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DCI Jansen #4
The Fall: The new twisty and haunting psychological thriller that's impossible to put down
'Twisty, suspenseful and deeply atmospheric' Harriet Tyce
'An electrifying crime thriller' Woman's Own
The bigger the sin, the further the fall...
With Easter approaching, the verger of St Albans Cathedral was supposed to be readying the church. Instead he discovers a man lying dead, fallen from the famous150-foot-high tower. Did he jump, or was he pushed?
For DCI Maarten Jansen, it's a simple case of suspected suicide. Until a witness, Willow, prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past, involving a psychiatric hospital, a pregnant woman, and fifty years of silence. As Willow's own family history entwines with the case, Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected.
The Fall is a haunting thriller about loss, trauma, silence, and how our past shapes who we are.
Praise for The Fall:
'Lyrical, assured and simmering with suspense' Victoria Selman
'The Fall is a rare beast... Dark, atmospheric and truly original' Kate Simants
'Uncoils like the snapping of a whip, lashing the past into the present with the revealing of dark family secrets' Dominic Nolan
'Heart-pounding' James Delargy
'An electrifying crime thriller' Woman's Own
The bigger the sin, the further the fall...
With Easter approaching, the verger of St Albans Cathedral was supposed to be readying the church. Instead he discovers a man lying dead, fallen from the famous150-foot-high tower. Did he jump, or was he pushed?
For DCI Maarten Jansen, it's a simple case of suspected suicide. Until a witness, Willow, prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past, involving a psychiatric hospital, a pregnant woman, and fifty years of silence. As Willow's own family history entwines with the case, Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected.
The Fall is a haunting thriller about loss, trauma, silence, and how our past shapes who we are.
Praise for The Fall:
'Lyrical, assured and simmering with suspense' Victoria Selman
'The Fall is a rare beast... Dark, atmospheric and truly original' Kate Simants
'Uncoils like the snapping of a whip, lashing the past into the present with the revealing of dark family secrets' Dominic Nolan
'Heart-pounding' James Delargy
400 pages, Paperback
First published April 14, 2022
19 people are currently reading
167 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
March 3, 2022
It’s 2 am and there’s a man on the roof of St Albans Cathedral struggling not to fall as Willow Elliott arrives to set up an exhibition. Willow hears the fall as he crashes to the ground. The footballer proves to be Joel Braxton, who is in his 80s and a former version of the cathedral.
He is not what he seems and much links back to the Hill Barnes mental health hospital which is the topic of the exhibition Willow is setting up. Coincidentally, Willow is in St Albans for the wedding of her twin Fliss who is to marry Sunny, a police officer. DCI Maarten Jansen investigates the fall which is a much more complex affair than he initially thinks with secrets from the past coming back to haunt several characters.
First of all, I struggle to get into this one as it’s very slow to get going and much of the detail seems inconsequential and a bit of a yawn fest which isn’t helped by some repetition. The different perspectives add to this as they don’t seem cohesive and it also breaks up the flow. It also means don’t get to ‘know’ the characters as there’s quite a lot of them.
Fortunately it does improve but it’s a fair way in before it just so. You begin to appreciate there’s a lot of dysfunction and buried secrets in several families including Willows and there is tension between the twins. There is one perspective which is very good from the past and that is of Alice, a little girl when you first get her story. This one has a lot of tension and emotion in it and it’s a very sad story and is the standout feature of the book. The inclusion of the mental health hospital is also good and demonstrates changing times. The author uses the cathedral and St Albans effectively to create atmosphere and the scenes in the cathedral are definitely the ones where there’s the most tension and suspense. The storylines start to connect but it does feel convoluted and maybe parts are done superficially as a consequence.
Overall it’s a decent enough read, the premise is very good I think it’s the way it’s executed that stops me from enjoying it to the maximum.
With thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Aries for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.
He is not what he seems and much links back to the Hill Barnes mental health hospital which is the topic of the exhibition Willow is setting up. Coincidentally, Willow is in St Albans for the wedding of her twin Fliss who is to marry Sunny, a police officer. DCI Maarten Jansen investigates the fall which is a much more complex affair than he initially thinks with secrets from the past coming back to haunt several characters.
First of all, I struggle to get into this one as it’s very slow to get going and much of the detail seems inconsequential and a bit of a yawn fest which isn’t helped by some repetition. The different perspectives add to this as they don’t seem cohesive and it also breaks up the flow. It also means don’t get to ‘know’ the characters as there’s quite a lot of them.
Fortunately it does improve but it’s a fair way in before it just so. You begin to appreciate there’s a lot of dysfunction and buried secrets in several families including Willows and there is tension between the twins. There is one perspective which is very good from the past and that is of Alice, a little girl when you first get her story. This one has a lot of tension and emotion in it and it’s a very sad story and is the standout feature of the book. The inclusion of the mental health hospital is also good and demonstrates changing times. The author uses the cathedral and St Albans effectively to create atmosphere and the scenes in the cathedral are definitely the ones where there’s the most tension and suspense. The storylines start to connect but it does feel convoluted and maybe parts are done superficially as a consequence.
Overall it’s a decent enough read, the premise is very good I think it’s the way it’s executed that stops me from enjoying it to the maximum.
With thanks to NetGalley and Head of Zeus/Aries for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.
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April 24, 2023Hugely involving murder mystery starting with a man falling off St Alban's Cathedral. Then another man falls the next night, which is a bit Lady Bracknell, and a wonderfully twisty mystery unspools with past and present, family secrets, and the horrors of a past that only listened to men and brushed people who needed help under the carpet instead. Very well constructed and with a gripping race against time to keep you hooked.
June 17, 2022
DCI Jansenis investigating a fall from the cathedral roof ruled as suicide. Why an 80 years old man should jump from the cathedral tower? The witness, Willow is hiding lots of dark secrets, that soon will be revealed.
Thanks, Netgalley for this creepy story.
Thanks, Netgalley for this creepy story.
April 15, 2022
The Fall is described by the publishers as a ‘literary thriller’ but don’t let the word ‘literary’ put you off because the writing is no less accessible than a typical contemporary crime novel. The ‘literary’ element is perhaps the fleeting references to Paradise Lost, Milton’s epic poem telling the biblical story of the ‘Fall of Man’ (the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden). Paradise Lost is a text that means a lot to Willow Eliot. Her grandmother, Nonie, read it to her when she was young and some very early drafts of Paradise Lost form part of the exhibition she has organised. I’m not sure if I’m reading too much significance into it but there are also a number of characters in the book with names drawn from the Bible – Michael and Gabriel (who were both archangels), Joel, Noah and Martha.
The first part of the story unfolds quite slowly and is narrated from the points of view of Willow Eliot, one of the witnesses to the verger’s fall from the roof of the cathedral, and DCI Maarten Jansen, the police officer in charge of investigating the case. Although The Fall is the fourth book in the author’s series featuring DCI Maarten Jansen it can easily be read as a standalone (as I did). In fact, those who don’t have much time for police procedurals can be reassured this doesn’t form a major element of the book. It’s much more about buried family secrets that gradually emerge.
