Sharon Bolton delivers the most unusual (in both settings and characters) mysteries and she's done it again in The Split.

It can be confusing at first, but one understands why by the end. Its lead is glaciologist Felicity Lloyd, who's fled to work in the remote Antarctic island of South Georgia in fear of her abusive ex, Freddie.

Though disturbing, this seems simple enough, but then the author shares flashbacks with the reader to Felicity's time in Cambridge, England months earlier, and her sessions with psychiatrist Dr. Joe Grant.

As many plot threads develop and intermingle, Felicity has memory blanks, but shares little with Joe as she's desperate to get the job on South Georgia. The denouement takes place there and it's quite a ride.

This thriller takes place in two very different locations. Felicity is a scientist working in remote Antarctica. She lives in Cambridge, England. The story is told from a few perspectives, as we meet and get to know the different characters on the two continents, and the tension rises and builds. This is a good, atmospheric, thriller. Recommended.

The Split is set in two cities, beginning in South Georgia, a remote Antarctic island which can only be reached by boat. Glaciologist Felicity Lloyd has been living on the island for months - happily isolated from most of the world, particularly the ex-husband she fears. She took this job to hide from him, but now that he's out of prison, having served a term for murder, she's afraid he'll find her, even in this place that feels like the end of the world. The story then jumps back in time to Cambridge, where we learn about the months leading up to Felicity's terrified run to South Georgia. Did she flee because of more than her ex? When the timeline jumps back to the present in South Georgia, Felicity is on the move, but in the Antarctic there is danger all around her setting up a suspenseful climax.

This fast paced thriller is a twisty, gripping read. Particularly the sections set in South Georgia - the wildlife, ice, snow, glaciers, and generally desolate and isolated location are descriptively written and set a wonderfully tense scene. Frequent readers of suspense may not be surprised by the mystery resolution, but that did not significantly decrease my enjoyment of the book. 4.5 Stars

SPOILER rape and other abuse of an adult; rape and other abuse of child; murder END SPOILER

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. The opinions in this review are honest and my own.

Sharon Bolton is at the top of the crime thriller game, and this book is a showcase for her skills of tight plotting and depth of psychological insight into her characters. While the novel employs a popular trope of amnesia, it does so with a more nuanced and thoughtful lens that is common in the genre. There is also one character (Delilah) that I found so compelling that I am hoping there's a series in her future!

*I received an Advanced Readers Copy from #NetGalley & #StMartinsPress in exchange for an honest review.*

The story is broken into parts, and the suspense builds with each. The book isn’t a fast read because you must read carefully so you don’t miss a thing that may be important later. Definitely a thriller.

4 stars

Now that Felicity Lloyd's ex-husband is out of prison, she is terrified that he will find her. So terrified that she flees to Antarctica. She takes a job as a glaciologist with the British Research Station.

When the last tour boat of the summer arrives, she spots Freddie among the people and flees. She has told her co-workers at the station that she is going to Bird Island to study the fledglings. But she has really gone somewhere else. Terrified and alone, she begins to hear things that are not there – voices, footsteps and other noises.

But there is another character in the book who is looking out for Felicity.

During a previous timeline as told in the book, Felicity meets Joe, her therapist. In these vignettes it is revealed that Felicity has had for some time problems with reality. Or, does she? And Felicity is not alone in her pain and confusion.

Eddie, her ex, has figured out to which island she went. He has seen her. He is following her and yelling out to her.

This book will keep the reader guessing. It was very well written and plotted. There were many surprises and a few twists. I liked the use of psychology. It was well done. However, I was a little disappointed that Joe didn't cotton on to the problems that Felicity had sooner. I had her figured out much sooner in the book. I liked Delilah. She was a hoot with her pink hair – at her age! I worried about Joe. He seems to get way to close to his clients. That's very dangerous for someone who counsels vulnerable people. I decided that he was a little incompetent, and I couldn't get a grasp on his personality what with all the enmeshment with his clients. The parts of the book that described Antarctica were simply wonderful. The doomed explorer Ernest Shackleton was even mentioned.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for forwarding to me a copy of this very good book for me to read, enjoy and review.

