Killing The Girl

Killing the Girl by Elizabeth Hill is a cautionary tale about lies: how pervasive they can be and how much damage they can do. Carol is sixteen years old and pregnant when she kills Frankie. She calls her neighbor, Perry, to come and help her and he does. They bury Frankie under a tree, build a bench by the grave and live their lives. Carol is not able to live. She gives birth to her baby, Francine, in a stupor born of exhaustion she wakes up one night, believes her daughter dead, carries it outside and goes back in to be engulfed in flames started by a candle left in her bedroom. When Perry comes again, to rescue her, she is not able to tell him that the baby's body is outside and he is badly burnt trying to find her. Francine was alive, although very ill. Carol ends up giving the baby to the father's adoptive parents and spends some time in a mental hospital. Eventually she comes home and lives as a hermit for most of the rest of her life, riddled with the guilt of Frankie's death. There are so many more details that make this a devastating story. Spoilers abound.

Killing the Girl is a heartbreaking tale. Carol is a very complex character that loved with the whole heart of a sixteen-year-old girl, and because of lies is never able to mature. Perry, her neighbor, has loved her his whole life, but is never able to give himself over to love so it manifests itself in many unhealthy ways. Carol pushes away her family and the few friends she had, deepening her loneliness. It is frightening to see her 40 years later, after living with this burden all these years. She is pushed into mental illness and becomes drug ridden, not out of necessity, but to protect the lies of others. It is an intriguing tale, but one of a person so broken, that it brings on the deaths of people who might not have died, had they not lied. The truth nearly breaks Carol's heart, but frees her in a sense. Kind of a depressing book. Enter Carol's world carefully, it is dangerous there. Recommended with caution.

I received a free ARC of Killing the Girls from Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions and interpretations contained herein are solely my own. #netgalley #killingthegirl

With many thanks to Elizabeth Hill, BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the ARC of Killing The Girl.

This is a very entertaining story, thrilling, highly captivating. The character of Carol, the protagonist is superbly developed, this is writing of skill and craft. Set in England across two periods in Carol’s life, her coming of age years when she meets Frankie who treats her badly, then later when her land is to be compulsorily acquired.

I am sleep deprived from not being able to put it down. With an excellent ending, I highly recommend. I look forward to Elizabeth’s future writing.

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for the eARC.
Carol Cage has written a diary to explain why and what she did 40 years ago. Her home is to be demolished to make room for a new road and she's afraid her secret will be uncovered. The diary starts from the time she was 15 when she meets the love of her life, and life becomes a twisty, romantic and desperate muddle, culminating in her self-imposed exile to her inherited home.
I found her a difficult woman to empathize with, she has such a warped sense of reality and has turned from a feisty teen into a woman suffering from what I think is a mental breakdown, all in the name of love.
But despite this I loved the book, it was hard to put down and is definitely recommended!

This book is slow to start, but once it gets started, it is thoroughly gripping. In the beginning, there are lots and lots of descriptions which may seem overdone but after the halfway point in the story, this information becomes significant. The story that’s told is very emotional and mysterious because we learn throughout the story that Carol has a very twisted version of her own reality. She made plenty of bad decisions because of this and dealt with the fall out on her, leading her deeper into the center of her own delusional mind.

I loved this book! The author wrote a story where you think that you know what happened and then surprises you at the end! The secret eating away at Carol for over 40 years is finally going to come out when she has to leave her home and this book explores not only that, but the loss of innocence when a young girl falls in love with an older playboy. I enjoyed this one!

Killing The Girl by author Elizabeth Hill is a dark psychological thriller that does not disappoint! I love the way the events are explained to us greatly. I would recommend this book!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A tense psychological thriller full of deceit and murder. I couldn't put it down until the end.
Did Carol kill the love of her life, Frankie?
Set in England it goes through different time periods of Carol's life. 16 and pregnant and Frankie, a much older, worldly Playboy has secrets of his own.
She becomes a recluse and 40 years later the truth comes out. People are not as they seem. You won't regret picking up this thriller.

Thank you to publisher and NetGalley for the eARC

Enjoyed this slow-burning thriller. The first paragraph hooked me and it held my interest. Some books grab you with the first sentence and then drag, not here! I wanted to know more sooner, but Ms. Hill timed everything perfectly, doling out information at an ideal pace.

