Cover Image: Safe House

Safe House

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Member Reviews

My Thoughts:

Safe House is Jakeman's second novel. Sticks and Stones was her debut novel. I haven't read her first but I definitely will now.

I have to firstly say well done to Jo Jakeman for writing this mysterious, psychological thriller. You really messed with my head. This was one of those books that I couldn't put down, a proper page turner.

Ok, so the story goes like this...

Steffi Finn loved her boyfriend. She didn't query when the police came asking questions about his whereabouts on the night a woman goes missing. She didn't argue when he asked her to provide an alibi for him. Despite Steffi not really knowing where he was exactly at the time in question. She loved him, so she would do anything for him. But, this love resulted in her spending 10 months in prison. She received hate mail from people who thought she knew more than she let on. Lee Fisher had his idols who thought he was innocent, so they wanted revenge on Steffi.

On her release from prison she changes her name to Charlie Miller and relocates to Cornwall. But, is she safe?

Charlie Miller has moved into Penderrion, a small Cornish coastal town. The setting for this book was well thought out. If she would have moved to a big city I doubt it would have worked as well. The fact that everyone knows everyone made this story more interesting. All the villagers know each others business and all the goings on in the town. So, could Charlie really be safe? And will her true identity ever come out?

The dual timeline in this story (Charlie, in the present day and Steffi, in the past) gave us a clearer picture of who Charlie was. Well saying this I did have my doubts about her all the way through, was she really as innocent as she made out? As Charlie she was a head strong character, integrating with the community. But, as Steffi she was manipulated by her boyfriend. Or was she?

I don't want to give spoilers away. So, this is why my review is littered with posing questions to get you to think. Just like I did throughout.

And can I just point out what a genius plan to have a character who was very forgetful with people's names. Yes, it might be an easy solution to add mystery. But, come on we're all guilty of not being able to put a name to the face.

The story builds up tension as we get chapters from the point of view of Ben. Now, who is Ben and why is he obsessed with Charlie? Also, the mysterious perspective of somebody who is obviously very close to Charlie. All these little nuggets of mystery add to the beauty of this read.

If you are a fan of the works of Clare Mackintosh, Laura Marshall and Lisa Jewell then you will also enjoy Safe House by Jo Jakeman. Give it a read and you'll get your answers to the questions.

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My huge thanks to Mia Quibell-Smith for my spot on the blog tour and for my copy of the book, It’s a stunner! All thoughts are my own. Safe House examines the ramifications of loving and protecting the wrong man. Should love bend irrefutably? It makes the connection of just how far you’d be willing to go for the one you love. If you are a fan of dark humour you are going to be in for a treat. Safety doesn’t happen by accident.

Being an avid psychological Thriller fan, I get extremely excited about the premise of a new, fresh idea. I’ve read hundreds in this genre, so I can end up feeling jaded when I pick up a new one and it doesn’t take me long to decide if it’s for me. The prologue swallowed me whole and ensured I had fastened my seatbelt for the rollercoaster ride that lay ahead of me.

Jo Jakeman is a new author for me and I haven’t had the pleasure of reading her other story, Sticks and Stones. I will rectify that immediately. She is purveyor of bone chilling dread, she has created the anti- hero. A girl you feel you shouldn’t like very much due to the severe consequences her actions have led to, but her skill flicks a switch and you struggle to not like her. Not feel gut wrenching emotion for her. Not wanting her to continue suffering. As the saying goes, love is blind. There is never a truer saying than that. We want to be able to trust our own instincts. We all believe we are impeccable judges of character, we all want to see the best in people. No-one wants to accept that we are living with the monster, no dark alleyways but an evil figure lurking just behind you. They don’t just reside in your home, but they make a bed in your head…can you escape it? The eerie undertones contained within this gem of a book not only had me looking over my shoulder but checking my door was locked also. It may be more a case that I’m a bit of a masochist when it comes to the thrillers I typically enjoy reading but this emitted all the emotions and fear that I need to feel in order to LOVE a book. I love that it had me gasping, questioning human emotion and making a completely relatable character. Is it really such a stretch that love would have us making misinformed choices? The human condition doesn’t just fit nice and neatly into a box, it’s stretched, it’s torn but most of all its complex.

A psychological thriller is only as strong as its main character. Charlie, or should I say Steffi Finn Loved beyond measure, she thought nothing could separate her and Lee. She loved him without question. So, when asked to provide an alibi for Lee on the night of the murder of a woman she did so. Even though he treated her appallingly. Even though he didn’t feel half of what she did for him. Even though he used and abused her. No matter what she stood by her man. Now, I know what you’re thinking, why on earth would you lie for him? She was a manipulated woman; would you want to believe that your fiancé was a murdering piece of shit. She had no reason to believe he was lying. The police were only trying to fit him up, right? WRONG!! How wrong can you be? Wrong enough to allow another murder to take place and you ending up with a ten-month prison sentence to just nail it home.

