A hugely moving, emotional coming-of-age novel which captures the zeitgeist of 1970s Northern England. Margaret Thatcher has just come to power, racial tensions are high, as unemployment and dissatisfaction are rife as the face of industry changes.
Told through the eyes of 12 year old Miv, a girl struggling with adolescence and all its confusion it brings, it puts the reader in the position of knowing and understanding more than the narrator. We see the hidden evil hiding behind the veils of respectability. In some ways, we are made protective of Miv, perceiving much more of the dangers she faces.
Set against the backdrop of the Yorkshire Ripper, constant threat pervades the action, reflecting that insecurity and fear under which we come to learn Miv lives.
A captivating and endearing cast of characters, of which the setting is a significant player, is led by Miv and her best friend, Sharon.
Sharon: unafraid, angry, stoic and resolute in the face of injustice. She refuses to shy away from the wrong she sees. As Miv describes her, she was ‘like the kaleidoscope she once got for her birthday…full of colour, never stuck in one pattern, always moving, always changing, but always landing in a place that was beautiful.’ She is fiercely loyal and full of righteous anger that she never holds back from expressing.
Miv, on the other hand, is intelligent, naive and idealistic. She is so focused on distant wrongs, she is blind to the evil around her. Or maybe she just doesn’t want to see her world as it really is; it’s just too frightening for her to face. Unlike Sharon, who speaks out and asks the uncomfortable questions, Miv is learning the Yorkshire way of ‘you just don’t ask.’
Following Miv’s journey of awakening is heart-rendingly sad in parts, and I was brought to tears several times.
However, the counterpoise to all this is the healing power of connections. The relationships formed between members of a community, united by grief, pain and loss, and love, hope and friendship. The strength to survive is found in having people who will stand by you, no matter what life throws your way. Miv, and others, realise that it is ‘possible to come back from the worst thing that has ever happened to you’ as long as you have someone to love and support you. These moments of healing are some of the most beautiful I have ever read. They are simple. They are real. They are raw in their honesty and truth of feeling. Miv claims she has written ‘a story of a friendship’ but it is actually a story of many friendships and their restorative powers.
I would urge everyone to read this novel. It’s wonderful!

I grabbed a copy of The List of Suspicious Things after being intrigued by the premise - Miv is a 12-year-old living in a Yorkshire town in the late 70s, and the whole community is under the cloud of the Yorkshire Ripper attacks. Miv's family are thinking of moving away from the area to somewhere safer, and so Miv and her friend Sharon take it upon themselves to try to solve the attacks, and so begin to keep an eye on all the locals and write down anything suspicious they see in The List.

There's always a sense of lingering menace from the Ripper, as Miv gets older and people warn her not to stay out until dark, and to run if anyone strange talks to her. However, as Miv investigates the local community, she discovers good people and bad - makes friends with the good, and tries to tell people about the bad - and it became clear that this book wasn't about the Ripper at all, it's about community, friendship, and growing up.

Jennie Godfrey's characterisation is brilliant, and her descriptions of a Northern 70s town great as well.

Overall this was a superb debut - kept me up reading far too long into the night a few times!!

Miv lives in Yorkshire and the ripper murders are on the news and on everybody’s minds. Mivs mom has stopped speaking, her Aunty Jean is a force to be reckoned with and she heard her dad and Aunt talking about moving from Yorkshire and because of this Miv has set her mind to catching the Yorkshire ripper as Miv doesn’t want to move as she loves where she lives but more importantly if she moves she will no longer have her best friend Sharon. Miv decides to make a list of suspicious things so that she can try and solve the problem of the ripper and then Miv won’t have to move. She involves Sharon but doesn’t tell her why.

Mivs search for the truth reveals secrets about her family, neighbourhood and her friendship with Sharon. What if the mystery Miv needs to solve is one that lies closer to home?

This was an interesting idea and story. It is well written and I liked how some chapters were about other characters so for example one chapter is about the shopkeeper Mr Bashir and how he moved from Bradford and is having a hard time with some of the locals due to his Asian heritage. It all ties in really well and it gives you insight into each characters lives. I love how intuitive Miv is and in some points it’s comical but there is an underlying sadness throughout. I really enjoyed reading this book and the ending was a twist I wasn’t expecting. Definitely recommend this book.

