I started this book empathising with Lizzie; I ended this book feeling desperately sorry for her. So many twists in this book that I had to stay up and read into the early hours.
A fantastic book with characters that you take to heart and want to know more about.

This was an enjoyable read but for me personally it was very predictable.
The book focuses on three main characters; mother and son Lizzie and Tom, and their social worker Kate. Lizzie and Tom are forced to move away from his abusive father, he starts a new school where strange things begin to happen.
Kate is a newly married and overworked social worker with a domineering boss, Tessa.
As the book progresses we learn about Lizzie’s past and how she met her husband Olly, and the troubles that led to her taking Tom away, but is this a true interpretation of her life?
The ending wasn’t unexpected or a twist as others have said, but this is just my personal opinion. Still an enjoyable read, and great writing.

This is a great book with some complex and evolving characters in it. I read it in one sitting and enjoyed the twist when it came. I don’t want to spoil the story but I’ve encountered the condition outlined in the book through my work so can attest to it being presented realistically. I had just about worked out where the story was going from the clever clues the author set out.

I particularly liked the character Tessa. I think I had more sympathy for her than Kate does in the book. I found her to be a good presentation of a long serving public sector worker in Children’s Services.

Would really recommend this as a good read.

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Rating: 4.2 stars

Lizzie Riley and her son, Tom, move to a new town to start afresh; though everything isn't as perfect as Lizzie would have hoped. Tom starts acting very strange... and everything seems to go back to the new school he started at, with bars on the windows and a suspicious hole in the fence.

I don't know how to describe this book at all. It really took me on a journey throughout and somehow I really did not predict the end at all; it definitely came as a huge shock to me, but I loved it.
If i were to read it again I think I would be able to see the hints towards this though, which makes the story much better.

I would recommend for a great thriller that keeps you on your toes!

Moving to a new town, after escaping an abusive relationship Lisa Riley brings her son Tom to a new school. Known to be one of the top schools in the town Tom is excited to make a fresh start. But when they get to the school, the school is not what they thought it was. The school has bars in the window and there is a padlock on the main gates. The children file in, in orderly fashion and the headmaster is not the friendlily of persons. It is like the school is hiding things from the outside world.
The story also tells us of how Lisa meets Toms father Olly a snowboarder. First, they are inseparable but slightly controlling. Until Olly has an accident and his career dives. He gets Angier and becomes abusive and is caught supposedly hurting Tom. He is arrested and a restraining order is help upon him when he gets out. So, Lisa and Tom are moved away to a new town.
A bit slow at first but this is a well written, gripping thriller that kept me wanting more. The story was made more believable by how the author described the hardships that social services have to deal with in the day to day lives and I wasn’t expecting the twist at the end.

Firstly I have to say this book kept me awake until 3am as I could not sleep unless I finished it. You had me addicted from page 1.

Lizzie has moved with her son Tom aged 6, away from her abusive husband Ollie. It’s a fresh start and Tom is going to be attending Steelfield Academy.

The school at first appearance seems more like a prison, surrounded by locked gates, bars at the windows and a Headmaster that does not allow parents to enter the school. It is an excellent school with amazing Ofsted results but why is Tom coming home so tired and with puncture marks on his arm?

This book is told from the point of view of Lizzie, Kate the Social Worker and Tom.

A MUST MUST read book that will keep you turning the pages with it’s intense style writing and many twists!!

Will definitely read this again to see what hidden clues I missed along the way!!

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

OMG. WHAT A BOOK!
This was a new author for me and it had me gripped from the first moment I started to read . It absorbed me into the twist and turns of the lives of Lizzie and Tom. It leads one way then switched direction to another until the final chapter when all becomes clear what is happening.
Full Marks for this storyteller. !!!

Could you ever think the unthinkable. A loving mother who worries about her son and the impact of past events. A school that discourages parents into the school. A father with no access to the child and in the middle of all this a child. Tough subject matter but excellent book with vet plausible characters. 💜

WOW WOW WOW, this book keep me guessing right to the end! and wow the ending i cannot stay too much as i do not want to spoil the story for others! just get this on your TBRs and reading list now!! absolutely fantastic!!

Well this will keep you guessing until the very end! Such a hit for me and the twists and turns we're brilliant! Such great writing from Suzy Quinn. Thank you netgalley for the ARC in return for this honest review!

