Cover Image: Clear My Name

Clear My Name

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

I loved the plot of this novel by Paula Daly - the idea of following a team trying to get appeals for convicted criminals is something different from the usual crime stories. During the first half especially I was often thinking how good this would be as the first in a series about Innocence UK and their investigations (I still think this is what Daly might do). The conviiction dealt with in Clear My Name is that of Carrie who was imprisoned for murdering her husband's girlfriend which she has always vehemently denied in spite of their being blood traces found in the location, where she claims to have never been inside.

Where the book let itself down was the number of coincidences involved, whether it be with the characters' connections or that Tess always seemed to follow up on discoveries at the exact time the other characters are going to end up in the same place. The main character, Tess, going back to the area she grew up in then ran away from is not a new concept but as the personal and professional lives began to overlap I lost a lot of interest. The ending could have been filled out a lot more after the appeal board decision; everything sped up at that point and didn't focus on any intentions or feelings.

A good read with good suspense writing which kept me guessing, but frustrating at times.

Was this review helpful?

I really liked the lead character in this book and would 'love' for Tess to feature in a series. In some ways she's kind-of an unlikely narrator... in her 40s and someone who didn't quite achieve all they wanted. And though she's settled into a job she enjoys, there's a sense she's biding time. (And worryingly I could kinda relate!)

So, Tess is a great protagonist. We pretty quickly learn she's far from perfect and is seemingly running from something. I'd initially guessed it was something that led her into the work she's in, but I was wrong. (Gulp, yes wr-wr-wrong!)

I was a tad affronted on behalf of Tess - that she wasn't consulted when someone was brought on (by her advisory board) to work with her... as a sole employee etc you'd think she would have been given some notice or have some say in who was chosen. But nope. Naturally I expected there's be some nefarious purpose to it all.

Tess feels a lot of antipathy about taking Carrie's case initially, though mostly because it involves returning to the childhood home town she left decades before (never to return).

But, the advisory board for Innocence UK are coping some flak because they've never taken a woman's case before so Tess has no choice.

I liked that Tess's role is kinda investigative. I assumed (initially) she'd be a lawyer and arguing some boring point of law or something, but instead Tess (and now her offsider Avril) are responsible for doing the groundwork required by her board of advisors - all of whom bring some expertise to the case at hand. In fact, as Daly was quite specific about their expertise it made me wonder if the series would continue, with each given some time in the spotlight. (And you're more than welcome to that idea if you'd like Paula! :-) )

Daly offers up Carrie's story from her point of view, though we never get to the actual murder for which she's accused. Rather there are some flashbacks to events in the lead-up... giving us a sense I suspect, of what was at stake. It doesn't necessarily bode well for Carrie who also admits that she's been less-than-honest. 

Because I'm such an avid reader of mysteries and thrillers - not to mention smug - I assumed I'd worked out who it was. In fact... my notes say something like, "Please don't let it be as obvious as....." And thankfully it wasn't. Phew.

I enjoyed the complexity Daly offers readers through the murder of Ella (Carrie's husband's lover). It's always easy to bastardise the victim when we like the potential perpetrator so we feel better about their demise, but Daly doesn't do that here and there's a lot more to Ella's story than initially expected.

Of course there's also Tess's own secrets and whatever it is that motivates her to keep everyone at arm's length. Despite having made it to her mid 40s as a fully functioning human, she feels very unworthy and unlovable... and we eventually learn why.

There's some interesting insights from Tess (well, Daly) about the criminal justice system and how some people (perhaps innocent) are eventually rewarded for admitting guilt and remorse in order to be released on parole and a reminder that sometimes accepting 'defeat' is easier than continuing to fight, if it seems unlikely you'll ever win. So... there's some ethical fodder to ponder here as well. 

Clear My Name by Paula Daly was published in UK by Bantam Press (Penguin Random House UK) and will be published in the US by Grove Atlantic in early September.

Was this review helpful?

I enjoyed reading this book. I always felt that Carrie was hiding something, but didn't expect the twist. I loved Tess and would love to read more books where she is the main protagonist

Was this review helpful?

A psychological thriller about a woman murdering her husbands mistress
This book is not action packed with drama but it is fast paced.
It was full of drama and had me wondering whether she was guilty or not

The ending was a disappointment. It felt rushed and incomplete.

