ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister

Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister will be published by Penguin Michael Joseph on 12th May in hardcover, eBook and audiobook. I would suggest you get yourself a copy asap as this book is outstanding. My thanks to Jen Breslin and Ellie Hughes for the proof copy of the book (and the Time Out which is long gone!).

It’s every parent’s nightmare.

Your happy, funny, innocent son commits a terrible crime: murdering a complete stranger.

You don’t know who. You don’t know why. You only know your teenage boy is in custody and his future lost.

That night you fall asleep in despair. Until you wake . . .

. . . and it is yesterday.

Every morning you wake up a day earlier, another day before the murder. Another chance to stop it.

Somewhere in the past lie the answers, and you don’t have a choice but to find them . . .

I’d always, without hesitation, read a Gillian McAllister book but when I heard about the concept of Wrong Place Wrong Time I was instantly smitten. I knew a time travel book would be twisty but I didn’t reckon on how completely and utterly thrilling it would be, how every twist in the tale would lead me to have to shut the book and process it excitedly, before going onto the next chapter.

I won’t mention anything about the story other than what is in the synopsis, which is that Jen witnesses her teenage son commit a murder and then somehow she wakes up each morning in the past looking for answers to why her lovely son could murder somebody in cold blood. To know anymore would be to spoil the way this amazing book unfolds.

McAllister writes with such empathy and depth of feeling about family life and the difficulty and guilt of juggling motherhood and a career. Billed as a crime novel or a thriller, for me it’s not about the crime but about what we will do for those we love. I felt unexpectedly teary at the end. Just like with my other favourite McAllister, How to Disappear, she’s hit the nail on the head when it comes to family relationships and love, and made me care about the outcome.

The plotting is impeccable in every way. This is one very clever novel, perfectly executed and totally unforgettable. It is jaw-droppingly good and completely original. I love the time-travel genre and this is a real standout for me.

Trust me, there is no Wrong Time to pick up this book. This is a story that could have been difficult to pull off but McAllister has nailed it. I thought it was faultless, superb, and very special indeed.

Gillian McAllister has been writing for as long as she can remember. She graduated with an English degree before working as a lawyer. She lives in Birmingham, where she now writes full-time. She is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Everything But the Truth, Anything You Do Say, No Further Questions, The Evidence Against You,How To Disappear and the Richard & Judy Book Club pick That Night. She is also the creator and co-host of the popular Honest Authors podcast.