The Child in the Photo: An absolutely addictive and gripping psychological thriller

Kerry Wilkinson

Jun 2021 · Bookouture

About this ebook

I stare at the newspaper article about a baby snatched from the back of a car thirty years ago, and wonder why someone would post it through my door. Looking closer, my blood freezes. The little girl in the photo has an unusual scar – just like mine. I’ve never met anyone with one like it. Is this stolen child… me?

Trembling with shock, I know I have to confront my mother. My parents got me through a horrific accident, helped me find a job I love, teaching art, and even with buying my own house. But was it all built on lies?

She tells me the day I was born was the best day of her life, and I’m flooded with guilt for questioning her – but why do I catch her burning papers in the garden the next day?

Then I come home to find a woman sitting on my doorstep, covered in bruises and claiming she knows who abducted me. I don’t know if I can trust her – or if I’ll be the next to get hurt.

Because all the while, I’ve been hiding my own secret. Does whoever sent the article know what really happened the day of my accident? Desperate for the truth, I break into the house of my supposed kidnapper. Inside, I find a handwritten list of names. A shiver goes down my spine as I realise I wasn’t the only child to be stolen.

Then I hear a key in the lock, and I know my life is in terrible danger…

An absolutely addictive read that will have you racing through the pages and questioning everything you thought you knew about your family. Perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train, Lisa Jewell and Shari Lapena.

Read what everyone’s saying about The Child in the Photo:

‘WOW!!! WOW!! WOW!!! OH SNAP!!! Kerry Wilkinson DANG I smell best seller … incredible … amazing, creative and twisted… Ohh this book hooks you instantly!! … jam packed with suspense, with a thrilling and powerful ending!’ Heidi Lynn’s Book Reviews

‘I loved it… totally intriguing and addictive… Kerry throws in twist after twist that propels you into a whole other universe, leaving you questioning what you thought you knew… I simply could not put the book down… thoroughly addictive.’ Confessions of a Bookaholic, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Wow! What a rollercoaster, you have no idea what is coming next. This one keeps you guessing till the bitter end… so full of plot twists I had no idea what was going to happen… a fast-paced, gritty, keep you reading all night book… needs to top your summer reading list.’ Goodreads reviewer

‘Read this book!... the twists and turns will give you whiplash! I didn't want the ride to end.’ Withabookinourhands, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Immediately drew me in!... heart-pounding… Prepare yourself for a twisted ride… ENJOY!’ TwoGirlsandaBookObsession

Wow!!! What an absolute cracker of a book!!!… sucked me straight in… absolutely addictive page turner that kept my heart in my throat, on the edge of the seat and absolutely absorbed me… compelling, page-turning, mind-blowing… will keep you up late at night.’ bookworm86, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A great read… grabbed my attention from the first page… with each new revelation, I just kept wanting to turn the pages… I highly recommend this book.’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Omg, wow....just wow and wow again, I really, really loved this captivating, fast paced, unputdownable page turner… had me hooked in and glued to my kindle… a gripping read… packed full of twists and turns… one of my favourite reads of this year.’ Nickislifeofcrime, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

 

 

Ratings and reviews

This is the second book I have read by this author and the second one I have really enjoyed, so I will be searching the back catalogue for sure. This is a family drama which starts when Hope receives a newspaper cutting from 30 years ago. The article shows a picture of a stolen baby called Jane who has the same distinguishing feature as herself, part of her ear missing in exactly the same place! The whole story is then based around Hope trying to discover if her parents are actually her biological parents or does she have a different birth mother? She meets new people along the way, but can she believe anything anyone is telling her? So many conflicting stories based around lies. Is anyone going to tell her the truth? The characters were all really believable. I warmed to Hope and her best friend Stephen immediately. What a lovely friendship bond they had. Well written and kept me guessing the outcome right up until the end. Thank you to netgalley, the publishers and the author for an arc.

Imagine how it would feel to be happily living your life, only for it all to come crashing down around you in the blink of an eye. Everything you thought you knew, you now question and the ones you love and trust the most, could just well have been deceiving you for the last 30 years. Family, secrets, lies and deceit all play a part in this wickedly woven tale that will have you on the edge of your seat as you become trapped in the pages. I became invested in the story and with its characters, desperately wanting all the answers. Kerry Wilkinson definitely knows how to grab his readers attention and where we are spoilt for choice with similar tales, he really knows how to make his interpretation stand out above the rest. I enjoyed all the characters in the book, which again Kerry Wilkinson has excelled in their creation. Whether they are likeable or not, they all leave a lasting impression on you. In this case for me it was Stephen who is Hope’s best friend. Loyal and fiercely protective of her, all throughout I wished he was my friend! Kerry Wilkinson has crafted another intriguing and gripping read that is addictive, suspenseful fast paced, twisty and just downright unputdownable! Let me tell ya, I was flicking those pages long into the night to see how it was going to unfold and I was not disappointed. So do yourself a favour and grab yourself a copy of this book today! like right this second. Go go go!

My feelings about this book are mixed. On the one hand, it's an intriguing story - one with enough twists and turns to keep me turning the pages of my Kindle all the way to the end. But the end? It happened so abruptly - and in my mind, incompletely, that I actually said out loud, "Wait - is that all there is, or did I miss something?" But back to the beginning: Someone slips an old newspaper article to 34-year-old Hope Taylor about a baby girl who was taken from her mother three decades earlier. Nothing to get excited about, at least until Hope spots a very unique and unusual physical characteristic on the baby that she shares. Coincidence? Unlikely - but Hope loves her parents, who took good care of her, especially when she was in a bad accident. Her mother, when Hope confronts her, says all the right things; but the next day, Hope sees her burning papers in the garden and her reasons for doing so are less than satisfactory. When she tells her good platonic friend, Stephen, what happened, he insists that they go meet the woman whose daughter was stolen all those years ago. They break in, and Hope finds evidence that this woman's baby wasn't the only one stolen back then. Later still, Hope returns and actually meets the mother, who is absolutely positive that Hope is her missing daughter - a daughter she wants back in her life. In the midst of all this, Stephen must deal with a personal incident that could have been deadly. Still reeling, the only thing both Hope and Stephen are sure of is that they don't want to tell the police. And that was a turn-off for me, because I just couldn't buy their rationalizations for not doing so (although if Hope, in particular, had done so at that point I guess there wouldn't have been much of a story left). Then Hope gets a visitor who brings an even bigger surprise; and with that, I must stop and not give away anything more. Suffice it to say that trying to sort everything out becomes an emotional roller coaster - one on which it's next to impossible to see where the next turn will come and where it's going. Most of what happens gets resolved, but not all; as I indicated at the beginning, I wasn't totally satisfied and felt that several loose ends never got tied up. But overall, there's plenty of action here that should keep most readers not wanting to put the book down (think: Summer's coming and a relaxing chaise on the beach with a good book is starting to sound great). I thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to read and review a pre-release copy.