Frankly this blew me away - I read it in quick gallops (it kept me awake). Characterisations and subtleties of a community with its petty enmities - that can be devastating as is spelled out here dramatically. Strangely it also got me thinking hard about what i would have done, witnessing something or thinking I had in a neighbour ... extremely well done...

I was really looking forward to this book - I loved the cover and the idea behind it. The book wasn't really what I was expecting but it did have a good satisfying twist/reveal.

It took me a while to get into this book. Even though the premises are interesting and the writing engaging, I found it slow. How wrong was I! I decided to give it another go and it was definitely worth it! The plot is so tightly constructed I actually gasped several times reading and had to write this review straight away! For once, believe the hype, this book is brilliant and if you love a good thriller you will not be disappointed!

I finished this book in one sitting in a single morning. It was fast paced and easy to read. It was very different to what I expected... but that is my own doing. I was expecting middle aged bored yet rich housewives, and what I got was a wonderfully heartfelt and realistic main character and her small family unit. With a twist that i didn't see coming this was a quick, yet verging on cozy mystery.

Lesley Kara kept my eyes glued to the page of this tense thriller.  The Rumour ticks all of the boxes that I expect from a thriller.  Captivating, gasp evoking, tense, and imaginative.  I was gripped by the mystery and the suspense that Lesley Kara maintained throughout and more importantly, as the story revealed more and more, she delivered shocks and twists that I didn't see coming.Lesley Kara is definitely one to watch

An engaging read with a great twish which redeemed the book for me. I was not a fan of the premise of rumours or the way the story snowballed but the storyline was very thought provoking and the ending was very well done.

I enjoyed this book. It is a book full of many differing characters that, at times, I found rather hard to sort out. Who was this one? A friend from outside school? or this one, was she a neighbour or a member of the book club?

Rather hard to sort them all out. It was an interesting concept, except I did feel that it was a bit formulaic, with a multiracial relationship, mixed race child, lesbian relationship and of course, the never to be left out subject nowadays, child abuse. However despite all of this it was quite a good book with a bit of a body slam ending.

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Right from the start, the usual chatter amongst the school mums was so believable. What followed had me suspecting every adult character in the book. Excellent. Can't wait to read more by this author

I had heard so much about this and was dying to read it and got to it in one night by the fire, very happy out. It is the story of a small seaside town where one person takes a rumour they heard and repeats it, not totally thinking of consequences.

From the start I was totally walking alongside Joanna, as she mentions something (actually again and again), not meaning to say it, but not sure how to be included. It was something you can totally see yourself doing!

The story in general is quite an easy read, definitely for someone who likes the everyday and little things that make it all so real to be expanded on (me!) And I could envision it as people began to ask ‘did you hear …?’

Of course you weren’t sure if the rumour was true, but the witch hunt had began, with a business owner being picked on and told to leave. As Joanna tried to figure out if it was true and also who the person was, we also got an insight into child killers and how what they do marks their whole life. There are a number of possibilities, most of them standoutish enough that you can follow, picture them and try and work it out yourself but I will admit we probably went a little over the quota for me and I got confused once or twice, although that may be just me. The ending also wasn’t quite my cup of tea but I did very much enjoy the rest of it and would not only recommend to put on your wish list but will most definitely read the author again!

Thanks so much to Transworld Digital and Netgalley for the book in return for an honest review.

Rating:4/5

Not a bad book. Feels like it goes around and around in circles at times, and there aren't a lot of characters to really like, but it was an entertaining read nonetheless.

Joanna has recently moved back to the small town where she grew up with her young son, Alfie. Jo is keen for her son to make friends and as she herself is feeling lonely, she gets chatting to some of the mums in the playground of school. This is where Jo hears a piece of gossip about a woman who killed a child and is now living in this small town under a new identity. Jo pays no heed to this gossip but somehow finds herself repeating it to another group of women – and then it begins to spread.

There are a pleasing number of red herrings and twists in here and I didn’t see the ending coming. I found this a nice, good read and managed to read it in just a few hours.

An easy read that didn’t really grip me. I read to the end and happy to say there were moments of interest but Joanne the lead role I failed to engage with. Whilst the small town gossip line was interesting and realistic I got bored rather than engrossed in the who is it plot.

This thrilling debut from Lesley Kara really grabs the readers attention from the beginning with its easy to read format and engaging premise regarding how you would react if you discovered a known child killer was living in your community. This book covers many aspects from rumours and lies to secrets and relationships and is one of those books that is very difficult to put down. Appealing characters and a steady pace keep the reader enthralled right to the twist at the end.

An excellent read. Read in one day this is an easy read with an interesting premise- how a rumour can spread like wildfire and quickly get out of hand. I was undecided as who the rumour was about and changed tack a few times but I was never close! and the twist of who it is is brilliant.
A cracking good read

I quite enjoyed The Rumour. Whilst it had some unsurprising twists, it also had a few turns that I wasn't quite expecting. I do love a good guessing game, and the book did have more than enough red herrings to keep it interesting. If you're looking for a book to break up your heavy reading list, The Rumour is ideal.

I absaloutey loved this book. It kept me engaged the whole way through. I loved the twists, every time I thought I knew who the rumour was about it changed again.
Highly recommended this book.
#NetGalley #TheRumour

A pretty good debut and an interesting premise. I’m sure lots of us wonder what happens to those people who get new identities because they committed a serious crime as a juvenile. Loose tongues sink ships and though there are no boats involved, this book shows what can happen when a rumour starts to spread and innocent people are accused & abused. Should someone be held accountable for the rest of their life over something they did when they were a young child or should they be able to move on and forget? An emotive subject and one that I’ve never really had to contemplate on thank goodness but what about the parents of say James Bulger, would they be able to forgive those 10 year olds, would any of us if it was that close to home? We get to see both sides in this twisty story. I also liked the mixed race relationship and felt any issues that arose from it were covered succinctly and not overblown. Having mixed race children myself I know only too well the [sometimes not so] subtle nuances that can be hidden in seemingly innocent conversations. My only gripe is at first there are way too many names (characters) for me to remember and even when nearing the end I had to think about who was who! As first novels go this is impressive and I look forward to the author honing her craft. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for my ARC in return for an honest review.

I’m afraid I couldn’t get engrossed in this book at all. The idea for this story (the consequences of spreading rumours and the problems associated with rehabilitation of a child offender) was certainly inspired, but I just couldn’t take to the characters at all. I also guessed fairly early on where it was all going to lead. Disappointing.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC copy in return for an honest review.

This was a really interesting thriller, the focus being something unusual for the genre. What would you do if you thought a killer was living in your town with a new identity. The narrative is very well plotted and I moved from one suspect to another as I moved through the book. The characterisation was excellent. I had no idea of the way the book was going to unfold and thought the author has created the thrill really well.

I was up very late trying unsuccessfully to finish before sleep claimed me and I could hardly wait to be up and dressed before jumping in again.

A great read

This was a slow burner for me. I didn’t particularly like the character of Joanna but found the small twin gossip situation quite well depicted. Some of the storyline didn’t hang together well and in other parts I felt the author over-explained what had happened. The general premise of the story was good though.