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Eye of the Beholder
Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Vertigo , the author of the “subtle and ominous” (Lee Child) debut Deep Water returns with a wholly original and sinister novel about the beauty industry, a ghostwriter, and the reappearance of the lover she thought was dead.
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela’s remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
Sharing the estate is Angela’s enigmatic business partner, Scott, whose mercurial moods change as quickly as the conditions on the darkening moors outside. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling of being watched. As objects go missing, handprints appear on the windows, and a stranger lurks in the grounds, she finds herself drawn ever closer to Scott. Returning to London once the book is finished, Maddy is excited for their future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs.
Which is why, months later and lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the Tube station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he?
In exploring the differences between looking and seeing, surface and depth, and the power of the female gaze, this tribute to Hitchcock’s 1958 film masterpiece If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, how much can you trust what you see?
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela’s remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
Sharing the estate is Angela’s enigmatic business partner, Scott, whose mercurial moods change as quickly as the conditions on the darkening moors outside. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling of being watched. As objects go missing, handprints appear on the windows, and a stranger lurks in the grounds, she finds herself drawn ever closer to Scott. Returning to London once the book is finished, Maddy is excited for their future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs.
Which is why, months later and lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the Tube station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he?
In exploring the differences between looking and seeing, surface and depth, and the power of the female gaze, this tribute to Hitchcock’s 1958 film masterpiece If beauty is in the eye of the beholder, how much can you trust what you see?
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First published August 6, 2024
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About the author
Emma Bamford
5 books227 followersEmma Bamford is an East Midlands-based author and journalist who has worked at The Independent and Daily Express and most recently as News Editor of the i newspaper.
She had a fairly normal life to begin with, growing up with her younger brother and sister under the watchful eyes of her parents in Lincoln and Nottingham. After studying English Literature at Southampton University and Newspaper Journalism at UCLan, she started work as a cub reporter for the Bicester Review and then the Derby Evening Telegraph, cutting her journalistic teeth interviewing organisers of local fetes and grilling parish council members. Fleet Street beckoned and highlights of her career as a reporter and news editor include asking F1 driver Jenson Button what his favourite toasted sandwich filling was, quizzing the incumbent Home Secretary on his preferred kind of cheese (spot a pattern?) and peeing in Bruce Forsyth’s downstairs loo. There was some serious and hard-hitting journalism in there for a fair few years, too.
Then, in her early 30s and bored with this ‘fairly normal life’ she’d created for herself, Emma took a career break and, despite protestations from friends and family, answered an advert on the internet for ‘crew wanted’ and flew to Borneo to live on a boat with a man she had never met and his cat. She found herself hunting for elephants in the jungle, visiting deserted islands and running from pirates. Finally she ended up among billionaires, working as a stewardess on a superyacht in Italy. Her adventures form the basis of her first book, Casting Off, which is being published by Bloomsbury on July 3.
Emma now works part-time as a freelance to give herself space to write and make the jump from memoir to novels. Her ambition is to make book writing her full-time career. Tropical settings feature high in her inspiration and as her books’ settings, although she lives about as far away from the sea as it is possible, in landlocked rural Derbyshire. And, while she may make self-deprecating jokes constantly, she really is serious about figuring out what is important in life and finding the freedom to be who you want to be.
She had a fairly normal life to begin with, growing up with her younger brother and sister under the watchful eyes of her parents in Lincoln and Nottingham. After studying English Literature at Southampton University and Newspaper Journalism at UCLan, she started work as a cub reporter for the Bicester Review and then the Derby Evening Telegraph, cutting her journalistic teeth interviewing organisers of local fetes and grilling parish council members. Fleet Street beckoned and highlights of her career as a reporter and news editor include asking F1 driver Jenson Button what his favourite toasted sandwich filling was, quizzing the incumbent Home Secretary on his preferred kind of cheese (spot a pattern?) and peeing in Bruce Forsyth’s downstairs loo. There was some serious and hard-hitting journalism in there for a fair few years, too.
Then, in her early 30s and bored with this ‘fairly normal life’ she’d created for herself, Emma took a career break and, despite protestations from friends and family, answered an advert on the internet for ‘crew wanted’ and flew to Borneo to live on a boat with a man she had never met and his cat. She found herself hunting for elephants in the jungle, visiting deserted islands and running from pirates. Finally she ended up among billionaires, working as a stewardess on a superyacht in Italy. Her adventures form the basis of her first book, Casting Off, which is being published by Bloomsbury on July 3.
Emma now works part-time as a freelance to give herself space to write and make the jump from memoir to novels. Her ambition is to make book writing her full-time career. Tropical settings feature high in her inspiration and as her books’ settings, although she lives about as far away from the sea as it is possible, in landlocked rural Derbyshire. And, while she may make self-deprecating jokes constantly, she really is serious about figuring out what is important in life and finding the freedom to be who you want to be.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 156 reviews
November 16, 2023
A dark and suspenseful thriller that is indeed reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, right down to the character names. Although it took some time for the plot to really pull me in, I found this book to be a mostly enjoyable and gripping read.
First off, I have to say that although I know this book was set in the modern day, it really feels like something that was written back in the 1950s or 60s. Maybe it's just because I knew it was inspired by Vertigo, but every time Maddy would mention something super modern, liked Linkedin or Instagram, it'd completely throw me off. I mean, obviously social media wasn't the only issue here – there were also laptops, cell phones, high-tech security cameras, and other random items that would have been horribly anachronistic in a 1950s setting. It still just had that old school thriller vibe for me, though. *shrugs*
Secondly, don't expect a particularly plausible plot (say that three times fast) from this one. There's definitely a suspension of disbelief required to make the story work. I don't want to spoil anything so I won't go into details, but Maddy not realizing … certain things about Connor just seems slightly ridiculous. Really, she just isn't very observant at all – parts of the mystery seemed blatantly obvious from the very beginning, stuff that Maddy didn't really begin to figure out until the final pages of the book.
Overall, though, Eye of the Beholder is a lot of fun. It's twisty and turny and the last 60% or so is basically unputdownable. Even though I'd figured out at least part of the mystery by that point, the suspense and foreboding as Maddy starts to unravel the story behind Scott's death is tremendous. I was anxious to see if my guesses were right, and there were also a few twists that I didn't see coming at all. I could definitely see this being an Alfred Hitchcock film … which I guess makes sense, considering the Vertigo connection.
Oh, and the setting is fantastic. A remote manor in the Scottish Highlands? With treacherous cliffs and fog and strangely moody men? Be still my gothic-loving heart.
Final rating: 3.75 stars, rounded up. If you like atmospheric and suspenseful tales of murder and mystery where all is not necessarily what it seems, you'll likely enjoy this one.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery/Scout Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
First off, I have to say that although I know this book was set in the modern day, it really feels like something that was written back in the 1950s or 60s. Maybe it's just because I knew it was inspired by Vertigo, but every time Maddy would mention something super modern, liked Linkedin or Instagram, it'd completely throw me off. I mean, obviously social media wasn't the only issue here – there were also laptops, cell phones, high-tech security cameras, and other random items that would have been horribly anachronistic in a 1950s setting. It still just had that old school thriller vibe for me, though. *shrugs*
Secondly, don't expect a particularly plausible plot (say that three times fast) from this one. There's definitely a suspension of disbelief required to make the story work. I don't want to spoil anything so I won't go into details, but Maddy not realizing … certain things about Connor just seems slightly ridiculous. Really, she just isn't very observant at all – parts of the mystery seemed blatantly obvious from the very beginning, stuff that Maddy didn't really begin to figure out until the final pages of the book.
