Gemma Cockrell
Nottingham-based author T M Logan’s third novel, The Holiday, tells the tale of Kate, Rowan, Jennifer and Izzy who have been friends since their first day of university.
This year, they will turn forty, so have decided to mark the milestone with a week’s holiday in a luxurious villa in Provence in the South of France, along with their husbands and children. It sounds idyllic and perfect, but nothing is as perfect as it seems. Kate reads text notifications on her husband Sean’s phone which suggest that he is having an affair with one of her three best friends.
The story is primarily told from Kate’s first-person perspective, as she chooses to attempt to catch her husband in the act rather than confront him directly. She aims to successfully identify which of her close friends is sacrificing over 20 years of friendship and destroying her family, by using skills acquired from her job as a crime scene investigator. Furthermore, the blurb warns of a shocking and horrifying twist – someone in the villa is prepared to kill to keep their secret hidden.
The women all have elements to their characters which result in them appearing suspicious. Jennifer is more obsessive and protective than normal over her teenage sons, 15-year-old twins Ethan and Jake. Rowan appears to have the perfect, luxurious lifestyle with limitless amounts of money – it seems too perfect to be true, as if it is a fake character that she is playing the role of. Izzy is the only member of the friendship group who is unmarried, living abroad but originating from the same Irish hometown as Sean.
Each and every character is fully developed and multi-dimensional, resulting in the reader engaging with each of their individual storylines as well as the primary plot of the novel
Chapters voiced by other characters reveal that Kate is not the only one with a secret, causing multiple simultaneously developing and complex storylines. Kate’s daughter Lucy is sullen, quiet and distant as she hides her own personal struggles, triggering her younger brother Daniel to worry considerably about her, whilst experiencing his own issues with bullying, instigated by Ethan and Jake. Meanwhile, Ethan, and most prominently Jake, are portrayed as dark and potentially dangerous characters themselves.
Each and every character is fully developed and multi-dimensional, resulting in the reader engaging with each of their individual storylines as well as the primary plot of the novel, whilst also being able to form an opinion on each one – some are extremely likeable, some evoke sympathy due to their innocence and vulnerability, whilst others are irritating or entirely unbearable.
With each new chapter, the reader will be convinced that they have figured out who Sean’s mystery lover is, until the next chapter deems these suspicions doubt-worthy
A psychological thriller packed with suspense and mystery, The Holiday is impossible to put down due to its tense, gripping and hypnotic nature – the plot is crafted perfectly. With each new chapter, the reader will be convinced that they have figured out who Sean’s mystery lover is, until the next chapter deems these suspicions doubt-worthy, causing them to change their mind as each new piece of information is revealed. These red herrings and unexpected twists result in it being impossible to arrive at the truth until it is revealed implicitly at the end – and it will not be the truth that you are expecting.
Gemma Cockrell
Featured image courtesy of David Orban via Flickr. Image license found here. No changes made to this image.
In-article images courtesy of @tmloganauthor via instagram.com. No changes made to these images.
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