Leah’s nightmare began the day the dog died. A few years earlier a fatal car crash took the lives of Leah’s beloved husband and their two babies, leaving her disabled. Life looked bleak. She was approaching forty, unemployed, broke and desperate. Then she met Mason. He was charming, charismatic, persuasive, and a successful businessman, well respected in the community. His teenage daughter did … teenage daughter did nothing to welcome Leah into the family, but life is never perfect.
Then, two years into her second marriage, Leah Brand’s world is turned upside down; inanimate objects in the house move, her clothes are left out for the rubbish collection, pieces of furniture change places, there are unexplained noises and hauntings.
As the disturbances increase, everyone accuses Leah of losing her mind. Soon she begins to doubt herself and she starts to spiral down into a world of insanity. Is she going mad, or is someone out to destroy her? And if so, why?
A gripping, psychological thriller for fans of Mary Higgins Clarke and Louise Jensen.
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A tense thriller that hurtles towards a cliff…..
I don’t think that I could have lived through the year that Leah Brandt did in this psychological thriller by Lucinda Clarke. Even when attempting to deal with the events and doubts that are causing such mayhem, in a rational way, Leah is drawn deeper and deeper into madness.
Surely this woman has already faced enough tragedy in her life? To lose your family and become disabled, would by daunting enough. However, it would seem that the fates have not finished with her just yet.
We are carried along on a roller coaster ride over the year, as each of the main characters, her dismissive new husband Mason, his stroppy teenage daughter Belinda and the seemingly warm and supportive next door neighbour Andrea Coe, all adding levels of manipulation, rejection and secrecy. There is little respite, even in her mother’s home where she might have assumed to be free of the disturbing goings on in her own house. Layer upon layer of self-doubt results in a crisis of identity, and it is painful but compelling to watch the spiralling descent into despair.
The characters were all well drawn and it was easy to have very clear opinions about their personalities. At times you almost you could reach into the pages and make your presence felt with a few choice words….. it is not easy to stand by and see someone being victimised and to remember this is a story!
Who is behind this personal vendetta and why? Will Leah be saved from this train wreck of her life? Who can you trust? I recommend that you read the book for yourself….
An incredible year for Leah
This is the first psychological thriller I’ve read from this author. I’ve read and enjoyed other books and was interested to discover more about her work in a new genre. I wasn’t disappointed. Writing as in previous books is well tuned, and the story unfolds with a good pace. Characters are well balanced and fit comfortably into their roles in this plot. The story revolves around the life of Leah, and reveals how mental abuse impacts on the well-being of a woman. Is Leah of losing her mind? She begins to doubt herself and she starts to spiral down into a world of insanity. Is she going mad, or is someone out to destroy her? The depth and range of issues is unnerving though the narrative is balanced with light-hearted moments, which prevent the story becoming too depressing. With plenty of twists ands suspense, the story does keep you guessing what will happen next, so it kept me turning the pages. Recommended.
This is a great twisted tale. And when you finish you may still be trying to figure out exactly what happened and if there there is more yet. Great read.
“The nightmare began on the day the dog died.”
After an accident took her husband, two children and one leg, Leah Brand thought she’d found a new life with Mason.
A lawyer, Mason started to change after the dog died. He had little time for Leah, always dealing with his clients, short tempered and distant, coming home and going to his office.
Leah had a difficult time dealing with Mason’s thirteen-year-old daughter, Belinda, who lived with them. Belinda never listened to anything Leah said to her and started having difficulty at school which Mason blamed on Leah.
Leah had suffered from depression after the accident that took her family and leg. As the problems in her new marriage manifested themselves, the depression began to return. And with the depression came misplaced items, moved items, and the appearance of objects that weren’t in their house before.
Leah tries to kickstart her education, taking classes as well as reading a book by a specialist on self-help. Spending time at a local library, Leah is friended by a handsome librarian. She enjoys his company and nothing else.
