Tag: 20BooksofSummer

About the Book

A private jet plunges into the sea with only two survivors: the young son of the family who chartered the plane – now heir to a TV mogul’s fortune – and a man who only chanced to be on board at all, down-on- his-luck artist Scott Burroughs, the hero who saved the boy’s life.

But nothing is simple when big money is concerned and even bigger reputations are at stake. In the media storm that follows questions start to be asked. Is Scott Burroughs as innocent as he seems?

Format: Paperback (400 pages)  Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Publication date: 6th April 2017 Genre: Thriller

Find Before the Fall on Goodreads

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Hive | Amazon UK
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My Review

In his own words Scott Burroughs is ‘a single man approaching fifty, a notorious womanizer and recovering alcoholic, a struggling artist who’s never been able to keep a single lasting relationship. He is nobody’s role model. Nobody’s hero’. Yet he finds himself cast in the role of hero when he saves four-year-old JJ Bateman from the plane crash which killed everyone else onboard. The rescue is a remarkable demonstration of strength and endurance, described in the most thrilling way.

‘Everyone is from someplace. We all have stories, our lives unfolding along crooked lines, colliding in unexpected ways.’ This observation is reflected in the structure of the book with Scott’s experiences following the rescue and the media interest it creates, and the investigation into the cause of the plane crash, being interspersed with the back stories of the other passengers on the plane.  Within these stories are possible circumstances that might have led to the crash. Or was it simple mechanical failure?

There’s David Bateman, father of JJ, and the brains behind the ALC News TV channel whose agenda is not so much to report the news as to make it, expounding a point of view and a quite extreme one at that (think Fox News).  The station’s shock-jock presenter, Bill Milligan, who will stop at nothing to unearth a story, risks involving the station in criminal activity which might result in Bateman’s resignation. Added to this Bateman’s family have received threats resulting in them needing 24/7 armed security. Another passenger on the plane, financier Ben Kipling has just learned he is facing an indictment for money laundering, an activity which has seen him involved with some very shady organisations including some possibly engaged in terrorism. And you probably wouldn’t want members of your flight crew engaging in drink and drug fuelled parties during stopovers.

An intriguing element of the book are sections describing Scott’s paintings all of which depict scenes of catastrophe or impending disaster – a train crash, a building collapse, an approaching tornado. These come to play a key role in how Scott is viewed both by the media and those investigating the crash.  From being a hero, he becomes a suspect and the subject of media intrusion during which details of his private life are pored over and twisted to suggest his guilt.  Just how friendly was Scott with Bateman’s wife Maggie and what is behind his continuing interest in young JJ now being looked after by the boy’s aunt, executor of her brother’s multi-million dollar estate? And isn’t it the case that his paintings will be worth much more now than they would have been before?

I confess when the reason behind the crash is finally revealed, following some last minute disclosure of information, it was the least interesting of the possible scenarios and felt a bit of a letdown. Having said that, the brisk and breezy style of the writing, and the fast pace of the book kept me turning the pages. It would make a great beach read or to while away the hours on a long journey, possibly just not if it’s on a plane.

I received a proof copy courtesy of Hodder & Stoughton. Before the Fall is the fourth book on my list for the 20 Books of Summer 2022 reading challenge. And, yes, I am aware the end of August is fast approaching…

In three words: Gripping, twisty, stylish

Try something similar: The Quiet People by Paul Cleave

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About the Author

Noah Hawley is the Emmy award-winning creator of the hit TV series Fargo, and a Golden Globe, PEN, Critics’ Choice and Peabody Award-winning author, screenwriter, and producer. He has published four novels and penned the script for the feature film Lies and Alibis. He created, executive produced, and served as showrunner for ABC’s My Generation and The Unusuals and was a writer and producer on the hit series Bones. 

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About the Book

Who is Solomon Creed? A dangerous psychiatric patient, who has escaped from a high-security facility in America, or an innocent amnesiac trying to establish his true identity?

His search for the truth about himself takes Solomon to the beautiful southern French town of Cordes. But his arrival coincides with the brutal murder of an elderly French tailor, the words ‘Finishing what was begun’ daubed in blood on the walls.

Instinctively, Solomon knows he must help the tailor’s granddaughter and great grandson escape, and together they go on the run. Their flight, though, will set in motion a terrible sequence of events, leading to the exposure of a far-reaching conspiracy with its origins in the Holocaust but with terrible consequences for modern-day Europe. And what will it mean for Solomon himself?

Format: Hardback (544 pages)     Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication date: 15th June 2017 Genre: Thriller

Find The Boy Who Saw (Solomon Creed #2) on Goodreads

Purchase links
Bookshop.org
Disclosure: If you buy a book via the above link, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops

Hive | Amazon UK
Links provided for convenience only, not as part of an affiliate programme

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My Review

As if the 20 Books of Summer Reading Challenge weren’t difficult enough, I decided to make it even harder for myself by constructing my list from the twenty oldest unread paperbacks on my bookshelves. And vowing to read them in date order. Yes, I know. I also decided to adopt a ruthless approach: if a book isn’t working for me, I’ll set it aside, put it in the pile for the charity shop and pick up the next one. The Boy Who Saw is the second book from my list and at no point did I think about setting it aside.

I absolutely loved the author’s Sanctus trilogy (comprising Sanctus, The Key and The Tower) and felt the same about the book that first introduced the enigmatic Solomon Creed to the world, The Searcher, when I read it back in 2016. Since I described The Searcher as ‘a cracking thriller’, I have no idea why it’s taken me so long to read this follow-up apart from the fact it’s quite a chunky read.  However, the number of pages are quickly forgotten because of the pace with which the story unfolds, the complex and intriguing plot and the author’s trademark teasing chapter endings.

The plot moves between the present day and the period of the Second World War. The events of the latter are revealed bit by bit through excerpts from two memoirs. They describe the horrific treatment of Jewish people by the Nazis and by one individual in particular, described as the Devil in human form for whom ‘Death was his to command’.  It would be nice to think that some of the events described came purely from the author’s imagination but I fear not.

Although the origins of the murders may stretch back decades, events in the present day encompass plenty of contemporary themes: far right extremism, anti-immigrant prejudice and political corruption. And it wouldn’t be a top-notch thriller without a race against time, a breathless pursuit, some full-on action, characters who aren’t what they profess to be and some really bad guys equipped with the latest technology. As the officer in charge of the murder investigation, Commandant Benoît Armand, ruefully observes, ‘Law enforcement in its current state was like a Band Aid on an arterial wound’. However, the arrival on the scene of Solomon Creed with his unique abilities tips the scales back in favour of the good guys – and then some.

I’m not even going to attempt to summarise the twists and turns of the plot, so you’ll just have to trust me that it will keep you guessing right to the end and probably, like me, frantically turning the pages.  I’m not afraid to confess I suspected just about every character of being involved in the killings and was wrong every time.

The author continues to tease the reader with the truth about Solomon Creed’s identity right up to the end of the book, leaving it perfectly set up for a third book – at least I hope so.

In three words: Gripping, suspenseful, assured

Try something similar: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes

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About the Author

Simon Toyne is the international bestselling author of Dark Objects, the Sanctus trilogy and the Solomon Creed series. He wrote Sanctus after quitting his job as a TV executive and it became the biggest selling debut thriller of 2011 in the UK. His books have been translated into 29 languages and published in over 50 countries.

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