Forget Me Not by Claire Allan

I kid you not when I say I read this book in 24 hours!! This was a page turner right until the last sentence!

I was at a recent book sale hosted by Libraries NI with my daughter and as she filled her bag with every book she had “always wanted to read”, I spied this one hidden between a few other books. It has sat on my shelf for a few weeks as, you know the drill, the social lives of the kids and everything else that life throws at you takes priority. But on a random day off work, when I probably should have been catching up on the lack of tidying and cleaning that has been happening this summer so far, I instead found myself absorbed deep into the lives of Rachel and Elizabeth. And then as everyone in the house snoozed their way into the next day, I was struggling to put the book down right into the wee hours of the morning.

I’ve read a few of Claire Allan’s books, and I really like her writing style and “Forget me not” was no different. Fast paced and with just enough drama to keep you wanting more without feeling overwhelmed or losing track. Her style of developing characters throughout the story is a perfect balance of meaningful interactions and subtle breadcrumbs about them to help build a clearer picture who they really are. There is nothing more disappointing as when you guess the main twists of the plot only a few chapters into a book but Claire’s way of writing fuels and maintains the mystery of the crime thriller for the reader right to the end.

The story of “Forget Me Not” follows the parallel lives of two characters, Rachel a young mum who has lost her way in her marriage, and Elizabeth, a widowed grandmother who is mourning the recent tragic loss of her daughter. The whole story takes place over a period of about a month and is set in Derry.

Following the gruesome murder of one of Rachel’s closest friends, the search for the killer weaves through the intersecting storylines of the two protagonists. Through her strong storyline, likeable characters, Claire Allan was able to intertwine the everyday mundane woes we all experience with drama that had more twists and ‘who dunnits’ that a Sloan family game of Cluedo.

I would definitely recommend you grabbing this book for a great thrilling read! My copy has already been handed on to my sister and I have another copy for my sister in law – spreading the love and mystery!!