You always know you’re getting a good read with a Dorothy Koomson book. This one made me shiver at the thought of what I might find the next time i’m on Brighton Beach! The fact that they call the body the Mermaid gave the novel an eerie tone from the start and this, coupled with the intricate emotions and relationships in the story really packs a punch.

There is more than one twist in the (mermaid’s) tale. Nell is an interesting character and finding out about the dark side of the people in the story was a very nice touch. Dorothy knows people well and weaves tales of emotional and psychological complexity.

Brighton Beach has many grains of sand - different textures, different colours, shades of grittiness and different ways of stabbing you when you least expect it.

Dorothy Koomson's books have become darker, deeper and more emotional books than The Chocolate Run and Best Friend's Girl.  I love her style, ability to weave a story and her capability of making you feel the character's emotions. With the location of Brighton, her books have always guaranteed a good read. The Brighton's Mermaid does not disappoint.

I have only read one book that has touched me as deeply as this one. It is a story of secrets, fear and the complex relationships between sisters. The unexpected conclusion slammed my emotions and left me sobbing.  

Would I recommend?
Yes. Yes. Yes. Throughout it was a strong 5-star rating but the depth of emotion and drama as it raced to the end will leave me reeling for days. 

A physical copy will definitely be on my bookshelf to revisit.

This book is incredibly well written on so many different levels. It itakes the reader through a journey that both unites and rips apart friendships, siblings, marriages,.
Nell becomes a loner because she has major trust issues attributed to the domineering, bullying from one police officer in particular after she and her friend Jude find a dead body on Brighton Beach. The police are particularly brutal in the treatment of her and her family when more bodies are found.
It changes their friendship, her relationship with her parents and her sister Macy.
Macy tries to hide behind OCD and as events unfold her OCD gets worse and she has begins to distrust everything. Macy keeps a huge secret which deeply affects her relationship with her family.
The story divides between the events of 1993 and the anniversary in 2018.
I was totally pulled into this story, there are so many different things that don’t pull together until the final chapters.
It is a great book.. I shall definitely reread it and encourage my friends to preorder, it will be a fantastic book for a long haul flight or beach holiday.
It’s listed as women’s fiction but I think men could also enjoy it..

Not entirely what I was expecting but I kept turning page after page and getting deeper into the story. It builds up slowly and as more characters become part of the plot you begin to speculate about the possible outcome which did not entirely turn out to be what I expected. The mystery aside, this is also a book about sisters and about what the consequences are when someone does not tell the entire truth. This is a good read. You know what you are getting when you read Dorothy Koomson's books and this one won't disappoint.

Thank you to Netgalley, Dorothy Koomson and Random House for my arc of The Brighton Mermaid.

Summary

Nell Okorie has spent her whole life feeling traumatised by events when she was a teenager. 15 year old Nell and her best friend Jude are returning from a party they shouldn't have been attending, when they find the body of a woman on the beach. What follows tears apart the lives of Nell and her family and becomes increasingly worse when Jude disappears.

25 years later Nell is still desperate to find Jude and discover the identity of the woman dubbed The Brighton Mermaid. When she quits her job to focus on the search full time, she inadvertently puts herself and those closest to her in terrible danger as the people who want the past to stay buried try their best to put a stop to her search.

Review

What I love about Dorothy Koomson's novels are her ability to combine the two genres of thriller and contemporary/women's fiction all in one book. Despite the books theme predominantly being centred around the cold cases of The Brighton Mermaid's murder and Jude's disappearance, themes of racism, feminism and family also run through the story, making the read even more engrossing.

Nell is such a strong woman, she's so fierce and I loved her for it. She has her demons but she fights through life like a lioness, dealing with everything from her sister's mental health, to the pressure she's put under in other aspects of her life. She doesn't apologise for being herself and I really liked that. When you come across a character like Nell it really makes you much more invested in their story.

The storyline itself was fabulous, I kind of got an inclining of some of the people who might have been involved but I was still in for a shock with some of them and really the whole nature of the involvement as well. Even the people I suspected still surprised me! Dorothy Koomson weaves her thrillers into the intricacy of family life and her conclusions never fail to send shock waves for me. A brilliant exploration of the dark side of human nature and the secrets people hide.

You can always rely on Dorothy koomson on for a good read
I will never forget rose petal beach as was so moving and vivid
I enjoyed this also though not as much
It's a beautifully told story of friendship ,sisters ,daughters and I did thoroughly enjoy it
I do like how Dorothy can write a dark tale and it's never gratuitous there's never detailed grim descriptions yet it still haunts u
I did find though it got a bit convuluted n not quite sure how the dastardly did everything being all such diffirent dastardly types I cdnt work out if they broke them groomed them then quickly raped and killed them it was a sort of hotchpotch really and mixed psychopathic types
It's good though as u always know it will be and the women are so resilient and wonderfully formed in her novels ,their flawed humens beings with such determination love and hope
I will always read this author,thanks net galley and publishers for letting me read this advanced copy of a good author!