This book is certainly highly charged and very tense in parts. With a dual timeline alternating between events which start in 1999 and the present day, the book’s narrators are Kit and Laura, two young lovers who are pretty much soul mates from the first time they meet and decide to make their lives together.
Kit is an academic young man, a scientist who is fascinated by solar eclipses and who is willing to travel the world to get the best study vantage point for them. Kit and Laura travel to the Lizard peninsula in Cornwall. They are at a hippy festival where there is to be an eclipse. Kit and his twin Mac, a wayward but attractive young man, have set up a drinks stall at the festival to help them pay their way.
What happened during the festival when they come across Beth and Jamie will set off a chain of events that will follow them through their lives for the next 20 years.
Erin Kelly weaves a beguiling story, shot through with tension and highly charged emotions. She shows how the best of intentions can lead to lies that will impact on those closest to those who tell them and alter the course of their lives forever.
The book is suffused with twists and turns, leading the reader to wonder who can be relied upon for the truth, until it becomes clear that each of the four protagonists has something to hide.
Kelly has produced a deeply thought provoking book which tackles a difficult subject and raises quite a few important questions about the way in which rape is treated in our courts and how and whether the victim is believed.
But this is not just a book about a rape trial; rather it looks at the consequences of relationships in which everyone is being less than honest and how small lies can produce far bigger consequences than those intended.
Kelly unfolds the truth behind her characters as the darkness that they have created slowly enfolds them until they live in fear and are compelled to hide from the world, erasing their identities lest they be discovered.
This is a powerful psychological thriller that will stay with me for quite some time to come.

It was not one of the psychological thriller that you need to read in a day but that you forget without a week. This is a slower and more subtle book that creates more lasting images. Laura and Kit chasing eclipses is on of those images. I also thought that it was written a lot better than your average 99p psychological thriller ebook.
It is about love and betrayal, friendship and misunderstandings. But it is mostly about betrayal although being a psychological thriller it is not always the most obvious betrayal that counts.

Laura and Kit are in Cornwall to watch an eclipse in 1999 when Laura witnesses a criminal act that changes her life for the next fifteen years and possibly longer. Beth enters in their lives and never really leaves them. The book is also about rape, violence on women and who we are prepared to believe. It does challenge our own prejudices. Do we believe Beth or not? And if not why not?

The book fluctuates between the present (2015) and the past (1999/2000) but it is easy to follow, unlike other books which use the same way of narrating events in the past. It was the first book by Erin Kelly I read and it won't be the last. It is classified as a psychological thriller, but I would be careful here, there is definitely a lot of psychology but less of a thriller. It is more about the perception of danger than danger itself but there are some 'exciting bits'.

I struggled to get into this but I'm glad I persevered
Kit and Laura travel to watch an eclipse, somehow Laura disturbs a couple, the woman seems to appreciate it. Some years later she appears on their doorstep. things take a strange turn and she wonders if the man may have been speaking the truth. Their help has disastrous consequences on their lives. 15 years later they live with new identities and off grid,no social media or internet. Can they stay safe??

Billed as a psychological thriller this is very different to the standard novels with a twist out there. I have to confess that about a third of the way through I almost gave up on it and was ready to start something else. Erin Kelly has crafted an excellent anatomy of a relationship but the pacing may leave a lot to be desired for the die-hard (pun intended) thriller reader.

It is 1999 and Kit and Laura are at the Lizard in Cornwall, working a festival to pay their way while they wait for the total eclipse of the sun. When the eclipse is clouded out they mask their disappointment and head off to a quieter area to be alone. Laura stumbles across a couple in the middle of sexual activity. As her embarrassment recedes she takes in the details in front of her. The girl pressed down into the mud, her face covered in snot and tears. This is not consensual. Laura calls out the young man on his behaviour before he runs off into the crowd. Calling the police for the young woman Laura and Kit set in motion a train of events that would follow them through life forever.

Kelly writes very eloquently and there are very descriptive passages setting the scenes as the action takes place. You do have to pay quite close attention as the book moves fluidly from Laura's to Kit's point of view and alternates between the aftermath of the Lizard and more recent times.

It is worth persevering with this long and twisty novel because the final chapters were very unpredictable and definitely worth the wait.

Supplied by Net Galley and Hodder & Staughton in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me a copy of this book.

