presented as a kind of teenage novel, due to the natureof the central character, Poppy, and at times the writing style. Poppy is immature for her age and I didn’t really find myself connecting with her much throughout the story. Perhaps this is deliberate, allowing the most interesting, relatable and mysterious character, India, to be the real focus of the novel.
The book is undeniably pacey, intricately plotted and well written, and kept me gripped throughout, even though the outcome of the story was not quite what I expected. The conclusion felt a little rushed, but I did like that all the loose ends were tied up by the final few pages, and at last the truth was exposed. Overall, for a debut novel, I thought the book was very good, but it perhaps could just use a little refining on some of the key plot points and fleshing out of a few of the main characters a little more.
The Other Twin is certainly worth a read, it just wasn’t as good as I had hoped, so I felt I could only give it the 3 and a half stars.
Overall reaction:
When Poppy is told that her younger sister India has committed suicide by jumping off a railway bridge, she returns to the family home in Brighton in a state of shock. Some five years before, something happened in Poppy’s life which made family relationships difficult but India’s death has totally shocked her and disbelief mixed with feelings of guilt, make her determined to discover the truth. India had an online blog and her blog posts have an unsettling feel to them and it’s these, together with some accompanying comments, which give Poppy most cause for concern.
There are a lot of characters here to be suspicious of – both family and friends, and the book really delves into exploring the relationships India had been a part of leading up to her untimely death. This is where Poppy’s suspicion really deepens the more she investigates, and she is adamant that India did not commit suicide.
The Other Twin is described as a psychological thriller, and in some ways, I feel it works as a dark tale of complicated family relationships and secrets. In other ways though, I felt as though the book could more accurately be presented as a kind of teenage novel, due to the natureof the central character, Poppy, and at times the writing style. Poppy is immature for her age and I didn’t really find myself connecting with her much throughout the story. Perhaps this is deliberate, allowing the most interesting, relatable and mysterious character, India, to be the real focus of the novel.
The book is undeniably pacey, intricately plotted and well written, and kept me gripped throughout, even though the outcome of the story was not quite what I expected. The conclusion felt a little rushed, but I did like that all the loose ends were tied up by the final few pages, and at last the truth was exposed. Overall, for a debut novel, I thought the book was very good, but it perhaps could just use a little refining on some of the key plot points and fleshing out of a few of the main characters a little more.
The Other Twin is certainly worth a read, it just wasn’t as good as I had hoped, so I felt I could only give it the 3 and a half stars.
Overall reaction:
