My latest book recommendation is 'Invisible Girl' by Lisa Jewell. It is a complex psychological thriller involving prejudice, false accusations and a young girl's revenge for what happened to her when she was a child.

Invisible Girl

By Lisa Jewell

(Published by Cornerstone Digital)

Lisa Jewell was born in London in 1968. Her first novel, 'Ralph's Party', was the bestselling debut novel of 1999. Since then, she has written another twenty novels, most recently several dark psychological thrillers, including 'The Girls', 'Then She Was Gone', 'The Family Upstairs', 'The Family Remains' and 'The Night She Disappeared', all of which were Richard & Judy Book Club picks.

Lisa is a New York Times and Sunday Times number one bestselling author who has been published worldwide in over thirty languages. She lives in north London with her husband and two daughters.

THE AUTHOR

PLOTLINE  

When Saffyre Maddox was ten, something bad happened to her, which she has been unable to forget. Now a teenager, she has no real friends and has started to self-harm.

After losing her grandparents and her mother, Saffyre's uncle, Aaron, had stepped in and assumed responsibility for her, as her father did not want to know. Although he was only ten years older than her, Aaron had become like a father to Saffyre. Thinking it might help her to stop self-harming, he therefore arranges for her to see a child psychologist, Roan Fours. However, Roan has secrets of his own and when he declares he no longer needs to see Saffyre, she decides to follow him and silently observe his behaviour. Invisible in the shadows, it is not long before she discovers the truth about Roan.

Like Saffyre, Owen Pick is also a loner. A teacher of computer science at Ealing Tertiary College, he lives on his own across the road from Roan. Solitary and socially awkward, his neighbours regard him as creepy – especially after two of his students accuse him of misconduct, leading to his suspension from work. Feeling victimised, Owen decides to meet up with Bryn, an online blogger who seems to understand his predicament. However, after meeting Bryn it is obvious he is simply an anti-women crusader who thinks men should do what is necessary to control them. Realising all he can do is hope the college eventually clears his name, Owen returns to his lonely flat to lick his wounds. Unfortunately, when Saffyre disappears from outside Roan's house, everyone, including the police, believes Owen has something to do with it.

MY REVIEW

I found this novel quite intriguing. With two damaged characters at the forefront of the story, there's more than enough to keep you guessing.

The story is told mainly from Saffyre's point-of-view, with the focus alternatively swapping between the other characters. There are three main threads to the storyline. The first is Saffyre's struggle to cope with her life. The second is Roan and the secrets he keeps from his family, while the third is the problems Owen has with his inability to interact with women. Seemingly disconnected with each other at first, all three eventually clash together with Saffyre's actions providing the final catalyst that changes the lives of everyone.

'Invisible Girl' is published by Cornerstone Digital and is available in eBook, paperback, hardback and audio formats from Amazon.