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I Dare You
AN INNOCENT GAME. A SHOCKING CRIME. A COMMUNITY FULL OF SECRETS.
Mapledon, 1989
Two little girls were out playing a game of dares. Only one returned home.
The ten-year-old told police what she saw: village loner Bill ‘Creepy’ Cawley dragged her friend into his truck and disappeared.
No body was found, but her testimony sent Cawley to prison for murder. An open and shut case, the right man behind bars.
The village could sleep safe once again.
Now…
Anna thought she had left Mapledon and her nightmares behind but a distraught phone call brings her back to face her past.
30 years ago, someone lied. 30 years ago, the man convicted wasn’t the only guilty party.
Now he’s out of prison and looking for revenge. The question is, who will he start with?
412 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 29, 2019
367 people are currently reading
3667 people want to read
About the author
Sam Carrington
11 books479 followersSam Carrington lives in Devon with her husband, two border terriers and a cat. She has three adult children and a new grandson! She worked for the NHS for fifteen years, during which time she qualified as a nurse. Following the completion of a psychology degree she went to work for the prison service as an Offending Behaviour Programme Facilitator. Her experiences within this field inspired her writing. She left the service to spend time with her family and to follow her dream of being a novelist. SAVING SOPHIE, her debut psychological thriller, published in September 2016. It became a Kindle eBook bestseller, with the paperback hitting The Bookseller Heatseeker chart at #8. Sam was named an Amazon Rising Star of 2016.
Her 6th book - The Open House - publishes in December 2020.
Her 6th book - The Open House - publishes in December 2020.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 262 reviews
December 23, 2019
E-ARC provided by the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
PROS:
• Short chapters. They gave me the impression, and I am inclined to think that is more than an impression, that I was reading at a super speed, even though the book is over 400 pages. And just for the next times, the short chapters thing is a big ON for me! Also, it helped a lot at the mystery!
• Structure of the chapters. As I have said at the previous point, they helped me read faster, BUT! The more important thing here, is how clever are built these short chapters! The author did an extremely great job by giving a handful of crumbles in each and every one of them, helping the plot twist to be mind-blowing!
• Slow-burning thriller. I am not a fan of this kind of thrillers, and books in general, but this one kept me on edge. It made me more curious about every bit that it gave me and had me wanting more and more.
• It made me cry! No need to say more here.
• Two timelines. Going back and forth between timelines accentuated the plot twist, giving it more power over me.
• Well defined characters. I loved the way that the author made a strong image for every character, even for those ones that appeared briefly.
CONS:
• Not even one. And I have tried to find at least one, trust me!
OVERALL THOUGHTS:
• In my opinion, this is an amazing "whodunit" slow-burning thriller. I had my questions answered. I tried to guess the whos, whats, hows, and whys and failed. I had an amazing time reading this, and I am pretty sure when I say that this is in my top 10 reads of this year! Top 10 thrillers FOR SURE! I can't wait to read more books from this author since this one put it on my list with my favorite authors!
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PROS:
• Short chapters. They gave me the impression, and I am inclined to think that is more than an impression, that I was reading at a super speed, even though the book is over 400 pages. And just for the next times, the short chapters thing is a big ON for me! Also, it helped a lot at the mystery!
• Structure of the chapters. As I have said at the previous point, they helped me read faster, BUT! The more important thing here, is how clever are built these short chapters! The author did an extremely great job by giving a handful of crumbles in each and every one of them, helping the plot twist to be mind-blowing!
• Slow-burning thriller. I am not a fan of this kind of thrillers, and books in general, but this one kept me on edge. It made me more curious about every bit that it gave me and had me wanting more and more.
• It made me cry! No need to say more here.
• Two timelines. Going back and forth between timelines accentuated the plot twist, giving it more power over me.
• Well defined characters. I loved the way that the author made a strong image for every character, even for those ones that appeared briefly.
CONS:
• Not even one. And I have tried to find at least one, trust me!
OVERALL THOUGHTS:
• In my opinion, this is an amazing "whodunit" slow-burning thriller. I had my questions answered. I tried to guess the whos, whats, hows, and whys and failed. I had an amazing time reading this, and I am pretty sure when I say that this is in my top 10 reads of this year! Top 10 thrillers FOR SURE! I can't wait to read more books from this author since this one put it on my list with my favorite authors!
You can follow my TWITTER
If you want to support me, you can check my WHISHLIST
December 13, 2019
Book Reviewed on www.whisperingstories.com
1989 – Ten-year-old’s Jonie and Bella enjoyed playing the game ‘Knock, Knock, Ginger’ (we called it knock-a-door-run). The girls dare each other to knock on the doors of the residents of Mapledon. One house neither of the girls wanted to knock on was Billy ‘Creepy’ Cawley’s bungalow, however, if you have been dared to do it, you must!
July 1989, Jonie Hayes went missing. Despite no physical evidence and no body ever being found, Billy ‘Creepy’ Cawley was convicted of her murder and sentenced to thirty years in prison after her friend testified that she had seen Jonie getting into Billy’s pick-up truck.
July 2019 – Billy has just been released from prison and he’s looking for revenge. Anna (Bella) hasn’t been back to Mapledon in over twenty-years but when her mother calls distressed that someone has nailed a dolls head to her front door, Anna returns to the place she swore she would never step foot in again.
Freelance Journalist Lizzie heads to Mapledon to cover the story of Billy’s release, but she may be there under false pretences.
What started as an innocent game thirty-years-ago has everyone on tenterhooks waiting for what will happen next.
I Dare You is a psychological thriller that truly plays with your mind. The book is told in the third person and from the points of view of Anna, Lizzie, and the events in 1989. The book is filled with twists and turns and a few red-herrings too.
The chapters are short which seems to heighten the tension and kept me on edge. I especially loved the chapters set in 1989 as they helped to bring the story together. I also found myself trying to figure out what Lizzie’s connection to Mapledon and the murder case was.
This is the first book I have read by Sam Carrington and I can tell you that the writing is superb. The way that she describes a scene has you perfectly able to visualise what is happening and she painted the village of Mapledon as this weird, strange town where secrets were behind every door.
The conclusion was satisfying and I was left feeling that all my questions had been answered. It might not have been a big climactic ending but it fitted the story perfectly.
This is a book that kept me hooked to the pages and rushing through it, so much so that I finished it in two days. I wanted to find out the truth and I wanted to find out who Billy was going to start his revenge with.
1989 – Ten-year-old’s Jonie and Bella enjoyed playing the game ‘Knock, Knock, Ginger’ (we called it knock-a-door-run). The girls dare each other to knock on the doors of the residents of Mapledon. One house neither of the girls wanted to knock on was Billy ‘Creepy’ Cawley’s bungalow, however, if you have been dared to do it, you must!
July 1989, Jonie Hayes went missing. Despite no physical evidence and no body ever being found, Billy ‘Creepy’ Cawley was convicted of her murder and sentenced to thirty years in prison after her friend testified that she had seen Jonie getting into Billy’s pick-up truck.
July 2019 – Billy has just been released from prison and he’s looking for revenge. Anna (Bella) hasn’t been back to Mapledon in over twenty-years but when her mother calls distressed that someone has nailed a dolls head to her front door, Anna returns to the place she swore she would never step foot in again.
Freelance Journalist Lizzie heads to Mapledon to cover the story of Billy’s release, but she may be there under false pretences.
What started as an innocent game thirty-years-ago has everyone on tenterhooks waiting for what will happen next.
I Dare You is a psychological thriller that truly plays with your mind. The book is told in the third person and from the points of view of Anna, Lizzie, and the events in 1989. The book is filled with twists and turns and a few red-herrings too.
The chapters are short which seems to heighten the tension and kept me on edge. I especially loved the chapters set in 1989 as they helped to bring the story together. I also found myself trying to figure out what Lizzie’s connection to Mapledon and the murder case was.
This is the first book I have read by Sam Carrington and I can tell you that the writing is superb. The way that she describes a scene has you perfectly able to visualise what is happening and she painted the village of Mapledon as this weird, strange town where secrets were behind every door.
The conclusion was satisfying and I was left feeling that all my questions had been answered. It might not have been a big climactic ending but it fitted the story perfectly.
This is a book that kept me hooked to the pages and rushing through it, so much so that I finished it in two days. I wanted to find out the truth and I wanted to find out who Billy was going to start his revenge with.
December 22, 2019
My first read by Carrington and by no means my last. Each time I thought I had the answer, my “suspect compass” swivelled again. Unpredictable, surprising and with plenty of twists and turns, this book had copious amounts of suspense. With over 100 chapters, the pace was quick and the intensity did not lessen at all during this read. A great mystery!
