3.5. I’m not sure why I didn’t like this more than I did. A lawyer has the opportunity to right a wrong that happened to her decades earlier. A man in a high-level position is accused of rape. A woman who has everything discovers that she’s lacking what’s most important.

It has all the elements.

I think I would’ve liked a little more insight into James, what he was thinking, why he did what he did.

Overall, a solid novel of legal drama, mystery and relationships.

I was given an advance copy of this book by Net Galley in exchange fir my honest feedback.

I tried reading this book twice and I couldn't get into it. Just boring and the use of those huge words makes you look pompous not smart.

I was excited to get an ARC of this book from NetGalley after reading the description. I love a good suspense novel and this sounded right up my alley. The book was an enjoyable read and I finished it quickly, although I didn’t find the writing as impressive as some other reviewers. I also found what I expect were meant to be plot twists pretty predictable from the beginning. Overall I would recommend the book though, and if half stars were available I’d give it 3.5/5.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria/Emily Bestler Books for allowing 5171 Miles Book Blog a copy of this novel for review. 

It's all we hear of lately in the news, a dirty word, a word that makes us dig deep and examine how we feel about the people committing the act, and the victims left behind. Rape. It's a nasty topic, but one we've become all too familiar with, this year especially. Anatomy of a Scandal dives into the world of the elite, the powerhouses and the political machine of Britain. Much like America, we often wonder if these people of the upper crust are held to the same standards as the rest of us middle-class folk and below.

When James Whitehouse is accused of rape by his scorned lover, those closest to him are left reeling, wondering if he actually committed the crime or if it's a woman's act of retaliation. His wife, Sophie, is desperate to protect the life she holds dear and keep her children from knowing of their father's sordid secrets. Kate is hired to prosecute and she is hell-bent on bringing justice to victimized women. Two women with opposing desires are determined to fight for what they deem is right, but the only winner may be the charismatic man accused.

Sarah Vaughan's ability to bring characters to life was one of the most impressive aspects of her debut novel. She was able to make me evaluate each character and understand them, even if I didn't like them. From the get-go I hated James. He was a dirty, rotten pig of a man, whether he was guilty of the crime he was accused of or not. I loathed him so much, I didn't know if I would be able to continue reading the story. Honestly, I felt like throwing in the towel. He simply felt too realistic. But, I kept reading because of the raving reviews. Then we get to Sophie, James' wife's perspective, and I'm still not convinced I wanted to stick this one out. It was a shame to me that she was able to stand by a cheater for the sake of her appearance and children, but a part of me understood her viewpoint as a mother myself. Then we get to hard-ass Kate, and I'm invested. Kate was a woman after my own heart. She was the barrister all in the profession should strive to be, a true champion of justice. She wants the rapist locked away and his balls in her pocket. Go girl!

With the alternating perspectives and looks into the pasts of the characters, I was reeled in more and more until I was unable to put this novel down. There were some interesting twists and turns, some punches to the gut, and an incredibly realistic courtroom setting, though I feel a tad let down. I expected to be kept on the edge of my seat - this book is described as suspenseful after all, but fell flat in that category for me. The beginning of this story was slow and I wasn't hooked until I learned more about Kate. I found the repetition of the same facts for the case slightly tedious, which allowed my mind to roam instead of focusing on the plot.

I think my intense dislike of James from the start kept me from enjoying this novel as much as I should have or hoped to. While I loved Kate, and sometimes understood Sophie, they were not enough to make me rate this novel higher. I found myself eager to finish it, rather than savoring the story. Sarah Vaughan shows great ability as a writer and storyteller for her introductory novel, but lacked in pacing the story to keep my attention as a reader. Overall, it was a decent read, but not nearly as great as I expected. However, I do think this story would make an excellent movie. I can almost see it in my head better on screen than in book form. Give this one a try upon its release on January 23rd, unless the constant subject of rape is a trigger, and see which side you stand on. Anatomy of a Scandal will definitely keep your brain churning.

