TA Cotterell

A book with a title of 'What Alice Knew' is just begging to be read and I for one was desperate to find out exactly what it was that Alice knew. On finishing the book, I'm not really sure if we ever found out the depth of what Alice knew. For me, I felt as if I had more questions than answers at the end (and that's not always a bad thing) but on the whole I did enjoy the book and I think that it is an excellent debut by T.A. Cotterell.

Alice is a talented and much in demand portrait painter. She has a wonderful, reliable husband until he goes missing one night. As Alice retraces Ed's movements following a party that he went to, she realises that Ed has made some uncharacteristic decisions. Not only does Ed not usually drink alcohol but he seems to have gone back to a strange woman's place. When this same woman ends up dead, I wondered if Alice really knew her husband at all.

Alice is an unusual but very complex character; she has events in her past that she is ashamed of and as an artist she sees beyond the mask that many people wear to the real person underneath. Which is why I think she was so calm when her husband first went missing. Many people would be combing the streets and ringing hospitals but not Alice, she walks into the village for a cuppa when Ed finally calls her. When Ed gradually opens up about what happened, again Alice seems quite in control. Perhaps nothing can shock her as she can see Ed for who he really is. Who is he? An adulterer and a murderer?

What Alice Knew is an extraordinary page turner as you find out what Alice knew quite early on but the pages keep on turning as she attempts to deal with the repercussions. It's a marriage under the magnifying glass as Alice paints over the cracks but the cracks keep appearing and Alice is running out of paint. My brain was tied in knots as there were so many versions of Ed's story that I wasn't sure which one to believe. What I am pretty sure of is that Alice knew a lot more than she's letting on.

This really is a great debut and I'm sure that we will be hearing a lot more about T.A. Cotterell. I wasn't surprised to learn that T.A. Cotterell read History of Art at Cambridge as his love of art shines out from every page. I will certainly be keeping an eye out for his next book.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.… (mehr)

The opening line of this book is brilliant. It wasn't until the end that I realised it's significance to the novel as a whole. It is a perfect and clever summarisation.

What Alice Knew is a thriller of unusual proportions. Stepping away from the 'who done it' chase, it instead looks at the grimy aftermath and the damaging and lasting effects on a couple when one has committed a crime.

Thrust into the world of Alice and Ed, one a creative portrait artist with an almost compulsive obsession with searching for the truth in people and pulling out the 'honesty' in them through the art she produces, the latter a highly regarded and decorated obstetrician, who finds himself thoroughly adored by colleagues, friends and family alike we soon find their, almost too perfect life, smashed to pieces by a series of unfortunate events resulting in an untimely death.

We see events through the eyes of Alice. We are taken on a journey with her through the series of emotions she feels on initial discovery of the incident, her take on events, her feelings about her husband and family, her decisions on what to do with the information she has, the knowledge she has about the type of person her husband is. But, Alice soon realises, perhaps she doesn't know what she thinks she does and really it becomes a case of what Alice doesn't know rather than what she does.

I have to say, I did not like the character of Ed and suspect he had a touch of the God-complex, a side effect of his job and the constant adoration he received because of it. His initial remorse too quickly dissipates to almost arrogance - as he is constantly told by Alice -and believes himself, what he adds to life and the community, his impeccable character, his life-saving skills as an obstetrician, his wonderful relationship with their children, are worth more than admitting to something that although he maintains was an accident, would land him in a lot of trouble. However, as Alice discovers little things that don't add up she finds herself questioning everything she thought she knew about her husband and I wanted to urge her on to keep digging, and of course her natural instinct as a portrait artist (see that first line of the book!) means she does, leaving the couple testing the strength of their marriage and relationship to the max.

Cotterell has used his extensive knowledge of art history and theory a lot throughout this book. It works in seamlessly well and supports the plot entirely. The author has written a complex, emotional story from quite a unique perspective and the ending is in complete unison with this. I thought it was a brilliant and wholly fitting conclusion for Alice, perfect for her character and not as straight-forward as may first seem, just like everything else this novel.

As debut's go, T. A. Cotterell has nailed it with 'What Alice Knew', it is a gripping and meaty book that is a must read for anyone that loves a domestic psychological thriller.… (mehr)