We All Fall Down

by Cynthia Clark

Many years ago orphans Bea, her brother Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John lived together in a home, with their carer Miriam. But Miriam didn't care at all. If you asked the children, they would have said that Miriam hated them. And it's no fun living with someone who hates you, so the children decided to do something about it... Then a terrible accident changed everything, and the children were ripped apart from each other.

Many years ago Ronnie Moss made a mistake he can never take back, no matter how much he wishes he could, so instead he runs for his life. But he can't run forever.

Many years later the secrets of the past are finally being revealed, and nothing will ever be the same again.

Cynthia Clark has written a breathtaking suspense novel for all fans of B A Paris and Sophie Hannah.

412 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 4, 2018

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 4 out of 5]

We All Fall Down by Cynthia Clark was a great read, a story that sucked me in and plenty of twists all round. I read this in 2 nights. At times it was hard to know who was lying and who was honest - so many lies and secrets in a family of orphans who would do anything to survive.

30 years ago orphans Bea and her brother Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John all live with the heartless Miriam. She does not care for any of them, she is cruel and nasty. One morning on the way to school an traffic accident changes their lives forever. They are split up and taken to new homes.

Ronnie Moss was the driver responsible and he has been on the run ever since. When his hiding place is discovered and he is arrested, the orphans are reunited. But will their dark secrets be uncovered and their new lives ruined forever.


Thanks to Aria and Netgalley for my advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased

[Bandit · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another one of those (and by those I mean female authored female centric thrillers that seem to be ubiquitous and oh so popular these days) reads. Oh sure, why not. It was meant to be a palate cleanser after a particularly dour Scandinavian collection from WWII era. And in all fairness this book is definitely mindless enough to serve as a palate cleanser. But that’s about it. Otherwise it can be kindly described as plain and honestly as inane. A Lifetime movie at best, with clichéd cardboards for characters pondering a dilemma so easily solvable, it boggles the mind how many chapters it’s dragged on over until they finally arrive at a cutesy resolution and wrap it all up with a pink bow in the end. My favorite adjectives to describe a thriller are dark, psychological, twisted. This book doesn’t even come close. It’s chicklit or women’s fiction at best, in a thriller disguise. The author uses some of the basic genre set ups, the book starts off with 5 foster kids and a crime (vehicular manslaughter) and fast forwards to 28 years later when the adult versions are notified that the original driver is finally found, bringing up a secret from back in the day. But the entire thing is much too quaint and not even remotely clever, there’s no suspense, no guesswork involved, outside of trying to figure out how long it’ll take the none too bright protagonists to figure out a solution. The driver is no Mensa material either. Not enough to figure out to hide out in a nonextradition zone anyway. Difficult to care about any of them. The book’s much too long for what it is too. It’s the thriller lite version, for those who want to read the genre, but with nothing too disturbing or challenging or complicated. So it’s readable and mildly entertaining in that intelligence insulting way, but really wouldn’t be able to hold its own among so many far superior books of this kind available out there. Thanks Netgalley.

[Trish at Between My Lines · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

This book made me feel all the emotions as I read it. It begins with a nightmare physical abuse scenario for 5 foster children, and it spins out of control with consequences that haunt the misfortunate victims for decades.

I felt hugely empathic towards all parties (with one obvious exception), and I couldn't quite quess how it would all work out. Overall I thought it was an engaging, heart-wrenching read with a storyline that held my attention right till the end.

This was my first book by Cynthia Clark but I look forward to reading more of her work.

Thanks to Aria Fiction for giving me for giving me a copy of this book for review consideration. As always, no matter what the source of the book, you get my honest, unbiased opinion

[CloudOfThoughts_Books Keirstin · Rating 5 out of 5]

We All Fall Down by author Cynthia Clark is an intense and dark thriller! The characters are developed great and the plot itself is thick. I would absolutely recommend this book.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an arc copy of We All Fall Down in exchange for an honest review.

[Mystica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bea and her brother Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John live with a foster mother as all of them come from families which have broken up for one reason or another. The misery that Miriam imposes on them is unimaginable and painful, degrading and horrible. The children however for one reason only did not complain to the authorities though they had ample opportunities to do so. Just because they did not want to be separated and they thought that the situation could be worse.



