James Buckler - The Simple Truth

 

James Buckler - The Simple Truth 

5⭐

Genre: Thriller, Crime, Mystery, Fiction, Contemporary Fiction 

Pages: 368

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Bantam Press, Doubleday Books

Date Published: 5th January 2023

Huge thank you to Bantam Press for sending me a proof copy of this book to read and review. 

Book Blurb: 

A young woman is dead.

A very wealthy client needs a favour. You're newly qualified as a lawyer and this could be your big break, so you jump at the chance.

The case is about to be closed.

All you have to do is talk to a family, ask them to sign some papers. How difficult could it be? Their daughter was found dead at a beauty spot on the outskirts of London in what you're told was a tragic suicide.

Only you can uncover what really happened.

But the truth is never that simple. And this case could cost you your life...

My Review: 

Definitely the best thriller I have read in 2022. Gripped me from the very beginning and kept the tension right until the end. I couldn’t put it down, and the fact that chapters were kept short, yet suspenseful, meant that I read this book in a few hours. The ending was also so unexpected and completely mind-blowing! I loved this book! 

This thriller starts with a dog walker finding the body of Maria Brenan in an abandoned car in the middle of the nature reserve. At a first glance, it looks like the young, yet ambitious climate scientist committed suicide, however, that’s not what her mother thinks actually happened to Maria. She insists that someone in Ever Sine, a company that Maria worked for, is responsible for her death.  Then we meet ambitious lawyer Lewis Miller, who wants to climb the career ladder and become a partner. He gets a chance in that if he successfully gets an NDA agreement from Marias' mother, as asked by Ever Sine’s director Robert Carlson. After meeting Maria’s mother, Lewis is challenged to dig deeper, as even for him it doesn’t look like it is a coincidence that Maria ended up dead in an abandoned car. Will Lewis decide to go for what is right and dig even deeper but risking uncovering too much of the truth and ending up like Maria?

Loved that most of the chapters are told from different characters' viewpoints, which creates tension and the reader is left questioning ‘but who did it?’. Also, these chapters make the story flow so well that at least for me it made me engrossed in the book so easily.  

I also really enjoyed Lewis’s character, especially how much his character developed during this book. How from a very career-oriented person, who didn’t care about what is right or wrong he turned into someone who wants to uncover the truth and help Maria’s family. Additionally, I enjoyed how different characters are directly and indirectly linked to one another, making this story even more interesting and entertaining.

Overall: Action-packed, suspenseful, full of tension and really fast-paced, that grips you from the very beginning and doesn’t let you go until the very end. Amazing twists and turns, as well as a brilliant and unexpected ending! Recommend if you want an entertaining thriller to start your 2023. I now can’t wait to read Last Stop Tokyo. 

About the Author:

James Buckler currently lives in London. He grew up in the south-west of England and has lived in the USA and Japan. He has always been fascinated by books, stories and films, especially the gripping, twisty narratives of classic Hollywood cinema and British crime novels. He studied Film, Video and the Photographic Arts at the University of Westminster and has worked in the film & TV industry for many years, most notably as a post-production specialist for MTV and BBC Films. His debut novel, Last Stop Tokyo, was published to critical acclaim in 2017.

https://www.jamesbuckler.com/about