My thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in return for an honest review .I requested this début novel because it was set in Edinburgh where I was shortly to make a visit. I read it on my return and could visualise many of the places mentioned. What a terrific narrative so well handled, with terrific interplay between the various characters. Obviously the author had a genuine story to tell, that she cared about, generated by current news and it was not, as so often happens, something cobbled together to create a profit.

The core of the story is the shooting dead of young teenage school girls by a fellow pupil, a boy who then kills himself.. Whilst it‘s a crime story and a police procedural, it‘s not as lots of people have already said, a who done it, but a why done it. And it looks in depth at the effects that the crime has on all connected to it, from the victims families and one in particular, to the mother of the perpetrator, to the newly appointed police inspector herself, It also looks at the part played by social media in big news stories from the largely ignorant public, who think they have a right to comment publicly, to the press, and one particular. reporter. Not only are the victims all female, but the principal characters, who although they are severely battered by their experiences manage to come through to the other side stronger and more able to cope. In the year that we are celebrating the centenary of women’s suffrage this is particularly apt.

On a minor personal note, I was amused to see that when one of the lead female characters left her husband she spent the next six weeks in a hotel, the same hotel at which we stayed.. This author is already a published poet but I know that this work of fiction won’t be her last. I rarely use the worn out cliché, “not put down able”, any more, but this one certainly is. If this doesn’t become one of the best crime books of the year there is no justice.

This does not read like a first novel. ‘All the Hidden Truths is an incredibly well plotted, tightly structured and beautifully written story. Knowing Edinburgh a little, it was not difficult to imagine where the characters were travelling around the city but any reader who has never visited will soon feel familiar with the different areas, so well described are they. However, it is neither the setting nor Claire Askew’s use of language alone that make this such a compelling read. The way in which she clearly understands and is able to delineate character motivation and human vulnerabilities really draws the reader into the narrative. The author is able to depict self-centred teenager Abigail, her mother Ishbel’s sterile marriage and newly promoted police inspector DI Birch’s qualms with equal conviction. But she doesn’t only focus on women. The ghastly journalist, Grant Lockley, who haunts all those involved in the central event – a college campus massacre – is perhaps slightly more representative of the worst elements of the press than a character in his own right, as is the callous Aiden, husband of Ishbel, rather a stereotypical philanderer. However, Askew weaves all the strands of this story together with real skill as we are pulled into their tragic, chaotic world.
A ‘high school massacre’ story may seem strange, set as it is in a city that we identify as culturally rich and beautiful. However, the author reminds us how and why young people can become disaffected and obsessional. It’s easy to accept how Ryan comes to have such deadly weapons as well as why his mother feels distanced from her once loving little boy. The way in which Askew shines such a strong beam on the most nefarious journalistic practices is absolutely in tune with our times. However, this element of the story is not just a vehicle for disparaging the press; it is also highly relevant to the narrative.
My only criticism is that the final chapter was not necessary. In fact, it weakened the overall realistic tone of the story because the reader accepts that teenagers make daft choices, usually taking time to change into more responsible people. The ending of the novel felt cheesy, in total contrast to the rest of the narrative, and a bigger impact would have been felt if it had finished with the Editor-in-Chief’s statement, reminding us that sometimes punishment is an appropriate outcome but that people still have to live with the aftermath of tragedy.
I shall certainly look out for Askew’s next novel. In Helen Birch she has created a three-dimensional police inspector and I look forward to seeing how her backstory, involving a long-disappeared brother, Charlie, may develop. My thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for a copy of this novel in exchange for a fair review.