A freak accident which causes the death of Sebastian, paralyses Miriam sets them all free of her clutches in different ways. Some live in very nice homes after this, some dont. The driver of the truck Ronnie Moss shaken and drunk after the accident runs away to the Caribbean and is forgotton by the children, but not by the authorities.

Decades later, all grown up getting on with their lives, the bombshell that the truck driver has been found, is being sent back to England to trial and that Miriam may regain her memory of the incident is a ticking bomb for all of them. During the last few months of their stay with their foster carer, they came up with the brilliant idea of slowly poisoning Miriam with rat poison in order to weaken her and make her unable to physically abuse them the way she did. Will this secret hidden for so many years now come out and ruin all their lives.

Once again anxious, worried and on edge the four of them come together to face this new calamity in their lives and how to handle the situation carefully, not bringing any of them into suspicion with the authorities who have started interrogating each of them individually about their stay with Miriam.

The story highlights how easy it is for abuse to be in a system and for it not to be noticed by either teachers or fellow students or friends. All of them were severely underweight, all of them carried bruises and no one was any the wiser as to what was happening.

It was a sad story but with redemption at the end.

[Patty · Rating 3 out of 5]

We All Fall Down
By
Cynthia Clark


What it's all about...

Siblings are living in a home run by an evil caretaker named Miriam. BEA, Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John were under the cruel rule of Miriam. She beat them and starved them and tortured them. As she was driving them to school one morning there was a horrific accident. Miriam and most of the children were badly hurt, one child was killed and the driver of the other car involved ran away and remained unfounded for nearly 30 years until he is finally recognized and brought to stand trial.

Why I wanted to read it...

This book had lots of secrets and lies that made it interesting...at first.

What made me truly enjoy this book...

I am not sure that I really enjoyed this book. I didn’t really like the characters and their secrets. After a while their secrets just became tiring. I wanted them to tell the truth about Miriam instead of being so afraid.

This started out as an exciting book that lost its excitement toward its middle and ending.

I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley and Amazon. It was my choice to read it and review it.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must admit that prior to being invited to take part in the blog tour for ‘We All Fall Down’, I hadn’t actually come across Cynthia Clark before. Now I am left asking myself how in the world have I not heard of her before now and how have I missed her first book. The synopsis and the cover of the book really appealed to me and so without further ado I started reading. Overall I did enjoy it but more about that in a bit.
I must admit that there were certain of these characters that I could have quite cheerfully slapped a few dozen times around with the chops with a wet flip flop. The more painful the better. One such character is Miriam, who is the so-called foster parent of a group of children but to say she is a sadist is a huge understatement. Honestly if I could have confiscated that frying pan and given her a dose of her own medicine then I would have done. That’s just one instance of what she gets up to. Another such character is Ronnie Moss, the lorry driver who causes an horrific accident but who does a runner before he is caught. If I could have jumped inside the pages of the book to box him around the ears and frogmarch him to the police station myself then I would have done. The ones I felt most sorry for were the foster children under Miriam’s care. If I could have jumped inside the pages of the book to give them all a hug then I would have done. If there’s one thing that I hate, it is child abuse and effectively this is what Miriam does.
I have to be honest and say that it took me a fair while to get into this book. To start with there are some pretty graphic details given about the sadistic treatment that Miriam dishes out that makes for some pretty uncomfortable and distressing reading and I admit that I did wonder if I should stop reading. That thought only lasted for a second or two. I am so glad that I persevered in reading the book because in the end I did enjoy it. As the book continued, I did feel drawn into the story and I ended up becoming addicted to reading it. I just had to keep reading to see if Ronnie Moss ended up having to pay for what he did and if the children (or adults as they are in the latter half of the book) ended up living happy and fulfilling lives. The story gathered pace and momentum and I seemed to race to the end. Reading this book was much like being on a scary and unpredictable rollercoaster ride with a fair few twists and turns. I also loved the psychological aspect of this book
Overall I did enjoy reading this book and I would definitely recommend it to other readers. A note of warning though, some people might be upset by the details of Miriam’s abuse of the children so be prepared. I will definitely be reading Cynthia’s first book and I look forward to reading any of her future books. The score on the Ginger Book Geek is a well deserved 4* out of 5*.

