Book Review: Keep Him Close

May: Crime 

Title: Keep Him Close 

Author: Emily Koch

Blurb: Alice’s son is dead. Indigo’s son is accused of murder.

Indigo is determined to prove her beloved Kane is innocent. Searching for evidence, she is helped by a kind stranger who takes an interest in her situation. Little does she know that her new friend has her own agenda.

Alice can’t tell Indigo who she really is. She wants to understand why her son was killed – and she needs to make sure that Indigo’s efforts to free Kane don’t put her remaining family at risk. But how long will it take for Indigo to discover her identity? And what other secrets will come out as she digs deeper?

No one knows a son like his mother. But neither Alice nor Indigo know the whole truth about their boys, and what happened between them on that fateful night.

This is a story about two grieving mothers having been separated from their sons in two very different ways but due to  the same crime. You have Alice, a woman whose son has died in a suspected murder, and then you have Indigo, whose only child is suddenly arrested for that same murder and the two of them are desperate to fill in the gaps of what happened that night for the sake of their own sons. 

The Cover 

Firstly, I love the cover of this book. The bright pink of the title really stands out well against the dark night's sky and I like how simple the text on the front is: "One Son Dies, One Son Lies." Instantly questions pop into my head: How did one die? Why did one lie? Who is wanting to keep who close? The whole thing just drew me in from the moment I saw it. 

The Plot 

Honestly this plot could have been pulled straight from a news report in the way that as I was reading it I kept thinking - what an awful thing to have happened and how must those mothers be coping? Just as I would if it was a real story being reported on the news. I loved the simplicity of the incident. It wasn't an over dramatised event that took place. There weren't guns blazing or knifes pulled or anything like that. It was such a realistic form of events in the way that Lou dies and I think that made it all the more interesting to read. There was so much mystery surrounding it because I just kept thinking "There must be more to it than this" which ultimately is the same thought that both mothers have and try to find out. 

The Characters

The story is told mainly from two character perspectives and alternates with each chapter. I liked this alternating because you get to go inside the head of each mother at each stage of the plot and understand the "two sides of the story." I also really like how Koch captured the very real grief and emotions of both women but at the same time, when the focus shifted on to the teenage boys she got it just right. I could just imagine Lou, Benny and Kane sitting in the park down the road from where I live, with their skateboard and bikes and being typical teenagers.

As well as the plot being well thought out and realistic, I found the characters very easy to understand and connect with. The only one I really struggled connecting with was Alice. Alice is nothing like any mother I have ever met in my life and her relationship with her sons is strange to say the least so I sometimes found her reactions and emotions at time very hard to believe or understand whereas with Indigo, being such an opposite character I found her far more believable and warmed to her a bit more. 

Writing Style 

One thing that did take me a little while to get used to is that when writing the story from Alice's perspective, Koch writes in the 3rd person. But when she writes from Indigo's perspective she writes in the 1st person. I don't know if she did this to help distinguish between the switch in perspectives but it took me a good few chapters to not notice it anymore and I wasn't sure how I felt about it at first. In saying that, once I adjusted to this small point it really didn't affect the reading experience for me at all. 

Overall Conclusion

I got through this book in just six days which is so fast for me. I was reading it before bed, as I cooked dinner, as I was waiting in line for the shop (which gave me plenty of time due to social distancing queues 👍) Once I started reading, I would lose track of time, turning the pages desperately to find out if either mother would get the justice they needed. This is a brilliant book mainly for the simplicity of it and I would recommend it for a good read! 

Review Summary: 

Book Cover: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Plot🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Characters 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Writing Style 🌟🌟🌟🌟

Overall Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (4 Stars)

Next Review: 

June: History (Non-Fiction)

Book: Hedy's War by Jenny Lecoat