Sarah Vaughan skillfully unveils the plot in an Anatomy of a Scandal, alternating between present time and 1993. Her characters are well developed and real. This is a book that I found myself thinking about (obsessing about?) when I wasn't reading, predicting where the story was going and explaining the basic plot to others. It had me considering what I might do if I were in the same situation as Holly, Kate, Ali, Sophie, or even James. An intriguing read!

Anatomy of a Scandal is about a married couple in which the husband has cheated on his wife. We find out at the beginning that his scandal will be breaking into the news, since of his position in government. Later, it comes out that he raped his former mistress. From there, the story is told in alternating time periods and perspectives. We learn about the history of the husband in college.

Midway through the book, there was a great twist, but then the last half of the book just was repetitive and just kept dragging on and on. That was my biggest problem with the book. It dropped a bombshell and then I felt did not capitalize on this bombshell.

I would give this 2.5 out of 3 stars because the first half of the book worked for me and the second half was a slow trek.

This has been one of my most anticipated reads for months, from the minute I saw the title/cover I was interested, scandals, betrayals, lies, and a dash of courtroom drama? Yes please! But while there were many aspects of this one that worked for me, I did have some minor issues that will prevent me from fully endorsing Anatomy of a Scandal.

This is told through multiple perspectives, that of James, his wife Sophie and Kate, the prosecuting attorney and it also flashes back and forth from today to back when they were in college. The plot could’ve been ripped from current headlines, how many times do you watch the news and see a new political sex scandal, too often, right? I definitely liked the juicy storyline and the back and forth wondering if James was guilty or innocent, but for me as much as I enjoyed this at first, I felt like it became pretty long and drawn out by the end. It was also pretty slow as far as pacing goes, which is fine but in the middle I did struggle a bit to stay attentive. The ending wasn’t as resolved as I would’ve liked it to be either so it felt a bit like waiting forever for something that didn’t quite pay off in the end.

While this wasn’t the perfect book for me, it did have many strong points. It was really intelligently written and I liked that it dealt with the issue of consent and how exactly that’s defined. That’s such an important issue and anytime an author is brave enough to tackle something so tricky I have to give them credit. I also have to say that while I found it slow, the fact that it didn’t solely rely on a super fast pacing and crazy plot twists was refreshing. My advice? If the blurb intrigues you, give this a try because you may enjoy it more than I did.

He said - she said - she said: Whose side are you on and who do you believe? Does it really matter what the truth is? Can sexual misconduct happen to couples already in a relationship? Can you ignore a lie to save your lifestyle? All these questions and more are explored in Anatomy of a Scandal. The characters are genuine and honest, and reveal true human nature and raw emotions. Recommended to those who enjoy family dramas and emotionally charged reads.

**Thanks to NetGalley, Sarah Vaughan & Atria Books for an ARC to read & honestly review**

FIRST OFF. If you are sensitive to the issues of rape and sexual assault, DO NOT read this.

I'm not really sure how I feel about this. It got starred reviews from Kirkus and tons of praise on Netgalley so I guess I was just expecting... more? It was a solid legal thriller throughout, but the ending was WEAK. Super weak. Like, I was certain my ARC was missing pages because I couldn't quite fathom it ending at such an infuriating point. It's like the author tried for an ending like in The Kind Worth Killing but it just did not work for me here.

Maybe it just didn't end like I wanted to and I'm letting that influence my opinion, but overall I felt a bit cheated that I spend 400 pages reading about an issue that wasn't (in my opinion) resolved. The meat of the book was solid, to be fair. I especially enjoyed reading from Sophie's perspective. Her character was well written and I enjoyed watching her develop as a character as the book progressed.

From a librarian point of view, I can still see myself recommending this to patrons who like Baldacci and Grisham who might be looking for something a little different. It was a decent book, but overall it just wasn't for me. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it, either.

Also, the amount rape and injustice for said rape made me really, really hate good looking and charismatic men.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the free review copy of this novel. All opinions in this blog are my own.

