Member Reviews
I loved this book, just brilliant.
It’s well written and dramatically places you straight into the storyline. I enjoyed the dual narrative of the present day and WW2 storylines.
The atmosphere the author creates is brilliant, it has plenty of mystery and twists to keep you reading. I loved the characters, they are really engaging, I particularly loved Elizabeth. The setting is well described too, feels like you’re there in the moment.
A gritty romantic thrilling WW2 fiction. A thoroughly enjoyable read. Definitely recommend.
Thanks to #NetGallery @PenguinGeneralUK for an eARC of #ComingToFindYou in exchange for an honest review.
Book publishes 22 June 2023.
I’ve been a long-time fan of Jane Corry’s books, but I fell behind somewhat so it’s been a while since I read one of her books. I feel it’s safe to say her latest one, ‘Coming to Find You‘, is slightly different from other books I’ve read by this author.
‘Coming to Find You‘ features a dual timeline. In the present day scenario, we meet Nancy in the aftermath of a murder trial. To escape the scrutiny from the media, Nancy decides to hide away at her grandmother’s house in a quiet seaside village. This house has seen some things during its existence. Which is also where the past timeline comes in as we are introduced to Elizabeth, who owns the house and runs it as a boarding house during the Second World War.
Both storylines deal with murder, lies and secrets in their own ways. But as often happens when I read a dual timeline story, one is able to hold my attention far better than the other. In this particular case, I tended to feel rather indifferent to Nancy and her story. It’s pretty obvious she’s not telling the entire truth about what happened the night of her family tragedy, and there is something rather unsympathetic about her despite everything she’s been through. I never really felt like I connected with her, or even really got to know her.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, immediately came across as a warm and loving character. Even with a decidedly unlikable husband in the neighbourhood, she is merely trying to make the best of a horrible time in her life. That means taking in guests, even evacuees like Maisie and Shirley. But danger lurks along this part of the Essex coast. Can Elizabeth keep everyone safe until the end of the war? I would have quite happily read an entire novel about Elizabeth and her guests. There were a few characters I would have loved to have got to know better, and that includes a character called Adeline, who also happens to tie in nicely to the present.
Despite the murder element, ‘Coming to Find You‘ felt a little less psychological thriller than I expected from this author. It has all the delightful twists and turns to keep you guessing, but not quite with its usual thrill. Some parts worked better for me than others but, all in all, this is an engaging, easy, and enjoyable read, perfect for those summer days by the pool. I would be quite delighted if Jane Corry decided to write more historical fiction in the future.
Nancy escapes London for Sidmouth in Devon . Her step brother Martin has been sentenced for murdering her mother and stepfather and she needs a fresh start.
She is being hounded by the press but has to keep her nerve and slowly the story behind the murders begins to unravel and keeps the readers interest throughout.
The present day story runs by the side of a story in World War 2, and even though the stories are years apart there are distinct parallels.
The calibre of writing is excellent it hooks the reader in.
The story is engaging and even though the subject matter isn't pleasant I found it an enjoyable read.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Books.
Excellent book, told between past and present which really added great depth to the story. I was gripped throughout and loved how the ending was so unpredictable! Look forward to reading more Jane Corry books in the future.
Thank you to Ellie Hudson at Penguin for my invitation to the tour and for my copy of the proof in return for a fair and honest review.
Jane is one of my must buy authors, and so I knew I would devour her latest book.
From the outset we know that Nancy is having to go into hiding due to the murder of her mother and step -father, her stepbrother Martin is in jail for their murders.
She decides to go to Tall Chimneys, a former guest house that has been in her family for years and she visited with her mother and father as a child. She hopes that in the seaside town of Sidmouth in Devon she will be able to be unrecognised and escape the press who are hounding her for her story of the murders. She has left her friends and her fiancé Alex to try for some peace. She is not there long before she realises this is not going to be easy but she also discovers another mystery from the past.
The house was owned by her grandmother Adeline. Nancy does not know very much about her but we learn more in the second viewpoint in the story, Elizabeth’s story who was Adeline’s best friend. She lived at Tall Chimneys in 1941, with her husband Henry who has his own demons from the Great War and the reader is introduced to her when she is desperately trying to say goodbye to her only son Philip as he is going off to war at the age of seventeen.