A word of advice when reading novels by Sharon Bolton: read ever sentence, paragraph, chapter very carefully. Bolton hides clues to the mystery in a clever, mind-bending manner. I didn't heed my own advice and realizing I'd missed something about half way through the book, I returned to the beginning and re-read big sections. Oh, now, I understand.

Felicity Lloyd is a frightened young woman, a talented glaciologist, who has fled her abusive husband to South Georgia, an island off the coast of Antarctica. But, has she run far enough? Back in Cambridge England, Felicity's back story unfolds. Everything is not as it appears.

Bolton has taken a fairly standard character twist and turned it on its head. In addition, there is "you are right there sense of place for both South Georgia and Cambridge. The result is an amazing novel, by a talented writer. .

#TheSplit #NetGalley

RR Rating: 3 twisty-turny stars
Format: Ebook*, 304 pgs., pub. 4/28/2020
RR Synopsis: A young glaciologist from Cambridge takes an assignment on the remote Antarctic island of South Georgia to hide from her past, while her doctor tries to unravel the mysteries she left behind.
RR POV: The great thing about Sharon Bolton’s thrillers are that they’re anything but conventional. Here we have a story that opens in Antarctica, and the setting is fantastic change of pace. It did take me a little while to get into the rhythm of the narrative, and there are a lot of seemingly random characters to keep track of. But there are also a lot of twists and big reveals – some that seemed fairly obvious and some that I didn’t see coming. While THE SPLIT may not be my favorite Bolton book (that honor goes to DEAD WOMAN WALKING), I’m still a fan.
Recommended Readers: Thriller fans, people who love a good twist, and those looking for a book set in Antarctica.
*I received an Advanced Readers Copy from #NetGalley & #StMartinsPress in exchange for an honest review.

This book is broken down in four parts and I will share my reading experience on all of them:

Part One: South Georgia

We find Felicity on the island of South Georgia just off the coast of Antarctica where she is studying glaciers for the next two years. She appears nervous and frightened whenever an incoming ship arrives. We know she is running from something or someone and she fears that something or someone is coming for her.

To be honest, I found Part One a little boring and I struggled to stick with this. The endless talks about ice and glaciers did not compel me to turn the pages. I had read a few reviews and decided I would stick with this and I am so glad I did because Part Two....oh yeah!

Part Two: Cambridge (9 months earlier)

We find Felicity has recently been attacked and has no memory of the incident so she seeks therapy from Dr. Joe Grant. He discovers that this isn't the only memory Felicity has lost. She has been experiencing states of fugue more and more often and she's also paranoid that she has a stalker and she believes that stalker is her husband Freddie whom she has no memory of? (Bananas!) Meanwhile she is also vying for a position with her company to be sent to South Georgia and she desperately needs Dr. Grant to sign off that she is mentally fit to attend.

This part ticked all my boxes. I could not put this down at this point and read most of it with my mouth agape.

Part Three: Cambridge (7 months later)

We find that two homeless women have been murdered and another is missing. All three had connections to Dr. Grant. His mother, Delilah, is the police detective in charge of the investigation and she finds a connection between the homeless women and Felicity. Coincidence?

At this point a reveal is made that I pretty much had guessed but that didn't take away any enjoyment for me because I still had puzzle pieces to put together and I love me a good puzzle.

Part Four: South Georgia

Buckle in for the final showdown because it's a heart-thumper and the final sentence in this book brought a smile to my face before turning that last page! 4 *shivering* stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

You can't hide from your secrets....

Felicity Lloyd is about breath a big sigh of relief when the remote Island of South Georgia is about to have its last boat of the summer. She has been anxiously searching the guest lists to make sure a certain name is not upon it. She lives in fear that her ex-husband, Freddie will find her. She is working on the remote island for two reasons 1. She loves what she does (she's a glaciologist) and 2. Freddie was just released from prison and she doesn't want him to find her.

