This book follows the story of Nell, a young girl running away from foster care.

If I'm honest, I found the story a little strange, and didn't particularly bond with any of the characters. The book was really well written, and, whilst I did enjoy reading it, it wasn't the kind of book that I found impossible to put down.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Pan Macmillan, and the author for a chance to read and review this book. All opinions are expressed voluntarily.

A haunting and evocative tale of a young orphan whose only desire is to belong, Sarah Hillary’s Fragile is fraught with emotions and a tense atmosphere. The story of Nell that I read with goosebumps on my skin and tears in my eyes, is dark and desolate, utterly compelling with a gothic overtone that was literally unputdownable.

Nell Ballard needs to be ‘needed’ and to achieve that she is ready to take over anything, thereby, making herself indispensable. Abandoned by her mother at 8 years of age and raised by a foster mother Meagan Flack whose only interest in life is the services money that would be paid to her, Nell knows nothing about love or care. Starling Villas was supposed to be the haven that she never had but the enigmatic Dr. Robin Wilder and his rota of work is nothing as she expected.

Nell’s desperate attempts to change herself seductively pulls at a reader’s heart. At times depressive, at times poignant the author deceptively encompasses the loneliness and madness that may lurk behind any closed doors irrespective of the social strata they belong to. Told in alternate chapters thru Nell’s present and Meagan’s flashbacks, Nell’s and Joe’s life at Lyle and the death of 6yr old Rosie is brought to light. The author thankfully keeps the derivative in a passive voice, it would have been heartbreaking to read the absolute disregard meted out to the children by Meagan.

It’s been a while since I read a good character-driven story, Fragile has in fact everything manipulated by the desires and whims of each character, my only wish that there was something positive or light in the story, to overcome the resonating sadness left by this classic.

Highly recommended!

This review is published in my blog https://rainnbooks.com/, Goodreads, Amazon India, Meduim.com, and Twitter.

First of all, let me start my saying that I found this to be a very enjoyable read – I devoured it in a weekend. I was immediately drawn to Nell, and the author created empathy through strong characterisation and a really interesting backstory. We soon find out that Nell has escaped from one life but may have inadvertedly fallen into a worse trap than she’d been in before. She is fragile, and the lives of others around her echo this fragility.

I was excited to read this book after hearing it compared to both ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ and ‘Rebecca’, which are two books that I’ve loved reading. ‘Rebecca’? Yes. Hilary has captured the voice of Daphe Du Maurier here in the tone of youth and optimism overcoming, and even being blind-sighed to, oppression. There are reflective passages where reality dawns on Nell, that match those of ‘Rebecca’s’ protagonist, and Mrs Wilder can certainly be seen as a domineering echo of the former Mrs de Winter. ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’? Nope. Nell goes to the local shops, has a rota of jobs to complete (rota irked me – ‘schedule’, surely?), and has sex, but she’s chosen to work for Robin, can leave whenever she wants, is paid and the sex is consensual. This is hardly a feminist statement of oppression and male-dominance in society, in fact the two most domineering characters are both female.

There is a real ‘energy’ to this story. Nell is hard-working and unafraid to get stuck in to a task. We hear about her cleaning at Wilder’s and cleaning at her foster home. And there is a joy to her clearning, a real enthusiasm that carries the reader along with it. When I can’t be bothered to do housework, watching something like ‘Filthy House SOS’ for half and hour will normally give me the motivation I need to whip out the bleach and attack the clutter. This novel, strangely, had the same effect on me. I’m pretty sure that this wasn’t the author’s intended effect, but this novel will make you want to clean!

I wasn’t quite sure how this joy of cleaning really sat with Nell’s feeling that she is perhaps trying to punish herself. For all that I could grasp, she takes a pride in sorting out the old house, fantacises about it’s past, and takes joy in returning it to a homely environment. Rather than this being a dark, psychological thriller, I found many sections to be rather inspirational – her attic makeover is certainly pinterest-worthy.