Every so often another point of view interrupts the modern day story, that of a young girl named Alice. Set in the 1960s, hers proves a very powerful and emotional story that touches on the stigma attached to mental illness and neurological conditions at the time, and the harsh and often ineffective treatments sufferers were subjected to. I thought this was the most compelling element of the book and it also forms another connection to the subject matter of Willow’s exhibition.
Running alongside the police investigation are preparations for the marriage of Willow’s identical twin sister, Fliss, to Sunny, one of the detectives in Jansen’s team. I have to say I admired Willow’s patience with Fliss who seemed to me entirely self-absorbed and prone to temper tantrums I didn’t think could just be put down to wedding day nerves. Although I appreciate the author was seeking to explore the notion of the special bond between twins – for reasons which will become apparent – personally I could have done without this element of the story. Fliss’s antics are one of the reasons why Willow seems to spend remarkably little time attending to the exhibition she has organised although it does provide a key to the eventual solution to the mystery. Along the way, the author skilfully directs the reader’s suspicions in the direction of just about every character.
St Albans Cathedral makes a suitably atmospheric setting for the book and I’m sure I won’t be the only reader prompted to search for images of the building, especially its tower and roof.
The Fall is a carefully constructed crime novel set in an interesting location that offers plenty of surprises in the closing chapters.
The first part of the story unfolds quite slowly and is narrated from the points of view of Willow Eliot, one of the witnesses to the verger’s fall from the roof of the cathedral, and DCI Maarten Jansen, the police officer in charge of investigating the case. Although The Fall is the fourth book in the author’s series featuring DCI Maarten Jansen it can easily be read as a standalone (as I did). In fact, those who don’t have much time for police procedurals can be reassured this doesn’t form a major element of the book. It’s much more about buried family secrets that gradually emerge.
Every so often another point of view interrupts the modern day story, that of a young girl named Alice. Set in the 1960s, hers proves a very powerful and emotional story that touches on the stigma attached to mental illness and neurological conditions at the time, and the harsh and often ineffective treatments sufferers were subjected to. I thought this was the most compelling element of the book and it also forms another connection to the subject matter of Willow’s exhibition.
Running alongside the police investigation are preparations for the marriage of Willow’s identical twin sister, Fliss, to Sunny, one of the detectives in Jansen’s team. I have to say I admired Willow’s patience with Fliss who seemed to me entirely self-absorbed and prone to temper tantrums I didn’t think could just be put down to wedding day nerves. Although I appreciate the author was seeking to explore the notion of the special bond between twins – for reasons which will become apparent – personally I could have done without this element of the story. Fliss’s antics are one of the reasons why Willow seems to spend remarkably little time attending to the exhibition she has organised although it does provide a key to the eventual solution to the mystery. Along the way, the author skilfully directs the reader’s suspicions in the direction of just about every character.
St Albans Cathedral makes a suitably atmospheric setting for the book and I’m sure I won’t be the only reader prompted to search for images of the building, especially its tower and roof.
The Fall is a carefully constructed crime novel set in an interesting location that offers plenty of surprises in the closing chapters.
April 12, 2022
Review by Kelly Lacey
Having read Under The Ice by Rachael Blok and making it my book of the year for 2018. I am perplexed as to how I have missed the other books in the series. The Fall is book FOUR in the series and I have promptly purchased books two and three. However, I hasten to add that the books can be read as stand-alone.
Hailed as the new literary thriller from Rachael Blok, The Fall will be published on the 14th of April, 2022. I have to add a note for readers who do not enjoy or are put off by the literary tag. I myself do not enjoy literary fiction. It is just not a good fit for me as a reader. Ms Blok’s writing is beautiful and extremely to the point and not long-winded. For me, this is definitely a psyclogocial thriller. So don’t let that literary tag put you off.
You know when you are falling in a dream and the fear is so very real and you jump awake in bed and the relief floods through you. Well unfortunately for one poor soul in The Fall they don’t get to jump awake. Our main protagonist Willow is the one to witness the deadly fall after having just arrived in St Albans. What a welcome!
Willow is a very relatable and likeable character. As she endeavours to have her very own exhibition. The universe (aka Rachael Blok) has other ideas for her. I really enjoyed the dynamic of the family. They felt real and relatable.
The book treats us to threads of stories from the past. I felt like a detective trying to piece everything together. I really enjoyed that new tangents of stories were thrown in and not once did I feel bored. If anything I wanted more. I did not guess the ending which is a huge bonus.
A dark and thrilling whodunnit with memorable characters and exquisite writing.
Having read Under The Ice by Rachael Blok and making it my book of the year for 2018. I am perplexed as to how I have missed the other books in the series. The Fall is book FOUR in the series and I have promptly purchased books two and three. However, I hasten to add that the books can be read as stand-alone.
Hailed as the new literary thriller from Rachael Blok, The Fall will be published on the 14th of April, 2022. I have to add a note for readers who do not enjoy or are put off by the literary tag. I myself do not enjoy literary fiction. It is just not a good fit for me as a reader. Ms Blok’s writing is beautiful and extremely to the point and not long-winded. For me, this is definitely a psyclogocial thriller. So don’t let that literary tag put you off.
You know when you are falling in a dream and the fear is so very real and you jump awake in bed and the relief floods through you. Well unfortunately for one poor soul in The Fall they don’t get to jump awake. Our main protagonist Willow is the one to witness the deadly fall after having just arrived in St Albans. What a welcome!
Willow is a very relatable and likeable character. As she endeavours to have her very own exhibition. The universe (aka Rachael Blok) has other ideas for her. I really enjoyed the dynamic of the family. They felt real and relatable.
The book treats us to threads of stories from the past. I felt like a detective trying to piece everything together. I really enjoyed that new tangents of stories were thrown in and not once did I feel bored. If anything I wanted more. I did not guess the ending which is a huge bonus.
A dark and thrilling whodunnit with memorable characters and exquisite writing.
April 19, 2022
"Secrets don't stay buried forever. Even those cast in stone."
After a long day of travel Willow Eliot finally arrives at St Albans ready to prepare for her exhibition. But in the darkness she hears a scream and witnesses a body falling from the cathedral in the shadows. Did he jump or was he pushed? And are the fall of a young man who works at the cathedral a few days later and the disappearance of Willow’s twin sister connected or simply tragic coincidences?
A story of sins, secrets and suspicion, this literary thriller hit all the right notes for me. Taut, tense and intricately woven, it takes us on a twisty journey as past and present merge together and dark truths are slowly revealed. This book was my introduction to Rachael Blok and I didn’t realise that it is the fourth instalment in a series until I had almost finished reading. But that means I can tell you it makes a great standalone as I never felt like I was missing out on anything or confused about what was going on.
Told in three parts from multiple points of view, I loved the very different voices the author chose in which to tell the story. I found young Alice’s chapters were especially compelling and powerful, drawing into her tragic story. Many of the characters are keeping secrets, some of them with the power to shatter entire lives, leaving us with a complex puzzle to solve that looks nothing like I thought it would.
