Not quite the thriller I was expecting I’m afraid, more adult fiction, it took along time to get going and I just didn’t click with any of the characters. An interesting read, just not to my taste, not fast paced enough.

Knightsbridge, London - 2019

It’s nearly Christmas and Julianne Knight is busily preparing for it. Julianne is married to James who works in a job handling rather confidential data. Their son, Stephen, age 17, worriedly shows his mother some files that have shown up in the family’s shared Dropbox folder. Both are rather shocked at the information in the files and wonder if it could have somehow come in via a computer virus or something.

Oxford - 1990

Holly Rowe has just started university at Oxford. Although her parents are not wealthy, she is very happy to have won a place at this prestigious university. The first person she meets is Aphrodite (Ally) Kelman. The girl is outgoing and speaks with a posh accent. Her twin brother is Ernest who is also attending Oxford. Turns out their father is Clive Kelman, Tory MP. Holly then meets their close friend, James Knight. They spend time together studying and having discussions. Holly has led a fairly sheltered life and is taken aback at times at some of the things the trio says.

This story switches back and forth in time to the actions of the characters during their college days and present time. Actions that happened in the past can come back to haunt you. There are some raw and ugly events that made me realize how naive I am even today. It also proves how those in political power can cover up anything. Due to the rawness of it, I can’t say that I enjoyed reading this book, but it did open my eyes about how some people live their lives.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I received this book from Netgalley in return for an honest opinion, I believed it to belong in the mystery/thriller genre but although I was enjoying the story it was really quite a while before I realised where this story was actually going. Adult fiction would be a more suitable section in which to place it and it did in fact even include some vivid sex scene which, as we find out eventually, were actually quite pertinent.

It was an interesting book, if not a gripping one. I'm afraid I couldn't take to any one of the characters but surprisingly that didn't spoil it for me. I suppose it was a cynical if believable outcome which really left me feeling quite sad with regards to the world we live in.

This was one of those stories where I almost abandoned reading it, but it started to get a little interesting as I plugged along, so I’m glad I managed to finish it.

When Holly began as a freshman at Oxford University it was an honor for her to get in and she was eager to begin her studies and start her new life. However, she wasn’t the type to make friends easily partly because she was sort of awkward and a bit naïve. She ends up meeting an eclectic group of students who were carefree and extremely adventurous—more so than Holly was.

Holly ends up secretly falling in love with James who was a hunky type of guy, in her eyes, but the problem was he had a girlfriend, Julianne. Although Julianne sort of had a feeling that Holly was enamored with her man, she didn’t feel threatened at all because Holly was just a plain jane, so there was nothing she had to worry about. Or, was there?

As the reader continues to venture through the story, you will begin to see a much larger picture come into view and it will be startling to you, as well as the characters who discover that what they thought they knew about each other, isn’t quite what they know at all.

Unfortunately, this story didn’t start to heat up until about 70 percent. That’s almost the end, if you’re doing the math. I found the story to be quite boring and full of words and detail that wasn’t necessary to tell the story. So many times I started to give a DNF, but the writer in me and the fact that I’m nosey when it comes to reading, I just had to figure out what the hell was going on in this story? The problem I found is that the story is a bit confusing at first because I could not figure out what the past and the present had to do with anything? I knew there had to be some type of connection because why else write the story, but it appeared to take entirely too long to get to where the reader needed to go. This is when I began skipping over sections, and then realized I had to go back because I skipped sections I really needed to know.

At the end of the day, I struggled to get through it and I was saddened by that because once the story heated up, I absolutely loved where the author took me. It’s just too bad he couldn’t have found a way to get the reader there quicker. However, this is my opinion and may not be the opinion of other readers. This is not a bad story—in fact, it’s downright interesting once you figure out what is really happening. I just wish I could have gotten there so much sooner.

After reading this I looked at the reviews and saw a mixture of different views on this story. This is why I love reading. We all don’t like the same books and that can be a great positive.

I really didn’t like the characters in this story. It’s rare I find a book that I didn’t click with any of the characters.

This is one of those books that won’t be for everyone. Personally I love taboo reads so I enjoyed this story. The author knows how to push the readers. Take them out of their comfort zone. This is one of those reads. I’m refusing to rehash the story as I don’t want to spoil it for anyone. If your looking for a different read that may make the readers uncomfortable then this could be the story for you. I’ll certainly be reading more from this author in the future.