Was this review helpful?

Paula Daly is a new Author to me and I love the way she writes. Clear My Name was Just an excellent read and I was hooked from the very first chapter. I loved the way this book came together especially the way its written

Carrie is accused of brutally murdering her Husbands lover. Carrie denied it and she was arrested by the Police. The Jury found her guilty and sent her to Prison for fifteen years.
Three years into her prison sentence Carrie is still denying that she murdered her husbands lover.
She is missing her daughter grow up who she loves so much.

But.....did she kill her?

Tess Gilroy has devoted her life to righting wrongs. Through her job for Innocence UK, a charity which takes on alleged miscarriages of justice, she works tirelessly to uncover the truth on many cases.
Tess is asked to take Carrie’s case on and investigate who killed her husbands lover!.

Tess realises that if she is to help this woman, she must risk uncovering the secrets she has struggled a lifetime to hide . . . . . .

What is Carrie hiding?

We’ve all done things we’re not proud of?

Is the truth going to come out and help her prove Carrie is Innocent???

Or is she Guilty?

Highly Recommend this book. Plus, I will be reading more from this brilliant new author to me

Thank you to Netgalley, Paula Daly and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for providing me a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review..

Was this review helpful?

Paula Daly is one of my favourite psychological thriller writers. Paula has a unique ability in that I always feel unsettled reading her books and each story is always brilliantly unique, well written and utterly gripping!

Clear My Name is another fantastic intruiging, unsettling book just what I've come to expect. Absolutely brilliant book from start to finish, read in a couple of days when I should have been doing other things but couldn't put it down. I would thoroughly recommend it to everyone..

Was this review helpful?

Another great read from Paula Daly. A woman imprisoned for murdering her husband’s mistress. She protests her innocence and her case is taken up by a charity dealing with miscarriage of justice- but is all it seems?

Well written and a great ending

Was this review helpful?

I’ve read a few of Paula Daly’s books now and each one is as good as the last.
In this story we meet Carrie who has been accused of killing her husbands mistress, Carrie has denied it every day since being arrested and imprisoned 3 years before. Tess is an investigator working for a charity aimed at freeing those who have been wrongly accused, but needs to face some of her own troubles before she can help Carrie.

This doesn’t move as quickly as I would have hoped, but I was hooked and eagerly wanted to know what happened next.
Over all a very good read.

Was this review helpful?

Carrie has been found guilty of the vicious murder of her husband's lover and has served three years of a fifteen year sentence, but Carrie consistently insists that she is innocent. It is up to ex-parole officer, Tess, now working for Innocence UK a charity which seeks to prove miscarriages of justice, to gather sufficient evidence to prove that Carrie is innocent of all charges. Innocence UK have been successful in overturning a number of convictions, but in Carrie's complicated case, Tess and her trainee associate, Avril, discover so many inconsistencies in the police evidence that trying to prove Carrie's innocence gets more and more complicated as the investigation progresses.

Clear my Name has all the trademarks of this author's skilful writing. The plot is cleverly crafted and whilst the pace is rather slow in places, I feel that this is quite deliberate as it gives the opportunity to really get to know the characters in detail. Although Carrie's story in the present is fascinating, it is her compelling back story, in which we are given interesting snippets of her life, which really get into the core of her character. Tess is an interesting enigma and from the start of the story it becomes obvious that she too has her secrets. The complicated reasons for Tess's ambiguity are revealed as the story progresses, and add a really interesting layer to what is a taut and tense psychological suspense story.

I've now read all of this author's books to date and whilst each one brings something completely different, what is always guaranteed is that the story will grab your attention, the plot will keep you both entertained and enthralled, and the conclusion, when it comes, will leave you punching the air in complete satisfaction.

Was this review helpful?

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. Another great read from a great author. This had me gripped from start to finish. Would recommend.

Was this review helpful?

A really good Psychological thriller, with lots of different characters. Several different things going on in the main characters life. If you like psychological thrillers you will enjoy this. I wasn’t quite sure how it wasn’t going to end knowing that a lot of these books have a twist at the end but the twist in this one wasn’t what I expected.