When a book gets so much hype before it is published I worry that I’m going to be disappointed but all I can say is WOW this book certainly didn’t disappoint and is probably going to be one of my books of the year! The author gets the tone and atmosphere of Miv’s town and friends spot on and you just don’t want to put the book down but you also don’t want it to end. Being a similar age to Miv in the 1970s I can fully recall the fear and suspicion that the Ripper provoked and I was a soft southerner! But this novel is about so much more. It’s about family and friendship, mental illness, racism, domestic abuse and so much more but the author handles these issues in such a clever manner that it never oppresses the reader and shows how you can never be sure what is happening behind close doors. Some readers may think the girls were naive and unworldly but that’s exactly how we were then before mobile phones and social media. I’m very sad to leave this book and will definitely be looking forward to see what the author does next. If I could give more than 5stars I would. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC of this novel in return for an honest review.

I barely know where to start, what an incredible book. The emotional attachments you form to the characters really sneaks up on you and by the time you realize, it's already too late and you have all the feelings.

I had no idea what to expect from The List Of Suspicious Things. How do you write a book that has such terrible crimes as a backdrop without it becoming ghoulish or lost in the horror of it all? Well Jennie has managed it spectacularly well, a sensitive and realistic look at a community under a shadow of such violence and uncertainty.

Miv in particular is such a relatable character, as they all are really. It's almost like being in a time machine and being transported back to late 70's Yorkshire and leaves me feeling semi-nostalgic for a time I wasn't even in.

I had forgotten the awkwardness of what it's like to be that age, with newfound freedom but still confined by the short reins of childhood. Does make me think about the freedom I had as a kid, my parents were protective but I was lucky to have a lot of independence (when I wanted it) from an early age.

I loved this! Sweet and gently written, from the viewpoint of a young girl, it leads us carefully through a time of great fear in the communities of Yorkshire. With reflections on racism, sexism, and mental health, not to mention the serial killer, Peter Sutcliffe, it runs the full gamut of very confusing, 'adult', topics children were (and still are, more or less) faced with today, and does it beautifully.

The List of Suspicious Things
Jenny Godfrey

I really enjoyed this and can tell it’s going to be one of the books of 2024. Set in 70s Yorkshire during the time that the Ripper was at large, there’s obviously an atmosphere of darkness and terror running through this novel but there’s also love, friendship, families, and a strong sense of what it means to be part of a community. There is a lot going on and in another book this might have made me roll my eyes a little but the heavy themes are dealt with in such a lovely light & compassionate way that I was totally engaged all the way through. And Miv is an absolute sweetheart! I may have shed a tear or two as well.

Thanks as always to NetGalley & the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read and review this title. I will also post my review on instagram
(@lovesbooksandruns)

3.75-4⭐️

It’s the heartwarming and moving retro coming of age story set in Yorkshire at the time of the Yorkshire Ripper. Miv 11, innocent and naive, a child of the times lives with her mom dad and Aunty Jean.

Miv teams up with her best friend Sharon to try and find the Yorkshire Ripper as the police have failed.
As much as it seems they are naive, children and old people slip under peoples suspicion radar when musing around.

There are various POV, as we also hear from those who make it on to the girls watch list.
There are issues covered that include isolation, bullying, homophobia and racism both within the school environment and the wider world.

It has a bit of a famous five vibe, only in this case the famous two.
It’s a slow rambling story, a pleasant excursion, it’s very long!

I enjoyed reading about the lives of the main characters, all of them experiencing problems of various kinds. It’s a heartwarming story of friendship and triumph over adversity. Most of the characters were very likeable and helpful, thoughtful and caring, but there were a minority who made life very difficult for others with their behaviour.

It’s an enjoyable story, I was engaged and it kept my attention, however it saunters along and I would have preferred it more condensed.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this book in return for an honest review. I was immediately drawn into the story from the first few pages. It reminded me of my childhood in so many ways. Going to the local shop for a 10p mix, everyone knew each other and we had an auntie on every street! Although the story centres around the Yorkshire ripper story it also focuses heavily on family, friendships and a huge sense of community. I absolutely loved this book and would highly recommend. 5 stars from me.

Such a fabulous book, it hooked me in from the first chapter and didn't let me go until the last.
Full disclosure, I am from the area where the story is set and it really resonated with me and the atmosphere at the time.

A great read.

Highly recommend

It's the era of Maggie Thatcher's prime ministership, drainpipe jeans are the fashion trend, and Miv is convinced her dad wants to uproot their family and move Down South. The catalyst? The unsettling murders happening around them.

