The three main characters in this beautifully written story that is a mixture of mystery,the supernatural,folk tale and domestic drama are Claire and Duncan Henderson and their teenage son Joe. The Henderson's live in a beautiful,very impressive converted barn that is all gleaming sleek lines and glass. The house is all made out to Duncan's personal specifications,it's stunning but to Claire it feels more like a tomb than a home. She has had enough of Duncan's serial cheating and his behaviour towards her and her beloved son and has decided to take Joe and leave.
But before she can put her plan into action, Claire and Duncan have a massive row and Joe disappears into the night.
Claire goes into hiding in a isolated cottage,desperately searching for Joe,struggling to piece together the events of the night that tore them apart and unravel the lies that they have told each other,and themselves.
But can she face the truth?
The chapters of this haunting story flip back and forth between before and after and are narrated by Claire and Duncan. Every word of this story holds the readers attention and keeps you wanting to continue reading but my personal favourite sections were Claire's after chapters. They had an intense,sinister atmosphere and gave the feeling that all was not as it appeared to be. I loved the settings for these parts of the story,the desolate,run down cottages,the mysterious,spooky hall and the folk tale of the ghostly church that was submerged in water when the reservoir was created and is rumoured to occasionally rise up out of the murky depths when the water level subsides. Character wise,I loved how protective Claire was of Joe who reminded me of our son Tom who is also on the autism spectrum. I spent most of the book not liking Duncan very much but he did redeem himself a little towards the end of the story. Although there is no excuse for cheating or his behaviour towards Claire and Joe,as they say,there is always two sides to every story.
Magpie is a beautifully written,mesmerising story that keeps the reader guessing and frantically turning the pages from the first page,right through to the heart breaking conclusion. It's a captivating tale that plays with the readers emotions and pulls on your heart strings. I had a lump in my throat more than once as the story unfolded and I discovered what had happened in Claire and Duncan's pasts and on that fateful night. Sophie Draper is a very talented author who can cleverly manipulate and captivate the reader with her compelling story telling. If you enjoyed reading Cuckoo then you are going to love Magpie. Worth far more than five stars and very,very highly recommended.
AUTHOR BIO
Sophie 's debut novel, CUCKOO, was published by Avon (HarperCollins) on 29th Nov 2018. It won the Bath Novel Award 2017 (as "The Pear Drum") and the prestigious Friday Night Live competition at the York Festival of Writing 2017.
Her second book, MAGPIE, is due out on 28th November 2019.
Sophie lives with her family in Derbyshire, in a house filled with music, several cats, too many books and three growing boys. When not writing, Sophie works as a traditional oral storyteller. She was nominated for the British Awards for Storytelling Excellence 2013 (Outstanding Female Storyteller) and performs across the UK, telling stories for all ages at festivals, schools, historic houses, museums and community groups.
WEBSITE: www.sophiedraper.co.uk
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/sophiedraper9
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/Sophie-Draper-Writer-Storyteller-352644100930/
INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/sophiedraperwriter/?hl=en
PUBLICATION DATE: 28th November 2019
PRINT LENGTH: 284 pages
PUBLISHER: Avon Books UK
GENRE: Psychological Thriller
PURCHASE LINK....
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Magpie-Sophie-Draper/dp/0008311315/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3AE08O0AF960Z&keywords=magpie+sophie+draper&qid=1575132206&s=books&sprefix=Magpie%2Caps%2C202&sr=1-1
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