Overall, though, Eye of the Beholder is a lot of fun. It's twisty and turny and the last 60% or so is basically unputdownable. Even though I'd figured out at least part of the mystery by that point, the suspense and foreboding as Maddy starts to unravel the story behind Scott's death is tremendous. I was anxious to see if my guesses were right, and there were also a few twists that I didn't see coming at all. I could definitely see this being an Alfred Hitchcock film … which I guess makes sense, considering the Vertigo connection.
Oh, and the setting is fantastic. A remote manor in the Scottish Highlands? With treacherous cliffs and fog and strangely moody men? Be still my gothic-loving heart.
Final rating: 3.75 stars, rounded up. If you like atmospheric and suspenseful tales of murder and mystery where all is not necessarily what it seems, you'll likely enjoy this one.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery/Scout Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.
August 1, 2024
This was an interesting read for me. It was a slow burn to begin, and takes nearly half the book for anything to really happen. I am glad that I stuck with it, although I did guess a few of the twists early on.
Maddy is a ghostwriter, and has been hired by a well known cosmetic surgeon, Angela Reynolds, to write her memoir. She is invited to her house in the Scottish Highlands to write and research. But Angela is only there a few hours before jetting off to see patients. Maddy gets increasingly frustrated with the lack of information on Angela, and the woman is not very forthcoming with her life story. Her time at the house is not what she expected ,and she meets Angela’s business partner Scott, and the 2 hit it off.
I don’t really want to say too much more as it will spoil the story for you. It certainly picks up pace in the second half, with so much happening. Maddy was a strange character, she was very obsessive and her relationship with Scott is built up into something so fast despite the fact they hardly know each other. I just went with it while shaking my head at times.
Thanks to Simon and Schuster UK for my advanced copy of this book to read. Published on August 14th.
Maddy is a ghostwriter, and has been hired by a well known cosmetic surgeon, Angela Reynolds, to write her memoir. She is invited to her house in the Scottish Highlands to write and research. But Angela is only there a few hours before jetting off to see patients. Maddy gets increasingly frustrated with the lack of information on Angela, and the woman is not very forthcoming with her life story. Her time at the house is not what she expected ,and she meets Angela’s business partner Scott, and the 2 hit it off.
I don’t really want to say too much more as it will spoil the story for you. It certainly picks up pace in the second half, with so much happening. Maddy was a strange character, she was very obsessive and her relationship with Scott is built up into something so fast despite the fact they hardly know each other. I just went with it while shaking my head at times.
Thanks to Simon and Schuster UK for my advanced copy of this book to read. Published on August 14th.
February 19, 2024
Review for NetGalley/Patreon tomorrow 2/19
December 3, 2023
TW: Language, cancer, death of parent, child abandonment, addiction, depression, anxiety
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela’s remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
Sharing the estate is Angela’s enigmatic business partner, Scott, whose mercurial moods change as quickly as the conditions on the darkening moors outside. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling of being watched. As objects go missing, handprints appear on the windows, and a stranger lurks in the grounds, she finds herself drawn ever closer to Scott. Returning to London once the book is finished, Maddy is excited for their future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs.
Which is why, months later and lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the Tube station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he?
Release Date: August 6th, 2024
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 320
Rating: ⭐
What I Liked:
1. Very atmospheric
2. Enjoyed the authors writing
What I Didn't Like:
1. Instalove between Maddy and scott
2. I hate the way depression/mental health is dealt with in this book
3. Book is padded with things that don't matter
4. Too many romances
5. All the instaloves
Overall Thoughts:
How has it taken Maddy a few days to realize there isn't a TV?
About 20% into the book we have a lot of inner monolog. Maddy turns into now researching Scott. She goes through all his work history. It slowed down the pacing of the book for me. Plus you get a lot of into about how to feed the dogs treats and what the dogs are like. I did not care.
Maddy drove me crazy. She is handed a list of everything that Dr. Reynolds wanted in her book - Dr. Reynolds even snaps at her for asking more questions and things she didn't want in the book, but she continues to search for more information even emailing old classmates. Dr. Reynolds would clearly see the first draft of the book and that it has things in it she doesn't want. Maddy is going out of her way to make things harder. Just write from what you have and get paid.
I didn't understand the point of Maddy having to be isolated at the island and why she stayed. She could work elsewhere since she was just video chatting with Dr. Reynolds anyways. By the second call I wondered if she even really left the island. I guess I found it odd that Maddy didn't even inquire about this and just accepted it. It would bother me that she said she'd be there then she leaves. She says I'm alone but then a man is staying with me. Maddy doesn't even ask why he's there. She asks none of the questions that matter but insists on prying on questions that don't matter.
We learn that Scott is at the house because he's going through a depression and needed to getaway.
Angela calls this time from "South Africa" but has a filter on the background. Yeah, because she is in the same location.
Maddy finding Scott, this man she knows nothing about digging through the alcohol and then being so mean to her and now denying it happening. I'd be out. It's too weird. Plus he's a addict but she doesn't even know what his addiction even is. But then she sees him on the beach and they have this moment where he points out the birds to her and suddenly she's forgiven him. Oh and then she just dismisses it like she's being crazy.
This book spends way too much time talking about the dogs. Ruby has a seizure and they rush her to the vet and then we get so much talk about taking care of the dog(s).
So, Scott isn't the real Scott. She has no idea what the real Scott looks like and that's why he didn't come out when people that know the real Scott have been there.
I can't understand what Maddys obsession with Scott is. He has horrible mood swings. One minute he's so nice to her and the next he's complete trash, but for some reason she gets closer to him. Why??? She suspects that alcohol is his addiction but then continues to drink with him. It's all so weird.
I love the misrepresentation of depression in this book.
Maddy saying with 100% certainty that Scott didn't kill himself. She's known him for two weeks and that doesn't mean that he couldn't kill himself because people are married to people for years, even decades and people still kill themselves.
It drove me insane how obsessed Maddy became with Scott. It's been 6 months. She's still pretending that they were in this years long relationship. She barely knew him. He was a different person with her st times. I don't love insta-love plotlines.
Wtf and Maddy calling the police over and over to tell them that it was a murder and not a suicide. She has a notebook that details the location of the house and what could have happened.
I am 200 pages into this book and I am so bored. I feel like nothing has happened. There is SO much padding in this book and things that happen that don't even matter. They are now going to a wedding and I just want it to be over now.
