I would like to thank Netgalley for allowing me to review Liz Nugent's upcoming book - Strange Sally Diamond. What I love about Liz Nugent's writing is that she creates a protagonist that I love to despise. However, this isn't the case with Sally Diamond. I couldn't help but be charmed by her. I was fully invested in her from the start, making this book a quick read. I loved how the book ended, all questions answered, no lose ends. As usual, an intelligently written story that doesn't disappoint. I dare anyone not to love this book.

The fantastic Liz Nugent does it again! Her astonishing ability to get inside the minds of people considered outside of the norm is undimmed. Her writing is engrossing and her plots and characters deeply compelling. Absolutely loved this book!

Strange Sally Diamond. One of the creepiest books I have ever read. I loved the character Sally and the opening line of the book will grip you. This book is not to be missed when it hits the shelfs in March. A book I will be thinking about for along time after.

Loved this book by Liz Nugent could not put it down. Amazing story couldn’t wait to turn each page.Couldn’t recommend this book enough

Liz Nugent, the queen of the psychological thriller has a new book coming out early next year (2/3/23) and I was delighted to get my hands on a @netgalley ARC as I really love her books.

Sally is a recluse, she lives with her elderly father in the countryside and has very little social interactions with others, going so far as pretending to be deaf to avoid conversations. When her father passes, she complies with his wish to be thrown out with the rubbish and is then completely thrown by the media storm and police presence that arises. Not only are people interested in her present notoriety but when the press dig into her past a dark history starts to come out and a message arrives giving a hint that someone sinister is still looking for her.

The book gets darker as we find out more and more about who Sally is and where she came from. It’s just so cleverly done in the typical Liz Nugent style. It was enthralled from the opening chapter and I raced through it staying awake well past my bedtime to get it read and then having a rather unsettled sleep. I couldn't put it down. Its brilliantly paced and I felt the key difference with her previous works, is that the main character is really likeable. I got some real chuckles from Sally and her complete lack of a social filter as she starts forming relationships which helped lift the darker topics that are at the heart of the plot. I believe Liz wrote the book during the lockdowns and there is such a theme of isolation permeating throughout.

Liz Nugent has done it again, brilliantly paced, sharp and clever writing, this is the best psychological thriller I have read in a long time and if you like her previous books then this is a much read. Just make sure you’ve visited the dentist beforehand as it might put you off going for a while

I knew immediately that I wanted to read this book from its title and cover. These things do have an impact. This book is a compelling page-turner, and I read it over a couple of days, intrigued by how things would turn out for Sally, given the nature of her past and early childhood. I was totally rooting for her, especially as she was someone who found it challenging to make change and navigate the everyday world.

The story is a dual narrative; we also learn about Steve and how he links to Sally, as well as being introduced to a whole other cast of characters that surround Sally where she lives, and who are well-formed and mostly enjoyable to read.

I found this a moving and well-constructed book and one that explores whether it's possible to overcome the psychological shackles of your past.

Wow Liz Nugent can certainly pack a punch! I feel like I’ve just read 10 stories at the same time.

A little bit of blurb -
Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died. Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the hungry media and worried police, but also a sinister voice from a past she has no memory of. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, recluse Sally steps into the world for the first time, making new friends, finding independence, and learning that people
don't always mean what they say. But when messages start arriving from a stranger who knows far more about her past than she knows herself, Sally's life will be thrown into chaos
once again.

This book was gripping psychological drama that I could not put down . I wanted to cuddle Sally which she would have hated and just tell her it’s going to be ok.
I couldn’t put it down from the first page to the last the only big problem is it left me with so many unanswered questions.

There are so many characters in this book that I want to know more about , I felt like the author was constantly teasing me with tidbits of information but each of the characters were so interesting I could have read a whole saga about sally’s family both present and past.

This is a disturbing raw , highly emotive read but it also has so much fragility and heart.

There is so much more I want to say about this book but I really don’t want to give away any spoilers so I will just say that I highly recommend and when you read it let me know as I need to talk to everyone about this !!!

Thank you to netgalley, the publishers penguin and of course the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Sally Diamond is a recluse and likes to keep herself to herself. She doesn't understand social situations, jokes, sarcasm or people in general. When Sally's father dies, she does with him what he has always told her to do, she puts him out with the rubbish. Sally could never have expected this would bring the police or the media to her door and with her new found fame, her long forgotten past comes back to haunt her. Sally can't remember anything from before the age of 7, but someone from her traumatising past is back to remind her.
This was an amazing read. I loved Sally's character and her no filter personality. The book is both dark and hilarious with a massive dose of suspense and I couldn't put it down. Can't wait to read more from this author! Ideal for fans of 'The curious incident of the dog in the night time' and 'Room'.

So deliciously dark and twisted, I could not put it down.

Once again, Liz Nugent has pulled it out of the bag. Such a dark, twisted tale. Leaving you at times with such mixed emotions about whether you should feel disgusted at some of the character's behaviours, or if you should feel sympathy for them. So well written and had me hooked until the very end. My favourite book of Liz's has always been Lying in Wait, but this one is right up there with it. Fantastic read!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC in exchange for this review.

What a read! Sally Diamond was doing exactly what her father told her to do i.e. put his body in the bin. And the contents of their bins got incinerated. Then the trouble started, the gardaí were called and the story of who Sally really was and why she was the way she was unfolded. There will be no spoiler alerts in this review just go and read it for yourselves. It is funny, sad, disturbing, upsetting at times and a wide range of other emotions come through.
Sally deserves to go down as one of the great characters of modern literature.

