I almost abandoned this book a quarter of the way through. It did get better although I’m mystified as to why some reviewers described it as a thriller. There is an element of psychological suspense with a supernatural flavour but the story is mainly a detailed exploration of a controlling relationship and the trauma of domestic abuse. There are no jaw-dropping twists.

The narrator is Lisa, a woman who died on the track at Peterborough Railway Station and who now haunts the area. She watches a man deliberately throw himself in front of a train. After much description of the station, passengers, staff and the city of Peterborough, we are told her backstory, which occupies most of the book until we are back to the present and trying to solve the mystery of the man who now haunts the station too.

This book could have been improved by losing 100 pages, mainly the unnecessary descriptions which didn’t further the plot or our understanding of the characters. This was why I found it hard going until we were properly into the story of how Lisa ended up haunting the station. I also thought there were too many characters – station staff and police – to the extent that when they reappeared near the end of the book, I’d forgotten who some of them were. On the plus side, I admired the way that the author really nailed the realities of contemporary life and the tense intricacies of relationships, with very natural dialogue and plausible situations. It was unusual to read a novel set in Peterborough (in the east of England), a place I don’t know well but I used to occasionally change trains there.

In summary, try this if you are into very realistic fiction which is emotionally raw, but don’t expect a thriller.

Published in 2019.