Having loved everything that Tammy Cohen has previously written, When She Was Bad was a book that I really couldn’t wait to get my hands on. It didn’t disappoint me in the slightest and was a truly wonderful and gripping psychological thriller that really keeps the reader glued to its pages from the very first word. It’s one of those books that demands your attention and demands to be read and I found myself completely unable to put it down.
In When She Was Bad we have two major storylines running alongside eachother and, eventually, both merge together in the most unimaginable and unpredictable way. First we have the tension that builds between a group of London colleagues - Amira, Sarah, Paula, Charlie, Chloe and Ewan. Once a close-knit, supportive and amicable team we see things change all too quickly as their kind, considerate and caring boss is replaced by Rachel who is manipulative and intent on stirring things up. Meanwhile, in the United States, is Anne who lives with her daughter and is a child psychologist. How exactly are these two connected to one of the London office workers who is tortured by their past and truly capable of murder?
In this book we have different chapters written from the perspective of different characters. You might think that this would make the book confusing and difficult to follow but this is not the case at all as Tammy does a superb job at connecting and bringing their stories together. This way of presenting the story also worked very well for this particular book as it allowed me to develop an understanding and appreciation of each of the characters which I think is really important in a book of this genre.
As the novel progresses it becomes clear that this book has not only been carefully thought through but also extremely well researched as we see Tammy take us into the world of childhood psychology. She expertly and tactfully investigates the question of whether we have the ability to remember and are affected by events of our very early years or whether we learn to dissociate ourselves from them.
All in all I found this to be an extremely interesting and thought-provoking read but one that was also incredibly accomplished and one which truly did have me sitting on the edge of my seat. The book even ended on a bit of a cliffhanger which has got my brain racing and wondering whether or not we will be treated to a sequel. I don’t know the answer to this but what I do know is that Tammy is an incredibly talented author whose books are consistently first-class and I really can’t wait to read her next book!
When She Was Bad will be published in April 2016 and is very much worth a pre-order!
I would like to end this review by extending my thanks to the publishers and Lovereading for supplying me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
