Devoured this book in one sitting. The plot is great but the real strength lies with the with creation of the 3 lead female characters. Captivatingly created. Impressive

Jessie Burton is one of my favourite storytellers so I was so excited to receive an early copy of her latest novel, The Confession, from @netgalley and @panmacmillan.

I raced through this one, I was hooked from the first chapter. The story unravels to the reader from two time periods. The first is in the eighties where Elise meets a mysterious woman in Hampstead Heath. We follow their relationship as it changes over time. The second time period is 2017, with Elise's daughter. Over time the two worlds merge and we begin to understand how everyone has ended up where they are today. I don't want to give anything away so I'll leave the description there!

The thing I love most about Jessie Burton is every novel has a few moments in it where I think, wow, how did she think of that turn of phrase. For example, a key and memorable sentence to me from The Confession was when a character describes what it is like to fall out of love, "how it feels when the love you've had for someone...leaks out of you. Like you're slowly being dripdried...". The imagery and emotion is spot on.

It's a thoroughly good read and I think this will be another huge bestseller, well deserved by @JessieBurton.

Released on the 19th September 2019.

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I requested this ARC from Netgalley because I had read the author's two previous adult novels - The Miniaturist (which I enjoyed) and The Muse (which I loved).

Like her previous novels, this is written skilfully, but in a way that seems effortless. Burton's prose is often beautiful and her observations are spot-on. Themes such as family, friendship, decisions, mistakes, consequences and responsibility are handled well, with sympathy and understanding.

The pacing is generally good, if occasionally a little slow, and the writing is complex and immersive. The tale is driven more by character than by plot (which is not to say it is lacking in plot, rather tha the characterisation is excellent). I found it took me a while to become engaged but then I realised that I had begun to care very much about what happened next for at least some of the characters. There is a dual timeline; one story is set in the 1980s and told in the third-person, and the other is contemporary and told in the first-person from Rose's perspective. This is perhaps why I identified most with Rose, even though she and I have little in common. I found Constance to be more appealing in the later timeline (and she is, really, the only major character who appears in both). For the most part, Elise irritated me - I wanted her to take control of something rather than allowing her life to be decided by the surrounding events. All of the characters are convincing - I'd have liked to know more about Matt's motivations for his later actions, and to find out more about Yola. The book delves artfully into the complexities of the decisions taken by the characters.

The event which seems to give the book its title happens relatively late in the story, and I feel that the ending felt a little rushed - it is not the book's strongest point.

I enjoyed this more than The Miniaturist, but less than The Muse - which means that for me, this author's books, in the order they were written, come in at 3*, 5* and 4* - which is a) consistently good, and b) means I will look forward to the next one!

4.5 stars.

I have only read one other book by this author, The Minituarist, and this novel in my opinion is far superior.

We meet Rose, who has always felt like there was a hole in her life where her mother should be. Raised by her dad we only know what he tells her: her mother, Elise, had an affair with author Constance Holden, and for a time they were inseparable. Then, shortly after Rose was born, Elise vanishes without a trace, leaving Rose behind with a friend. Now 34, Rose manages to get a job working with Constance, now 73, who is finally writing another novel after a thirty year absence. Rose hopes this will be the key to finding answers she desperately seeks but finds herself drawn into an unlikely friendship with Connie.

This novel alternates the time line, between 1982/3 to 2017. At first I found this jarring but once the narrative is established I soon found myself flying through this novel. Its a tale about women, what it means to be your own self, what it means to be strong, independent and finding your own voice and your own path. It's incredibly powerful and moving and the characters felt real, the circumstances relatable, the writing beautiful.

Thank you to Netgalley for an e-arc of this in exchange for an honest review.

A beautifully written, emotional story about truth and lies, motherhood and friendship and most of all, about the importance of being true to yourself. I really enjoyed the two timelines and how they reflected on each other. The characters, at first, were hard to like, but their flawed personalities quickly grew on me. By the end of the book, I felt I had been on quite an intense, emotional journey.