This book sounded so good, but i am afraid the reality did not live up to the hope. A very adult themed thriller and mystery story that was too graphic in some scenes that it left me feeling the description did not add to the story. It felt more there for the 'adult' factor. I am sure many people may like this thriller but for me it was not at all to my liking

I liked this novel- I was a bit leery about reading it because of all the negative reviews. It had an interesting storyline and characters but didn’t totally blow me away. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for review.

4/5 stars

A good read of a well thought out plot . Moving between the present day and the 1990's . A group of students at Oxford , from a privileged background befriend a girl from a poorer background . She ends up being sexually abused by 3 of the boys in the group , but does not report it because she thinks it will be covered up by the authorities .. She leaves University because of this abuse . Fast forward to the present day and the boys from the group are involved in a web of abuse of various people , both male and female . The wife and son of one of them discover files about this on a family Laptop , and have difficulty deciding what to do . The wife decides to report it , but her husband and his friend an M.P threaten her that it will not do her any good and bring threats into play to stop her . A TV journalist and the former friend are researching into this abuse by these people and the wife agrees to help with what she knows after being approached earlier .

A hard hitting book with a gritty look at the sexual perversions in a fictional version written to understate the truth and bring the realities to the forefront.

2 timelines with Holly as the narrator in 1990 and Julianne in 2019, the book started with Julianne's son finding files in the family drop box which shattered their lives. Holly's story had its own gruesome reality where a crush led to obsession which led to rape.

BP Walter writing came with a bold stroke with graphic details of all the acts at the uni. Lives destroyed were well written. The betrayal, the helplessness, the fear all rushed to hold me in their clutches. The characters were all dark or grey each involved in the sexual crime, some more than others.

The book would be a difficult read with a lot of triggers for sexual abuse and rape. The first quarter meandered and wavered a bit with Julianne hiding from the facts. In the latter half, truths and realities kept hitting me, one after the other. None of the characters are likable, but they all made a strong impact

This book is for the strong hearted to be read on their strong days, after being fully aware of what they were getting into.

I really loved this book....it totally gripped me and slowly drip fed a disturbing story about a group of students at oxford, what they did then, and what they do now.....really gripping and I devoured. Would love to read more from this author. Thank you

This one took a little bit longer to read as it wasn't my cup of tea. Its very well written but more along the lines of the sex trafficing industry rather than a psychological thriller like I was expecting. However, the author does a good job of describing everything to allow the reader to picture it in their mind. I rated it 4 stars because it was well written

A Version of the Truth is a dark psychological thriller with a split time line. On her first day at Oxford University in 1990 Holly meets Ally, and becomes part of a group with her and her twin brother Ernest and his friend James. In the present day Juliane’s world is turned upside down when her teenage son, Stephen, comes to her after finding files on the iPad that make her question just how well she knows her husband. This is a fast paced thriller that is disquieting and sinister in parts, but brilliantly plotted and will have you hooked.

Holly is a middle class, naive and without much life experience, and I have to say one of the nicer characters in this book. She finds herself out of her depth with Ally, who has lived a hedonistic lifestyle and is very elitist. Holly is uncomfortable in some of the situations she finds herself in, and Ally, Ernest and James seem to revel in this, and treat her like a plaything; a pawn in their dangerous games. Neither of those three is likeable, they are narcissistic and have an air of entitlement about them, and have no care for who hey hurt. Julianne was also at Oxford, and was James’s girlfriend, and again was fairly naive, but now she has a beautiful house in Knightsbridge and is married to James. I did have some empathy for her as her life implodes over a dinner party, everything she has is destroyed. However, I did feel that selective memory came into it which altered my perspective of her character by the end of the book.

Throughout this book B.P Walter builds an atmosphere of unease and tension. When I started A Version of the Truth, I had no idea where the plot was going, so I just went with it and was gripped as the plot gained momentum until it rushes towards the shocking conclusion. I don’t want to say much about the plot as it would spoil the book, but it does go to some very dark places, but it does highlight issues that are very prevalent in today’s society.

I thought this a cleverly plotted, tense and addictive read; once you pick it up you won’t be able to put the book down. The characters are not very likeable and don’t redeem themselves in anyway, but we all like a baddie in a thriller; although in this case a couple really are despicable people. A Version of the Truth is a fabulous debut from B.P Walter, and I can’t wait to read his next novel.

I thought this was a good debut novel, well written and well paced . However, I found the characters were quite stereotypical and I never really felt I knew enough about them to explain their motivations or to care about their actions.
Thanks to netgalley and Avon books for an advance copy.

