If you saw my Twitter feed after Christmas, you'll know I got a LOT of books this year. I've also finished yet another draft of my book. And I've done something to a ligament in my left leg. So all this means one thing... I have more time to read. And my first read of the new decade is No Further Questions by Gillian McAllister.
I am a huge fan of Anything You Do Say, which featured in my Top 10 of 2019 post last week, so I hoped this would be as good. I wasn't disappointed!
No Further Questions is a dark, compelling courtroom drama, following the story of Martha, who has left her eight week old baby Layla with her sister Becky for two nights. It's not something most parents would do, but Martha is opening up a centre for refugee children in Kos. She needed to be there. But before boarding the flight home, she receives the heartbreaking news that Layla is dead.
The narrative is interesting, and I wouldn't expect anything else after reading Anything You Do Say. We follow Martha in the present day, as she watches the events of the trial unfold. We alternate between her and the witnesses. And we also follow Becky's perspective in the weeks leading up to Layla's death.
The story builds and builds, pulling you in one direction, then pushing you in another. Sending you hurtling towards one answer, then spinning you around into a completely different one. Just when you think you know the answer, something else unfolds. It's addictive. It's twisty.
Gillian writes such real characters, who leap off the page and into your life, never to be forgotten. That's what stood out to me most of all. It's clear how much painstaking research has gone into this novel, yet it flows so naturally to someone who has limited knowledge of the courts. An excellent story and one I would highly recommend.
This is definitely one for your TBR pile!
Roxie Key
@RoxieAdelleKey
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