Elizabeth decides against the wishes of Henry to take in a school teacher, Mr Smith and two girl evacuees from London in the B & B to do her bit for the war effort.
This is a fast paced and compelling read, I really enjoyed the switch between the two perspectives as the reader gets to know Nancy and Elizabeth and their secrets. You know that there is so much bubbling under the surface for both the protagonists and the author does such a seamless task of weaving the stories together. There is also a third element to the story what happened on the night of the murder of Nancy’s mother and stepfather which is added in small snippets to wet the reader’s appetite.
I was fascinated the depiction of an historical Sidmouth in the Second World War, and Elizabeth’s story grabbed me as my own grandmother came to Devon as a new bride in the 1940s. Also the awful blitz raids that hit the nearby city of Exeter. There is also darkness as the book covers PTSD, abuse and loss but this is very much part of the story and the characters stories.
The tension ramps up as Nancy realises that she can not escape the past and there are parts of her story that made the hairs on my neck stand up in anxiety. Murder, suspense, tension, family tragedy and long forgotten mysteries this book has so much within its pages that it will keep you reading late into the night. The female characters in the book are strong and overcome many horrific events and it is really emotional in parts.
Thank you Jane for another absolutely captivating story, fans of Jane’s will love it and the Devon war connection will be very fascinating for some readers.
5 stars *****
Coming to find you
Coming to find you
Nancy is having a bad time. Her creepy step-brother Martin has just been convicted of murdering her mother and step-father, and she's being hounded by the press. Nancy needs to get away, and her family home Tall Chimneys should provide refuge. But Nancy finds that she can't hide forever - from the press or the truth.
Nancy's story in the present day is interwoven with the story of Elizabeth and Adaline, back in the midst of WW2 in 1941. Elizabeth lives in Tall Chimneys and has plenty of secrets of her own.
As the stories develop in both timelines, you become completely involved in the stories of Nancy and Elizabeth. There are plenty of twists and turns for both, and it gives the book real depth.
I really enjoyed Coming to find you, the multi timelines made for two great thrillers in one!
I really enjoyed this book it was set in 2 time periods the present day and during WW2 I especially liked the 1940's parts and I loved how it all came together in the end very enjoyable read
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.
This book is a tale of two time periods - present day and WW2. The characters are connected and the events that take place have similarities that echo through the years.
Coming To Find You is a dual time line novel set in Sidmouth in the present day and during the Second World War. In the present day Nancy has escaped to her family's beautiful Regency house Tall Chimneys. in Sidmouth after the murder of her mother and stepfather. In 1941 we follow the story of Nancy's grandmother Adeline and her friend Elizabeth during the war years at Tall Chimneys.
I really enjoy dual timeline novels and especially those with wartime settings and so I absolutely loved the 1941 storyline. I felt that the author gave a really insightful and moving portrayal of the role women played during the war and the emotional toll it took on them and the evacuee storyline was beautifully done. I loved the characters from this timeline and felt that more time was given to the characterisation and plot development in this part of the novel.
I felt that the present day storyline and characterisation was much weaker and although it started off well it did become a little too melodramatic and unbelievable for me. Overall however this was an immersive and compelling read that I enjoyed.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this digital ARC.
3.5 stars.
Nancy's parents have been murdered in their farmhouse. At a birthday party she had been reluctant to attend due to things in the past. Her step-brother Martin has been convicted of the crime. Nancy just wants it all to stop, the publicity is endless. So she ups sticks and runs away to the family holiday home in Devon. Also leaving behind ex-fiance Alex. But, as we all know, and indeed, it would be a very short boring pointless book if it weren't, running away from your problems never solved them. Especially when you are also lying to yourself and others about what really happened that night and the time leading up to it... And this book is anything but pointless or boring... Not in the slightest...
But if you think that was enough to keep you going, the author delivers more... Tall Chimneys, the house that Nancy has escaped to, inherited from her grandmother, also has its own past. Set in 1941, during the war. With tales of young evacuees and the resistance...
And then there's flashbacks of what really happened "that night"...
Well... as with all the books I have previously read by this author, this one hit the ground running and didn't let up all the way through. Delivering shock after surprise which only left me wondering how the author would marry the two up... Which, from my star rating, is obvious that she did and it was done so very well...!
To be honest, although the main story was I guess supposed to be the Nancy one from the present, I found the war-time one much more interesting and intriguing. Maybe it's cos it was shiny and different and I learned a few things I did not previously know.