We meet Steffi as she completes her sentence. She’s navigated the harsh conditions in prison, she’s struggling with guilt. Her parents have both died whilst she was inside, friends have moved on and the community have a long memory. She has no-one. I have to admit I struggled to warm to her at this point. She was involved with the actions of her fiancé, she enabled him to kill again. I didn’t have a lot of sympathy for her. Could she turn it around? Could a fresh start help her move forward?

Oh yeah, even though she needs a fresh start, there are people that believe she doesn’t deserve it, people that would be more than happy to make her very sorry for her part to play in the murders.

The narrative in this novel was simply dynamite. It was hard hitting, with its multi POV’s, both from the past and the future. The dark humour etched within the story was also a great touch and kept me captivated from page 1 until the end. The newspaper articles gave an unreliable narrative some edge to what she was going through, it was real and raw, and I loved it. My head constantly felt as though it was on red alert. You had Steffi’s feelings and emotions, you had Ben’s (wait until you meet that twisted individual) and you had the newspapers squiffing it all up, giving you a distorted view of the events. This psychological thriller has dialled up the paranoia metre up to 100. Steffi was living her life looking over her shoulder, and boy with good reason.

I loved the way we get catapulted into Steffi’s anxious psyche. Let’s be honest, it isn’t a healthy place to be. She’s on edge, she’s paranoid, she reads small details to be significant. Surely nothing is a coincidence anymore? She’s a hard character to fully support, I mean you lived with the guy, how couldn’t you have known he was murdering scum? But the dark, cold truth is…anyone of us could be Steffi. It’s an uncomfortable realisation to make, but it’s there all the same, love is blind, but love can also be uncomfortable.

I can’t ruin the delicious twists and turns but just know that the author has lain treasure for you to uncover, how far you dig for that treasure is up to you. The author has penned a different and authentically unique take on the genre and that takes guts and a magician’s wand…luckily the author has both. The slow burn makes it all the more satisfying and just rest assured you are in good hands with Jo Jakeman who delivers a cold and heart rendering tale of deceit, love and a price to pay. Trust no-one not even yourself.

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‘Safe House’ is a thriller read that explores the idea of guilt and revenge; it centres on a young woman who, through flaws in her character and a controlling situation, has made a bad decision by providing a false alibi to a murderer, enabling him to kill again. The novel explores the reasons for this decision, the personal cost to her and if she can ever leave the past behind and start again.
I really enjoyed the narrative puzzle to the writing, from an unnerving prologue, to the past and voices of the present, which eventually pull together. I quickly became obsessed with turning the pages to see where the story was taking me. After a relocation to the tiny seaside community of Penderrion in a rather dilapidated house, Charlie tries to rebuild her life. But with all thriller plots, it soon becomes apparent that this is not going to be easy; threat, fear and echoes of the past soon invade her privacy and threaten her life.
I enjoyed the mix of characters in the village and trying to work out who Charlie could trust, there’s a few red herrings along the way, but I think you are drawn to a particular person quite early in the novel. I enjoyed the creepy isolated setting of the house but there’re also some lovely heart-warming relationships developing which add nice depth. This is not a pacy read, so it was more of a Sunday afternoon chilled read, for me. The ending all happened rather quickly, but all the loose ends are nicely tied up.
‘Safe House’ is a well-crafted thriller that twists and turns rapidly as we slowly uncover the danger and the reasons for it. Tension and turmoil in abundance with enough layers to keep you guessing! An enjoyable atmospheric thriller read.

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Steffi has just een released from prison. She buys a run down cottage that she intends to renovate herself. She changes her name to Charlie and starts her new life I a small Cornish village. She soon starts to make new friends, even with the grumpy old man who lives next door. But then strange things start to happen around her. She feels that she is being watched. Has her past come back to haunt her?

Theres quite a lot of backstory to contend with. There are parts that seem to drag on. Charlie's character is complex. There were so many characters that could have been the culprit in this story, I just couldn't guess who it was. The storyline is intriguing and it gets better and better as the story unfolds. The dual timeline enables us to understand Charlie's background better, her time in prison and her trying to make a new life for herself. I don't think anyone can escape their past. There is always someone who will recognise you. This is a fantastic read.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Random House UK, Vintage Publishing and the author Jo Jakeman for my ARC in exchange for an honest review

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Steffi Finn just wants to forget her past. Newly released from prison and with a small legacy from her now deceased mother she has bought, sight unseen, a cottage in a small Cornwall village, not far from St Austell. It’s a far cry from her native Sheffield, but that’s what she needs right now – an escape from her past.

