This was another superb novel from Fiona Cummins that was utterly compelling. The story is told from two viewpoints, the sister and the journalist and cleverly entwines the two in a way that keeps you wanting to know just a little bit more. As with all Fiona Cummins books you get a great insight into not only how messed up family dynamics can be but also how far people will go when they want to protect their secrets.

The writing is as always engaging and completely sucks you in. I thought the story itself was very clever. There were some very upsetting elements as you find out about the family itself and what happened in the lead up to the murder. It is a very emotional story based around family life. I did find the inclusion of the MP storyline a little unnecessary, as I didn’t really feel that his storyline added to the book much, however the reasons behind him being included became clearer as we hit the end. I liked the way the story was structured, it was very much an act in three parts as the story switches between the before and the after for the Carter sisters with little let up inbetween.

One of the things I really like about all of Fiona Cummins’ novels is the unexpected twists and turns that run throughout, whenever you think you have a handle on where it is going something else will happen that completely throws the theory out of the water. This was no exception.

When I Was Ten was yet another fantastic story from one of my favourite authors and I can’t wait to read what comes next from Fiona Cummins.

The Carter sisters have a seemingly perfect middle class life, living in a beautiful house in a lovely village. Their childhood appears to be perfect. Then one day, ten-year-old Sara does something unforgivable. Over twenty years later and on the anniversary of the trial the sisters are forced to confront what really did happen that night.

A brilliant read. This book grabs you straight away and then the tension just keeps building. It perfectly depicts the sinister side of middle class village life, made even more sinister because you know it could be true. It’s an edge of your seat addictive fast paced read. Strangely, for a psychological thriller, I actually felt quite sad by the end of the book, as the characters are so real you can’t help feeling empathy for them all.

I was very excited to read this after reading other reviews. However, it let me down. The story is of 2 sisters and their best friend, murdered parents, witness protection and secrets surfacing years later. I would have liked to hear more about Shannon's character and what really drove her to kill, we don't really hear from her at all. The politician character felt completely useless in the narrative, you could completely skip through those chapters and not miss a thing. Brinely's confession in the final pages of the book is a bit ridiculous, it's out of character and makes no sense. From page 1, the narrative was building for an exciting end, but in the end it was underwhelming. Overall this was a good story, but the ending and narrative choices let it down for me.

It took me a couple of chapters to get properly into 'When I Was Ten', but then I couldn't put it down. I was kept guessing throughout and everything was tied up by the end. A satisfying read.

A gréât thriller much like the flower girls, well written and the different twists will keep you guessing until the end.

I can’t do this book justice with any review, suffice to say I enjoyed it immensely! The characters reveal themselves gradually and we learn how they are linked and the bonds between them. The twists and turns are unexpected but so cleverly woven into the story. Their bonds of friendship are intertwined with secrets and lies. I have also read The Neighbour by Fiona Cummins which is also truly brilliant. This is so cleverly written it had me gripped from start to end.

Kids that kill. Something that you think would , could and should never happen, yet it does.

This is the story of two sisters and their. childhood friend. The sisters are abused by their parents and one night, one of them takes revenge and murders them both.

I'm really fascinated by this topic so as soon as I read the blurb I knew I had to read it. Overall, it was a good solid read with twists throughout keeping you on the edge of your seat. The only thing that let it down for me was that I found it quite predictable and I guessed pretty much most of what happened. It didn't stop he liking it though

Thank you to netgalley for a copy of this to review.

Overall, didn't quite grab me, but it's an easy enough read with all of the expected suspense moments.

Wow, wow, wow I loved this book.
What a page turner. I particularly enjoyed reading about the past, not sure enjoyed is the right word as it made me squirm but in a good way.
I’ve already recommended this book to everyone I know and will be reading more from this author.
Thank you for the opportunity to read this book.

What a fabulous read! Kept me engaged all the way through with suspense. Very well written and a story that flowed and unfolded perfectly.

Highly recommended. This is my first book from Fiona Cummins and I will definitely be looking to see if she has others.

Thank you Pan Macmillan and Netgalley.

Wow, wow and just wow! I put down this book and literally couldn't pick up another for days. If you have read any of her other books then you will know just how dark and twisted her mind is, you will know that you are not in for a cosy crime type of read and you will not be disappointed.
When I Was Ten starts off relatively calm, although extremely dark and unsettling. I wasn't quite sure where it was going and how it was all going to pan out, despite the fact that the hairs on the back of my neck were standing to attention all the way through it.
And then BAM! Fiona Cummins pulls the rug right out from under your feet and a whole new direction opens up, secrets and the past spill out over onto the pages and into your life as you become completely immersed in the lives of these characters. I don't want to say much about the story line or who I liked and who repelled me but let's just say that there were a couple of characters in there whom I'd have happily dragged out the pages and strangled with my bare hands.
Assumptions are made and overturned before reforming as the author leads you down a a dark and harrowing path. The twists and turns are immense, the characters completely relatable. this is a book that will stay with you for a very long time! BRILLIANT

Another great book from Fiona Cummins. When I was Ten is full of twists and turns which had me gripped from beginning to end. Definitely one to read.

