The book begins in 1997 with a twelve year old girl running away during a thunderstorm and saying, “the grown ups are dead.” It transpires that this child is Brinley Booth whose best friends are Shannon and Sara Carter and the murder victims are Dr and Mrs Carter.
Next, we fast forward to 2018 where Catherine and Edward Allen and their daughter Honor live in rural Essex. The story is told in two time lines, 1997 and 2018 and mostly from Brinley and Catherine’s point of view. The author has also cleverly inserted what appear to be letters or emails from an unknown source, which keep you guessing and add to the intrigue.
Wow! This is a brilliantly written, utterly engrossing, dark and intricately woven psychological thriller and I raced through it! There were several heart stopping moments and I heard myself taking intakes of breath as the events unfolded.
There are several themes covered in this book, including the workings of the Justice Minister in cases like this and featuring some slightly familiar sounding political shenanigans! Fiona Cummins also highlights the role of the media, particularly newspaper journalists, in ruthlessly chasing stories together with the harmful aspects of social media.
This is the first book I’ve read by Fiona Cummins and I’ll definitely read her previous titles, as well as adding her to my ‘must read’ list of authors.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for an ARC of this outstanding book in exchange for my honest review.

EXCERPT: On her bedside table, the clock clicks forward another minute. Each tiny hair on her arm rises until her skin is stippled with goosebumps.

4.07 am

Even now, that combination of digits has the power to root her in place.

Twenty-one years ago, in another bedroom and another life, a different clock stopped forever at precisely the same time, a web of hairline cracks across its face.

(She) never speaks about that night. The past is put away now. It will not define her. She tries her best not to think about it, but every now and then it shoves its way in, ugly and unwelcome. The devil's clock, her mother called it, those hollow hours before dawn when the darkness is full of horrors and sleep will not come.

ABOUT 'WHEN I WAS TEN': Everyone remembered Sara and Shannon Carter, the little blonde haired sisters. Their Dad was the local GP and they lived in the beautiful house on the hill. Their best friend, Brinley Booth, lived next door. They would do anything for each other but everything shifted on that fateful day when Dr Richard Carter and his wife Pamela were stabbed fourteen times with a pair of scissors in what has become the most talked about double murder of the modern age.

The girls were aged ten and twelve at the time. One, nicknamed the Angel of Death, spent eight years in a children’s secure unit accused of the brutal killings. The other lived in foster care out of the limelight and prying questions. Now, on the anniversary of the trial, a documentary team has tracked down one of the sisters, persuading her to speak about the events of that night for the first time.

Her explosive interview sparks national headlines and Brinley Booth, now a journalist, is tasked with covering the news story which brings to light fresh evidence and triggers a chain of events which will have devastating consequences.

MY THOUGHTS: Fiona Cummins does this to me every time. No matter how prepared I think I am, I end up breath held, heart in my mouth, my whole body tensed and poised to take flight.

When I Was Ten is not a comfortable, nor a comforting read. But it was one that I couldn't put down, or stop thinking about. Nature vs Nurture, and what goes on behind closed doors .... this book is like Pandora's box. You open the cover and there are things contained within that will forever be on your mind. The subject matter is very dark - parricide, and child abuse to start with. As well as the more mundane and ordinary topics of loss, grief, infidelity, grooming, secrets, lies, betrayals, manipulation and . . . . well, you name it, and Cummins has it covered. But it works - brilliantly.

The characters are well crafted and believable, not to mention interesting. Very interesting.

When I Was Ten also examines the powerful influence of social media and the press, and the ways in which the users of social media can and do flout the law.