Jessie Burton's writing seems to be becoming more mature and more complex with every novel; I felt lukewarm about The Miniaturist but was gripped by The Muse. Her latest, The Confession, is even more compelling. The book switches between two timelines, both equally interesting: in the early 1980s, Elise Morceau, in her early twenties, falls swiftly in love with the older novelist Connie Holden after a chance meeting on Hampstead Heath, and goes with her to LA. Meanwhile, in present-day London, Elise's daughter, Rose, wants to know more about the mother she can't remember - Elise disappeared when Rose was a baby - and devises a plan to make contact with Connie after she discovers that Connie was the last person to see her mother before she went missing. Burton writes so intelligently about choosing whether or not to have a child (there's precious little fiction, especially in this mainstream literary vein, that allows women to choose to remain childless, but The Confession made me realise that we also hear little about why women actively choose to have children.) Burton's concern with the conditions under which women can make art, which preoccupied The Muse, is also an important sub-theme in this novel, and there's something of Clarissa Pinkola Estes's classic Women Who Run With the Wolves in her depiction of women who feel compelled to drop out of their everyday lives. As with the ending of The Muse, Burton gives into the temptation to spell out the themes of the novel a little too neatly in its last few pages, but this is still a smart, thought-provoking take on how women negotiate emotional ties.

I will post this review to Goodreads and to my blog closer to the publication date.

Jessie Burton is an incredible weaver of stories. The Muse author has definitely delivered on her third novel, a devastating story of love and the endless search for oneself in the past and the present.

Burton has a magical ability to inject a realness i to her characters. This is a book that you will not want to put down but also not want to end.

I absolutely loved it. Bawled my eyes out at the end.

I loved this book, and couldn’t put it down. Generation-spanning stories are my jam, and The Confession really delivered on that front. An emotional, engrossing tale about three powerful, flawed women. Really, really different to anything else Jessie Burton has written, but equally fantastic.

I loved The Miniaturist but gave up on The Muse. I was excited to be able to review The Confession but feel it is very much a Marmite book: I suspect readers will either love it or hate it.

An intriguing story beckons after Rose's father hands her two novels written by Connie, the woman her mother Elise fell in love with. Elise disappeared shortly after Rose's birth leaving her father to bring her up and Rose is determined to track Connie down in order to find out the reason why her mother deserted her.

I wish the novel had begun with Rose being given Connie's novels instead of how Elise and Connie met. It was difficult to get gripped by the backstory and I was unable to engage with the characters, not because they were dislikeable, which they were, but because they did not hold my attention.

No matter how good the writing, and in many places it is very good, if the characters do not engage my sympathy or empathy the story of their journey falls down. Sadly this happened here.

I'm sure many of Jessie Burton's fans will not be as disappointed but I don't think her books are for me. The Miniaturist remains her best book imo. Many thanks to PanMacmillan/Picador and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

One day Elise, a 20 year old very beautiful young woman whose mother died from a brain tumour when she was young and who is estranged from her father is followed when she gets off the tube by a 38 year old, attractive, tall ,confident older woman called Constance. They have coffee at a cafe and very soon Elise is moving from a sofa in a bedsit to Connie's Hampstead house. Connie is a cult feminist writer with one successful published book and has just started work on a sceond. Connie's first book is picked up for a Holywood film awith an Oscar winning actress pencilled in for the starring role. Elise joins Connie as they travel to LA where things start to fall apart. In the future, Elise's daughter, Rose who is feeling a bit lost and moribund in her mid thirties decides to try to find out about her mother whom she never knew (Elise disappears when Rose is a baby). Her father won't talk about her mother but gves her the only two novels written by Connie which Elise owned and tells Rose that Connie was the last person to see Elise. Connie has never published again and lives a reclusive life but is in need of an assistant and Rose uses deception to insert herself into Connie's life hoping to find out some answers.

I really enjoyed this book. It jumps from the past to the present with ease. It takes a bit of concentration in the first few chapters to stick with the story, familarise yourself with the characters etc. but I felt the perserverance was well rewarded later. The story became engrossing and page turning. I didn't expect any big revelations or neat endings, it was the interplay between the charcaters and the exploration of what people want /need to receive from others and how we change and mature and the ways in which we need to receive love to ake us feel supported that held my attention. A really good read.

I feel emotionally wrung out after reading this story. I did not particularly like some of the characters but that did not stop me from getting totally caught up in everyones lives. This is a highly emotive story which spans more than 30 years and left me wanting more. This book will stay in my mind for a while.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

I have read Jessie Burton’s The Miniaturist and The Muse and loved them but can’t say the same about this one. It just didn’t work for me. I felt the story was lacking and I really disliked the characters. A marmite book I feel.

Having read a few duff books I was beginning to question if I was ever going to read a good book again, and then 'The Confession' appeared.

Superb writing - the word craft is lush and entrancing. The characters are fascinating yet believable. I felt sympathy for them all as they each got swept away by the moment. The story telling is perfectly paced, there is a measured drip feed of intrigue and drama which kept me turning the pages.

