NEW RELEASE
The Compromise - Zoe Miller (2013)
Juliet, Rebecca and Rose have a close-knit friendship that spans decades. When Juliet dies under suspicious circumstances, Rebecca and Rose's lives are changed forever. Her death brings unwanted attention on Rose, who has secrets to hide, and her husband Matthew's fledgling political career has just gotten a lot more promising with Juliet out of the picture. Rebecca is worried about her troubled daughter Danielle, and as she discovers more about Juliet's death it becomes apparent that she didn't know her friend as well as she thought. This is a real page-turner, as you are thrust into the action from page one, when a passerby spots Juliet at the bottom of the cliff. As the story progresses, there is an underlying current of suspicion as there appear to be plenty of people with suitable motive for wanting Juliet out of the way, but I was kept guessing until the end. There are plenty of secrets revealed, fingers pointed and unpredictable twists which made this novel a very entertaining read. My only criticism is that the book is divided into two parts, with the first being from Juliet's point of view, and part two from Danielle's. I would have preferred part two to have been from Rose or Rebecca's point of view, since Danielle lived in Rome I felt she was a bit detached from the action and it would have been more interesting from a more central character's perspective. However that is just down to personal preference, and overall I really enjoyed this book. (LO)
Sometimes a lie is better than the truth in The Compromise, by Zoe Miller. The summary says: "Wealthy privileged Juliet Jordan lies trapped on a ledge at the bottom of a cliff, not knowing if she accidently fell or was deliberately pushed. What enemy would go so far to get her out of the way? Or what friend? ... Juliet was about to go head to head with Matthew Moore in the country's latest presidential election contest. Matthew and Juliet have often clashed but now she stands squarely in the way of his power-hungry ambition. Matthew's wife, the wealthy but insecure Rose, has her own reasons for not wanting Juliet to contest the battle and her sister Rebecca, Juliet's best friend, grows increasingly alarmed with the ruthless campaign could destroy all their lives. When Juliet is found, no one escapes the emotional fallout, not even the beautiful Danielle, Rebecca's daughter, who has fled Dublin after the fraught break-up of her engagement. The tangled ties of forbidden love and friendship, old secrets and heartbreak that bind all the women are ripped apart until there is nothing left. And they have to realise what really counts, and what is the true meaning of love." The Compromise is out in March.