Review of ‘Cross Her Heart’ by Sarah Pinborough

This book was truly addictive. A psychological thriller with more twists than a plateful of pasta, Cross Her Heart is a fast paced novel with a plausible plot and emotionally engaging content.

I can’t say much about the plot without spoiling it for you, but I will say that it’s about a woman, Lisa, who did something terrible a long time ago and still suffers the consequences. She’s an anxious and overprotective single mother. Her daughter Ava wants more freedom and to be valued as an adult who can make her own decisions. And there’s Marilyn, colleague and best friend of Lisa, feisty but trapped in an abusive relationship. The story is narrated from these three viewpoints (with Lisa’s being the main one), plus another later on (who I won’t mention in case you’re going to read it). At first I was a little confused as to who was narrating and I think the voices could’ve been more distinct from the start, but as I got to know the characters, I didn’t have this problem any more.

The pace and plot of the novel are its strengths. It’s not often I finish a novel with “wow!” – so that’s high praise from me. I will say that some of the content is upsetting as it involves child neglect, but it’s not so graphically described that it would put me off. The novel also explores the different outcomes of people’s lives based on their social backgrounds, and how the most privileged in our society can get away with things while the disadvantaged suffer. It’s also about the destructive effects of toxic relationships.

I definitely recommend this novel and will read more from this author.