Jessica Barry – Steph's Book Blog

About The Book

After a passenger plane crashes in the mountains, everyone believes Allison Carpenter is dead.

Except for her estranged mother, Maggie.

As she learns more about the accident, Maggie becomes convinced that her daughter is still alive.

She will stop at nothing to save her daughter’s life – even if it means sacrificing her own.

My Review

I always enjoy reading a dual narrative novel, one of the reasons why is getting to know the characters and trying to decide which of the two I prefer. In this novel it was easy, Maggie was my favourite from the start.

Maggie and her daughter Allison are estranged at the start of the novel, they had no contact for a few years. But Maggie was convinced that Alison had survived the plane crash and starts to look at what happened to her daughter since she had last seen her. The daughter she barely recognised.

She was still grieving her husband’s death a few years earlier, the circumstances of which coincided with Allison distancing herself from Maggie. I really struggled with Alison’s attitude towards Maggie with regards to that time but my feelings changed slightly when I realised that Allison had felt guilty and made some bad decisions since.

I adored everything about Maggie, her honesty over her husband’s death, her refusal to accept Allison’s death and her attempts to try and maintain some normality in her routines. Her acceptance after an initial reluctance of the young police officer was a sign of how strong she was.

Both fighting in their own way, Allison against her injuries, the weather and the fear of still being in danger because of what she knows. Maggie, knowing that something is being kept from her, but not knowing that her refusal to stay silent was placing herself at risk.

I thought this novel would be about a fight for survival and an investigation in what happened cause the crash but found it was more about a bond between mother and daughter.

About The Book

Two strangers, Cait and Rebecca, are driving across America.

Cait’s job is to transport women to safety. Out of respect, she never asks any questions. Like most of the women, Rebecca is trying to escape something.

But what if Rebecca’s secrets put them both in danger? There’s a reason Cait chooses to keep on the road, helping strangers. She has a past of her own, and knows what it’s like to be followed.

And there is someone right behind them, watching their every move…

My Review

With thanks to the publisher for the copy received. Don’t Turn Around is an extremely fast paced novel that was also very quick to read. Many people could easily read it in one sitting.

It has two main narrators, Cait and Rebecca but there are also occasional chapters from others who feature, none of whom were particularly likeable. It wasn’t easy to work out who was responsible for the danger that faced the two women on their journey across the border. I liked both of them and appreciated the way they gained each other’s trust.

There were many reasons why this novel worked for me. The uncertainty who was responsible, the reasons why they might be and what their true feelings were. How these men were known to the women but neither of them had any idea what they really thought. The storyline itself. Original and heartbreaking and impossible to judge. And also, the start of a friendship and feeling of being able to trust for both women. Something lacking in both of their lives.

Jessica Barry is the pseudonym for a well known American author, I have never read any other books under either name. I will definitely be so soon.