Two families destroyed by the disappearance of a daughter and the suicide of a son.
Seventeen years ago, the Webster family found themselves in a nightmare when Chris Webster’s protégé, Sam Chappel, disappeared after the school summer ball. Just two weeks later, Chris’s son Jez committed suicide at the family holiday home.
Now Chris Webster is dead, and vicious rumours are starting to circulate about his involvement in Sam’s disappearance.
Nat Morton, journalist with the local paper, has decided that Sam’s story is just what she needs to revive her ailing career. It just means ignoring any loyalty she may feel towards the Websters, who treated her as part of the family when she was growing up.
After the death of her father, Caro Webster is spending the summer at the ‘Beach Hut’, which has been left empty since the suicide of her brother there. She is distraught at the allegations against her beloved father - but far from laying the past to rest, she is discovering disturbing parts of a puzzle that she doesn’t want to piece together.
When Sam Chappell is finally found, the discovery changes everything they thought they knew. And someone is determined that the secrets of the past should stay buried.
WOW! I could not put this book down. I usually write notes as I'm reading but my notebook remained resolutely blank as I didn't want to tear my eyes away from the pages of this gripping book for a single second.
It's a lot darker than it looks from the cover and it is filled with secrets (my favourite type of book). There's the mystery of a missing teenage girl, the suicide of a teenage boy, the parentage of Caro's son and a whole web of secrets and lies to uncover. I'm going to keep my review brief so as not to inadvertently release any spoilers but suffice to say I was shocked, surprised and horrified. Bravo, Sarah Jones!
I loved the friendship dynamic between Caro and Nat; Caro is so self-centred and I really didn't like her at all whereas Nat is thoughtful and friendly but she's a journalist so she's always on the lookout for a big scoop. There's such a lot going on with the various threads of the storyline that I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.
Beautifully written and perfectly plotted, Family Traits is a compelling, intriguing and poignant psychological thriller. With a book of this calibre, Sarah Jones is an author to watch and I can't wait to see what she writes next. In the meantime, I'm adding her debut A False Reflection to my TBR. A very highly recommended read and an easy five stars.
I received a gifted paperback to read and review for the Love Books Tours virtual book tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
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