Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for an honest review. I’m a huge Jessie Burton fan so was super excited for this.
The Confession is set in two timelines: one is set in the 1980s and follows Elise Marceau, a young 20-something old. She meets a thirty-something year old Connie, an acclaimed novelist who lives in Hampstead. The two soon end up in a relationship.
In the second timeline, which is set in 2017 we meet Rose. Nearly 35 she’s stuck in a dead-end relationship with her long-term boyfriend Joe. She works in a coffee shop and has no ambitions. Her mother, Elise, left when she was a baby and she’s been raised by her dad, who now lives in France. When visiting her dad one day he gives her a book by Connie and tells Rose Connie was the last person to see her mother before she left. So Rose sets off to find Connie and answers about her mother...
This was a beautifully observed book about nuanced and fragile human relationships. Unlike Burton’s previous books this one is more of a quiet, slow-burner. I highly enjoyed the parts set in LA that follows Connie’s book being adapted. There many heart-tugging moments. 5/5

This time lapse novel tells the story of Rose, who longs to know what happened to her mother. Why had her mother abandoned her and where is she now? Rose’s father can’t tell her because he hadn’t been there when Elise left her baby in a New York apartment and walked away. Only Connie knows the truth. Connie had been a successful author then with the world at her feet and Elise was her lover before their relationship turned sour.
Rose had only wanted to speak to Connie, to ask her what had happened that day in New York but fate steps in and, while hiding her true identity, Rose finds herself working closely with Connie.
Will Rose find the truth that she is looking for?
I have to be honest and say that it took me a while to get into this book. I didn’t really care enough about any of the characters to be bothered about what happened to them. As it went on, I found myself warming to them more but I was disappointed by the ending. In my opinion, The Confession is not as good as the author’s previous books.
Many thanks to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for giving me the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

One of those books that leaves you feeling like you’re missing something when it ends. Glorious, technicolour, epic and emotional storytelling.

I loved Jessie Burton's other books so I was thrilled to get an e-copy of The Confession from NetGalley and Picador in exchange for an honest review.
Firstly, a warning, The Confession is totally different to Burton's other books and it is a slow burner. I was slightly worried at the beginning but am so glad I stuck with it. It is beautifully written, subtle and paced slowly, which only intensified my enjoyment. I loved that one of the main characters was a writer, I always enjoy anything that has a story within a story and would love to know more about the green rabbit!
I can't wait to see what Jessie Burton comes up with next, she's a real talent.

This was another of my recent holiday reads and I’m glad I tried this genre as a change from my normal reads as it was a different experience. The story is very well told and the characterisation crisp but i did only like one of the three main story narrators, Rose and even her not a lot.
Interest and suspense is kept by the moving from era to era in a clever way but overall it wasn’t my favourite read.

I have loved Jesse Burton's previous books and this was no exception.
Beautifully written complex characters who are both charismatic and repellent. 3 very different women whose lives are intertwined and forever changed by the choices and actions each other makes.
I was left thinking about the characters long after I'd finished reading.
Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review

Three women. Elise Morceau, her daughter Rose Simmons and the link between them, author Constance Holden.

Elise and Connie meet in the 80s and instantly form a deep relationship together. Rose has been raised by her father, knowing nothing about her mother Elise who abandoned her as a baby.until one day in her mid 30s her father gives her some books by Constance and tells Rose that she knew her mother and was the last person to see her. The story is told in a duel narrative, we follow Elise and Connie in the 80s when they move to LA as one of Connie's books in made into a movie, as well as present day when Rose pretends to be Laura Brown and takes a job as Connie's assistant in a bid find out more about her mother.

I loved Burton's writing, as I said before with The Muse it just feels so effortless, the descriptions never feel forced or contrived. Every word seems perfectly picked. I had no idea where this book was going as I read it, which just made it even more exciting to read. The book is so much about love, identity and longing, I loved seeing the parallels between Elise's life and Rose's life, from jobs, to relationships, how similarly they dealt with some issues and how different they were with other ones. Everything weaved together lovely, though I'd expect nothing less from Burton! Utterly compelling

I haven't read this author before but had heard of her. This book was complex with well drawn and strong female characters. I loved it, although it was quite emotional in parts.

4.5 stars
New to me author and i love this book so much!
There are three different women, each one with her life and views of it, insecurities and beliefs, each one with her experiences and tales of a life lived in different times.
Even if it's a long book, it's a very well written one, with the main characters very reliable and i enjoyed every single page of it. The author is a storyteller that made me not want to stop reading it and everyone should read this story of motherhood, friendship and life lived through the eyes of these women.