All the Hidden Truths by Claire Askew is a gripping psychological thriller about a college student walking into Three Rivers college and shooting and killing thirteen women and then himself.
The story starts with Moira Summers witnessing the aftermath of an accident with a young guy gets impaled on a construction site. Her mind then wonders to her son Ryan. She wonders what would she do, if something ever happened to him.
DI Birch is on her way to work, when she hears on the radio of a dispatcher asking police to got to Three Rivers College. DI Birch says she is on the way to the scene. They first think it’s a hoax of a shooter on the premises, but when DI birch gets to the college. They find out that it is really happening. A college student Ryan Summers has killed thirteen women and then kills himself.
This is an emotional and topical drama of the aftermath of a school shooting. At first, the author does not give everything away first hand. But by bit by bit, you find out what has happened and why. The story is told in several points of view. Firstly, we learn what kind of person Ryan summers was and also his mother and the guilt that she feels of what her son did. And also what lead up to that day and the events. But also, by the press, in particular Grant Lockley, who lie and cheat and force their way into people’s lives. There is also D.I. Birch who is doing everything she can to not only find out what happened. But has to deal with Grant Lockley, who she has previously had problem with when she was younger concerning her brother Charlie. So she has personal issues with him.
I really enjoyed this. I found this realistic, gripping and thought provoking.
Thank you Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for a copy of this book.

I didn't expect to get through this as quickly as I did.
Some of the story was told through soical media such as tweets, emails, articles and comments. Which I liked. I think it added to the story, showing how we react to news nowadays.
The story itself felt a little dragging at times but overall I did like it.

Fantastic read, bit of an uneasy subject to write about, but Claire has done it brilliantly with believable characters you can't help feel sorry for, the book came together very well at the end and I'm looking forward to her next read

I would like to thank Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘All The Hidden Truths’ written by Claire Askew in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
At 8.30am Ryan Summers walks into Three Rivers College and by 9.00am thirteen young women are dead, a young man is injured, and he’s saved his last bullet for himself. On her way to start her new job at Fettes, newly promoted DI Helen Birch hears over her police radio there’s been a shooting at the college’s Tweed Campus and is one of the first on the scene. Everyone knows that Ryan is the killer but no-one knows why he took three starting pistols into college that day with the intention of killing his fellow-students.
‘All The Hidden Truths’ is an exciting and fast-paced thriller with a cleverly written plot, twists and turns, and interesting characters. It’s full of suspense and has all the ingredients needed to keep the reader captivated throughout. Articles written by the journalist Grant Lockley and Twitter remarks from his readers are well-integrated into the story. It concludes with a surprising last chapter where the first victim, Abigail, writes a page in her diary which she then destroys. It was so enjoyable that I find it hard to believe this is Claire Askew’s de-but as a writer of thrillers. I was gripped from page one and couldn’t stop reading until I’d reached the final page. Well done, Claire, and I hope you write more thrillers in the future.

All the Hidden Truths explores the aftermath of a horrific college shooting that has left 13 young women dead, as well as their killer, a troubled young man named Ryan Summers. The book follows the stories of Ryan’s mother Moira, as she struggles to understand what her son has done, Ishbel, the mother of one of the victims whose fragile family has been torn apart, and Birch, the DI assigned to the case. There have been quite a few books on this topic in recent years, but in this novel Askew does something a little different – as well as a deep dive into the families affected by the shooting, she explores an aspect of tragedy that has become all too common: press intrusion. The slimy reporter Grant Lockley does come across as a bit if a grotesque caricature, but the focus is clear and compelling and gives this story an extra edge. It’s well paced and sympathetically and cleverly written, with a lasting message.

I don't know what to make of this book, it dipped in and out of being captivating and slow for me.At times I was page turning like mad and in other parts I found it to be dragging.The story was good and unfortunately very topical,we knew who the shooter was from early in the book the question was why? Told from different points of view and it was a good read but didn't totally grip me.I wish I had been more invested in it but it wasn't a bad read .Thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for an ARC.

A disturbing topical subject which is handled sympathetically from several viewpoints. The slow start with rather too detailed information about the layout of Edinburgh eventually became an involving read.

I thought this was an incredibly difficult subject to cover in a book, but Claire Askew dealt with it very sensitively. It's certainly a twist when you, and the police, know who committed the crime. The issue of why, and the impact of such a tragedy on the survivors was all done very well. I thought all the characters very credible, and had huge amounts of sympathy for both Moira and Ishbel, (what an unusual name, I'd love to know how Ms Askew came up with that one!). The only aspect I struggled with was the newspaper copy supplied by the repugnant Grant Lockley. I'm not convinced that a reporter would be allowed to whip up such hate for the perpetrator's mother, and, although I had no qualms buying into Lockley being a dishonest and revolting reporter, I'm afraid I couldn't believe in the quoted newspaper articles attributed to him. Leaving that aside, I thought this was an unusual concept, eloquently executed by a talented writer and I'll certainly be reading more by Claire Askew.

