Do Not Disturb: A Novel

This thriller has a complex and convoluted plot that has been cleverly fashioned, and it is written in an engaging style. However, it is essentially over-written - the writer has not yet learnt to be succinct and, at times, wants to spell out too much for the reader. I was gripped by the twists and turns of the plot, though, and by the ever changing perspective. I also enjoyed the political context within the story: the fact that the central group of characters were privileged and took their sense of privilege somewhat too much for granted, until events somewhat overtook and overwhelmed them. This was my first experience of a Claire Douglas' writing and I shall certainly look for other novels from her stable.

After a dramatic opening and the discovery of a body lying prone at the foot of a set of stairs Do Not Disturb winds back to the months and days leading up to the event and lead protagonist and mid-thirties first-person narrator, Kirsty Woodhouse, telling the story of her families move from the stresses of a London life to the escape of running a guesthouse in the Brecon Beacons. After a traumatic last eighteen-months that has affected all of the family and threatened everything that Kirsty held dear together with ex-lawyer husband, Adrian, and daughters, eleven-year-old Amelia and six-year-old Evie, she has opted for a slower pace of life. Whilst returning to her native Wales and running a guesthouse was a long held ambition of Kirsty’s it acquired added urgency in the wake of the painful events in London (which are frustratingly not explicitly stated until 150 pages later) and convinced Kirsty that they needed a change in direction which has only been made possible by going into business and co-ownership with her hyper-critical mother, Carol. With Kirsty and Adrian still tentative around each other, their daughters relationship with their father more distant and Adrian preoccupied with attempting to write a novel, the whole family dynamic has shifted. As the realities of living and working with Kirsty’s mother, Carol, strain household relations a morose Amelia and a nightmare plagued and sleepwalking Evie leave Kirsty at the end of her tether and she soon begins to wonder if the family have made the right decision after all. When this is compounded by Carol inviting Kirsty’s cousin, Selena, and her chronically ill seven-year-old daughter, Ruby, to stay after fleeing her violent husband the situation deteriorates further. Estranged for seventeen-years since Selena’s lies (admitted on page 86 and rather underwhelming) destroyed their formerly close bond, Kirsty is furious that once again her cousin is leaning on her mother and suddenly her new house feels even less of a safe haven. Reluctant to trust Selena the obvious pressure of managing Ruby’s medical ailments elicits sympathy from earnest Kirsty but together with her mother’s fondness and Adrian’s cosy chats with her cousin she starts to suspect that everyone in the house is keeping something from her. Suddenly Kirsty is feeling like the outsider and on top of the realities of being forever ‘on call’ the arrival of an array of guests, including Dean, a former boyfriend of Selena’s and Kirsty’s adopted brother and his wife, Nathan and Julia, struggling with IVF difficulties of their own the tensions stack up and Kirsty’s paranoia goes into overdrive. Riddled with questions as to the underlying motivations of just about everyone under her roof the discovery of a body at the foot of the stairs is the signal for a sudden ramping up of the pace and a slew of disclosures, lies and rewri...

This chilling first-person narrative had me hooked right from the start. The novel starts with the discovery of a body then the book is split into ‘Part One: Before’ and ‘Part Two: After’. This cleverly structured plot keeps you guessing as to who has been murdered right until the end of part one, which is about half way through the story. The story is told from the perspective of Kirsty (the protagonist), and this point of view is consistent throughout, where lives of the other characters come to life through what Kirsty knows about them. This meant when the twists and shocks came to Kirsty, they were a shock to me as a reader too. The language is colloquial and made the story real. It was an easy read but don’t mix that with a simple story. It was easy to read because the language was so compelling and the focussed first-person narrative sucked me into Kirsty’s world. I managed to read the first few chapters on a chapter by chapter basis, but it wasn’t long before everything went on hold and I just had to finish the book. The narrative has an abundance of twists and turns that are so believable they make you think it could happen to anybody living anywhere. Just one small wrong turn here and another there. The story’s setting, and what happened in the guest house previously, adds to the creepy atmosphere. I started off thinking how lovely it would be to live in such an idyllic place, but it wasn’t long before I was willing Kirsty to pack her bags and whisk her family right out of the spooky place. But Kirsty is made of much sterner stuff than I am! I was starting to get a bit fed up with psychological thrillers and how they were becoming more and more obscure. I like books that have an element of realism: ordinary everyday characters who make ordinary everyday mistakes, but those ordinary mistakes become twisted into something much more sinister. Claire Douglas has managed to execute this to perfection, and this resulted in a very enjoyable read. I absolutely loved this book and can’t wait to read more from this author. As well as this, as a new writer myself, the writing inspired me, and reading this book taught me a valuable lesson in taking my writing to a new level. In this case, it was the story’s clear focus on the protagonist herself, as well as how twists and turns can still have a dramatic impact without being ridiculous.

I have read and enjoyed a couple of this author's previous books but, for me, this one didn't quite hit the heady heights that they did. Don't get me wrong, it's a good book but there was just something missing for me, making this a four rather than a five star read. So, after a bit of a rum time of late, Kirsty has partnered up with her mother in a new business venture. Relocating alongside her family - husband Adrian and their two children - back to her Welsh childhood hometown in order to run a guesthouse. After a few shenanigans with the renovations and indeed the locals, they are finally ready to open. But not all their first guests are as welcome, or indeed paying, as they'd have liked; especially cousin Serena, along with her disabled daughter, Ruby. Apparently Selena is escaping an abusive marriage, I say apparently as Selena has a bit of a track record with the economics of truth, the main reason for her long estrangement from one-time bosom buddy Kirsty. Another of the first guests also bizarrely declares the house to "have a dark energy". Far from the fresh start that Kirsty wanted and needed after the time they had just been through in London with Adrian. But that's just the start of things... I think that my main gripe with this book was that it was simply too busy. There was too much going on that certain things just got all caught up in the noise rather than having the impact that they probably should have had. It all got a bit too convoluted for me, sadly. Too many not-so-nice characters with motives did weaken the plot a tad. In fact, I can't think of one character I actually liked. It was also a bit on the predictable side at times, I guessed a fair few things early which probably did mar my enjoyment if truth be told. Oh and we got a fair old share of twists, turns and red herrings throughout. And then, when all was said and done, and the truth, the real truth eventually all came out... well, that just didn't quite work for me and left me a little unsatisfied. Maybe I'm being too harsh, maybe I'm just in need of a break from the genre for a wee while to get the juices flowing again. Maybe it just wasn't quite the book for me. A decent enough read in itself, just not quite as I'd have preferred in certain aspects. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Oh. My. Goodness. This book had everything and I promise you won’t have a clue of what is actually happening until nearly the last page. I love that it started slow but didn’t feel like it as you get a real sense of what this creaky old B and B is like and the hauntingly beautiful surrounding hillside. Definitely my top read for 2018!