However, leaving Yorkshire and her closest friend Sharon behind is a non-negotiable for Miv, despite the dangers lurking and the peculiarities at home that began when her mum ceased speaking. Determined to defy the possibility of relocation, Miv wonders if unravelling the mystery of the vanishing women could be the key to securing their stay.

In a bid to crack the case, Miv and Sharon create a list—a catalogue of all the dubious individuals and occurrences in their neighbourhood, ranging from familiar faces to strangers. Yet, as they delve into their investigation, the search for truth unravels more than just the mysteries around them; it exposes hidden secrets within their community, within their families, and even between Miv and Sharon.

Amidst the shadows of the outside mysteries, a revelation begins to dawn on Miv: perhaps the true enigma she needs to unravel lies much closer to home than she ever realised.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Everyone else has given the review I would give for this superb debut novel. The wonderful characters drawn so beautifully enveloped me and I can see them in my mind. Poignant, sad, joyful, this book gives all the emotions. I cried a lot. Chapter 49 made me gasp.

Being a teenager is tough ( and I was one in the 70s and acutely remember the Yorkshire Ripper murders and investigations) and Godfrey reminds us of this. Messy adult relationships are also shown and in a realistic way.

I loved it. Can't wait for the next

Oh this is good, this is really good. The precise nature of the characterisation, the almost chaotic claustrophobic nature of childhood, the swirl of macro and micro events. Highly recommended.

I was 9 when we moved to Bradford in 1978 so this book could not hold more memories of my childhood if it tried
Wonderfully written and a book that will stay with me and any reader for a long time
Just superb

Growing up in West Yorkshire, I remember the fear of the Yorkshire Ripper and the unsolved murders. I really enjoyed reading about Miv and Sharon’s attempts to try to find the murderer, by noting down anything suspicious about the people around them. An excellent book about growing up without fear, and a desire to solve the problems around you.
Excellent characters and a great story.

What if making a list would be all that it took to capture a killer? Miv is young enough to believe she can work out who the Yorkshire Ripper is, and if she does, her family will not have to move. But her naivety means the results she wants, are not the ones she gets. And the ones she could not have imagined, happen. A sorrowful read, and a book I can recommend.

It's 1979. Margaret Thatcher has just become the Prime Minister, there's a serial killer on the loose, Miv's mum isn't talking and now her father and auntie Jean are talking about moving away. Fortunately, Miv has a plan: she will make a list, like her auntie Jean does, and with her best friend Sharon she will catch the Yorkshire Ripper.

This was such an evocative read. I was born in a different country almost ten years after the book was set, but you can feel the anaglypta wallpaper as you read. The book has a fantastic band of characters, lead by the wonderful Miv, who is one of the best characters I've read about in a while.

I won't spoil anything further as you should probably go read for yourself - I could not put this down and kept thinking about it, and now I've got a book hangover.

Miv is a young teenager - growing up in a Yorkshire village, in the early eighties, that is dominated by the Yorkshire Ripper murders. She loves her village and her best friend, Sharon, so, when her father threatens to move the whole family south to get away from the murders, she feels she has only one choice – to solve the Ripper murders herself.

This is a wonderfully evocative and poignant novel about a young woman on the edge of growing up, who nonetheless does not yet really comprehend the adult world. It depicts the atmosphere of the time brilliantly – the paranoia and confusion surrounding the Ripper, the in-baked and often violent racism that abounded, and the uncertainty about the future.
It is also a gorgeous depiction of the awkwardness of growing up, of wanting to understand the adult world but not being ready to depart childhood. I loved this book and would highly recommend it.

The hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper was a challenge to everyone involved but especially Miv as she is still in secondary school and all the locals seem to have a secret to hide!

So begins Miv’s list of suspicious things, with her best friend at her side and new friends made along the way is she running towards trouble or away from a troubling life?

From racism, to grooming, mental health and domestic abuse some serious topics are covered but through the lens of a teenager trying to make sense of the world. Such a deft touch of writing to unveil the stark realities of the world without needing to become overly explicit.

I so enjoyed this, although I wasn’t prepared for that ending and had to just take a minute to reflect on what had gone before and what might be yet to come. A joyful mix of suspicious things and people that aren’t quite as mysterious once you ask the right questions.

This book sucked me into Yorkshire even though I've never been there! The book was written so well, you could literally see everything painted out in front of you. I liked that you got the perspective of this young girl and how much sympathy I felt for her. Overall great book on friendship as well!