The narrative is divided into present day and 30 years previous. We have perspectives from Lizzie and Anna (present day), coupled with a third person narrative back in 1989. However, what I found exciting was the way that Carrington structured the flashbacks. Rather than reporting on events leading up to the shocking crime, it is not in chronological order. Instead, the majority of the flashbacks lead further and further into the past. We are presented with events in the reverse order, meaning you are actively putting together the occurrences leading up to the fateful day. This was so brilliantly different that it heightened by overall enjoyment of the story. I liked this touch because it felt so unique and it meant that I had more detective work to do. Indeed, this certainly influenced how I interpreted the events, but it also meant that we were like the lead characters in discovering the truth about what really happened.
The lead characters are mostly female, reflecting their dominance in the sleepy village of Mapledon. I could easily imagine this small village and how news travels fast: everyone knows each other’s business. However, this is horrifically juxtaposed with the disappearance of the child and the real truth about what happened. Carrington builds the suspense because, whilst the village seem to know one another, they do not present the real facade. It reminded me of a famous Lady Macbeth quote – “look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent underneath it”.
The chapters are incredibly short. Some may argue that this makes the plot rather “choppy” because the chapters keep switching before any major revelations are revealed. True, the chapters mostly conclude on a dramatic moment, but this simply forced me to not put the book down! I had to carry on reading, to find out what happened next to the characters. Of course, the next chapter would switch to a different protagonist so, before I knew it, another twenty minutes had passed of immersive reading. There are worse ways to spend your time!
I loved this story. The mystery and suspense was thrilling and I could not predict the final truth. It was surprising and engaging and I fully intend to read more of Carrington’s books next year – it would be wrong not to.
With thanks to Harper Collins and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The narrative is divided into present day and 30 years previous. We have perspectives from Lizzie and Anna (present day), coupled with a third person narrative back in 1989. However, what I found exciting was the way that Carrington structured the flashbacks. Rather than reporting on events leading up to the shocking crime, it is not in chronological order. Instead, the majority of the flashbacks lead further and further into the past. We are presented with events in the reverse order, meaning you are actively putting together the occurrences leading up to the fateful day. This was so brilliantly different that it heightened by overall enjoyment of the story. I liked this touch because it felt so unique and it meant that I had more detective work to do. Indeed, this certainly influenced how I interpreted the events, but it also meant that we were like the lead characters in discovering the truth about what really happened.
The lead characters are mostly female, reflecting their dominance in the sleepy village of Mapledon. I could easily imagine this small village and how news travels fast: everyone knows each other’s business. However, this is horrifically juxtaposed with the disappearance of the child and the real truth about what happened. Carrington builds the suspense because, whilst the village seem to know one another, they do not present the real facade. It reminded me of a famous Lady Macbeth quote – “look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent underneath it”.
The chapters are incredibly short. Some may argue that this makes the plot rather “choppy” because the chapters keep switching before any major revelations are revealed. True, the chapters mostly conclude on a dramatic moment, but this simply forced me to not put the book down! I had to carry on reading, to find out what happened next to the characters. Of course, the next chapter would switch to a different protagonist so, before I knew it, another twenty minutes had passed of immersive reading. There are worse ways to spend your time!
I loved this story. The mystery and suspense was thrilling and I could not predict the final truth. It was surprising and engaging and I fully intend to read more of Carrington’s books next year – it would be wrong not to.
With thanks to Harper Collins and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
November 29, 2019
I have a bit of a love/hate relationship with Sam Carrington's books but I am pleased I took the plunge as I thoroughly enjoyed I Dare You. Billy Cawley is the local misfit in the small village of Mapledon and the children in the area used to love to subject him to the game Knock Knock Ginger by banging on his front door constantly and calling him Creepy Cawley. July arrives and the summer heralds the beginning of longer days in which the kids can play outside longer. It's 1989 but when ten-year-old Jonie Hayes vanishes the summer serenity comes to an abrupt end and the village residents immediately point the finger at Billy despite there being no evidence to implicate him and the young girl's body had not been found. Nevertheless, he was found guilty and sentenced to thirty years in prison. Now he has just been released and is looking for revenge against those he feels wrongfully dubbed him a child killer whilst knowing what really happened. They know he will seek vengeance.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable thriller which played with my psyche somewhat. It makes me upset that people would judge another as evil merely for not appreciating the same things they do or for keeping to themselves and I know this is fiction but make no bones about it this happens in reality too sadly. It is a compulsive, well written and utterly riveting piece of writing and I loved every second of it; trying to work it out and put all of the puzzle pieces together. It's a quick, fun and entertaining read and incredibly easy to get into. The switches in timeline and perspectives are done seamlessly and leave no room for confusion and the twists and turns come on fast and strong in the latter half of the book. The small village mentality was depicted perfectly with lots of gossiping, secrets and the unremitting need to keep up appearances. Many thanks to Avon for an ARC.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable thriller which played with my psyche somewhat. It makes me upset that people would judge another as evil merely for not appreciating the same things they do or for keeping to themselves and I know this is fiction but make no bones about it this happens in reality too sadly. It is a compulsive, well written and utterly riveting piece of writing and I loved every second of it; trying to work it out and put all of the puzzle pieces together. It's a quick, fun and entertaining read and incredibly easy to get into. The switches in timeline and perspectives are done seamlessly and leave no room for confusion and the twists and turns come on fast and strong in the latter half of the book. The small village mentality was depicted perfectly with lots of gossiping, secrets and the unremitting need to keep up appearances. Many thanks to Avon for an ARC.
November 29, 2019
Sam Carrington's book always grab you and tell a fantastic story. I Dare You was no different and I really enjoying it. It is a twisty story that was not at all predictable. It was clear that the accused was not the guilty party but it was not obvious who the real criminal was. I was not even close when I read those final few chapters. It did take me a little while to get my head around what was happening, but once I figured it all. out I was really intrigued.
30 years ago a young girl disappeared in a small village called Mapledon. The local creepy man, Billy Crawley was arrested and sent to prison. Now 30 years later he has been released. Anna was a key witness in his arrest and returns home for the first time since she left. Her mother is in pieces and terrified that Billy is going to come back to town. Reporter Lizzie also arrives in Mapledon to get the story of the released man. But it is clear that there is more to her interest than just a story. Told from multiple points of view and both timelines, we learn about what really happened that night and who was involved.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.
30 years ago a young girl disappeared in a small village called Mapledon. The local creepy man, Billy Crawley was arrested and sent to prison. Now 30 years later he has been released. Anna was a key witness in his arrest and returns home for the first time since she left. Her mother is in pieces and terrified that Billy is going to come back to town. Reporter Lizzie also arrives in Mapledon to get the story of the released man. But it is clear that there is more to her interest than just a story. Told from multiple points of view and both timelines, we learn about what really happened that night and who was involved.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.
November 30, 2019
1989: Two ten year old schoolgirls play a prank. But it goes horribly wrong. One of the girls is now missing. She was seen getting into the local weirdos truck.she was never seen again. Her body was never found. Bill Crawley was gi en a thirty year prison sentence.
Present day: Bill Crawley has been released on licence. The local villagers wonder if he will have the gall to show face and return to the house that has been empty for the past thirty years. Anna hasn't been back to her family,y home for twenty years. Lizzie, who is a freelance journalist has not been back for thirty years. Anna returns because she got a frightening call from her mother, Muriel. Someone is purposely scaring her.
The story goes back and forth from 1989 to the present day. The narrative is told from several points of view. Anna and Lizzie are the main characters who search for clues to find the truth behind what had happened thirty years ago. It's full of twist and turns. The dual timelines are weaved together seamlessly when we find out the truth at the end of this book. Was Bill Crawley innocent of his crimes? You will need to read the book to find out.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Avon Books UK and the author Sam Carrington for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Present day: Bill Crawley has been released on licence. The local villagers wonder if he will have the gall to show face and return to the house that has been empty for the past thirty years. Anna hasn't been back to her family,y home for twenty years. Lizzie, who is a freelance journalist has not been back for thirty years. Anna returns because she got a frightening call from her mother, Muriel. Someone is purposely scaring her.
The story goes back and forth from 1989 to the present day. The narrative is told from several points of view. Anna and Lizzie are the main characters who search for clues to find the truth behind what had happened thirty years ago. It's full of twist and turns. The dual timelines are weaved together seamlessly when we find out the truth at the end of this book. Was Bill Crawley innocent of his crimes? You will need to read the book to find out.
I would like to thank NetGalley, Avon Books UK and the author Sam Carrington for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 11, 2020
This book was lent to me by my daughter who rated it very highly so, I was very interested to see what it was like. I wasn’t disappointed it was creepy at times and very tense.
Although I guessed the ending it didn’t spoil it for me at all. I haven’t read any of this author’s books before but, I will be looking out for the others in time.
Although I guessed the ending it didn’t spoil it for me at all. I haven’t read any of this author’s books before but, I will be looking out for the others in time.
