Title: The Cliff House
Author: Chris Brookmyre
Publisher: Little Brown
Synopsis:
One hen weekend, seven secrets… but only one worth killing for
Jen’s hen party is going to be out of control…
She’s rented a luxury getaway on its own private island. The helicopter won’t be back for seventy-two hours. They are alone. They think.
As well as Jen, there’s the pop diva and the estranged ex-bandmate, the tennis pro and the fashion guru, the embittered ex-sister-in-law and the mouthy future sister-in-law.
It’s a combustible cocktail, one that takes little time to ignite, and in the midst of the drunken chaos, one of them disappears. Then a message tells them that unless someone confesses her terrible secret to the others, their missing friend will be killed.
Problem is, everybody has a secret. And nobody wants to tell.
My review:
The Cliff House centers on a group of friends heading to a remote Scottish island for the hen party of Jen, the person who ties this group of very different women together! Among them is the sister of Jen’s former ex-husband, a pop star who used to be best friends with Jen and another member of the party, Jen’s tennis coach, and others. Soon it becomes clear that everyone is keeping secrets – of varying sizes!
Then one of their party gets kidnapped and these ‘secrets’ become much more important… whose secret is the one they’re all being punished for?
The book is good fun and I got through it quickly. The premise didn’t feel that different to other books I’d read recently, to be honest, but it was well-written and there were some unpredictable moments that kept me intrigued throughout. It’s easy to read and the characters are entertaining. I liked that each of them had their faults, too – no one was painted to be ‘perfect’ and that felt much more convincing than trying to give us a clear ‘hero’, which I hate in novels.
The setting felt atmospheric and I really liked the focus on how the women were (or weren’t!) friends. It’s good fun and though it didn’t blow me away, I certainly enjoyed it! I’ve read Black Widow, also by this author, which I absolutely LOVED, so will be checking out Chris’s other novels too!
My rating: 3.5/5
Many thanks to the publisher, Little Brown, for providing a copy of this book on which I chose to write an honest review.