There is a lot of food for thought in this novel. But it's not going to demand that you acknowledge it. If you are simply looking for a read that will leave your heart pounding - this is it. The rest is window dressing. Chilling and thrilling.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#WhenIWasTen #NetGalley

I: @fionacumminsauthor @panmacmillan

T:

THE AUTHOR: Fiona Cummins is an award-winning former Daily Mirror showbusiness journalist and a graduate of the Faber Academy Writing A Novel course. She lives in Essex with her family.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Pan Macmillan via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of When I Was Ten by Fiona Cummins for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

This book was unputdownable for me – I read the whole novel in one sitting because I simply had to know how it was going to end! Twenty years ago a married couple were brutally murdered in their own home. One of their two daughters confessed to the crime and was sent to a young offenders unit. Now in the present day one sister is married with a child and the other is all over the news telling her story and looking for her sister. It’s not clear which sister is the murderer and the reveal was a shock but as this comes fairly early in the novel I was desperate to know more and what else was going on with this family. The novel is hard to read at times, especially the sections set in the past but it’s really well written and plotted so you can’t help but keep turning the pages. I found this such an engrossing novel. I’ve enjoyed all of Fiona Cummins’ novels that I’ve read so far but this one is definitely her best one yet! I highly recommend it!

📙 BOOK REVIEW 📙

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 Stars

Wow!! This book was dark! A really clever thriller with twists and turns. I thought I had the story figured out but oh was I wrong!
Some parts were extremely hard to read. *trigger warning* it includes child abuse.
The book it self was written really well and I do feel like those sensitive parts were written with care.
I found the first half of the book slow paced which was why I reviewed at 4 stars, I normally like thrillers to grip me from page one.
But the 2nd half of the book had me hooked and I didn't want to put it down.
Thanks #netgalley for my free copy in exchange for an honest review.
I beleive this is published 15/04/2021! Get your pre orders if you enjoy a good thriller!

Twenty-one years ago, Dr Richard Carter and his wife Pamela were killed in what has become the most infamous double murder of the modern age.
Their ten year-old daughter – nicknamed the Angel of Death – spent eight years in a children’s secure unit and is living quietly under an assumed name with a family of her own.
Now, on the anniversary of the trial, a documentary team has tracked down her older sister, compelling her to break two decades of silence.
Her explosive interview sparks national headlines and journalist Brinley Booth, a childhood friend of the Carter sisters, is tasked with covering the news story.
For the first time, the three women are forced to confront what really happened that night – with devastating consequences for them all.

#instabook #kindlebooks #amazonfire #book #readingtime #newbook #reviewer #bookstagramuk #booksta #bookreviewer #bookstagram #booksofinsta #authorsofinstagram #fionacummins

It’s April 1997 and a twelve year old girl Brinley, is running in a thunderstorm, running from a murder scene she has witnessed. Her next door neighbours, Dr and Mrs Carter, have been brutally stabbed to death by one of their daughters, Sara ten and Shannon twelve, after years of abuse. This is the image at the start of this convoluted tale of childhood and adulthood, guilt and innocence, retribution and absolution. The story then leaps forward to 2018, Sara, who confessed and spent eight years in custody, had been released into the protection system with a new identity. Now, as Catherine, she is happily married to Edward and has a twelve year old daughter, neither of whom is aware of her past. Shannon had been in the care system as an adolescent and has since been living anonymously. Seeking to find Sara on the 21st Anniversary of the murder, Shannon has revealed herself to the world, reopening the case in the memory of the population. This might have largely gone unnoticed except that the Secretary of State for Justice accidentally stirs up public opinion and a media frenzy ensues. And Brinley is now a reporter assigned to the case.
These threads are now woven into a tapestry by a very skilful writer. As the story progresses, new images appear, new angles come into view. Inexorably, though almost invisibly, new twists appear and existing ideas change. The final sequences are totally fitting but still manage to surprise.
Complicated plots can often trip up the writer who is concentrating on the machinery and lets the language slip. Ms Cummins is an experienced writer and never lets it slip; indeed in some scenes it is almost hypnotic in its effect. The basic premise of the story, child murderer living under an assumed identity, seems prosaic and I’d quite possibly have skipped it if I hadn’t been asked for this review, but I’m so pleased that I’ve read it because it is a great exemplar of my favourite things: surprisingly complex plot and excellent writing.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Wow! Thriller’s are my absolute favourite genre of novel, and this is one that is certain to haunt me and remain in my memory.

When I was ten follows two sisters, and their old next-door neighbour/closest friend. Years of humiliation and abuse from their parents culminates in the murder of both parents during the night. All of the girls tell lies about what happened that night, but secrets have a habit of getting out.