Tess Gilroy works for Innocence UK, looking at cases where there may or may not have been a miscarriage of justice, going through all the evidence that led to someone being sent to prison then seeing if there is enough evidence for the judgement to be overturned or not.
The panel of people involved in the Innocence project look at several cases and pick which case they think they should focus on most of the people work pro bono. Tess is the only full time worker,.and is the only one that is paid by the charity. Tom Robinson is a solicitor and has been volunteering for six years he is the person who goes through all the enquiries they receive whittling the number down for the next meeting which the panel holds around twice a month. The team comprises of a Home office Pathologist, forensic scientist, professor of Forensic Science, ex Detective Inspector as well as Tess and Tom

Tess is told that she has to train a new person up to help her with her workload Avril, She is not happy with that as she doesn’t think Avril is up to the job. Then when going through the cases to consider it seems that Tom has already decided which case to go with and the panel agree. The case is of Carrie Kamara who is in prison after being found guilty of murdering her husbands lover. Some of the chapters are from Tess’s perspective others are going back four years to Carrie and what was happening in her life and the lead up to the arrest and charge of murder resulting in her being found guilty. It’s up to Tess and Avril to look at all aspects of the case and see if they can find any new evidence to present or disprove evidence submitted at trial.

Things are complicated for Tess as she is sleeping with the married ex Detective Clive who wants to leave his wife and start a new life with Tess. The case of the murder happened in Morecombe where Tess grew up and has things of her own that led her to move away and keep running.

I throughly enjoyed this book, there are lots of things going on from different angles. Definitely worth a read. I would highly recommend this.

Was this review helpful?

Really enjoyed this novel. Excellent storyline build up and fascinating characters bring this story to life. I will definitely reading more books by this talented author.

Was this review helpful?

This had me completely gripped right from the off. The story follows Tess who works for a charity called Innocence UK which tries to help people who appear to have been wrongly convicted. The charity and Tess take on Carrie's case who is in prison for the murder of her husband's lover. The evidence against Carrie does not quite seem to add up, but why is this? Tess also has some secrets of her own which gave another layer to the story.

I really enjoyed this thriller; the writing was so easy to read and the plot was brilliantly executed. I loved the journey that Tess went on examining the evidence against Carrie, I felt like I was there every step of the way.

My main criticism of the book would be that I found the sub-plot surrounding Tess' own secrets a little frustrating, at times there was too much of a focus on this rather than on the more thrilling main plot. I also wasn't a fan of how Tess dealt with the ending because of her own experiences. However, I can see why people would also like this aspect of the plot, it gave the story some more depth and emotion.

I'm definitely going to check out more of Daly's work as I loved her writing style. 4 stars for me!

Thanks to NetGalley and Bantam Press for a copy of the e-book in exchange for a review.

Was this review helpful?

Ooo, this was a bit juicy! I simply whizzed through it in only a couple of sittings as I really needed to know the truth! Tess Gilroy, formerly a Parole Officer, now works for Innocence Uk, a charity who assists convicted prisoners who believe they are innocent. Their latest case is that of Carrie, a woman three years into a 15 year sentence for the murder of her husband’s lover. She has always maintained her innocence but to prove it Tess will have to unpick the original investigation to see where it all went wrong. Especially the blood evidence. Not only that though. If Carrie is found to be innocent, who is the guilty party and why did they frame her? But Tess has reservations. Not with the case itself but the fact that Carrie comes from somewhere she’d rather not go back to. Somewhere she left in her past. Somewhere she’d rather not think about, being as she’s been avoiding it for many years.
And so begins a game of cat-and-mouse as Tess begins her investigation in earnest, ably (?) assisted by new recruit Avril who adds a bit of her own colour to the mix.
There’s so much more I could say about this book, about the re-opening of the investigation and the paths taken to find the truth but to do so would be a bit spoilery so I can’t. There are a couple of really great twists and turns along the way and more than just the odd “aha” or “ooo” moment, some which made me smile and one which was definitely a bit icky! These twists meant that I was never quite sure of the path the book would eventually take so about half way I gave up trying to second guess and just enjoyed the wild ride that the author was taking me on. Turned out to be the right move cos I never thought we were going there! But we did! And it was GOOD!
All in all, a cracking read that hit all the right spots for me and which left me completely satisfied. Really can’t wait to see what the author serves me up for next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed this book, it kept me guessing the whole way through. I would never have guessed the outcome. I really liked Tess, the main character.