I have had this book for quite a while, and since it doesn’t publish until January, I pushed it off. Now I am wondering why I took so long to read it. This novel was fantastic. The book goes between a major court case and flash backs that slowly pull the whole picture together. During these flashback, the plot is built slowly. Once twists were revealed, I was shocked. I love a book that will keep me guessing throughout the entire thing, and this novel delivered.

This book centers around a prominent man in the British government that has been accused of rape. As the trial goes on, more discoveries are revealed, and it leaves the reader wondering what is going to happen to this man.

Vaughan does a great job of building the anticipation in the novel. The book will leave you wanting to race through it to figure out what is going to happen. I did get caught up on different parts about Parliament and the House of Commons, but not knowing about this information didn’t take away from the novel.

The only thing I didn’t like was how the ending tapered after the verdict of the court case. I understand why she ended it the way she did, but I wished it would’ve ended differently. It was still a great novel.

This novel comes out on January 23, 2018, and I’m sure that it will create quite a buzz.

I felt Anatomy of a Scandal was a quick pace, hold you type of mystery. The book was well written and kept my interest to the very end. I liked the idea of getting all sides of the story through the point of view of each of the characters. I was a little disappointed with the ending for I felt it was a bit predictable. Nevertheless, it was still a very good read.

A richly developed, twisty suspense novel with wonderfully crafted characters and a marvelous premise.

You will not know who to believe in this novel of intrigue and past secrets.

James Whitehouse is a a successful politician who has been married to his wife Sophie for over a decade. Both are attractive, attended Oxford and are respected members of their community. One day James is accused of rape, the victim is a young researcher that works in James's office. She also had an affair with the accused that ended abruptly two weeks before the event took place.

Your job (if you decided to take it) is to go over the evidence presented in the narrative and decide whether James is guilty of the charge or the victim of lies by a wounded ex-lover.

This is a character-oriented novel that takes place in England. I love legal thrillers and this one provided excellent details of the Court system in the UK and about the matter of consent. The novel alternates between the present and the past and is narrated from the points of view of different characters. It was interesting, intriguing and suspenseful.

Overall I liked it and recommend it to readers of legal thrillers.

Thanks to NetGalley, Atria and Sarah Vaughan for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This is not Sarah Vaughan’s first novel but it is the first novel of hers I have read and it definitely won’t be the last. The story is told mainly through the past and current POV of the 2 main characters with the odd POV of a side character. Sounds complex right? Like it might get a bit confusing right? But Vaughn’s writing and story telling ability keeps the novel from getting too complex. In fact, a lot of times I didn’t even need to see the dates ahead of each chapter to know that the story had shifted back. Also intriguing is that Vaughan throws a major surprise halfway through the book that was completely unexpected. It doesn’t taint the book but it did change the tone of the book and characters a little bit more for me. Vaughan’s writing style is a bit more sophisticated than your average fiction author. She assumes that you are familiar with British Law (which I am not) so there were a few times I had to stop and look up a reference but it didn’t take away from the book and quite frankly I learned a few things. Overall, a solid 4.5 Star book and one that I imagine will be topping the charts once it’s released.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for my review.

This was not at all the book I thought it would be when I started. In the beginning, it was very hard to keep the characters straight and figure out why there were so many stories being told. When I finally came together, it was almost too late. I almost put the book aside at least three times, because it was not making sense to me.

FINALLY, it turned out to be a pretty good story. The intricacies of the British legal system are always difficult to understand for an American, but they were pretty well explained here. The story, once we really got to it, was a compelling one, and it was heartbreaking when the verdict did not go well, but in the end there was satisfaction.

This is a hefty novel that approaches 400 pages dealing with some very in-depth character perceptions dealing with a case of rape. The he said, she said moments are not only extremely well-written, but the amount of time and effort spent on each characters acknowledgement of certain events and the details that not only led up to the even, but ultimately made them who they are are harrowing and brutally realistic. This is a story told from the perspectives of multiple women connected to the case and like a spiderweb, intertwined by their pasts.

