The First Day of Spring
Ratings28
Average rating4
15
Ratings28
Average rating4
**DISCOVER THE YEAR'S MOST PAGE-TURNING THRILLER** 'Perceptive and compassionate' GUARDIAN 'Gorgeously written' PANDORA SYKES 'A stunning debut' WASHINGTON POST 'I loved this book' CLARE MACKINTOSH 'Compulsively readable' ASHLEY AUDRAIN 'Compelling . . . stunningly powerful' GRAZIA 'An unforgettable narrative voice' PAULA HAWKINS 'An extraordinary and heart-rending novel' OBSERVER 'This is outstanding . . . so powerful' TRACY FENTON 'A darkly dazzling debut . . . gripping' LISA JEWELL 'A gripping, unsettling debut novel' ABIGAIL DEAN 'Sharp-edged and highly discussable' BOOKLIST **A GUARDIAN 2021 BEST CRIME AND THRILLER PICK** ___________ 'So that was all it took,' I thought. 'That was all it took for me to feel like I had all the power in the world. One morning, one moment, one yellow-haired boy. It wasn't so much after all.' Chrissie knows how to steal sweets from the shop without getting caught, the best hiding place for hide-and-seek, the perfect wall for handstands. Now she has a new secret. It gives her a fizzing, sherbet feeling in her belly. She doesn't get to feel power like this at home, where food is scarce and attention scarcer. Fifteen years later, Julia is trying to mother her five-year-old daughter, Molly. She is always worried - about affording food and school shoes, about what the other mothers think of her. Most of all she worries that the social services are about to take Molly away. That's when the phone calls begin, which Julia is too afraid to answer, because it's clear the caller knows the truth about what happened all those years ago. And it's time to face the truth: is forgiveness and redemption ever possible for someone who has killed? ______________ READERS LOVE THE FIRST DAY OF SPRING . . . *****'A powerful, distressing, haunting, but ultimately brilliant read' *****'Such a heartbreaking and powerful psychological drama that will stay with me for a long time' *****'An incredible book' *****'A thought provoking, dark and compulsive read... Highly recommend' *****'You DO NOT want to miss The First Day of Spring!'
Reviews with the most likes.
This was an excellent, if a quite disturbing read.
Chrissie's/Julia's character was really well written and made me go from disliking her to feeling really sorry for her. Reading about the awfulness of her home life, you can understand why she ended up doing what she did.
I liked the split storyline between Chrissie (past) and Julia (present).
Thank you to PH and Nancy Tucker for the chance to read this book.
3.5 Stars
It was an interesting, and dark read. I havent read a book like this before.
You feel bad for Christine but at the same time you don't. Really eerie feelings throughout the book.
3.5
I wish I had known that this was more of a character/psychological study when going in coz I expected more of a mystery/thriller.
It had a very slow start but then as the book goes on, you get invested in the characters and everything they did and it makes it easier to continue.
Some parts had me so close to tears and other parts just hit me in a whole other way.
Def recommend this one!!
