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marsha l. reid
3.0 out of 5 starsBoring read
July 1, 2017
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Fiona Barton is back with her follow up to The Widow which I really enjoyed but I was disappointed in this one. It is told mainly from the alternating perspectives of three women, Kate, our intrepid reporter, Angela and Emma.

The remains of a newborn baby are discovered during the demolition of a house. It is clear that the baby were buried sometime ago. Kate smells a story and needs a big one, knowing in the cut throat world of journalism she is only as good as her last story and her last big story was the Widow...

Angela on the face of it has it all, a loving husband, two grown children and grandchildren but back in1969 her first child was abducted from the hospital shortly after Angela gave birth, baby Alice, as she was named was never found. Her disappearance haunts Angela to this day. When Angela hears the news of the remains of a baby being discovered she wonders, could this finally be her baby Alice?....

Emma is a neurotic woman who works from home as a ghost editor. The discovery of the baby's remains deeply disturbs her as the remains were discovered on the street where she lived as a teenager, and brings up memories of her childhood that she would much rather forget...

Fiona Barton weaves the tales of these three women but frankly it moved at a very slow pace. I found Angela and Emma boring. And you could see where a significant part of the plot was headed and even though there is a twist in the ending which did surprise me, it was still unsatisfying.

I do like the feisty character of Kate though and hope she comes back, with a better plot.
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Carolyn
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4.0 out of 5 starsI have been disappointed by a number of recent books of psychological suspense ...
August 26, 2017
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Wow!! I have been disappointed by a number of recent books of psychological suspense centred on woman characters. I felt they were over hyped and was ready to give up on the genre.
This was a compelling, gripping, fast paced tale which was difficult to put down. The characters were well developed and seemed real to me. Although emotionally damaged they evoked sympathy.
This suspenseful story involves Kate, a reporter, investigating the identity of the decades old remains of a baby found at a building site. Two woman are deeply affected by the news. Emma, a woman with a loving older husband, and her unlikable, narcissistic mother, Jude, from whom she has been estranged over the years. Angela's baby was stolen from the maternity ward in the 1970's and her enduring sorrow has caused a rift with her husband and her other children.
There are several twists in the story and a major reveal I never saw coming. This was such a well constructed plot. I feared the author had written herself into a bind with the results of the police/ scientific investigation but everything made perfect sense at the end. An emotional and addictive read.
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AgnesV
5.0 out of 5 starsGreat twist at the end
August 29, 2019
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I never saw it coming. Excellently plotted story. The characters are believable and sympathetic. The story is complicated and skillfully entangled. Of Barton's three novels thus far, hands down the best. A "must-read" book!
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lm
2.0 out of 5 starsDisappointing read
August 8, 2017
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Very slow read - mostly boring, none of the characters stood out for me, as a matter of fact I began to dislike each one. Too many unimportant events and people inserted. The subject matter was good, but it lacked crispness and tension. All the women were bland, colourless, without any passion, eternally ailing, self centred - in short unlikeable. Sorry, it had the potential of a great read, but I was disappointed.
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Mikey
3.0 out of 5 starsbut it became tiresome. Barton's novel "the Widow" was better than excellent
September 6, 2017
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The multi-person approach was well-done, but it became tiresome.
Barton's novel "the Widow" was better than excellent, so I was expecting a lot for The Child.
The outcome was obvious. The work and hours that newspaper reporters go through
to get their story was the strongest point of the novel. Have to love print media!!
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Anne from Hamilton.
5.0 out of 5 starsReally absorbing character study.
October 18, 2017
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Thoroughly enjoyed this outstanding British psychological novel. A long buried baby's body is found on a construction site, multiple storylines flash back and forth telling life stories of local residents, current and historical. Couldn't put it down.
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Kimberlee
5.0 out of 5 starsRead like a story behind a familiar headline.
April 5, 2019
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I really enjoyed getting to know the women in this this novel. Barton keeps you turning pages throughout the night in order to discover the truth behind the heartbreaking discovery of a baby long ago buried in a back garden.
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Ronald E. Dines
4.0 out of 5 starsDrama with a bit of thriller undertones.
September 1, 2017
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Moved along at a great pace. I rather like the chapter headings directly associated with key characters. Helps the reader to effectively compartmentalize both characters and situations. I kept on reading and didn't' even try to work it ou which is a sign it was nicely written. Enjoy it. It is worth reading.
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