Someone please stop Maddy! This guy she thinks is Scott but is Conner she chases down into a club, sneaks in, and gets thrown out of club. Conner follows her and the bouncer outside to put her in a cab and send her home. Of course now Maddy can't let it go that he paid got her cab and she just has to chase him down to pay him back because - I don't even know why. He ignored her calls and texts but she reads on the back of the receipt he gave the cab driver with his number that it's from a café, so she decides to stalk the café for him. She's stalking him. This is absolutely insanity. She sits there morning to afternoon and he comes in but cue the shock because he works there... A million dollars says he owns the café (EDIT he owns part of it)
Wtf! She asks him out and he says okay. Get me out of this book please. She has zero to with what the book said it was about. She sat all day at the café waiting for him.
Her and Conner are on date 4 when she decides she's going to make him try on an expensive sweater. He clearly is uncomfortable but it reminds her of the one Scott wore so yeah she's definitely still insane. She returns the next day to buy him trousers, the sweater, and shoes. How lucky she can flash back and remember he wears a size 12. In the book Conner tells her when he's dragged into this store that he likes his look.
Omg have I mentioned I hate Maddy?? I do. She mentions that she doesn't like his beard because it makes her face red. She even puts on this production of putting on stuff on her face to make it less red. They pass a barbershop and they get dragged in while she tells thd barber he does need a haircut. While she mentions that she "jokes" that he should get the beard shaved off. She continues to press the issue pushing him to cut it off. Of course Conner is a sand human who gets upset that she does this plus the clothes that he had mentioned he didn't want - he leaves get in the street. But does Maddy understand what happened? Nope why would she. Am I supposed to be rooting for her because she's absolutely terrible. She's now known Conner longer than Scott but she's still trying to make this dude into him.
Does Maddy have a magic vagina that all these dudes fall in love with her in like 2 weeks.
Don't worry Conner forgives her. I mean she even called him Scott's name that doesn't matter. She comes clean about the man from before. You know what Conner does? He shaves. He shaves his beard for this woman who embarrassed him and then tells him she is pretty much chasing after her exs image. But weirdly enough before that Conner says he's wortied he won't be enough for her so this is what he does..... What is this book? And then he let's her shave his face.
Of course sex after he shaves.
Sigh. We then find out that Conner is actually Scott's younger brother. What are the fucking chances that she would find him? Not only that he has zero issues with making himself look like his brother so he can sleep with his brothers "ex." plus he feels for her so strongly and is in love with her. Omg just burn these two together. Ohhh and Conner was pretending to be Scott while he was on a bender. I told you he wasn't the real Scott!!!
The reveal makes no sense. Why wouldn't Angela had just said that Scott was working at the house when he was in rehab. Why did
Maddy finds out of Conners secrets. She's so mad and can't forgive him (yet) but it's okay she was secretly trying to change Conner into being the person she thought she knew as Scott.
Oh look Angela isn't who said she was. Just shocked. Or not
Final Thoughts:
Definitely can see the elements of Vertigo in this book.
Oh well I dnfed this book at page 288 because I didn't care. I don't care. I hate them all. Ending seemed straightforward.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Gallery books for this gifted copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela’s remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
Sharing the estate is Angela’s enigmatic business partner, Scott, whose mercurial moods change as quickly as the conditions on the darkening moors outside. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling of being watched. As objects go missing, handprints appear on the windows, and a stranger lurks in the grounds, she finds herself drawn ever closer to Scott. Returning to London once the book is finished, Maddy is excited for their future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs.
Which is why, months later and lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the Tube station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he?
Release Date: August 6th, 2024
Genre: Thriller
Pages: 320
Rating: ⭐
What I Liked:
1. Very atmospheric
2. Enjoyed the authors writing
What I Didn't Like:
1. Instalove between Maddy and scott
2. I hate the way depression/mental health is dealt with in this book
3. Book is padded with things that don't matter
4. Too many romances
5. All the instaloves
Overall Thoughts:
How has it taken Maddy a few days to realize there isn't a TV?
About 20% into the book we have a lot of inner monolog. Maddy turns into now researching Scott. She goes through all his work history. It slowed down the pacing of the book for me. Plus you get a lot of into about how to feed the dogs treats and what the dogs are like. I did not care.
Maddy drove me crazy. She is handed a list of everything that Dr. Reynolds wanted in her book - Dr. Reynolds even snaps at her for asking more questions and things she didn't want in the book, but she continues to search for more information even emailing old classmates. Dr. Reynolds would clearly see the first draft of the book and that it has things in it she doesn't want. Maddy is going out of her way to make things harder. Just write from what you have and get paid.
I didn't understand the point of Maddy having to be isolated at the island and why she stayed. She could work elsewhere since she was just video chatting with Dr. Reynolds anyways. By the second call I wondered if she even really left the island. I guess I found it odd that Maddy didn't even inquire about this and just accepted it. It would bother me that she said she'd be there then she leaves. She says I'm alone but then a man is staying with me. Maddy doesn't even ask why he's there. She asks none of the questions that matter but insists on prying on questions that don't matter.
We learn that Scott is at the house because he's going through a depression and needed to getaway.
Angela calls this time from "South Africa" but has a filter on the background. Yeah, because she is in the same location.
Maddy finding Scott, this man she knows nothing about digging through the alcohol and then being so mean to her and now denying it happening. I'd be out. It's too weird. Plus he's a addict but she doesn't even know what his addiction even is. But then she sees him on the beach and they have this moment where he points out the birds to her and suddenly she's forgiven him. Oh and then she just dismisses it like she's being crazy.
This book spends way too much time talking about the dogs. Ruby has a seizure and they rush her to the vet and then we get so much talk about taking care of the dog(s).
So, Scott isn't the real Scott. She has no idea what the real Scott looks like and that's why he didn't come out when people that know the real Scott have been there.
I can't understand what Maddys obsession with Scott is. He has horrible mood swings. One minute he's so nice to her and the next he's complete trash, but for some reason she gets closer to him. Why??? She suspects that alcohol is his addiction but then continues to drink with him. It's all so weird.
I love the misrepresentation of depression in this book.
Maddy saying with 100% certainty that Scott didn't kill himself. She's known him for two weeks and that doesn't mean that he couldn't kill himself because people are married to people for years, even decades and people still kill themselves.
It drove me insane how obsessed Maddy became with Scott. It's been 6 months. She's still pretending that they were in this years long relationship. She barely knew him. He was a different person with her st times. I don't love insta-love plotlines.
Wtf and Maddy calling the police over and over to tell them that it was a murder and not a suicide. She has a notebook that details the location of the house and what could have happened.
I am 200 pages into this book and I am so bored. I feel like nothing has happened. There is SO much padding in this book and things that happen that don't even matter. They are now going to a wedding and I just want it to be over now.
Someone please stop Maddy! This guy she thinks is Scott but is Conner she chases down into a club, sneaks in, and gets thrown out of club. Conner follows her and the bouncer outside to put her in a cab and send her home. Of course now Maddy can't let it go that he paid got her cab and she just has to chase him down to pay him back because - I don't even know why. He ignored her calls and texts but she reads on the back of the receipt he gave the cab driver with his number that it's from a café, so she decides to stalk the café for him. She's stalking him. This is absolutely insanity. She sits there morning to afternoon and he comes in but cue the shock because he works there... A million dollars says he owns the café (EDIT he owns part of it)
Wtf! She asks him out and he says okay. Get me out of this book please. She has zero to with what the book said it was about. She sat all day at the café waiting for him.