I wasn't sure at first if I wanted to read this or not but I can now say that I am glad that I have read this.

[a:Erin Kelly|1308914|Erin Kelly|http://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1307333214p2/1308914.jpg] is a really good author she know's how to grab your interest from the start and keep it all the way through taking you on twists and turns as the story finally reaches the end.

Laura and her boyfriend are really into eclipse chasing. What fallows after the the night of the eclipse is both frightening and sad.

Many people have written a brief outline of the book, so I wouldn't want to do the same thing. Instead i am going to share my opinion on the book.

[b:He Said/She Said|31393997|He Said/She Said|Erin Kelly|http://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483453615s/31393997.jpg|52084203] had me really believing Beth and her side of the story but just when I thought things could not get anymore interesting and draw me further into the story another character was brought in and my concentration turned to him and I then found myself believing most of his side to the story, Erin Kelly was not finished there, she threw another twist into the mix and threw the story in the air and had me guessing on everything that happened next to the point where i didn't have a clue till nearly the end on who's side of the event i wanted to believe.

The book is a bit of a slow burner; we know an incident happened in the past between Kit, Laura, Beth and Jamie which impacts still on the present day. The story is told in past and present by Laura and Kit. At first it seemed so straightforward what was happening so when the truth was revealed I was totally shocked as it unravelled. It kept me gripped more and more as the story went on. Great ending too

This is a contemporary slow burn suspense thriller that flits in time between 2015 and 2000. It captures the complexity of a couple’s relationship that initially appears solid and balanced, but as the story progresses and you scratch beneath the surface isn’t what it first appears to be.
Readers are introduced to Laura in 2015. She is pregnant, prone to panic attacks and practices mindfulness to counter this. Her partner Kit studies eclipses and we learn about how they met and shared a love for these eclipses and most importantly when they encountered Beth…
Beth now known as Liz Taylor has legal anonymity after the court case. This was a rape trial against the rich upstart Jamie . Laura witnessed the sexual encounter and as a consequence both her and Kit were involved in the rape trial in Cornwall. And so it comes to down to who saw what and who said what. But Laura tells a little white lie that haunts her. She is unable to disclose this to anyone, something that has her in knots, something she fears will come back to bite her.
The story gradually unfolds to reveal what truly happened. There is an intricacy to the tangled relationships between Laura, kit & Beth. The dialogue is as much about what isn’t said as is said. In this way it weaves a clever and intoxicating story that incorporates a fitting but unusual backdrop about eclipses. All the characters are memorable and distinctly evolve as the story progresses. Essentially there are a good number of twists that occur through peristalsis so that the effect is gradual & rhythmical, but nonetheless transpire markedly and memorably.
The writing has a means of holding you and drawing you into its nuances. It gets you thinking and cleverly captures how remarkable personal interactions and relationships are. Much is told in the 1st person, which lends itself to the character’s personal and often unreliable interpretation of events around them. It allows us to see how we filter what we see and hear to our own preferences and interpretations. It is realistic amidst the simmering personal devastation that is experienced. In all everything about this book atmospherically resonates, so that there a reading after burn long after finishing the book, which is always a great effect to have & the sign of a solid, good read.

I found this book a bit disconcerting and difficult to get into initially, but once I'd got used to the different characters contributing to the story I found it a good read. Erin Kelly tantalises the reader by letting you know early on that the main character and her husband have restructured their lives and are hiding so that Beth is unable to find them, but you don't find out just what Beth has done and why they're hiding from her for a long time. Then, when everything falls into place everything gets turned on its head! I liked the twists and turns and once I'd got used to the story flitting between characters I found I liked the way it had been told! It's a good thriller with twists and turns you don't expect.

I am afraid that I actually gave up on this title. I barely ever give up reading a book I have started, as I always need to know how it ends. With this one, I couldn't have cared less! Sorry Erin Kelly, but there is my honest review. A rather poor show!

Absolutely gripping thriller from a writer at the top of her game. Clever, nuanced and beautifully written.

The first thing I did when I finished reading this book was to find what else Erin Kelly had written in order to read anything else she had written and wasn't surprised to see she had penned 'Broadchurch'. So many books these days tell you 'you won't see the twist coming'. Well, I usually do or else a ridiculous bit is added at the end which is so unrealistic, just to,provide that twist - not with this book. The narrative was superlative, from the description of characters to the unfolding of the story and, no, I didn't see the twist coming. Highly recommended.

I've just finished a great book. I normally only read romance/YA/paranormal books, so He Said She Said is a little out of my preferred genre as it's a crime thriller at heart.

I got He Said/She Said through NetGalley so thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read it. He Said/She Said releases in April 20th 2017, according to Goodreads.

Did I enjoy He Said/She Said? Yes.

Would I recommend He Said/She Said? To an adult, yes, if you want a chilling, read where you don't know who to trust. To a teenager, no because the story got depressing in places and I honestly don't think a teenager would enjoy it. To a child, no. It's not the sort of book a child should be reading. I'd give He Said/She Said an age rating of 16+.

Would I reread He Said/She Said? No. Just because with crime/thriller books I think I only need to read them once to get the full story. There's an answer at the end - did he/she do whatever they're being accused of. That's all I think I need to know.

3 Stars!

The basic story is Laura and Kit are in love before the story starts. They're both eclipse chasers. When at an eclipse party they see an incident take place. They are unsure of what to do. This incident is the main plot of the whole story. What continues from this main plot point is uncertainty for most of the characters as well as secrets that get revealed. The book is set around the sun's eclipse. The 5 parts of the book are named after parts of the eclipse.

He Said/She Said is based in England, mainly although we do see some other locations through the different perspectives we follow.

We see the story through both the eyes of Laura and Kit. Laura is pregnant with twins and Kit is on an eclipse chase for part of the novel. I didn't really see the point in these chapters from Kit's perspective. All they did was make me eager to keep reading to find out what Laura was going through, back in England. But maybe that was what they were meant to do.

Spoilers below...

This is a long book so I'm not going to be able to go over every point here, but the main one, I think is: The abuse of Beth (the main side character) and whether or not it was actually a sexual assault or not. This is the main plot point of the book, whether or not she was abused by Jamie, another side character or not. All other points are joined at least somewhat to this main one.

Laura, Kit, Beth, and Jamie all have to go through the court case. Laura lies in her testimony saying that Beth definitely didn't consent to the sex, when she doesn't know if she did or didn't. We see this part of the story through Laura's eyes.

I don't really want to write anymore of what happens in the story because as I said above, I think it's best to go into blind, so you can be surprised like the first person narrative you're reading from. But there are many twists/ turns and secrets revealed to keep your eyes on. I could certainly see why it's called He Said/She Said, once I was finished reading it because I just didn't know who to trust.

I'm giving He Said/She Said 3 stars because the story gripped me and it was spine tingling to read. However, the chapters from Kit's perspective got to me, and although you need to read them to understand his character, I just found them rather boring. I liked how the format of the book was set around the eclipse, and how each chapter had the next step in the eclipse. I'm also never going to reread it as I said above, so that took a star off my rating.

He Said, She Said is one of the best books that I have read this year.
Told by two different people over a period of fifteen years it focuses on Laura and Kit who are witnesses to an attack at a festival to celebrate the eclipse. When Laura makes an error of judgement at the trial she is afraid of the consequences. But she doesn’t expect to be still living in fear years later. Beth, the young woman who was attacked is very much a part of their lives but they are not comfortable with her being so close to them. Laura’s story covers the way she has suffered since the trial and how she has kept it secret but Kit’s shows a more selfish side and how he has done things that places them in more danger.
I love a book with more than one narrator that also covers more than one period in time and I should imagine that it is difficult to do. Erin Kelly though has done it very well. There is a lot of drama and tension all the way through the book and both Laura and Kit have really suffered since the eclipse. At times, I felt very tense while reading and when it switched narrator I couldn’t wait to return to see what happened next.
The court scenes were the most convincing that I have read. A very convincing villain who maintained his innocence, a ruthless lawyer who had no sympathy at all for a victim. It was also, just as terrifying as I imagine it to be on a witness stand.
This is only the second book I have read by this author and I’m looking forward to reading more by her.
Erin Kelly will be appearing at First Monday Crime on the 6th March. This looks like a very interesting evening and details can be found here

With thanks to the publisher for the copy via NetGalley.

This was a very well-constructed, well thought out thriller.

