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cheekylaydee's review against another edition
4.0
My thanks to Booklover Catlady for the opportunity to read and review this title.
Sandra is on a train from London to Portsmouth when she finds out the man sitting with her has been in prison for murder. She is filled with equal parts horror, revulsion, and intrigue. Somewhat foolishly giving out her details over the phone as she reports a lost oyster card, Ben, self-confessed slitter of throats overhears and Sandra's life changes irreversibly, having already been through the wringer with her only son in Witness Protection for having given evidence in.....you guessed it.....a murder trial.
When she returns home to the sunny Isle of Wight, having fled there from London, she finds someone has been there in her absence, finding an oyster card on her doormat. Coincidence? Or could the dangerous yet attractive stranger on the train have something to do with this? She begins to find subtle clues around the house that someone has been there without her knowledge. Ben is the most likely candidate, a murderer who knows her address, and when he starts showing up wherever she happens to be her suspicions are on high alert.
I won't give too much away as it's very easy to reveal the whole plot and I want people to read it for themselves. I am an Isle of Wight native so the fact that the book is set here is an added bonus for me, as I could picture exactly where the characters were at any given time, and not having been back for 4 years now it made me want to go home for a visit!
With regards to the plot, this is a book that will have you questioning right and wrong, good and bad. Who you can trust and who you can't. How a good person is capable of doing bad things and vice versa. Do we ever really know someone even if they're the closest person to us?
A well-written book with complex believable characters and a twist you never saw coming. Maxine, send some more Joan Ellis my way! I want to read them all!
Sandra is on a train from London to Portsmouth when she finds out the man sitting with her has been in prison for murder. She is filled with equal parts horror, revulsion, and intrigue. Somewhat foolishly giving out her details over the phone as she reports a lost oyster card, Ben, self-confessed slitter of throats overhears and Sandra's life changes irreversibly, having already been through the wringer with her only son in Witness Protection for having given evidence in.....you guessed it.....a murder trial.
When she returns home to the sunny Isle of Wight, having fled there from London, she finds someone has been there in her absence, finding an oyster card on her doormat. Coincidence? Or could the dangerous yet attractive stranger on the train have something to do with this? She begins to find subtle clues around the house that someone has been there without her knowledge. Ben is the most likely candidate, a murderer who knows her address, and when he starts showing up wherever she happens to be her suspicions are on high alert.
I won't give too much away as it's very easy to reveal the whole plot and I want people to read it for themselves. I am an Isle of Wight native so the fact that the book is set here is an added bonus for me, as I could picture exactly where the characters were at any given time, and not having been back for 4 years now it made me want to go home for a visit!
With regards to the plot, this is a book that will have you questioning right and wrong, good and bad. Who you can trust and who you can't. How a good person is capable of doing bad things and vice versa. Do we ever really know someone even if they're the closest person to us?
A well-written book with complex believable characters and a twist you never saw coming. Maxine, send some more Joan Ellis my way! I want to read them all!
petra_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Once you pick this up, you'll probably don't want to put it back down again until you reach the final sentence. The first chapter in which Sandra meets Ben on the train ride home and he casually informs her that he "slit someone's throat" was totally gripping and it just kept going in the same fashion all the way to the end.
Sandra is a single Mum to Carl whose been in Witness Protection after giving evidence in the trial of a member of a well-known crime family. When creepy things start to happen around her, Sandra is on edge. Is Ben stalking her? Has somebody who is after Carl found her?
The author created a great cast of wonderfully flawed and wicked characters (I admit, I really liked Ben) and combined with the chilling plot and the astonishing twists, it was a total page turner. The ending was awesome, but also sad.
The only slightly annoying thing were the obvious mistakes that should have been picked up during proofreading.
Thanks to Maxine who introduced me to this author who I had not heard of before, but I will now check out her other work.
Sandra is a single Mum to Carl whose been in Witness Protection after giving evidence in the trial of a member of a well-known crime family. When creepy things start to happen around her, Sandra is on edge. Is Ben stalking her? Has somebody who is after Carl found her?
The author created a great cast of wonderfully flawed and wicked characters (I admit, I really liked Ben) and combined with the chilling plot and the astonishing twists, it was a total page turner. The ending was awesome, but also sad.
The only slightly annoying thing were the obvious mistakes that should have been picked up during proofreading.
