Sometimes the past comes back to haunt you.
Louise Leighton's life has fallen apart, all because of one fateful night. Her husband is an adulterer, her sister is his mistress, and soon, Louise will lose everything she owns. But she never imagined she would lose her daughter.
Eighteen-year-old Brooke Leighton is missing. It's up to Louise and the Metropolitan Police to find her. Has Brooke run away? Or has she been taken against her will? And can Louise aid the investigation without mentioning the night where all of her troubles began?
If she mentions that night, she will incriminate her daughter for heinous crimes. But if she doesn't, she may never find Brooke; and if she has been abducted, the person who took her may come for Louise, too.
Sometimes the past comes back to kill you.
It's my pleasure to be sharing my review of Anything For Her as part of the Jack Jordan blogathon today. Many thanks to Tracy Fenton from Compulsive Readers for inviting me and Simon & Schuster for my digital copy of the novel.
Having enjoyed Jack Jordan's more recent novels, Do No Harm, Conviction and Redemption last year, I welcomed the opportunity to read his earlier works, which have been republished by Simon & Schuster with new covers. Anything For Her was his debut and although not without its flaws, it is a dark and twisty thriller which heralded the emergence of this talented author.
Louise Leighton once appeared to have it all but right from the beginning of Anything For Her, her life is clearly on an unstoppable downward trajectory. She is distraught to discover her husband, Michael, has been having an affair and the betrayal is made worse because his lover is her sister, Denise. She can't bear to stay in their house and so flees to their secluded cottage in the country – leaving her teenage daughter, Brooke and ten-year-old son, Dominic with their father. Despite having some sympathy for her predicament here, it was Brooke and Dominic I really felt for at this point; having heard their parents bitterly argue as their marriage imploded, the youngsters are then abandoned by the person they need most.
However, it quickly becomes apparent that Brooke has a dreadful secret of her own and only her mother knows about it. Something happened a year ago which changed their lives irrevocably and the inexplicable change in both women has left Michael and Dominic lost and confused. Poor Dominic is the only truly innocent party here though and Michael proves to be as difficult to like as his estranged wife. It transpires that his cheating wasn't just confined to the bedroom and he faces criminal charges linked to his serious financial misdealings which will almost certainly lead to a prison sentence. When he and Brooke clash following a terrifying encounter which leaves her reeling, she makes the natural decision to join her mum. However, as Jack Jordan starts to ramp up the tension, their reunion is far from smooth-sailing.
With such an unlikeable family who frequently clash with one another and who are gradually revealed to have much to feel guilty for, I have to admit to finding it difficult to feel truly invested in these characters. Nevertheless, this cleverly constructed thriller kept me guessing as it becomes evident that somebody is watching Louise and Brooke. The identity of this man isn't revealed until much later in the book but he leaves chilling calling cards which signify a message hidden in plain sight. Louise's response to this unsettling intrusion is frustrating but her reasons – although ill-judged – are driven by her desire to protect her daughter. Her efforts come to nothing, however, when Brooke goes missing and she has to decide just what she is prepared to share with the police.
Obviously in a state of panic, she constantly withholds vital information from the police and one of the few likeable characters in the book, DI Jessica Dean shows remarkable patience and empathy towards this secretive woman. Jessica understands Louise's anguish but understandably recognises she is hiding something. As the search for Brooke continues, the watching figure ups the ante still further in this nerve-shatteringly tense thriller.
The truth about 'that night' is finally revealed and from this point, the narrative switches between events a year ago and the present, until the dramatic climax. It's fascinating to briefly see Louise and Brooke as they were a year ago, and of course, it wouldn't be a Jack Jordan book without a terrible moral dilemma. A devastatingly melancholic exploration of lies and revenge, Anything for Her is an accomplished debut.
Check out what other bloggers taking part in the blogathon have said about Anything For Her, details are below.
About the Author
Jack Jordan is the global number one bestselling author of Anything for Her (2015), My Girl (2016), A Woman Scorned (2018), Before Her Eyes (2018) and Night by Night (2019). His thriller, Do No Harm, was an instant Times bestseller and shortlisted for the Most Recommended Book in the DeadGood Reader Awards. Coined the thriller of the summer for 2022, it was described as “relentlessly tense” by Sunday Times Bestseller Lesley Kara, and “Chilling and perfectly paced” by New York Times Bestseller Sarah Pearse. The idea for Do No Harm came to Jack after undergoing a minor medical procedure where he had to be sedated and trust strangers with his welfare. After the anaesthesia wore off, Jack began scribbling his notes, wondering to himself just how iron-clad a surgeon’s oath is, and what it would take to break it…
Conviction, was published in June 2023 and featured in Cosmopolitan’s ‘best new books out in June’ round-up, it was also chosen as one of the June featured books by Magic Radio’s Book Club and the audiobook was selected for Fingerprint Award at Capital Crime 2024.
His most recent book, Redemption was published in June 2024.
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