Leah’s neighbor, Andrea, wealthy and alone and doesn’t like Mason, offers Leah a caring shoulder to lean on, taking her on short retreats to forget her problems.
But as things continue to go missing or get re-arranged in the house with everyone blaming Leah, saying she must have moved them without remembering, Leah sees a doctor to be tested for a breakdown. Her depression and tears slowly push everyone away from her and Leah begins to feel more and more alone.
A Year In The Life Of Leah Brand is a wonderful psychological thriller for those who love these kinds of books. The reader is never quite sure if Leah is breaking down and blacking out and forgetting things or if someone or her family and friends are conspiring against her. Great read. Enjoyed.
It was a good storyline that left me hanging. The end gave me more questions than answers and I wanted to know why? Why did the husband put his wife in a psycho hospital? Where did the son come from? Where did the husband disappear to and why? Why the sudden change in the evil step-daughter? The ending didn’t tie it together. So…I hope there’s a book 2 that answers these questions.
His goal was to make her think she was losing her mind and he was succeeding. It took the help of others to accomplish his goal and left Leah in a situation where she did not know who she could confide in about what was happening to her. Making blue stuffed bunnies giving me the creeps now.
Leah Brand was happy for short period of time with her husband and two babies, until tragedy struck, and she was left widowed, childless, and grieving for her loss. She also had her own injuries to overcome. It was a long road to regain her strength and get her life back to a new normal. When she runs into Mason Brand, literally, a new life is set in front of her and she’s happy again, but that all changes two years into the marriage and a new loss for her new family. Things begin to change for Leah, and she’s being convinced that she is losing her mind.
I really enjoyed reading this book and did not put it down until I finished it at 2:45 AM. It is a story of deception, betrayal, strange happenings, and a woman that just wants to have a happy life and be loved. The things that Leah is put through would make anyone think they are going crazy. The characters in this story kept me wondering who was setting Leah up even when I thought I knew, by the time I got to the end of the story, I was still questioning everything I read. I love a story like this. The suspense of the story had the pages turning and my interest in the book for the entire read. I give this story a 5-star review and hope that I can get true and final answers about this story. It left me wanting so much more.
Leah is a trusting soul, andt that gets her into trouble. She denies to herself that those who are supposed to care abouher would actually want to harm her. Instead, she takes the blame on herself. She MUST be going mad; after all, her mother has dementia. You’ll want to shake some sense into her, and feel anguish for her at the same time. A page-turning psychological thriller. Great characters and a plot with some unexpected twists. The ending was spot on, tantalizing your mind… Who, if anyone, can Leah trust to tell her the truth?
This is an intriguing read that certainly lives up to its designation as a psychological thriller.
All characters are well developed enabling the reader to visualise and comprehend each. While detesting some they will take to others but will often find reason to question the accuracy of their sentiments. Most will be able to empathise with the protagonist who faces many bewildering ‘challenges’ and may often wonder how she manages to keep going.
The story is set within the usual day-to-day routines of most households however, what in many circumstances could come across as mundane and consequently boring for the reader, are anything but. This attests to the author’s unique ability to bring life to all her stories whether adventure, memoir, or thriller. Lucinda is indeed an excellent author.
The reader will find themselves constantly developing theories and then re-developing them as the tale progresses. This makes the book a lively read that retains interest and curiosity. In some ways the reader wishes to be proven right but would also find it disappointing to be so proven. The book does not disappoint in its ability to keep the guessing going up to, and past, the end.
Indeed, though there is some resolution it is not entirely complete and definitely leaves the reader with anticipation for a sequel. That is not to say there is no satisfaction in the ending although it would probably be more accurate to call it an intermission.
Having a husband who likes to play practical jokes, which sometimes have me doubting my own sanity, I could identify easily with poor Leah Brand, who feels her sanity slipping through her fingers daily. Told in first person, which really suits the author’s voice, Leah reeled me in and kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end. Was she truly going mad? Great suspense maintained throughout. Highly recommended. I’m hoping for a sequel…