An exceptional debut novel which would be perfect for a TV drama !

All The Hidden Truths is based on the horrific subject of mass murder gun crime. We are used to hearing about this in America so it was a insightful twist to base it in Edinburgh.

The story unfolds into searching out the reasons why something so terrible could ever arise in the first place. It focuses on the three main women who are continually sent reeling by the answers they receive as the investigation progresses. Throw in some unscrupulous tabloid journalism and you are hooked by this page turner

An interesting, thoughtful but gripping thriller. A student has shot and killed 13 female students at his Edinburth college and then killed himself. The story looks at the fall-out of this from three female perspectives. We experience the pain and confusion of Moira, the mother of the gunman, and her shame and fear in the face of threats. Ishbel, mother of the first victim, unravels in the face of pain and other revelations and Helen Birch is the new DI leading the investigation and dealing with personal feelings. The main characters are well fleshed out and the story builds fairly steadily to start with, with the tension increasing dramatically towards the end. It is a first-rate thriller but has found room for compassion and human frailty too. I suspect it may be the start of a series and if so, I will be racing to read the next one.

I found this beautifully written novel about the aftermath of a school shooting captivating and engrossing.
The focus is not so much on the horrendous crime itself but the aftermath. It has a small cast of main characters: the mother of the shooter, a police detective and the mother of one of the victims. Their stories are told with great compassion and are totally believable and their rich inner lives are in stark contrast to a crude, populist smear campaign in the media.
I really enjoyed this book, it is heart-breaking and harrowing but with a well-earned slice of redemption at the end.

An excellent gripping read. The storyline is of a multiple shooting at a college and is very disturbing, although sadly all too common in the real world today. But you just have to keep reading, we know who did it at the outset so there is no mystery in the who did this sense but the story concentptrates on the why it happened and the emotional fall out for the families involved. Highly recommended.

On the surface 'All the Hidden Truths' is a novel about a teenager, Ryan Summers, who killed thirteen women at his college and then kills himself. As Ryan is not able to tell the story, we get to see it through the eyes of others i.e. his mother Moira, the detective working on the case, one of the victims parents.

The subject matter was very relevant to what is going on today, and while the shootings take place in Scotland, it sets a heart-breaking eerie tone of what could happen anywhere.

The book was a bit of a slow starter for me. I found it hard to get into in the beginning and I did find some of the narration character changes less smooth at times. As it progresses, it picks up the pace and it seems that the first part third of the book was really background reading. Some of the characters were more fleshed out than others;- Moira (Ryan's mother) was written really well and we get an insight into what it must be like to be the parent of a child/teenager who has caused so much devastation. We get to feel her fear as she's threatened and attacked by the press, the public and the parents of the dead students. In great contrast we also get to hear the side of the heartbreaking story of one of the parents who's daughter Abigail was killed - Ishbel. In the middle of this is the female Detective Inspector Helen Birch, who in charge (and given the case on her first day) and the rest of the police force who aren't used to dealing with mass murders and such a high profile case before. The story sees three main female characters dealing with the fallout in different ways but they will also forever be connected by this tragedy. Throw a dodgy and unscrupulous journalist (also echoing real life events) into the mix who will stop at nothing to get his story and it makes for a compelling story.

The book explores the triggers and motivators behind why someone would commit such a crime and it weighed heavily on my mind while reading the story, but it also highlights that the question - even is answerable, is not always the end goal for those experiencing loss, because it won't bring back their loved ones.

The pace really picked up towards the end but I did feel that it was all wrapped up a bit too neatly to be believable. *As part of their investigation (and in looking for motive), I would have expected the police to conduct interviews with Ryan's teacher/s and the students he interacted with. This doesn't seemed to have happened because a college incident (involving Ryan) is unknown to the DI and the police, and only brought in at the end to connect some dots for the conclusion.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Claire Askew for the ARC.

