Shelley Woodhouse wakes to find herself in the ICU of her local hospital. Memories are fleeting but she is very sure that her husband tried to kill her. She also knows it's 2017. Hospital staff are reluctant to fill in the gaps about what happened, they just keep reassuring her she's safe. Slowly memories return, from her childhood up to the events that resulted in her being in hospital.
Laura Pearson is a new author to me, although I do have one of her earlier books on my wishlist. The Day Shelley Woodhouse Woke Up was published recently and I noticed quite a lot of positive chatter about it on social media, so I decided to take a break from the usual crime and thrillers to check it out.
The theme of the novel, domestic violence, is a hard-hitting one but the author has handled it with sensitivity and empathy. From Shelley's childhood memories, we get a glimpse of the cycle of domestic violence in families when her Mum's boyfriend moves into the family home. History is seen to repeat itself as Shelley echoes her mother hiding what is happening, covering bruises with make-up and convincing herself her husband doesn't mean to do it, he loves her really.
Shelley is an engaging character, cheerful and no-nonsense, just as you would expect from a pub landlady. This makes what is happening to her even more shocking and goes to show that anyone can be a victim of abuse.
I really enjoyed the way in which the author used the character's uncertainty to keep the reader guessing. When Shelley woke up, convinced it was 2017, you just knew that something wasn't quite right. Different possible scenarios went through my mind and this helped me to understand how confused Shelley must have felt.
There are some lovely supporting characters in the book. Granny Rose is my favourite, and probably the one that will cause the most discussion. Living with Shelley and her mother she knows exactly what is happening but does nothing about it. You can feel how conflicted she is, she knows that by making a fuss she may lose her home and her ability to protect Shelley. Dee is the type of best friend everyone wants. She isn't aware of the abuse Shelley is suffering but once things reach a head she stands by Shelley 100%, offering help and support in any way she can. As for hospital visitor Matt, you just know that his role is going to be pivotal.
This was one of those books that I just couldn't put down, I needed to know what had happened and where Shelley's future was headed. Author Laura Pearson has a new fan and I'll certainly be looking at her other novels very soon.
Author Details
Laura Pearson is the author of four novels. The Last List of Mabel Beaumont was a Kindle number one bestseller in the UK and a top ten bestseller in the US. Laura lives in Leicestershire, England, with her husband, their two children, and a cat who likes to lie on her keyboard while she tries to write.
No comments:
Post a Comment