One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was that it is rich in history. But it is an awful history that dates back to the psychiatric hospital, Hill Barnes, a bleak, grim place where people were sent when they didn’t know how to deal with them, often committed for what now seem like trivial reasons. Behavioural issues, epilepsy, a wife disagreeing with her husband and being a young mother could all see you committed and subjected to barbaric treatments that did more harm than healing. It is a potent reminder of how we used to treat mental health and those we didn’t understand.
Dark, twisty and captivating, The Fall is a great read for anyone who enjoys a steadily paced thriller.
After a long day of travel Willow Eliot finally arrives at St Albans ready to prepare for her exhibition. But in the darkness she hears a scream and witnesses a body falling from the cathedral in the shadows. Did he jump or was he pushed? And are the fall of a young man who works at the cathedral a few days later and the disappearance of Willow’s twin sister connected or simply tragic coincidences?
A story of sins, secrets and suspicion, this literary thriller hit all the right notes for me. Taut, tense and intricately woven, it takes us on a twisty journey as past and present merge together and dark truths are slowly revealed. This book was my introduction to Rachael Blok and I didn’t realise that it is the fourth instalment in a series until I had almost finished reading. But that means I can tell you it makes a great standalone as I never felt like I was missing out on anything or confused about what was going on.
Told in three parts from multiple points of view, I loved the very different voices the author chose in which to tell the story. I found young Alice’s chapters were especially compelling and powerful, drawing into her tragic story. Many of the characters are keeping secrets, some of them with the power to shatter entire lives, leaving us with a complex puzzle to solve that looks nothing like I thought it would.
One of the things I enjoyed most about this book was that it is rich in history. But it is an awful history that dates back to the psychiatric hospital, Hill Barnes, a bleak, grim place where people were sent when they didn’t know how to deal with them, often committed for what now seem like trivial reasons. Behavioural issues, epilepsy, a wife disagreeing with her husband and being a young mother could all see you committed and subjected to barbaric treatments that did more harm than healing. It is a potent reminder of how we used to treat mental health and those we didn’t understand.
Dark, twisty and captivating, The Fall is a great read for anyone who enjoys a steadily paced thriller.
September 1, 2024
Confusing characters and too much jumping around. I liked the ending.
May 9, 2022
A man is found dead having apparently fallen from the tower above St Albans Cathedral. DCI Maarten Jansen is faced with the task of working out if the man jumped or was pushed. However, a witness – Willow - sets the investigation going in a different direction, linking a psychiatric hospital, a pregnant woman, and decades of silence.
As with most books I buy, I’d already read the first couple of pages of The Fall via Amazon’s look-inside feature, and it was this that inspired my purchase. However, after finding the dead body and the detective’s initial thoughts, the story slows down somewhat. The amount of information we’re given about Willow and her family feels a bit over the top and I got bored very quickly. While the book does get interesting later on, it takes way too long for this to happen, and I found myself skimming over some passages to find something that moved the story along. There’s also the issue of exclamation marks, which some authors believe are essential to meaning. In the first two chapters the word ‘exhausted’ gets an exclamation mark twice! Wow, these people must be REALLY exhausted! IMHO these vile devices (unless being used ironically), should be expunged from the text, as all they do is drag the narrative down.
An okay read that should have been so much better.
As with most books I buy, I’d already read the first couple of pages of The Fall via Amazon’s look-inside feature, and it was this that inspired my purchase. However, after finding the dead body and the detective’s initial thoughts, the story slows down somewhat. The amount of information we’re given about Willow and her family feels a bit over the top and I got bored very quickly. While the book does get interesting later on, it takes way too long for this to happen, and I found myself skimming over some passages to find something that moved the story along. There’s also the issue of exclamation marks, which some authors believe are essential to meaning. In the first two chapters the word ‘exhausted’ gets an exclamation mark twice! Wow, these people must be REALLY exhausted! IMHO these vile devices (unless being used ironically), should be expunged from the text, as all they do is drag the narrative down.
An okay read that should have been so much better.
March 12, 2022
Family secrets come tumbling down alongside the bodies in The Fall, the fourth installment in the DCI Jansen series by Rachael Blok. This is my first introduction to this author, and I found it to be an enjoyable read even without having read any of the previous books in this series.
DCI Jansen must determine if the body that fell from St. Albans Cathedral was the result of suicide or something more sinister. A witness to the fall, Willow Eliot is at St. Albans for an exhibit and the wedding of her sister when secrets, hidden letters, stories of an old psychiatric hospital, and family grudges begin to reveal themselves.
The quality of writing and the pace set by Blok keeps the story moving along at an exciting pace.
The ending was wonderfully satisfying, and I will enjoy going back to read the previous books in this series while awaiting the next DCI Jansen book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for a DRC for an independent review of this book.
DCI Jansen must determine if the body that fell from St. Albans Cathedral was the result of suicide or something more sinister. A witness to the fall, Willow Eliot is at St. Albans for an exhibit and the wedding of her sister when secrets, hidden letters, stories of an old psychiatric hospital, and family grudges begin to reveal themselves.
The quality of writing and the pace set by Blok keeps the story moving along at an exciting pace.
The ending was wonderfully satisfying, and I will enjoy going back to read the previous books in this series while awaiting the next DCI Jansen book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Head of Zeus for a DRC for an independent review of this book.
April 7, 2022
A young woman witnesses a fall from a church tower. The next day there is another fall, and a bride-to-be disappears after a heated row with her sister. This is a complex and tightly plotted thriller, and highly satisfying with characters I engaged with and a cop I'd like to see more of. The writing is lovely, and draws you in. I thoroughly enjoyed The Fall and kept picking it up during the day to have a quick read. Highly recommended.
April 26, 2022
Thank you @netgalley, @headofzeus and Rachel Blok for the ARC of this book.
This was my first Rachel Blok novel and it won't be my last. It was twisty, entertaining, full of mystery and told from the POV of multiple characters
This reads fine as a standalone and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book.
This was my first Rachel Blok novel and it won't be my last. It was twisty, entertaining, full of mystery and told from the POV of multiple characters
This reads fine as a standalone and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book.
April 14, 2022
Even if it's a bit slow at the beginning it was a gripping and fascinating read, well written and riveting.
The solid mystery, the multiple layer of this story were a pleasure to read and I appreciated the storytelling and the character development.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
The solid mystery, the multiple layer of this story were a pleasure to read and I appreciated the storytelling and the character development.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine
May 6, 2023
Great read, I generally don't like the tense but easily got over it for the rest of the writing style. Based in my
January 1, 2023
Uma review bem curtinha que pode (ou não) ser atualizada outro dia.
Eu nem leio muitos livros de crime, mas essa autora ganhou meu coração, porque ela escreve livros de crime que acontecem em St. Albans, cidade onde eu moro! Esse livro especificamente fala muito sobre a Catedral da cidade, e conta uma história tão bonita que eu até chorei no final. E eu também consegui o autógrafo dela quando ela foi na Books on the Hill, então eu só tenho motivos pra gostar dela!
Eu nem leio muitos livros de crime, mas essa autora ganhou meu coração, porque ela escreve livros de crime que acontecem em St. Albans, cidade onde eu moro! Esse livro especificamente fala muito sobre a Catedral da cidade, e conta uma história tão bonita que eu até chorei no final. E eu também consegui o autógrafo dela quando ela foi na Books on the Hill, então eu só tenho motivos pra gostar dela!