January 1, 2020
Can a secret hidden for 30 years cause havoc even today?
Yes! Yes! Yes! Especially if author Sam Carrington had written it. A brilliant book, the best way to start the new year.
2 girls played a Knock, knock game on a man ostracized by the entire village until one came back and the other was lost forever. The man was charged with murder and sent to prison. But he was released now, and secrets had to be revealed.
Wow! The blurb and the premise of the story pulled me in. The author played on my curiosity, page after page, until I knew nothing but the story. The outside world disappeared for me. The chapters were short and snappy giving me clues to the mystery. The dual timeliness too added to the delicious mystery that this story was.
The suspense built up progressively as the author’s writing tightened the screws on the prose with her powerful imagery. That kept me completely hypnotized until the final reveal which knocked me out completely. I got a hint of the finale, but nothing could deter me from being enthralled by this story.
A perfect book for the new year. I loved it!!
Yes! Yes! Yes! Especially if author Sam Carrington had written it. A brilliant book, the best way to start the new year.
2 girls played a Knock, knock game on a man ostracized by the entire village until one came back and the other was lost forever. The man was charged with murder and sent to prison. But he was released now, and secrets had to be revealed.
Wow! The blurb and the premise of the story pulled me in. The author played on my curiosity, page after page, until I knew nothing but the story. The outside world disappeared for me. The chapters were short and snappy giving me clues to the mystery. The dual timeliness too added to the delicious mystery that this story was.
The suspense built up progressively as the author’s writing tightened the screws on the prose with her powerful imagery. That kept me completely hypnotized until the final reveal which knocked me out completely. I got a hint of the finale, but nothing could deter me from being enthralled by this story.
A perfect book for the new year. I loved it!!
March 30, 2020
I received a free e-copy of I Dare You by Sam Carrington from NetGalley for my honest review.
Thirty years ago, the kids of Mapledon would play a game where they would torment the village outcast, Billy Crawley. One day while playing this game, a girl disappeared. Billy was convicted of her murder even though her body was never found.
Now, Thirty years later, Billy Cawley has been released from prison and some weird things are happening.
Thirty years ago, the kids of Mapledon would play a game where they would torment the village outcast, Billy Crawley. One day while playing this game, a girl disappeared. Billy was convicted of her murder even though her body was never found.
Now, Thirty years later, Billy Cawley has been released from prison and some weird things are happening.
September 18, 2024
Set in the rural village of Mapledon across two timelines, 1989 and 2019, we follow events as they unfolded thirty years ago when a ten-year-old girl Joni Hayes disappeared. In 2019, her kidnapper, Bill Crawley has just been released from prison which creates an uproar among the locals. They are determined to make sure he doesn’t step foot back in Mapledon, but it appears that there may be a more disturbing reason why they don’t want him back.
Anna who is visiting her mother Muriel. Anna hasn’t stepped foot in the village of Mapledon for years and is still haunted by the disappearance of her friend, Joni. But things appear to have taken a more sinister turn. Someone has been tearing off doll pieces and attaching them to her mother’s front door. It causes Anna to consider if Bill Crawley is targeting her family, particularly as she was the one who identified him as Joni’s kidnapper thirty years earlier. Although her mother is quick to dismiss these claims, blaming local kids instead. But Anna is unconvinced.
We also meet Lizzie who lived in the village a very long time ago. Lizzie is now a journalist and is probing the story of Bill Crawley’s release. But what is her connection to the events that took place? What is she hoping to uncover?
You really do get the sense that there is certainly some unfinished business when it comes to Joni’s disappearance. I thought the flashback scenes to 1989 were really creepy, particularly when we meet Bill Crawley for the first time, otherwise known as ‘Creepy Crawley’ to the local kids, and that name seems to have stuck. I could never be sure about him. As rumour after rumour and different accusations flew around the village about him, I was never able to separate fact from fiction. It did feel as though he had become the victim of a witch hunt.
Anna who is visiting her mother Muriel. Anna hasn’t stepped foot in the village of Mapledon for years and is still haunted by the disappearance of her friend, Joni. But things appear to have taken a more sinister turn. Someone has been tearing off doll pieces and attaching them to her mother’s front door. It causes Anna to consider if Bill Crawley is targeting her family, particularly as she was the one who identified him as Joni’s kidnapper thirty years earlier. Although her mother is quick to dismiss these claims, blaming local kids instead. But Anna is unconvinced.
We also meet Lizzie who lived in the village a very long time ago. Lizzie is now a journalist and is probing the story of Bill Crawley’s release. But what is her connection to the events that took place? What is she hoping to uncover?
You really do get the sense that there is certainly some unfinished business when it comes to Joni’s disappearance. I thought the flashback scenes to 1989 were really creepy, particularly when we meet Bill Crawley for the first time, otherwise known as ‘Creepy Crawley’ to the local kids, and that name seems to have stuck. I could never be sure about him. As rumour after rumour and different accusations flew around the village about him, I was never able to separate fact from fiction. It did feel as though he had become the victim of a witch hunt.
December 21, 2019
What a firecracker of a thriller Sam Carrington his written with her new novel, I Dare You; it's creepy, fast-paced and bursting to the brim with secrets. The characters are so well developed that I detested some and felt complete empathy for others. The whole story is so multi-layered it's like peeling an onion with a secret at its core that will bring tears to the eyes of one of the characters.
I got so angry with the characters when I was reading I Dare You because the children of Mapledon are obsessed with playing Knock, Knock, Ginger on the Cawley house. The children's obsession with the creepy Cawley house reminded me of the spooky Radley Place in To Kill a Mockingbird. What even makes a house creepy? Why do children feel drawn to something that scares them so much? In the case of I Dare You, the children have picked up on the bullying of Bill Cawley by their parents. There's more than one bad apple in Mapledon and they don't want Bill Cawley in their poisonous village. The women of the village get together like witches around a cauldron to hatch a plan to get rid of Bill Cawley once and for all. The lengths they are prepared to go to oust him from their midst is quite shocking and it really ignited my fury at the complete injustice of it all.
The children's game goes badly wrong one day when one little girl doesn't return home and no body is found. On the 30th anniversary of Jonie Hayes' disappearance, two women return to the village they once called home; Anna returns after a disturbing phone call from her mother that provides the creepy element of the story but journalist Lizzie's return is a little more mysterious as she hides her true identity whilst asking questions about the past, providing an abundance of intrigue and suspense. I don't want to say anything more about the plot as to do so would spoil the peeling of the onion for other readers. Suffice to say, Sam Carrington keeps the reader on their toes as each layer unravels to reveal even more deeply buried layers underneath.
More gripping than a strip of velco, you won't be able to put down I Dare You until all its secrets are revealed. It's a blistering, suspenseful thriller that got under my skin and made me so furious but I loved every page of it.
I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
I got so angry with the characters when I was reading I Dare You because the children of Mapledon are obsessed with playing Knock, Knock, Ginger on the Cawley house. The children's obsession with the creepy Cawley house reminded me of the spooky Radley Place in To Kill a Mockingbird. What even makes a house creepy? Why do children feel drawn to something that scares them so much? In the case of I Dare You, the children have picked up on the bullying of Bill Cawley by their parents. There's more than one bad apple in Mapledon and they don't want Bill Cawley in their poisonous village. The women of the village get together like witches around a cauldron to hatch a plan to get rid of Bill Cawley once and for all. The lengths they are prepared to go to oust him from their midst is quite shocking and it really ignited my fury at the complete injustice of it all.
The children's game goes badly wrong one day when one little girl doesn't return home and no body is found. On the 30th anniversary of Jonie Hayes' disappearance, two women return to the village they once called home; Anna returns after a disturbing phone call from her mother that provides the creepy element of the story but journalist Lizzie's return is a little more mysterious as she hides her true identity whilst asking questions about the past, providing an abundance of intrigue and suspense. I don't want to say anything more about the plot as to do so would spoil the peeling of the onion for other readers. Suffice to say, Sam Carrington keeps the reader on their toes as each layer unravels to reveal even more deeply buried layers underneath.
More gripping than a strip of velco, you won't be able to put down I Dare You until all its secrets are revealed. It's a blistering, suspenseful thriller that got under my skin and made me so furious but I loved every page of it.
I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.
January 16, 2020
Sam Carrington's style is not necessarily one that I would usually relish in other authors and while her previous one
"The Missing Wife"
was rather slow burning but it packed a punch by the end, I was still a little dubious going in with this one. I need not have feared...I DARE YOU was five star brilliant!!
I generally do not enjoy slow burn thrillers. I would rather they reel me in from the first page and get to the point to keep that ride going. However, despite being a slow build in her writing style, Carrington still manages to do all that - reel me in from the beginning, dropping little snippets through to keep me interested whilst building up to the inevitable climax. And what a climax it was!!!
