A bit heavy handed wuith the class stereotyping. Interesting characters, fun setting, thought flashbacks were integrated fairly well ( )

Wow it amazes me how some books get published these days. I had numerous problems with this book. The premise seemed to be a can't miss story, but the execution was lacking. The book took forever to get going. Also writing books from multiple perspectives and going back and forth from the past and present requires excellent editing and real writing talent, Dark Places did this perfectly. This book did not. My other problems were;
1. I generally do not like mystery/thrillers from female authors, there are exceptions, Gillian Flynn is a fantastic writer but female authors tend to write all their narration with a female perspective i.e. More of the characters feelings than male authors and I find it just adds up to more words on the page rather than really adding anything to the story.
2. With point number one in mind I would never have bought this book if I had known that Alex Marwood was a made up name for a British female writer. Why pick a common male name, Alex, instead of a female name. I felt I was deceived as soon as I started the book it was apparent it was written by a woman. Then I looked up the author and found the truth.
3. The amount of British slang and the names chosen for the characters really became a distraction for me.
4. The story took so long to develop I lost interest in every character and forgot why I start the book in the first place.
Needless to say this book just didn't work for me.
( )

[The Wicked Girls] by [[Alex Marwood]]
This was a fun thriller/mystery that focuses on the lives of two women who were convicted of the murder of a child when they themselves were children. As adults, they've been paroled and are living under different identities when a string of murders brings them together. The book slowly reveals what happened in the past and how it affected the futures of these women.

I thought this was really well done. The author manages to keep the focus on the women even though the current day serial killer could have easily stolen the show. I'd happily read more of Marwood's books. ( )

This was an intense read. There were a few parts that I almost couldn’t get through. I’ve never read Alex Marwood, so I had no idea what to expect.
The story involves two young girls who are involved in the death of another girl. We begin in the present and find out what happened through the memories of the girls, now adults. The story really takes off when something occurs accidentally that violates the condition of parole.
This is one of the more original books I’ve read recently and was done well. I’ll definitely be checking to see what else she has written. ( )

I enjoyed walking the perilous tightrope that was this book. I don’t believe in adding spoilers in my reviews. That said, most people probably read the back cover before they read the book, so here’s the premise – two eleven year old girls meet for the first time. By the end of the day, they’re murders. How could I resist a plot like that?

This book covers the subject from almost every angle. What really happened that fateful day is revealed in flashbacks throughout the book until we’re left with a scene which could easily happen to any adolescent who merely steps their toe across the line of responsible behavior – and at that age, who doesn’t?

The book follows the women 25 years later, exploring the lives they’ve made for themselves and the issues they deal with as they struggle to reconcile the past that haunts them both. One of the themes of this book seems to be that one mistake, a single instant of poor decision making in life can stay with you forever, a dark cloud shadowing the rest of your days. I loved the ending of the book, the last few pages where the author slides in another slice of damnation in an almost tongue in cheek sleight of hand. 5 stars. ( )