Good Me, Bad Me

by Ali Land

Ok, so let me just say this, that for a debut novel this was something I couldn’t have never expected, at times it was raw, it was descriptive and I suppose could even be said to be chilling, but what it was all of the time was exceptional!

The author didn’t hold back, didn’t fluff up the details of a life that was far from one that was live and could be more accurately described as one that was endured.

The life and times of Millie (Previously known as Annie) was a train wreck, her childhood in my opinion, is one that almost defied description, the daughter of a serial killer, the struggles she faced were so brutal, so physically and mentally traumatic to the point that I could been the bile rising at the back of my throat as I read, this is an author that ensures that the harsh reality of life is not hidden, no matter how awful.

While the spectre of her mother (Oh, did I forget to mention that it was her mother that was the murderer! Blew my mind!!!!) hangs heavy in the air of the story but what was more prevalent was the strength that Millie exhibited, I was staggered when the author highlighted the fact that it was Millie that informed the authorities of what her mother had been doing. That is a seriously strong young woman but was her ordeal over once the authorities were involved or was there more to come.

Life after her mother changed in as much as she enters the foster care system and is placed with a therapist and his wife, Mike and Saskia. But they have a daughter, a fifteen-year-old called Phoebe who is far from happy to have Millie in her home and in her life and is none too shy about making her feelings known both at home and at school. Perhaps life with Mike and his family may not have been the best idea.

I was swept away by the darkness that plagued Millie, her night terrors as the trial of her mother approached, the feelings that she harboured about being complicit almost in her mother’s actions by not doing something sooner, the media attention that the case had attracted was all too much for this young woman to undertake, but was that all…was there more lurking beneath the surface and if there was, when was that particular demon going to rear its ugly head?

This a psychological thriller of the very highest order, it was not only complicated but complex, it has a pace that was electrifying, it has peaks and troughs that complimented the roller coaster ride that the author had strapped me into, this was totally gripping!

Millie is a character that will stay with you for a long time, but why????