1989: Two 10 year old girls, Jonie and Bella, are playing the childhood game "Knock Knock Ginger" (which here in Australia we call "Knock and Run") on the local weirdo of Mapledon village they cruelly call "Creepy Cawley". They aren't the only ones to play. In fact, the entire village children at one time or another are playing the same game, knocking on the same door, playing their childish pranks on the same man over and over again.
Until one day...the prank goes horribly wrong. The two girls go out to play and only one returns. She was last seen getting into Creepy Cawley's truck and never seen again. Her body was never found and the village was never the same again.
Billy Cawley, the subject of these games and pranks, was never going to fit in with the "Stepford wives" village of Mapledon and when his wife died, it only got worse. He became a recluse, seen as the local misfit. The local kids tormented him relentlessly. Even his young daughter Eliza was deemed weird with her perverse pleasure of dismembering her dolls.
The local village women banded together to rid Mapledon of the Cawleys. So sure were they that Billy was abusing his 8 year old daughter Eliza, that they called in social services and had her removed from his care. And then Jonie went missing. And all eyes turned to Creepy Cawley... He pleaded guilty to abducting and murdering Jonie Hayes and was given a 30 year prison sentence.
2019: In the thirty years since the tragedy that shook the village, Mapledon hasn't changed. There are secrets that have been buried for far too long, simmering beneath the surface, whispered behind closed doors...if at all. But now people are on edge. Because Billy Cawley is out on licence and the village of Mapledon awaits to see if he has the audacity to return to his home that has sat empty since his arrest 30 years ago.
The gossip that had tongues a-wagging 30 years ago is once again alive and well as villagers question what's to come. Will Billy Cawley return and exact revenge on those he deemed responsible for putting him away? Will he disclose the whereabouts of Jonie's body so her mother Tina can at last have some closure? The village is filled with anxiety, fear and even guilt.
It's been twenty years since Anna left the toxic atmosphere that was Mapledon. But now, at the request of her mother Muriel, she returns home. Someone has been tormenting Muriel, leaving dismembered doll parts nailed to her door with frightening messages alluding to the fact that Muriel knows something. Within a couple of days, her mother's erratic behaviour leads Anna to believe that she is in fact keeping secrets. So Anna endeavours to search for the truth.
Lizzie is a journalist married to Dom. Upon receiving a letter notifying her of Billy Cawley's release, she decides to return to Mapledon to seek out answers to her childhood. Although she knows she had lived in the village a long time ago, she has no real memories of that time but hopes upon her return they will begin to come back to her. But her journey is also one of truth. And it isn't long before she discovers that Mapledon isn't keen on sharing the truth with outsiders.
Anna and Lizzie team up in their search for answers, each wary of the other and wondering whether they can really trust the other. When each woman's true identity is revealed, both women are shocked while at the same time realisation dawning as to the sense it all actually makes. They both begin to question each other's motives while at the same time Anna questions her mother's role in it all.
One thing is abundantly clear...Mapledon has a toxic undercurrent simmering below its surface, reminding Anna why she escape the clutches of the poisonous village two decades ago.
But Mapledon is also a village that will stop at nothing to protect its own. Anything to protect its children. So many secrets, so many lies, so much manipulation and deceit. The truth is somewhere in between.
And Anna and Lizzie will stop at nothing to reveal it...whatever the cost.
WOW! If I had one word to describe I DARE YOU, it would be that. It starts out as one thing and ends as something not too far removed while at the same time being completely different. The toxicity in that village was so noxious I'm surprised anyone could breathe!
Told from several perspectives back and forth from 1989 to the present day, I DARE YOU is very easy to follow. The dual timelines are woven together seamlessly with a tension that is palpable throughout. Anna and Lizzie are the main narrators that bring us to the penultimate climax...and what a climax it is!! It just keeps on giving...and just when you think you have all the answers there is still even more to come. Normally the tension builds to a climax that is over within a chapter...this one kept going and going and going with many more reveals.
A slow burner initially, I DARE YOU does pull you in from the beginning and I think it's the short snappy chapters that keep the story moving at a steady pace despite its slow build. Sam Carrington has a way of weaving her stories like that in such a way it doesn't feel as if you are reading a slow burner. The twists are misleading, enlightening and confusing all at once as the pressure builds.
While the overall theme appears to be how far will you go to protect your children and yourselves, I DARE YOU is rife with manipulation, lies and secrets that would suffocate any normal person should they happen upon Mapledon. How can a village steeped in so much poison find peace? And when the truth is revealed, what then? Can all those involved move on and find their own peace? Will justice be served? I'm not sure justice was served in the end, but it left you pondering what may or may not happen. As well as the mystery of who? I have my suspicions...but who knows? It was a bit of a loose end leading us to an unknown conclusion. I guess it was subjective to the reader.
The question that remains...was Billy Cawley guilty or innocent? You will need to read the book to find out! I dare you...you won't be sorry!
I would like to thank #SamCarrington, #NetGalley and #AvonUK for an ARC of #IDareYou in exchange for an honest review.
This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.
I generally do not enjoy slow burn thrillers. I would rather they reel me in from the first page and get to the point to keep that ride going. However, despite being a slow build in her writing style, Carrington still manages to do all that - reel me in from the beginning, dropping little snippets through to keep me interested whilst building up to the inevitable climax. And what a climax it was!!!
1989: Two 10 year old girls, Jonie and Bella, are playing the childhood game "Knock Knock Ginger" (which here in Australia we call "Knock and Run") on the local weirdo of Mapledon village they cruelly call "Creepy Cawley". They aren't the only ones to play. In fact, the entire village children at one time or another are playing the same game, knocking on the same door, playing their childish pranks on the same man over and over again.
Until one day...the prank goes horribly wrong. The two girls go out to play and only one returns. She was last seen getting into Creepy Cawley's truck and never seen again. Her body was never found and the village was never the same again.
Billy Cawley, the subject of these games and pranks, was never going to fit in with the "Stepford wives" village of Mapledon and when his wife died, it only got worse. He became a recluse, seen as the local misfit. The local kids tormented him relentlessly. Even his young daughter Eliza was deemed weird with her perverse pleasure of dismembering her dolls.
The local village women banded together to rid Mapledon of the Cawleys. So sure were they that Billy was abusing his 8 year old daughter Eliza, that they called in social services and had her removed from his care. And then Jonie went missing. And all eyes turned to Creepy Cawley... He pleaded guilty to abducting and murdering Jonie Hayes and was given a 30 year prison sentence.
2019: In the thirty years since the tragedy that shook the village, Mapledon hasn't changed. There are secrets that have been buried for far too long, simmering beneath the surface, whispered behind closed doors...if at all. But now people are on edge. Because Billy Cawley is out on licence and the village of Mapledon awaits to see if he has the audacity to return to his home that has sat empty since his arrest 30 years ago.
The gossip that had tongues a-wagging 30 years ago is once again alive and well as villagers question what's to come. Will Billy Cawley return and exact revenge on those he deemed responsible for putting him away? Will he disclose the whereabouts of Jonie's body so her mother Tina can at last have some closure? The village is filled with anxiety, fear and even guilt.
It's been twenty years since Anna left the toxic atmosphere that was Mapledon. But now, at the request of her mother Muriel, she returns home. Someone has been tormenting Muriel, leaving dismembered doll parts nailed to her door with frightening messages alluding to the fact that Muriel knows something. Within a couple of days, her mother's erratic behaviour leads Anna to believe that she is in fact keeping secrets. So Anna endeavours to search for the truth.
Lizzie is a journalist married to Dom. Upon receiving a letter notifying her of Billy Cawley's release, she decides to return to Mapledon to seek out answers to her childhood. Although she knows she had lived in the village a long time ago, she has no real memories of that time but hopes upon her return they will begin to come back to her. But her journey is also one of truth. And it isn't long before she discovers that Mapledon isn't keen on sharing the truth with outsiders.
Anna and Lizzie team up in their search for answers, each wary of the other and wondering whether they can really trust the other. When each woman's true identity is revealed, both women are shocked while at the same time realisation dawning as to the sense it all actually makes. They both begin to question each other's motives while at the same time Anna questions her mother's role in it all.
One thing is abundantly clear...Mapledon has a toxic undercurrent simmering below its surface, reminding Anna why she escape the clutches of the poisonous village two decades ago.
But Mapledon is also a village that will stop at nothing to protect its own. Anything to protect its children. So many secrets, so many lies, so much manipulation and deceit. The truth is somewhere in between.
And Anna and Lizzie will stop at nothing to reveal it...whatever the cost.
WOW! If I had one word to describe I DARE YOU, it would be that. It starts out as one thing and ends as something not too far removed while at the same time being completely different. The toxicity in that village was so noxious I'm surprised anyone could breathe!
