Book Review: V for Violet by Alison Rattle

V for Violet
Author: Alison Rattle
Publisher: Hot Key Books
R.R.P: $16.99
Pages: 283 pages

London, 1961

Britain is entering the swinging sixties. The world is changing- but not for sixteen-year-old a violet. She's stuck in her mum and dad's fish and chip shop, where she can only dream of a more exciting life.

When she meets Beau, a dangerously sexy Rocker, Violet's life is suddenly more interesting. But then her long-lost brother comes home, and local girls start going missing- and are found murdered.

Violet suspects she knows who the killer is. And when her best friend disappears too, she knows she must act. But can she trust herself, and her heart, to make the right decision and uncover the truth?

My review
Thoughts on the book: I read the synopsis for this book and decided that it sounded interesting so I put a request in for it. Luckily at the time I didn't really think to much about who the book was by. You see early last year I recieved a review copy of a book by Alison Rattle called The Beloved and could not get into it at all. I tried for months but could barely get past 50 pages in. It wasn't until I recieved the book and turned it over that I saw the books she had previously written on the back and low and behold there it was. I sat there thinking aww no I've requested a book that I'm not going to be able to read, but decided to brave it anyway and yep you guessed it I ended up loving it. 

V for Violet tells the story of a young sixteen year old  Londener Violet who has lead a very boring, plain life. She has basically had the same routine her whole life, worn the same clothes and had the same best friend, but suddenly everything is changing before her eyes: herbest friend, Jackie gets a job and makes new friends and starts to leave Violet behind, 'dead' brother miraculously comes back to life and enters her life for the very first time and a hot motorcycle guy takes an interest in her. Oh but let's not forget the mystery surrounding the murders of young girls that is suddenly taking place.  Violet's life is going to change immensely in such a short amount of time when her best friend Jackie is found murdered and Violet suspects that it is her newly retuned brother who has done it. 

V for Violet is a fantastic mix of young love, mystery sleuthing that would make Nancy Drew proud, death, life and almost all things that young teenage girls deal with all rolled into one. You get a real feel for what life was like for people who lived in London in 1961, way before televisions were in every house, mobile phones were everywhere and you could simply go to the Internet for any answers you may need. It was the time of pay phones, doing The Twist at dances and looking at Encyclopaedias for answers to your homework. It nearly makes me want to go and live in the 60's for a day. If you want to know what a French Letter is in the 1960's and not know who the murderer is until they are revealed (I had know idea) I suggest you pick up V for Violet and give it a read.

Rating: 4/5




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