Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author. A real entertaining read that had you gripped from the first page. An original storyline that had you guessing throughout but threw a curveball right at the end !!

My first book from Michelle and definitely not my last.
Well written, great plot, good characters and kept me guessing.
Highly recommend.

Really well written a true page turner.Excellent plot characters that come alive chilling kept me guessing.A book an author I will be recommending.#orionbooks#netgalley.

Twenty-six years ago my brother was murdered in my family home.
I was sent to a psychiatric unit for killing him.
The truth is, I didn't do it.
The whole world believed eight-year-old Cara killed her younger brother on that fateful night. But she blamed it on a paranormal entity she swears was haunting her house.
No one believed her and after two years of treatment in a psychiatric unit for delusional disorder, Cara was shunned by her remaining family and put into foster care.
Now she's being forced to return to the family home for the first time since her brother's death, but what if she's about to re-discover the evil that was lurking inside its walls?

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Book Review

Wow, wow, wow. What a book. I feel like this is a book that has not been recognised by Instagram.
I found this book so hard to put down and was reading it at 4am in the morning. Only to have to put it down to go to work.
We firstly meet Cara in this book. I felt so sorry for her. It was like I knew she was innocent and I wanted to help her protest her innocence. There was so much I didn’t know though and I needed that information to be able to help her!
Something clearly happened that night and Cara becomes set to uncover the truth.
The author leaves the reader in such suspense, not really giving a great deal away. I was sat questioning…”is this a ghost story…or am I going to get the huge twist soon”. The huge twist was absolutely worth waiting for!
There were so many red herrings in this book.
I really cannot recommend this book enough. It is a perfect psychological thriller, with tension and it really is quite creepy in places.
I have not read any of the authors’ previous books, but have in fact just ordered them.
I am really looking forward to reading those.

Fast-paced, gripping and a believable narrative - exactly what I'd expect from Michelle Davies. Doesn't fail to disappoint. Highly recommended.

This thriller was fantastic. The author’s words laden with suspense caused me to be brim with curiosity about what really happened 25 years ago.

The storyline was new, absolutely different. Cara was back home after 25 years of being charged with the murder of her brother’s death. But she claimed her innocence and swore it was the ghost Limey Stan who killed her brother. What was the young mind trying to tell me – that was the puzzle that stayed with me throughout my reading.

My second book by this author, this was a pure thriller that kept me on my toes. The atmosphere was creepy as nobody wanted a child murderer in the neighborhood, including her aunt Karen. Strange things started happening that added to the chilling vibe.

I couldn’t help but sympathize with Cara; she felt to be innocent in the machinations that were surreal. I loved how the author kept me just at the edge. Believe me, I was just a hair’s breath away from reading the book from its last chapter. I wanted to know the truth. Who was Limey Stan and what or who had killed the brother.

Shadow of a Doubt had both the play of light and shadows in a situation where doubt prevailed primarily. A book that kept my interest shockingly high.

Everyone thought Cara had something to do with what happened to her younger brother Matty. This had a lasting impact on her life. Years later after a death and back in the family home she’s determined to find out what really happened that night. This book sucks the reader in right from the start and doesn’t let go to the very end. A mix of genres which I won’t mention so as not to give any part of the plot away. A great story with some dark twists along the way. Easy to read, shocking, sad and engrossing. Can highly recommend!

It's a dark, twisted and gripping story that kept on the edge and entertained.
Good character and plot development, I liked the storytelling.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

I liked the story even if it was not as twisted and dark as I hoped and not as fast paced as I usually prefer. From the start I wasn't sure if I should believe Cara or if she indeed was a victim and I should feel sorry for her. But I couldn't put the book down either, I had to know what was really going on. Overall a solid 4-star-read!

‘Shadow Of A Doubt’ is the latest book by Michelle Davies.

The whole world believed nine-year-old Cara killed her younger brother on that fateful night. But she blamed it on a paranormal entity she swears was haunting her house. No one believed her and after two years of treatment in a psychiatric unit for delusional disorder, Cara was shunned by her remaining family and put into foster care. Now she’s being forced to return to the family home for the first time since her brother’s death, but what if she’s about to re-discover the evil that was lurking inside its walls?