Told from several perspectives back and forth from 1989 to the present day, I DARE YOU is very easy to follow. The dual timelines are woven together seamlessly with a tension that is palpable throughout. Anna and Lizzie are the main narrators that bring us to the penultimate climax...and what a climax it is!! It just keeps on giving...and just when you think you have all the answers there is still even more to come. Normally the tension builds to a climax that is over within a chapter...this one kept going and going and going with many more reveals.
A slow burner initially, I DARE YOU does pull you in from the beginning and I think it's the short snappy chapters that keep the story moving at a steady pace despite its slow build. Sam Carrington has a way of weaving her stories like that in such a way it doesn't feel as if you are reading a slow burner. The twists are misleading, enlightening and confusing all at once as the pressure builds.
While the overall theme appears to be how far will you go to protect your children and yourselves, I DARE YOU is rife with manipulation, lies and secrets that would suffocate any normal person should they happen upon Mapledon. How can a village steeped in so much poison find peace? And when the truth is revealed, what then? Can all those involved move on and find their own peace? Will justice be served? I'm not sure justice was served in the end, but it left you pondering what may or may not happen. As well as the mystery of who? I have my suspicions...but who knows? It was a bit of a loose end leading us to an unknown conclusion. I guess it was subjective to the reader.
The question that remains...was Billy Cawley guilty or innocent? You will need to read the book to find out! I dare you...you won't be sorry!
I would like to thank #SamCarrington, #NetGalley and #AvonUK for an ARC of #IDareYou in exchange for an honest review.
This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.
December 19, 2019
I’m a huge fan of this author as I always find her books to be very enjoyable, gripping thrillers and I Dare You was no exception.
Firstly the author does a really good job of setting the scene for this story with the small village mentality vividly described so I felt like I was actually there watching everything unfold. From the first time we visit the village the reader gets the feeling that there’s something strange about it and this leads to a general feeling of unease throughout the book. The villagers love to gossip and their almost desperate need to keep up appearances made it difficult for some people to fit in. I felt this added to some of the intrigue as you weren’t sure what people were actually like.
I actually felt very sorry for Billy Crawley who is picked on by the village children just because he is difficult. He reminded me a bit of Boo Radley from To Kill A Mockingbird, maybe because the children play a similar game with him. I found it interesting to learn more about him and found myself wondering what he was going to do to get his revenge which made me want to keep reading.
Overall I thought this was a gripping, entertaining read which I really enjoyed. I was drawn into the book from the first chapter and found it very hard to put down as I needed to know what had happened. The story is told from two different timelines and this is done very well, with the reader never getting confused between them. There are lots of twists that kept me guessing and the end was brilliant and completely blew me away as it wasn’t at all what I had guessed.
Huge thanks to Sabah from Avon for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Avon for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
Firstly the author does a really good job of setting the scene for this story with the small village mentality vividly described so I felt like I was actually there watching everything unfold. From the first time we visit the village the reader gets the feeling that there’s something strange about it and this leads to a general feeling of unease throughout the book. The villagers love to gossip and their almost desperate need to keep up appearances made it difficult for some people to fit in. I felt this added to some of the intrigue as you weren’t sure what people were actually like.
I actually felt very sorry for Billy Crawley who is picked on by the village children just because he is difficult. He reminded me a bit of Boo Radley from To Kill A Mockingbird, maybe because the children play a similar game with him. I found it interesting to learn more about him and found myself wondering what he was going to do to get his revenge which made me want to keep reading.
Overall I thought this was a gripping, entertaining read which I really enjoyed. I was drawn into the book from the first chapter and found it very hard to put down as I needed to know what had happened. The story is told from two different timelines and this is done very well, with the reader never getting confused between them. There are lots of twists that kept me guessing and the end was brilliant and completely blew me away as it wasn’t at all what I had guessed.
Huge thanks to Sabah from Avon for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Avon for my copy of this book via Netgalley.
November 17, 2019
This was a really solid psychological thriller
I really enjoyed this book because it incorporated some of my favourite thriller tropes. 1. Being set in a small town and 2. Something bad happening, in this case a girl going missing and someone 30 years later trying to find the truth
I thought it was really well written, and I liked the fact it was told from mutiple perspectives and timelines but was never confusing
However, I did feel that this book was slightly too long and the middle did drag a bit
But the ending, the pace really did pick up and I did not see the sending coming. There was plenty of twists and turns throughout with some pretty big ones towards the end, which I loved
This also had some really creepy elements which I loved too!
I really enjoyed this thriller overall and I definitely think it's one a lot of people will enjoy
TW: child abuse and pedophilia
I really enjoyed this book because it incorporated some of my favourite thriller tropes. 1. Being set in a small town and 2. Something bad happening, in this case a girl going missing and someone 30 years later trying to find the truth
I thought it was really well written, and I liked the fact it was told from mutiple perspectives and timelines but was never confusing
However, I did feel that this book was slightly too long and the middle did drag a bit
But the ending, the pace really did pick up and I did not see the sending coming. There was plenty of twists and turns throughout with some pretty big ones towards the end, which I loved
This also had some really creepy elements which I loved too!
I really enjoyed this thriller overall and I definitely think it's one a lot of people will enjoy
TW: child abuse and pedophilia
January 17, 2020
Such a fantastic and gripping read! I definitely recommend
September 27, 2020
I really wanted to like this book more and for want of a better word, I found it quite dull. I enjoyed the alternating past and present format and the short, sharp chapters kept me guessing but I found it dragging and boring in parts.
December 12, 2019
I Dare You by Sam Carrington is a psychological thriller.
First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Avon Books, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
My Synopsis: (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
The year is 1989. Billy Cawley has never fit in with the people in the small village of Mapledon. When his wife died, it got worse. He became the town crazy, and all the kids tormented him. Eventually, social services stepped in and took his daughter Eliza. Then a little girl went missing. He was the only suspect, and he has spent the last 30 years in jail.
The year is 2019. Mapledon hasn't changed much. Events of 30 years ago seem to have simmered beneath the village, discussed quietly, if at all. But now people are on edge. Billy Cawley is out of jail. The gossip that had died down is now alive and well. There seems to be a lot of anxiety, and a touch of guilt in the air. There is definitely a lot of fear. Fear that Billy will come back for revenge.
At the request of her mother Muriel, Anna returns to her hometown of Mapledon. Muriel is being hounded by someone, and she is very frightened. Anna thinks she is keeping secrets. Anna is searching for her own answers.
Lizzie is a journalist. She, too, is returning to Mapledon, the town she lived in as a child. She is looking for the truth. She doesn't remember much from her time there, but she hopes things will come back to her.
A village filled with those who will do anything to protect it. Anything to protect their children. So much gossip, so many lies. The truth is somewhere in the middle.
My Opinions:
I loved how the story went back and forth between the time of the event in 1989, and thirty years later to 2019. In this way the story unfolded nicely, and added to the mystery....slowly providing the clues as to what really happened. The characters also developed during those time frames, and you grew to love them or hate them as the story progressed. Sometimes your opinions changed, and changed again.
I had guessed a few of the twists, but certainly not all of them, but this did not detract from the story. It just kept me going to see what else I had right...or wrong. Then there were the last couple of sentences.....I absolutely loved those last couple of sentences!
The overall theme of the book seems to be how far you will go to protect your children, and yourselves. Will the manipulation, the lies, the secrets bring you peace? Will the truth, when told, let you move on? What is justice? (To be honest, I'm not sure justice was served by the end of the book, but who knows what happens next....) Loved it!
Sam Carrington's talents just keep growing. She wrote an amazing book, her best yet. I highly recommend it, and can't wait for her next one.
For a more complete review of this book and others (including author information and quotations), please visit my blog: http://katlovesbooksblog.wordpress.com/
October 28, 2019
I Dare You by Sam Carrington is yet another compulsive read from an author who continues to raise the bar. I was pulled into this multilayered mystery from the first page, and the superbly executed plot held me captivated from beginning to end.
In 1989, in the village of Mapledon, two little girls are playing a game of dares when one of them goes missing. Ten year old Jonie Hayes is never seen again, and the tightly knit community is quick to accuse and condemn local loner Billy 'Creepy' Cawley for the young girl's murder. Thirty years later, Cawley is released from prison, and many of the residents of Mapledon fear that he will return with vengeance on his mind. After all, this is a community that has been hiding secrets and propogating lies for three long decades. Will the truth, at last, finally out?
This is a tense and emotive read that kept me fully engaged as the mystery of a long ago murder unfurls. This one will certainly keep you guessing.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC.