I am not going to recount the story - go and read it yourself! One of the best books I have read this year.

Spanning two generations, The Confession reveals a closely woven tapestry of heartache and failed personal and interpersonal relationships, With no recollection or knowledge of her mother and the only clue to her existence being a book given to her by her father, Rose determines to find out all she can about her from the one person who knew her well. As the intricacies of her own mother’s life events are unearthed, Rose realises a lifetime of repressed emotions which will ultimately help her understand and decide her own course in life.

I was looking forward to reading another Jessie Burton after the success of The Miniaturist .
It is 1980 and Connie -a celebrated author meets and falls in love with Elise who is much younger and hasn't quite found her niche in life .
When Connie's latest novel becomes a success -they travel to L.A where the book is being made into a film. Connie loves life in L.A -but Elice feels like a fish out of water and hates it. They are soon at loggerheads and the relationship is doomed .
Fast forward -we then meet Rose in 2017 . Rose is Elise's daughter although she cannot remember her mother as she was given up as a baby and her father raised her. Rose is desperate to find out about Elise and eventually learns about her mother's affair.. She makes contact with Connie to try and find out what happened to her mother. and why she was abandoned
The story was beautifully written and the characters really came to life . However I have only awarded 3 stars because I was so disppointed with the ending . After such a prolonged story I felt the last chapter was rushed -yet questions were just not answered and I was left feeling frustrated .
Thankyou NetGalley for this ARC in return for an honest review

Someone help me here! I'm not sure what I was to get from this book? Never having read anything by Burton previously but knowing her reputation I went into The Confession full of excitement and anticipation. I was very, very disappointed. Whilst the writing is in a class of it's own - there's no denying THAT - I didn't care AT ALL for the characters. Elise - boring and vacuous, Connie - cold and aloof. As for Rose - well what am I to make of this girl! I really don't know about this book. As I said, the writing was wonderful but a bit pretentious and over-done. for my simple taste. Hmmmm, perhaps the fault lies with me and I've missed something deep and meaningful in this arduous book? Sorry folks - glorious writing notwithstanding - this just didn't float my boat. Thanks go to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

'The Confession' is Jessie Burton's most assured novel to date: this is the work of a writer confident in her command of her characters and her voice.

The plot is perfectly paced: I loved the way the two storylines weave in and out of one another, distinct, and yet with traces of the past still rippling through the present. The characters are complicated, and while they are not always likeable, they are believable. I particularly connected to the 2017 protagonist, Rose - in many ways, this is her mid-thirties coming of age story, and I loved watching her grow as a character. Through Rose's eyes, at counterpoints to her mother, Elise, we get some glorious ruminations on identity, motherhood and love. The resolution ties it all together perfectly.

'The Confession' makes for a truly engrossing read: I was absorbed by the story and captivated by the delicate, ever-evolving exploration of its themes. Impressive and accessible, this is a novel that will stay with me for a while.

I loved The Miniaturist but somehow never felt really immersed in this one. The writing, especially the scene setting, is still good, but the plot lacked depth, and I didn't like most of the characters.
Still a good book but not for me

Rose has been looking for her missing mother all her life. Her life feels incomplete or permanently on hold. When her father gives her a clue - the name of an author who was the last person to see her mother she decides to insert herself in this authors life to find traces of her mother.

Elise is a young woman in live with Connie a successful author. She will follow Connie anywhere - even to L.A when Connie's book becomes a Hollywood film. Life starts to unravel though for Elise and her lack of awareness of her own identity makes her self destructive.

I really enjoyed this. The way the story is revealed in alternating chapters (I always like that) but for once both stories were equally interesting. Elise is a captivating character at the start and you want to know what happens to her. Whereas her daughter Rose is pretending to be someone else and seems to have lost her self and her mother. It all weaves together brilliantly.

I absolutely loved The Miniaturist and The Muse, so I had high expectations when starting The Confession. As usual Jessie Burton’s writing is exceptional. I was absorbed from the start. I appreciated the characters, the dual time frame, and the gentle reveals along the way.
It is unusual to have the historical sections of a book set in the 1980s and I enjoyed the descriptions of the culture and norms of a time I remember well. (And yes, we really did wear those shoulder pads!)
While I probably didn’t love it as much as the previous two books, I very much enjoyed #TheConfession and would wholeheartedly recommend it to my friends and to book clubs.
Thank you to Jessie Burton, to the publishers, and to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this lovely book.