Unspeakable Things

by Sophie Kersey

Unspeakable Things is a chilling mystery about motherhood and madness.
Sarah moves back into her abandoned childhood home, hoping to connect with what’s left of her family. She is thrilled to learn about her long-dead mother from Uncle John, who runs the Woodlands Clinic nearby.
Then he tells her that her mother tried to kill her and died a mental patient at Woodlands. But is the truth even more shocking than that?
Sarah’s desperate search for what really happened to her mother rocks her marriage, career and friendships. Can she discover the family’s bitter secret before her baby is born?
Or will she go mad trying?

Genres: Mystery

200 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2018

About the author

Sophie Kersey worked in publishing for thirty years, helping others fulfill their writing dreams before finally leaving to follow her own. She is now a freelance writer and editor. Her articles have appeared in counselling and parenting magazines and in the US collection 'Enduring Love'. She is the author of 'The History of Halstead School'. 'Unspeakable Things' is her first novel. She lives in Kent with her husband, Jon, and has two grown-up sons.

Reviews

[Linda Strong · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

Mothers and Madness. That's what keeps Sarah awake at night and her blood pressure rising. Her husband thinks she's crazy and doesn't believe anything she says. Her sister-in-law thinks she's losing it. Her brother David says nothing .. just looks at her in that way he has.

Sarah once had a normal life. A man she loves, a job she's good at, and now a very much wanted pregnancy. Both she and her husband lost their parents at a fairly young age ... but Sarah discovers that her mother had a twin brother .. her Uncle John.

She moves back into her childhood home that's been empty ever since she left. She's hoping to connect with her Uncle and to learn more about her mother, especially as she is now pregnant herself.

Sarah starts an investigation into her mother's death ... she feels that something is wrong somewhere. There are secrets and lies that may prove far more devastating and dangerous if exposed to the outside world.

This is a terrific psychological thriller. There are several twists and turns that will keep you on edge. The suspense keeps building until the very last page.

This was a surprising debut novel. This is definitely an author worth following and I look forward to see what she presents next.

[ReadAlongWithSue ★⋆. ࿐࿔catching up · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was contacted about this debut novel and asked if I would like a copy to read, how could I not! I love debut novels. I love discovering new authors. I thought I had some idea of what to expect and thought it sounded like a book I was going to enjoy.

I was wrong.
It was much more than that! I was honestly and truthfully taken in with not just the plot but also the writing, its so compulsively compelling and very powerful. I loved it.

I read up on the author before accepting the the book too, and I see shes been in among the publishing world for thirty years and what I found interesting was that she had helped others fulfil their dreams of becoming an author.


Lets take Motherhood and mix it with 'madness' within the family heritage.
You get a good combination to what holds this plot together.
There are shocks in store for readers that you won't see coming.

A move back to Sarah childhood home with her husband evokes some unanswered questions for her.
Adjacent to her home is where the 'Mental Hospital' lays which is evokingly linked with her family history.
Her Uncle John now lives there and runs the place. Shes not seen him for years.

Revelations from her Uncle, her pregnancy, her mother's history of mental health all compile to enticing, compulsive, unputdownable read.

My empathy came to the fore for Sarah, so shes pregnant and her hormones are to blame? I understood she needed to do certain things and find out certain things she was pregnant.

Sarah couldn't remember anything about her Mother, she was very young and her Father didn't talk about it.
Uncle John was the one who satisfied some of her curiosity.

She had been told her Mother needed help, she was mad, mentally deranged and then she died.

Motherhood makes you more aware, more alert, more protective. Your instinct is to protect your child.

I loved how the author added a touch to each heading of the chapters as you go, it adds the monthly growth of the baby in the womb and the effects on the Mother.
I swallowed this remembering each of my [long ago] pregnancies.

When most of us are carrying a baby we get to think more of our own Mothers who carried us. A guide to have support from the one you trust. Your'e crutch, your kinship. But Sarah didn't have that, her Mother is dead, she suffered from a mental health illness, does that mean she will also?

Uncle John her Mother's twin holds the answers.
Shes shocked;
She can't bear it;
But she needs to know.