The plot was based around a subject I had never even thought was as big as it apparently is (eclipse chasing that is, not the other central theme), which was interesting in it itself. The story is unravelled through two timelines, one in the past and one in the present, both of which serve to provide a true representation of one crucial event that triggered all subsequent events, through the peeling back of layer upon layer of deceit, lies, and half-truths.

Some great twists and turns throughout the book keep the reader engaged from the start. I personally love the way the ending was wrapped up, and who wouldn't enjoy one last character reveal to leave you imploring yourself 'whose actions can be justified, if any'.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

A slow start but once you get through 25% , it picks up pace. The story follows Laura and Kit around the world, chasing eclipses. Laura witnesses a rape during a festival and that changes everything between her and Kit. The end is a bit drastic but quite chilling! A good read.

A good move on in the unreliable narrator genre.

More than a psych thriller. Quite enjoyed the eclipse chasing backdrop.

My only complaint would be Kits narration which still very much backsup Laura's version of Beth, which in retrospect doesn't add up. Not sure why he'd claim to be so terrified of seeing her....

But doesn't take away from page turner build as a reader.

A very engaging and thought-provoking tale with some super twists. It's told in two viewpoints by Laura and Kit so we see how they each react to the incident, the trial and the reappearance in their lives of the accuser and the accused. Information is introduced gradually, casting things in a different light and then a different one again and building up to a dramatic finale. The motif of the different stages of the eclipse echoing the shadowy uncertainty and gradual revelation of the truth worked for me and I'd definitely recommend this book.

This book was a bit of a slow start for me, mainly because I'm not at all interested in eclipses! But that didn't last for long, I was totally hooked after a few pages more! . The plot line was so clever, and had me guessing or thinking I knew, when I didn't! The original story line draws you in, you make judgements around what happened, or didn't happen, who was guilty, or not. But then it takes a more complex turn. Its so well written and the characters are so well described, I felt I knew them all really well. Having said that, I didn't see the twists that started coming fast and furious towards the end of the story. Brilliant book, I loved it!

Over on Goodreads, there appears a trend for defining books of this genre as "twist-lit". Think of novels like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train in which a defining twist turns everything you had believed on it's head.

This is exactly what He Said She Said did for me. It is the thriller I have waited to read for a long, long time.

I came to read this quite by accident while browsing through ARCs on Netgalley. Featured among the "most requested titles" it was described as domestic noir: a novel featuring a central storyline of a brutal attack and it's aftermath for the two key witnesses. But it is so very much more than that. It is a tour-de-force of impending dread, a psychological joyride through the nuances of truth, trust and control.

The story is told through the eyes of the two central protagonists, Laura and her boyfriend Kit, They are students at first, helping to run a tea stall at a festival in Lizard Point in Devon at the time of the solar eclipse. In the aftermath of totality, Laura stumbles upon a brutal attack on a young woman, followed shortly by Kit. As witnesses, they are drawn into the court case - a case of "he said, she said" in terms of conviction, which lays claim to the novel's title.

Chapters alternate between the past (the eclipse, court case and aftermath) to the present day, and between the viewpoints of both Laura and Kit. This effect is seamless for the most part, though there were a few sections towards the end when I needed to turn back to remind myself "where" in the story I was reading.

A sense of dread pervades throughout this fantastically layered novel. Little by little, the characters' true personality and motivations are revealed. My sense of "the truth" was turned on it's head several times throughout this first reading, particularly around three-quarters of the way through when the major plot twist occurs. I had to read a particular sentence several times before the truth of it sank in. It was masterfully delivered!

One of the most enjoyable - and haunting - elements of He Said She Said is the exploration of dependency and abuse. The lines between these two traits of personality are deliberately blurred: none just for one or two characters, but for all of them. I also really liked the theme of "eclipse chasing", which was fantastically well-researched and added a huge depth to the story to inspire character motivations.

This is such a well-written novel, perfectly delivered and retrospectively haunting. I sincerely hope this received the attention and sales it deserves. In fact, I'm unsure I even want to read another thriller this year: He Said She Said was so good that I'm not sure any other twist-lit title could compare!

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced reading copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

He Said/She Said' by Erin Kelly is a very entertaining read in a disturbing and twisted way. It is extremely well written, and the plot is very clever. I was unsure about it at first and it took a little time to get into it, but I am so glad that I stuck with it. Highly recommended.