Featured debut author: Debbie Howells - The Bones Of You

I did quite enjoy this but did think it was a bit repetitive and padded out. It became fairly obvious what the outcome would be about two thirds of the way through, if not earlier. "All is not what it seems" was the rather overplayed theme across the board with this book and there was nothing very surprising about it.

I am starting my copy today and will report back!

Thank you for my copy first of all.

I have to admit, I was looking forward to reading this book.
I was disappointed though. It felt familiar, like the feeling you get when you've read a book before. I haven't of course, but I think the theme seemed borrowed.

I didn't enjoy the flow of the book either, the swapping between Rosie's thoughts and real time.

I got bored in the middle and would've skipped to the end but felt I had to give a proper opinion.
More time should've been given to flesh out Delphines character too.

I have finished this now and enjoyed it.

It was a very quick read, and I liked the way it skipped between Kate and Rosie.

I thought it was a bit odd that everyone seemed to forget about Delphine. It was almost like she was added in a bit later and the earlier chapters weren't updated to include her.

I would have expected that someone would ask about Delphine earlier. Rosie is missing. Oh no, does Delphine know where she might be? or Rosie is missing? How is Delphine coping?

But I enjoyed the story and it was interesting to see how the truth was slowly revealed (even though I guessed).

Thank you again for my copy.

Thanks Mumsnet/Pan for my free copy of The Bones of You.

When I first started reading I thought it was going to go down the usual route of Joanna Trollope-esque plot i.e tortured family relationships that eventually come good.
However it obviously became a thriller very quickly.

Can't say I enjoyed the story that much but couldn't seem to put the book down. Unlike others I didn't correctly guess the murderer until much later in the book.

Tbh I thought it overly long and found myself skip reading 'real life' sections to get to Rosie's narrative.

Too many peripheral characters (what was point of 'Laura'?) and sub plots. The marital issues between Angus and Kate didn't seem well formed although I appreciate it was a device to compare against Jo and Neal's relationship.

Small but critical things annoyed me. Surely fingerprints would have been taken at the murder scene? What about a post mortem when the pregnancy would have been confirmed and obviously Neal would have been told (can't recall if he ever knew that it was actually Rosie who was pregnant?).

All very Gone Girl but an interesting way to pass a couple of evenings
Thanks again!

I found this to be the type of book I would enjoy reading on holiday, more to it than chicklit but not too heavy. I began the book without great expectations as the beginning seemed, initially, very reminiscent of The Lovely Bones but, as the story gathered pace, it became more interesting.

I did find it a bit irritating to have the peripheral characters of extra friends and the victim's boyfriend, who did not seem to "flesh out" so they seemed to be there just to get plot points across. On the other hand I found the characters of Rosie and Delphine intriguing, they seemed very "pale" and hidden from us, which was a clever portrayal of the effects of abuse on them

I thought it was very obvious that the first suspect was a red herring and enjoyed seeing the suspicion shift although I spotted the murderer fairly quickly. It was interesting seeing the murderer unravel and I thought the most interesting twist in the book was that the friendship between two of the main characters was very real to one of them who genuinely cared and tried to support yet it was just a matter of convenience to the other who, in truth, despised her.

Thank you for sending this book. I enjoyed it and found I thought about it more as I knew I would be writing this.

Thank you so much for the book. I enjoyed it, thought it was well written. I read it very quickly as was very good at keeping your interest. I wanted to know what happened next and was interested in the characters. Would definitely read more of her work.

(I bought this myself as opposed to receiving the free copy). I thought this book was a brilliant read: I flew through it as I couldn't wait to find out what happened next. Lots of interesting characters and dark secrets... I thoroughly recommend it. I read it immediately after 'The girls' by Lisa Jewell and I thought it was a similar style of book to that one, and equally as good. Am now reading 'Black Rabbit Hall' which also seems promising - this is a good summer for books!

Thanks for my review copy. I'm afraid I'm also in a bit of a minority though - I found this book quite slow and I couldnt connect with any of the characters, including the narrator. I couldnt quite fathom her relationship with Rosie and her family either - it wasnt clear why she felt such a connection to Rosie. Plot device of the friend who was a journalist was irritating as well, and I guessed whodunnit quite early on. Found myself skipping pages just to get to the end. So,sorry, but not my cup of tea.....

Many thanks Mumsnet/Pan Macmillan for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.
Story told in an interesting way from the perspectives of Kate and missing Rosie. A good thriller with plot & mystery that goes along at a steady pace and the suspicion falls on enough characters to keep you guessing. Quite subtle and for me a bit of a slow starter but it certainly held my interest and with enough twists and turns that kept me engaged. Possible tv film in it?
Overall a great debut novel - and I look forward to reading more in the future.

I hate to be the lone voice, but I am not enjoying it that much at all. I'm half way through & I don't think she writes well & I loathe the interspersed chapters from the dead girl (& the fact that they are in a different typeface). I reckon I've already worked out 'who dunnit' & am v tempted to skip to the end & save some time for other things.

