And So It Begins - Rachel Abbott

I have enjoyed reading Rachel Abbott since she launched her ebooks and this book was no exception although I will say that I did not feel that it gripped me as some of her previous books.

And So It Begins tells the story of sisters-in-law Cleo and Evie, the suspicion, loathing and jealousy that binds them together.

Their world is rocked by the murder of Evie’s husband and Cleo’s brother Marcus.

As Evie confesses to the murder claiming self-defence from an abusive relationship, Cleo takes custody of their daughter forming a deep-seated bond with the child whose mother she is trying to prove murdered her father in cold blood.

With animosity growing between the two women Rachel Abbott flips back in time to tell the story of how they met and their innermost feelings, meaning that you are unsure who to side with: is the domestic violence a lie or was it the reality?

Things then start to get confusing, and this is where the book lost my attention a little as we were taken further back in time to when Evie’s brother died in an accident on the sea walls, which is apparently her reason for getting close to Cleo and Marcus in the first place as she blames Cleo for his death.

To me this was all a bit too contrived and added nothing to the story, diluting the painful aspects that had been brought to the domestic violence.

Within this story we also are reintroduced to Sergeant Stephanie King and Angus Brodie, however I felt that these characters were sidelined and I was unable to form any real connection with them as I had done with her previous detective.

A good book which can get somewhat convoluted at times, not quite as good as previous offerings from Rachel Abbott.