[Lori L (She Treads Softly) · Rating 3 out of 5]

We All Fall Down by Cynthia Clark is a recommended drama that focuses on the individuals involved in an incident and the aftermath of their actions.

In 1989 five children are living in a foster home with Miriam, their abusive care giver. Bea, her brother Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John have all experienced pain, bruises, and abuse at the hands of Miriam so they decide on a course of action together and set out to execute it. Their plan was supposed to slow Miriam down and protect them a bit, while keeping the children together. Then a terrible accident happens that resulted in the children being separated from each other. Ronnie Moss was blamed for the accident and he ran as far away from Great Britain as he could to escape any recrimination.

It is now 2017 and some business men on vacation recognize Ronnie and he is arrested and now awaiting extradition. The children, now adults, are informed of the arrest and the police want their statements about what they remember from 1989 and the accident. This request brings them back together, but also causes them a great deal of anxiety and worry about how much information will be revealed or uncovered.

The story begins with ten-year-old Bea being abused at the hands of Miriam. The ongoing physical and verbal abuse the children have all experienced is revealed, as well as how close the children feel to each other. Their plan is revealed and the reasons for it. Then the accident happens, resulting in a different kind of pain for Bea, and the children are all separated. The background information and the actions from 1989 is clearly presented and then where the characters of Ronnie, Bea, and Helen are looked at in the present day. This is not a mystery or a thriller. We know what happened. Rather, it is an exploration of the characters and their motives and thoughts.

We All Fall Down is a slow-moving novel that builds up and reveals the whole story slowly. I have to admit that the dilemma the surviving adults are concerned about due to their circumstances from 1989 is really a non-issue. I'm surprised that they didn't just come up with their final decision right away. I'm surprised they didn't say something about Miriam in 1989. Sure they wanted to stay together, but they could have said that while telling someone about the abuse. When they turn back as adults to the logic they used as children, it's unfathomable. Either speak up or don't. This is an airplane book. It's interesting, moderately well-written, and will help you pass the time, but you won't be too worried if you lose or misplace the book.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of the Head of Zeus/Aria.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2018/1...

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

As children Bea, Sebastian, John, Sandra and Helen are orphans, living in a home with a carer called Miriam. Miriam hates them. She beats them, berates them, and generally makes their lives a misery. When a car accident leaves her too badly injured to care for them they are separated and sent to live with other families. The driver of the other vehicle involved in the accident runs away. Many years later the driver is found, and police aim to prosecute him. This brings up memories of what happened, and threatens to expose a crime the children committed in the hope of escaping Miriam’s clutches.
I’d read some mixed reviews for this book before I started so I was looking forward to seeing which camp I fell into. Unfortunately once I started reading it quickly became clear that I would be in the dislike/don’t recommend camp.
Even from early on when we are learning about the horrors the children faced, I didn’t find the book evoked any emotion from me. Given the topic I was expecting to feel for some of the characters, to understand why they did what they did, the fear they had of being caught, and to empathise with them about their traumatic history. I didn’t feel any of those things. Even once I got to the end I still felt no connection with any of the characters.
I didn’t find the characters or storyline believable, everything just seemed very flat. Once I got to the end I was even more disappointed. It felt like the characters spent the whole book worrying about something, then in the last chapter they make a decision, do what they decided and then everyone lives happily ever after. I honestly wondered why I had bothered reading.
I’d been leaning towards a 2* rating for most of the book, but the ending ruined even that for me and so I’m only giving 1*. It’s a shame because I like the idea, I thought the storyline could’ve worked really well, but I just didn’t feel any of the things I was expecting to as the book went on. A miss for me on this one.
Thanks to NetGalley and Aria for an arc in exchange for an honest review

[Debra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book opens into the traumatic world of 5 children who are fostered by Miriam. The abuse is quite detailed which some readers may find off putting. As well as the physical abuse there is the psychological power that she holds over them – tell anyone and they’ll split you up. Then there is a car crash & Miriam & the children are badly injured & split up. Fast forward to the future where the five children have carved out successful lives for themselves until the past comes back to haunt them.

