Under Your Skin - Sabine Durrant

'This is the worst kind of nightmare...'

Lead character and first-person narrator of Under Your Skin, Gaby Mortimer is a well-known television presenter. One morning she is out for a run on the common in the pleasant surrounds near her home in London when she discovers a woman's corpse. She dutifully reports her find to the police and then she expects her life to go on as usual. However, the police seem to think the crime has something to do with her, in fact they seem determined that she is responsible. All of a sudden her life is turned upside down as the investigation progresses. 

I liked the choice of narrator as being Gaby throughout; we experience the dramatic turmoil in her life first-hand as the story develops, bringing us to the heart of everything that happens. The fact that she found this body does not go away, but rather it starts to dominate her life, altering her routine, upsetting her marriage, separating her from her children,  then threatening her job and eventually her freedom. I wasn't sure how much I liked her, or if I trusted her entirely but she was undoubtedly leading an interesting life. There are twists and turns incorporated by the author as the book moves forward, and she does a good job of making you think about things and look twice, with more than one character succeeding in arousing my suspicions and casting doubt on what I thought I knew, and I was certainly turning the pages, eager to discover the outcome. The writer also depicts very well the damage that can be wrought on a person's character by hearsay and suggestion. 

I enjoyed this read though perhaps not quite as much as I thought I might. I've waited a little while to write my review as I wanted to think about my reasons why, but unfortuately I'm still not sure I've put my finger on it. Suffice it to say that although I had some reservations, there was a good amount that I liked about it, there is plenty of tension and intrigue and I would still certainly recommend other readers give it a try. 

Published by Mulholland Books, an imprint of Hodder & Stoughton

reviewed as part of the amazon vine program

Here are some reviews from other book bloggers: Raven Crime Reads | Books, Biscuits & Tea