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for a copy of When I was Ten by Fiona Cummins. This is the first book from the author I have read, and I will make sure that I will seek out the other books she has written.
It’s 1997 Sara and Shannon are sisters and live at Hilltop house. Their friend Brinley Booth lives next door. There are best friends and there is nothing they wouldn’t do for each other. Their father Dr Richard Carter and his wife Pamela are a pillar of the community. In the eyes of the local community they can do know wrong. But behind closed doors it is a different matter. They are cruel, evil parents to the two young girls. One fateful night they were both stabbed fourteen times. Sara was convicted for their murder and set to a secure unit for thirteen years and Shannon went into care.
Years later it’s 2018 Sara now called Catherine lives with her husband Edward in Essex and they have a daughter Honor who’s 12. When a news article digs up what happened all them years ago and Catherine’s real identity her life turns upside down.
Brinley now a journalist for the newspaper, remembers that day very well. She goes back to her childhood town to cover the story hoping that her part of what happened that day still stays hidden.
This story is written in two perspectives, Catherine and Brinley’s and it draws your attention in from the very first page. This is a gripping unique thriller, with a great storyline, and characters. I just felt that after the build up to what happened at the day and what led up to it, the ending didn’t deliver. Four stars from me.

This is a very beguiling story about a horrific incident and how the main young characters have moved on from it. The main characters of Catherine and Brinley both appear to have moved on and established a steady everyday life, one focussed on her family, the other on her work. It quickly becomes clear how easily it is to uproot them when Shannon decides to make a documentary about the events of the night her parents were murdered along with an appeal to find her sister. Both Catherine and Brinley struggle to maintain their lives with the increased media focus on Shannon and the murders and they start to unravel. This is a great page turner with strong characters and a few twists and turns along the way.

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and Netgalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for a unbiased review of these works.

Review will be on my blogsoon!
Join me at :- https://booksandemma.wixsite.com/blog

This is such a great psychological thriller. The tale of the two little Carter sisters who outwardly live in such a lovely fine house with parents who are held in such high regard within their village. You never know what goes on behind closed doors .......
Every part of this book gripped me right until the very last page.
This is a book to recommend to anyone who loves thrillers, it is fantastic.

I couldn’t put this book down, from the start it had me gripped. I loved the two intertwining time-lines which keep you utterly hooked. My heart hurt for those two little girls and I wanted to scoop them from the pages and keep them safe. My only slight disappointment was the ending as other readers have said, it didn’t leave me satisfied. It left me with unanswered questions and wondering if I’d missed something. Where did all that anger towards her sister come from? It didn’t make any sense, was she just so damaged? As other reviews have said, it leaned more towards the shock value then the actual richness of the story. Saying that, maybe I was a fool for hoping for a happier ending when reading such a book, but it felt unexplained and rushed. But overall a really good read and I’d still recommend.

I’ve never read any books by Fiona Cummins before but ‘when I was ten’ was certainly a good one to start with! The book starts In 1997 with a young girl running away from a murder scene and i was hooked from the beginning. The story splits between then and 2018 to tell the story of the hill top murders and the lives and secrets of those involved. Dark and emotional at times this well written book is definitely one I’d recommend! Thanks to netgalley for my preview, available from August 2020.

Meet the Carters - the family patriarch, Dr Carter, his elegant wife Pamela, and their two beautiful daughters, Shannon and Sara. Everyone in town knows them, the perfect family living their perfect lives in their perfect home. But then everything changes, when Dr and Mrs Carter are brutally murdered, stabbed fourteen times with a pair of scissors. The killer? Their daughter. The two sisters, once the best of friends, are torn apart - one spends eight years in a secure unit, atoning for her crime, while the other is placed in foster care, safely away from the limelight. But thirteen years on from the night of the murder, their story is back in the papers when one of the sisters speaks out for the first time. The aftermath of her interview will make everyone question what they thought they knew, and will set in motion a chain of events that will change everything...

Ok, so I will admit that at first I found this a bit confusing. The narrative alternates between Brinley Booth, a journalist who grew up with the girls and is now tasked with covering the story, and Catherine, who is one of the sisters living under a new identity. There's also sections in italics, written by an anonymous author addressed to an unknown person, included at the end of some chapters. Plus, some chapters from the perspective of the local MP, who is also the minister for justice. At first, I definitely found this to be a bit confusing, but you do eventually get to grips with it. I just felt like, especially at the beginning, there was a lot of confusion over who was who and what was actually happening. I also questioned whether you needed the sections from the POV of the justice minister - it didn't really add a lot, and I felt like you really wouldn't've noticed if his sections were cut. The only benefit they did add was to reflect on the power of the press and the insincerity of government officials meant to be protecting their people, but it just felt a bit unnecessary with everything else going on.

A real strength of the book to me was the sections set in the past, which reflect on the home life of Shannon and Sara and serve to explain what happened and why. Through these sections, Cumming's creates a nuanced and careful exploration of the damage done by both physical and mental child abuse, and the impact it has on the psyche of those being abused. I will say though, that I found the motive to be a little black and white, and everything was a little overt considering it was meant to be hidden. In this sense, I think my main issue with this book was that a lot of the 'twists' were quite easy to guess at, including the abuse, which was glaringly obvious from very early on. Furthermore, within a few pages, I was pretty certain which sister Catherine was and who the author of the italics section was, and as soon as the flashbacks started I guessed what had actually happened that night. There was only one reveal right at the end that I didn't guess at, and that did fill a sizeable plot hole, so I guess I can't complain too much.

All in all, a mixed bag for me. I loved the sections set in the past, and found them to be incredibly well written when considering the sensitive subject matter being handled. However, I found the beginning of the book to be a bit slow and confusing, and while it picked up in the middle, the twists were a bit too well signposted for me. While this one wasn't perfect, you can definitely see that the author is a great writer, and so I would still look out for her other work.

Disclaimer - I received an advance reading copy from NetGalley. This has not affected my review in any way, and all opinions are my own.

What a tangled web we weave …..nothing is quite as it seems in this book, perfect parents, happy children they are all hiding secrets and guilt. This is a sit down and read in one sitting delight and I absolutely loved it.