But a therapist from Cambridge has been worried about Felicity. He is on his way to the remote island to try and get to her before Freddie.

This is a psychological thriller that begins on the remote island of South Georgia and then goes back nine months in time to Cambridge where Felicity is no longer the confident woman she is on the island of South Georgia. She has been attacked and has no memory of who hurt her or why. Referred to therapy, she divulges that there are periods of time she cannot account for, things have been moved in her home, there are journal entries she doesn't recall making but really wants her therapist to sign off on her upcoming job in the Antarctic.

I figured out a large portion of this book right away. Not all of it, but a significant portion. Not even the tall glaciers in the Antarctic could get in my way of figuring out most of this book. Sadly, having figured some things out right away took away some of my enjoyment and wanting to throttle her therapist at times didn't help. Sure, he's a likable enough guy but he can benefit from a class on ethics.

But Bolton did a great job of creating interesting characters, especially Delilah, the police investigator with pink hair! I loved the harsh environment in South Georgia. My favorite scenes were in the Antarctic. I thought Bolton really nailed it. I love it when the environment feels like a character in the book as well. She really ended the book well in the frozen environment. She obviously did her homework when preparing to write this book, especially concerning Felicity's job and about glaciers and the landscape in South Georgia! Although I did figure out a HUGE chunk of this book, I did enjoy the pacing and how the plot unfolded. She kept the book moving at a steady pace.

This was a hard book for me to rate. I enjoyed it but was also feeling a little let down as well. I had high hopes for this and when I finished felt conflicted. I read this one fast as it was captivating and thought-provoking. Although I figured out a lot of the book, there were still there were two reveals that I didn't see coming so I appreciated that and found it to be very clever. In the end, she did wow me with her descriptions, vivid landscapes, and interesting characters.


Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have read all the other books by this author and this one is about on the same level. It got more interesting as the story progressed. I found it funny that the main character has a very rare condition and a new book that I read just before this one also has the same rare condition. Is the main character innocent, evil or crazy? Read the book and find out.

ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

I love Sharon Bolton. She is a thrilling author who has a great ability to create suspense.

This book is no different. She weaves a web of suspense around glacial researcher Felicity, who has traveled to the ends of the world to study and escape her harmful. paste. Meanwhile, people in the tiny town on South Georgia island are disappearing and a cruise ship is on the way with a name Felicity recognizes.

The book builds slowly, but has great twists.

Another winner from Sharon Bolton. If you have not read anything else by this author, you are in for a treat with her back catalog.

Thanks to NetGalley.com, the author, and publisher for my ARC.

Not Bolton' s best but even at sub par she's better than most. The two parts, one in Cambridge and one in Antarctica are well written but seemed unrelated. Plenty of murders of homeless people with few suspects including a geologist who specializes in glaciers. The scenes in Antarctica are descriptive and my favorite. Readable with memorable characters but fell short for me.

Copy provided by the Publisher and NetGalley

The author presents a very well done story of the results of a split personality. That is the inhabiting of one body by two or more separate identities that may not be aware of the existence of the others. The setting for the novel includes the Antarctic island of South Georgia; among the most remote and lonely places on the earth. Felicity is a young woman living a complicated life which has just become more complex when she learns that her ex husband has just been released from prison where he was incarcerated for murder. She is under the belief that he is coming to kill her and lives in terror that he will find her and do just that.
Felicity works for an agency that administers details involved in working for an island located in Antarctica, and has been consulting with a psychiatrist due to the many fears that she confronts. Among these is the possibility that she has killed two people that were inhabitants of a homeless group living on the streets. By coincidence Joe, her psychiatrist does pro Bono work with homeless people trying to get them back into a normal routine. In spite of the many constraints involved in the doctor-patient relationship between Felicity and Joe each is beginning to develop feelings for the other. But a separation between the two comes up when Felicity, in order to escape her ex husband lands a position working on South Georgia for two years.
The second half of the novel involves her ex husband taking a cruise to Antarctica in order to find her. Felicity now working on South Georgia, keeps her eyes on cruise ship passenger manifests and when she spots her ex husband's name on one docking shortly runs away from her South Georgia base towards an outlying camp about 60 miles out from it. Ms Bolton has obviously done a great deal of research on Glaciers and Glacial movements in setting up one of the most exciting final sequences for this book that one will find. The ending is a surprise as indicated in the Publisher's description of the novel's events, but it is logical coupled with the remainder of the book. And yes, it is certainly an exciting all nighter and another reason to continue to search for Sharon Bolton's books.