As a teenager, Carol dreamed of going to university. All that changes when she meets Frankie, a smooth talker who changes her life. Soon Carol is pregnant and Frankie abandons her. If only he had stayed away, she might have taken back control of her life, but alas, this is not a happily ever after story.
Carol uses her diary to show us what happened and the many lies and deceptions that have defined her come to light. Her world is about to explode, as her house is slated for demolition. When that happens, it is likely her secret will be revealed and she needs to be prepared.
I had such a hard time empathizing with Carol. Yes, first love can be brutal, but the decisions she made and the things she did had me shaking my head more than once. I never warmed up to this character, but somehow, I found myself getting pulled into the story. Suddenly, I wanted to know exactly what had happened and to me, this is a sign of an enjoyable read. Kudos to the author for writing characters I loathed and still creating a compelling tale.

Carol Cage is a recluse. Surrounded by money, her house, her things. There is no one in her life. Her brothers have lives of their own. He mother has remained. The man she loved lies dead under the pear tree. So many years she has stayed away from everything and everyone.
This is a psychological thriller. It has everything you would want in a great book. It has drama, strong characters, fantastic storyline and a phenomenal twist at the end.
Excellent!

This is Elizabeth Hill’s debut novel and it is outstanding. Pretty much a book in two halves: the depiction of our protagonist, Carol, as a teenager in the 1960/70s and then her life in 2016.

Written in the first-person in diary form, we learn that Carol at 16 is naïve and somewhat sheltered and pregnant. She marries Frankie and on one fateful day something horrendous happens and she turns to her neighbour, Perry for help.

In 2016 we find Carol living in the same home which is threatened by planning changes that will result in exposing the secret she has hidden for many years. Perry, very much in love with her, is there to help her.

This dark, psychological thriller is enthralling. Slowly events unfold and secrets are revealed and the reader is subjected to an examination of Carol, her choices in life, her mistakes and the sad realisation of a life not well-lived.

Throughout the book the landscape is lauded, oftentimes dark and brooding. It is beautifully written, thoughtful and measured. It slowly sucks the reader into Carol’s captivity and the inevitability of exposure of secrets real and manufactured.

I am sorry Ms Hill, my review goes nowhere near giving enough credit for a beautiful book: it is thoroughly absorbing.

Thank you to the author, publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

This is a truly amazing book that I don't know if I can describe it enough to give it the justice it deserves.
The writing is hauntingly beautiful and I felt like I was there in the mansion alone feeling all the emotions that Carol was feeling. It was all so dark and emotional but it was written so beautifully that I could feel the pain, the lonliness, isolation, the let down and disappointment of everyone in her life. I honestly wanted to cry.
This was a chilling read that I give 5 stars!
Thank you to netgalley, the author and the publisher for my ARC in exhange for my honest review.
Well done Elizabeth Hill!

Carol Cage just received an order to vacate her house, and she realizes that as they are digging up her property for a new road, they will discover her long buried secret....

Told from Carols perspective in the present as well as the past, this book tells the tale of a woman with a very difficult past and who is a very bad judge of character.

The book kept me guessing to the very end. Just when I thought it had come to its logical, though disturbing, conclusion, there was another twist to process. I really like the unique concept of this story and it was a quick and enjoyable read.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher to honestly review. Thank you. I will have to say that this book was an epic and challenging story. It encompasses most of the life of the protagonist. The entire book was spent with me constantly wondering why her Mother didn’t take better care of her but also how anyone could possibly be this naive? Her early days were spent “in love” with the wrong man. He was never brought to any type of reckoning either. How could his parents support him knowing how he behaved?
It was just one mess after another. The story was well written but it was really hard for me to get past the constant blame of others (absolutely anyone) for her own very poor decisions. I know that she had serious mental health issues but this was only covered by her hospital admittances with no real depth as to what her issues were.

Overall, the book was written in a good style but the story lacked some cohesion and context but is still worth reading.

This is Carol’s story.

She’s a talented, intelligent high school student when she meets bad boy Frankie several years older. Her university plans fall to the wayside as he becomes the love of her life.

Does he love her back? Well, he maybe likes her... as much as a narcissist cares for anyone.

He’s also buried in her backyard. We learn this in the first few pages of the book, so no spoilers here. We also learn that she and her childhood friend buried him forty years prior and he’s about to be discovered.