Thanks to #NetGalley for this ARC

This is a debut novel for B.P. Walter. The story was well developed and the characters were interesting, though a bit predictable. The reader gets a seed planted from the very beginning in regard to a specific characters and it is just left there to sprout with no big surprise. The writing is good and the author has potential but when looking at thrillers or suspense novels, the reader needs that moment of shock or surprise, and an anticipatory, quicker moving plot, without it the books are just good fiction at best. Okay read. 3 stars.

This book was addictive, dark and shocking and kept me on the edge of my seat. It follows two different time frames, 1990, when the characters were at Oxford University, and today. It is full of horrible people and deals with some deeply unpleasant topics, so it’s not for the faint-hearted.

It is not the sort of book you can describe as enjoyable, but it definitely gripped me and compelled me to read on, while at the same time making me feel very uncomfortable.

BP Walter is brave to have written this book and I think there will be some debate about it. I like a challenging read and will be looking out for the author’s next book with great interest.

I have to admit, after reading some seriously negative reviews on this book prior to reading, I didn't have the highest expectations. But that worked in my favour because my expectations were massively exceeded in this case. I thought the story was excellent and highlighted harrowing incidents that are difficult to read but are also known to happen and I commend the author for not being afraid to express this in story form. He took a dark and disturbing subject and tackled it perfectly - he didn't sensitise the nature of events but wrote them as it might happen in reality.

The story is divided into two parts:

Oxford 1990 - Holly has just started University and is befriended by her roommate Ally. Unlike Holly, Ally and her twin Ernest are from privileged backgrounds and fit right into the Oxford stereotype. Holly is brought into their group of friends but feels like she doesn't fit in and broods quietly at most of the social gatherings. She develops strong feelings for one member of the group and is disappointed to find out he has a girlfriend. But when an opportunity presents itself during a game of spin the bottle, she plays, not forseeing the sinister and life-changing outcome she will have to live with forever.

London 2019 - Whilst preparing dinner, Juliette is approached by her teenage son saying he has found something questionable on the iPad. Shocked and confused by the content, Juliette's world comes crashing down when she realises her happy family life is about to be torn apart... and events that happened back at University over 25 years ago are about to be dragged back to the surface.

There are definite triggers in this book but they are necessary to drive home the seriousness and raise awareness. You don't have to agree with or support the events of the book (like rape, sexual violence etc.) but I can't deny that it is crafted by an excellent author who built his characters based on certain stereotypes that we may not like - but it works.

Using stereotypes does not mean that all privileged white men commit violence against women or that all young female students are impressionable once plied with alcohol. It most certainly does not mean that all women who say yes initially during sex can't then change their mind. This is the awareness that I feel needs to be highlighted. The author does not inject his own personal opinion, it is a very detached perspective and that makes the story all the more real, despite being a work of fiction. I connected with the characters, rooting for the victims and despising the perps. I also had sympathy, knowing how easy it can be to fall in with the wrong crowd and end up being peer pressured to do things you might not normally do.

Overall it was an excellent novel that tackled difficult themes in an unbiased way, enabling the reader to see from all perspectives.

Fantastic plot, if a bit hard to believe but then again, seeing the news today, maybe not really. This book certainly takes the domestic thriller to the next level.

The parallel timelines tangle dangerously inevitably leading toward a predictably tragic climax that blows up your entire emotion system.

Big thanks to Avon Books for the chance to read this in exchange for my honest review.

Such a thrilling book! I was shocked by how sucked in I was from page one. A fast page turner and a fantastic thriller!

When I read the synopsis for this book, I expected it to be a psychological thriller but it wasn't exactly that.

The narrative is told in two timelines and flows effortlessly between 1991 and 2019. Julianne and Holly are two important characters in the novel. Though they weren't particularly good friends at Oxford University, they do share a secret that both of them would prefer to leave in the past.

This was a tough book to review because of it's dark and disturbing storyline. The subject of gang rape was graphicly written and even though the subject is repulsive and I did skip a few paragraph here and there to spare some gruesome details, the author did manage to write an addictive read in which the reader wants to discover what will Julianne and Holly do with the secrets of the past, as well as the ones from the present.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

My review was posted on Goodreads this morning and will be posted on my book blog later this week.

Well written, dark and touches on difficult subjects. Not pleasant characters so I found it hard to warm to them. Well worth a read