If you like ghostly thrillers, then this book might be for you.

The story is about Cara, who’s returned home after the death of her mother. She was abandoned when she was a child from her family when she was falsely accused of her brother’s death even though she alleges it was a ghost called Limey Stan who killed him. Now, years later after being banished from the family, her mother has left her childhood home giving Cara an opportunity to put old ghosts to rest.

The story is mostly seen through the narrative of Cara and her aunt Karen, who’s raging that Cara has been left the house after everything she did for her sister. Whilst Cara is battling with emotions, trying to hide her past from her present as well as trying to clear her name and finally prove her innocence.

I really enjoyed this book, it’s a fascinating premise, with a paranormal twist to it. Cara is an interesting character, battling mental health issues due to her childhood and there’s regular entries from her time in a psychiatric hospital, so it does make the reader wonder about how reliable her story is. Whereas her aunt Karen, is quite bias in the story after becoming her sister’s support when her little boy was murdered and her daughter was the suspect.

A story primed with eeriness and suspense and is filled with regular twists and drama to keep the reader engaged at all times. The story is also sad in moments when Cara reflects on the life that she could have had, if people had believed her and it’s upsetting at times how her whole family shunned her.

Chilling and cleverly written, with an interesting perspective on the handling of grief, ‘Shadow Of A Doubt’ is an atmospheric psychological thriller with ghostly encounters that made for thrilling reading.

You can buy ‘Shadow Of A Doubt’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.

I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley, the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review.
Always been a fan of romantic fiction. And this book delivers without disappointing. Dive into this amazing book for an exciting story.

Cara Belling is returning to her family home after being away for many years. She is now thirty-four and her mum has died so she must go back to Parsons Close, Heldean, Essex to attend the will reading as stipulated by her mother. Her brother, Matty died in the house when Cara was just eight, but everyone believed that Cara killed him, though she insisted that a paranormal entity, a ghost she nicknamed Limey Stan, was haunting the property.

Shadow of a Doubt began with an enticing opening chapter and I was gripped from the first few pages. No one believed Cara's version of events so she spent two years receiving treatment in a psychiatric unit. Shunned by her family she was then put into foster care. Told through the eyes of Cara and her mum, Anita, I found myself constantly questioning just how reliable a narrator Cara was and this, together with the clever writing of Michelle Davies - the creepiness, the tension she created and the suspicion made for an engrossing read. The final scenes in Shadow of a Doubt are fraught, dramatic and full of tension. There is an underlying sense of threat throughout the book, as well as a great deal of emotion and anger. Overall, this is a fabulous novel, and it's inspired by a true story. Not to be missed!

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Orion Publishing via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

This book was utterly captivating from the very first page. Brilliantly written, you are swept along with every imaginable emotion possible. It's dark, it's twisted, it's heartbreaking and joyous. You have to read it!

The book's blurp by the publisher should be enough to entice you to read it. Don't just take my word for it!

My thanks to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read and review honestly an advanced digital copy.

Firstly a big thank you to the publishers for my copy to review on netgalley.

I loved this book! Completely unpredictable and thrilling.

You think you know the direction its going but you then get pulled in the other direction. Fast paced and gripping this is a cleverly written book.

Great characters who you immediately connect to and invest in their stories. As a psychology student this captured my interest .

Addictive and haunting i highly recommend this psychological thriller.