Thanks to Maxine who introduced me to this author who I had not heard of before, but I will now check out her other work.
bibliophilebookclub's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to Maxine at Booklover Catlady for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Killing of Mummy’s Boy is the second book by Joan Ellis that I have read. Having read the blurb I have to say I was a little intrigued. I didn’t know what to expect. Goodreads describes it as follows:
When a woman meets a stranger on a train, she discovers they have one thing in common: murder.
Ben has slit a man’s throat and Sandra’s son, Carl is on a Witness Protection Programme after his evidence convicts local thug, Lee Elliott of murder. Fearing reprisals from the family, Sandra flees London for the Isle of Wight.
On the train, she reports her lost Oyster card, giving out her details over the phone. Ben overhears. Now, the murderer knows where she lives. Returning home to find an Oyster card on the mat, she assumes he has been there ahead of her.
It is the first in a series of unnerving events. Suspecting him of stalking her, she alerts the police. As no crime has been committed, they can’t help.
When her son leaves the safety of the Witness Protection Programme and moves back to London with his pregnant girlfriend, Sandra turns to drink. And to Ben.
Repelled by his past but excited by his body, she is in his thrall.
When Carl, girlfriend in tow, runs back to Mummy following a threatening message from Lee Elliott’s brother, Gaz, secrets and lies are unleashed and all hell breaks loose.
I have to be honest, I found this book quite difficult to get into, and about 50% of the way through I really questioned whether or not it would improve. Sufficed to say, once things start happening, the tension in the book ramps up. I won’t go into spoilers, but towards the end, there’s a genuine shocker if a plot twist, which in all honesty, I didn’t see coming! Once the big reveal happened though, the action really began. The last 20% of the book was where it got really good! I found myself flying through it to see what happens!
I thought the main characters were a bit difficult to like, Sandra especially, which made me lack empathy for certain situations in the book. Ben is your typical macho man, very crude and brutish, but I enjoyed his character towards the end of the book.
I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads, it was by no means terrible, but not my usual read so I found it a bit difficult to get into!
Happy reading
The Killing of Mummy’s Boy is the second book by Joan Ellis that I have read. Having read the blurb I have to say I was a little intrigued. I didn’t know what to expect. Goodreads describes it as follows:
When a woman meets a stranger on a train, she discovers they have one thing in common: murder.
Ben has slit a man’s throat and Sandra’s son, Carl is on a Witness Protection Programme after his evidence convicts local thug, Lee Elliott of murder. Fearing reprisals from the family, Sandra flees London for the Isle of Wight.
On the train, she reports her lost Oyster card, giving out her details over the phone. Ben overhears. Now, the murderer knows where she lives. Returning home to find an Oyster card on the mat, she assumes he has been there ahead of her.
It is the first in a series of unnerving events. Suspecting him of stalking her, she alerts the police. As no crime has been committed, they can’t help.
When her son leaves the safety of the Witness Protection Programme and moves back to London with his pregnant girlfriend, Sandra turns to drink. And to Ben.
Repelled by his past but excited by his body, she is in his thrall.
When Carl, girlfriend in tow, runs back to Mummy following a threatening message from Lee Elliott’s brother, Gaz, secrets and lies are unleashed and all hell breaks loose.
I have to be honest, I found this book quite difficult to get into, and about 50% of the way through I really questioned whether or not it would improve. Sufficed to say, once things start happening, the tension in the book ramps up. I won’t go into spoilers, but towards the end, there’s a genuine shocker if a plot twist, which in all honesty, I didn’t see coming! Once the big reveal happened though, the action really began. The last 20% of the book was where it got really good! I found myself flying through it to see what happens!
I thought the main characters were a bit difficult to like, Sandra especially, which made me lack empathy for certain situations in the book. Ben is your typical macho man, very crude and brutish, but I enjoyed his character towards the end of the book.
I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads, it was by no means terrible, but not my usual read so I found it a bit difficult to get into!
Happy reading
tinamoo's review against another edition
4.0
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is the story of Sandra whose only son Carl is on a witness protection programme after he witnessed a murder and testified in court. She has not seen her son for three years. Sandra lives in constant fear that she will be found by the family of the man her son helped put in prison. She lives in a remote village on the Isle Of Wight.