This is my second Sharon Bolton and I will definitely be reading more of hers. I kind of figured out the twist about half way into it but that didn't stop it from being an awesome, what-comes-next read. I don't want to say much to give anything away but if you like a good thriller with a bit of police procedural and crazyness you will enjoy this one!

Click! Click! Click! This is the sound of my fingers downloading or ordering this fantastic author’s previous books and this “BANG! BANG! BANG!” sound is coming from my head’s contact with the wall. Yes, I’m literally hitting my heavy head for waiting too long to devour those mind bending thrillers!

Split is my dreamy combination consists of an action-packed dark Nordic thriller-ish start, psychological, brain cell frying ( I plan to donate my brain after finishing this book because I decided it is useless! I was fooled by author’s compelling smart moves and cunning, deceiving twists. They made me numb and question of my brain’s functioning capacity!) a stunning serial killer story who is chasing the homeless people, domestic abuse and heart throbbing, more twisty, surprising, WTF I just read final.

This book is breathtaking, full of surprises, twisty as hell, captivating, addictive, exciting, heart throbbing! BIG OVATION coming for it! (I already created a special tribune and new admirers for the book: read it aloud at the house in front of my besties, husband, mother in law who already drank my two bottles of Chablis and not so lovely neighbors!)

Let’s make a small talk about its plot: Our story starts at Antarctic Island of South Georgina (I already start to hear whooshing sound of the wind and turned myself into human burrito by wrapping up with blanket, depictions at the book are so realistic!) Glaciologist Felicity Lloyd is shaking in terror, planning to escape before the last boat of the summer arrives which carries her ex-husband Freddie, convicted felony follows her like a shadow. But there is a crazy woman with a knife called herself Bamber also follows Felicity to protect her and as soon as Freddie finds Felicity’s hiding place, something happens… ( Nope, I’m not gonna tell it! Read the book to find out!)

Then we go back to Cambridge, England, nine months ago and meet with Joe, who is treating Felicity for her short term amnesia and his unconventional, vivid police officer mother Delilah who is investigating the murders of homeless people. There is a person of interest out there named Shane watching sleeping people outside, intruding Joe and Felicity’s houses at night without being caught. This guy is like a ghost but is he for real? Or who is? Why Felicity finds herself at different places and she never knows how she got there? What is she hiding? What happened to Felicity when she was young? Why does not she remember that she was married with Freddie who had abused her for years?

I know your mind is about to blow with those heavy questions! But don’t worry! All of them will be answered! But shocking revelations will make your mouth wide open in awe, surprise! I personally couldn’t close mine and swallowed several mosquitos (I thought reading this book when I was having picnic at the park might have been a good idea but as you may see it wasn’t!!!) and my mother-in-law slapped me several times to bring me back! (I’m still questioning her intentions because she also pulled my hair!)

Overall: This is one of the best, smartest, most mind spinning, addictive, dazzling, unputdownable page-turner I’ve read lately! Giving my five gazillions stars and I’m telling you: READ. THIS.BOOK.ASAP!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sharing this incredible book’s ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review. I congratulate Sharon J. Bolton for creating something so unique, extraordinary and stunning.

I wish to thank NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this riveting, engaging advance digital copy of The Split. Whenever there is a new psychological mystery by Sharon Bolton I neglect housework, activities, and it goes immediately to the list of next books to read. Her stand-alone novels, such as this one, have very different plots and moods. I knew I was in for an enjoyable and unique mystery with plenty of thrills. It provided me with an emotional impact.