Her and Conner are on date 4 when she decides she's going to make him try on an expensive sweater. He clearly is uncomfortable but it reminds her of the one Scott wore so yeah she's definitely still insane. She returns the next day to buy him trousers, the sweater, and shoes. How lucky she can flash back and remember he wears a size 12. In the book Conner tells her when he's dragged into this store that he likes his look.
Omg have I mentioned I hate Maddy?? I do. She mentions that she doesn't like his beard because it makes her face red. She even puts on this production of putting on stuff on her face to make it less red. They pass a barbershop and they get dragged in while she tells thd barber he does need a haircut. While she mentions that she "jokes" that he should get the beard shaved off. She continues to press the issue pushing him to cut it off. Of course Conner is a sand human who gets upset that she does this plus the clothes that he had mentioned he didn't want - he leaves get in the street. But does Maddy understand what happened? Nope why would she. Am I supposed to be rooting for her because she's absolutely terrible. She's now known Conner longer than Scott but she's still trying to make this dude into him.
Does Maddy have a magic vagina that all these dudes fall in love with her in like 2 weeks.
Don't worry Conner forgives her. I mean she even called him Scott's name that doesn't matter. She comes clean about the man from before. You know what Conner does? He shaves. He shaves his beard for this woman who embarrassed him and then tells him she is pretty much chasing after her exs image. But weirdly enough before that Conner says he's wortied he won't be enough for her so this is what he does..... What is this book? And then he let's her shave his face.
Of course sex after he shaves.
Sigh. We then find out that Conner is actually Scott's younger brother. What are the fucking chances that she would find him? Not only that he has zero issues with making himself look like his brother so he can sleep with his brothers "ex." plus he feels for her so strongly and is in love with her. Omg just burn these two together. Ohhh and Conner was pretending to be Scott while he was on a bender. I told you he wasn't the real Scott!!!
The reveal makes no sense. Why wouldn't Angela had just said that Scott was working at the house when he was in rehab. Why did
Maddy finds out of Conners secrets. She's so mad and can't forgive him (yet) but it's okay she was secretly trying to change Conner into being the person she thought she knew as Scott.
Oh look Angela isn't who said she was. Just shocked. Or not
Final Thoughts:
Definitely can see the elements of Vertigo in this book.
Oh well I dnfed this book at page 288 because I didn't care. I don't care. I hate them all. Ending seemed straightforward.
IG | Blog
Thanks to Netgalley and Gallery books for this gifted copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
February 10, 2024
I so wanted to like this novel. The cover was intriguing. I looked forward to the “thriller” that the promo promised. Unfortunately, I found “Eye of the Beholder” to be only a tepid and predictable mystery.
Maddy Wright is a ghostwriter for wealthy clients who want to produce their memoirs but can’t do it themselves. Despite her talent and hard work, Maddy’s name never appears in the books she writes since that would ruin the illusion that the “autobiographer” had written the book. Having published nothing under her own name, her career seemed stuck in neutral gear.
But now, Maddy has been hired by Dr. Angela Reynolds, a brilliant cosmetic surgeon who runs a corporation operating high-end clinics all over the world. Reynolds intends her memoir to be an aid to her corporation and clinics. The payoff for Maddy? A whopping fee and credit as co-author. The challenge? Maddy has only four weeks to complete the book.
So that Maddy can remain focused and always available, Reynolds sends the ghostwriter to her ultra-modern but very isolated home in the Scottish Highlands. Shortly after Maddy’s arrival, Reynold’s business partner, Scott, arrives unexpectedly and takes up residence in another wing of the house. Maddy and Scott experience several odd events Various questions and inconsistencies arise. Eventually, Maddy and Scott begin a romance.
Dr. Reynolds and Maddy do not work well together. They disagree about the book’s contents, Reynolds insisting that her memoir focus on cosmetology rather than her. Then Reynolds moves up the book’s launch date, giving Maddy even less time. Nevertheless, she finishes by the new deadline. Reynolds is pleased. Maddy returns to London to await publication day, eager to see her name on the finished product. At the launch party, Maddy learns that the book has been scrapped in favor of a new product and a corporate merger and that Scott has been found dead at the bottom of a cliff in Scotland. Several months later in London, Maddy is sure she sees Scott on a crowded street. Just what in the heck is going on?
“Eye of the Beholder” starts out well enough. Author Emma Bamford immediately hooks us by beginning the story with Maddy chasing her presumed-dead lover down city streets. As the narrator and protagonist, Maddy seems likable. The Scottish Highlands/”Brutalist“ mansion setting is well and specifically depicted. Bamford’s prose is clear and professional and includes the occasional literary flair. Her dialogue is believable.
As the novel progresses, however, Maddy loses credibility, becoming more self-absorbed and needy and much less likable. Her disagreements with Reynolds make her seem headstrong and churlish. Her love for Scott seems to come out of nowhere. None of the other characters are particularly engaging. Reynolds seems cold and aloof. Scott comes off as moody and morose. It’s tough to be “thrilled” by a novel whose characters are off-putting.
However, it was the novel’s plot and structure that I found most problematic. During the first half, I had trouble identifying what the mystery involved. Yes, some oddities occurred while Maddy was writing and falling in love in Scotland. But what were they in aid of? What was this novel about? It wasn’t until the second half that it became clear that these incidents actually “telegraphed” what was eventually to be revealed, thus rendering the “solutions” to the “mysteries” presented very predictable. That those solutions also relied on reams of “backstory,” some of which was delivered in long sections of explication, did not help matters.
Finally, I don’t believe “Eye of the Beholder” deserves to be called a “thriller.” It never left me on the edge of my seat or made my pulse pound or my eyes leap from page to page to see what happened next.
All in all, 2.75 stars rounded up to 3, meaning I did not enjoy this reading experience but found parts of it well done. Readers who are new, or fairly new, to the mystery genre may find something to enjoy here. But those who’ve read or watched a lot of the genre may come away from “Eye of the Beholder” with the feeling that they’ve seen all of this before.
My thanks to NetGalley, author Emma Bamford, and publisher Gallery Books, Gallery/Scout Press for providing me with a complimentary ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.
Maddy Wright is a ghostwriter for wealthy clients who want to produce their memoirs but can’t do it themselves. Despite her talent and hard work, Maddy’s name never appears in the books she writes since that would ruin the illusion that the “autobiographer” had written the book. Having published nothing under her own name, her career seemed stuck in neutral gear.
But now, Maddy has been hired by Dr. Angela Reynolds, a brilliant cosmetic surgeon who runs a corporation operating high-end clinics all over the world. Reynolds intends her memoir to be an aid to her corporation and clinics. The payoff for Maddy? A whopping fee and credit as co-author. The challenge? Maddy has only four weeks to complete the book.
So that Maddy can remain focused and always available, Reynolds sends the ghostwriter to her ultra-modern but very isolated home in the Scottish Highlands. Shortly after Maddy’s arrival, Reynold’s business partner, Scott, arrives unexpectedly and takes up residence in another wing of the house. Maddy and Scott experience several odd events Various questions and inconsistencies arise. Eventually, Maddy and Scott begin a romance.