I loved this story. It’s a dual narrative told from the perspective of Rose and her mother Elise. Both of these women were strong and likeable and their characters will stay with me for a long time. Connie appears in both narratives and she is fascinating. A reclusive author, we learn of her past with Elise while Rose is fighting for scraps of information.

This book was well written, alluring and stole a whole afternoon from me as I just couldn’t put it down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

Often when reading a novel with a dual narrative, I prefer one over the other. With The Confession, this wasn’t the case. Both intrigued me with their moral dilemmas and their strong female characters that were described in such detail that they almost seemed real.

Not my usual choice of read but I really did love this book. Set in the 1980’s and 2017 it moves seamlessly between the two eras. It’s a beautiful story about female relationships, friendship, love and self discovery. It left me wanting to know more.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC in return for an honest and unbiased opinion.

If your favoured reading material is a novel with a good sprinkling of secrets, motherhood, love, loss, friendship and a search for identity, then feel free to read Jessie Burton's latest offering - The Confession.

The novel was told from the perspectives of Elise and her daughter Rose. The settings are 1980 – 1983 and the present. With a whole cast of characters bursting with fascinating backstories that I really wanted to see more of and even though parts of the novel were quite slow-moving, I was never bored but instead, was lured ever deeper into this really dreamy, wonderful tale. The writing was extremely powerful and there were beautifully crafted descriptions of the places - London, California, Mexico and New York - as well as the people.

Many of the characters, especially Connie, Elise and Rose, became absolutely real to me and some of Rose's story spoke so evocatively and frankly that I felt that Jessie Burton was talking directly to me. I flew through the book in my haste to find out the secret at its core - the connection between these women. I loved the fact that at the end of the story Rosie and Connie's need for each other was matched, so there was some equality in their budding friendship.

I haven’t read any other of Jessie Burton's books but after reading this alluring novel, I have come to the conclusion that Jessie Burton is an incredibly talented writer and one who manages to encapsulate the time and place of her writing so very vividly. I loved this amazing book from start to finish.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Pan Macmillan via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

The story takes place in 2 time periods – the early 1980s and the near present. Elise Morceau and Constance Holden meet by chance on Hampstead Heath and quickly become partners and lovers. Connie is on the cusp of fame as a successful author. Elise is younger, does not know what she wants from life yet, taking part time, ‘fill-in’ jobs for the meantime.

We meet Rose Simmons in 2017 who has never known her mother; her mother left before she was a year old, and Rose was brought up by her father. She wants to find out more about her past but her father has always been reticent about this. One day he names Constance Holden as someone involved in her mother’s past and gives Rose two books written by her. Rose is fascinated by the books and becomes determined to contact Connie to find out all she can about her mother.

We follow Rose’s journey to self-knowledge and acceptance as she traces her roots. We meet quite a few self-obsessed, selfish people along the way. (What a lot of ‘selfs’!)

I was quite interested in Rose’s journey and past, but felt that the only thing keeping me reading was the beautiful prose as opposed to the story itself. I loved The Miniaturist, but for me this story didn’t have enough substance to keep me spellbound. Quite interesting, beautifully written.

I haven't read any of this authors books before but have heard of them with high praise so when I saw her latest I thought I would give it a go. The Confession is a story of the complex lives of strong female characters each with their own mysteries. This is not my usual read and found it quite heavy going, maybe as I read it on holiday when I usually choose light easy novels.
My thanks to Net Galley for the ARC.

It took me time to become enfolded by this novel. However, the story did grip me. The Confession has two time frames, Hollywood in the 1980s and London today. I preferred the second. It deals with the lives of three women whose lives intersect. Connie and Rose were utterly convincing. Elise perhaps less so. I felt she was very lost and not in control of her own destiny but perhaps this was the intention. It is a novel about identity, motherhood and relationships between women. I loved the way the two narratives intersected weaving in and out like a richly embroidered tapestry., slowly building up with great delicacy. There is very skilful, sensitive writing here, interesting character development and a superbly executed plot. I very much enjoyed reading it in return for an honest review from netgalley.

A woman’s search for her mother.

This is a story about complex relationships, particularly female ones.
In 1980, Elise Morceau had a fateful meeting on Hampstead Heath, with Constance Holden, a fascinating, older woman who is a very successful novelist. Elise soon falls under her spell and moves in with her. It is a Svengali/Trilby situation, and in this passionate relationship, Connie has complete power over the younger woman. Elise follows her to LA where Connie’s latest book is being made into a major movie, but she soon starts to hate the glamorous lifestyle of Hollywood and is jealous of Connie’s relationships, particularly with the actress who is playing the leading role. The result of Elise’s unhappiness leads her to take an action which inevitably ends in tragedy.