For most thrillers I read, I tend to guess the ending relatively quickly. But this book kept me on my toes. Just as I thought I’d figured things out, Fiona Cummins would blindside me with another plot twist. I was left gob-smacked and blown away more times than I can remember.

Fiona Cummins’ writing is extraordinary. Some of the narrative actually made me feel sick to my stomach, from the pure thrill and disbelief of what I was reading. The novel touches on some really dark topics, but it does it in a sensitive yet haunting manner. I genuinely did not want to put this book down. It lived with me whilst I wasn’t reading it. I just couldn’t stop thinking about it! I felt so invested in the lives of the characters. I haven’t read any of her previous works, but I will definitely be hunting them down now.

I want to thank Netgalley, the author and publishers for allowing me to read this book and give my personal opinion. This is an absolute must read for any thriller fans!

I found the narrative by different characters rather confusing because the author failed to make a Lear distinction between them. The story is good and the plot well developed but I’m at a loss as to why we had to read the drawn out saga of the corrupt politician. That sounded like it’s own short story to me.

When I Was Ten by Fíona Cummins

The Carter’s are dead. After years of abuse, things have come to a head and they have been stabbed to death by one of their two daughters. This is a good twisty thriller that was an enjoyable read.
Thanks to NetGalley and to Pan MacMillan for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

When pillars of the community, Dr and Mrs Carter, are brutally murdered and one of their daughters sentenced to several years in a secure facility for children, the attention of the nation is captured. The media feed off the story and, on the twentieth anniversary of the trial, a documentary puts the case front and centre once again.

Fiona Cummins has told this story perfectly, generating enough empathy for the Carter sisters through flashbacks to the time leading up to the murder of their parents. Cummins' experience in tabloid journalism shines through, here, giving the reader insight into the worlds of journalism and politics. Her portrayal of the MP, in particular, and how he wheels and deals in an attempt to save his political skin is brilliant.

Cummins yet again proves she's adept at placing ordinary people in horrific situations and her nuanced characterisations leave the reader absolutely gripped. The plotting is second to none and I genuinely couldn't get enough of this book.

'When I Was Ten' is completely addictive.

Dr Richard Carter and his wife Pamela were brutally murdered one night in the beds and it was their young daughters Shannon and Sara who took the brunt of it. One confined to a secure unit, accused of committing the crime and the other put into foster care and given a new identity. Years later, a team of journalists are keen to get one of the sisters to talk for the first time. Reporter Brinley Booth is tasked with telling the story but little does everyone know that she has a close link to the Carter sisters and that fateful night that goes back decades.

This fast-paced, horrifically violent thriller certainly made me gasp several times! I got a little bit confused around halfway through because I wasn't entirely sure which sister actually committed the murders and which one took the flack for it. Sara and Brinley also had similar voices and sometimes I forgot who was talking until another character popped up.

I am always fascinated by murder stories and child murderers are a particularly fascinating type of killer. There are some scenes of extreme child abuse in this book, which should definitely be a trigger warning for anyone thinking of picking the book up.

There is also a subplot following an unadulterous politician, which I don't think fitted with this story. It almost felt like part of another book and was only really loosely connected to the Carter sisters' case. Could have easily done without this whole strand, to be honest!

There was still a final twist saved until the very end, which I really appreciated and didn't see coming at all! I enjoyed it but had a few problems with the structure and character distinguishing that brought the rating down.

One dark night, after years of mental and physical abuse, Shannon and Catherine’s parents are stabbed to death. But which of the girls was responsible? Over twenty years later, journalists, including their old friend Brinley, are interested in the story once more. Can the sisters and Brinley be reconciled, and will the truth be told?

When I Was Ten is an enjoyable story, with the facts about the fatal night being gradually revealed. With many twists along the way, the revelation, when it comes, is both a surprise and predictable, if that’s possible! I wasn’t totally sure about the point of Brinley’s lightning strike, other than to show that she also suffered, but it didn’t affect my overall enjoyment of the book.

Slightly sensationalist - some of the chapter endings were obviously trying hard to keep interest - but a good story.

