One seemingly normal evening, Tamia Challey’s life is shattered by a knock on the door. Her husband, Scott, has been accused of something terrible, and his accuser is Tami’s best friend. Placed in an impossible dilemma, Tami has to face the fact that one of the people that she trusts most in the world is lying to her. But which one?

As Tami becomes increasingly suspicious of the people in her life, tragedy strikes and the situation escalates still further. Over the course of the book, Tami’s life gradually falls apart as she’s forced to make some hard choices and face up to some devastating truths.

As well as the main thread following the present day crime and its implications, The Rose Petal Beach also reaches back through time to give us a back story of Tami’s relationships with the main players in the story. This not only helps to build up a picture of the past, but also to allow readers to understand how tensions have reached breaking point.

The Rose Petal Beach is a dark and intense thriller that not only aims to solve a crime, but also to offer a deep insight into the psychological effects of events as they unfold. Seen through the eyes of three very different women, we’re presented with three very different perspectives on the situation. Together, these three narratives merge to create an overall picture that just doesn’t quite fit together.

Ultimately it’s a study of relationships, whether that’s between parents and their children, between friends or between lovers. For me, the aspect of the novel that carried the most weight was that no matter how close we are to people, you can never really know everything about them.

The author writes cleverly and emotionally, really connecting her readers to the characters. It was the perfect holiday read, but I can’t help thinking that Dorothy Koomson has used this formula before. That said, you can’t argue with something that’s tried and tested and she continues to come out with gripping and thought-provoking reads.