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After Owen
Alice had the perfect life - then she became a step-mother to a boy with a traumatic past.
"Before Owen, my hours were filled with music, sex and food," says Alice, who lives a self-indulgent life with her lover, Liam, in Shakespeare's old town of Stratford-upon-Avon.
Owen is Liam's 8 year old son from a previous relationship. He turns up on Liam and Alice's doorstep one day, having been sent by his mother to be looked after by them whilst she is in hospital. It soon becomes clear that Owen is a very troubled little boy.
As Alice struggles to deal with this intrusion into their perfect life, she becomes vulnerable to the advances of Liam's business partner, Martin Grantham, a local gangster with a hidden agenda.
And as the extent of the abuse that Owen suffered becomes clear, Alice's life begins to spiral dangerously out of control... and so does her mind.
"Before Owen, my hours were filled with music, sex and food," says Alice, who lives a self-indulgent life with her lover, Liam, in Shakespeare's old town of Stratford-upon-Avon.
Owen is Liam's 8 year old son from a previous relationship. He turns up on Liam and Alice's doorstep one day, having been sent by his mother to be looked after by them whilst she is in hospital. It soon becomes clear that Owen is a very troubled little boy.
As Alice struggles to deal with this intrusion into their perfect life, she becomes vulnerable to the advances of Liam's business partner, Martin Grantham, a local gangster with a hidden agenda.
And as the extent of the abuse that Owen suffered becomes clear, Alice's life begins to spiral dangerously out of control... and so does her mind.
Unknown Binding
First published February 17, 2014
2 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
About the author
H.C. Gray
11 books15 followersAuthor of:
AFTER OWEN
TWENTY TWISTED TALES
and the FIVE GREAT BRITISH HORROR STORIES series
Available for download through Amazon.
HC Gray lives in England with her family, assorted animals and a poltergeist. She writes contemporary fiction and short story collections with a supernatural twist.
Search on Facebook and Twitter for 'HC Gray Author'.
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 3, 2015
I received this book from good reads give aways. It has been on the shelf a while as I wasn't sure about the title 'a supernatural thriller' however I loved it!! Read in a day because I couldn't put it down! I hadn't heard of Helen Gray before but her writing is excellent. I didn't want the book to finish and at the end felt quite sad.
I will definitely be looking for more of Helen Grays work in the future
I will definitely be looking for more of Helen Grays work in the future
August 15, 2014
I enjoyed this book and read it in just over a day. Do not let the description of supernatural thriller put you off as this is more a story of ghosts from the past rather than supernatural beings. The book is well written and I found myself wanting to strangle the child as much as the main character. I would definitely recommend.
March 21, 2015
I enjoyed this book although would not describe it as a psychological thriller and am puzzled as to why it was given this description? It's more a story of how memories are relived when something unexpected comes into your life. I read this in 2 days so an easy read but also a good read.
August 26, 2014
Very good, I loved the ghosty presence of her mother.
I could not put the book down and read it in 2 days.
I could not put the book down and read it in 2 days.
August 30, 2014
The front cover of ‘After Owen’ by Helen Gray describes it as ‘A Supernatural Thriller’.
The blurb tells the potential reader that ‘After Owen’ is a psychological thriller with elements of the supernatural and contained scenes of a sexual nature.
The latter was certainly true however it fell short of being a ‘psychological thriller’.
Liam and Alice have a good life, he runs a nightclub and she is a singer at the club. Their ambitions to expand the business from Stratford to London are about to be fulfilled when ‘Owen’ turns up on their doorstep and devastates their lives.
Eight year old Owen is Liam’s son, the result of a brief encounter and has been left for Liam to look after while his mother is in hospital.
Owen is a troubled, feral-like young boy who changes the course of Liam and Alice’s life and his behaviour draws out ‘hidden demons’ in both Alice and Liam.
An average story, written in the ‘first person’, reasonably told however, in my opinion lacks menace, the ‘supernatural’ elements are weak and I can no way describe it as a ‘thriller’.
I received a copy of ‘After Owen’ thanks to GoodReads GiveAways and author Helen Gray.
I can't honestly say that I would recommend this book.
The blurb tells the potential reader that ‘After Owen’ is a psychological thriller with elements of the supernatural and contained scenes of a sexual nature.
The latter was certainly true however it fell short of being a ‘psychological thriller’.
Liam and Alice have a good life, he runs a nightclub and she is a singer at the club. Their ambitions to expand the business from Stratford to London are about to be fulfilled when ‘Owen’ turns up on their doorstep and devastates their lives.
Eight year old Owen is Liam’s son, the result of a brief encounter and has been left for Liam to look after while his mother is in hospital.
Owen is a troubled, feral-like young boy who changes the course of Liam and Alice’s life and his behaviour draws out ‘hidden demons’ in both Alice and Liam.
An average story, written in the ‘first person’, reasonably told however, in my opinion lacks menace, the ‘supernatural’ elements are weak and I can no way describe it as a ‘thriller’.
I received a copy of ‘After Owen’ thanks to GoodReads GiveAways and author Helen Gray.
I can't honestly say that I would recommend this book.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews