She Lies in Wait – Gytha Lodge – Bookrush 9

Trigger warning for rape, underage drug use and grooming.

Blurb:
Six friends. One killer. Whom do you trust? 

On a hot July night in 1983, six school friends go camping in the forest. Bright and brilliant, they are destined for great things, and young Aurora Jackson is dazzled to be allowed to tag along. 

Thirty years later, a body is discovered. DCI Sheens is called to the scene, but he already knows what’s waiting for him: Aurora Jackson, found at long last. 

But that’s not all. The friends have all maintained their innocence, but the body is found in a hideaway only the six of them knew about. 

It seems the killer has always lurked very close to home…. 

My Thoughts:
This book follows the investigation into the murder of Aurora Jackson which happened 30 years ago. We go between the summer of 1983 where we hear from Aurora about the night that changed everything and present day where DCI Sheens is investigating Jackson’s sister and her friends who were there that night while also trying to hide the secrets that he has.

I really enjoyed this book because I really couldn’t tell who killed Aurora, if she was indeed killed or overdosed.

I liked that Aurora’s chapters were narrated by Gytha Lodge herself. I found her voice eerie which really did bring that night to life and gave me chills. While Joe Coen did a great job at narrating the investigation.

There are some really dark storylines in this book which made some of it hard to listen to but thankfully it didn’t go into too much detail to leave me feeling ill.

You can definitely tell how the characters have grown since that night and how it changed them. They were all looking out for Aurora as she was the youngest there that night, and they all feel the guilt for not finding her and protecting her further.