Reviews

The Brighton Mermaid by Dorothy Koomson

portybelle's review

4.0

It's a while since I read a Dorothy Koomson book and I don't know why as as soon as I started reading this book, I was gripped by its central mystery. She is brilliant at keeping her readers' attention with all the twists and turns and little bits of information she drips into the story. In this one, Nell, has been obsessed with finding out the story behind The Brighton Mermaid an unidentified body she and a friend found on the beach 25 years previously. The young woman was never identified, other women were found killed in a similar way and her friend disappeared just a few weeks later. Determined to finally find the truth, she soon discovers that she and perhaps those she loves are at risk. This was a fast paced book where it wasn't clear who could be trusted. It kept me guessing till the end when there were more than a few surprises!

chevreadsbooks's review

4.0

Without adding any spoilers for those who have finished, did the very ending make you go... Whattttt?

mshambley76's review against another edition

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

cosmoqueen's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

proudlocks's review against another edition

5.0

Wow, wow, wow, wow, wow! A must read.

So intricate, intense, emotional, hard.. honestly might be the best book I’ve read this year. True it’s like many murder mysteries but it’s so elevated!

It’s funny because the main characters aren’t my favourites, her “love interests” are, they play a very supporting role!

Read it now!

fordec26's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Great book lovw Dorothy's style of writing 

nikcc's review

4.0

I love Dorothy Koomson and will always read her books. She manages to keep you guessing until the very end with unforeseen twists and turns.

paulahe's review against another edition

4.0

Enjoyed this. Quite an unexpected twist to it.

elmogi's review against another edition

mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

jayneyh314's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

25 years ago, Nell and her best friend, Jude, found the body of a young woman on the beach late at night. Her identity is never discovered and she becomes known as the Brighton Mermaid after a tattoo she has. In the weeks after, Nell is still struggling to process what has happened when Jude vanishes. Now, Nell has given up her job to focus all her attention on finding out the truth about who the Brighton Mermaid was and what happened to her best friend but the closer she gets to the truth, the more danger she seems to be in and there is more than one person in her life keeping a secret. 

I love Dorothy Koomson’s books, particularly since she moved to the more crime/thriller type. They are absolutely right up my street. 

I don’t know how I managed to miss “The Brighton Mermaid” when it first came out but I’m so glad I’ve gotten to it now because I absolutely loved it. So much so that I ended up staying up way later than I should have last night because I couldn’t stop reading. 

Koomson’s writing is so well suited to this genre. She builds up the tension and drops in little hints and clues before hitting you with the big twist. I’m not going to give away any spoilers but I didn’t see the ending coming at all. 

I love Koomson’s characterisation, especially the way she creates such complex characters and believable characters. It’s easy to fall into the trap of making your “baddies” a little one dimensional and just purely evil and your “goodies” as practically angelic but she manages to steer clear of that and captures all the shades of grey that real life holds. 

Nell in particular was a stand out character for me. She is a very complex person but ultimately her actions are rooted in wanting to help. 

Lack of communication was a big theme in this one. So many problems could have been prevented or solved more easily if the characters had communicated better but, again, I think that is very true of real life as well. 

I’ve found myself thinking about this one all morning whilst trying to do my job, which I always think is a sign of a really good book. I’d love for Koomson to write a sequel so I can see if any of my thoughts on what happened next are close to the mark. 

Overall a fabulous thriller full of twists and turns.