To the outside world, Amy has it all\u2014her own home, a thriving career, and a seemingly perfect life. <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n But behind the fa\u00e7ade, she\u2019s running from a past she doesn\u2019t remember\u2026 a past that\u2019s been locked away for years.<\/em><\/p>\n Medication has kept the memories buried, numbing the pain with a side effect she\u2019s come to embrace. But when her father\u2019s death triggers a series of unsettling events, the cracks in her carefully built reality begin to show.<\/em><\/p>\n Readalong<\/strong>: 1st \u2013 31st May\u00a0 The memories creep in, slowly at first\u2014whispers from the shadows of a life she once lived. But as her mind unravels, the past refuses to stay buried, and Amy is forced to face the truth she\u2019s long suppressed.<\/em><\/p>\n Who was she before? Who is she now? And what happens when the two collide?<\/em><\/p>\n Because some memories aren\u2019t just painful\u2026 they\u2019re dangerous.<\/em><\/p>\n My Review<\/strong><\/p>\n In the words of the UK\u2019s Eurovision entry: \u2018What the hell just happened?\u2019 Long gone by the time you read this review, but current when writing it. This was a very unusual story to say the least.<\/p>\n Amy is not a very likeable character, but she\u2019s tolerable I suppose. She\u2019s been muddling along quite nicely, taking some form of medication, which has kept the past buried, and suppressed her feelings. She\u2019s also rather dowdy and unattractive.<\/p>\n Until she attends her father\u2019s funeral, where she argues with the mother she hasn\u2019t seen for years. She hadn\u2019t actually seen her father since she was seventeen. She also falls out with the adopted brother Andy, who is appalled at her behaviour. The problem is that she can\u2019t remember why she fell out with them.<\/p>\n But when she takes a job (she\u2019s a psychotherapist) working with mentally ill criminals, her life begins to unravel. She changes her appearance and becomes obsessed with one of the \u2018patients\u2019, even though she knows he\u2019s a dreadful person. She is suspicious of her co-workers to the point of paranoia (though we know what they say \u2013 \u2018just because you\u2019re paranoid doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re not after you\u2019). <\/p>\n At times I didn\u2019t know what the hell was going on \u2013 I\u2019m still not sure if I do \u2013 but it was an engaging, mind-boggling, exciting and often uncomfortable read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, especially as I was on the readalong, where we answered questions relevant to the book. It certainly makes you think, but I\u2019m afraid to say that if I met Amy I would run a mile, and I definitely wouldn\u2019t employ her! Especially as a therapist.<\/p>\n Many thanks to\u00a0@lovebookstours<\/a>\u00a0for inviting me to be part of #TheEmpathist readalong.<\/p>\n About the Author<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cAmy is based on an idea I had when working in mental health. There was a trainee that was there who said, \u2018I don\u2019t need personal therapy to be a psychologist,\u2019 always a red flag to me and the story came from that in my mind. <\/p>\n \u201cI want to cover every genre, so far I\u2019ve done The Empathist<\/em>, a psychological thriller and Cleaners Wanted<\/em>, a gangster comedy (like the type of movie you\u2019d see Guy Richie do). My third currently written and in editing is called Arte-Culture<\/em>, a Sci-fi Conspiracy story, and my fourth being written now is a compendium of short horror stories. The short horrors are each dedicated to different people who for no reason other than their kindness have supported me with my books, so a small thank you. I\u2019ve worked in every single aspect of social care you can think of. Also part of health care. I also do acting as our recent movie Ireke<\/em> premiered at Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, 14th May! I have a cat who I love dearly, but I also love dogs, but my day job won\u2019t allow for one.\u201d<\/p>\n Handles\/Tags<\/strong> Instagram\u00a0<\/strong>
Genre:\u00a0<\/strong>Psychological Thriller | Contemporary Fiction
Pages:\u00a0<\/strong>338<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/cookiebiscuit.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/my-book-review-the-empathist-read-along.png\")
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