The Life Sentence by Jackie Kabler

An interesting premise drew me to this novel - someone given a life sentence for a crime they didn't commit, and, as it turns out, didn't even happen. What happened to appeals? But that's what stories are all about. Having found Kabler's earlier book The Vanishing of Class 3B an intriguing read, I expected something similar. The book is set in Cheltenham and the Gloucestershire area.

However, from the start everything is rather unrealistic. A woman has her bag stolen and arranges a friendly meet-up in a coffee shop with the thief, the conversations between friends and strangers are long and I often forgot what the point of the talk was about. Plus the life sentence is for something that is not quite murder. And every man is absolutely gorgeous, even the nasty ones. 

​Despite some of the incredulous aspects this is a readable tale. A breezy narrative from two first-person perspectives, and further into the book a third-person point of view from the antagonist. It is an engaging read (will she get caught rooting around someone else's house?) with a kind of P.D. James style ending. Good beach read.

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Published by One More Chapter on 9 May 2024.
​Advance review copy supplied by the publisher.

Urban Grid: Gritty Metropolis ​