What she left by TR Richmond

Reviewed by Desere


I have heard so many times of people passing away and then afterwards their family discovering secrets from diaries, notes, letters and other objects, the outcome is sometimes really great for all involved but sometimes the truth is a real shocker that can literally blow the family apart.

In this read Alice Salmon dies, she is gone but not forgotten at all. The after effects of her death is felt on the news , the internet and in the hearts of those that knew her best.

But the one person  who knows her most intimately is not a friend or a family member, he is Dr Jeremy Cook, an academic whose life has become one of piecing anything and everything together , that is everything  that is related to Alice.

For David recreating Alice's life by using her diaries, emails and her voice, becomes an everyday occurrence, and consumes his every waking minute. With every bit of information he finds he has to know more, and he keeps digging, but what will he do when he is shocked to the core by the secret Alice seemed to be hiding ?

This story really hit all the buttons of those " don't this and don't that on this and that" warnings the papers and our parents warn us about. It
was really scary to see how easily David is able to find the information about Alice.

I like to think that I can hide my untold secrets pretty well, and  that what I put out there will pretty much tell you what I like and don't like , and really that is about it. Even my Facebook posts simply just relate to books and more books, so I recon all you will be able to find is that I love reading.

But the author did an off the charts job at showing just how easily the mind can translate absolutely everything we write down, or post or say into anything the reader./ hearer / see-er wants it to. For example I can see the words " I hate CST" but all it means is that I don't like their products , but if some with an overactive imagination reads it and suddenly there is an occurrence of  a bad nature at CST then they will pretty much come up with the conclusion it was me.

So really if anything David's dedication or rather obsession with Alice has certainly taught me a valuable lesson. And I particularly loved Alice being brought to life it was insightful and very entertaining.

Highly recommended read!

5/5 star review
" She leaves, but is she really gone and what has she left behind ? 

Available now at Penguin Random House South Africa