I very much enjoyed this book. None of us know what life will throw at us next & this book clearly demonstrates that. What will happen next & where will that lead us? The foster children have built successful lives but their childhood remains. It doesn’t take much to make it all come flooding back. How quickly adults take on their childhood roles again in the right circumstances.

All of the characters in this book are damaged. Sandra has her beautiful home, ideal husband and model children. It is quite brittle, however, as she can’t even share her past with her husband. Bea is a workaholic – and an alcoholic. If it isn’t one to blot out the trauma of the past then it is the other. She has to learn to let go in order to move on. Even Miriam who was seriously disabled lives in a place now where she is well cared for and liked – a long way from her past.

I enjoyed this book with its deep characters. I wasn’t so convinced by the ending. It seemed to come rather quickly and easily & didn’t have as much depth to it as the rest of the story. I am not sure how I would have ended the book but I was left with a slight hint of dissatisfaction. I appreciated the addition of the epilogue. I would certainly look for other books by this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley.

[Lucia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book, even though it began with some awful child abuse by a foster mother. Five young orphans live with Miriam, who is so abusive to the children that they actually begin poisoning her food in the hopes it will weaken her enough to stop her beating them. One morning Miriam is driving the children to school when the van they are riding in collides with a truck being driven by a very drunk man, who abandons his vehicle and runs away, eventually making his way to the Caribbean. One of the children is killed in the accident, the rest are injured and Miriam is left paralyzed and with amnesia. The children are sent separately to other homes where they grow up not knowing where their foster home siblings are. At some point, the driver, Ronnie Moss, is found in St. Lucia, and is extradited to England to stand trial for the accident. The four surviving children, now adults, are brought together by the police who want them to testify in Moss' trial. The children are terrified that their scheme to poison Miriam will be discovered and they will be sent to prison. This was a pretty well written and entertaining book, even though it was a bit roundabout in the way the grown children's situation is handled. Definitely recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a review copy. This is my honest opinion.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS

I didn't particularly like this book.
From the beginning when it was telling the story of Bea (possible ten yrs old) being abused by her foster carer.
Nothing seemed particularly credible,that many years later they would find the driver who caused the accident,and prosecute.
Then out comes the children's secrets,and in two cases it turns them into near murderers???
By the time I got to the end of the book,I felt we were almost back where we started and not much had changed.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a different read for me than I was expecting I think I was expecting it to be more of a mystery thriller than it was but it seemed to deal more with the emotions of the characters and the closeness that they had. It was well written and the character's described in a really good way. An interesting read and I would recommend it if you want a story that is a bit different.
My thanks to Aria and NetGalley for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Marsha Lambert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book..An intense thriller but yet not so twisted that it was hard to understand. Five children who had a horrible upbringing and have managed to continue on with life are suddenly confronted with their past in a way that threatens their whole life. The story was easy to follow which I was glad for because I’ve recently read some thrillers that were very confusing and hard to follow. I would definitely recommend this book.

[Marianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting read though I wouldn’t classify it a thriller/mystery. It is told from multiple perspectives (though the transition from each is handled well) and that added to the depth of the tale and the characters. It is a sad story. The conclusion wasn’t extremely satisfying (or disappointing). I would try more by this author...

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and Aria for a copy in exchange for a review.

[Heather Wood · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started out as pretty intense and I was definitely upset reading about any sort of child abuse. Miriam was a monster and I felt so much for the foster children who were put in her care. I think the most engaging part of the novel was the idea of how easily it is for children to be failed by the system. The storyline sort of dragged and I was impatient with the main characters hesitation to tell the truth about the past.

[Anya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was ok. Not as good as I wanted it to be. At first I thought they were going down the path of the unreliable narrator but then it seemed like the author just didn’t really know much about abuse, psychology or the gathering of evidence. Interesting enough to finish, nothing to write home about.

[Sonja · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Donna Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done British mysteries just the way I like them.

[valerie gosling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

Very fast paced book what an absolute cos that woman was where were the people I charge poor children good storey

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read.

