An intriguing story with an interesting premise. I enjoyed the dual timeline and getting to see flashes of what happened in the past. Satisfying ending.

Monstrous Souls is a debut that reads as though it were written by an established author; it's dark and gritty, covering uncomfortable and often taboo topics, yet is written with sensitivity and flair. Fifteen years ago, Heidi was one of the victims of a brutal attack that left her best friend Nina dead and her sister Anna missing. She has been unable to remember anything about that day, or indeed the months preceding it, since. But now that is changing as little by little, fragments of memory are coming back. But some secrets are dangerous and there are people involved who will do anything to keep these particular secrets from coming to light.

Split between two timelines, you have the timeline leading up to the attack in 2001 and the current timeline in 2016 as Heidi comes to terms with the memories she is finally regaining. The dual perspective worked well, as whilst you as the reader often knew slightly more than Heidi actively remembered, it gave the same sense of events being slowly recollected. The narrative was often framed in a way that Heidi's memories were often interwoven with the events narrated to you, so everything tied together well and didn't feel jarring.

This is a dark tale, and the murder of a child is only the beginning of the tangled web of horrors as the memories from her childhood return and she realises that what the police know is only the tip of the iceburg. Except that isn't quite true either, as Nina was certain even at a young age that someone in the police force was actively involved in the atrocities committed against children. As an adult, the more memories Heidi gets back, the more danger she is in, but for her own sake and that of her missing sister, Heidi is determined to get to the truth. The truth isn't as simple as it might appear though.

My main complaint with the novel is that for someone with a history of severe trauma - trauma that left her with long term memory loss and physical injuries - Heidi really can be seriously stupid. There were so many moments where she heads out alone - again - and as a reader I'm just thinking, why oh why!? To begin with, it's understandable. There's no immediate threat. But once she realises that she is being followed and someone is very keen to keep her quiet through any means, her behaviour becomes idiotic rather than naive. It's a pet peeve of mine in books. Any logical, sane adult fearing for their life is not going to run out on a whim to find the next piece of evidence; they would call someone to accompany them at the very least.

It's a minor quibble in the long run, although it did slightly mar my enjoyment of the novel. I found the characterisations of the children in the 'flashback' sections of the novel far more believable in that sense, as children make mistakes because they don't know any better. Adults making the same mistakes again and again is far less forgivable.

All in all though, I enjoyed this. It's a dark and tense thriller that builds up the atmosphere well. The characterisations are strong, particularly those of the children and of the Detective working the case in the present day. I particularly liked how the focus shifted from Heidi to Detective Gizeen, as it means you get to see events from both perspectives. The ramifications of such a horrific act on the children concerned even many years later was portrayed well, and I felt the author did an excellent job at portraying Heidi and Nina's family as fully fleshed out characters, rather than solely as victims.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for my free review copy of this novel.

Convincing characters and well crafted storyline. I could not put this book down. It made me angry, it made me sad and it made me envious of Rebecca Kelly's talent.
I look forward to her next novel.
Thank you Netgalley and Agora Books for giving me the opportunity to give my unbiased opinion.

I loved the writing style, and the talent of the author to slip into the different characters heads, and realistically convey them. It is a talent that not all writers have

This book is quite savage, but in all the right ways. It being set in the UK made it a bonus for me, but I loved the writing style, and the talent of the author to slip into the different characters heads, and realistically convey them. It is a talent that not all writers have, and I am quite jealous of. This book will grip you as you try and play detective yourself, and figure out who had done what to who.

4.5 stars
A debut story full of moments that will take you on a rollercoaster ride without doubt.
It's so interesting how our brain has a life of it's own and makes us forget or just block out sensitive and trauma moments from our life.
The story is told in then, 2001, and now 2016 scenes, with multiple pov, with so many triggering topics but these are bringing more awareness of how cruel the world we live in can be at times.
It's a brilliant thriller that many readers will enjoy all the edge of the seat, dark and twisted scenes , some predictable, some very unexpected, a hard to digest story at times but a must read novel for sure.

NetGalley arc, all opinions are my own

A gut wrenching story worthy of any established author but bravo as a debut!

Rebecca Kelly packs endless punches in this raw, psychological thriller and shows no fear in raising the ugly head of pedophilia. She achieves this through the eyes of Heidi, a damaged survivor of a heinous, unresolved crime. With the crime 15 years before, Heidi is still living with the scars most notably the damage to her memory. As she tries to make sense of her past she works closely with Denise a police officer as the case is revisited.

The story gathers pace through the gradual return of Heidi’s memory. This is successfully achieved by placing Heidi between the past and the present in first person narrative which she does with all her characters to great effect especially towards the end. Though we are not fed a huge amount of information about Heidi in the years since the crime, we discover enough to curry sympathy and with only threads to hold we are fed an air of menace and deep foreboding of what’s to come.

As the detail builds in Heidi’s mind so too does the detail of the crime and its wider impact. The murky spectre of abuse is kept in the shadows throughout which more than sufficiently relays it’s horror.

Rebecca Kelly has displayed a maturity in her writing that I would look forward to experiencing again.

This story is also a book about love and the profound loss of innocence and many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with the opportunity to discover this rising talent.