In 1989, in the village of Mapledon, two little girls are playing a game of dares when one of them goes missing. Ten year old Jonie Hayes is never seen again, and the tightly knit community is quick to accuse and condemn local loner Billy 'Creepy' Cawley for the young girl's murder. Thirty years later, Cawley is released from prison, and many of the residents of Mapledon fear that he will return with vengeance on his mind. After all, this is a community that has been hiding secrets and propogating lies for three long decades. Will the truth, at last, finally out?
This is a tense and emotive read that kept me fully engaged as the mystery of a long ago murder unfurls. This one will certainly keep you guessing.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC.
March 4, 2020
I seem to be going against the majority of reviewers in finding this very disappointing. The characters were not very well drawn and the writing poor. The split timeline was bad enough, but the earlier one being in reverse was just irritating. Books like this just seem to me to be cheating by the author as they reveal the answers little by little with no proper plot development at all
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WARNING SPOILERS
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I also found the idea that Cawley would spend 30 years in clink when he knew the real killer just laughable and I'm glad I skimmed most of the book to get to the end.
Sorry, not for me.
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WARNING SPOILERS
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I also found the idea that Cawley would spend 30 years in clink when he knew the real killer just laughable and I'm glad I skimmed most of the book to get to the end.
Sorry, not for me.
May 28, 2021
"Lizzie sucked in a breath. That didn't sound like a debt that could easily be paid back. It sounded like Billy wanted to dish out his own kind of justice. Maybe revenge."
This book has two stories being told simultaneously. One is present day, when a man who had been accused of murdering a child is released from prison. The other story is from thirty years ago, telling us the series of events that led up to ten year old Jonie going missing.
Both stories were full of mystery, with no real answers until the end. There were quite a few twists that kept me guessing.
The one thing I didn't like about this was that there never seemed to a proper conclusion. Yes, everyone who played a part in Jonies disappearance were confronted. Yes, all the lies eventually unfolded. But that was it. Nothing came of it which was pretty disappointing.
Other than that, the book was great and I look forward to reading more from this author.
This book has two stories being told simultaneously. One is present day, when a man who had been accused of murdering a child is released from prison. The other story is from thirty years ago, telling us the series of events that led up to ten year old Jonie going missing.
Both stories were full of mystery, with no real answers until the end. There were quite a few twists that kept me guessing.
The one thing I didn't like about this was that there never seemed to a proper conclusion. Yes, everyone who played a part in Jonies disappearance were confronted. Yes, all the lies eventually unfolded. But that was it. Nothing came of it which was pretty disappointing.
Other than that, the book was great and I look forward to reading more from this author.
June 15, 2020
In 1989, Jonie & Bella were ten-year-old best friends who played ‘Knock, Knock, Ginger’ (we called it ‘Cherry Knocking’) on the door of Billy ‘Creepy’ Cawley’s bungalow. But things took a turn for the worst when Jonie disappeared and Bella’s evidence saw Creepy Cawley convicted of her murder and sentenced to thirty years in prison. When Billy is released, in 2019, Anna (Bella) goes back to her hometown as someone is nailing doll parts to her mothers front door. Could he be seeking revenge?
This is the first novel I’ve read by Sam Carrington and I thoroughly enjoyed it for the most part. Characterisation is strong, the two timelines (seeing the fall-out from 1989 and the memories being dredged up in 2019) worked together well and the village of Mapledon is well realised (and quite frightening in its own right). There are plenty of suspects, more than a few red herrings and a couple of nice twists (one of which is a kind of “I’ve gathered you all here today…” sequence that I felt pushed credibility a bit) before a satisfying conclusion. Good fun, suspenseful and well worth a read.
This is the first novel I’ve read by Sam Carrington and I thoroughly enjoyed it for the most part. Characterisation is strong, the two timelines (seeing the fall-out from 1989 and the memories being dredged up in 2019) worked together well and the village of Mapledon is well realised (and quite frightening in its own right). There are plenty of suspects, more than a few red herrings and a couple of nice twists (one of which is a kind of “I’ve gathered you all here today…” sequence that I felt pushed credibility a bit) before a satisfying conclusion. Good fun, suspenseful and well worth a read.
November 30, 2019
"Sometimes when you go digging you unearth things you're not looking for."
3.5 stars rounded up because it was quite the twisty tale and one I had to think about for a bit after I finished it in a single sitting tonight after only intending to read a few chapters.
In 1989, in a small town named Mapledon, two young girls are taunting a neighbor with a knock-knock-run game. At the end of the evening, 10-year-old Jonie Hayes would go missing and her friend, Bella's, testimony at the trial would put that same neighbor behind bars for over 30 years. No body was ever found, but Bella's eyewitness version of what happened would prove enough to convict Billy Cawley of abduction and murder.
Fast forward to 2019 and Bella, now using the name, Anna, hears that Cawley is going to be released from prison. She goes to Mapledon because her mother, Muriel Fisher, is worried. It seems that someone has nailed a doll's head to her front door and she thinks it might be Billy come to extract some kind of revenge over things that happened back in 1989 even before he killed Jonie. In addition, Billy's release has brought someone else to town -- Lizzie Brenfield -- and she is going to get answers to all of her questions about Billy and about the events of 1989. NO SPOILERS.
It's hard to write about this book because I don't want to give anything away. I found the most difficult impediment to my total enjoyment of this novel was the way in which it was written. It jumps between 1989 and 2019 and between characters and that shift is usually right about the moment where something important is going to happen or be revealed. In this case, I would have preferred less flashback and a more linear tale so that the story elements would be less confusing but perhaps that style was the whole point to create the tension and deepen the mystery. What can I saw about these characters, well not much as identifying my feelings about one or the others would give it away. Let's just say that there were some that I despised, some I felt sorry for, and some that I am still on the fence about.
Give this one a shot as it's drama, yes, but definitely thought-provoking and not what I was expecting. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for this e-book ARC to read and review.
3.5 stars rounded up because it was quite the twisty tale and one I had to think about for a bit after I finished it in a single sitting tonight after only intending to read a few chapters.
In 1989, in a small town named Mapledon, two young girls are taunting a neighbor with a knock-knock-run game. At the end of the evening, 10-year-old Jonie Hayes would go missing and her friend, Bella's, testimony at the trial would put that same neighbor behind bars for over 30 years. No body was ever found, but Bella's eyewitness version of what happened would prove enough to convict Billy Cawley of abduction and murder.
Fast forward to 2019 and Bella, now using the name, Anna, hears that Cawley is going to be released from prison. She goes to Mapledon because her mother, Muriel Fisher, is worried. It seems that someone has nailed a doll's head to her front door and she thinks it might be Billy come to extract some kind of revenge over things that happened back in 1989 even before he killed Jonie. In addition, Billy's release has brought someone else to town -- Lizzie Brenfield -- and she is going to get answers to all of her questions about Billy and about the events of 1989. NO SPOILERS.
It's hard to write about this book because I don't want to give anything away. I found the most difficult impediment to my total enjoyment of this novel was the way in which it was written. It jumps between 1989 and 2019 and between characters and that shift is usually right about the moment where something important is going to happen or be revealed. In this case, I would have preferred less flashback and a more linear tale so that the story elements would be less confusing but perhaps that style was the whole point to create the tension and deepen the mystery. What can I saw about these characters, well not much as identifying my feelings about one or the others would give it away. Let's just say that there were some that I despised, some I felt sorry for, and some that I am still on the fence about.
Give this one a shot as it's drama, yes, but definitely thought-provoking and not what I was expecting. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for this e-book ARC to read and review.
December 27, 2019
I don’t think I’ve ever flown through a book quite like I did with this one. Short snappy chapters and a completely gripping story had me absolutely hooked right from page one.
The characters all had their little secrets and were divided into two definitive groups, the parents and the children. Flashing back and forth from present day to 1989 we learn how the mothers regularly held drink and gossip nights under the guise of community meetings. These women are dangerous with their unproven gossip and soon start a witch-hunt.
Sam Carrington has mastered how to write totally believable characters and the closed community of Mapledon reminded me of the small village where I grew up. Everybody knows everybody’s business and as I always said you can’t even fart without everyone knowing about it. This is great when the community pulls together for the greater good but what happens when you are ousted from the community or you just don’t fit in with their ideals.
The older women of Mapledon had a Stepford wives vibe about them that I just couldn’t shake and then add to that all their marriages have dissolved you get the sense of who is running this show.
I’m going to shut up now as I could talk about this book all day and I don’t want to accidentally give away any spoilers. But take it from me this is a book you really need to add to your pile.
The characters all had their little secrets and were divided into two definitive groups, the parents and the children. Flashing back and forth from present day to 1989 we learn how the mothers regularly held drink and gossip nights under the guise of community meetings. These women are dangerous with their unproven gossip and soon start a witch-hunt.