But, that said, the Nancy/Martin thread was just as well crafted and did all come together shockingly at the end too. And very cleverly too! A wee but rushed but I think that's the only way it could have been done so...
All in all, another winner to add to an already impressive back catalogue. Roll on next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.
I love all of Jane’s books and this is no exception. The juxtaposition between wartime and current time was really interesting without being too historical orientated.
I read the whole thing in a day and couldn’t put it down! Absolutely loved Adeline and Elizabeth and loved it when the story came together at the end. Just a classic Jane Corry book and I am so glad I read it!
One of my new favourite books, I have never read something like this before and I am a massive book reader, especially thrillers genre. I love how the book was presented in altered chapters with the history and the current which is perfect to keep me on the edge of my seat. I read this book in one day as I couldn't put it down. The description of everything especially the town, the building etc., was beautiful, and almost made me wish I was in the book 'alive'. Jane Corry, you have outdone yourself in this book, I absolutely love it!
This book is a page turner for sure. Most chapters end on a cliff hanger as well which obviously will keep people reading. It has 2 story’s one set now and one set in the past but they are mostly the same story apart from the time line. There are a lot of twists and turns to this book which I like. The reason for the 4 stars is because some of the time I can guess what will happen and it was true I like not to be able to guess the story and like being surprised. Apart from that it was a good book and good story line would recommend. The story is about a young lady called Nancy who has got in to trouble and has to runaway from the big city and go to her childhood holiday home. She meets people that are connected to the past story as well so everyone sort of connects to each other in a way.
Another excellent book by Jane Corry. Thank you for allowing me to review this book.
Nancy escapes to the family holiday home in Sidmouth when she hits the headlines after the murder trial of her mother and stepfather. She soon finds she can not stay hidden for long. Gradually we learn the story behind the murders and about her stepbrother Martin. Alongside this in another timeline the story of the occupants of the house during the 2nd World War. The story is haunting I was drawn in from the beginning and finished it quite quickly. The characters are beautifully written, compassion isshown despite the cruelty exhibited by some. The ending felt good.
I thought they didn't write good thrillers like this anymore - I was wrong!
I could not put this book down. I have found a brand new favourite author!
Told through two timelines, the present day and WW2, Corry successfully weaves the two stories to create a wholly engaging read.
In the present, Nancy is dealing with the conviction of her stepbrother for the murder of her mother and stepfather – in order to dodge media attention, she flees to a family-owned house in Devon, Tall Chimneys. But escaping her past proves more difficult than expected
The second timeline takes us back to WW2 when the house was owned by Elizabeth, a friend of Nancy’s grandmother, who is dealing with a husband who is suffering the after effects of having fought in the previous war, and a teenage son who to her dismay has enlisted.
Tall Chimneys proves to be a house full of secrets which gradually unfold as we learn the fascinating story of what went on there during the war, and Nancy’s story and the truth behind the murder is slowly revealed and the stories begin to intertwine.
Corry successfully blends elements of thriller with historical fiction and her ability to bring the setting alive, transporting the reader to the house and the Devon coastline, combined with vivid characterization, ensures that both storylines are truly compelling. Nancy and Elizabeth are both likeable characters whose strength is tested when they are caught up in difficult situations, situations that leave the reader pondering on the choices people make when faced with impossible dilemmas.
It’s a book that keeps you turning the pages as you long to learn more about the truth, with plenty of tension and twists along the way, making for a thoroughly enjoyable read.
This was such an enjoyable book. I loved the movement between past and present. This book was so well written and the history behind the story over the years of the war and the people living in the town at that time. The modern part of the story was so good and it all came together in the last few chapters.
My thanks as always to NetGalley and publishers for the early read.
I really enjoyed this book. A story of families and friendships with some well written characters. I particularly enjoyed the WWII setting and loved how the dual timelines tied everything together.
For me Jane Corry is one of my goto to authors each read a fresh look at domestic noir and this latest book is no exception .
Many twists and turns,compelling and riveting it left me gasping for breath in parts with a hair-raising ending!
I thoroughly enjoyed this split timeline story. I haven’t read any books by Jane Corry before but I will definitely look for more. The characters come alive and although the story isn’t fast paced I found it really hard to stop reading. Would completely recommend. Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me access to an early copy of this book.