February 9, 2022
Unfortunately this didn't really get beyond ok for me.
It had likeable characters and a puzzling storyline,or rather two,that I was constantly trying to fit together.
Yet,I never got caught up in the story,and by the end was feeling as if a lot had been thrown at me to get to the final.
It had likeable characters and a puzzling storyline,or rather two,that I was constantly trying to fit together.
Yet,I never got caught up in the story,and by the end was feeling as if a lot had been thrown at me to get to the final.
May 23, 2022
This is my first book by this Author. I didn't even realize it was 4th in a series until I was halfway through because it reads very well as a Stand-alone. Having said that, the book wasn't quite for me. That is nothing to do with the Author's writing or the story itself as I did end up enjoying it once I was able to relax into it after quite a few starts and stops. But I also think that can be attributed to the fact that the first half of the book moved very slow and felt dragged out. It did hit it's stride until about halfway through and I found myself enjoying the slow reveal of secrets and the setting of the Cathedral.
The story starts with Willow Eliot arriving at St. Alban's Cathedral in the middle of the night after a long day of traveling. She comes here for two reasons.. 1) To set up her first solo exhibition on the old Hill Barnes Mental Institution and 2) Her Twin Sister's upcoming wedding to marry Sunny, a local Police Officer. As she wants to get a start setting up the exhibition, she hears a scream pierce the night and witnesses a Man fall to his death from the top of the Cathedral.
DCI Maarten Jansen is tasked with investigating the Man's death, which he initially believes to be a suicide. Why else would an 80yr old Man climb to the top of the building where Jansen finds no evidence of a struggle which one would expect to find if he was pushed?
The first part of the story is told from the POV of both DCI Jansen and Willow as the Detective starts his investigation and Willow helps her Twin, Priss, prepare for the upcoming Wedding.
Jansen quickly discovers that the Man's fall is much more complicated than a Suicide as another person dies and our bride to be disappears. We quickly learn that there are some dark secrets rooted in the past and that Willow's relationship with Priss is filled with tension and a lot of dysfunction. But what does Willow's family and the Mental Hospital have to do with 2 deaths and a disappearance in the present day? As the Author starts to slowly reveal the answers, a 3rd POV from a girl named Alice is introduced. This POV takes place back in the 60s and this is when the pace of the story picks up steam. Alice's story is filled with emotion and squeezed my heart. It also added much needed tension. The rest of the book was a fast read from here. We learn a lot of the history of the Mental Hospital where people were committed for reasons that are hard to comprehend. Things such as being an unwed Mother, a disobedient Wife, or a Child deemed "difficult" to deal with could land you as a patient at the Institution, where the treatments were cruel, barbaric and more often than not, resulted in harming the patient instead of healing. As my interest in the story grew, I appreciated how the Author tied the past to the events happening in the present.
I think many people will love this novel. It's intricate, rich with historical content, suspicion is cast on many different characters throughout and the use of the Cathedral as a setting is very well done. There is a lot of darkness through the story and some parts that are laden with sadness. Even though it's not the type of Thriller that I usually prefer, I definitely appreciate it for the Author's talented writing and the quality story that it is. Thank you to the Author, Publisher, and Netgalley for providing an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
#TheFall #NetGalley
The story starts with Willow Eliot arriving at St. Alban's Cathedral in the middle of the night after a long day of traveling. She comes here for two reasons.. 1) To set up her first solo exhibition on the old Hill Barnes Mental Institution and 2) Her Twin Sister's upcoming wedding to marry Sunny, a local Police Officer. As she wants to get a start setting up the exhibition, she hears a scream pierce the night and witnesses a Man fall to his death from the top of the Cathedral.
DCI Maarten Jansen is tasked with investigating the Man's death, which he initially believes to be a suicide. Why else would an 80yr old Man climb to the top of the building where Jansen finds no evidence of a struggle which one would expect to find if he was pushed?
The first part of the story is told from the POV of both DCI Jansen and Willow as the Detective starts his investigation and Willow helps her Twin, Priss, prepare for the upcoming Wedding.
Jansen quickly discovers that the Man's fall is much more complicated than a Suicide as another person dies and our bride to be disappears. We quickly learn that there are some dark secrets rooted in the past and that Willow's relationship with Priss is filled with tension and a lot of dysfunction. But what does Willow's family and the Mental Hospital have to do with 2 deaths and a disappearance in the present day? As the Author starts to slowly reveal the answers, a 3rd POV from a girl named Alice is introduced. This POV takes place back in the 60s and this is when the pace of the story picks up steam. Alice's story is filled with emotion and squeezed my heart. It also added much needed tension. The rest of the book was a fast read from here. We learn a lot of the history of the Mental Hospital where people were committed for reasons that are hard to comprehend. Things such as being an unwed Mother, a disobedient Wife, or a Child deemed "difficult" to deal with could land you as a patient at the Institution, where the treatments were cruel, barbaric and more often than not, resulted in harming the patient instead of healing. As my interest in the story grew, I appreciated how the Author tied the past to the events happening in the present.
I think many people will love this novel. It's intricate, rich with historical content, suspicion is cast on many different characters throughout and the use of the Cathedral as a setting is very well done. There is a lot of darkness through the story and some parts that are laden with sadness. Even though it's not the type of Thriller that I usually prefer, I definitely appreciate it for the Author's talented writing and the quality story that it is. Thank you to the Author, Publisher, and Netgalley for providing an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
#TheFall #NetGalley
March 28, 2022
This book starts with a dramatic prologue, which really hooks you. When someone falls off the roof of St Albans Cathedral the police believe it to be suicide, there are no signs of a struggle. The man was 80 years old, why had he climbed to the top of the building? Willow Eliot has just arrived outside the cathedral it’s 2 am in the morning she had hoped to have arrived earlier but a car accident on the motorway had delayed them. She is doing an exhibition in the cathedral, the first exhibition she has ever done. But as she is standing outside waiting for the boxes to be put inside until the morning she thinks she hears someone shouting, but puts it down to the dark, maybe it’s foxes until…….
Initially after the prologue the story is little slow on pace but then it gradually picks up, the tension grips you as you are reading. DCI Maarten Jansen and his partner DI Adrika Verma are assigned to look into the case. Was it suicide or is there more to it. Not only is Willow there for the exhibition but she is also there for her twin sister Fliss’s wedding day.
But when other things happen Maarten is feeling pretty certain the first person to die didn’t commit suicide. But as they gather information the suspicion falls on one person. But what is the motive. As the Detectives begin to dig deeper, They begin to wonder if somehow the death is linked to the past. But then someone disappears, why?
The story is told in a dual timeline with Alice’s point of view back in the 60’s and Willow and Maarten’s points of view from the present. But what can it be that links the past and the present. There are quite a number of suspects, along with some clever misdirection. There are times the story is quite dark, as we learn more of what went on at Hill Barnes which had been an old mental institute. Some of the cruelties that were done there were quite barbaric, The worst part of it is that these things did happen.