This is the first book I’ve read by the author and I thought it was good! It’s a heartbreaking portrayal of child abuse and the effects of a childhood crime that last for decades. It also looks at how the media sensationalises criminal cases and the political repercussions in cases involving minors. The focus on the media feels particularly relevant seeing as there's a rise in true crime consumption in pop culture and social media.

I did find the story predictable. I guessed the twist with the sisters and a final reveal at the end, though I must say they didn't detract from my enjoyment of the book. However, I wish the characters are more striking especially considering the trauma they've been through. The characterisations could have been more consistent - for example, the way a character remembers her aunt fondly doesn't match with the way she was treated by the same aunt as a child. The political side plot featuring a Minister also feels superfluous and I wish we didn't spend so much time with such an unlikeable character. But I thought the book does a fine job of showing the effects of abuse and how secrets have a way of coming out. This is a solid pick if you're looking for a quick thriller about sisterhood, secrets, and revenge.

Thanks to Net Galley and Pan Macmillan for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This is a dark psychological thriller with twist after twist.
The story opens with a double murder in 1997 and a young girl fleeing the scene.
The book goes back and forward between the past and the present, We meet sisters Catherine and Shannon who are estranged and have not seen each other since the night their parents were brutally murdered. The anniversary is approaching and Shannon is speaking to the media, while Catherine has been living a quiet life with her husband and teenage daughter, who do not know about her traumatic past, their lives are about to be turned upside down.
This is a roller coaster fast paced read, if you are a fan of Fiona Cummins you will not be disappointed and if you are new to this author I highly recommend this one.

I never repeat the blurb. More twists and turns than a twisty turny thing. Really enjoyed this, although it was hard to really connect with any of the characters.

When I was Ten by Fiona Cummins

The Carter family seemed to everyone else to be living an idyllic life in their large beautiful house on the top of a hill. The two little Carter girls seemed happy as did their father, the village doctor, and mother. Then, in 1997, one of the sisters committed an unimaginable act. She murdered her parents with a pair of scissors and ten-year-old Sara is charged with their murder – the watching world is absolutely horrified – and is locked away until she was 18 while the other sister is given a new identity. Twenty years after the crime it is all now coming out as Catherine Allen watches the news and sees her sister on it talking about the murder of their parents. Their neighbour and friend all those years ago, Brinley, is now a journalist after the big story and it looks as though now she might have it. More lives than one will be altered forever as the revelations flow.

I am a huge fan of Fiona Cummins. She’s one of those writers whose books I will always read and as soon as possible. I especially loved The Neighbour and I’ve been looking forward to what would follow it. When I was Ten, another entirely stand alone thriller, was well worth the wait.

The novel tackles a subject that is not an easy one – the abuse of a child that is so severe, so calculatedly evil, that it leads to that child murdering her parents. The narrative moves backwards and forwards through time so that we witness what the sisters went through and how this pulled them together until the murder divided them forever as prison took one and a new identity claimed the other. We see what this has done to Catherine Allen, who has created a new life, knowing that now everything will change as the past is awoken and others, such as the media or a cabinet minister, begin to feed on it for their own gain. Society has judged the sisters who have kept their secrets. Can Brinley help or will she destroy them?

The thread featuring the cabinet minister is perhaps a distraction, although I did enjoy it, but the focus here is on lives destroyed and altered and, as the vultures circle, it builds into a thoroughly engrossing and compelling read as we learn more and more about the past and about the present. Fiona Cummins is a clever writer. Her stories don’t develop as you’d expect while still emotionally involving the reader in their characters. So we have the best of both worlds – an exciting psychological and crime thriller as well as an insightful and empathetic portrayal of a terrible situation that destroys lives while also inciting a judgemental society’s salacious interest.

The Neighbour was one of my top 20 books of 2019 and there is every chance that When I Was Ten will do as well in 2021. It is most certainly a powerful and haunting depiction of what happens when a child kills and what drove her to it.

Other reviews
Rattle
The Collector
The Neighbour

Children killing their parents...... It can’t get more serious then that. There has to be something really wrong with either the kids or the parents. But there isn’t anything the outside world can see. Sara and Shannons parents are good people. Respected. Nobody understands why 10-year old Sara stabs both her mother and father.
Very well written, I felt like sitting on an emotional roller coaster. There where several moments when I was thrown for a loop and had to rethink what I thought might have happened.