Whew, what an introductory prologue. So, what’s left?

The answer: Plenty!

There are many twists, discoveries, and secrets uncovered as Carol’s story unfolds while she journals the events of her life.

I was so entertained by this book. There was an unexpected soulfulness as many of us may be able to relate to an intense but doomed first love.

This was an engrossing fast read and I highly recommend it!

Thank you to Elizabeth Hill, the publisher, and Netgalley for my advance copy,

This book grabbed me from the get go. I liked the writing, the characters were believable and the story intriguing. I really enjoyed how the story went back and forth through time. If you are looking for a good book, ReAd This!!!! Thank you to #Netgalley,the publishers and the author. I look forward to reading more by this writer.

I literally could not put this down. So invested up in Carol's story, I was compelled to continue.

Hill suckers the reader in from the first page:
"Perry Cutler and I buried Frankie Dewberry in the orchard. He lies not far from the garden wall, under the shade of the apple trees. Over the last forty-odd years I’ve spent many hours sitting on the wooden bench we placed next to his grave. It’s a peaceful spot near the boundary wall running to the south-west of my estate. Sitting near him gives me great comfort. I tell Frankie how restricted my life has been since his death. I tell him how sorry I am that our daughter, Francine, died so young. Although I loved him, I never tell him I’m sorry he’s dead."

Of course we want to know why Frankie lies buried in an orchard for forty odd years - what drove the reclusive and slightly unhinged Carol to such drastic measures. As she mentions, she is not sorry he is dead but instead laments that her crime is about to be discovered:

"My house is to be demolished to make way for a ring road. They will find Frankie’s resting place when they cut into the soil protecting my lover, my darling man. Police will ask questions. Strangers, who know nothing about me or my pain, will look at me in disgust."

Hill takes us back to those early days, forty years ago, as we follow our teenage narrator Carol through the euphoria of an intoxicating first love to the final, toxic ending, before we are brought back into the present to ponder just what Carol's final fate will be.

As I mentioned, I was hooked from the very beginning - I sat and just read. Hill elicits a strange sort of sympathy for Carol whose obsessive naivety over her relationship with Frankie is merely the first ripple of many - ".. we all paid for the emotions Frankie stirred in us ..". But is Carol the reliable narrator that she appears to be? As the past is slowly dredged up and laid bare, Carol reflects: "I have taken the blame for other people's deceitfulness and secrets." Revenge is a dish best served cold and efficiently!

I really don't know how Hill will improve on this - it is one of those stories that is right up there with the likes of M. Night Shyamalan's "The Sixth Sense" or AJ Finn's "The Woman in the Window" or Paula Hawkins' "The Girl on the Train" or even "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn. I could almost image Hitchcock rubbing his hands with glee to be able to bring this to the big screen.

A must read for 2020!

Loved the storyline and the twist at the end was so unexpected, this book had me so drawn in from the start.

Good characters and the plot was fantastic. The two time frames do not complicate the story like some books can do.

What a heart-wrenching, twisted tale!!!! I could not put this one down!

This story takes place during the 1970's and the present, told by Carol, a recluse that's telling her life story. I won't give away any of the delicious nuggets, but Elizabeth Hill captures the essence of teenage love very well and ages Carol's voice appropriately.

I was captivated to watch Carol grow up and come to the realizations that she did. I feel that as adults we sometimes need to come to our own epiphany's as Carol did.

I can't wait to see what else Elizabeth Hill comes out with!

A special thank you to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and Elizabeth Hill for providing me with a reader copy.

Wow! I’m not for sure who the killer really is in this one! It’s that spine tingling and every which way....I gave it 4 stars because there were some conduct I didn’t care for and some language, not continuously all the way through though. For interest and thrilling mystery it was a 5. I also didn’t give 5 stars, because the girl, Carol, irritated me terribly at times. She let Frankie by with so much and she kept believing everything he said and still wanted him around even though she KNEW all the things he had done. Nope, that’s not for me. It was a rough book to read, but you just keep reading it, because you just gotta know what’s happening next. This one was really good! ...Thank you to #NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read #KillingTheGirl and review, with my honest opinion. My views are my own.

This story captivated me at the beginning. It was fast paced and full of secrets. Intriguing!
Many thanks to BooksGoSocial and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

this was a really good murder-mystery, the characters were great and I was on the edge of my seat from beginning to end.