Dr. Reynolds and Maddy do not work well together. They disagree about the book’s contents, Reynolds insisting that her memoir focus on cosmetology rather than her. Then Reynolds moves up the book’s launch date, giving Maddy even less time. Nevertheless, she finishes by the new deadline. Reynolds is pleased. Maddy returns to London to await publication day, eager to see her name on the finished product. At the launch party, Maddy learns that the book has been scrapped in favor of a new product and a corporate merger and that Scott has been found dead at the bottom of a cliff in Scotland. Several months later in London, Maddy is sure she sees Scott on a crowded street. Just what in the heck is going on?
“Eye of the Beholder” starts out well enough. Author Emma Bamford immediately hooks us by beginning the story with Maddy chasing her presumed-dead lover down city streets. As the narrator and protagonist, Maddy seems likable. The Scottish Highlands/”Brutalist“ mansion setting is well and specifically depicted. Bamford’s prose is clear and professional and includes the occasional literary flair. Her dialogue is believable.
As the novel progresses, however, Maddy loses credibility, becoming more self-absorbed and needy and much less likable. Her disagreements with Reynolds make her seem headstrong and churlish. Her love for Scott seems to come out of nowhere. None of the other characters are particularly engaging. Reynolds seems cold and aloof. Scott comes off as moody and morose. It’s tough to be “thrilled” by a novel whose characters are off-putting.
However, it was the novel’s plot and structure that I found most problematic. During the first half, I had trouble identifying what the mystery involved. Yes, some oddities occurred while Maddy was writing and falling in love in Scotland. But what were they in aid of? What was this novel about? It wasn’t until the second half that it became clear that these incidents actually “telegraphed” what was eventually to be revealed, thus rendering the “solutions” to the “mysteries” presented very predictable. That those solutions also relied on reams of “backstory,” some of which was delivered in long sections of explication, did not help matters.
Finally, I don’t believe “Eye of the Beholder” deserves to be called a “thriller.” It never left me on the edge of my seat or made my pulse pound or my eyes leap from page to page to see what happened next.
All in all, 2.75 stars rounded up to 3, meaning I did not enjoy this reading experience but found parts of it well done. Readers who are new, or fairly new, to the mystery genre may find something to enjoy here. But those who’ve read or watched a lot of the genre may come away from “Eye of the Beholder” with the feeling that they’ve seen all of this before.
My thanks to NetGalley, author Emma Bamford, and publisher Gallery Books, Gallery/Scout Press for providing me with a complimentary ARC. The foregoing is my independent opinion.
August 13, 2024
First of all, the synopsis for Eye of the Beholder gives too much of the plot away. If you’re interested in this novel, I encourage you to avoid reading the full synopsis and steer clear of reviews that summarize the plot in a lot of detail.
Even if you do go into this book completely blind, though, I’m guessing that you, like me, will see the twists coming from a mile away. And I’m guessing that you, like me, will be pretty annoyed about the suspension of disbelief that this entire book requires.
Don’t get me wrong, Eye of the Beholder isn’t all bad. Set in the Scottish Highlands, it’s intensely atmospheric, with vivid descriptions of the remote, gloomy landscape, which serves as a contrast for the trendy modern home where much of the book takes place. I like how Emma Bamford plays with the idea of perception throughout the novel, from the title on down. She also laces the narrative with a pervasive sense of unease, which works well for the story she’s telling. She provides some thought-provoking commentary and insights about the beauty industry. And I appreciate her efforts to re-work Vertigo for a modern audience – although I’m not sure she went far enough with it or said anything new or worthwhile.
Almost everything else about Eye of the Beholder, though, did not work for me: the slow and uneven pacing, the repetitive nature of the plot, the insta-love, the painfully obvious twists, the outlandish reveals that felt more suited to something from Scooby Doo. There was so much potential here, but the execution just didn’t work for me. Thank you to Gallery/Scout Press for the complimentary reading opportunity.
Even if you do go into this book completely blind, though, I’m guessing that you, like me, will see the twists coming from a mile away. And I’m guessing that you, like me, will be pretty annoyed about the suspension of disbelief that this entire book requires.
Don’t get me wrong, Eye of the Beholder isn’t all bad. Set in the Scottish Highlands, it’s intensely atmospheric, with vivid descriptions of the remote, gloomy landscape, which serves as a contrast for the trendy modern home where much of the book takes place. I like how Emma Bamford plays with the idea of perception throughout the novel, from the title on down. She also laces the narrative with a pervasive sense of unease, which works well for the story she’s telling. She provides some thought-provoking commentary and insights about the beauty industry. And I appreciate her efforts to re-work Vertigo for a modern audience – although I’m not sure she went far enough with it or said anything new or worthwhile.
Almost everything else about Eye of the Beholder, though, did not work for me: the slow and uneven pacing, the repetitive nature of the plot, the insta-love, the painfully obvious twists, the outlandish reveals that felt more suited to something from Scooby Doo. There was so much potential here, but the execution just didn’t work for me. Thank you to Gallery/Scout Press for the complimentary reading opportunity.
December 9, 2024
A fantastic and mind-bending thriller. This book gripped me from the first page as I tore through it. A strange and unusual read where a ghostwriter is writing the memoir of a cosmetic surgeon who has many, many, secrets to hide.
March 4, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of
Eye of the Beholder.
** Minor boring non-spoilers ahead **
Maddy Wight is a ghostwriter who has been tasked to pen the memoir of a famous cosmetic surgeon.
She's remanded to the doctor's exclusive estate in Scotland to pen a draft during a tight deadline.
While on this isolated retreat, she meets the doctor's business partner, Scott, who she falls almost instantly for.
When Scott dies of an apparent suicide, Maddy is convinced he would never take his own life and sets out to prove herself right.
She soon discovers the good doctor isn't who she appears to be. And neither was Scott.
Maddy is a very unlikable character; in fact, she's a typical trope in these genre novels.
She's lonely and alone, an only child of a single parent who is deceased.
She lacks confidence and self esteem, and has only one friend.
She's so pathetic she considers her mother's death from cancer an abandonment.
For real? Girl, you need therapy!
No wonder she gloms onto Scott like the Second Coming. She barely knows the dude and clings onto him for dear life.
When she meets a new dude Connor, she treats him like Jimmy Stewart does to Kim Novak in Vertigo.
Let's just say it's not healthy behavior.
I'm not sure why Maddy's obsessed with Scott; because she needs a man in her life or...just someone will do?
OK, that's enough about why Maddy makes for a cruddy main character.
Now on to the narrative, which is not much better.
It's neither suspenseful or exciting, thrilling or dramatic.
It's full of filler, lots of filler about cosmetic procedures and the doctor's dogs and taking walks on the island, blah blah blah.
Stuff doesn't really happen until the last 50 pages and they're a doozy.
Prepare to suspend disbelief.
If you can, then the rest of the novel is no sweat, but I had serious issues.
I couldn't believe all this was happening, I knew the doctor was shady, fine, I'll roll with it with some eye rolls here and there, but the cherry on top was when Maddy sees everything going down in a recording!
