BLOG TOUR : Book Review - The Closer I Get by Paul Burston

O,what a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive.

Ohhh boy,deception is most definitely the name of the game in this twisty, compelling tale of manipulation,deception,lies,obsession and the dangers of interacting with strangers on social media,especially when you are a well known person in the public domain.

The three main players in this disturbingly relevant thriller are Tom (the author) Emma (Tom's best friend) and Evie ( Tom's alleged stalker)

Tom's first novel was a bestseller that received critical acclaim and was adapted into a film starring Ryan Gosling but now Tom is struggling to finish his latest novel. He is suffering from a very bad case of writers block and is no longer his agents golden boy,it actually appears that she is gradually distancing herself from him. But Tom's biggest distraction apart from social media is an obsessive fan who refuses to leave him alone.

Evie is very intelligent, very sly and manipulative and very very unstable. She lives with her father and spends all her time on social media.When Evie is hit with a restraining order,her world is turned upside down. Tom is overjoyed,thinking that he free to live his life again and finally finish his novel.

But nothing is what it appears to be,neither Tom or Evie would be able to tell the truth,even if their lives depended on it. And if Tom thinks that a little thing like a restraining order is going to stop Evie,then he seriously needs to think again. Or is there more to Tom and Evie's relashionship than Tom is admitting.

The story is set in London and Hastings and is told in chapters that alternate between Tom and Evie's very unreliable perspectives. During some of Evie's chapters,we are taken back into her past and told her back story which gives the reader a insight into why she thinks and behaves in the manner that she does. As the story unfolded,I changed my mind numerous times about who I thought was telling the truth,who was the master manipulator. I can honestly say that I didn't like neither Evie or Tom. Someone I did like and was my favourite character in this book was
Tom's elderly neighbour whilst he was staying in Hastings. Colin was a wonderful,realistic,loveable character.

As well being a deeply disturbing psychological thriller,this story is also a very relevant to modern times warning about the dangers of interacting with strangers on social media and the fickleness of modern society. Every day we follow people,get new followers,like and retweet comments. If you stop and think about it,we all put ourselves in the position where any one of us could find ourselves in the same predicament that Tom allegedly found himself caught up in.

The Closer I Get hooks the reader in from the first page,holding your attention right through to the totally unexpected,twist at the conclusion. The twists and turns keep you guessing,the characters are deeply flawed with realistic issues. This story is extremely well written,intense,compulsive and chilling and I loved it. This is the first book that I have read by this author and it definitely will not be my last. Very highly recommended.

                                                          ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Paul Burston is the author of five novels and the editor of two short story collections. His most recent novel The Black path, was a WHSmith bestseller. His first novel, Shameless, was shortlisted for the State of Britain Award. His third novel, The Gay Divorcee, was optioned for television. He was a founding editor of Attitude magazine and had written for many publications including Guardian, Independent, Time Out, The Times and Sunday Time. In March 2016, he was featured in the British Council's #FiveFilms4Freedom Global List 2016, celebrating "33 visionary people who are promoting freedom, equality and LGBT rights around the world" He is the founder and host of London's award-winning LGBT+ literary salon Polari and chair of The Polari First Book Prize for writing and the newly announced Polari Prize.

PUBLICATION DATE: 11 May 2019
PRINT LENGTH: 276 pages
PUBLISHER: Orenda Books
GENRE: Gay@Lesbian Fiction

PURCHASE LINK....

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Closer-I-Get-Paul-Burston-ebook/dp/B07KGMHYGR/ref=sr_1_1?crid=GDUMUT37AFXV&keywords=the+closer+i+get&qid=1561910154&s=books&sprefix=The+closer+%2Cstripbooks%2C200&sr=1-1

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