“Which of you was it?”
“It was Rose,” said Violet.
“It was Poppy,” said Rose.
“It was Violet,” said Poppy.
All I see is red.
“Which Child”, by Shane Spyre
I’m delighted to join the Blog Tour for “Which Child” by Shane Spyre. Many thanks to publishers The Book Folks and of course the author for organising the tour and gifting me a copy of the book.
The story:
When her children are 4-years old, Sarah Greene is forced at gun point to make an unthinkable choice. Which of her four identical daughters is she prepared to give up?
Seven years later, a body is found. A body with the face of one of Sarah’s daughters. But what has happened to her since that terrible day at the park? And why are her remaining children lying to her?
My thoughts:
“Which Child” is the debut novel of author Shane Spyre and the story certainly hits the ground running!
The book is divided into six parts, each telling the story from a different characters’ point of view.
Part one begins with a 4-year-old child, one of four identical sisters Violet, Rose, Poppy and Daisy (only distinguishable by the colour of the ribbon in their hair), being taken from her mother by force. After 7 years, the siblings have (apparently) forgotten Daisy. But when mother Sarah is called to the police station to identify a body, her carefully constructed lie to her remaining children comes crashing down.
In subsequent sections we hear first from Jessica Hart, the deeply unpleasant girlfriend of the girls’ father Nicholas; followed by police detective Ashley Irvine, brought in to investigate the death of the fourth sibling; and finally from each of the remaining siblings — Violet, Rose and Poppy.
At various points along this story I thought I knew what was going on, only for the author to completely up-end everything in the next moment… I felt like I needed to draw a diagram to keep track of which sister said what, and when and why! By the end I think I know what happened (or at least, I think I know what I think!), but this plot goes beyond twisting to tie the reader up in actual knots!
Overall, this story was outrageous, gripping and the ending left me questioning everything I’d read. For fans of psychological thrillers, this one will really keep you guessing!
Pages: 316
Published: 4th March 2024
Rating: 🐈⬛🐈⬛🐈⬛.5/5
Purchase links:
UK: https://amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CVNFXFMS
US: https://amazon.com/dp/B0CVNFXFMS
Australia: https://amazon.com.au/dp/B0CVNFXFMS
About the author
Shane Spyre believes the key to a good mystery is for it to arrive at its destination – before the reader realizes what that destination is!
An avid fan of tortured protagonists, mind-bending plots and harrowing finales, Shane aims to arrest his reader’s attention with his hypnotic prose and panache for the unpredictable.
His stories are not formulaic, nor for the faint of heart. His tales are often dripping with symbolism and hidden messages – some revealed, some still lingering beneath the surface once the final page is turned. It is not unusual to come away from one of his books in a state of shock – sometimes it’s not what’s said in the end, but what’s left unsaid.
Outside of writing, Shane enjoys sports, beer, gambling, banter and studying spiritual and religious texts. He resides somewhere on the coast of Melbourne, Australia.
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