I’m pleased to welcome you today to my stop on the blog tour for excellent psychological thriller The Judas Tree by Amanda Jennings. Thank you to HQ for giving me the opportunity to read and review this powerful and thought provoking book.
About the book:
At a bleak boys’ boarding school in Cornwall in the eighties when bullying is rife, Will and his best friend, Luke, are involved in a horrific incident that results in Luke leaving.
Twenty-five years later their paths cross again and memories of a painful childhood come flooding back to haunt them both.
Will’s wife, Harmony, is struggling after a miscarriage that has hit her hard, and wishes Will would open up about what happened. But as Will withdraws further, she finds herself drawn to the charismatic stranger from her husband’s past, Luke, and soon all three are caught in a tangled web of guilt and desire . . .
From Amanda Jennings, author of The Cliff House, comes a haunting thriller about betrayal and revenge.
About the author:
Amanda Jennings has written six novels, and numerous short stories for anthologies and magazines, and is published both in the UK and abroad. She is a contributor to BBC Radio Berkshire and a long-standing judge for the Henley Youth Festival literary competition, has taught writing workshops, and enjoys appearing at literary festivals. Before becoming an author, Amanda worked at the BBC as a researcher, and studied History of Art at Cambridge University. She lives in a cottage in the middle of the woods in Oxfordshire with her family and a varied assortment of animals.
My Review:
The Judas Tree (previously published as The Judas Scar) by Amanda Jennings is a hard hitting thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. Dark and disturbing, this is a complex tale of betrayal and revenge that had a huge emotional impact on me as the story began to unfold.
It is a powerfully written and thought provoking tale that shows how a traumatic childhood experience can be carried through into adulthood. An event so horrifying it never, ever leaves you and bleeds into everything you do in your life moving forward.
It’s 1980’s Cornwall and best friends Will and Luke attend a bleak boys boarding school where bullying is an everyday occurrence. But then an horrific incident happens that leads to Luke leaving the school never to be seen again. Now, twenty five years later, their paths cross again and the traumatic memories from the past come flooding back to haunt them both.
Will is now married to Harmony, who is struggling after the devastation of a recent miscarriage. Wishing Will would open up to her about what happened all those years ago, she finds herself drawn to the charismatic Luke, with all three soon finding themselves caught up in a tangled web of lies, betrayal and desire…
I loved this book. Amanda Jennings has written a dark and powerful story that’s full of the kind of twists, turns, shocks and surprises that keep you on your toes right up until the final page has been turned. An atmospheric, twisted tale that packs a real emotional punch to the gut, The Judas Tree is a book that doesn’t shy away from difficult issues and is one that I would highly recommend.
The Judas Tree by Amanda Jennings is available to buy now:
Check out what these other fabulous bloggers have to say about this book:
Cal Turner Reviews 