Blind Side - Jennie Ensor

Can you ever truly know someone? And what if you suspect the unthinkable?

London, five months before 7/7. Georgie, a young woman wary of relationships after previous heartbreak, gives in and agrees to sleep with close friend Julian. She’s shocked when Julian reveals he’s loved her for a long time.

But Georgie can’t resist her attraction to Nikolai, a Russian former soldier she meets in a pub. While Julian struggles to deal with her rejection, Georgie realises how deeply war-time incidents in Chechnya have affected Nikolai. She begins to suspect that the Russian is hiding something terrible from her.

Then London is attacked...

Blind Side explores love and friendship, guilt and betrayal, secrets and obsession. An explosive, debate-provoking thriller that confronts urgent issues of our times and contemplates some of our deepest fears.

What did I think?

Blind Side is a superb debut novel from the pen of Jennie Ensor.  From the opening prologue to the very last page, I was completely immersed in Georgie's story as we are transported back to London, 2005 - set before, during and after the 7/7 bombings.

The book opens with a short prologue that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and I simply couldn't read fast enough to find out what had happened.  Jennie Ensor cleverly keeps us in suspense as we have a whole lot of story to get through before my curiosity could be satisfied.

We meet Georgie and her friend, Julian, on the opening page.  Julian has given Georgie a pair of earrings on Valentine's day, but apparently they're just friends.  At least that's what Georgie thinks.  As they listen to the dulcet tones of Norah Jones and drink a few bottles of wine, Julian tells Georgie that he wants more than friendship.  My head was screaming 'Danger!!' but the wine performed its magic trick and all their clothes fell off.  For Georgie it was just sex, for Julian it was a whole lot more.

Georgie realises that she has made a mistake by sleeping with Julian; one evening her troubled mind guides her into a bar where she is drawn like a moth to a flame to Nikolai, a dark and brooding, rugged Russian.  From the moment they first meet, it is clear that Nikolai is troubled; he was a soldier who fought in Chechnya and we can only imagine the horrors that must replay over and over in the minds of all servicemen and women.  Fate has brought Georgie and Nikolai together but Julian is determined to tear them apart.  As Julian becomes so 'crazy in love' we have no idea how far he will go to remove Nikolai from Georgie's life.  We've all heard of a woman scorned, but what happens when a man is scorned?  Read Blind Side to find out.

Blind Side is a wonderful exploration of trust in a new relationship, especially during the difficult and volatile period following the 7/7 bombings.  As we suddenly became suspicious of our friends and neighbours, we ask ourselves the question, 'How well do we really know people?'  Georgie wants to trust Nikolai but he's clearly hiding something and her friends and family won't stop pecking away at her and watering the seeds of suspicion.

There are so many subjects and issues to discuss in Blind Side, that I think it would be excellent for book groups.  For me, I think one of the major points for discussion is the plight of immigrants.  They live in such poverty and are so keen to work that employers do take advantage of them with low pay and poor conditions.  Blind Side really is a multi-faceted read; it's so much more than a love triangle.

Blind Side is an absolutely stunning debut from Jennie Ensor; so thought-provoking and profound that every reader will get something different out of reading it.  I'm so excited to read the psychological thriller than Jennie is working on next.  If it's half as good as Blind Side it will be a cracker!

I received this e-book from the publisher, Unbound, in exchange for an honest review and I am delighted to release my review as part of the Blind Side Blog Tour.

My rating:

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About the Author

Jennie is a Londoner descended from a long line of Irish folk. For much of her life she’s been a wandering soul, but these days she lives with her husband and their cuddle-loving, sofa-hogging terrier. As well as from reading and writing novels, she loves poetry. Her poems, published under another name, tend to inhabit the darker, sometimes surreal side of life.

While on an extended trip to Australia, Jennie studied journalism and worked as a freelance print journalist, covering topics from forced marriages to the fate of Aboriginal Australians living on land contaminated by the British nuclear tests.

When not chasing the dog, lazing in the garden with a book or dreaming about setting off on a long train journey with a Kindleful of books, Ms E can be found writing or doing Writing Related Stuff. WRS can include singing and playing the piano (vital for de-stress) and watching TV spy/crime/costume dramas (research). Once the excitement of Blind Side's launch has passed she will be hard at work getting her second novel ready for publication, a dark and unsettling psychological thriller.

To find out more, check out Ms E’s author website & blog: www.jennieensor.com.

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The Theseus Paradox - David Videcette

We accepted it was terrorism. But what if we were wrong? What if London's July bombings were the greatest criminal deception of our time?

7 July 2005: In the midst of Operation Theseus, the largest terrorist investigation that the UK has ever known, Detective Inspector Jake Flannagan begins to ask difficult questions that lead to the mysterious disappearance of his girlfriend and his sudden suspension from the Metropolitan Police. Who masterminded London's summer of terror? Why can't Flannagan make headway in the sprawling investigation? Are the bombers the perfect pretext to mask a different plot entirely? Is Jake's absent Security Service girlfriend really who she claims to be?

While hunting for the answers to the most complex terrorist case in British history, one man will uncover the greatest criminal deception of our time. Terror, extremism and fear of the unknown. Sometimes the answer is much closer to home.

The author: David Videcette is a former Scotland Yard investigator who has worked on a wealth of infamous cases, including the 7 July London bombings in 2005. He has twenty years of police and investigative experience as a British detective, specialising in counter terrorist operations and organised crime. He currently consults on security operations for high-net-worth individuals and is an expert media commentator on crime, terrorism, extremism and the London 7/7 and 21/7 attacks. 'I can't tell you the truth, but I can tell you a story...'

What did I think?

I had originally planned to read this book on the weekend of 14th and 15th November, but after the terrorist attacks in Paris on Friday 13th I felt a bit too emotional to pick up a book about the bombings on our home soil in 2005.  I was so eager to read The Theseus Paradox that I picked it up a few days later and could hardly bear to put it down.

DI Jake Flannagan is a great character - he's like a mixture of Harry Bosch and Jack Bauer as he pushes, and frequently oversteps, the boundaries.  He's full of insecurities and frequently turns to alcohol and women to drown his sorrows.  It's hardly surprising as his job puts him under such immense pressure and I think anyone who has ever criticised our police force should read this book.  We all know what happened on 7th July 2005 from the events relayed to us on the news, but this book really gives us a highly detailed insight into the police investigation and takes us back in time to 2005.  I was absolutely astounded that I had forgotten about events that were happening around that time.  I'll not refer to which events as it is a crucial part of the amazing twist in this story.

I absolutely loved the way that this book was written.  Each chapter commences with a time and date stamp along with a location, so you really feel like you are following the investigation as it progresses.  As Jake's personal life is explored and we are introduced to his girlfriend, Claire, I did feel like she was hiding something as she seemed very stand-offish.  Claire does have a big part to play in the story and I hope that some of her secrets are revealed in the next DI Jake Flannagan book.

This is an absolutely cracking debut novel - it's fast-paced, a definite page-turner and sometimes shocking (verified by my frequent 'catching of flies' as my mouth gaped open in shock/horror/surprise).  It's a story based on facts; how much is fact and how much is fiction is up to you to decide.

I received this e-book from the author, in exchange for an honest review.

My rating:

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