I don't want to give a detailed review incase it spoils the book in any way for other readers. All I can say is, READ, READ, READ.
Had my pulse racing throughout.

I loved this book- it was a fantastic phycological thriller.

Its so difficult to explain this story without giving away the storyline- but what I will say is I didn't see the twist coming, the characters were all fantastic additions to the story and it was very well written!!

Each character really adds to the story- and there was no- what felt like padding. This book flowed perfectly.

5*'s

Wow! I did not see this one coming and usually I'm pretty good at forseeing a big twist. Suzy Quinn is a very clever lady and she had me hooked from the very beginning.

Lizzie Riley is starting a new life with her 7 year old son Tom after years in an abusive relationship with her ex-husband Olly. She thinks that the new start that she needs will be fulfilled with a new house, new look and a new school for Tom. However, Lizzie notices that the school is not within the realms of normal. It has bars on the windows and the gates are padlocked during the day. Parents are also forbidden from entering the school. Her suspicions are further intensified when Tom seems to demonstrate a change in his behavior. He is sullen, constantly tired and always ill. This culminates in a number of seizures and injuries that cannot be explained. Lizzie is adamant this is all happening in school under the control of the strange Mr Cockrun and if its not him then surely Tom's relationship with the 'troublesome' Neilson boys will explain what is wrong with Tom. With Social Services and Lizzie both trying to get to the bottom of this mystery it is then suspected that Olly is now back on the scene and hurting his son again. Can they find out what is really happening?

Boy oh boy when I got to the final few chapters of this book I could not believe what was going on and as it culminated in a big finish I literally was holding my breath because I just wanted Tom to be safe. Such a clever, clever ending. I would 100% recommend this book! Amazing job.

This book had a slow start but once it got going I couldn't put it down.
I thought I knew where the story was heading but I was so wrong and what happened instead was much more thrilling than I could've imagined.
Told between multiple narratives of 4 characters including Lizzie, a mother who's running from her past and starting a new life with her son Tom, who has just started a new school where strange things seem to be happening.
Overall this was a great psychological thriller and will definitely read more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher HQ for the ARC.
What a great story. So cunningly well-written the author fools the reader until the final shocking twist.
Told between present narrative from Kate, the Social Worker, Lizzie, Tom's mother, and Rachel, Lizzies' mother and past narrative from Lizzie and Olly, Tom's father.
Lizzie has divorced Olly and, together with Tom, has moved out of London into the countryside. Olly is deemed at risk from his abusive father and Social Care records had yet to be transferred. Tom starts at his new school, Steelfield School but Lizzie has reservations about it - too tidy, high fences and padlocked gates. After school Tom can't remember what they did and gradually over the days his personality changes, he gets into fights, is friends with other disruptive 'social-services-kids'. The school blames Lizzie but she in turn blames them and is determined to find out exactly what is going on, especially when she discovers needle marks on her son's arm.
She becomes paranoid that somehow her ex Olly has tracked them down and is in some way influencing Tom.
Kate, the Social Worker, keeps telling herself she should be grateful to have her job, notwithstanding that she is over-stretched, works well into late evening and has 30 children on her caseload. Nevertheless she is determined to make time for her check-visit with Lizzie and Tom so she can then shelve that case.
However, she starts to receive reports from hospital regarding Tom and Lizzie and the allegations being made about mistreatment at the school.
Gradually, through the narratives, the intricate storyline is woven - the weird school and Headteacher's attitude; Lizzie's past relationship with Olly and her own mother Rachel, and Kate's ability to talk to the children under her care, all lead to an explosive twist.
Genuinely un-put-downable!

What a brilliant book.
A gripping intense mystery. It’s full of twists and turns.
This is a fascinating and compelling read

Gripping from the start until the very end. Lots of twists and turns and quite creepy. I recommend this book

An emotional rollercoaster that you will not be able to resist.

Wow, this was an incredible read. Easy to read and gripping. This book will grab you and not let you go. It immediately drew me in right from the start. It made me want to one click the rest of the authors work. Incredible.

This had me engrossed from the beginning.
Gripping, dark, creepy with plenty of twists and turns.
Thoroughly enjoyed this & looking forward to next book by this author.
4.5 stars.

Wow, what a great book. I really enjoyed this book and didn’t see the twist coming at the end. I loved the way the character developed in this book which makes you think that they are guilty at some point. It kept me guessing throughout and I’ll definitely be looking out for more books by this author in future.