Tuesday, 15 March 2016

The Drowning Lesson by Jane Shemilt

When a busy English family take a gap year in Africa they hope to strengthen shaky family bonds; instead they have to deal with the horror of their baby son being abducted from his cot.

Emma and Adam: Obstetrician and research Oncologist, juggle work and family whilst being professionally competitive with each other. When an opportunity for research in Botswana comes up for Adam, Emma is unwilling to put her career on hold. An unplanned pregnancy and the chance to spend more time with her children changes her mind.

The subsequent move to Botswana is not the idyllic respite she imagined; their house is isolated and comes with staff she was not counting on having, including a young nanny for her children. The Drowning Lesson's time line jumps between before and after the abduction. If you have read Shemilt's best selling debut novel Daughter, these themes will be familiar; however the African setting is interesting and I felt compelled to read to the end (even if it raised a few questions for me).

Shemilt is herself an ex-GP married to a Neurosurgeon, and writes convincingly about a working mother's guilt and juggling of roles. She also constructs a gripping plot full of suspense.

Posted by Katrina

Catalogue link: The Drowning Lesson

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