Fans of Liz Nugent will no doubt love this, maybe her best yet and if you haven’t read any of her books to date this is a great place to start.

Once again Liz Nugent writes a gripping, shocking, and tense Irish psychological drama with a unforgettable and quirky central character in her 40s, Sally Diamond, complex, blunt and unfiltered in what she says, so much so she might initially give the impression of being on the spectrum, but this is far from the case, the term 'socially deficient' is used. This has chilling, harrowing and heartbreaking themes that will take you through a rollercoaster of emotions, and have you rooting for Sally as the trauma in her background begins to emerge. Sally has been isolated, she has no circle of friends, her mother is dead, and in her naivety she literally does what her father had asked when he dies, she puts him out with the bins.

An act that attracts headlines with the attention of media and the police, and all the tumult, trauma and chaos it brings. It opens up a can of worms when out of the blue emerges family and a past she cannot remember, but will have inevitable repercussions on her life, and there are letters that detail how she came to be a part of the Diamond family. In this darkest of stories, there are surprising twists and turns, there are the odd chinks of light, hope, and humour, we learn just how much a human being can endure. This is a hard, disturbing, and challenging read, skilfully plotted, with a wide cast of disparate characters, and despite all the horrors, it has heart and soul. Highly recommended. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin U.K. Publishers for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

‘Strange Sally Diamond’ is an amazing book by Liz Nugent. I read it within 24 hours, the story hooked me from the start. Especially as I’m not normally a fan of alternating narratives but Nugent has done it well - weaving in past and present to tell the story of 'strange' Sally Diamond .

Sally Diamond, lives a reclusive life in rural Roscommon - with her elderly psychiatrist father. He has always joked about throwing him out with the trash. Sally respects what she believes to be his wishes but it takes her, and everyone she knows (not many people) down an unexpected path. This is a definite read for fans of mysteries and thrillers - but be warned it does tackle heavy subjects, but who is Sally Diamond?

Liz Nugent is an extraordinary writer whose previous novels have explored to great effect what happens to seemingly ordinary characters once their layers of respectability are stripped away. Her new novel, centred on a character entitled Sally Diamond, is no different. Leading an isolated existence with her elderly adoptive father, forty year-old Sally avoids contact with the outside world since being bullied at school three decades ago. During the early parts of the novel, it is fair to assume for the reader that Sally is neurodivergent, a little similar perhaps to Gail Honeyman’s Eleanor Oliphant. But after her father passes away and Sally Diamond is dragged into the public limelight, this readerly view is slowly corrected as Sally’s early childhood is finally conjured up through a series of letters her father has left her. Touching on some harrowing issues related to domestic abuse and kidnapping, this does not make for an easy read, but allows for some revelatory insights. Equally distressing is the fate of second character Peter that Nugent depicts on the page. We know it is not going to end well for neither Sally nor Peter, but even so, the ending of the novel is breathtaking. Highly recommended for thriller readers, those interested in greater insights into the effects of early childhood trauma, and readers who have yet to discover Liz Nugent. I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for sending me a free ARC of this novel in exchange for this honest book review.

As a slightly awkward middle aged woman myself I completely get the main character. Not the crazy stuff but the other stuff. Well written and a book that will linger with me. Finished this ebook last week and still thinking about it.

I was flying long haul and literally read this in one sitting! No movies or sleep as I was totally hooked from the start in this unusual and quirky story.

I loved Sally Diamond, she's such a great character and doesn't think she did anything wrong after her dad died.

She finds letters from her father and all is not as it seems but the truth unfolds

Sally is a socially awkward woman who finds it hard to trust but life starts to open up for her

5 stars from me!

My first Liz Nugent book (how???) and have now gone to order her whole backlist because my oh my, is she BRILLIANT. What started off as an intriguing story about a lonely and slightly awkward middle aged woman took off in a wholly unpredictable direction with so many layers and emotions and struggles that I was barely drawing breath as I flew through this novel. What a talented writer!

A brilliant, fascinating book
The character Sally makes you laugh, cry be frustrated, and have her back all at once.
The book is unlike any other
Liz Nugent is a writer that really delves into her characters
I highly recommend this as a read that stays with you long after the last page

Sally Diamond is in her forties when her adoptive father dies. Making an honest mistake, she disposes of his body herself and this attracts the attention of locals and the media alike.

With the spotlight on Sally, details of her past life, before she was adopted, come to light, but there are gaps in what happened and Sally doesn’t want to remember that time.

As she starts to socialise more and make friends, Sally, who describes herself as socially deficient, has difficulty working out who she can trust and realises there are different types of being kept in captivity. As this has so far been the story of her life, she endeavours to fit in and make her own decisions in future.

Like Liz Nugent’s previous novels, this one is dark, really dark. Fittingly, for a book written during lockdown, it deals with themes of isolation and imprisonment. It also deals with paedophilia and child abuse, and there are passages that are difficult to read. I found myself rooting for the character of Sally Diamond all the way through the novel. At times I was reminded of Room; at others of Elinor Oliphant. I dropped absolutely everything until I’d finished this book. Sally will stay with me for a while yet.

Chilling, compelling, and daringly dark.

Liz Nugent just keeps getting better. This was a fantastic read. I loved how it switched from Sally to Steve’s story, I loved past and present, I loved how the story kept moving and changing. There were so many different facets, I never saw the next twist coming. It really is great, possibly her just yet!!

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Liz Nugent has a refreshing and blunt style of writing that I really enjoy. And it shines in this book. I couldn't decide if I liked half of the characters, one page I did, next paged I didn't. They were realistically flawed and that just added to the story.