While the plot to this one is rather wordy and the pacing is slow, this is a novel listed as Contemporary Fiction, but I would consider a psychological thriller and easily one of the best I have ever read. The mixed reviews made me a little iffy at first, but I'm glad I went with my gut instinct and dove right in. Yes, it's wordy. Yes, the pacing is slow at first, but remember this is a psychological thriller. There is not going to be a ridiculous amount of plot twists. This is simply a story that tells how these characters were made to be who they are today and the monsters that hide inside all of us. Told from the main perspectives of Sophie, who's husband is being accused of raping a woman that he had recently ended an affair with, Kate, the prosecutor, and Holly. Now, Holly's chapters were the most interesting for me to read as they told a story of a young girl in college who is semi-friends with Sophie and gets to see their relationship blossom into what will later become a lengthy marriage. These perspectives are gripping, haunting, and ultimately extremely well-written. You get a true insight into who these people are and Vaughan does a fantastic job of building characters that take this storyline from the ground up.

In regards to the plot, I really loved having the chance to read a unique and poignant psychological thriller that has a ton of characterization, a plot we've all seen ripped from the headlines, and get an insiders look into the drama, the scheming, and the reality of what happens in a high profile case. After about 200 pages in, I literally couldn't stop. Don't get me wrong, the first 200 were very interesting and the plot flowed without a hiccup, but the darkness and the plot twists really start to escalate within the second half of the novel. I had some sort of inkling as to where this story would head and I was proven wrong by Vaughan's flawless efforts in directing the reader in one direction and then yanking them back to reality. Not only is this a highly prized psychological thriller, courtroom drama, and literary genius tale of fiction, but it's a story that is not only both haunting and intriguingly effective. I was entertained, saddened, and mystified until the very end with a final chapter that not only left me highly satisfied, but chilled me to the core.

What could possibly be better than a scandal? This was a great debut by Sarah Vaughan and I will be looking for her future work. This was a bit of a slow burner with a nice twist about half way through. I thoroughly enjoyed it and reading about the British legal system. I love courtroom drama which this book has plenty of. A British politician accused of rape, but was it actually rape? When does consensual sex cross the line into rape? Kate Woodcroft, the barrister is determined to prosecute this man and get justice for the victim. I loved Kate's character and rooted for her until the end.
I recommend this book to fans of thrillers, suspense, and courtroom dramas.
Thank you to Atria Books, Sarah Vaughan and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. I found this thriller to be a bit disjointed, as it jumped between three different stories. It did have some moments of suspense, enough to keep me reading until the end.

unfortunately, this was a book I could not get into. Several times I picked it up, and couldn't continue. Thank you for the chance, this is the only place I left my review.

This was not a suspenseful book, as the description promised. I can only give it two stars because I found myself not really caring about the fate of the characters, nor was I surprised, shaken up, or emotionally invested in this storyline.

The positives:
The writing is complex and descriptive. Personally, I found myself skimming a lot of it, as I don't like too much mind-numbing description; however, I still consider this a positive aspect of the book. The author certainly was not lazy in telling this story. Also, the characters are laid out in an interesting way.

The negatives:
There is no suspense. Perhaps this is more the fault of the book description than the book itself. I expected something suspenseful, however, and I was disappointed. As an American lawyer, I found the trial scenes hard to read, since the lawyers' questioning (and testifying) would be improper in the U.S. Again, this is not the fault of the book so much as my own preference, but I don't know how many Americans can relate to these trial scenes.

What's interesting:
With the belated allegations against Harvey Weinstein (and seemingly everyone else) that are currently making the news rounds, this book is definitely relevant. As you read it, you definitely think about what makes some women come forward, what makes others keep dirty secrets, and what makes some women lie.

I wish I had liked this book. Sadly, I skimmed the last 20 percent.