Stupidly, she believed her live-in boyfriend when he fed her a pack of lies about where he had been and what he had been doing. Even as he exerted coercive control over her, she still thought they were in love. He turned out to be a killer and she was the one who gave him a false alibi. When, too late, she finally saw the truth and went to the police, her alibi had enabled him to remain free to kill again and Steffi will always have that on her conscience.

The object of scorn and hatred in her home town, especially from those who thought she must have known what her partner was up to, she knows she will get no peace if she goes back there on her release.

So she dyes her hair, changes her name to Charlie Miller and hides away in the small rural Cornish village of Penderrion. She makes some new friends and begins to settle in, but she still feels unsettled. Is it just nerves after all she has been through, or is someone really there, watching her?

Jo Jakeman’s novel is an easy and fast paced read with lots to like about Charlie, even as we are shouting at her for being quite so gullible. The small village gossip network is beautifully evoked as is the general sense of community spirit.

The plot is nicely layered and the characters interesting. A dual timeline enables us to understand Charlie’s backstory and to introduce us to her previous boyfriend, Conor, who now looks after her legal matters and Jakeman introduces different voices and perspectives to the layers she builds.

I liked that this did not feel like a heavy, doom laden thriller and found it to be more entertaining than I initially expected. A couple of plot points did me make me scratch my head a little – was Charlie out on licence and able to just up sticks and disappear without any form of checking in at all – but not enough to over worry about detracting from a decent read.

The theme of whether or not it is ever possible to escape one’s past was well thought through and I failed to guess who was watching Charlie or why. Some nice deflection provides a twisted path to the truth albeit that I was able fairly quickly to work out where the twist lay. Jakeman writes with a light touch and this makes Safe House a satisfying read.

Verdict: Safe House is an entertaining, enjoyable and fast read, but not especially a surprising one.

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#SafeHouse #NetGalley
A can't put it down.
Charlie Miller has bought a house by the name of The Buttery in Cornwall. She was a prisoner by the name of Steffi Finn and went to jail for providing false alibi of her lover Lee Fisher.
Strange things started to happen in Charlie's life. Although she had made new friends but dear didn't leave her. Someone knows her truth but who?
Characters and plot are great. It was told from four POVs. All were great. I felt a connection with Charlie's character, when you try to run from your past but your past doesn't leave you. Other characters were good. Overall its a good book.

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Fantastic read. I loved the previous book by this author, Sticks and Stones. Safe House certainly didn't disappoint. It was really and truly an edge of your seat thrilling read. There were so many suspects, I just couldn't fathom out who it was going to be. Needless to say I was wrong.. The book is intriguing from the start and just gets better as the plot unfurls. Another brilliant 5 star read by Jo Jakeman

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I loved this author's debut book when I read it last year, so I was quite excited to see what she would serve up this time. Excited and a little scared that it wouldn't live up to my expectations. Well, blow me down, she's done it again. I loved it!
Charlie has bought a run down cottage in a small, remote, Cornish village. She's running from her past, her prison sentence for the part she played in keeping her serial killer boyfriend out of jail long enough to strike again. She went to jail, did her time and has now been released. Charlie is not her real name. She has reinvented herself, determined to break from the past ties and reputation. Soon after moving and making a couple of friends, strange things start to happen to and around her. She has the feeling she is being watched. But by whom? And what do they want from her? Has she really managed to leave her past behind or is it about to come back and bite her?
Yes there's quite a bit of backstory to contend with during this book which, at times, did make it drag a tad along the way. But this background did speak to both character development and scene setting so it was wholly forgivable and just added to all the layers at they built up through the early and middle parts of the book. As a consequence of this slowish build up, the ending did come across as being a bit rushed but nothing that really felt too disjointed. All the questions along the way were answered to my satisfaction, and as I turned the last page, I was left wholly satisfied, if a little exhausted!
I connected to Charlie right from the off. Even given her past, as I got to know her more and more I saw that the part she played in the crime that put her away was a lot more complex than appeared at face value. The way she conducted herself in Cornwall, how she made friends and connections, showed that she wasn't the person she had left behind and was deserving of my sympathy. As things started to unravel for her she, along with me, tried to figure out who had rumbled her true identity, and there were several candidates for that position.
It was all things twisty and turny along the way with fingers pointed in several directions but, and it doesn't happen very often these days, I was flabbergasted by the truth of the matter when it all came out. Shock and surprise slowly faded as I then started kicking myself for not realising the signs along the way. Hats off to the author for a job well done.
Yes, there were a few technical issues along the way but nothing too major and nothing that I couldn't accept for the sake of both plot and story progression.
Characterisation was excellent. I've already mentioned Charlie and how well I connected to her, but all the rest of the cast were equally well crafted and easy to get to grips with. Some more than others obviously but I don't want to go into all their ins and outs here for fear of spoilers.
All in all, another winner from Ms Jakeman. Hanging to see what she has in store for me next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

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Wow, this book had me enthralled all the way through. I felt connected as though I lived in the village of Pendirrion and was gossiping about the goings on around me.

