This is my 4th Liz Nugent and I was thrilled to receive an eARC from the publisher on @netgalley. As a mood reader, I hadn’t felt in the mood to read it in…

Strange Sally Diamond has received a lot of praise and I hadn’t heard or seen much from this author on bookstagram despite being familiar with her work myself.

Finally picked this one up and couldn’t barely put it down. I was so intrigued and invested. It was quite dark, as Nugent’s books typically are. I went into SSD blind and I’d recommend that.

Lots of trigger warnings for this one, please look them up if you have triggers.

4⭐️

Strange Sally Diamond was unlike anything I’ve read. It’s dark (check content warnings), surprising and intriguing. I loved Sally as a character and was fully invested in what was happening. I thought the writing was atmospheric and suspenseful.
The ending lost a little bit of steam for me. It began to feel a bit repetitive with the same info from both POVs and more telling than showing. That’s the only reason it didn’t get a full five stars from me.
Thank you Simon & Schuster Canada for the copy through NetGalley in exchange for a review.

5 stars!

2023 Favourites List! 🏆

Sally Diamond has a troubled past even she doesn’t fully understand. After Sally’s father dies, she is left alone to navigate through the world with her quirkiness and very few friends.

I loved Sally! She is one of my most favourite characters of 2023! She is quirky, unexpected, honest and unapologetic. This book reminded me of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine (which I loved!) but with a creepy mysteriousness to it.

There are letters scattered throughout the novel from Sally’s late father. These were a brilliant addition to the storyline to provide glimpses into Sally’s family life.

The narrative switches timelines and perspectives and each equally kept me engrossed and intrigued. I loved the way this story unfolded and kept me curious until the very end.

A favourite read of 2023 for me! Finishing off the year strong 🙌🏻

The author's writing style is both descriptive and suspenseful, effortlessly setting the stage and creating an atmosphere of intrigue. With vivid imagery, readers are transported into the peculiar world of Sally Diamond, where nothing is as it seems. The narrative particularly excels in slowly unraveling the layers of mystery, providing carefully crafted twists and turns that keep readers guessing until the very end.

Sally Diamond herself is a fascinating character. Her odd behavior, sharp wit, and underlying vulnerability make her an enigma to those around her, as well as to the readers. Uncovering the truth about Sally's identity becomes the driving force behind the story, as readers are led through a labyrinth of secrets and unexpected connections.

This book was not what I expected and I found that I really enjoyed it. While the description is accurate, it took a different turn. I would recommend reading trigger warnings/reviews before reading as some content could triggering for some readers.

I loved following Sally’s journey and the stories of those in her life and related to her. Part of the novel was told between past and present different POVs which I felt enhanced the feelings and storytelling. I felt like I couldn’t stop reading at some parts because I needed know what was going to happen next.

While I did enjoy a majority of the book, I’m not too sure how I felt about the open ended ending. I understand why it was that way. I’m sure more could have been written to help conclude the stories but I think it did work for this book. Unfortunately.

Overall I was surprised with the turn this book took after reading the description and I very much enjoyed it. Definitely an interesting read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the opportunity to read this book. All opinions are my own.

I had put off this book for a while, and I'm not sure why. Strange Sally Diamond was everything I could have wanted in a thriller. This book is dark (super dark), which I loved, and found the title of the book so fitting for what you're reading.

Sally has always been told what to do in life and lives by routine. After a (huge) misunderstanding Sally finds herself caught in the crossfire when she does as her father requests and throws him in the rubbish once he dies. Sally considers herself "strange", she leads people to believe that she can't speak because she chooses not to, and often misses social cues. After reading the plot I had my suspicions as writers often poke fun at the neurodivergent character, but I loved watching Sally grow throughout the book.

Just when you think it can't get weirder, it does. We learn that Sally was adopted by a husband and wife team of doctors, she also learns the tragic history of her life and why she may not remember her earlier years. We learn that Sally's birth mom was kidnapped and kept in a locked room for years where she eventually gave birth to Sally. Hearing the backstory was one of the most upsetting parts of the book, but it added another layer to the story and took it in a way that I couldn't imagine.

This story is told in multiple POV's and without spoiling too much of the book, Sally starts to receive gifts from her past life - pushing her into a further investigation of who kidnapped her mom long ago.
-
I would like to thank NetGalley, Sandycove, and Liz Nugent for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This book was published on July 13th, 2023.

Due to the content, I was unable to finish this book.

In greater detail I found that as I read the book, the content of the plot was a little too triggering, thus I was unable to finish reading the book. It was well written and Liz Nugent was able to make the story come to life (just a little too much for me).

Thank You to Liz Nugent and Simon & Schuster Canada, for the digital ARC provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

When I read the description and started this book, I believed it to be a story of a quirky, peculiar woman. What I got was so much more. It reminded me very much of my true crime reading days. I may even feel compelled to pick up one of the ones collecting dust on my shelves.
After the death of Sally’s father and the odd farewell that she gives him, secrets of her past begin to unravel. Sally knew she was different, but there was so much this woman - who could remember nothing before her seventh birthday - didn’t know about herself.
The story starts off from Sally’s point of view, but shortly begins cycling back and forth between hers and Peter’s. We get the point of view from two of Conor Geary’s victims.
This tale is not for the faint of heart as the reader experiences the growth of both characters. Sally goes from awkward and socially deficient to independent, but surrounded by friends. The growth she experiences is genuine and time consuming, taking over two years to form - friendships and therapy guide her through every sharp turn her story takes. The reader follows Peter from young boy to middle aged. He grows for naive and fearful to something more. You’ll have to read to find out more. This was a truly compelling read.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a digital arc of the book. The opinions expressed are honest and my own.

