An audio book.
Sections about Archie's letter alternative with the main timeline.
Archie, 19, is writing a letter to "you" for Dan, who's about 40. "you", because of a crime commited by Archie, might be unable to read. Archie started delivering drugs when he was 10 and went on to deliver guns. His mother's an unreliable druggie, in and out of prison. Archie doesn't want to write about his mother and his handler BJ.
Claudia's late husband Joel died when their daughter was 11. She remarried rich, controlling Marcus. Now, 5 years later, Marcus has been sentenced to at least 18 months in jail for insider trading. Claudia and Jasmine, with the help of Claudia's mother Marcie, 64, have run off and changed their names, fearing Marcus. They've taken an attache case belong to him. They have at least £3m. They settle in Kesterley by the sea. Only after weeks do they contact the police - their missing persons case has aroused media interest.
Andi (45, female) lives with Graham in Kesterley. They do up properties. Friend Dan's wife Ellen died 5 years before. Liane Delany (about to marry Tom) is Andi's friend. When Andi sees Claudia's interior designer work, she's impressed. Andi wants to start a restorative justice scheme (where criminals contact their victims) with Dan. They get funding from a local businessman.
Marcie has a boyfriend, Henry, who used to own the law firm that Dan took over. Dan and Claudia are becoming friends. Abby, Lianne's daughter, is becoming violin-playing Jasmine's best friend. Andi works out that Claudia, Marcie and Jasmine are the missing people who had been in the news. Claudia et al move into a big house. Archie's paid to set it alight. He didn't know that Marcie was inside. [It's here that Archie's PoV and the main timeline sychronise.]
There's a long section about Marcie's burn treatment. Archie's mother goes to the police about Archie's involvement, thinking that he'd be safer in prison. BJ is Archie's uncle! Archie is encouraged to say that he delivered drugs to Marcus. Marcie finds Archie's letters useful and wants a meeting. Claudia is against it, angry about it, then gives in.
Marcie speaks up for Archie in court. He gets a suspended sentence and lots of letters from women - he's cute.
Marcus offers Claudio a divorce. Henry and Marcie become a couple. Dan and Claudia become a couple. Marcus is arrested. Archie, who's turned his life around, offers to testify. He writes to Marcie that "Getting to know you is the best thing that's ever happened to me."
Some of Archie's diction is surprising - e.g. he writes "I've already touched on [that topic]"
Other reviews
- tealeavesandreads (Having worked on a Restorative Justice programme myself in the past, there were a few points within this book that made me cringe. Firstly, Dan seeing someone he knew in the pub and disclosing to Claudia that it was a person on the Restorative Justice programme… Secondly, Maria’s portrayal is a little unfair. Yes she has a learning difficulty or disability – from the way she is described. However misspelling words when she speaks to highlight a speech impediment and difficulty with words is not necessary. You can portray someone’s dialect or way of talking quite easily with a few descriptive words after their speech marks have closed and with a brief background of the character when we first meet them. I’m sure other characters in the book would have had different accents but the Author did not choose to misspell words to indicate their speech. ... I would have liked to see the serious theme of forgiveness further explored when it came to Claudia and her daughter)