I will mention some of the highlights of the story without revealing any of the twists and surprises.

Part 1: Takes place on the remote South Georgia Islands located between the Falklands and Antarctica. This isolated isle has no permanent residents. There are approximately 16 scientists at the research station over the winter months. In summer tourists come by ship as it is known for its rugged beauty, spectacular scenery, mountains, frigid weather and churning seas, glaciers, fjords, and the chance to see thousands of King Penguins and elephant seals. The setting is vividly described. The nearest police are in the Falkland Islands 1,390 km away.

Glaciologist, Dr. Felicity Lloyd is among the scientists on the island on a two-year assignment. Unknown to her fellow workers, she has come to hide from her ex-husband, Freddie, just released from prison for murder. She is in a heightened state of panic, with the deathly fear that he might be coming to harm her. The last tourist ship of the summer is approaching, and she sees his name on its manifest list. She has no memory of their marriage, but recently found clues that make her aware that she had been wed to a very dangerous man. Felicity seems to be emotionally unstable and paranoid. She hides away from her work station at a place where there is an old deserted whaling station. Also roaming around this area is Bamber, a ferocious protector of Felicity. She has a gun.

Parts 2 and 3: 9 months earlier in Cambridge
Felicity works at the University. She is having periods of fugue, becoming conscious in a new place. Hours of her life are completely forgotten, and with no awareness of what she was doing during the missing time. Strange, inexplicable things are happening. Articles are rearranged in her home, angry entries are found in a journal which she can’t remember writing, someone seems to be stalking her and entering her home. She fears it may be her ex-husband lurking about and that she is in danger. She requires a medical certificate of good health in order to be accepted for the position in South Georgia. She becomes a patient of a therapist, Dr. Joe Grant.

Dr. Grant has troubles of his own. He has been blamed for getting too close to a couple of homeless female patients. He is recovering from a stab wound inflicted by homeless Ezzy, who is always on a skateboard. The young woman developed a crush, resented him for ignoring her romantic overtures, and stabbed him out of jealousy. Another young homeless woman was murdered, and an old street woman missing, both known to Joe. Dr. Joe’s mother is a policewoman who warns him about the danger of appearing too friendly with female patients. The main suspect, Sean, is a man who stares at homeless people while they sleep in the street. They fear him and find him creepy. The police cannot locate him.

Felicity, in therapy, seems to be recovering flashes of some early memories, but are they accurate? Dr. Joe Grant appears to be warily developing more than professional feelings for her against his mother’s advice. He feels she needs much more psychotherapy but learns she has left Cambridge much earlier than planned.

Part 4: South Georgia Island
Freddie has arrived on the last tourist ship. Felicity is on the run on an island with little room to hide. Dr. Pat has come to protect and save her and with him his mother who intends to arrest her for suspected involvement in the crimes of the missing and murdered street people. The buildup to the action-packed, thrilling conclusion is intense and compelling. Even if one has guessed some of the major, startling twists when they are revealed they pack an emotional wallop. Recommended!!

What a chilling, original, twisted read! Bolton really made sure to weave a tangled web, for an abused wife to try to escape, especially being stuck on an island with her abuser! I loved the setting, characters, and the way it grabbed my attention and kept it firmly where it wanted until it was done! Thought it was chilling, shocking, and most definitely thrilling! Warning, it may be triggering to some! I highly recommend!
Will make sure to buzz it up on all the different platforms!

