He Said, She Said - Erin Kelly

He Said, She Said by Erin Kelly


First Paragraph:

We stand side by side in front of the speckled mirror.  Our reflections avoid eye contact.  Like me, she's wearing black and like mine, her clothes have clearly been chosen with care and respect.  Neither of us is on trial, or not officially, but we both know that in cases like this, it's always the woman who is judged.


My Thoughts:

Erin Kelly is an author that I've meant to try for a long time.  Since this is a 'big' year for a solar eclipse (less than 4 weeks away), He Said, She Said seemed an appropriate place to begin.  And, yes, solar eclipses play a big part in the story.  I listened to this book on audio and it was perfectly narrated by Helen Johns and Jonathan Broadbent.  This is quite the twisty tale.  Not particularly fast moving and also lots of pretty unlikable characters, but I was caught up in the drama.  Told from both Kit and Laura's points of view and taking us backwards and forwards in time, we eventually get the entire picture of what happened in 1999 and then, what happened in the later years.  I liked this one a lot and will be checking out other books by Erin Kelly.  Recommended.


Blurb:

In the summer of 1999, Kit and Laura travel to a festival in Cornwall to see a total eclipse of the sun. Kit is an eclipse chaser; Laura has never seen one before. Young and in love, they are certain this will be the first of many they’ll share.

But in the hushed moments after the shadow passes, Laura interrupts a man and a woman. She knows that she saw something terrible. The man denies it. It is her word against his.

The victim seems grateful. Months later, she turns up on their doorstep like a lonely stray. But as her gratitude takes a twisted turn, Laura begins to wonder—did she trust the wrong person?

15 years later, Kit and Laura married are living under new names and completely off the digital grid: no Facebook, only rudimentary cell phones, not in any directories. But as the truth catches up to them, they realize they can no longer keep the past in the past.