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I once heard someone say that if a book hadn't captivated them within the first fifty pages, they would give up on it. After all, they argued, life's too short and there are too many good books out there to waste time on a bad one. Based on that criterion they wouldn't have had any problems with KIND OF CRUEL. I was hooked from the first paragraph, and by page 50 I was glad I had the next four days off, because I knew I wouldn't be able to put the book down until I finished it. This psychological thriller has an incredibly clever plot about which I'm hesitant to go into in too much detail for fear of spoiling the build up and suspense that Sophie Hannah is so skilled at creating. Briefly, it centres on an insomniac called Amber who has secrets so dark she's hiding them even from herself; the disappearance of four members of her family; and the murder of a stranger linked to Amber only by a strange collection of words she utters when she visits a hypnotherapist: Kind, Cruel, Kind of Cruel. I was certainly intrigued. And as I began to read, and the story unfolded with all its twists and turns, I found myself increasingly reluctant to do anything other than read, so keen was I to get to the bottom of the multiple mysteries hidden in Amber's mind. But Sophie Hannah has more than just a great plot with which to entice her readers. Too many psychological thrillers value clever twists above all, but KIND OF CRUEL – although it has plenty of sinister, spine-chilling reveals – is also full of warmth, humour, depth and life. Much of this is down to Hannah's skill at creating well-rounded, realistic, complex characters. Amber, in particular, I shall never forget. Angry and sarcastic, she is also laugh-out-loud funny. The first person delivery helps, keeping the reader firmly in Amber's camp rather than on the receiving end of her tongue, as does the use of interior monologue which adds to the feeling of intimacy, a clever ploy on the author's part. But we don't just view this story through Amber's eyes. What I particularly loved about this book was the use of three different viewpoints. As well as Amber's, there is also a narrator's voice, speaking from some time in the future. And, to provide a less personalised view of events, there is a traditional third person point of view of the police investigation. Switching between these, the author manages to create a level of pace and suspense that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout. Sophie Hannah is an intelligent, highly skilled writer who has taken a fascinating subject, researched it exhaustively, and packaged the most interesting bits of what she discovered into a story full of drama and suspense, wonderful characters and perfectly crafted prose. I honestly can't recommend this book enough. § Rin Simpson is a Bristol-based freelance writer and long standing crime fiction fan who is currently working on her first novel.
Reviewed by Rin Simpson, February 2012
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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