Out Of Her Depth: A Thrilling Richard & Judy Book Club Pick

Product Information

The main premise is that Rachel, who is about to start University at Cambridge in the fall, takes a summer job in Tuscany working at a hotel, hopefully to work on her Italian skills. She meets fellow co-worker Diana, who is fun-loving but has a mean streak and is brazen where Rachel is timid. She draws Rachel out of her shell, but there's a dark undercurrent to everything she does. Rachel falls hard for Sebastian, a rich guy out of her league, but he doesn't really seem interested. At the beginning of the book, we are twenty years later and find out that Sebastian has been in prison for murder, but his sentence has been overturned and he is trying to get in touch with Rachel. Who was murdered and what really happened?

For ages after I finished reading I felt the emotions. I was so disappointed (that’s how you’re meant to feel and I can’t say what emotions or why I was feeling them because then you wouldn’t need to read the book!). It’s not the ending I wanted. But it is the only fitting ending. And I know in my heart it couldn’t be any other way. I hammered away at my laptop, completing just enough of the book to be able to enter, and literally handed my entry in on the closing day of the competition (I couriered my entry, so worried was I it wouldn’t make the deadline!).

I have to say, I had higher hopes for this one. The concept and potential of the plot was there, but I feel there was a few things that made it fall short for me. One being the character Rachel. At times I wanted to shake the stuffing out of her she frustrated me so much with some of her behaviour. The ending also felt.. less than satisfying for me and off? And I only found the "suspense" to be mediocre at best here. Out of her Depth is so very atmospheric. And you don’t just have to picture the scene, you feel like you’re in it! When our Prime Minister can’t get basic facts about energy price caps right, we’re in serious trouble. Incomprehensible that she won’t recognise the mess she’s caused and recall Parliament." By the time Truss was being interviewed by Radio Nottingham she had begun to push that there was global instability and nodded toward Vladimir Putin as an influence.

The phone call was from Luigi Bonomi of LBA Books telling me I had WON the Daily Mail and Random House First Novel Prize 2017

Word History

She must now publicly correct her mistake to make sure people are not misled about their energy prices and hit with unexpected and unaffordable energy bills this winter.” I started taking regular classes with Maggie Hamand at the Complete Creative Writing Course, which made me completely rethink my approach to writing, and was invaluable in shaping the way I wrote.

Out of Her Depth, is one of the best psychological thrillers I have read in a long time. This was a dramatic read that holds every key component to be fresh on the tongues of our active "bookstagram" community. I became completely consumed with the storyline and even wanted to punch a bratty kid or two. People talk about her racing credentials, but it's OK for Ted Kravitz to have no racing credentials whatsoever and still do his "notebook" section. You don't have to be an ex F1 driver to talk about F1. Diversity amongst the presenters is a good thing. About two months later, preparing for my morning operations meeting, I received a phone call out of the blue, which completely changed my life. I thought this book was worth reading because the twists were good, but just go in knowing you probably won't like any of the characters. Rachel is flattered by Diana's attention, her generosity. She is overwhelmed and grateful, happy to do Diana's bidding in return, never dreaming what trouble it might land her in.Will Moy, Chief Executive of Full Fact, said: “We wrote to the Prime Minister about getting this wrong only yesterday. The government’s energy plans will affect every household in Britain this winter. And yet Liz Truss has repeatedly misled listeners this morning. The suffocating heat, the blinding wealth, the beautiful people: it soon becomes too much, and Rachel finds herself not just out of her depth, but drowning in lies . . .

I have always written in fits and starts, but about five years ago I started writing my first serious novel – a very long and drawn out literary fiction piece based on my grandmother’s life in Mandate Palestine, pre-Suez Cairo and post-war London. During this summer that shaped Rachel’s life twenty some years before Rachel met Diana. Diana came from a world where money was no object and Rachel became obsessed with their friendship. Rachel also began to like one of Diana’s rich crowd friends, Sebastian, and enlisted Diana’s help to get to know him but when the summer came to an end someone had died and Sebastian had goen to prison.In an environment totally different to her own, with different rules and different expectations (at a time when you’re most impressionable) is a world that Rachel finds herself in for the summer. She works hard in Villa Medici but her earnings are soon gone as she tries to keep up with the group. She’s dazzled by the glitter and glamour, not really understanding just how shallow that world is.