Fabulous Reads: Look out for Sheena Kamal’s thrilling debut

Eyes Like Mine, Sheena Kamal, Jonathan Ball Publishers, ISBN: 9781785764455

AS a fan of crime thrillers I know that the whole ‘private investigator with a substance abuse problem’ is not an original concept at all, however, debut author, Sheena Kamal somehow manages to breathe new life into the trope.

Nora Watts, who is the ultimate anti-hero, is sometimes difficult to like. As an orphan, failed military woman, and recovering alcoholic Nora describes herself as an unremarkable looking woman – something that she has embraced as a part-time PI, as she can easily blend into her surroundings and goes mostly unnoticed.

She has given up on any dreams she might have had, and has come to accept her life of failures and solitude. She even declines her boss’s offers to send her for training.

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However, she drops everything and stops at nothing, as she is suddenly pulled back into her dark and violent-filled past, in the search of missing girl authorities believe have simply run away.

She does not hesitate to deceive, cross, steal from and repeatedly assault those closest to her in her quest to rescue the child, Bonnie. A girl that shares her eyes. A girl she wished had never been born.

Kamal builds up an intriguing mystery, and slowly unveils the truth behind Nora’s past and the girl’s disappearance. Although there are times you feel like despising the protagonist the author succeeds in making her incredibly raw, vulnerable, and at the same time brave, tough, incredibly smart and unapologetic. Over time she slowly wins your heart.

I sat down to read Eyes Like Mine and found myself finishing the gripping novel in one read. My only criticism is the ending. I felt it was somewhat rushed, anticlimactic and unrealistic, which does not fit in with the rest of the brilliantly believable novel. However, I cant wait to read the next installment of the new series. –

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