I felt the author got the balance of this story perfect, with secrets from the past finally coming out, mixed with a sense of danger, familial disagreements, along with the setting in and around the cathedral. You are drawn in, not knowing which way things are going to end. I have to admit I was absolutely blindsided by the end. I just hadn’t seen it coming. The author has clearly researched the cathedral as there were some interesting bits of information which added to the story. This was an engrossing, suspenseful, gripping edge of your seat read. With great characters, that are likeable, believable and relatable. If that’s what you like in a book then grab yourself a copy of this you won’t be disappointed.
I would like to thank #netgalley and @AriesFiction for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair nod unbiased review. All thoughts and opinions are mine and have not been influenced in any way.
Initially after the prologue the story is little slow on pace but then it gradually picks up, the tension grips you as you are reading. DCI Maarten Jansen and his partner DI Adrika Verma are assigned to look into the case. Was it suicide or is there more to it. Not only is Willow there for the exhibition but she is also there for her twin sister Fliss’s wedding day.
But when other things happen Maarten is feeling pretty certain the first person to die didn’t commit suicide. But as they gather information the suspicion falls on one person. But what is the motive. As the Detectives begin to dig deeper, They begin to wonder if somehow the death is linked to the past. But then someone disappears, why?
The story is told in a dual timeline with Alice’s point of view back in the 60’s and Willow and Maarten’s points of view from the present. But what can it be that links the past and the present. There are quite a number of suspects, along with some clever misdirection. There are times the story is quite dark, as we learn more of what went on at Hill Barnes which had been an old mental institute. Some of the cruelties that were done there were quite barbaric, The worst part of it is that these things did happen.
I felt the author got the balance of this story perfect, with secrets from the past finally coming out, mixed with a sense of danger, familial disagreements, along with the setting in and around the cathedral. You are drawn in, not knowing which way things are going to end. I have to admit I was absolutely blindsided by the end. I just hadn’t seen it coming. The author has clearly researched the cathedral as there were some interesting bits of information which added to the story. This was an engrossing, suspenseful, gripping edge of your seat read. With great characters, that are likeable, believable and relatable. If that’s what you like in a book then grab yourself a copy of this you won’t be disappointed.
I would like to thank #netgalley and @AriesFiction for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair nod unbiased review. All thoughts and opinions are mine and have not been influenced in any way.
April 13, 2022
Willow is excited to be organising her first solo exhibition but also apprehensive to be attending the wedding of her twin sister later that same week. When she arrives to begin setting up at the cathedral late at night, things take a devastating turn when she witnesses a man falling to his death.
As the police start to investigate, secrets from the past start to come to light and it looks like Willow is at the centre of it all - but why? What do her family have to do with this apparent suicide, and is everyone exactly who they say they are?
After reading Into The Fire last year, I was so excited to pick up the next book in the series. What surprised me the most as I was reading was how different the atmosphere was in the two books. Into The Fire felt like an ultra-modern thriller with an unusual mix of British and Scandi crime, whereas The Fall was much more intense, delving into a secretive past - in a way, more of a historical family saga with a murder and a missing persons case to solve at the same time.
The other difference here was DCI Maarten Jansen. In the previous book, the story centred around him running the investigation, but we were also given a glimpse into his family life too. He features again in The Fall, but this time he seemed to be one of a group of main characters, with the focus more on some other members of his team and the people involved in the case. I really enjoyed this, and the different pace from the previous story. It felt more realistic to me and reflected the nature of police work in that each investigation is different as it develops and would therefore have a different atmosphere.
I loved the intricate nature of the mystery and how all of the pieces began to slot together. It was definitely well planned out and I enjoyed the story more and more as the secrets and twists were revealed. Another hit in the DCI Maarten Jansen series.
As the police start to investigate, secrets from the past start to come to light and it looks like Willow is at the centre of it all - but why? What do her family have to do with this apparent suicide, and is everyone exactly who they say they are?
After reading Into The Fire last year, I was so excited to pick up the next book in the series. What surprised me the most as I was reading was how different the atmosphere was in the two books. Into The Fire felt like an ultra-modern thriller with an unusual mix of British and Scandi crime, whereas The Fall was much more intense, delving into a secretive past - in a way, more of a historical family saga with a murder and a missing persons case to solve at the same time.
The other difference here was DCI Maarten Jansen. In the previous book, the story centred around him running the investigation, but we were also given a glimpse into his family life too. He features again in The Fall, but this time he seemed to be one of a group of main characters, with the focus more on some other members of his team and the people involved in the case. I really enjoyed this, and the different pace from the previous story. It felt more realistic to me and reflected the nature of police work in that each investigation is different as it develops and would therefore have a different atmosphere.
I loved the intricate nature of the mystery and how all of the pieces began to slot together. It was definitely well planned out and I enjoyed the story more and more as the secrets and twists were revealed. Another hit in the DCI Maarten Jansen series.
April 19, 2022
The Fall is the 4th book in the DCI Jansen series however I only realised this when pulling information together for my post as the book reads perfectly well as a stand-alone. It is my first novel by Rachel Blok and I am looking forward to reading more of this series now.
When an elderly man falls to his death from the roof of the cathedral it initially seems like a simple suicide but as information begins to emerge, there is more at play that it first seemed. This is a tricky book to review without giving anything away but it’s a really enjoyable, slow burner of a crime book with literary features and a focus on mental health – particularly historic stigma and effect
The main narrator of the story is Willow, who is visiting the cathedral to show an exhibition and also for her sister’s wedding (which happens to be to one of the detectives on the case). Willow is a witness to the fall and the more the investigation learn, the more Willow’s life and history becomes entwined. Willow also has to put up with the tension between herself and her sister as the build up to the wedding puts more strain on their relationship.
There are also chapters from the perspective of Alice, a young child which also give insights into the crime. I like the way these were written, very childlike and innocent. A very interesting perspective to see things through.
The cathedral and it’s grounds provides a very atmospheric setting for this plot, kind of like a malevolent figure always casting a shadow onto everyone and everything. I found this a very clever use of a building.
In the beginning, The Fall may seem a little confusing with lots of characters and jumps in time but it really does cleverly pull together. The Fall is not the fastest paced detective novel but it is meant to unravel slowly and it really does become addictive.
When an elderly man falls to his death from the roof of the cathedral it initially seems like a simple suicide but as information begins to emerge, there is more at play that it first seemed. This is a tricky book to review without giving anything away but it’s a really enjoyable, slow burner of a crime book with literary features and a focus on mental health – particularly historic stigma and effect
The main narrator of the story is Willow, who is visiting the cathedral to show an exhibition and also for her sister’s wedding (which happens to be to one of the detectives on the case). Willow is a witness to the fall and the more the investigation learn, the more Willow’s life and history becomes entwined. Willow also has to put up with the tension between herself and her sister as the build up to the wedding puts more strain on their relationship.
There are also chapters from the perspective of Alice, a young child which also give insights into the crime. I like the way these were written, very childlike and innocent. A very interesting perspective to see things through.
The cathedral and it’s grounds provides a very atmospheric setting for this plot, kind of like a malevolent figure always casting a shadow onto everyone and everything. I found this a very clever use of a building.