Mega eye roll its amazing my eyes didn't roll right out of my head!
The writing was good, but a loser main character and silly plot made this a long, slow slog of a read.
** Minor boring non-spoilers ahead **
Maddy Wight is a ghostwriter who has been tasked to pen the memoir of a famous cosmetic surgeon.
She's remanded to the doctor's exclusive estate in Scotland to pen a draft during a tight deadline.
While on this isolated retreat, she meets the doctor's business partner, Scott, who she falls almost instantly for.
When Scott dies of an apparent suicide, Maddy is convinced he would never take his own life and sets out to prove herself right.
She soon discovers the good doctor isn't who she appears to be. And neither was Scott.
Maddy is a very unlikable character; in fact, she's a typical trope in these genre novels.
She's lonely and alone, an only child of a single parent who is deceased.
She lacks confidence and self esteem, and has only one friend.
She's so pathetic she considers her mother's death from cancer an abandonment.
For real? Girl, you need therapy!
No wonder she gloms onto Scott like the Second Coming. She barely knows the dude and clings onto him for dear life.
When she meets a new dude Connor, she treats him like Jimmy Stewart does to Kim Novak in Vertigo.
Let's just say it's not healthy behavior.
I'm not sure why Maddy's obsessed with Scott; because she needs a man in her life or...just someone will do?
OK, that's enough about why Maddy makes for a cruddy main character.
Now on to the narrative, which is not much better.
It's neither suspenseful or exciting, thrilling or dramatic.
It's full of filler, lots of filler about cosmetic procedures and the doctor's dogs and taking walks on the island, blah blah blah.
Stuff doesn't really happen until the last 50 pages and they're a doozy.
Prepare to suspend disbelief.
If you can, then the rest of the novel is no sweat, but I had serious issues.
I couldn't believe all this was happening, I knew the doctor was shady, fine, I'll roll with it with some eye rolls here and there, but the cherry on top was when Maddy sees everything going down in a recording!
Mega eye roll its amazing my eyes didn't roll right out of my head!
The writing was good, but a loser main character and silly plot made this a long, slow slog of a read.
July 2, 2024
Synopsis: When writer Madeleine Wight is contracted to ghostwrite the memoir of Dr. Angela Reynolds, she travels to Varaig in Scotland, at the doctor’s request, to stay at the doctor’s luxury modern estate. The accommodation is luxe, and the pay is high. But Angela is an uncooperative client, providing almost no background information about her life, and maintaining virtual anonymity online. Maddy is thwarted and frustrated by Angela’s reluctance to talk about anything other than her work as a cosmetic surgeon.
Also staying at the estate is Scott, Angela’s business partner, whose presence draws Maddy in like a moth to the flame. Strange and unnerving things begin happening at the estate, drawing Scott and Maddy closer together. Maddy is attending the launch of the book in London when she is shocked to find out that Scott is dead, after a fall from the high cliffs at the estate. Months later, struggling with grief and loneliness, Maddy sees Scott on a London street. That cannot be possible because Scott is dead, or is he?
Thoughts: I will start with the positive as there were some things that were done quite well in this novel. There is a great sense of place in Eye of the Beholder. The author depicts the gloomy moors and stark chic of the house in Scotland with vivid prose. There is also a pervasive atmosphere of confusion and disorientation throughout the novel which supports the storyline. I appreciated the way in which the author carried the theme of blurred boundaries throughout the novel – the way in which all the glass in the house blurs the lines between outside and inside; the blurred lines between personal relationships versus professional relationships; and the struggle to determine reality from dreams or imagination. It requires a certain amount of skill to accomplish this successfully, which should be acknowledged.
That being said, the novel is certainly too long and repetitive. The means of carrying out Scott’s death is unrealistic and it strains credulity that this would get past the coroner (procurator fiscal) without question. I found Part Two so very different from Part One that it felt like I was reading a different novel, and the resolution felt a little too tidy for such a complex and dark novel.
Also staying at the estate is Scott, Angela’s business partner, whose presence draws Maddy in like a moth to the flame. Strange and unnerving things begin happening at the estate, drawing Scott and Maddy closer together. Maddy is attending the launch of the book in London when she is shocked to find out that Scott is dead, after a fall from the high cliffs at the estate. Months later, struggling with grief and loneliness, Maddy sees Scott on a London street. That cannot be possible because Scott is dead, or is he?
Thoughts: I will start with the positive as there were some things that were done quite well in this novel. There is a great sense of place in Eye of the Beholder. The author depicts the gloomy moors and stark chic of the house in Scotland with vivid prose. There is also a pervasive atmosphere of confusion and disorientation throughout the novel which supports the storyline. I appreciated the way in which the author carried the theme of blurred boundaries throughout the novel – the way in which all the glass in the house blurs the lines between outside and inside; the blurred lines between personal relationships versus professional relationships; and the struggle to determine reality from dreams or imagination. It requires a certain amount of skill to accomplish this successfully, which should be acknowledged.
That being said, the novel is certainly too long and repetitive. The means of carrying out Scott’s death is unrealistic and it strains credulity that this would get past the coroner (procurator fiscal) without question. I found Part Two so very different from Part One that it felt like I was reading a different novel, and the resolution felt a little too tidy for such a complex and dark novel.
Read
July 19, 2024Thank you so much to Emma Bamford, Netgalley, and Gallery Books for my copy of this book. It was about Maddy, a ghost writer who is commissioned to write a memoir for a famous plastic surgeon, Angela. She travels to her home in the remote Scottish highlands, and is asked to stay there while writing to be fully immersed. She is sharing the estate with Angela's partner Scott, and finds herself drawn to him.
Strange things start going on, including strangers lurking outside, handprints on the windows, and Scott's mood swings. When she returns to London to start promoting the book, she finds out that Scott jumped to his death, and Maddy thinks things are much more dark and complicated than she originally thought.
Thoughts: I am so sad that this was a DNF for me. It was just such a slow story that I couldn't get into it. I got around 40% of the way into this story and still felt that nothing was happening. I think I'll try to come back to it in the future, but I'm putting it down for now.
Strange things start going on, including strangers lurking outside, handprints on the windows, and Scott's mood swings. When she returns to London to start promoting the book, she finds out that Scott jumped to his death, and Maddy thinks things are much more dark and complicated than she originally thought.
Thoughts: I am so sad that this was a DNF for me. It was just such a slow story that I couldn't get into it. I got around 40% of the way into this story and still felt that nothing was happening. I think I'll try to come back to it in the future, but I'm putting it down for now.
May 28, 2024
a well-written, albeit flawed thriller.
despite it being able to get me out of a horrible slump, the story had a lot of romance that i wasn't expecting, and the insta-lust that came with it threw me off guard. the twist was also not my favourite, as it just didn't seem plausible. however, the setting and atmospheric writing was wonderful, and i would recommend this if you are new to the thriller genre and are able to suspend your belief for a story.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest thoughts!
despite it being able to get me out of a horrible slump, the story had a lot of romance that i wasn't expecting, and the insta-lust that came with it threw me off guard. the twist was also not my favourite, as it just didn't seem plausible. however, the setting and atmospheric writing was wonderful, and i would recommend this if you are new to the thriller genre and are able to suspend your belief for a story.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for my honest thoughts!
