#BlogTour: The Escape by Ruth Kelly @ruthywriter @panmacmillan @chlodavies97 #TheEscape #RuthKelly #5Stars

Book Synopsis:

From bestselling author Ruth Kelly, The Escape is an electrifying thriller of influencers, secrets and lies set in a grand mansion in rural France for fans of Lisa Jewell and Sarah Pearse.

THE PERFECT OFFER

When struggling influencer couple Adele and Jack post a crowdfunding video online, they’re amazed when a mysterious benefactor offers to buy them a crumbling French chateau. It’s the lifeline they need to leave all their troubles behind.

THE PERFECT DREAM

For Adele, it’s a dream come true. She will post videos of the renovation as thousands of online subscribers follow their journey. But the chateau is not all it seems and the local community is far from welcoming.

THE PERFECT NIGHTMARE

Then Adele’s videos suddenly stop. Her sister Erin visits to make sure she’s OK, but the couple have vanished. Between the obsession of Adele’s fans and the claustrophobic secrecy of the nearby town, Erin must unravel the shocking truth behind the couple’s disappearance . . .

‘A deliciously dark look at the world of influencers set against the backdrop of a glamorous French chateau – tense and shocking’ Catherine Cooper

My Review:

The Escape is a twisty, chilling, dark read that I’d rate as one of the best thrillers I’ve read.

Firstly, I absolutely loved the setting in this book. I always love a house with a history and the old, isolated chateau featured in this book was brilliant to read about. There are lots of hidden corners of the house to explore along with the characters and I felt on edge whilst I was reading, wondering what they would find next. I sometimes felt like the house was trying to help with the investigation at times, revealing clues suddenly by making strange noises or through a shift in the light.

The story is told from the point of view of Adele and Erin with news reports from the investigation and comments from Adele’s blog inserted periodically. I actually ended up liking both sisters, though Adele did annoy me a bit at the beginning. Erin really shows what’s she’s made of in the book and it was lovely to see her grow in confidence as the book continues. I ended up feeling a lot of sympathy for Adele as it was tough seeing everything that happens.

I thought this book was incredibly fast paced and I couldn’t put it down once I started it. There was lots going on and I had to keep reading to find out what would happen next. It’s very dark in places which might not be to everyone’s taste but I didn’t feel it was overly graphic more that it helped add to the creepy atmosphere of the house. There were lots of twists that kept me guessing and just when I thought everything had been figured out something else happened to take the story in another direction.

If you are looking for a fantastic thriller in curl up with this Christmas I highly recommend this one. I can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.

Huge thanks to Chloe from Pan Macmillan for inviting me onto the blog tour and for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Ruth Kelly is an award-winning journalist who has ghosted a string of Sunday Times top ten bestsellers – most recently THE PRISON DOCTOR, which sold over 250,000 copies, and THE GOVERNOR, which went straight in at number one on the Amazon charts and number five in the Sunday Times bestseller list.