In the beginning, The Fall may seem a little confusing with lots of characters and jumps in time but it really does cleverly pull together. The Fall is not the fastest paced detective novel but it is meant to unravel slowly and it really does become addictive.
February 21, 2022
The Fall - Rachael Blok
‘The world was all before them.’
Just wow! This was such a fantastic book!
This book opens with someone falling from the tower of St. Albans Cathedral, it is shocking, gripping and totally captured my attention.
The fall is witnessed by Willow who has come to the town to put on an exhibition in the cathedral, about Hill Barnes an old psychiatric hospital, an institution where people were put away years ago.
DCI Maarten Jansen attends, and Willow as a witness prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past. Willow's own family history entwines with the case and Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected, was this death a suicide or something more?
‘The women. The men. Chunks of their lives, dispensed into wards, boxes. Stolen away. When people talk of the good old days….’
I loved this book, having visited the cathedral I could visualise where this was happening which definitely enhanced the experience for me. There’s quite a bit going on and the story is told from multiple POV’s but I actually found this helped rather than hindered the narrative. You can get inside the mind of the characters and get to know them quickly.
Slowly as old secrets are unravelled we learn of the connections between these characters, tensions rise, we are given little snippets of what is to come.
I felt on edge and found myself taking little sharp intakes of breath as I read, my heart rate rising as the suspense winds and winds and tension bubbles under the surface.
It’s a spellbinding read and I couldn’t put it down, dark, atmospheric and unexpected with a really spine jangling ending this is one book really worth reading!
✩✩✩✩
‘The world was all before them.’
Just wow! This was such a fantastic book!
This book opens with someone falling from the tower of St. Albans Cathedral, it is shocking, gripping and totally captured my attention.
The fall is witnessed by Willow who has come to the town to put on an exhibition in the cathedral, about Hill Barnes an old psychiatric hospital, an institution where people were put away years ago.
DCI Maarten Jansen attends, and Willow as a witness prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past. Willow's own family history entwines with the case and Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected, was this death a suicide or something more?
‘The women. The men. Chunks of their lives, dispensed into wards, boxes. Stolen away. When people talk of the good old days….’
I loved this book, having visited the cathedral I could visualise where this was happening which definitely enhanced the experience for me. There’s quite a bit going on and the story is told from multiple POV’s but I actually found this helped rather than hindered the narrative. You can get inside the mind of the characters and get to know them quickly.
Slowly as old secrets are unravelled we learn of the connections between these characters, tensions rise, we are given little snippets of what is to come.
I felt on edge and found myself taking little sharp intakes of breath as I read, my heart rate rising as the suspense winds and winds and tension bubbles under the surface.
It’s a spellbinding read and I couldn’t put it down, dark, atmospheric and unexpected with a really spine jangling ending this is one book really worth reading!
✩✩✩✩
May 30, 2022
I was initially drawn to this book by the stunning cover; there's just something so dark and menacing about the cathedral and the top of the tower looks such a long way up that I could easily imagine the horror of someone falling from it. But, did they fall or were they pushed?
St Albans cathedral is the focal point of the novel with a fall from the tower, an exhibition about the history of a psychiatric hospital and a marriage taking place within days of each other. Willow Eliot is the character who links the events together - she witnessed the fall, she is in charge of the exhibition and it is her twin sister who is due to get married. I loved the strained relationship between Willow and her twin, Fliss - it's a real case of one-upmanship.
The police investigation is led by DCI Maarten Jansen and I really liked him and his team so I'd love for this to be the start of a new series. The police procedural elements felt very realistic as I followed every step of the investigation with the team.
Interwoven between the mystery of the fall from the tower and other strange events is an intriguing tale of twins Alice and Betty. I kept wondering how this was going to fit into the story but it does so beautifully. I can't say any more for fear of releasing any spoilers but it's masterfully done and I really must applaud Rachael Blok's ability to keep the reader hooked and on their toes.
The Fall is a beautifully written thriller touching on mental health and family relationships. It's the first book I've read by Rachael Blok and it certainly won't be my last - I loved it.
I received a digital ARC via NetGalley to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
St Albans cathedral is the focal point of the novel with a fall from the tower, an exhibition about the history of a psychiatric hospital and a marriage taking place within days of each other. Willow Eliot is the character who links the events together - she witnessed the fall, she is in charge of the exhibition and it is her twin sister who is due to get married. I loved the strained relationship between Willow and her twin, Fliss - it's a real case of one-upmanship.
The police investigation is led by DCI Maarten Jansen and I really liked him and his team so I'd love for this to be the start of a new series. The police procedural elements felt very realistic as I followed every step of the investigation with the team.
Interwoven between the mystery of the fall from the tower and other strange events is an intriguing tale of twins Alice and Betty. I kept wondering how this was going to fit into the story but it does so beautifully. I can't say any more for fear of releasing any spoilers but it's masterfully done and I really must applaud Rachael Blok's ability to keep the reader hooked and on their toes.
The Fall is a beautifully written thriller touching on mental health and family relationships. It's the first book I've read by Rachael Blok and it certainly won't be my last - I loved it.
I received a digital ARC via NetGalley to read and review for the blog tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
February 20, 2022
What a woven tale. This book has some twists and turns to try to keep you guessing what the different connections are and who did what.
People always say regarding people and places how small the world can be. With that in mind, your mind may see parts of this story as being serendipitous.
The author hooks you in the beginning by telling you just a fraction of something that the other characters don’t know and it takes a portion of the book to find those answers. There are a lot of underlying items in this book that can put you at war with your inner thoughts: who did it? Why did they do it? Who all was involved? How are they linked? What are they hiding?
This also isn’t just a simple murder mystery. This takes you on a ride that includes historical relationships, familial squabbles, and of course ethics & morality. You think you know a person, but you will never fully know what’s going on inside their head. No one’s story is a straight line.
Without giving any spoilers, this book will make you question if you know the history of your life, family and everyone you believed you could trust. How much can you even believe your own memories?
Thank you to the author Rachael Blok, Head of Zeus and NetGalley for the ARC eBook!
People always say regarding people and places how small the world can be. With that in mind, your mind may see parts of this story as being serendipitous.
The author hooks you in the beginning by telling you just a fraction of something that the other characters don’t know and it takes a portion of the book to find those answers. There are a lot of underlying items in this book that can put you at war with your inner thoughts: who did it? Why did they do it? Who all was involved? How are they linked? What are they hiding?
This also isn’t just a simple murder mystery. This takes you on a ride that includes historical relationships, familial squabbles, and of course ethics & morality. You think you know a person, but you will never fully know what’s going on inside their head. No one’s story is a straight line.
Without giving any spoilers, this book will make you question if you know the history of your life, family and everyone you believed you could trust. How much can you even believe your own memories?
Thank you to the author Rachael Blok, Head of Zeus and NetGalley for the ARC eBook!
March 16, 2022
Got to be honest - this is exactly why I don't do heights. It's not the being up high bit that bothers me so much as the potential for falling to my death, which is exactly the fate that befalls the victim of Rachel Blok's latest novel, The Fall. This is the first time I have read a book by this author, but I was drawn into the narrative straight away, intrigued as to why the might be facing such a tragic fate - and it is no done deal at the start of the book, not quite anyway. There is clearly something that has happened, something we are not yet privy to, and it got my brain ticking over immediately. It's quite an awful way to be dispatched, and in such an iconic location. But that is just the start, the mystery that follows, part murder investigation and part missing person case, is twisted, intelligent and altogether consuming.