Whilst on the 4.20 train from Waterloo to Portsmouth she encounters a stranger who introduces himself as Ben. Ben almost immediately tells her that he slit a man's throat. Sandra is both scared and attracted to Ben at the same time. When Sandra arrives home she finds an Oyster card lying on her mat which had been hand delivered. She then remembers that she gave out her name and address when she reported hers lost on the train. Then the stalking begins ......
I really enjoyed this book. It was almost a five star for me but not quite. There were things that the main character did that frustrated me and other things that I thought were just stupid. At other times I just wanted to shake her. The stalking aspect of the book was very realistic and I felt her fear. This book was definitely a page turner and I was always very disappointed when I had to put this book down. For me, what sometimes makes or breaks a book is the ending. I thought that the ending to this book was fantastic. It is worth mentioning that at first glance of the cover I thought that this was going to be an erotic novel and very nearly overlooked it. I am so glad that I didn't because this was a great read.
This is the story of Sandra whose only son Carl is on a witness protection programme after he witnessed a murder and testified in court. She has not seen her son for three years. Sandra lives in constant fear that she will be found by the family of the man her son helped put in prison. She lives in a remote village on the Isle Of Wight.
Whilst on the 4.20 train from Waterloo to Portsmouth she encounters a stranger who introduces himself as Ben. Ben almost immediately tells her that he slit a man's throat. Sandra is both scared and attracted to Ben at the same time. When Sandra arrives home she finds an Oyster card lying on her mat which had been hand delivered. She then remembers that she gave out her name and address when she reported hers lost on the train. Then the stalking begins ......
I really enjoyed this book. It was almost a five star for me but not quite. There were things that the main character did that frustrated me and other things that I thought were just stupid. At other times I just wanted to shake her. The stalking aspect of the book was very realistic and I felt her fear. This book was definitely a page turner and I was always very disappointed when I had to put this book down. For me, what sometimes makes or breaks a book is the ending. I thought that the ending to this book was fantastic. It is worth mentioning that at first glance of the cover I thought that this was going to be an erotic novel and very nearly overlooked it. I am so glad that I didn't because this was a great read.
elgeewrites's review
4.0
Read the full review at Elgee Writes
My initial thoughts
I have read and enjoyed Joan’s other novel, ‘I am Ella. Buy Me‘, yet I was surprised by the premise of ‘The Killing of Mummy’s Boy’. We don’t think twice much before spelling our addresses out in public these days, and the possibility that this could happen to anyone of us, made it all the more intriguing.
I loved all the twists in the plot (maybe except the final one) and was genuinely pleased that the character I liked didn’t turn out to be the stalker. I had to stop myself tapping my head every time Sandra made a stupid decision, thanks to her being an alcoholic. I disliked Carl and his using his mom as a shield from his own responsibilities even before the plot fell open.
Things that worked for me
I found the dysfunctional mother-son relationship credible and intriguing, kudos to the Joan’s attention to detail and writing style.
I loved the writing of Joan Ellis especially as she did a commendable job on bringing out the pain and fear of Sandra and the vivid backdrop of the 80’s.
Things that didn’t work for me
It was a bit difficult to get into initially but the pace increased as it got past 30% of the book.
Some may feel that there were too many things happening at the same time, which may be overwhelming.
Bottom-line
Joan explores the subject of moral righteousness and integrity against family values and loyalty without be judgmental, which worked well for me. I would love to see a movie on this story-line. Now, I should read Joan’s other novels for sure.
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My initial thoughts
I have read and enjoyed Joan’s other novel, ‘I am Ella. Buy Me‘, yet I was surprised by the premise of ‘The Killing of Mummy’s Boy’. We don’t think twice much before spelling our addresses out in public these days, and the possibility that this could happen to anyone of us, made it all the more intriguing.
I loved all the twists in the plot (maybe except the final one) and was genuinely pleased that the character I liked didn’t turn out to be the stalker. I had to stop myself tapping my head every time Sandra made a stupid decision, thanks to her being an alcoholic. I disliked Carl and his using his mom as a shield from his own responsibilities even before the plot fell open.
Things that worked for me
I found the dysfunctional mother-son relationship credible and intriguing, kudos to the Joan’s attention to detail and writing style.
I loved the writing of Joan Ellis especially as she did a commendable job on bringing out the pain and fear of Sandra and the vivid backdrop of the 80’s.
