Sarah Forsyth

I like a good bit of true crime and over the past few years I've read a good few titles and particularly enjoyed 3,096 Days by Natascha Kampusch at the start of the year. Based on this and the great reviews this got on Amazon I decided to read this. The book is the true story of Sarah, a British woman who is kidnapped and forced into prostitution in Amsterdam. She was also abused by her father and by a care system that was meant to protect her.

I found it to be a very fast read but I have to say that I am at a loss to how it got such good reviews. There is nothing wrong with it in particular but it brings nothing new to the table in my opinion. The writing is particularly weak, perhaps understandable for Forsyth but Tim Tate worked as a researcher and was part of the Roger Cook investigative team. I assume he was brought on board or took the decision to write the book due to the fact that this is his field. If I compare it to 3,096 days the writing is years apart.

The story is wretched and pretty horrific but I just can't help but feel they missed a trick. Occasionally emotion creeps in but its far too occasional. Also unlike 3,096 Days we don't get behind Forsyth's thought process during the experience but perhaps I am being too harsh, she was a drug addict at the time. The flow of the book is a bit of a mess as well, it follows a time line but its a bit all over the shop. I had far higher hopes for this book than it delivered and I would be unlikley to recommend it to anyone. It could have been so much more than it ended up being.… (más)