Is insanity hereditary?
Her husband at times fears shes loosing the plot; her hold on reality.
Is she?
Sarah is so obsessed, there was something about to happen before the baby was born, I could feel it as a reader, I could sense it, sniff it out, I knew whatever it was its not going to be nice.

David her husband appeared suspicious to me.
Why on earth wasn't he supporting his wife.

My jaw dropped to the floor towards the end as I gave out a gasp of surprise.

This is her debut novel. Unbelievable!
Would I follow this author until she writes another book? Don't ask a silly question, TOO RIGHT I WILL

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone who has lost a parent will be able to relate to the ongoing pain and grief as we pass milestones without having this person by our side to guide us or to share the highs and the lows of life with. When Sarah finds out she is pregnant, she desperately longs to find out more about her mother, who died when Sarah was four. Worse still, Sarah’s father has always been reluctant to talk about his wife, and now that he is dead, there is no one left to ask. When she manages to connect with her uncle John, her mother’s twin, Sarah is convinced that she will finally find some answers. She is shocked to hear that that her mother had been an inmate in a mental institution before her death, accused of trying to smother her baby daughter with a pillow. But John also proves to be tight-lipped when it comes to the events that led to her mother’s incarceration, and as the baby is growing inside her, Sarah is becoming more and more concerned. Is insanity hereditary? Should she be worried that a similar fate will befall her? Becoming more and more obsessed with finding out the truth, Sarah discovers some things that just don’t make any sense, but no one is taking her seriously. Some even wonder if she, too, is going crazy ...

I really enjoyed the setting of this novel, the old gothic building that houses a hospital for the mentally insane – I could picture it vividly! Every suspense novel relies on atmosphere to set the scene, and this was the perfect location. It even has a tower! Who doesn’t love a spooky old building, especially with a history like this?

Having lost my mother as a child, I could fully relate to Sarah’s longing to find out the truth, embarking on a similar quest when I had my babies (although my family history was a lot less dramatic than hers). By titling some chapters with the number of weeks in Sarah’s pregnancy, Kersey adds an added element of suspense – like a ticking clock – counting down to the inevitable finale. I have never seen this done quite the same way before, and it was very clever and effective. Knowing that something was about to happen before the baby would make its arrival, and that it would likely not be anything good, really revved up the sense of danger and suspense that lurked in the background of Sarah’s story.

Whilst Sarah’s story is the main focus of the novel, there is also a cast of secondary characters who offer the reader glimpses into their lives. I especially liked Nurse Kim’s story, and wished I could have found out more about her fate. It was also interesting to see how differently David, Sarah’s brother, deals with the mystery of their mother’s death, and how it frustrates Sarah that he doesn’t feel the same way about her quest as she does. Some of David’s actions made him somewhat suspicious to me – but you will have to read it yourself to find out if I was right or wrong!

Warning – there are a few themes in this novel that are not for the faint-hearted and may be disturbing to some readers. Once the skeletons start coming out of the family closet, there are truths that Sarah was definitely not prepared for. Dark and disturbing, this is an intriguing tale about the dark secrets families keep, and one woman’s quest for the truth. I am glad that my own quest unearthed much less shocking details! If you are a lover of mysteries with dysfunctional family dynamics and dark gothic undertones, than this may be the perfect read for you.

3.5 stars

Thank you to the author for gifting me a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!

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[Andrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boo. Hiss

Stupid main character and supporting characters can't see ridiculously obvious signs of this predictable plot. I was also irritated by the MULTIPLE rapes. Totally unnecessary. I only read to the end to confirm that this predictable "mystery" would end as I guessed it would in the first half of the book. Must make up for it by warning away any potential other readers.

[miss e c ireland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put this book down!

downloaded this book one evening and started reading it... Forced myself to stop at 1.30am and then couldn't wait to get the children to bed the next night to carry on and finish it! Absolutely amazing book, 5 stars

[Sonja Randall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Á mix of family secrets, a pregnancy, an unsure husband, a mother’s madness, silent brother and an uncle with an agenda of his own.
What is true and what not? Who to believe? Whom to support?
Evil next door.
Well-paced thriller, not too difficult to figure out.

[Sallie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

[Kirundo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed it :)

[Wenonah Weston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book from start to finish. I did not want to stop reading! I even shed a tear at the end of the book. I cannot wait to read another one of Sophie’s books!