As a teacher of English, I really appreciated the gorgeous figurative langauge in this novel, which is so often missing from thrillers. I now have a life goal of owning a Japanese Kintsukoroi bowl, which Hilary described so beautifully, winding the symbolism effortlessly through her narrative, and highlighting Nell’s own fragility. The parts of the novel that I found most chilling were the descriptions of Nell’s life before her arrival at Starling Villas. As a mum, anything to do with children being mistreated always makes me feel particularly uncomfortable, and for this reason I really disliked the character of Meagan. Could Hilary have gone further with the descriptions of life at Lyle’s? Absolutely. Am I glad that she didn’t? Yup. Equally, other authors may have gone to town with details of disfunctional dometic relationships – there was certainly the opportunity for it here – but I rather preferred this ‘soft’ version of abuse. Not the dark portrayal that I’d expected after reading the above synopsis from the publisher, but one that I was comfortable reading.

There were, however, parts of this book that didn’t really seem to link together. The novel starts with the idea that Nell has a definite purpose in choosing to work for, and live with, Robin Wilder. It sounds like she knows what to expect, and that her reason to be there is merely to track down Joe. What confused me, was that (a) there is no need for her to be at Wilder’s in order to find Joe, and (b) she doesn’t leave once she’s found him. I also didn’t really understand why Nell allowed the relationship with Wilder to progress to the extent it did, when she appeared to be pretty clued up on his intentions. I wonder whether Hilary’s vision for the narrative changed as she wote it, and that maybe a few loose ends didn’t quite get tied up.

In conclusion, if you’re looking for an interesting domestic read with a twist, this is the book for you, and personally, I really enjoyed it. I’d go as far to say that it may even be classed as a YA thriller. However, if you’re searching for a dark, psychological thriller, than you may be a little disappointed.

A beautiful use of language and imagery but somehow this book did not satisfy. I felt it needed condensing somewhat and it also lacked likeable characters, even six year old Rosie was difficult.
I have no literary skills so it pains me to criticise the work of those that do but this is my honest opinion.
My thanks to Netgalley for my copy of Fragile.

"Fragile" is a dark and twisted standalone novel from the author of the "DI Marnie Rome" series, but it is also a very sad story. It's brilliantly written (as expected), with a very good plot (also as expected), but I couldn't quite connect to any of the characters (a surprise for me). I enjoyed this book a lot, and hope that Sarah Hilary writes many more standalone novels.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

Nell Ballard is a runaway. A former foster child with a secret she's desperate to keep. All Nell wants to find is a place she can belong. So when a job comes up at Starling Villas, home to the enigmatic Robin Wilder, she seizes the chance with both hands. Only her new lodgings may not be he safe haven that she was hoping for.

It took me a couple of chapters to et into the book but oonce i did, i quite enjoyed it. This is a story about foster children and the ones who run away from home to et revenge. This is a well written and atmospheric read. It's also slightly creepy but thrilling. Nell and Joe run away from their foster home and the story is told from Nell and the foster homes manager, Magan's point of view. But neither of hem is reliable. Nell and Joe get seperated and she manages to get a job as a housekeeper. A story of jealousy and revenge.

I would like to thank #NetGalley, #PanMacmillan and the author #SarahHilary for my ARC of #Fragile in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this had me really intrigued; just what exactly happened that made Nell runaway from her old foster home and what the heck is going on at Starling Villas. Unfortunately I found it hard to relate to any of the characters and the situations they found themselves in. Told with the viewpoints of two characters; Nell and her old foster parent Meagan, it’s unclear if you can trust either of their reliability as narrator in this story as Nell’s past slowly unfolds, which adds to the mystery of her story.

I would like to thank the author, Sarah Hilary and Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

This is not your typical thriller, I felt it was very slow paced and I just felt I couldn't get in to it as much as I was hoping for. I struggled with the 'slow-ness' of the book. I'm more of a fast-paced type of person who likes to be feeling quite scared and on the edge of my seat and I just didn't feel it with this one.