Sam Carrington has mastered how to write totally believable characters and the closed community of Mapledon reminded me of the small village where I grew up. Everybody knows everybody’s business and as I always said you can’t even fart without everyone knowing about it. This is great when the community pulls together for the greater good but what happens when you are ousted from the community or you just don’t fit in with their ideals.
The older women of Mapledon had a Stepford wives vibe about them that I just couldn’t shake and then add to that all their marriages have dissolved you get the sense of who is running this show.
I’m going to shut up now as I could talk about this book all day and I don’t want to accidentally give away any spoilers. But take it from me this is a book you really need to add to your pile.
October 25, 2019
This book has some great reviews so maybe it’s just me but I really struggled getting into this one. I was getting confused as to who was who and kept having to read back.
September 24, 2020
Everyone in Mapledon knows of “Creepy Cawley”, a reclusive outsider in the small town. The children of the town are warned to stay away from him but they get their thrills by daring each other to knock on his door and run away. That is until one day he catches one of them. Last seen by a witness been driven off in his car 10 year old Jonie Hayes is never seen again.
Bill Cawley is quickly convicted of Jonie’s murder but he never reveals where he hid the body. 30 years later and Cawley is released from prison, he’s intent on making the people who put him in prison pay. He claims he is innocent even though evidence was found in his truck and his home. But if he didn’t do it, then who did?
I Dare You was a great little mystery. While the author hints at who is involved in Jonie’s disappearance the story kept me guessing until the end as to how.
I felt there was a slight lull in the middle of the book where I found not much to be happening but then in true crime fiction fashion it ended with a bang. Despite a slow middle I’d definitely still like to read other books by this author.
Bill Cawley is quickly convicted of Jonie’s murder but he never reveals where he hid the body. 30 years later and Cawley is released from prison, he’s intent on making the people who put him in prison pay. He claims he is innocent even though evidence was found in his truck and his home. But if he didn’t do it, then who did?
I Dare You was a great little mystery. While the author hints at who is involved in Jonie’s disappearance the story kept me guessing until the end as to how.
I felt there was a slight lull in the middle of the book where I found not much to be happening but then in true crime fiction fashion it ended with a bang. Despite a slow middle I’d definitely still like to read other books by this author.
December 4, 2019
I Dare You is the fifth novel to be released by Sam Carrington. Out now in digital format (Nov 29th) it will be published in paperback with Avon Books on Dec 12th. I Dare You is described as a ‘gripping crime thriller' and is a dual time novel jumping between 1989 and the present day in the very creepy village of Mapledon.
In 1989 two friends, Bella and Jonie, were out playing but only one came home. A manhunt was immediately escalated and the village went into lock-down but the body of the missing girl was never discovered. A man relatively new to the area, a blow-in, nicknamed by the locals as Bill ‘Creepy’ Cawley was the main suspect and as the evidence mounted, including an eye-witness statement, Bill Cawley was charged with the murder of an innocent young girl and sentenced to life. The village breathed a sigh of relief. Their children were safe to go out and play again. But for some the verdict left a bad taste, one that festered for years.
Now, thirty years later, and Bill Cawley has been released. There are folk in the village unnerved by this turn of events and fear reprisal. Bill Cawley is a man upset, a man who has lost years of his life wasted behind bars. Bill Cawley is angry. Bill Cawley wants revenge. Bill Cawley wants the truth…..
Anna receives a call from her mother, distraught and panicked. Anna left her home place of Mapledon many years previously with the intention of never darkening it’s pavements again but her mother’s distress can not be ignored and Anna makes the journey home.
Anna is faced with a shocking discovery, one that makes her question her past and all that she has believed to be true. As secrets become unlocked and years of lies and deceit are gradually revealed, Mapledon and some of it’s residents, are exposed for what they really are.
Anna’a mother is a strange character, a person I felt absolutely no warmth toward from the get go. If I’m honest I didn’t particularly like any of the characters in this tale and felt no connection to any of them. Mapledon is a very peculiar place, an eerie village that keeps its secrets very close to its chest. The inhabitants of Mapledon are all a little odd which adds a very disturbing element to the tale. The rapport between Anna and her mother is very strained, there is a formality between them that I found very bizarre for a mother/daughter relationship. The whole atmosphere of Mapledon is one of mystery.
Sam Carrington’s depiction of Mapleton is very well portrayed as I could sense and almost feel the strangeness of the village as I read through the chapters. As the story picked up and the unraveling began it was soon evident that all was not as it seems in Mapleton. Now, thirty years later, the villagers will finally have to face their demons and reveal the truth about what really did happen in 1989.
I have very diverse and mixed feelings about I Dare You. Sam Carrington writes well, of that there is no doubt, but for me something was just missing throughout this novel. On the one hand, the atmospheric imagery of that strange little village and its inhabitants was portrayed very well. On the other hand though I felt no connection with anyone or anything and just could not invest in any of the characters. Overall, I’m a little on the fence with this one, possibly because I like to form a bond with at least one character in a novel I am reading and for some reason I just didn’t feel any link to any individual in this tale. Of course that is but my humble opinion. There are many alternate and extremely positive reviews posted online for I Dare You so please do check them out for yourself!
In 1989 two friends, Bella and Jonie, were out playing but only one came home. A manhunt was immediately escalated and the village went into lock-down but the body of the missing girl was never discovered. A man relatively new to the area, a blow-in, nicknamed by the locals as Bill ‘Creepy’ Cawley was the main suspect and as the evidence mounted, including an eye-witness statement, Bill Cawley was charged with the murder of an innocent young girl and sentenced to life. The village breathed a sigh of relief. Their children were safe to go out and play again. But for some the verdict left a bad taste, one that festered for years.
Now, thirty years later, and Bill Cawley has been released. There are folk in the village unnerved by this turn of events and fear reprisal. Bill Cawley is a man upset, a man who has lost years of his life wasted behind bars. Bill Cawley is angry. Bill Cawley wants revenge. Bill Cawley wants the truth…..
Anna receives a call from her mother, distraught and panicked. Anna left her home place of Mapledon many years previously with the intention of never darkening it’s pavements again but her mother’s distress can not be ignored and Anna makes the journey home.
Anna is faced with a shocking discovery, one that makes her question her past and all that she has believed to be true. As secrets become unlocked and years of lies and deceit are gradually revealed, Mapledon and some of it’s residents, are exposed for what they really are.
Anna’a mother is a strange character, a person I felt absolutely no warmth toward from the get go. If I’m honest I didn’t particularly like any of the characters in this tale and felt no connection to any of them. Mapledon is a very peculiar place, an eerie village that keeps its secrets very close to its chest. The inhabitants of Mapledon are all a little odd which adds a very disturbing element to the tale. The rapport between Anna and her mother is very strained, there is a formality between them that I found very bizarre for a mother/daughter relationship. The whole atmosphere of Mapledon is one of mystery.
Sam Carrington’s depiction of Mapleton is very well portrayed as I could sense and almost feel the strangeness of the village as I read through the chapters. As the story picked up and the unraveling began it was soon evident that all was not as it seems in Mapleton. Now, thirty years later, the villagers will finally have to face their demons and reveal the truth about what really did happen in 1989.
I have very diverse and mixed feelings about I Dare You. Sam Carrington writes well, of that there is no doubt, but for me something was just missing throughout this novel. On the one hand, the atmospheric imagery of that strange little village and its inhabitants was portrayed very well. On the other hand though I felt no connection with anyone or anything and just could not invest in any of the characters. Overall, I’m a little on the fence with this one, possibly because I like to form a bond with at least one character in a novel I am reading and for some reason I just didn’t feel any link to any individual in this tale. Of course that is but my humble opinion. There are many alternate and extremely positive reviews posted online for I Dare You so please do check them out for yourself!
December 31, 2019
What a roller-coaster ride! I was quickly gripped by this exhilarating thriller and found myself reading fervently, desperate for answers about what happened to ten-year-old Jonie Hayes, how the narrators were connected to it all, and what secrets the residents of Mapledon were hiding.
The story is told in dual timelines and is narrated by two women - Anna and Lizzie. We soon learn that both women lived in Mapledon as children but left for very different reasons: Anna because of bad memories of her childhood friend’s murder and feeling stifled, and Lizzie because she was taken and put into care for unkown reasons. They both have unanswered questions about what happened thirty years ago and have been affected by the legacy of Billy ‘Creepy’ Crawley and the murder of Jonie. As they look deeper it is clear that nothing is as it seems and are forced to question everything they thought they knew as they unearth secrets they were never meant to find...
This was the second book I’ve read by this author and I was every bit as captivated as when I read The Missing Wife, cementing her place on my must-read authors list. The thing I liked about her writing in this book was how she told the flashbacks to 1989 in reverse chronological order up until the highly anticipated big reveal. This slowly revealed clues to the reader while increasing the tension and slowly revealed the roles everyone played in the tragic events.