Published 4th February

Shadow Of A Doubt is a real twisty read and to think it is inspired by a true story is quite awful to think a young girl suffered like this.
Cara is nine years old and believes their house is being haunted by a ghost called Limey Stan. She hatched a plan with her younger brother, Matty, to catch the ghost in action. But that night a tragic event occurs and Matty is strangled by the curtains in the living room. Cara says it is Limey Stan but she is thought to be the murderer. Because of her age she cannot be sentenced for this and instead is kept in a psychiatric unit for two years. After she is fostered to a lovely couple and tries to get on with her life but she still maintains she didn’t kill her brother. Twenty five years later and her mum has died and she returns to the house as she has been left it by her mum. She is determined to find out if the ghost was real or not.
This was a great read, I liked how for the start it was in present time then went back to when they were children and then back to present day so you got a real in-depth view of what life was like for Cara before and after the event.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Orion Publishing Group for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Cara was sent to a secure psychiatric unit twenty five years ago after her younger brother Matty was smothered to death. Despite Cara proclaiming her innocence throughout, she has instead told everyone that it was in fact a ghost called Limey Stan who was guilty, as he has been haunting the family home.
After the death of Cara's mother, she is called back to her hometown for the reading of her mothers will. This in itself was not an easy thing for Cara to do, after spending the rest of her childhood and teenage years in foster care. When she discovers that she has been left the family home, Cara is determined to sell the house immediately and move on with her life, however, when she moves in for a short while, it appears that Limey Stan may still be there.

This book is wonderful and truly unique from the start. I really enjoyed the way in which the story alternates between both present and past events and really looks in to the events that occurred in the weeks leading up to Matty's death.
The author has written this story brilliantly, with the perfect amount of suspense that has the reader holding their breath at times as the story comes to light.
I am always massively impressed by a thriller that has me guessing to the very end, and this book certainly delivered on that point! I alternated from feeling incredibly sorry for Cara and the situation she has found herself in, alongside thinking she may well be guilty after all..

A truly chilling read that is so perfectly paced it reels you in and keeps you invested to the very last page.

Twenty-five years ago, Cara was sent to a secure psychiatric unit after her younger brother, Matty, was smothered to death. Even though Cara maintained her innocence and said that a ghost called Limey Stan who has been haunting the family home was guilty, Cara spent the rest of her childhood and teenage years in foster care. Now, her mother has died (her father died earlier in a car accident) and Cara returns to her hometown for the will reading where she is shocked to find that her mother has left the family home to her. Cara is determined to sell the house and move on, but when she moves in temporarily to sort things out, it seems that Limey Stan may still be there, waiting.

This is an enthralling read which starts off in the present and returns to the past to the weeks leading up to Matty's death. It's a great premise and the author keeps the reader in suspense as to whether the paranormal element exists or not. One moment I felt great sympathy for Cara and the next I wasn't sure whether she was to blame after all. Absolutely recommended to anyone who likes psychological thrillers.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Orion Publishing Group, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Ooh now that's a book that is going to be hard to forget!! Might even have to sleep with the lights on for a while longer after the presence of 'Limey Stan' has entered my subconscious!!! I'm listening out for every little noise now wondering if he's here visiting.....

This book starts with the chilling opening of what happened that night when little Matty, the brother of Cara, got murdered in their home. Cara was blamed for the crime and sent away to hospital for 2 years to help her recover from her insistence that it wasn't her that killed him, but Limey Stan. The ghost that has haunted her at night time and who she heard call her name...

When her mother dies, Cara is left the house in the will and that means she has to go back and face those demons that she left behind. What you as a reader get to experience is her meeting up with old neighbours who still blame her, and those who were on her side, and see how Cara deals with all the nightmares that still plague her mind. She's tried her best to move on but some things you just can't forget....

There's a really good pace to this story! Along with flashbacks from 'that' night, we get to see how the media reported the story and are still interested in the fallout and when the spooky goings on start to begin again in the house it really raises the chill factor!! There's also the brilliant part of the book that sheds light on to the story from the viewpoint of the mother which added some nice twists and a whole new angle to the storyline.

I enjoyed this thrilling and absorbing story - it felt mysterious and sinister and that mix worked so well for me!

Okay, this was BRILLIANT.
I was even ready with my laptop out as I was reading the last few pages because I couldn't wait to write up this review!
An intriguing plot, with a fabulous protagonist which both tugged at my heart strings and got my heart racing simultaneously!
There was a lot of characters and usually I would struggle with keeping track, but Davies had me covered throughout.
I honestly suspected things were not as they seemed and every single main character gave me food for thought until the last few pages. This was down to the brilliant plot writing from Davies, and after hitting the 50% mark, I couldn't stop reading until I finished.
Just fantastic.