[Elvira Millar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I felt the book ended abruptly. I was hoping for more intrigue with the trial and the horrible caregiver, but the lead up kept me reading to see what would happen.

[Katherine Hayward Pérez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Orphans in a home, somewhere they are supposed to be cared for. 

From the first page, I was hooked! 

We All Fall Down by Cynthia Clark is suspense and a twisty thriller at it's best.

 From the first word to the last, she gets deep inside the children's minds. I was genuinely concerned for them and their welfare.

Miriam is scary and formidable and cruel. The way she treats the children with such disrespect is awful and unforgivable, her punishments  are worse.

Ronnie Moss is trying to escape a is trying to escape a mistake  from years ago. 

What is the fate of all the characters? 

We All Fall Down is a thriller I will never forget- powerful plots, realistic  characters and a pace that is fast. 

Highly recommended.  5 stars and with a level of detail to keep the  shivers   running down your spine. 

Thanks to Cynthia Clark and Aria for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review and a place on the blog tour for the title. 

One of my favourite thrillers of the year! 


[Irene · Rating 3 out of 5]

We All Fall Down by Cynthia Clark. The premise was interesting. The chapters seemed to repeating themselves with each character's POV. None of the characters was likeable or reliable. The story seemed to drag and I had a hard time finishing it and ending was anticlimactic .

Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

[Leah Hines · Rating 4 out of 5]

Complex characters and an odd plot make for a compelling read. Different points of view draw the reader in and make you more invested in the outcome. I expected a mystery but this isn't really one. However, it's a story about ties that bind and last. I definitely recommend

[George1st · Rating 3 out of 5]

What do you do when deep buried secrets have the possibility to resurface after twenty eight years which could destroy the life you have striven so hard to create and how do you finally come to terms with events that have left deep psychological as well as physical scars? These are some of the questions that are raised in Cynthia Clark's suspenseful novel and thriller that looks at how someone's traumatic past will form an indelible part of their present no matter how much they try to conceal it. The story concerns five orphans Bea, her brother Sebastian, Helen, Sandra and John who live together at the foster home of the sadistic Miriam who performs a litany of mental and physical abuse on them. When being taken on their way to school there is a horrific road accident which although causing death and injury will free the children from Miriam's evil grasp. The driver of the lorry involved, Ronnie Moss who had been drinking alcohol just before the collision leaves the scene and flees the country to embark on a new life. But is he sorely to blame for the accident? or was there another contributory factor that must not be revealed? When the past finally catches up with Ronnie Moss it may also catch up with those also involved with the crash.

This is something of a slow burner and should not be misconstrued as a who done it or mystery but rather how four individuals will come together after twenty eight years to confront an existential threat and also their inner demons. Overall I quite liked the book and the way that the author gradually layer by layer built up the story from the perspective of Bea and Sandra showing that their childhood treatment would so detrimentally effect them that both will countenance the possibility of murder. Perhaps the groups final decision was the obvious one that could have been reached a lot earlier but to be taken through step by step how this was reached still made an intriguing if not quite a gripping read. Overall I would say this book is an interesting read that although is perhaps lacking that wow factor was certainly from my own perspective well worth a read.

[Morgan Schulman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.
Just couldn't get into this one. The twist seem to contrive, and then that the characters were really likable except for the man set up as the "bad guy ". I didn't feel very invested in the narrative, the plot or any of the protagonists. 2.5 rounded up

[Jacqueline Murphy]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, although quite harrowing and dark with the 5 children being physically and mentally abused by their foster carer and then dealing with a traumatic car crash which left one of them dead. The different POVs were enjoyable as you got all the background from many perspectives. How secrets/lies will out no matter how much time has past! Not my typical read which I think is why I really liked it. Definitely recommending it to friends/family.

Many thanks to Netgalley & Aria for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Elite Group · Rating 3 out of 5]

We can’t bury our past.

Try as we might, it is impossible to bury the past. A single act can dig its claws in so deeply that you keep looking back to that one moment in time.

Five orphaned children form an unbreakable bond as they try to cope with the vindictive and abusive nature of their supposed caregiver. Tragedy strikes and creates a sense of guilt which will leave them soul searching for 30 years. Although their ties are severed when they are separated into different homes across London, the knowledge of their deed becomes the invisible bond.