This book was so interesting. I loved the complexities of the main character. I couldn’t put it down!

I enjoyed this book, it was well written and intriguing. I normally can figure things out pretty fast in these kinds of stories but this one had me guessing the whole way though. It was a wonderful change from the usual stories out there.

This book was the strangest book that I have ever read, I really wanted to love it since I had heard such great things about it, but for me it really didn't WOW me and make me want to read it again and again, for me that's what a great book is one that you want to read over and over again.

Sally Diamond sure had her struggles growing up and leads a very complicated adult life, this book is the story her life takes on after her father dies and what she does with him and the people who come into her life after.

This book was not the greatest but for the strange factor alone, its worth reading once

*4.5 stars*

A chilling, dark, unforgettable story…

Have you ever read a story that pulled you in and wouldn’t let go? Sally’s story was wildly entertaining, surprising me at every step…

This novel followed Sally as she navigated life’s challenges with her own unique take on the little and mundane to the emotionally catastrophic. Told from different perspectives, the voices of the characters were open, honest, chilling and, surprisingly at times, even funny. From a wild opening to the last page, I was surprised over and over by the originality and honesty that poured out of the characters.

The storyline was a distance in time and travel as years spanned decades in both Ireland and New Zealand. It covered very real struggles – with mental health, with trauma and abuse and its aftermath. It was family at its most complex, covering the mundane conflicts to the life-altering choices that affected everyone…

Secrets, revelations, honesty and lies – it was all here in a story that was written deceptively quietly and simply yet packed such a punch! Highly recommend and can’t wait to catch up on all this author’s titles.

I enjoyed Strange Sally Diamond so much that I devoured it on two flights.
It was a surprisingly dark departure from the WWII historical fiction that I usually find myself reading and that in itself can be pretty disturbing. Sally is different from everyone else but as her story unravels we find out why Sally is the way she is.
I enjoyed Sally's character very much, she is loveable, very literal and does not pick up on many social cues that others wouldn't have to think about.
I saw definite comparisions to "Room" but Sally's story seemed to go much farther than anything one can imagine. This book is not for everyone as it contains physical/sexual abuse, emotional trauma, paedophila, the list goes on but if you can withstand reading through it I think it paints a very important picture of how traumatic events can change who we become and why we are the way we are.

Thanks to Net Galley and Simon and Schuster for the advanced copy.

Strange Sally Diamond is disturbing, shocking and sinister, but also funny at times because of a riveting and unique main character. I was pulled in right from the start. Highly recommended read.

What the actual F did I just read? This book was insane. It was so dark, so twisted, so uncomfortable and just so messed up. I was also totally convinced this was a real story and not fiction. Dark books like this are a really hard sell for me, but this one totally nailed it. I don’t know if I’d classify it as a thriller necessarily, but more of a dark family drama/fiction as it really focuses on the main character and her life trauma (which is dark AF).

Sally’s character was unmatched. I see a lot of comparisons to The Maid, but Strange Sally Diamond was so beyond that and so unbelievably well written I couldn’t stop reading to find out what happens, and again I couldn’t believe it wasn’t a true story it felt so real. The characters felt real.

This book might end up being a favourite of 2023 for me!

Sally was a really interesting character and watching her find herself in this town with all these people surrounding her was amazing.

The book was dark, sad and hopeful and oftentimes funny. I was beyond impressed. But this book deals with some very heavy topics and definitely be prepared when you go into it. My heart hurt for many people in the story and watching the trauma and how it affected everyone.

Like nothing I’ve ever read before & incredibly well written.
Such a strange world that left me with a dreadful sorrow but also a powerful resilience of human nature in the face trauma.
What leads one mind to darkness, leads another to healing.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This was a great book! I was on the edge of my seat and devoured it as fast as possible, the only thing stopping me was having to go to work Monday morning; I thought about it all day and could't wait to get home to finish it.

Sally Diamond did what she was taught, Sally Diamond does not know how to adapt and change, she struggles after the death of her father. She is thrown into the real workd and for the first time, she has to figure out how to make friends and socialize. Sally quickly learns that not everyone says what they mean and sometimes people are not who they say. I like the way the story was told and Sally's character was compelling and interesting. The book had some great twists that just kept me reading. Great book , definitely worth reading.

Absolutely loved this book and the characters in it. I would love to see this developed into a movie and I rarely think that, but this book really should be on the big screen. The element of mystery and suspense along with great characters make for an entertaining journey as we follow the life of Strange Sally Diamond.

4.5, rounded up - Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

When Sally Diamond's father dies, his instructions to "put him out with the trash" are taken a little too literally, changing the course of Sally's life. When secrets about her past are revealed to Sally and the public all at once, Sally with have to learn to lean on the people in her life to become independent and navigate this new mystery.

This book was A LOT darker than I expected it to be, but was, nonetheless, brilliant. Described by her father and herself as 'socially deficient,' Sally is a wonderful character to follow. Her perspective on the world is unique, logical almost to a fault, and her interactions with friends, neighbours, and family members are as emotional as they are humourous. I really enjoyed following Sally navigating the mundane parts of her new reality as much as the discovery of who her mother was and what they went through.

I wasn't expecting to enjoy the perspective of Peter as much as I did. Nugent has a way of making you truly feel for a character while knowing the whole time that something is seriously wrong.

I audibly gasped at part of the ending, and found myself smiling and heart-full at the other part. Will definitely be reading more from Nugent in the future.