What She Knew by Gilly Macmillan DIY Mom Book Review and Thoughts

On a Sunday afternoon, photographer and single mother Rachel Jenner and her eight year old son Ben leave a wooded area of Bristol Park when Ben asks if he can run ahead. Rachel agrees and that’s the last time she sees Ben. A full-scale search is launched, with DI Jim Clemo as point man. 

When media hounds and a nasty blogger successfully turn public opinion against Rachel, the additional stress adds to the family’s mounting grief. The clock is ticking and as the days fall away, the chances of finding Ben alive sharply decline.

What She Knew is a clever suspense novel, filled with many twists, turns, red herrings and revelations. Long buried secrets are dragged out into the light and formerly trusted friends and family members soon find themselves suspects.

I found Ms. Macmillan’s writing to be engrossing, with several story layers to keep things moving at a brisk pace. The book is 560 pages long, but it goes fast. I was thoroughly immersed in the story from beginning to end and was surprised when I finished the book in little over a day.

I had definite mixed feelings about What She Knew. A few things irked me about this book, not to the point where I wanted to stop reading, yet enough for me to mention them in my review. The first thing was that there was much ado made about Rachel allowing eight year old Ben to “run ahead” of her in the park, but I found this to be a bit thin. It wasn’t as if Ben was a toddler and they were walking through Times Square. Rachel beat herself up repeatedly about that one decision and was made out to be a Bad Mother in the public eye because of it. It just didn’t ring true to me.

The second thing was the ridiculous manner in which DI Clemo confronted Rachel’s sister Nicky about their unusual childhood. Why was he holding Nicky accountable for this when Nicky herself was only nine when the event occurred? She was a child at the time and Clemo’s viciousness seemed way out of line to me.

Then, and I’ve noticed other readers mentioning this, why are all the female characters in books lately so darn dysfunctional? And why are female authors still writing about them in this manner? How about writing about some really strong, fully functioning women? They certainly exist, so authors PLEASE start including them in your books.

Lastly, the revelation of who the abductor was came out of left field. I honestly didn't think readers had the proper background regarding this particular character. I also had to wonder how this person managed to pull off the abduction so quickly and conveniently, given that the tree swing was still literally swinging when Rachel entered the clearing. The ending was a bit contrived in my opinion, yet still satisfactory as far as endings go all the same.

Despite what I considered plot flaws, I’d still recommend reading What She Knew to anyone who enjoys a suspenseful whodunit style of read.

3 of 5 Stars, Review by Susan Barton, DIY Mom Blog

Book Tour Spotlight: Cry for the Mercenary by Gabriel Wright

Today, DIY Mom is sharing indie author Gabriel Wright's self-published crime novel "Cry for the Mercenary". Gabe is a hard-working family man, who runs his Harlem, NY business by day and writes novels by night. Gabe invites readers to check out the book sample on Amazon! 

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   Print Length: 332 pages
   Publication Date: November 12, 2015
   Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
   Language: English
   ASIN: B017X442DQ

ABOUT THE BOOK:

He was all they had . . .

In the face of a monster of a man, they were powerless. They couldn’t run, they couldn’t hide, they couldn’t fight. Every aspect of their lives were under his control. It was obedience or oblivion. When that monster of a man went down into a death spiral, he expected them to follow.

To break free they needed an outsider, a stranger, a mercenary. They found him.

With all his troubles, and all his flaws, they found him. With all his baggage, and even his reluctance, they cried for him. It wasn’t only a question of would he do it, but could he. It wasn’t only a matter of saving them, but of saving himself.

PURCHASE CRY FOR THE MERCENARY ON AMAZON.COM

ABOUT GABRIEL WRIGHT

Gabriel Wright was born, and raised in NYC.  Originally from the borough of the Bronx, Gabriel attended college at the City University of New York (CUNY). Afterwards, he spent 20 years in a career as an IT Professional.  Gabe admits it wasn't exactly his dream job but he liked the work enough that he would've happily toiled away at it until mandatory (or forced) retirement.

Gabriel’s true dream job was being a writer.  It was always in the back of his mind, but it was always something that he thought he’d get around to eventually. Then a not so funny thing happened in Gabe’s IT career – he was laid off.  Although, sadly, it wasn't the first time, this time he took it as a sign that eventually had finally come.  Gabriel began to write and ultimately producing his first novel Cry for the Mercenary.

Gabriel Wright still lives in NYC with his family.  Along with writing, he’s also trying to make a success of his family-owned bagel shop in Harlem.

Gabe encourages readers to connect with him on Twitter and Facebook.

New Detective Novel to Add to Your TBR List - Hard Court by Robert Germaux Cover Reveal

Author Robert Germaux is releasing his third novel, Hard Court, on April 11, 2016, and we have the Cover Reveal here!

ABOUT HARD COURT:

Miles Bradshaw, the dot-com billionaire owner of Pittsburgh’s first NBA franchise, hires private detective Jeremy Barnes to look into what appears to be a simple case of harassment of one of the team’s players.  But when Jeremy (JB to his friends) begins his investigation, the case proves to be anything but simple, eventually involving a local businessman with suspected criminal ties, a major FBI task force, a computer geek in California and a mob boss in Erie. 

Along the way, JB, who can quote Shakespeare as quickly and easily as he can land a solid left jab, uses his wits and his ever-present sense of humor to wend his way through a cast of characters who range from the ridiculously inept to the ruthlessly lethal.

As Hard Court unfolds, there are numerous surprises and plot twists, culminating in a dramatic confrontation that neither JB nor the reader could have predicted.

ABOUT ROBERT GERMAUX

Both my parents were readers. I'm talking stacks-of-books-on-their-nightstands readers. So it's no surprise that at an early age, I, too, became an avid reader. Everything from sports books (especially baseball) to Nancy Drew to the Hardy Boys to almost anything about distant and exotic places.

Although I've always enjoyed putting words on paper, the writer in me didn't fully emerge until I retired after three decades of teaching high school English. I quickly wrote two books aimed at middle school readers, at which point my wife urged me to try a novel for adults. As is usually the case, Cynthia's idea was a good one.

Over the next few years, I wrote several books about Pittsburgh private eye Jeremy Barnes. I took a brief hiatus from the detective genre to write Small Talk and The Backup Husband. Now I’m back and will be releasing my first Jeremy Barnes novel, Hard Court, on April 11.

In our spare time, Cynthia and I enjoy reading (of course), going to live theater productions, watching reruns of favorite TV shows such as "Sports Night" and "Gilmore Girls," and traveling to some of those distant and exotic places I used to read about as a child. So far, we've been fortunate enough to walk in the sands of Waikiki, swim in the warm waters of the South Pacific and share a romantic dinner in Paris.

I love interacting with my readers and getting their input on my characters and stories. Please feel free to contact me via my website.

READ THE "HARD COURT" PRESS RELEASE HERE

*Cover Reveal media prepared by My Book Tour