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With a smart and detailed plot, No One Saw a Thing is another nail-biter, a heart-stopping page-turner that will entertain any reader of this genre. I was hooked within the first few pages; the stakes are sky-high, and the intensity and pace never let up. Another enthralling psychological thriller from Andrea which will have you nervously yet compulsively turning the pages simultaneously wondering…if only.
It has a nice cast of clearly-drawn characters (albeit a lil one dimensional) but seems to be missing the necessary police presence (similar to No One Saw a Thing). Sive and her husband, high flying criminal barrister Aaron Sullivan, were in London for a reunion with Aaron’s former flat mates of 20 years ago, but now their whole world has come tumbling down. Thankfully Kate from Penguin sent me an advanced copy of No One Saw A Thing a few weeks back so I got to devour it within a day. I’d also definitely recommend this novel as an addictive summer read for mystery thriller readers of all ages.
One of the things I love about Andrea's stories is that there's an authenticity and realness about the scenarios her characters find themselves in (this one in particular was based on a real life event that happened to her and her sister when they were children). On Monday morning, Sive is getting on the Tube with her three children when the Tube doors close leaving her stranded on the platform and her daughters on the Tube. Jenny is feeling guilty as it is her nanny who is to blame and the local gossip mongers are vicious in their assessment that Jenny didn’t do her due diligence in choosing this nanny even though she did.
What I loved so much about this book was the complexity of the story, you are pushed and pulled in multiple different directions and the number of red herrings and false starts will leave equally frustrated and enthralled - just when you think you have it sussed, you don't!The best books have the most basic plot, but well seasoned character development, added with a small amount of twists does the trick.
Andrea Mara’s inspiration for this latest novel came from an incident during her own childhood when she and her younger sister became separated from her parents on a family visit to London. What follows is the nerve racking attempt to find the eldest girl, interspersed with background details from past events featuring younger versions of the adults.
A few of the details of the twists at the end were a little too implaus I only had a few niggles: the police presence is virtually nonexistent, I didn't really understand why Sive trusted Jude so openly and gave her such access into her life, and the ending was way too "catching up with a friend over coffee" style for my liking. Last year I read Andrea Mara’s book Hide and Seek and it was one of my favourite reads of the year, No One Saw A Thing is now one of my top books of this year!
Her daughters are on the tube without her, and while 2 year old Bea was quickly discovered at the next station, Faye has disappeared!
These seemingly opposite perspectives play off each other well to create a fast-paced, easy-to-read story. The police, her husband Aaron, the questions, the frantic awful panic overwhelms her and all Bea says is ‘Chase’, ‘Chase on the train’. Marissa in particular was an enigma, I felt there were two sides to her personality which clashed with the persona the author was trying to imply about her. As situations escalate, lies are revealed, there are some terrific twists and your eyes pop and gasps are inhaled as it hurtles to a very good ending and yes, Ms Mara ain’t finished until the final words! While I’m always eager to read one of Andrea’s books, there’s always a little bit of me that’s nervous in case it’s not as good as the last one.
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