Although, I loved the story line and the route the book took me down, I would just have liked it to be a little quicker.

This is a slow placed, claustrophobic gothic thriller. With chapters narrated by foster runaway Nell and the children's home 'manager' Megan we view the story from different perspectives. Nell's story is one of a lost childhood, sadness and a constant fear for the worst. She has been exposed to a litany of cruelties and is struggling to keep her head above water. Securing a job in the stark and mysterious home of Dr Robin Wilder, Nell is exposed to a level of control and structure she has never experienced before...but is she safe? And where is her best friend Joe?

This isn’t your usual fast paced thriller, it takes us at a much slower pace. The story is told in the present with flashbacks to Nell’s childhood as the events leading up to a fateful day resulting in a dark secret gradually reveal themselves. This is a really dark, and at times slightly chilling thriller but at the same time it is actually much more than that. It is actually quite thought provoking and at times poignant with some very sharp observations about society. I finished this novel feeling quite emotional. Nell the main character is a very likeable and although many of the other characters aren’t they definitely make good ‘bad’ guys!

On a busy street in London, tucked away between the office blocks, there is an old house no one seems to notice. No one, that is, but Nell, who stalks the house waiting for her best friend Joe to appear. He’d gone in the night before, desperate to escape from the cold, and Nell hasn’t seen him since. Which means she’s desperate too, to get into the house and find Joe.

A random meeting with a random stranger gives her the opening she needs. She’s in! But no Joe. Convinced he’ll be back, Nell talks her way into the job of live-in housekeeper, something her years of being a surrogate mum in her former foster home has prepared her well for.

It seems like the perfect opportunity. Money in her pocket, a roof over her head, and the chance to wait for Joe to come back, because she knows he will. As you might expect from a novel by Sarah Hilary, however, nothing is quite as it seems – which Nell quickly realises when her boss’ ex-wife turns up. Suddenly, she finds herself in the middle of a toxic relationship and backed into a corner, unsure where to turn.

All of this happens very quickly, almost too quickly for me. And, while the reasons it was so easy for Nell to walk into a are eventually explained (as well as the reason Nell and Joe are homeless, which is told in flashbacks), this meant that I felt like I was playing catch-up for a fair bit of the story.

Yes, there was tension, which I felt, and which was great. And there were plenty of secrets to uncover – which I love. But I struggled to ‘fall’ into the story, to get lost in it. Nell never became real to me, and neither did any of the other characters. I also struggled with Nell and Joe’s backstory. I couldn’t picture it, couldn’t see myself there.

Which leaves me liking but not loving the book. I’m not sure I would recommend it to others, which is definitely not the case with other Sarah Hilary novels. But I’m also not sure I wasn’t maybe expecting something else, which is why I struggled.

I was really looking forward to reading this book. I have read other books by Sarah Hilary and really enjoyed them, and the blurb for this one sounded right up my street.

But I just couldn't get into it at all. I kept getting confused and was unsure of what was happening. I had to keep going back and re-reading parts.

I didn't really like the main character either, so had no encouragement to carry on with this book.

I DNF'ed at 26%

I enjoyed reading Fragile up to about halfway and then thought crikey this needs editing. I felt it rambley and it dragged on far too long. However, I liked the way the author gave the feeling of mounting anxiety and the, did she didn’t she and did he or didn’t he kept me guessing. I good book but far to long.

I’m a huge fan of the author’s Marnie Rome books and couldn’t wait to read this stand-alone book which I expected to be every bit as good. I found this harder to get into than her other books because I’ve come to expect a certain form and Fragile is very different. After a rocky start, I was pulled back into the story because I wanted to know what would happen to Nell and Joe and what the hell was going on inside Startling Villa (weird name). I enjoyed the way the story moves back and forth in time, gradually revealing Nella and Joe’s past and the Dr Wilder’s secrets. The book has a gothic feel which I really enjoyed.

