Five Bad Deeds is an interesting take on a psychological thriller. Filled with a host of mostly unlikeable characters, and based on information that’s hidden from the reader, it’s going to annoy some people but entertain others. I fell into the side of entertainment – just!
Ellen is juggling work, being a mum, and a bunch of house renovations when the first threatening note arrives. She’s bewildered – she’s hiding a few secrets, sure, but nothing that anyone should be writing to her about. Before long she’s getting pulled up by the police, involved in the case of a missing teen, and much more besides…
It’s a bit of a slow burn, to be honest. You know Ellen is hiding something and have to wait a good long time to find out what. None of her friends seem to like her much and I felt they seemed rather mean, to put it mildly. Couldn’t she have found nicer friends anywhere?
She has a complicated relationship with her daughter. At first you could take it as Ellen just not being very sympathetic towards her, but that changes over time too. It’s a bit messy, but that’s life, isn’t it?
I couldn’t tell you what the Five Bad Deeds were – I think they were just seen as a good hook for a book, to be honest. It didn’t seem to matter in the delivery!
In the end, I was pulled into the suspense and found myself keen to find out who was doing what and why, so the book gets a 4/5!
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