The novel begins with Bea, still a child, who must draw deep into herself to ignore the pain caused by a severe beating from Miriam. Her late arrival at the breakfast table has brought this on. It is only her brother’s steadfast gaze that strengthens her and the knowledge that they are doing something to stop the abuse. Not more than an hour later, Bea is left with a deep sense of regret that she had not been on time; one second would have made the difference and avoided the loss of her dream and the most precious thing in her life.

Ronnie Moss has just been ditched by a woman that has become the centre of his existence. His need to momentarily forget sets him on a course of action that will alter his life forever.

30 years later Bea feels bitterness overwhelm her as she hears the name, Ronnie Moss.
The children, now adults who have reinvented their lives, are reunited and are forced to face a choice they made all those years ago. As they talk about their childhood they realise that although they were separated their lives have always been intertwined and their future still depends on the woman who made their time together a living misery.

The novel is a fluid read. Clark can bring her characters to life and allow the reader to experience their emotional turmoil. What I missed about this novel was more flesh leading up to the climax. At times it felt like I was reading pages of pointless detail which detracted from the build-up in suspense and intrigue.

Ange

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This suspense thriller centers around five children: Bea, Sebastian, Sandra, Helen, and John living in foster care with an abusive woman named Miriam. After reaching their mental and physical limits of Miriam’s daily abuse, the group of children devised a plan in hopes of saving themselves and each other. But the outcome is never truly realized because of an accident involving a young man who had been awake and driving for days, Ronnie Moss. Everything quickly falls apart in their lives, resulting in huge changes and years of difficult memories of the past. Then one day, each of the children, now adults, receives a phone call bringing everything back to the surface.

It all started with seeing this cover! I couldn’t help but be intrigued after seeing the haunting cover image, the use of colors, and the creepy description.

We All Fall Down started out with a bang and quickly reeled me into the lives of the five children, as well as, Ronnie Moss. Just as she did in her previous novel, If Only You Knew, Cynthia Clark developed each of her characters in a beautifully detailed and thoughtful way very early on, building an enormous amount of anticipation regarding what the future held for everyone. The first part of the novel, based on events in 1989, was heartbreaking, to say the least. Having a parent that was in the foster system and horribly mistreated for a good portion of his childhood, the situation in Miriam’s home infuriated me and made me hopeful as I read on and learned about their lives almost 30 years later.

With the exception of flashbacks, the majority of the novel is based in the present after Ronnie Moss is discovered. The reader learns about each character’s life, how things turned out personally and professionally, and so on. Along with this comes a great deal of tension and suspense as Bea, Sandra, John, and Helen fear that someone will discover their plan from those many years ago and fear that their current lives will be destroyed because of it.

Unfortunately, for me personally, I felt that some of the excitement and suspense diminished as the novel progressed. I was still intrigued and felt compelled to continue reading, but it didn’t have that same “wow factor” that I felt in the opening of the novel. There continued to be ups and downs regarding suspenseful moments where I wondered what would happen next, but when I reached the ending, it seemed rather anti-climatic compared to the earlier development of the plot. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely enjoyed this novel, but it didn’t keep me on the edge of my seat as I had hoped.

I know I’ve already discussed the characterization and Clark’s incredible talent for it, but one of the most interesting elements of this novel for me was watching the characters almost revert back to childlike thoughts, actions, and behaviors as they worried about their plan from childhood being discovered. Especially Sandra, whose life seemed so smooth-running and organized. This normally confident woman became obsessed with the fear of something happening to upset her world, often having somewhat ridiculous thoughts about Miriam and her capacity to still destroy their lives. Bea also reverted to immature thoughts and actions, as did John. Helen seemed the calmest, although the author didn’t really allow us into her head as much as she did with Bea and Sandra.

I’m noticing that I’m rambling so I will wrap this up. Although I don’t think the novel was executed as well as it could have been, this was an intriguing novel with a wonderfully varied cast of characters. We All Fall Down serves as a reminder of the power of secrets, how quickly things can change, and also the freedom that comes with letting go of the past.

*Thanks to Aria and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review!