The Affair by Claire Allan : Review

The Affair by Claire Allan

Release Date:  21st May 2024

Publisher: Boldwood Books

Genres: Psychological Thriller

Her heart is thumping now, only just distinguishable from the roar of the water and the wind. This is not safe. She is not safe…

She realises then, only one of them is coming back out alive.

She’s the person I want to be. Sorcha Hannon, survivor of a devastating affair. She’s found the healing and hope I desperately need to find for myself.

And now that Sorcha and I are friends, I am no longer alone. Instead of days hiding away from the world, I have someone to talk to. I feel as if I finally belong.

There’s just one small catch. Sorcha Hannon isn’t just a new friend to me, and she certainly isn’t a stranger. In fact, I know the ins and outs of her life, and her marriage, almost as well as she does. But if she finds out who I really am, I’ll lose everything. Then again, as Sorcha says, no one’s life is really as perfect as it seems… and I should have realised, I’m not the only one with secrets.

Firstly, massive apologies to Claire Allan and Rachel's Random Resources for not publishing this review yesterday like I was supposed to. A wee bit of brain fog appears to have sent my rational and usually super organised mind into shut down. Anyhoo, here's what I thought of The Affair.

We are massive Claire Allan fans in this house. My husband can't get enough of her books either so sometimes I have to fight him for them! We love her not only because she is also from good old Northern Ireland, but also because her writing is absolutely amazing! Like all her other books, The Affair did not disappoint.

The book opens with an intriguing prologue that instantly draws you into the story and leads us into a well constructed and interesting plot. The story moves between two main characters, Christina and Sorcha. Christina or Tina as she's known by lives a very solitary life and is crippled by social anxiety. Sorcha on the other hand is a big social media influencer who runs the Soul Sisterhood, which is an online group for women who want to better themselves and support women everywhere with regular meet ups and making new connections. Its all about friendship and love and just being a better person. Sorcha, in Christina's eyes is absolutely perfect and she wants to be like her. She needs it. So, she joins the online group and forces herself to go to one of the meet ups. But Christina has a secret. A big secret that could threaten the new friendships she has made, particularly the one with Sorcha. However, Claire Allan has very cleverly woven in a massive plot twist into the story and it seems that Sorcha has her own secrets too. 

I absolutely cannot give more of the plot away than that. It was definitely a 'YIKES' moment for me.  Claire Allan's writing has a way of making a story so enticing that its difficult to put the book down. There is always an element of desperately wanting to know what happens next and so many surprises thrown in. I was often so engrossed in the story I completely lost track of time. I like how its written from the different POV's and we gain a greater insight into the mindset of each woman. Both are not what they seem, their public faces varying greatly from their private ones. The book explores loneliness in a sensitive and authentic way and for me it demonstrated how each of the characters was wearing a mask, hiding their true selves and their true motives for being in one another's lives.  A brilliant read and highly recommended.  Loved it!

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Claire Allan is a bestselling author of psychological thrillers and, in the past, women's fiction.

A former reporter with the Derry Journal, she published eight contemporary women's fiction novels with Poolbeg Press in Ireland before becoming a full time author, and switching genre to 'unleash her darker side'

Her first domestic noir novel, Her Name Was Rose was published by Avon/ HarperCollins in 2018 and was an instant bestseller in several countries. Claire's novels have been translated into multiple languages.

Latterly. Claire worked as a story consultant on series one of the huge successful BBC drama series 'Blue Lights' with Two Cities Productions. She has also written a number of rom-coms under the pen-name Freya Kennedy, and supported Sunday Times Bestseller Serena Terry while she was writing her Mammy Banter titles.

In 2023 Claire signed a multi-book deal with Boldwood Books to write four thrillers as Claire Allan, and three rom-coms as Freya Kennedy, securing her publishing into 2026.

 

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