I loved the synopsis of this book and couldn't wait to get started with it: anything with the piecemeal returning of various memories is usually a surefire way to build interest and intrigue, for me. This book did not disappoint: I loved the slow burn as parts of Heidi's memory about the terrible events many years before, trickled back to her. The reveal was surprising to me; I wasn't able to correctly guess what had happened that day.

Another brilliant debut. I’ve just bought this for my daughter and she’s read it in 2 days. We both agreed this is EXCELLENT. The story is dark and it’s twisty and turny. I am now waiting for book 2 by this talented writer. Hurry up! You are amazing! 5/5. I’d give 6 if I could!!!

Wow! What an incredible debut novel. This had me gripped immediately, the story was so compelling, told by different narrators switching between 2001 and 2016. I really, really felt for Heidi, the main character. It also dealt with some really serious issues such as child exploitation and police corruption. The ending really was a shocker as promised too! I’ve already bought this for my mum who loves a great thriller too. Looking forward to Rebecca Kelly’s next book!

Monstrous Souls was clever, well written and plotted, but not an easy read sometimes. An accomplished book.

Monstrous Souls is a dark, addictive book which is hard to put down. Told from Heidi’s perspective this book is told in two timelines showing the lead up to the attack and, in the present day, how it still affects Heidi. I love first person narratives as I feel it gives me a chance to get to know the character more intimately as I am able to see what’s going on in their head. It also has me immediately on alert as it makes me think everything they say might not be true as they are known for being unreliable.

Heidi is a very interesting character who I felt a lot of sympathy for as she had been through so much. She’s a loner because of her experiences and as she feels guilty for surviving which is something I hadn’t read much about before so I found interesting to explore. The book covers some very difficult subjects of grooming and abuse but without ever going into graphic details so the reader feels uncomfortable.

The author cleverly builds up the tension over both timelines so that the book becomes impossibility to put down. Its not a book to read late at night as I kept promising I’d just read a little but more and look up to find it was midnight. There is an overwhelmingly feeling of fear in the book which also gradually increases so that I both wanted to keep reading to find out what happens but also wasn’t sure if I wanted to know! The ending was brilliant and a very satisfying though emotional way to end. I’m very excited to read more from this author in the future.

Huge thanks to Peyton from Arora books for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

thanks to net galley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.
I didn't realise what the content of this book was and if I had I would probably would have given it a miss. then I would have missed a well written book that was thought provoking.

Monstrous Souls by Rebecca Kelly is an excellent debut read. It is a dark and heart wrenching emotional tale that deals with the sensitive topic of child molestation. The story runs in two different timelines which are fifteen years apart - the crime that happened in 2001 gets solved in 2016.

There were a few good twists in the story, but it was majorly predictable. Even then, the narration was brilliant.

I am definitely looking forward to reading more of her.

Thanks to the author and the publisher for the ARC.

Verdict: Recommended.

This was truly a great debut novel. A dark novel that had me gripped right from the start. I will definitely be recommending.

I still cannot believe that this is a debut novel! It was fantastic and it certainly packs a punch! It is an incredibly sensitive subject however I feel it is handled and written very well. Definitely one to read!

This was a real page turner. It had a lot going on. It had unlikable characters, that made you rage with every bad decision.

It has mystery.. intrigue - all the great basics for a brilliant thriller. I'd definitely recommend giving this a read. It was a difficult storyline to read but would make a fascinating TV drama. (though maybe slightly overdone)

It did feel a little predictable and while i figured out the ending, I would recommend it to those who can read thrillers with a bit more death than in a domestic thriller.

Very clever - very monstrous

3 girls attacked – 1 murdered, 1 missing and 1 hospitalised with no memory of her past.

Heidi was left for dead next to her best friend Nina outside their childhood hideout, but her younger sister Anna is missing.

She has no memory of her past or what happened on that day in 2001; Now it is 2016, and Heidi is still alone in the world, but bits of memory is starting to escape the prison of her mind. Most of the memories are just fragments, is it enough for the police to reopen the open case so long ago.

This is a dark book, not an easy read and highly disturbing. When the adults around you that are ‘suppose to’ take care of you, are the monsters of your nightmares, what are children to do?

There are many triggers in this book; I found it hard to pick up at times, then hard to put down at others.

The damage to innocents is heart-breaking and filled me a fury that had no outlet.

Saying all that and with all the warnings in place, I highly recommend this book. Brilliant read.

Thank you, NetGalley, Rebecca Kelly and Agora Books for the opportunity of reading an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Monstrous Souls is an addictive psychological thriller debut that will have readers on the edge of their seats until the very last page. Fifteen years ago, Heidi was brutally attacked while her best friend was murdered and her younger sister went missing. The attack also left Heidi with holes in her memory. She can't remember any of the attack. Now, her memory is starting to come back. The story is told through multiple perspectives including the original investigating officer Denise. The story also goes back and forth between timelines. The atmospheric writing is addictive and filled with plenty of twists and red herrings. Readers will be dying to know what really happened to Heidi. Highly recommended to those looking for a solid psychological thriller.

Quite enjoyed this book. I did feel like the end was a bit rushed and could have been played out a lot more. But the plot itself was great and the characters were wonderfully written. Will be keeping an eye out for more from this author