by Donna McLean
Published by Hodder Studio
an imprint of Hodder & Stoughton
Cover design by Aaron Munday
A work of fiction takes imagination, creative world-building, some have humorous characters or talking animals & sometimes added fluff for fun!
This book has no fluff.
There's a 'relationship' - an engagement (but no ring) & thoughts of wedding plans, fun holiday photos & good memories, plans for children. The plans even included a dog but they were all scripted by one man & his group of Police colleagues. For a 2-year+ chunk of her life, everything for Donna McLean was a charade but she didn't know until everything came crashing down, much later. Her life was completely derailed.
There's such careful, detailed planning & manipulation, it's more than a bit mind-boggling to think this real-life story could happen - unless it's in a film, driven by actual fiction, writers, a director, producer & a dramatic script.
Imagine having to question every single moment of your life & being dubious about every person you interact with on a daily basis. What was real? Anything or nothing?
Donna's emotions were real but everything was extinguished in an instant. The aftermath will last a lifetime.
The reader can feel themselves being swept along through Donna's life & it's so jarring when things go SO wrong but it isn't just another book we're reading - it's her real life. It will make you wonder how the police department's actions can actually be true but they were, then. Maybe things like this still happen - we have no way of knowing for sure.
An interesting & unsettling read. It makes me wonder if we ever know the people who cross our own paths in our REAL lives.