Things that didn’t work for me
It was a bit difficult to get into initially but the pace increased as it got past 30% of the book.
Some may feel that there were too many things happening at the same time, which may be overwhelming.
Bottom-line
Joan explores the subject of moral righteousness and integrity against family values and loyalty without be judgmental, which worked well for me. I would love to see a movie on this story-line. Now, I should read Joan’s other novels for sure.
Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Amazon |
bibliophilebookclub's review
3.0
Thanks to Maxine at Booklover Catlady for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The Killing of Mummy’s Boy is the second book by Joan Ellis that I have read. Having read the blurb I have to say I was a little intrigued. I didn’t know what to expect. Goodreads describes it as follows:
When a woman meets a stranger on a train, she discovers they have one thing in common: murder.
Ben has slit a man’s throat and Sandra’s son, Carl is on a Witness Protection Programme after his evidence convicts local thug, Lee Elliott of murder. Fearing reprisals from the family, Sandra flees London for the Isle of Wight.
On the train, she reports her lost Oyster card, giving out her details over the phone. Ben overhears. Now, the murderer knows where she lives. Returning home to find an Oyster card on the mat, she assumes he has been there ahead of her.
It is the first in a series of unnerving events. Suspecting him of stalking her, she alerts the police. As no crime has been committed, they can’t help.
When her son leaves the safety of the Witness Protection Programme and moves back to London with his pregnant girlfriend, Sandra turns to drink. And to Ben.
Repelled by his past but excited by his body, she is in his thrall.
When Carl, girlfriend in tow, runs back to Mummy following a threatening message from Lee Elliott’s brother, Gaz, secrets and lies are unleashed and all hell breaks loose.
I have to be honest, I found this book quite difficult to get into, and about 50% of the way through I really questioned whether or not it would improve. Sufficed to say, once things start happening, the tension in the book ramps up. I won’t go into spoilers, but towards the end, there’s a genuine shocker if a plot twist, which in all honesty, I didn’t see coming! Once the big reveal happened though, the action really began. The last 20% of the book was where it got really good! I found myself flying through it to see what happens!
I thought the main characters were a bit difficult to like, Sandra especially, which made me lack empathy for certain situations in the book. Ben is your typical macho man, very crude and brutish, but I enjoyed his character towards the end of the book.
I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads, it was by no means terrible, but not my usual read so I found it a bit difficult to get into!
Happy reading
The Killing of Mummy’s Boy is the second book by Joan Ellis that I have read. Having read the blurb I have to say I was a little intrigued. I didn’t know what to expect. Goodreads describes it as follows:
When a woman meets a stranger on a train, she discovers they have one thing in common: murder.
Ben has slit a man’s throat and Sandra’s son, Carl is on a Witness Protection Programme after his evidence convicts local thug, Lee Elliott of murder. Fearing reprisals from the family, Sandra flees London for the Isle of Wight.
On the train, she reports her lost Oyster card, giving out her details over the phone. Ben overhears. Now, the murderer knows where she lives. Returning home to find an Oyster card on the mat, she assumes he has been there ahead of her.
It is the first in a series of unnerving events. Suspecting him of stalking her, she alerts the police. As no crime has been committed, they can’t help.
When her son leaves the safety of the Witness Protection Programme and moves back to London with his pregnant girlfriend, Sandra turns to drink. And to Ben.
Repelled by his past but excited by his body, she is in his thrall.
When Carl, girlfriend in tow, runs back to Mummy following a threatening message from Lee Elliott’s brother, Gaz, secrets and lies are unleashed and all hell breaks loose.
I have to be honest, I found this book quite difficult to get into, and about 50% of the way through I really questioned whether or not it would improve. Sufficed to say, once things start happening, the tension in the book ramps up. I won’t go into spoilers, but towards the end, there’s a genuine shocker if a plot twist, which in all honesty, I didn’t see coming! Once the big reveal happened though, the action really began. The last 20% of the book was where it got really good! I found myself flying through it to see what happens!
I thought the main characters were a bit difficult to like, Sandra especially, which made me lack empathy for certain situations in the book. Ben is your typical macho man, very crude and brutish, but I enjoyed his character towards the end of the book.
I gave this book 3 stars on Goodreads, it was by no means terrible, but not my usual read so I found it a bit difficult to get into!
Happy reading
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