It took me awhile to get through this book, because it's been a very busy summer so far. It's a mark of quality how easily I was able to slip back into the story each and every time. A school shooting, especially in the UK, is a delicate subject for any author. All The Hidden Truths handles the aftermath of a brutal crime surprisingly elegantly. True, I felt that some characters seemed a bit flimsy, especially in the case of our unscrupulous journalist Grant. Aiden, I also felt, had very little purpose outside of his own villainous turns. These flaws are mostly cast in spotlight because of how beautifully written some of the female characters are. Ishbel, Helen, Moira and even Amy drove home for me how deeply this book manages to communicate the power of women. To love, to hurt, to forgive, and frankly to get things done despite overpowering odds.

The ending maybe was a little neat, with obvious effort spent to tie up as many loose ends as possible and good triumphing over evil. For me, that took away from the larger message that sometimes, there IS no evil. There are only human beings.

Beautifully written in its quieter, more reflective moments, when the story dwells on the painful conflict two mothers face over the deaths of their children, and still quite taut and well-paced in those sections which deal with a thriller-ish pursuit of justice. I withheld one star for some incongruous plotting and unused characters (what was the point of Anjan? Is it a relationship-set up for a sequel?)
I have read Sue Klebold's book about her son (one of the Columbine school shooters) and this ties into the unknowable, unbearable aftermath of a mass killing for the people closest to the perpetrator's crime. This novel also has harsh truths for readers about how we react to public tragedies, the responsibilities of media outlets and police and various groups who seek to exploit such events. Not an easy read, but well worth the effort.

I don't think I can find a rating high enough for this book - it is beyond superb and should not be missed. Normally I find books that are primarily psychological - spoken and feelings a bit slow but not this one. I was doubtful after reading the first chapter as I felt the authoress (I'm 71 so from the time when we had male and female nouns!) must have had an Edinburgh street map in one hand! If you read the summary of the book you may feel that the theme of mass school killing and aftermath might be all misery and frustration - but it isn't. This book covers the post killing events from the parent/s of the killer, one specific victim, the police and the press (brilliantly placed in one reporter who fully embraces all negative feelings you have ever had about press as a whole). There is no one week role-playing training course that can prepare people for how they will react and handle a mass killing of someone close. but this book makes a valiant effort at describing in detail how all the characters handle the aftermath and how feelings can change. When I got to the 75% mark in the book I thought 'I hope there is an ending that at least matches or hopefully exceeds what has gone before'. It does more than match the previous chapters, it is very both clever and uplifting. I hope when the book is released a section is added at the end, after acknowledgements, that explains why Claire decided to write this book - I cannot believe Claire woke up one morning and thought 'I know - I'll write a book about a school killing and how if effects people close the killer and victims'. The only minor criticism I have and I don't want to leak any of the ending in case anyone bothers to read my review before the book is that 2 or 3 questions, for me, remain unanswered. Get this book as soon as you can

This book is getting really good reviews but it just didn’t work for me. I found myself wanting to finish it to read something else. I found it slow in parts and i just couldn’t warm to the characters, maybe it was just me? Having said that, the story line is very topical and there were some interesting twists and turns but I have enjoyed books more recently.

An intense read. A young man walks into his college and shoots thirteen female students dead, injures a male student and then turns the gun on himself. The novel follows the police investigation and the personal stories of the mother of one victim and the mother of the killer. Everyone wants to understand the motive behind the killer's actions.

A theme which runs the length of the novel is that of press intrusion and levels to which, one reporter in particular, will stoop to get a story. In Grant Lockley the author has created an odious and entirely believable character. Through his actions he uncovers a number of the hidden truths and employs them purely for his own means.

This is a novel about loss but also about what we really know about those closest to us and what we would differently if we could see into the future. It is also about the responsibility we should carry when we delve into the lives of others. It is very well written with characters you either warm to or despise. The end is great. All tabloid journalists should read this and learn! Highly recommended.

I received an advance copy of this novel from NetGalley and the publisher. Thank you.