Thursday, September 27, 2012

Wink Murder by Ali Knight



Paperback: 312 pages
Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Psychological Fiction.
Publisher:  Hodder & Stoughton (10 Nov 2011) 
Source: Give-away on Random Things Through My Letterbox
First Sentence: ' I snap my eyes open in the dark, sensing something is not right.
Review Quote:  'Knight's promising début . . . crackles from first page to last . . . She could be very good indeed.' Daily Mail 
My Opinion: An entertaining read

I did not love this but neither did I hate it. I am going to come down right in the middle with my opinion and say it was an entertaining read if you are looking for a page turner that will keep you guessing. It is a début novel and  although it is generally well written do not expect it to blow your mind away in the style of Sophie Hannah. Remember though this is a first novel and I think Ali Knight may well be an author we are going to hear more of, I will certainly read more of her novels given the opportunity. She needs to check her geography though or get herself a better editor for her next book as nowhere can I find a record of the Isle of Wight being referred to as The Isle of White as it is on page 161 of this novel!

Wink Murder as a title I thought was a clever twist to the story, because if I have assumed correctly it is taken from the game Wink Murder - Wikipedia where in a group of players, one is assigned the role of murderer, with the ability to murder other participants by winking at them, without others noticing. If a player is winked at they must feign death.  You do not have a clue what I am talking about, well you will have to read the book for this to make sense.

The protagonist and narrator of the story is Kate Foreman, married to Paul a successful young executive in television production with a life style that would be the envy of many young marrieds. Kate thinks they have the perfect life until one night it all starts to crumble when she wakes up to find her husband has returned home in the middle of the night drunk, very distressed and covered in blood because he has killed something. Oddly calm she waits till morning to question her now sober husband and discover what actually happened. How well does she know him though, should she have believed his story, her doubts multiply when a young woman who works for him is found murdered. Kate of course is determined to get to the truth but her love and trust of Paul are really put to the test, at first everything appears quite credible. As the plot develops though it became less convincing as Kate's behaviour at times does not feel realistic and the ending left me a little disappointed.

In conclusion if you enjoy reading psychological thrillers than Ali Knight is a new author of the genre certainly worth trying.


Author Profile


Ali Knight has worked as a journalist and sub-editor at The BBC, The Guardian, The Observer and The European. She also helped to launch some websites for the Daily Mail and Evening Standard. A few years ago she gave up journalism to become a full time author.  She grew up in Bedford, the daughter of an American father and a British mother. Ali Knight now lives in London with her husband and three children. Wink Murder is her first novel and her second The First Cut  was recently released

Photo and Biographical Information is with thanks to the following sites.

Amazon Author Profile     Ali Knight - Official Website    Hodder.co.uk - Author  

  Interview with Ali Knight on Random Things Through My Letterbox