I really liked the Detective pairing of DCI Maarten Jansen and DI Adrika Verma. They are both intelligent, solid characters, not swayed by the fact that the case takes an unexpectedly personal turn for one of their team. There is a solemnity to Jansen as a character, but I found him easy to get to know and a good character to spend time with throughout the course of the investigation. He has a real instinct for what is happening around him, and is not swayed unnecessarily by the seemingly obvious nature of the case. Suspicion may be pointing in one direction but there is more to the case than meets the eye, something we, the readers, are privy to that Jansen and co thus far are not.
There is a kind of duality to the story line and cut away scenes which feed our understanding of the bigger picture, but not necessarily how you might think. I thought I had an idea, but I was wide of the mark at times, and there is plenty of misdirection, and a whole host of potential suspects, although the motive is not immediately apparent for any of them. There is a really dark edge to this story, one which tugged at me on an emotional level and completely rewrote the way I felt about what was happening and what had happened. The book really does touch on key social issues, including mental health, abuse and dark family secrets, and although there are little clues here and there, you need to be very canny to spot them.
This is perhaps a slower paced story than a lot I have read of late, very deliberate and literary in style, but it works perfectly in this case. There is a sense of jeopardy, of there being secrets just waiting to be revealed, that kept me on edge throughout, but with a brilliant cast of characters, and a very vividly portrayed setting, I was completely immersed in the story from start to finish. I definitely feel like I need to go back and read the books I've missed so far in the series. Tense, intriguing and with a beautifully structured storyline, this is a book I could heartily recommend.
I really liked the Detective pairing of DCI Maarten Jansen and DI Adrika Verma. They are both intelligent, solid characters, not swayed by the fact that the case takes an unexpectedly personal turn for one of their team. There is a solemnity to Jansen as a character, but I found him easy to get to know and a good character to spend time with throughout the course of the investigation. He has a real instinct for what is happening around him, and is not swayed unnecessarily by the seemingly obvious nature of the case. Suspicion may be pointing in one direction but there is more to the case than meets the eye, something we, the readers, are privy to that Jansen and co thus far are not.
There is a kind of duality to the story line and cut away scenes which feed our understanding of the bigger picture, but not necessarily how you might think. I thought I had an idea, but I was wide of the mark at times, and there is plenty of misdirection, and a whole host of potential suspects, although the motive is not immediately apparent for any of them. There is a really dark edge to this story, one which tugged at me on an emotional level and completely rewrote the way I felt about what was happening and what had happened. The book really does touch on key social issues, including mental health, abuse and dark family secrets, and although there are little clues here and there, you need to be very canny to spot them.
This is perhaps a slower paced story than a lot I have read of late, very deliberate and literary in style, but it works perfectly in this case. There is a sense of jeopardy, of there being secrets just waiting to be revealed, that kept me on edge throughout, but with a brilliant cast of characters, and a very vividly portrayed setting, I was completely immersed in the story from start to finish. I definitely feel like I need to go back and read the books I've missed so far in the series. Tense, intriguing and with a beautifully structured storyline, this is a book I could heartily recommend.
February 28, 2022
The wind is cold this high up. The man shouts out, but nobody hears. The cathedral roof has caught his fall, but it will not hold him for long. The night is dark. And it is such a long way down…
And so begins The Fall. It’s Good Friday at St. Albans cathedral and Willow is late. It’s dark and the exhibition materials she is bringing to St. Albans are late. It’s dark and while she is walking she could swear she could hear a scream. As she is leaving a man falls from the top of the cathedral.
DCI Jansen thinks it looks like a suicide. But this is an elderly man. How did he even get way up there and why? Digging into the past he finds the man was a verger here for a long time. He also helped out at a local mental hospital where a nurse went missing. And what does it all have to do with a pregnant woman, a child, and over fifty years of secrets and silence?
As Willow’s own family history becomes entangled in this case everyone is beginning to look suspicious.
A morally bankrupt verger has a lot of secrets and untangling them all was wickedly good!
NetGalley/ April 14th, 2022 Head of Zeus an Aries Book
And so begins The Fall. It’s Good Friday at St. Albans cathedral and Willow is late. It’s dark and the exhibition materials she is bringing to St. Albans are late. It’s dark and while she is walking she could swear she could hear a scream. As she is leaving a man falls from the top of the cathedral.
DCI Jansen thinks it looks like a suicide. But this is an elderly man. How did he even get way up there and why? Digging into the past he finds the man was a verger here for a long time. He also helped out at a local mental hospital where a nurse went missing. And what does it all have to do with a pregnant woman, a child, and over fifty years of secrets and silence?
As Willow’s own family history becomes entangled in this case everyone is beginning to look suspicious.
A morally bankrupt verger has a lot of secrets and untangling them all was wickedly good!
NetGalley/ April 14th, 2022 Head of Zeus an Aries Book
April 11, 2022
This book has quite a beginning as someone falls from the roof of St Alban’s cathedral. Willow Eliot is late, due to an accident on the motorway, she has just arrived at the cathedral where she is doing her first ever exhibition, about an old mental institution known as Hill Barnes a place where people were put away if they were seen as being different, for instance someone with epilepsy which the parents felt embarrassed about it. Willow is convinced she can here someone shouting, but as it’s just her, the verger, and the van driver she puts it down to the dark. Until…..
DCI Maarten Jansen and his partner DI Adrika Verma are handling the case, the person who has fallen is an 80 year old man, they believe it to be suicide. Willow has a twin sister Fliss their family is in St Alban’s as Fliss is getting married.
It’s not long before other things happen, and the suspicion is starting to point at one person, but there is no motive. Could these incidents all be related to something else? Something from the past. The mystery deepens even further when someone goes missing.
I read this book in one sitting as the story pulled me in, it’s a little slow at the beginning but the tension gradually builds and grips you. It is told in a dual timeline. One from the 60’s with Alice’s point of view then in the present time with Willow and Maarten’s points of view.
As you are reading you find yourself trying to link the timelines in some way but there are a number of suspects, along with some misdirection. At times the story is quite dark as we learn more about the past, I found some of those parts quite emotional, I think because of some of the barbaric treatments that went on in the past in mental institutes.
I think the author got the balance of this story absolutely perfect, with secrets from the past, mixed with a sense of danger, familial disagreements, along with the setting in the cathedral. You are drawn in not knowing which way things are going to go and I have to admit I was absolutely blindsided by the end. I just hadn’t seen that coming. I like the fact the author has clearly gone into the background of the cathedral, when it’s described at night you feel the chills going over you. Overall I really enjoyed this one. An engrossing, suspenseful, gripping edge of your seat read. With great characters, that are believable and relatable. If that’s what you like in a book then grab a copy of this one.
DCI Maarten Jansen and his partner DI Adrika Verma are handling the case, the person who has fallen is an 80 year old man, they believe it to be suicide. Willow has a twin sister Fliss their family is in St Alban’s as Fliss is getting married.
