Book Review: False Hope by Lynne Lee

False Hope 

by

Lynne Lee

 

She made a big promise. Did she also make a big mistake?

 

 

Publisher: Thomas & Mercer

Publication date: 21st January 2021

Genre: Contemporary Fiction / Mystery

Pages: 300

Format read: Kindle edition

Source: Netgalley

 

About the book

 

Ten years ago, Grace made her dying sister a promise—that she would look after Hope’s baby son as her own. Now, the man whose son she is raising has turned up on Grace’s operating table, fighting for his life.

When an accusation of negligence follows, Grace is forced to confront not just the man who abandoned her sister, but also his mother, Norma—who blames Grace for taking everything she loves.

Based on what her sister told her, Grace is sure she did the right thing to keep that promise. But what if Hope didn’t tell her everything? Norma’s vicious attacks push Grace to investigate further and what she finds makes her question everything she thinks she knows, pointing to a very different past—and a devastating betrayal.

As Grace uncovers the truth, can she protect her family from the consequences of what her sister did?

 

My review

 

False Hope could have been a gripping read however for me there were too many themes that  could have been better explored.

Grace has the juggling act of a young family, a demanding career as a trauma surgeon and the responsibility of being the only living child of a parent with dementia. She has adopted her late sister Hope's son and completely cut off his father and paternal grandmother. An action she believes is the only way forward for them all.  

 

When Hope's ex-husband turns up on the operating table after a serious accident leaves his life in the balance Grace has to act fast and preforms the operation that she knows will save his life. There is much bad blood between the families and a malpractice claim ensues. This on its own could have created a great story but it never fully evolved.

 

There were lots of little plot lines running through the story and just when I thought I knew where the story was heading it would change direction.

Grace was selfish, self centred and over possessive and as the story was narrated in first person it seemed that it was all about Grace; how hard she worked, how her mother was a burden, how she never understood her sister. Grace's thoughts and actions certainly didn't endear me to her. I continually questioned her actions and even after the big reveal I still felt her actions were self motivated.

False Hope was an okay read. None of the characters really gelled with me but it certainly held my interest and I was eager to get to the end to see how it would all wrap up.

3/5  ⭐⭐⭐

About the author

Lynne Lee was born in London and began her writing career as a teenager. She has been a full-time author since the mid-1990's, writing romance novels, short stories and ghostwriting bestselling books. False Hope is her second psychological thriller and is written under a pseudonym.