Was this review helpful?

Tess works for Innocence UK, a charitable organisation that helps rectify miscarriages of justice, those wrongly convicted.

The charity decides to take on Carrie’s case….the killing of her husbands lover, Ella, but is she innocent?

The story hops between the present and four years ago, showing the events that lead up to the murder.

Tess and her shadow, Avril, review all the case notes, the evidence and interview witnesses…..could DNA evidence be a deciding factor?

Poor Tess, her personal life is a chaotic mess, yes she’s made mistakes in her past but she’s a determined character and committed to her job…..will she find the truth?

I loved this thriller, with believable, likeable and also really unlikeable characters, Pete is just a revolting excuse for a human. All credit to Paula Daly’s incredibly creative, compelling writing with its gasp inducing ending….I honestly read this in one sitting, I just couldn’t put it down, I had to know!!!…brilliant.

Thank you to The publishers, the author and NetGalley for a free copy of the ebook. This is my honest, unbiased review.

Was this review helpful?

This is a really good gripping read. I was hooked the whole way through and I thought the ending fitted with the rest of the story.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Was this review helpful?

Immersive and impressive, this will be one book to keep you reading right through the night!

Innocence UK, a charity group of professionals who’s aim is to right the wrongs of the justice system, to fight for justice of those that have been falsely convicted and clear their names.

Carrie Kamara, found guilty of the murder of her husbands lover, sentenced to fifteen years who has always professed her innocence.

Tess Gilroy is the only paid member of staff at Innocence UK and with the help of new girl Avril they take on Carrie’s case who has now served four years of her fifteen year sentence. With all the evidence stacked against her and some holes in the prosecutions evidence the pendulum swings Tess’s belief of Carrie’s innocence backwards and forwards as she conducts her own investigation of what really happened that night and if Carrie is as innocent as she has always claimed to be. As she begins to dig into Carrie’s life her own life comes under scrutiny and her own past comes hurtling to the forefront and she has her own skeletons in the closet that want to make themselves known.

Packed full of secrets and lies, this is a thriller packed to the brim with twists and turns. Just when you think you have it all sussed out, something else comes along and smashes your theories to pieces. Can you tell the truth from the lies? This is an immensely immersive read, packed with some of the best characterisations I have read for some time now and is a real barn burner of a book.

Previous fans of her work will not be disappointed with this one, and I am positive that Clear My Name will only gain her an even bigger following.

Clear My Name will be published on 08 August 2019 and is available for preorder now. This is one book in 2019 that you really don’t want to miss!

Thank you to the author Paula Daly, publishers Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and NetGalley for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest and independent review.

Was this review helpful?

This was one heck of a ride, a brilliant book by author Paula Daly. Life is not fair, and miscarriage of justice occurs.

When Tess from InnocenceUK took up Carrie's case who was languishing in prison, three years into her fifteen, events from both their lives come to light. Carrie had been convicted for killing her husband's lover. The entire book was the unfolding of clues and witnesses previously in hiding.

Paula Daly is one of my favorite authors, and this book proved me right again. There was a subtle excitement from the beginning of the story that built up as the pages turned. The entire story had me questioning the accused. What was she hiding? Where was the desperation coming from? There was a sense of games being played behind the curtains. But till the very end, I didn't know who was pulling the strings to the story.

Paula's characters were not shown black or white. They had so many shades of gray that it became difficult to judge them. Tess, the main character, showed the fortitude and patience to seive through all the clues. Her own life was in shambles. At one point, Tess and Carrie, the lawyer and the accused, had their lives intersected. It was interesting to see how these subplots unfurled in the main canvas of the story.

This book made me forget my grief for those few hours. The tension filled scenes, the slow rise of adrenaline, the need to get to the finish line, the feeling of being punched by the last chapter had me smiling right through the book. This book had it all, and that's why I love thrillers!!

Was this review helpful?

A fast paced story with well described characters but hard to decide who is telling the truth. Another great read from Paula Daly

Was this review helpful?