Killing The Girl by Elizabeth Hill is a dark and very twisty, psychological thriller. It begins in a very unassuming way, but believe me keep on reading! What you think is slow or simple is a mirage and before you know it there is no putting this book down!
We are introduced to Carol Cage and a chain of events begin that will prove to unveil a truth that Carol has been hiding from for decades. She makes the decision to write down her confession because even she is insure of the truth and the parts played. As the story unfolds we discover that Carol has made so many terrible decisions due to her own twisted outlook and had to deal with the repercussions alone, causing her to just fall deeper into her own warped mind.
A story that is shrouded in mystery and murder as well as a girl that has lived a life which has taken her to very bad places. An emotional and deep book that was written so well I was with Carole and the emotions it brought up! Well I went through them all at one point. I definitely recommend this book if you enjoy a good psychological thriller that is on the dark side.
Thanks to Random Things Tours and Elizabeth Hill for the digital copy of the book and my place on the blog tour.

This was an unusual book with an unusual story that kept me captivated. I can't believe the emotions that went on in this girl's life. I loved the story and the character's. I love how this author writes too!

Killing the Girl is a creepy and uncanny debut by the wonderfully talented writer, Elizabeth Hill. Written in first-person, I was immediately sucked into the eerie world of the protagonist, Carol Cage, as the events of her past began to close in on her. But true to its genre, nothing is as it first seems in this claustrophobic psychological thriller, where the author’s choice of surname for her main character acts as a subtle motif, hinting at the overall sense of caginess and entrapment.

The author’s depiction of Carol growing up as a teenager in the 1970s was absolutely spot on; it was like being transported back in time through a time-machine! The young Carol was vibrant and feisty, rejecting social expectations that 1970s Britain placed on women; but the young Carol is also naïve and trusting and has been sheltered from the horrors of the real world – including things that have gone on in her own family. As Carol negotiates life as a young woman in love, she is left to discover and experience the shocking truth for herself. But just when Carol thinks things cannot get any worse, she is proved wrong as her recollection of what happened on that fateful day is put to the test when even more horrific details are discovered. And as more and more is revealed, we see the protagonist become more and more unstable and paranoid before the Girl inside is put to rest.

I absolutely loved this original storyline. As much as I love psychological thrillers, a lot of them can be very samey but Killing the Girl is unique in terms of both plot and narrative style. The narrative is rich in indirect thought and Hill’s voice is convincing to the point that at times, the story felt like a memoir. The combination of the strong literary element, emphasising the protagonist’s inner journey, alongside the striking and twisty plot that deals with uncomfortable issues, reminded me of Arundhati Roy’s 1997 Booker Prize winner The God of Small Things. Killing the Girl is definitely a winner for me and I can’t wait to read more from the wonderfully talented Elizabeth Hill.

There's just something about UK authors when it comes to spooky, Gothic-style suspense. Maybe it's the cold weather or their understated, you-have-to-read-between-the-lines use of the English language. I don't know what it is, but keep it coming, please!

This is one of those books that I enjoyed, but it really "snuck up on me" long after I'd put it down. You know the kind - the one you put in a pile for your fellow bookish friends so you can pass it along. But when it comes time to do so, you just can't let it go? Yep, that's right where this one's at!

Characters with mysterious pasts, love gained and lost, a sassy senior citizen named Carol, spooky woods - this one has it all! Rating it at a 4 because, for me, the story did bog down in a few places, and a few plot points I was able to predict in advance. But, overall, this is that kind of spooky suspense I love!

I really enjoyed this book. Character development was good. The plot was very interesting. Not a lot of typos.

A tense psychological thriller full of deceit and murder. I couldn't put it down until the end.
Did Carol kill the love of her life, Frankie?
Set in England it goes through different time periods of Carol's life. 16 and pregnant and Frankie, a much older, worldly Playboy has secrets of his own.
Interesting read.

. Another Psychological thriller that I loved. Edge of your seat can’t put it down book. Twisted, scary and sad. Just the kind of book that I like. I finished it in two days. This is one of the best books I’ve read this year. Edge of your seat stay up all night to finish book. I highly recommend this to anyone like me who loves the genre. The more frightening the better for me. Be careful of oddballs with money. Great read
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an hhonest