I really don't feel any connection or empathy to any of the characters & feel as if the author has jumped on a band wagon of 'GOne Girl' type of fiction.

I spent most of my working life in horticulture & don't really see a passion for gardening/plants coming through.

But, many, many thanks for a free copy.

I so enjoyed this too. I was gripped from the start and really puzzling it out in my head. It was a bit dark for my taste as it progressed - I never like reading anything about abuse as it upsets ME. However this book kept me reading. Well done to the author on a great first novel.

Thank you for my copy, I loved it! I got in to the book straight away and it had me guessing right to the end :-) It was really easy to read and the author's passions about animals and plants really come through for me. Thanks so much, I will definitely pass it on to a friend :-)

Thanks very much for my free copy Mumsnet!

I really enjoyed reading this book and found it very easy to get into. Before long, I was totally gripped and very keen to find out who the murderer was.
I thought I had worked out who was responsible fairly early on, but I was wrong - which was great!
The main character did annoy me at times - I felt her thought process was a bit repetitive, but it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment of the story. I read the book in 2 days so it must have been a pretty gripping read!

Got back from holiday & my lovely neighbour had taken in the parcel that was my copy.

Looking forward to starting it tomorrow.

I really enjoyed this book. I found it very engaging from the off and even though I figured out some plot points quite early I didn't find myself frustratedly waiting for the story to get to that particular reveal.

Lots of very interesting characters and yes I would have enjoyed a bit more context for a couple of the slightly less central figures but I didn't feel there was too much lacking in what I did have.

I'd certainly be interested to read Howells next book. I think she weaves the dramatic and tragic well without becoming over blown and unbelieveable.

Thank you for my book MN.

I really enjoyed it. I loved the style of writing which really reels you in. I guessed early on who the murderer was but it did not take away from the enjoyment of the story.

I sometimes felt Kate was an annoying character and I felt that if we had a little bit more background of her and Rosie's relationship that may have made me understand the deep bond she seemed to have had with Rosie.

I will definitely be reading her next book.

I've enjoyed this book - especially the switching between narratives, which changed the pace. Some of the characters are sketchy, but that may be deliberate by the author. How much notice do we really give to nodding acquaintances & those on the periphery of our lives? It clips along well, not unnecessarily complex or convoluted and I could identify in some ways with the main character. I did guess the killer, but I'm giving nothing away.

Overall, an interesting debut novel. Shows real promise for others to follow. I'm happy to have had the opportunity to have read it.

The book is breathtaking and as a parent to a teen daughter I found it very emotive. From early on the jumping between characters from Rosie, the teen who has been murdered, her friend's mother Kate and her sister Delphine. I did correctly guess who was to take Rosie's life. It took me a few days to read as I found myself getting upset but the lure of the book drew me back in to reading it.

The book from start to finish is griping as well as being decent length chapters which hold your attention. If you like crime this would be the book for you.

I'm about 1/2 way through at the moment. Intrigued but finding it emotional too x

I've just finished reading this book and this is my review in my own words.

When a teenage girl goes missing Kate finds herself pulled into the lives of the family of the missing girl. Whilst quite reminiscent of "the lovely bones", it's much darker and explores domestic violence, historic abuse and child abuse although the latter is not sexual but controlling and systematic cruelty. It was incredibly sad but I couldn't stop reading. Kate attempts to befriend jo, the mother of Rosie who is missing but jo is hiding secrets which are hidden behind a facade of perfectionism. Kate is dealing with her own daughter leaving home, hiccups in her own marriage and escapes to her horses while trying to help the fractured family deal with rosies disappearance.

I would definitely read another book by this author, she has a beautiful way of writing which keeps you hooked without being lost in endless descriptive paragraphs which I find off putting. Debbie keeps the descriptive short and relevant and I really felt like I could understand the characters as well as imagine the woodland. The last page moved me to tears.

Thank you for sending me a copy of The Bones of You. I'm new to MumsNet and this is the only book giveaway I have entered!

The description of the book had me intrigued and I duly got lost in the story. I was hooked from start to finish, and although I figured out the murderer part way through, the full reasoning why and how took longer to unravel. I was frustrated by the lack of development of some characters and some seemingly random side stories that didn't really go anywhere. So not a stand out book that I will be raving about to anyone who will listen, but a enjoyable story all the same. I will look into reading further books by Debbie Howells

This is an excellent book. I didn't want to put it down. I found it engrossing, and kept flickering between two people as to who the murderer was.
I thought one aspect was fairly obvious, but won't spoil it, and it didn't ruin the book.

I will look out for the next book by this author - thankyou.

I could do,I wanted to wait for other people to finish it.I found it reminiscent of Alice Sebold at first and I worked out who the murderer was fairly early on.I enjoyed it....I liked the descriptions of the flowers and nature.I do find it odd though re this connection people have with Horses...not just this book but others!

I've ordered it for my kindle - is it good?