It's a pleasure to take part in the BlogTour for Safe and Sound by Philippa East.
About the Author
Philippa East is a fiction writer with HQ/HarperCollins and she also works as a clinical psychologist.
Philippa grew up in Scotland before moving to Oxford and then London to complete her clinical psychology training. A few years ago, she left the NHS to set up her own part-time practice and dedicate more hours to writing. The result was her debut novel Little White Lies, which was longlisted for The Guardian's Not-The-Booker Prize and shortlisted for the CWA "New Blood" Award 2020.
Philippa's next book Safe and Sound is another twisty and compelling tale. For a fun preview, check out the video trailer on Philippa's Amazon Author page (best with sound on!). Released in February 2021, Safe and Sound is available to buy now.
Philippa now lives in the beautiful Lincolnshire countryside with her husband and cat. She loves reading (of course!) and long country walks, and she also performs in a local folk duo called The Miracle Cure. Alongside her writing, Philippa continues to work as a psychologist and therapist.
About the book
Home can be the most dangerous place…
In a small London bedsit, a radio is playing. A small dining table is set for three, and curled up on the sofa is a body…
Jenn is the one who discovers the woman, along with the bailiffs. All indications suggest that the tenant – Sarah Jones – was pretty, charismatic and full of life. So how is it possible that her body has lain undiscovered for ten whole months?
Review
Jenn is the first to admit that she has struggled in the past and is scared she might slip into darker periods of her life again. It's important that she stay on track for herself and her young son. Unfortunately it looks as if she has let some of her work slide and in doing so has inadvertently put someone else at harm.
The death of a young woman disrupts her fragile hold on her own mental stability, a woman she should have checked up on. Jenn becomes obsessed with finding out what happened and why.
There is a parallel between Jenn and her responsibility towards Sarah, and in turn the mental health services and their responsibility towards Jenn. It's the core of story, who does carry responsibility and accountability and to what degree. The human element means human error, which is the variable no one can ever predict accurately.
I thought I had it sussed it within the first few chapters, but the author clearly plans for the deductive readers and gives this psychological thriller a bit more bite and mystery to keep them engaged. East gives an interesting insight into the world of mental health, both from the perspective of the person dealing with said issues and the support services surrounding them.
It's clear that the system and the services are lacking due to overworked staff and underfunding, which is how people fall in between the cracks of the system. On the other side you have a woman battling with the stigma of mental health and the fear someone could notice a decline. The need to appear healthy to the outside world creates a vicious cycle of guilt, shame and desperation - a cycle that is detrimental to all involved.
If this book is any indication of what this author can bring to the table then this just the first of many riveting reads.
Buy Safe and Sound at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ pub date 18 Feb. 2021. Buy at Amazon com. Hive. Bookshop org. Waterstones.
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