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What She Knew

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What She Knew

By: Gilly Macmillan
Narrated by: Penelope Rawlins, Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
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About this listen

Previously published as Burnt Paper Sky.

Rachel Jenner turned her back for a moment. Now her eight-year-old son, Ben, is missing. But what really happened that fateful afternoon?

Caught between her personal tragedy and a public who have turned against her, there is nobody left who Rachel can trust.

But can the nation trust Rachel? The clock is ticking to find Ben alive. Whose side are you on?

©2015 Gilly Macmillan (P)2015 Hachette Audio Crime Fiction Suspense Thriller & Suspense Crime Fiction Mystery

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Critic reviews

"This accomplished, intelligent debut should come with a warning - it's completely addictive. A nail-biting, sleep-depriving, brilliant read." (Saskia Sarginson, author of The Twins)
"Every parent's nightmare, handled with intelligence and sensitivity, the novel is also deceptively clever. I found myself racing through to find out what happened." (Rosamund Lupton, author of Sister and Afterwards)
"Tightly focussed and fast-paced. You won't rest until you really know what happened." (Lisa Ballantyne, author of The Guilty One)
"Deft, tense and utterly gripping, Burnt Paper Sky stays with you long after the final page has been turned." (Tim Weaver)
"What an exciting debut! Burnt Paper Sky kept me up until the small hours, from the nightmarish moment when a mother first realises that her son has disappeared, to the dramatic denouement. Gilly Macmillan's voice is innovative and confident, and she creates a cast of very human characters. There's a page-turning urgency, combined with an insightful exploration of the emotional fall-out after the abduction of a small child. Meanwhile the media and internet community are shadowy figures whose pitiless speculation and harassment seem all too believable. Burnt Paper Sky is written with passion and insight. Bravo, Gilly Macmillan." (Charity Norman, author of After the Fall)
"What an amazing, gripping, beautifully written debut. Burnt Paper Sky kept me up late into the night (and scared the life out of me)." (Liane Moriarty, author of The Husband's Secret)
All stars
Most relevant
One could not help but think of people who had been through losing a child as illustrated in the book. Held my breath when he was found I so wanted him to be alive. Excellent story

Thought provoking

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I enjoyed this book although I found it difficult to read at times as it was quite thought provoking in parts. I carried on as I wanted to get closure for the characters. I'm glad I did as the end was a surprise. I would recommend this as a good suspense story.

a different read

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I'm afraid this didn't live up to expectation. There were so many side stories that the eventual revelation didn't really make sense. The characters weren't really believable, and there was nothing about them that made them distinguishable from the others. It's ok as a story but could have done with some more editing. The outcome did come as a surprise as I was pretty well confused about the other side plots. Good idea for a story but execution was a bit messy.

Confusing to follow but interesting enough

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What made the experience of listening to Burnt Paper Sky the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed listening to the different characters version of the story, a bit different to the usual crime novel .It also kept me guessing wrong all the way through brilliant .

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me think more about the awful things parents must go through when a child is missing a lot of thought went into this book I think

Any additional comments?

I would definetly recommend this book

Cracking story

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This is a brilliant book and I could not stop listening to the story. It is such clever writing that you change who you think is guilty chapter by chapter. Good plausible story, excellent narration. Well recommended

Best this year so far.

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