It’s not long before other things happen, and the suspicion is starting to point at one person, but there is no motive. Could these incidents all be related to something else? Something from the past. The mystery deepens even further when someone goes missing.
I read this book in one sitting as the story pulled me in, it’s a little slow at the beginning but the tension gradually builds and grips you. It is told in a dual timeline. One from the 60’s with Alice’s point of view then in the present time with Willow and Maarten’s points of view.
As you are reading you find yourself trying to link the timelines in some way but there are a number of suspects, along with some misdirection. At times the story is quite dark as we learn more about the past, I found some of those parts quite emotional, I think because of some of the barbaric treatments that went on in the past in mental institutes.
I think the author got the balance of this story absolutely perfect, with secrets from the past, mixed with a sense of danger, familial disagreements, along with the setting in the cathedral. You are drawn in not knowing which way things are going to go and I have to admit I was absolutely blindsided by the end. I just hadn’t seen that coming. I like the fact the author has clearly gone into the background of the cathedral, when it’s described at night you feel the chills going over you. Overall I really enjoyed this one. An engrossing, suspenseful, gripping edge of your seat read. With great characters, that are believable and relatable. If that’s what you like in a book then grab a copy of this one.
April 27, 2024
The first half of this goes very slowly. Or at least they’re all separate bits and you have to wait until the second half for anything to begin to link up - so bear that in mind. I was originally thinking 2 stars as a result, but it did improve and I was leaning towards 3.5 stars, but I can’t say I took to any of the characters at all, sadly. I don’t think I’d have missed self centred Fliss at all, if they hadn’t found her - she was a caricature that wound me up. The book does feature how in the past, mental health and “socially embarrassing” conditions were avoided, with people being dumped in homes like Hill Barton… and it could have been a 4 star book as a result, except for none of the characters really feeling likeable to me. I couldn’t picture any of them in my head, either - either there was little description, or I missed it. So I’ve ended up on 3 stars.
I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review, apologies for the delay in providing this.
I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review, apologies for the delay in providing this.
April 20, 2022
I really did enjoy ‘The Fall’ and thought it was a fantastic read. I loved the writing style. With its mostly short chapters I kept turning the pages eager to know what would happen next. It was a gripping and exciting read and I found it extremely difficult to put the book down.
I liked how the story started with Willow arriving at the cathedral only to witness someone falling from the roof. I knew then that I was going to enjoy the book.
As I got further and further into the story, I kept trying to work out what had actually happened. There were so many possibilities. I suspected at least a couple of the characters but even I couldn’t have guessed the outcome. It was a shocker I have to say.
Reading about the psychiatric hospital and how people were just left there in those days made me feel sad.
‘The Fall’ is an atmospheric, shocking, and tense read. It is definitely a must read. You won’t be disappointed.
I liked how the story started with Willow arriving at the cathedral only to witness someone falling from the roof. I knew then that I was going to enjoy the book.
As I got further and further into the story, I kept trying to work out what had actually happened. There were so many possibilities. I suspected at least a couple of the characters but even I couldn’t have guessed the outcome. It was a shocker I have to say.
Reading about the psychiatric hospital and how people were just left there in those days made me feel sad.
‘The Fall’ is an atmospheric, shocking, and tense read. It is definitely a must read. You won’t be disappointed.
March 16, 2022
I love it when you can picture the setting so clearly. St Albans was a Friday night haunt for me many years ago. I haven't been back for a few years and after reading this,I intend to remedy that.
I read Rachael's previous book Into The Fire last year and really enjoyed it.
This is another case for DCI Maarten Jansen and his side kick Adrika and Sunny.
A verger is found dead at the cathedral at 1am. Was it suicide or was he pushed?
Willow has an exhibition at the cathedral about the mental hospital Hill Barnes.
Are the two linked?
This is very cleverly written. The plot entwines two families and what happened 50 years ago.
This has a lot going on which keeps the reader turning the pages.
I look forward to reading more DCI Maarten Jansen cases.
Thanks to Netgalley and Zeus for the ARC in return for an honest review.
I read Rachael's previous book Into The Fire last year and really enjoyed it.
This is another case for DCI Maarten Jansen and his side kick Adrika and Sunny.
A verger is found dead at the cathedral at 1am. Was it suicide or was he pushed?
Willow has an exhibition at the cathedral about the mental hospital Hill Barnes.
Are the two linked?
This is very cleverly written. The plot entwines two families and what happened 50 years ago.
This has a lot going on which keeps the reader turning the pages.
I look forward to reading more DCI Maarten Jansen cases.
Thanks to Netgalley and Zeus for the ARC in return for an honest review.
September 13, 2022
"There are moments in life when everyone needs someone."
The Fall - Rachael Blok
So I accidentally read the fourth book in the series without reading the first 3, that being said, I was still able to understand the plot and characters so this book would work fine as a stand alone too. The plot was interesting yet a little far fetched, and I really enjoyed the short chapters that kept me wanting to read on, and the multiple POV from different characters and timelines. I didn't see the ending coming which was another bonus and the way the storyline came together at the end was satisfying.
I would have liked more character development with the side characters however, like a POV from Willow's mum, or her nan, or Jaz. There was nothing that overly stood out to be about this novel other than it was well written, so I have given it 7 stars.
7 / 10
The Fall - Rachael Blok
So I accidentally read the fourth book in the series without reading the first 3, that being said, I was still able to understand the plot and characters so this book would work fine as a stand alone too. The plot was interesting yet a little far fetched, and I really enjoyed the short chapters that kept me wanting to read on, and the multiple POV from different characters and timelines. I didn't see the ending coming which was another bonus and the way the storyline came together at the end was satisfying.
I would have liked more character development with the side characters however, like a POV from Willow's mum, or her nan, or Jaz. There was nothing that overly stood out to be about this novel other than it was well written, so I have given it 7 stars.
7 / 10
July 16, 2023
The Bigger the Sin, The Further the Fall...
With Easter approaching, the verger of St.Albans Cathedral was supposed to be readying the church. Instead he discovers a man lying dead, fallen from the famous 150-foot-high tower.
Did he jump, or was he pushed?
For DCI Maarten Jansen, it's a simple case of suspected suicide. Until a stranger, Willow, who witnessed the jump, prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past, involving a psychiatric hospital, a pregnant woman, and fifty years of silence. As Willow's own family history entwines with the case, Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected.
THE FALL is a haunting thriller about loss, trauma, silence, and how our past shapes who we are.
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With Easter approaching, the verger of St.Albans Cathedral was supposed to be readying the church. Instead he discovers a man lying dead, fallen from the famous 150-foot-high tower.
Did he jump, or was he pushed?
For DCI Maarten Jansen, it's a simple case of suspected suicide. Until a stranger, Willow, who witnessed the jump, prompts a deeper investigation into a long-buried past, involving a psychiatric hospital, a pregnant woman, and fifty years of silence. As Willow's own family history entwines with the case, Jansen starts to wonder how everything is connected.
THE FALL is a haunting thriller about loss, trauma, silence, and how our past shapes who we are.
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