When I Was Ten blew me away. Fiona Cummins has captured a very real sense of danger that begins with the opening sentence and prevails throughout the book. Imagine you are on a very powerful motorbike that is revving hard as you get on and then, without you having mastered it, it takes off leaving you clinging to it, trying to stay on as it whips and bucks like a bull in Pamplona. That sense of thrill, of very real danger, of knowing you could come a cropper at any time, is what it feels like reading this extraordinary book.

This is a dark book, and there is malice, cruelty, spite and hatred in it, so much so that that it is painful to read. From the very people who ought to be loving comes the most vile behaviour and it is hard to witness.

Told in two timelines, the present day (2018) and 1997, when Sarah and Shannon Carter, daughters of the local doctor, Richard Carter and his stylish wife Pamela, lived in Hilltop House, next door to Brinley Booth, and the three girls were fast friends.

Richard and Pamela are murdered in their beds, victims of a savage stabbing. That case was the headline in the tabloids because not only was it a savage double murder, but 10 year old Sarah Carter, dubbed forever ‘The Angel of Death, is sent to a secure institution for their murder, locked up for almost as long as she has been alive.

Told from first and third person perspectives, the book’s present day focus is sparked by a television documentary which revives all the horrors of ‘The Hilltop House Murders’. Shannon Carter has finally broken her silence and for Sarah Carter, relocated and living quietly under a different name, her life is about to change for ever.

Brinley Booth’s life is also destined to change. She is now working as a journalist for a tabloid newspaper and no-one knows this story as intimately as she does, outside of the sisters. But does she really want to make this story about her? That’s a can of worms she really did not want to confront.

Catherine Allen loves her husband Edward and their daughter Honor, though Honor is that that difficult age when truculence is at the forefront of their exchanges and secrecy is the name of Honor’s game. Catherine’s life is quiet and loving. Now all that, too is going to change because soon her life too will be over.

Fiona Cummins story is riveting, breath-taking and carries with it a real tension and ever-present sense of malevolent danger. An emotive, immersive tale of parental malice, sibling love and the impact that abuse can deliver over the longer term.

A side story of politics and greed helps to add another dimension to the tabloid feeding frenzy that Cummins depicts so well.

Verdict: Thrilling, visceral, a wild ride through dark and dangerous territory that is not for the faint of heart. Cummins pacing is spot on and her writing holds you in its grasp from first page to last.

I quite enjoyed this book , was a steady burner but I was waiting for a big climax at the end but that was a bit predictable. Awful story of child abuse , showing mental abuse can be just as horrific as physical. Wasn’t surprised the children were driven to retaliate. Not a bad book though on the whole , worth a read , just something was lacking in the story for me

When I Was Ten is a perfectly plotted thriller, which makes for a superb read. The blend of characters is just wonderful, the storyline is compelling and it is written beautifully.
Ten year old Sara does something unthinkable. What has she done and why? What are the consequences for her and those who surround her? What will be the impact in the years to come? Can a child ever get over their past and become reformed? Should a child be given a second chance?
This was the first of the books I had read by Fiona Cummins, I was very impressed and will certainly look for more by her. I highly recommend this book.
Thanks to NetGalley for a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Catherine Allen lives a quiet life with her husband and daughter but the shadow of her past always lurks. No-one knows who she really is but when her sister appears on TV on the anniversary of their parents' murders that could all be about to change.

As soon as we meet Catherine in her small time idyll we know straight away her time as the person she has been for thirteen years is up. However how and when this will happen is not clear. I could not read quick enough to find out the truth about her dark past and how it was going to catch up with her. The story unravels in a hideous and twisted way that no-one could see coming. The glimpses into 'Catherine's' childhood were particularly illuminating and equally uncomfortable.Then an inspired addition was Brinley the childhood friend that grew up to be a journalist desperate not to be stuck with the fluff pieces. Both Brinley and Catherine know their lives are about to take a turn but for the better or the worse is still undecided. Fiona Cummins hands the reader intertwined threads of a story which you hold tight and get thoroughly tangled in until... she severs it when you are least expecting it!