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This is the second novel I have read by this author, the first being Sticks and Stones, and I have enjoyed them both.

Charlie is trying to re-build her life after having spent time in prison; she buys a run down cottage in a small Cornish village and although she tries to keep herself to herself whilst renovating, she starts to become involved in village life and developing friendships amongst the residents but she soon begins to feel uneasy and things start to happen.

With a plausible story line, complex, well developed and interesting characters, a great setting culminating in a thrilling conclusion, this is an enjoyable read.

My thanks go to Random House UK, Vintage Publishing via NetGalley for my copy in return for an honest review.

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A really great twisty thriller. Great for fans who enjoy creepy thrillers involving prison time too. Literally left me gasping for breath at parts. Highly recommended xx

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A sizzling thriller chock full of mystery which kept me second guessing myself up until the end.
I wasn't keen on the prologue, which nearly stopped me in my tracks - Conor came across as pretty aggressively unlikeable, but the focus quickly shifts off him in the main narrative and Charlie is a very likeable protaganist trying to earn her second chance. Full review will be post on 31 October

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This was an interesting read, and a variation on the usual lost woman, hiding out scenario. There were quite a few twists and turns. It kept me interested right until the end, although there were the odd occasions where it did become a little predictable. But all in all, a good read.

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Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. This was a real page turner and had me hooked from the beginning but then sort of dipped half way through. Nevertheless would recommend to others.

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Safe House by Jo Jakeman. This book was an enjoyable enough read but it never really captured me, the beginning was good but I felt that in the middle it got a bit slow and then then the ending felt rushed and way over the top. I was expecting a lot more from the story from the synopsis.

Charlie is new to the small remote Cornish town and ready for a new start. She has just been released from prison where she was serving time for providing her then boyfriend Lee a false alibi. Back then she was Steffi and her boyfriend turned out to be a murderer. Charming! Now she wants to put all that behind her and get on with her life. She plans to keep to herself but the residents of the small town start to become part of her life. She is renovating a house and gets invited to join the book club (I did love the cafe where this was held... heaven!) But she has the feeling she is being watched and strange things start to happen to her.

Thanks to Random House UK, Vintage Publishing and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased

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This book was not as good as her previous one
This story was very slow and difficult to follow.
The ending was very rushed and felt like it was an after thought.
It was an ok book but could have been so much better

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I really enjoyed this authors first book 'Sticks and Stones' so I jumped at the chance to read this book.

We meet Steffi Finn and get to know her and her life inside and outside of prison, where she is trying to build a new life for herself.

I feel that there was a lot of background story that made the book quite slow and quite frustrating to follow. I feel that it was dragged out too much.

This then led to a very rushed ending. All questions were answered quite quickly. I didnt guess who the person was, but I feel that a lot more time and thought could have been put into the reveal and not been so rushed.

I enjoyed the book overall, but feel that it could have been something so much better than it was.

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After a week of disappointing reads my expectations were low starting Safe House. Yes it has a great synopsis but so did the books that let me down. Thankfully Safe House was brilliant!

Jo has a pure talent for writing relatable characters and I fell in love with so many! Charlie has just left prison after being tricked into giving her boyfriend an alibi for murder, I felt so sorry for her. She’s not a bad person just made some bad decisions and I immediately warmed to her. Also a quick shout out to Aubrey! He was described so perfectly I could see his face in my head. Another great character I fell in love with.

Overall this is an amazing read with some clever twists and turns. I recommend to all readers, you need to pick this one up!

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An excellent read, tense and twisty with a great storyline and characters. It kept me hooked throughout.

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I enjoyed this book. It tells of Steffi or Charlie as she is now known who following being released from prison has moved to start a new life. Although there were some elements the author missed e.g. why was she never seeing her probation officer (all people who serve a prison sentence are released to some form of post sentence supervision) this did not detract from the enjoyment of the book. This had lots of suspects and it had a nice pace about it. I was a bit disappointed with the ending as it seemed to be out of the blue and a bit rushed but still an enjoyable read.

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