August 11, 2024
2.75 ⭐️
August 8, 2024
A modern retelling of Alfred Hitchcocks’s “Vertigo”.
August 28, 2024
Inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Vertigo I knew I would love it!!
Maddy is a ghostwriter, and has been hired by a well known cosmetic surgeon, Angela Reynolds, to write her memoir. She is invited to her house in the Scottish Highlands to write and research. To Maddys shock Angela is only there a few hours before jetting off to see patients. Maddy soon gets increasingly frustrated with the lack of information on Angela, like she won’t answer anything about her past , and the woman is not very forthcoming with much of anything . Her time at the house is not what she expected ,and she meets Angela’s business partner Scott, and the two hit it off. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling she’s being watched. When objects go missing, and handprints appear on the windows, she even spots a stranger lurking the grounds, she finds herself getting drawn closer to Scott. When she returns to London once the book is finished, Maddy is extremely excited for her and Scott’s future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs. Why would he do this? Confused and hurt months later shes lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he? I really enjoyed this book and couldn’t get enough!!
Maddy is a ghostwriter, and has been hired by a well known cosmetic surgeon, Angela Reynolds, to write her memoir. She is invited to her house in the Scottish Highlands to write and research. To Maddys shock Angela is only there a few hours before jetting off to see patients. Maddy soon gets increasingly frustrated with the lack of information on Angela, like she won’t answer anything about her past , and the woman is not very forthcoming with much of anything . Her time at the house is not what she expected ,and she meets Angela’s business partner Scott, and the two hit it off. Confined to the glass-walled house, Maddy can’t shake the feeling she’s being watched. When objects go missing, and handprints appear on the windows, she even spots a stranger lurking the grounds, she finds herself getting drawn closer to Scott. When she returns to London once the book is finished, Maddy is extremely excited for her and Scott’s future together. But her dreams are shattered at the book launch when Angela learns that Scott has leapt to his death from the Scottish cliffs. Why would he do this? Confused and hurt months later shes lost in a fog of grief, Maddy is completely blindsided when she sees Scott entering the station just in front of her. It can’t be him, can it? After all, Scott is dead...or is he? I really enjoyed this book and couldn’t get enough!!
September 6, 2024
CONTENT WARNINGS: cancer, death of parent, child abandonment, addiction, alcohol use, prescription drug use, drug use, mental illness, lying, manipulation, narcissism, unaliving oneself, obsession, stolen identity, dog having seizures, emergency veterinarian visit, and assault.
Jane Collingwood is the narrator for the audiobook version of this novel.
3 stars.
Jane Collingwood is the narrator for the audiobook version of this novel.
3 stars.
October 22, 2024
Written by millennials for millennials
July 8, 2024
Thank you to Booklist and Simon & Schuster for the ARC and the opportunity to review this title.
Professional ghostwriter Madeline Wight believes she’s found the client who will launch her career: cosmetic surgeon and aesthetic guru Dr. Angela Reynolds. The job sends Maddy to Angela’s house in Varaig, Scotland, with minimal Wi-Fi, a seemingly impossible deadline, and Angela’s unstable business partner, Scott. As Maddy dives in, more questions than answers float to the surface. Who is Dr. Angela Reynolds, really? Why is there no information about her online? What’s going on with Scott’s Jekyll and Hyde–like tendencies? In tribute to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, Bamford (Deep Water, 2022) pens a perilous and nuanced thriller on the dangers of the beauty industry and the lengths people will go to to get what they want. Maddy is a naive and amiable protagonist that readers will ultimately root for. The pacing is achingly slow, but readers’ patience will be rewarded with an intense climax and conclusion. Highly recommended for fans of Vertigo and readers who enjoy the intricately plotted novels of Ruth Ware, Sarah Pearse, and Riley Sager
Professional ghostwriter Madeline Wight believes she’s found the client who will launch her career: cosmetic surgeon and aesthetic guru Dr. Angela Reynolds. The job sends Maddy to Angela’s house in Varaig, Scotland, with minimal Wi-Fi, a seemingly impossible deadline, and Angela’s unstable business partner, Scott. As Maddy dives in, more questions than answers float to the surface. Who is Dr. Angela Reynolds, really? Why is there no information about her online? What’s going on with Scott’s Jekyll and Hyde–like tendencies? In tribute to Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, Bamford (Deep Water, 2022) pens a perilous and nuanced thriller on the dangers of the beauty industry and the lengths people will go to to get what they want. Maddy is a naive and amiable protagonist that readers will ultimately root for. The pacing is achingly slow, but readers’ patience will be rewarded with an intense climax and conclusion. Highly recommended for fans of Vertigo and readers who enjoy the intricately plotted novels of Ruth Ware, Sarah Pearse, and Riley Sager
June 1, 2024
Oh my goodness, this was BORING!
This isn't a long book in terms of page count, but it was truly one of the longest, most drawn-out, most dull books I've EVER read. Maddy was a very peculiar and uninteresting main character, Angela is thoroughly unbelievable and boring as a villain, Scott and Connor were himbo weirdos who fell in instalove with boring Maddy in ways that didn't make sense, and the twists and turns were contrived—the worst crime of all being that these twists and turns that took forever to get to were also unexciting.
There are a lot of potentially triggering or heavy topics handled completely carelessly by Bamford. I'm not sure if this is an actual psychological thriller because it is indeed psychologically taxing but the thrills never kicked in.
Nothing about this book made sense! I also did not pick up the Vertigo vibes it tried to put down.
Thank you to Gallery Books, Gallery/Scout Press, and NetGalley for providing an ARC!
1 ⭐️
🚨 Pub Date is 08/06/24
This isn't a long book in terms of page count, but it was truly one of the longest, most drawn-out, most dull books I've EVER read. Maddy was a very peculiar and uninteresting main character, Angela is thoroughly unbelievable and boring as a villain, Scott and Connor were himbo weirdos who fell in instalove with boring Maddy in ways that didn't make sense, and the twists and turns were contrived—the worst crime of all being that these twists and turns that took forever to get to were also unexciting.
There are a lot of potentially triggering or heavy topics handled completely carelessly by Bamford. I'm not sure if this is an actual psychological thriller because it is indeed psychologically taxing but the thrills never kicked in.
Nothing about this book made sense! I also did not pick up the Vertigo vibes it tried to put down.
Thank you to Gallery Books, Gallery/Scout Press, and NetGalley for providing an ARC!
1 ⭐️
🚨 Pub Date is 08/06/24
July 5, 2024
Thank you Gallery Books #partner for my gifted copy.
This is easily one of the best books I have ever read.
Emma Bamford's new novel is an absolute masterpiece. I was completely engulfed in this story. I'm sad it's over.
This is inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo." I have never seen the film, so I went into this story 100% blind. THANK GOD, because the rollercoaster I rode throughout this book was incredible. Not only was the suspense brilliant, but the love story sprinkled in there was the chefs kiss!