Nell and Joe run away to London , from their foster home in Wales, after a tragic event. When Nell sees Joe disappear into a house she knocks on the door and talks herself into a housekeeping job with Dr Robin Wilder at Startling Villa, he has very strict rules and likes a regimented routine.

Nell has her own agenda as she wants to know why Joe was there, but it soon becomes apparent that Dr Robin has secrets that he is also hiding!!

I was drawn into this book from the start. As the story unfolds I was left with the chilling feeling that the safe haven Nell had found, was about to put her in danger!!

The backstory of what happened to Nell and Joe at the foster home and what they went through is a haunting and sad tale, reaching its gripping finale at the end .

A new author for me. I will definitely look out for her other books!

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

Reading the premise of this book and having enjoyed Sarah Hilary's writing previously I thought that this would be interesting. It certainly twists and turns leaving you wondering who is lying here or even what is the truth? I found it particularly difficult to read. Not only was it a very tragic and uncomfortable storyline but the style of writing, told from Nells perspective, was tricky to read and follow. I also didn't like any of the characters and although I had huge sympathy for Nell and Joe, I didn't like them or understand them. All in all I can't say that I liked this book. It didn't help me rest well, it was not a pleasant or even exciting read. Very tragic.

This was an excellent psychological thriller that kept me turning the pages. It had a very dark feel to it. Don’t read with the lights off!

Struggled with this for at least 70% of the book but then it caught my attention. I liked following the story, but it wasn't the best read I've had.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers I have realised I quite like books with a gothic style theme throughout. I like the eerie setting it gives off so when I read the blurb for this book I was very excited to have been accepted!

Nell is an orphan and you can tell early on she hasn’t had a great life but is a kind and caring person, putting others before herself. In particular Joe. The title pretty much sums up the characters, fragile. Each one was, in their own way. Although Nell was stronger than she gave herself credit for.

I liked how the book jumped back and forth, to past and present to enable a steady paced thriller. I was eager to find out what had actually happened to Rosie!

At times I felt myself get frustrated with Nell and her feelings towards Joe and herself! But in theme with the title, she was fragile and her feelings influenced by this.

Overall it was a good read and I enjoyed the storyline.

Thank you Netgally and Pan Macmillan for allowing me the opportunity to read this book.

A brilliant psychological thriller by Sarah Hilary. A stand alone novel away from the brilliant series with DI Marnie Rome and DS Noah Jake.

Nell Ballard hasn’t had the greatest of lives she has been rejected and discarded by her mother since the age of 8, then let down again by her foster mother in Wales, Meagan Flack who was more interested in the money than the welfare of Nell and other foster children, despite being a child herself Nell takes on more mothering than Meagan.

All Nell wants is to be loved, to feel secure, to belong, the these longings allow her to be abused and used. She falls for Joe Beach but when tragedy strikes they find themselves out on the streets , homeless and living in the unsavoury underbelly of London. Then Joe like everyone else let’s her down.

But then she gets a job in the neglected, dark, creepy Starling Villas, as a housekeeper to the strange Dr Robert Wilder, who demands she sticks to his rigid rules and duties. Working long hours she is kept busy with lots to do, then the wife turns up a manipulative woman. It then seems that it’s no accident that Nell has a job at Starling Villas. There is an agenda.

This is a story that has twists and turns, where the reader finds out the backstory in Wales, as it jumps back and forth in time. The tragedy that happened in Wales and how Nell ends up working in Starling Villas.

I like when a story is character driven as this one is, it’s a complex story that is so well written, engaging the reader throughout, there are some unlikeable characters, that are manipulative and evil, this is a story of deception, secrets, loss, revenge and grief.

A must read for psychological thriller lovers.

I would like to thank #netgalley and #PanMacmillan for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.