My thanks to Jennifer Breslin of Michael Joseph Books for inviting me to join this blog tour for Lie Beside Me. The third book from Gytha Lodge, published on 18th March 2021.
You wake up.
You can’t remember what happened.
The man lying next to you is not your husband.
And he’s not breathing . . .
Louise wakes up. Her head aches, her mouth is dry, her memory is fuzzy. But she suspects she’s done something bad.
She rolls over towards her husband, Niall. The man who, until recently, made her feel loved. But it’s not Niall who’s lying beside her. In fact, she’s never seen this man before.
And he’s not breathing . . .
As Louise desperately struggles to piece her memories back together, it’s clear to Detective Jonah Sheens and his team that she is their prime suspect – though they soon find she’s not the only one with something to hide.
Did she do it? And, if not, can they catch the real killer before they strike again?
“A novel that literally makes you hold your breath then gasp out loud” – Val McDermid
‘Gripped me from the first page and kept me turning the pages long into the night’ Erin Kelly, bestselling author of He Said / She Said
Our Author – Gytha Lodge
Gytha Lodge is a writer and multi-award-winning playwright who lives in Cambridge. After seven years spent as a successful playwright, she studied creative writing at UEA and was shortlisted for the Yeovil Literary Prize and the Arts’ Council England fiction awards. She also developed a large online following, with over seven million reads accrued on platform Wattpad. Her first novel, She Lies in Wait, was a Richard and Judy Book Club pick and a Sunday Times bestseller. Watching From The Dark and Lie Beside Me is her third novel.
My Review – Lie Beside Me
Lie beside me takes you on a twisted journey of intrigue, compelling you through the lies that need telling truthfully and the characters that have dug themselves so deeply into this story, you need to get to the end to find out how Gytha has woven this book.
Based in Southampton, DCI Jonah Sheens and his team of Juliette Hanson, Ben Lightman and Domnall O’Malley guide the investigation into the body of Alex Plaskitt being found in Louise Reakes Garden. Louise calls the police and swears she’s never met him. But of course, the police are trained to catch killers and thats what they set about doing. Its not easy, Louise swears she’s never met Alex, or has any idea why he’s in her garden.
Louise though has a drink problem, and a drunk version of herself if dark, mysterious and tells the story in a third party way, neither version of Louise/drunk Louise know how Alex got there. And her husband, Niall is not impressed either and accuses Louise of sleeping with him, being his back.
The more the police investigate, the more lies are uncovered and it becomes obvious, to them whats going on. During this though Hanson has her own issues to clear up in her private life, that have been plaguing her and the demons need to be flushed out once and for all.
All in all, this being the third of Gytha’s books featuring Sheens and Co. I hope we go on to read book four, book five etc… A Sheens is a great driving force for the team and the way her writing has evolved is proof itself that she’s very talented. The detail that in included in this series is intricate and its this that makes Gytha’s books stand out. Nothing is skimmed over, all the details are given as evidence, bring characters in, going back again to ask more questions, all perfectly executed and pieced together.
Suspenseful and demanding – More please!!
To buy – Lie Beside Me – https://www.hive.co.uk/Product/Gytha-Lodge/Lie-Beside-Me–From-the-bestselling-author-of-Richard-and/25357723
@thegyth @MichaelJBooks #LieBesideMe