Decades later in 2017, Rose Simmons, in her mid-thirties, decides to search for the mother that she never knew and who remained a complete mystery. Her father won’t talk about his wife except to finally give her one clue, that her mother was in a long and close relationship with the novelist Constance Holden.

Rose decides to apply for a job as Connie’s personal assistant, under an assumed name, hoping she will, at last, be able to find out about what happened to her mother, Elise Morceau. The unravelling of the story reveals complex female relationships which are examined in microscopic detail.

The novel has crisp and flowing dialogue. The characters of the three main women are well-drawn, although the men are less convincing. I found the plot rather over-written at times, particularly towards the end, which began to drag. Despite this, I would recommend this book as a compelling read.

Jane

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is split up into two parts - Connie and Elise in the 1980s and Connie and Rose in 2017. I much preferred the chapters set in 2017 but I think that's just because Rose is a more likeable character. Elise is just plain annoying. 
I like how Burton left questions unanswered and concentrated on the character development.
It was a bit of a slow start for me, but I definitely enjoyed it and would recommend to others.

I was so, so excited to be approved to read ‘The Confession’ as I’m a massive fan of Jessie Burton’s writing and have had the pleasure of meeting her through Library work. Burton’s characterisation in this book was fantastic as it has been in her other works, although I would say that her writing style has matured a lot with this book; the text flows really well and the narrative split into two separate timelines was a nice touch as it allowed snippets of information to feed through to the reader.

Unlike in her previous novels, I found the characters to be fairly unlikable, although at the same time realistic as they all had flaws and talents as people generally do. I found that the further into the plot I delved, the further I began to dislike some characters and like others. The characters stories and histories interwove perfectly, even across the two timelines, set in the 1980s and 2010s. The main characters especially felt very real, with real emotions of friendship, relationships and sexuality. Both timelines were equally interesting and held my attention well; the differences between America and London were well executed, as was the pace of the storyline; there were a lot of twists and turns, although at times the twists were fairly predictable (to me), the book was enjoyable anyway.

One of my favourite things was the dynamic between Kelly, Instagram star and super mum, and Rose, the main character. Rose is believable as a thirty-something woman who isn’t quite sure where her life has gone or where it’s going and Kelly is the woman to keeps her going when life starts to fall apart. Overall I loved how the characters in this book weaved in and around each other; everyone was connected and that was ultimately, what helped the novel flow. I found the ending frustrating as it was too open ended for my liking, although on the other hand it isn’t a bad thing to be able to use your imagination to continue the story in the mind. A beautifully written piece of prose, from the beginning to the end.

My thanks to Pan Macmillan/Picador for an eARC via NetGalley of Jessie Burton’s ‘The Confession’ in exchange for an honest review. It was published on 19 September.

As the audiobook was available and narrated by the amazing Hayley Atwell, I purchased it and did an immersive read/listen experience. I found this an excellent character-led novel that engaged me fully from the start.

‘The Confession’ takes place in two time periods. In 1980 twenty-year old Elise Morceau is walking on Hampstead Heath and encounters author Constance Holden and quickly falls under her spell. A few years later they travel to Hollywood to oversee aspects of the filming of Connie’s first novel.

In the contemporary timeline that opens in 2017 we are introduced to Rose Simmonds, who narrates these chapters. She is Elise’s daughter, who has grown up with no knowledge of her mother as Elise had disappeared from her life before she turned one.

Rose was subsequently raised by her father in England. While visiting her father in France, he unexpectedly presents her with well worn copies of Constance’s only two novels. He reveals that Elise not only knew Constance but that they had been a couple and that Constance had been the last person to see her mother.

This leaves Rose with many questions and she decides to seek out the elderly reclusive Constance for answers. We follow her quest for answers alongside Elise’s time in the USA.

Burton’s writing is elegant and evocative as she moves smoothly between her timelines, characters, and locations.

I enjoyed Jessie Burton’s ‘The Miniaturist’, reading it twice and have been intending to read ‘The Muse’.

Burton does a brilliant job in crafting her characters and bringing them vividly to life. I don’t want to stray into spoiler territory so will hold off until it is selected for discussion in one of my reading groups in the future.

Jessie Burton’s novels have proved very popular with reading groups and I am sure ‘The Confession’ will also be. I certainly will be suggesting that copies are added to our County Libraries Reading Group Collection.

On a side note the cover art is very striking. It references the title and cover of Connie’s second novel, ‘Green Rabbit’.

Highly recommended.