The Ghostwriter

Author: Alessandra Torre
Genre: Suspense
Type: e-book
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: DCA
First Published: October 2, 2017
First Line: "A gentle pull on my hand."

Book Description from GoodReads: Four years ago, I lied. I stood in front of the police, my friends and family, and made up a story, my best one yet. And all of them believed me. 

I wasn't surprised. Telling stories is what made me famous. Fifteen bestsellers. Millions of fans. Fame and fortune.

Now, I have one last story to write. It'll be my best one yet, with a jaw-dropping twist that will leave them stunned and gasping for breath.

They say that sticks and stones will break your bones, but this story? It will be the one that kills me.

This book is not a romance. It is contemporary fiction, but very suspenseful in nature. It is about a famous romance author and a dark secret she keeps. 

My Rating: 3 stars

My Review: The Ghostwriter has an enticing blurb. It's chilling and taunting so I expected a sinister, suspense read set within a contemporary story. And it kind of was, but it kind of wasn't.

Most of the focus was on the relationship between two writers and their struggle to work together. Their banter and issues were nothing out of the ordinary but sprinkled throughout were Helena's chilling utterances like "I killed my husband and now I want to come clean". Those teasers were great and kept me reading (and I was impressed with one early twist) but it isn't until more than three-quarters of the way through the book that the tension finally gets going. Until then there's a lot of them writing, re-writing, arguing and a cow. Yes, a cow.

The story centres around Helena who is a complicated character. And man, was she ever a hard gal to like. She's prickly, rude and loves things done her way but, for a woman in her early 30's, her dialogue felt like she was much older -- more like an old curmudgeon. But she's also a complicated character who goes through a metamorphosis and if readers are patient, Helena will share snapshots of her earlier life to give reasons why she is the way she is.

I liked this book - it had a good premise and creepy one-liners but it needed a better building of suspense throughout, a stronger contemporary story and a better blend of the two genres. It was more focused on the writers' relationship with most of the suspense ramping up right at the end yet leaving readers with an ending that some readers will be able to predict. 

This story is about a woman who has lost everything and wants to finally confront her demons and come clean. While it's focus was different than I had expected, it had its moments - both suspenseful and touching.

Disclaimer: This Advanced Reading Copy was generously provided by the publisher, DCA, in exchange for my honest review.