I will start by saying Sharon Bolton tops my list of favorite authors, the way she plots mysteries is second to none so it's very hard for me to say that I was disappointed with this one. The writing itself was great but I've NEVER had one of her mysteries figured out...until now. The short of it is Felicity Lloyd, a geologist specializing in glaciers has literally gone to the ends of the earth to escape someone - the setting begins in South Georgia, an isolated island off Antarctica -and she seems to have succeeded or has she? The suspense is high and the stage is set with so many questions for the reader. The story then shifts back to NYC and the year leading up to the present where we get to know Felicity and what seems to go very wrong in her life. I liked her as a character but little by little Bolton laid the breadcrumbs for the story and I had a very strong suspicion I knew exactly how it would play out. With Bolton's plotting ability I've always been wrong but not this time. I found the outcome to be gimmicky and rather predictable which pains me to say. If you've read a lot of mysteries and thrillers you might also figure this out or if you have a background in psychology (I do). On the plus side, I was happy to see Bolton's pace-setting short chapters were present and although this was a miss for me, I'll be eagerly awaiting her next book!

I have a long list of books to read, carefully stacked in proper order. Then I get a book by Sharon Bolton. And all my plans go out the window, along with the list. Every single time.

But here comes the hard part….writing a review. If you’ve read her stuff before, you know you rarely end up where you thought you would & I’ve learned to go in with a healthy dose of paranoia. Her plots are like those puzzles with 1000 tiles…you never know which piece might change the whole picture. In fact, my tip for all her books is to go in knowing as little as possible & just enjoy the ride. So what do I share here without giving the game away? If I follow my own advice it would go something like this.


Part 1: we meet the MC in a unique setting & by 10% in, I’m on high alert.

Part 2: Change of place as we go back 9 months to get some history & meet more characters. Stuff is happening and….wait. What?!

Part 3: Ah, some pieces are starting to click into place. I got this. It’s the guy with the thing, I knew it. Oh no. No, no, no.

Part 4: Ho…lee…crap. Sorry, what I meant to say was more stuff happens, my teeth are chattering and…seriously? Followed by big finale.


Too much detail? Ok, maybe I can expand a bit without spoiling any potential WTF moments.

The story begins in South Georgia, a small island between the Falklands & Antarctica. Felicity Lloyd is a glaciologist & part of a small research team working for the British Antarctic Survey. Their isolation is broken periodically by the arrival of cruise ships during the short tourist season. And Felicity can’t wait for it to be over. Just one more ship & she’ll be safe for another year.

We quickly realize two things about her. This is a woman who’s literally gone to the end of the earth to disappear. And she’s absolutely terrified of who may step off that ship. That would be Freddie Lloyd, her husband. Unfortunately, we already know where he’s been & where he is now. When Felicity sees his name on the ship manifest, her worst fear is realized. But she prepared for this day long ago & it’s time to put her plan into action.

The story is divided into 4 sections & this first one is relatively short. But boy, does it set the tone. The remote setting, frigid weather & Felicity’s fear….all of these are so well described you can feel them in your bones. The tension is palpable & the author has served notice you’re in for an unsettling ride.

Parts 2 & 3 are set in Cambridge, beginning 9 months prior to present day. Here we get some background on Felicity’s life & the people who crossed her path before she fled. As part of the medical requirements for the position in South Georgia, she has to get signed off by a therapist as fit for the job. And so she meets Dr. Joe Grant. Joe is a mild mannered, likeable guy with some interesting history of his own.

More characters & plot lines are added in these sections. A mysterious rollergirl, a troubled homeless man, Joe’s mother Delilah & several others weave their stories into the mix. Connections between them are slowly doled out as we continue to learn more about Felicity’s past.

That’s it, folks. I’m determined to keep this spoiler-free. The stage is set for our return to South Georgia in part 4 & by the time we get there, I guarantee you’ll have more questions than answers. There are tantalizing glimpses of where the story is going. But contradictory & unreliable versions of events make you feel like you’re standing in quicksand. Nothing is predictable & you’re never sure who you can trust or believe. It’s a psychological mind bender of a read that saves some of the best twists for last. Sure, you could argue that a couple of elements seem a bit convenient but its strength lies in the author’s ability to create scenes so atmospheric that you feel you’re walking in a character’s shoes.

If you’re in the mood for something comfy, cozy & relaxing, look elsewhere. But if you want to spend a few hours on the edge you’ve found your next read. Your reading tool kit for this book should include: whale music, a Medic-Alert button, thermal underwear & wine.