Snap: The astonishing Sunday Times bestseller and BBC Between the Covers Book Club pick

Product Information

Mommy must have ‘snapped’ a brain-artery... she goes searching for help....but leaves the kids behind. Joy carried the heavy baby bag until she finally hid it behind a bush to retrieve later. They were all thirsty - hungry - scared - angry - and tired - From award-winning crime writer Belinda Bauer, “the true heir to the great Ruth Rendell” [ Mail on Sunday (UK)], Snap is a gripping novel about a teenage boy’s hunt for his mother’s killer. Unique, haunting…and bonkers. If I had to describe this book in a nutshell, that’s what comes to mind. And just so you know, I’m a big fan of bonkers. yet... we don’t care: the storytelling - the wonderful characters with all they are grappling with, make us happy campers readers!!!

Ha....not so fast. Don’t think for one second that there aren’t other adults in this story ... or there aren’t other plots happening. EXCERPT: 'To my Daughter on your Special Day'. Her mother chose the worst cards. A week after her birthday she had bundled it up with all her others and put them in a drawer in the spare room.

Need Help?

The opening of Snap is one of the most vividly unnerving I have read . . . razor-sharp observation.' Guardian Finders Keepers, Bauer's third novel, was set in the fictional location of Shipcott, also in Exmoor. The book was published in Britain on 5 January 2012, and in the United States on 28 February 2012. Thank you so much to Netgalley and Grove Atlantic for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review.

Three years later, Catherine, a young pregnant woman, wakes to find a knife laying alongside her in her bedroom. A note scratched on torn paper states: "I could have killed you." Afraid to tell her husband who's on a business trip, Catherine refuses to devulge strange happenings in their home with break-ins. Someone is lurking outside and they've now been in. She won't even go to the police. Catherine has more than raging hormones to deal with. I hope I’ve interested you enough that you will run and get this book as soon as it’s published, it’s that good! This was an audio book I listened to, think I'm getting better at these. The narrator was Andrew Wincott, and I thought he did a wonderful job. Maybe I'm better with male narrators? By the half-light of the hallway Catherine stood, naked, and stared down at her huge tummy – shiny and stretched to accommodate the baby they were looking forward to with such pleasure. It was a view she’d enjoyed many, many times over the past months – marvelling at her tightening swell and disappearing feet. She always felt joy and wonder. But tonight the joy didn’t come. And neither did the wonder.The emotional rollercoaster that Belinda Bauer sets us on is a large part of what makes this novel such a treasure. The mysteries (and yes, there are several), kept me tapping my screen to find out how one thread would unravel, only to find hidden threads within the mess of fabric. Onward. Ever onward, no matter how hopeless things might appear. Confession time: I’ve only read one previous book by this author & it was just a so-so read for me. It was not a question of writing skills…she has those in spades. But humour is (excuse the pun) a funny thing. Of all the story elements or genres, I think it might be the most subjective. What’s hilarious to one reader may make another longingly eye the last chapter. Belinda Bauer (born 1962) is a British writer of crime novels. She grew up in England and South Africa, [1] but later moved to Wales, where she worked as a court reporter in Cardiff; the country is often used as a setting in her work. [2]

I also believe that I have a love/hate relationship with my thrillers. Was this a book that was super unique? No... but I was entertained for the most part.

Retailers:

I can’t begin to describe how much I love Belinda Bauer’s work. Every book is better than the last and this one was truly extraordinary. While on the surface a psychological thriller, it really is so much more. Bauer writes her characters with such nuanced perfection that the reader experiences numerous reactions to them all. I don’t want to give any spoilers away but I will be recommending this book to everyone, whether they like thrillers or not.” —Linda Quinn, Fairfield Public Library The other story line introduces DCI John Marvel. He’s a rumpled, dyspeptic old fashioned copper who’s been exiled to Somerset PD as a result of his less than PC techniques. Instead of high profile cases, he’s been given a rash of home burglaries to investigate. Seriously? Don’t they know he was an elite homicide detective? And don’t even get him started on his colleagues. Now his world is turned upside down as he must find out if he's really to blame, or if something much more sinister is at play. All while staying one shaky step ahead of the law.

Despite being a crime novel, it is a charming book that encompasses themes of compassion, friendship, love and standing up for what you believe is right.' Detective Chief Inspector John Marvel has been exiled to a small town. Although he is a good old fashioned copper, he has made costly mistakes. He will be forced to work with Detective Sergeant Reynolds who is well dressed and well liked. This is an awkward pairing of sleuths. In the absence of any current murder cases, Marvel will be required to assist in a slew of breaking and entering cases. He has lofty ideas. If he can unravel the cold case of Eileen Bright's murder, he might be recalled to London and leave this one horse town! Marvel, Reynolds and an unscrupulous assistant just might shed light on the investigations. A little later, Catherine is queasy as she stares down at her tummy: “Because for the first time, alongside their precious child, grew a tiny seed of doubt.” A brilliantly entertaining crime read, with an ordinary pensioner at its heart, a Felix who managed to capture my heart.' Belinda Bauer is a famous writer of crime novels, who was born in 1962 in England. She also spend some of her childhood years in Africa. Finally Belinda settled in Cardiff and lived also in Wales more time than anywhere else in her life. She is also attended Welsh Academy as a member. Bauer didn’t have a very easy life. In fact, she had to experience a sudden dive from a wealthy home, where she lived with her parents in South Africa to a poverty west country house in Britain, when she returned there with her mother. But she actually had some good opportunities there. She was trained as a journalist at Cardiff University and worked in Cardiff as a journalist for 7 years, which was incredibly valuable for her. Right from when she was a trainee, her copy was going straight to the news desk of every national paper. She actually loved Cardiff and stayed in the city for some years after she completed her course. Belinda Bauer started her career by writing as a journalist before she won a screenwriting competition run by Bafta in 1990s for her first screenplay.A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.