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela's remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
This is easily one of the best books I have ever read.
Emma Bamford's new novel is an absolute masterpiece. I was completely engulfed in this story. I'm sad it's over.
This is inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo." I have never seen the film, so I went into this story 100% blind. THANK GOD, because the rollercoaster I rode throughout this book was incredible. Not only was the suspense brilliant, but the love story sprinkled in there was the chefs kiss!
When Maddy Wight is hired to ghostwrite the memoir of world-renowned cosmetic surgeon Dr. Angela Reynolds, she thinks it might just be her chance to get her career back on track. She travels to Angela's remote estate in the Scottish Highlands to hunker down and learn everything she can. But the deeper she digs, the more elusive the doctor becomes. Is there more hidden beneath the surface of the kaleidoscopic beauty industry than Angela wants to reveal?
July 17, 2024
I’m a sucker for atmospheric crime fiction set in Scotland and this read is no exception. The remote location is the perfect setting for the first part of the book as it helps create the perfect atmosphere for suspense, suspicion and a general sense of isolation and foreboding. The second half of the book, set in London, perfectly balances the story as the tempo increases and we rush head on towards the climax of the story. Yes, you will see some parts coming and maybe others not so much but that’s what makes it such a great read. Honestly this is such a brilliant story with great characters that are so well written. I loved every minute of this addictive and immersive read.
March 24, 2024
Well done! Mr Hitchcok inspired this gripping and twisty story.
I loved it and it's strongly recommended
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
I loved it and it's strongly recommended
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine
August 5, 2024
Eye Of The Beholder by Emma Bamford, When Madeline white goes to Scotland to stay at Varolay to write the autobiography of cosmetic super Surgeant Angela, it becomes increasingly more difficult with changing deadlines and Angela her self leaving soon after Madeline‘s arrival.The person who is around is Angela‘s business partner Scott and Madeline quickly falls for him , even though she witnesses his strange behavior and as far as she knows his middle of the night antics. She still returns to London with the belief her and Scott will be together but at the book launch she learns Scott has thrown himself off the cliff. This is something Madeline instantly doesn’t believe because despite the fact she seen him‘s standing in a fugue state an acting unlike himself, more than once throughout her stay in Scotland she believes this is something he would never do. Not everything is as it seems and that isn’t the only surprise in store for Madeline when it comes to the beauty guru Angela before it’s over Madeline will learn about the strange noises at the house, The missing painting, Scott and so much more and it’s not all as glamorous as Angela would like you to believe. I didn’t get the vertigo vibes I mean I did but not enough to compare the book to it but having said that I found a lot of Angeles thoughts and sentiments were over the top and almost verging on ridiculous I did find myself being swept up in the book the closer it got to the end I wouldn’t called this a slow burn necessarily because things happen throughout but I also found the fact that Madeline was shocked about Scott to be bordering on the ridiculous… I mean really that surprised you not him killing his self, but everything else. Having said that I’m sure a lot of people will like this book and although I didn’t Haidet I really didn’t love it either. As I said however the closer I got to the end the more I wanted to know the whole story. I do think a lot of people will love this book as I said so give it a read.#NetGalley, #GalleryBooks, #EmmaBamford, #IOfTheBeholder,
July 21, 2024
Angela hires Maddy Wight to ghostwrite her memoir but as soon as she arrives at Angela’s house, it all seems to be good first and Angela is very welcoming and friendly and then strange and unsettling things begin to happen. She feels drawn to Scott. Scott is Angela’s business partner. Scott’s character is mysterious. The house feels unusual.
The truth is twisted and the unexpected happenings and strange things will make you question things and blur the line between the truth and lie. It all feels delusional until the truth comes out, mystery unveils and secrets find a way out. It was dark, twisty, suspenseful and deceitful book. The plot twists kept me on the edge. I like the setting of London and Scotland in books. The book is just not suspenseful and twisty but it has romance too.
Many Thanks to the Publisher, Author and Book Tour Organiser.
The truth is twisted and the unexpected happenings and strange things will make you question things and blur the line between the truth and lie. It all feels delusional until the truth comes out, mystery unveils and secrets find a way out. It was dark, twisty, suspenseful and deceitful book. The plot twists kept me on the edge. I like the setting of London and Scotland in books. The book is just not suspenseful and twisty but it has romance too.
Many Thanks to the Publisher, Author and Book Tour Organiser.
April 6, 2024
Rating: 2.5 stars.
This was okay, but I think marketing this as a thriller sets you off with unrealistic expectations. There was so much romance here and the rest of the story was a mystery, but there was never much suspense or action. Everything just kind of happens as it happens especially in the first half which was super slow. Towards the end, the pacing got better and I did enjoy the setting as well as the atmospheric writing but some suspense really would have helped with the reading experience.
Thanks to Netgalley for the eArc.
This was okay, but I think marketing this as a thriller sets you off with unrealistic expectations. There was so much romance here and the rest of the story was a mystery, but there was never much suspense or action. Everything just kind of happens as it happens especially in the first half which was super slow. Towards the end, the pacing got better and I did enjoy the setting as well as the atmospheric writing but some suspense really would have helped with the reading experience.
Thanks to Netgalley for the eArc.
January 29, 2024
Thank you #netgalley for another page-turner. The setting was dark and twisty which is perfect for this slow burn thriller. I'm a little young to be a true blue Hitchcock fan, but I knew this book was loosely based on Vertigo, so I had some ideas of where the story was going. This helped me during the slow burn phase of this book, but I still found myself surprised by parts. It was a little predictable in order areas, but there were a lot of good twist. Overall, I really enjoyed the read! 🌟🌟🌟🌟
October 24, 2025
My favorite genre of recent is struggling-british-woman-gets-offer-too-good-to-be-true. Usually I get my fix from Ruth Ware, but this time, Emma Bamford didn't disappoint! I really enjoyed the twisty story! I do think though that the mystery became a little thin early on, like easy to guess where it was going, but I liked where the second half of the book took the story. The MC is a little naive, but sometimes that makes for a good thriller. I'd still recommend the book. I had a good time :)
November 25, 2024
Fun thriller set in the Scottish highlands. Devoured it in one day.
December 22, 2025
for a thriller this kind of took forever to get started and then when it did was kind of underwhelming
December 7, 2023
Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for the eARC.
Part 1 of this book was fantastic: a ghostwriter whisked to a remote Scottish hideaway by a world renowned cosmetic surgeon to help create a book, an enormous salary and the chance to give her career a boost. The surgeon's business partner ends up staying too and an interesting
dynamic between them forms.
Part 2 wasn't as good, it was full of lies, disappointments and strange doings, sometimes quite confusing. However, I still couldn't put it down and loved and really enjoyed the heck of it overall,
Part 1 of this book was fantastic: a ghostwriter whisked to a remote Scottish hideaway by a world renowned cosmetic surgeon to help create a book, an enormous salary and the chance to give her career a boost. The surgeon's business partner ends up staying too and an interesting
dynamic between them forms.
Part 2 wasn't as good, it was full of lies, disappointments and strange doings, sometimes quite confusing. However, I still couldn't put it down and loved and really enjoyed the heck of it overall,
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