(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).
(This review may contain spoilers).
This book was, in a way, quite difficult to read – not due to the writing, but due to the subject content. I felt like I was pulled easily into Sue’s head and the fear, as well as the other emotions, she was feeling came through quite strongly.
I do think that the front cover of the book is particularly effective. It drew me in when I was originally looking at books to enter on the Goodreads giveaways – and even more so when I actually received the book.
There were a number of different relationships in the book that worked pretty well. I thought it was really interesting to see Sue in the present day and also her diary entries of the past. I felt the author did a good job of showing how different Sue was at both time frames.
I can imagine that something bad happening to your child is an awful thing to experience. I don’t have any children myself, but I can imagine how I would feel if a member of my family was in hospital – and how I might feel if I learned it was because of a deliberate action on their part.
The first person perspective worked really well, in my opinion. It was easy to empathise with Sue and although there were times I thought she could have made different choices, I could understand why she reacted the way she did.
The supporting characters were more interesting than I’d thought they’d be, too. I did like Brian, despite what had happened in the past. It was also nice to see that she had a good relationship with her stepson. I would have liked to see a bit more of him.
It’s interesting that this is a book aimed towards potential reading groups. Some of the questions I read really made me think about the narrative I’d just finished.
I did finish this book faster than I thought I would and it’s really left me thinking about it. I will definitely check out more books by this author in the future.
Ink of Blood 
This sounds like a good read and quite deep. I love it when characters really come alive, including minor characters.
I liked it personally, but on Goodreads, it didn’t have a high average rating.
That might change given time and readership, or it might just be it was “outside the box” for some people. I find the ratings quite deceptive until they get in the high figures – there are some sour-pusses out there all too willing to give a low vote on a whim.
That’s probably a good point. I find it quite difficult to give ratings at times. My sister says that, if she’s looking at a new book, she reads a high and low review at times. I think that’s a good way of doing it, to get a balanced perspective.