Anna and Lizzie were both unreliable protagonists by their own admission. They were children thirty years ago and it is their fuzzy recollection of events that leads them to finally search for the truth. Anna’s relationship with her mother Muriel is fraught and she’s hasn’t been back to Mapledon once since she left. It seems with every day more cracks appear in their relationship and Anna is increasingly sure her mother has lied and hidden the truth from her about what had happened that summer. I definitely had my feelings about Muriel’s character coloured by Anna and only ever saw her as a busybody that was lying to her daughter. I was sure she was entrenched in what happened and felt like screaming at her to just tell her daughter what she knew. Lizzie was a character I had a lot of empathy for but I was torn about how much of the truth I wanted her to discover, especially as it seemed she had the most she could lose by the revelations. All of the characters in this book are fractured and troubled and I often wondered if they would be torn apart even more by the truth rather than healed by it.
I Dare You is a tense, twisty, jaw-dropping thriller about childhood friendships, small town politics, secrets and murder. I guessed some of the twists early on but so much was a mystery to me as we approached the end. The author cleverly wove the clues together until the full picture emerged and rendered me speechless. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves psychological thrillers and can’t wait to see what she writes next.
Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The story is told in dual timelines and is narrated by two women - Anna and Lizzie. We soon learn that both women lived in Mapledon as children but left for very different reasons: Anna because of bad memories of her childhood friend’s murder and feeling stifled, and Lizzie because she was taken and put into care for unkown reasons. They both have unanswered questions about what happened thirty years ago and have been affected by the legacy of Billy ‘Creepy’ Crawley and the murder of Jonie. As they look deeper it is clear that nothing is as it seems and are forced to question everything they thought they knew as they unearth secrets they were never meant to find...
This was the second book I’ve read by this author and I was every bit as captivated as when I read The Missing Wife, cementing her place on my must-read authors list. The thing I liked about her writing in this book was how she told the flashbacks to 1989 in reverse chronological order up until the highly anticipated big reveal. This slowly revealed clues to the reader while increasing the tension and slowly revealed the roles everyone played in the tragic events.
Anna and Lizzie were both unreliable protagonists by their own admission. They were children thirty years ago and it is their fuzzy recollection of events that leads them to finally search for the truth. Anna’s relationship with her mother Muriel is fraught and she’s hasn’t been back to Mapledon once since she left. It seems with every day more cracks appear in their relationship and Anna is increasingly sure her mother has lied and hidden the truth from her about what had happened that summer. I definitely had my feelings about Muriel’s character coloured by Anna and only ever saw her as a busybody that was lying to her daughter. I was sure she was entrenched in what happened and felt like screaming at her to just tell her daughter what she knew. Lizzie was a character I had a lot of empathy for but I was torn about how much of the truth I wanted her to discover, especially as it seemed she had the most she could lose by the revelations. All of the characters in this book are fractured and troubled and I often wondered if they would be torn apart even more by the truth rather than healed by it.
I Dare You is a tense, twisty, jaw-dropping thriller about childhood friendships, small town politics, secrets and murder. I guessed some of the twists early on but so much was a mystery to me as we approached the end. The author cleverly wove the clues together until the full picture emerged and rendered me speechless. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves psychological thrillers and can’t wait to see what she writes next.
Thank you to Avon Books and NetGalley for the copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 14, 2020
A grippy page-turner set in rural Devon, with plenty of foreshadowing and twists and turns to keep you guessing!
March 21, 2020
A 5* gripping read that will keep you in suspense from chapter to chapter and will leave you utterly speechless come the end.
30 years ago a little girl was thought to have been captured and murdered by the village weirdo, Bill (Creepy Cawley), following a game of Knock, Knock Ginger. Fast forward to 2019 and Anna is drawn back to where she grew up by her mother, who is worried as strange things are starting to happen to her. Anna’s return to the village of Mapledon coincides with Bill’s release from prison, was he guilty of the crime he was convicted for? Or is there more to the story and who knows more than they’re letting on? Things don’t seem quite right and Anna is determined to get to the bottom of it all, as is another person who has also returned to the village she once lived in.
The chapters skilfully switch between that fateful day in 1989, the days/weeks surrounding it and the present day. It’s well thought out and cleverly written, with twists and turns aplenty.
‘I Dare You’ to read this fantastic new Crime Thriller. Out Dec 12th.
Thank you to Sam Carrington, Net Galley & Avon Books for my ARC of this book.
Book Description-
AN INNOCENT GAME. A SHOCKING CRIME. A COMMUNITY FULL OF SECRETS.
Mapledon, 1989
Two little girls were out playing a game of dares. Only one returned home.
The ten-year-old told police what she saw: village loner Bill ‘Creepy’ Cawley dragged her friend into his truck and disappeared.
No body was found, but her testimony sent Cawley to prison for murder. An open and shut case, the right man behind bars.
The village could sleep safe once again.
Now…
Anna thought she had left Mapledon and her nightmares behind but a distraught phone call brings her back to face her past.
30 years ago, someone lied. 30 years ago, the man convicted wasn’t the only guilty party.
Now he’s out of prison and looking for revenge. The question is, who will he start with?
30 years ago a little girl was thought to have been captured and murdered by the village weirdo, Bill (Creepy Cawley), following a game of Knock, Knock Ginger. Fast forward to 2019 and Anna is drawn back to where she grew up by her mother, who is worried as strange things are starting to happen to her. Anna’s return to the village of Mapledon coincides with Bill’s release from prison, was he guilty of the crime he was convicted for? Or is there more to the story and who knows more than they’re letting on? Things don’t seem quite right and Anna is determined to get to the bottom of it all, as is another person who has also returned to the village she once lived in.
The chapters skilfully switch between that fateful day in 1989, the days/weeks surrounding it and the present day. It’s well thought out and cleverly written, with twists and turns aplenty.
‘I Dare You’ to read this fantastic new Crime Thriller. Out Dec 12th.
Thank you to Sam Carrington, Net Galley & Avon Books for my ARC of this book.
Book Description-
AN INNOCENT GAME. A SHOCKING CRIME. A COMMUNITY FULL OF SECRETS.
Mapledon, 1989
Two little girls were out playing a game of dares. Only one returned home.
The ten-year-old told police what she saw: village loner Bill ‘Creepy’ Cawley dragged her friend into his truck and disappeared.
No body was found, but her testimony sent Cawley to prison for murder. An open and shut case, the right man behind bars.
The village could sleep safe once again.
Now…
Anna thought she had left Mapledon and her nightmares behind but a distraught phone call brings her back to face her past.
30 years ago, someone lied. 30 years ago, the man convicted wasn’t the only guilty party.
Now he’s out of prison and looking for revenge. The question is, who will he start with?
December 1, 2019
Thirty years ago, a little girl went missing from a quiet Devon village, and nobody’s life was ever quite the same again. Now, the past has come calling and Anna must go back to Mapledon to find out the truth about what really happened to her friend. She’s not the only one who wants some answers about the past, though, and every question asked seems only to raise more, none of which anybody wants to answer.
Told in dual timelines between the events of 1989 and the present time of 2019, Sam Carrington does a masterful job of slowly revealing snippets of the truth, letting us discover the story along with Anna and Lizzie, who were both just kids back at the time of the tragedy. There are some heavy themes explored here as a lot of adults did some terrible things to the children they should have been protecting; while it’s not graphically described, child sex abuse occurred as did violence towards children, parental gaslighting and more. The community is described several times as a ‘Stepford wives’ village, and it becomes steadily more clear that there was indeed a pressure to conform which must have been absolutely stifling for anyone who didn’t quite fit.
The twists and turns of the story are riveting, but I struggled to empathize much with Anna and Lizzie, the two who seem to be the principal protagonists, and I have to admit I didn’t find the ending particularly satisfying; the book went out with more of a whimper than a bang. Overall, I’d give it four stars.
Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book via NetGalley.
Told in dual timelines between the events of 1989 and the present time of 2019, Sam Carrington does a masterful job of slowly revealing snippets of the truth, letting us discover the story along with Anna and Lizzie, who were both just kids back at the time of the tragedy. There are some heavy themes explored here as a lot of adults did some terrible things to the children they should have been protecting; while it’s not graphically described, child sex abuse occurred as did violence towards children, parental gaslighting and more. The community is described several times as a ‘Stepford wives’ village, and it becomes steadily more clear that there was indeed a pressure to conform which must have been absolutely stifling for anyone who didn’t quite fit.
The twists and turns of the story are riveting, but I struggled to empathize much with Anna and Lizzie, the two who seem to be the principal protagonists, and I have to admit I didn’t find the ending particularly satisfying; the book went out with more of a whimper than a bang. Overall, I’d give it four stars.
Disclaimer: I received a review copy of this book via NetGalley.
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