The Beach Road

by Sarah Diamond

To the casual eye, teenagers Jane and Beverley are opposites. Wealthy, beautiful and clever, Beverley seems to have everything while disturbed and lonely Jane has just seen her mother die in appalling circumstances, and has come to live with her grandparents in the same small town as Beverley – by the sea in Underlyme, Dorset. But Beverley’s life isn’t so perfect after all. Behind the glossy façade, it’s anything but. And when something terrible happens to her on holiday, she comes home to find there’s nobody left to turn to – except Jane herself. Initially, Beverley finds solace in Jane’s total adoration. But gradually she begins to realise there is something different, something dark about Jane. Little does she know just how different, just how dark …

Genres: Thriller, Fiction

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Sarah Diamond groeide op in Weymouth (UK). Ze studeerde Engelse literatuur aan de Reading University en werkt fulltime als copywriter in de reclamewereld. 's Avonds schrijft ze ladythrillers, ofwel spannende chicklit. Ze wilde altijd al schrijfster worden en schrijft al vanaf haar dertiende. Diamond debuteerde op haar 24e met The Beach Road (2000), die meteen aansloeg in de pers. Ze stopt veel van haar eigen leven in haar werk. The Beach Road is grotendeels gebaseerd op haar eigen schoolperiode. Haar beste ideeën bedenkt ze niet, ze komen gewoon in haar op, vooral op winteravonden. Diamond hoopt ooit een wereld bestseller te worden en daadwerkelijk te kunnen leven van haar boeken.
De schrijfster heeft advies voor chicks, die ook een roman zouden willen schrijven: heb geduld. Het is niet leuk wanneer je eerste pogingen niet lukken – maar ook haar eerste schrijfsels werden afgewezen. Dus niet paranoïde worden als het niet meteen lukt!

Reviews

[Sarah Harding · Rating 4 out of 5]

I managed to read this book in a day as once I got into it I couldn’t put it down. Very well written, great story, I will be looking out for more from this author. The only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars was because I didn’t like the ending, it was very abrupt and I think the story could’ve been extended a bit. However, very good read.

[Sue Harding · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did enjoy this book, but for some reason couldn't get into it 100% Would try another of Sarah Diamonds books though

[janamnc · Rating 2 out of 5]

RANDOM BOOK REVIEWS OF VARIOUS TITLES I'VE READ DURING MY TEENAGE YEARS:

13 year old me had no business reading this unsupervised. This was probably my first encounter with a dark and twisted story about friendship, and I had no concept of that yet back then. I was full of questions, mostly starting with WHY.

But, I liked it then, and I'm glad I was a curious kid.

[Wild1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bit of an abrupt ending but enjoyed the book overall.

The author generates real empathy for the situations being played out. The basic principle behind the story is so simple that it's hard not to relate to at least some of the situations & feelings.

I found it to be rather thought provoking that we never really know how our actions can so deeply effect other people.

[Zeph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Not amazing. I thought I was in for something A LOT creepier. Sure, Jane's character is creepy and if she were stalking me, I'd have nightmares. But I didn't care for the characters, and there was no build-up. Interesting story, but the characters? Meh.

[Aline21 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vond het op zich wel een goed boek maar ik had veelte snel door waar het heen ging... er zat weinig verrassing in, had er iets meer van verwacht...

[Evelien · Rating 1 out of 5]

te voorspelbaar, saai slecht geschreven

[Meghann]

I would sue this book for SUCKING.

[Petra · Rating 1 out of 5]

There was no need to read this book. After reading the resume on the back and the first chapter, you already knew the whole story...

[Fruru Nic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Zeer graag gelezen omdat je meegezogen wordt in de twee totaal verschillende werelden van de hoofdpersonages.

[Lizzee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boringly predictable and stereotypical - too dramatic for my liking.