BOOKS-ON-TOUR – The Lies We Hide by S.E. Lynes

Susie Lynes, what a beautiful book you’ve written! I know, I know … it seems like the strangest thing to say, considering the subject matter, but you’ve created such a moving story with incredibly real characters who really reach out and grab hold of the hearts of your readers.

Everything changes for Carol and her children, 16-year-old Graham and 10-year-old Nicola, the night she decides to finally escape from her cruel, abusive husband Ted. Although she wavers between returning to him and staying in the awful new place that is their new home, and the new reality she has brought her children to, Carol quickly realises that going back is not an option and that they must now look forward to the rest of their lives, without the fear of Ted returning home every night.

But although she does her best for her children, always putting them first, it’s impossible for life to continue peacefully. Graham is silent and surly, and Nicola retreats into her schoolwork, knowing that things are just not right in their home. Things gradually deteriorate, eventually spiralling out of control and through it all, Carol constantly questions and undermines herself and her decisions. so used to the constant cycle of being told that she’s just not good enough.

Told from different points of view, and moving between the past (1960’s and 1970’s) and present, this is a story that despite a predominant theme of domestic violence, is told gently and subtly through characters who have a strong determination to correct the wrongs of the past, whether these were their own, or inflicted by others. Ms Lynes has crafted personalities who are resilient, brave, loyal and at times even humorous. They are extremely endearing and readers will find themselves cheering them on and celebrating every victory they achieve.

This is a highly recommended 5-star read – in fact, I’d give it extra stars if I could. The sheer willingness of the characters to improve, learn and understand themselves better in order to take that knowledge out into their community and help others was something that really struck a chord with me, and I found this to be the overwhelmingly positive, uplifting message that I was left with.

Author Bio:

Amazon best selling author of ‘intelligent and haunting’ psychological thrillers VALENTINA, MOTHER, THE PACT, THE PROPOSAL and THE WOMEN, S.E. Lynes is a writer, tutor and mentor. Formerly a BBC producer, she has lived in France, Spain, Scotland, Italy, and now lives in Greater London with her husband, three kids and her dog, Lola. Her critically acclaimed debut, VALENTINA, was published by Blackbird Digital Books in July 2016. Her second novel, MOTHER was published by Bookouture in 2017, followed in 2018 by THE PACT and THE PROPOSAL. In August 2018, VALENTINA was published in a new edition by Bookouture and THE WOMEN was released in 2019. Her new novel, the dark and gripping family drama, THE LIES WE HIDE, is published Dec 4th 2019. Susie Lynes has also published two children’s books in Italy: Il Leopardo Lampo and La Coccodrilla Ingamba, both available at Amazon.it