Truly, Darkly, Deeply: the gripping thriller with a shocking twist

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Dark, chilling and compelling. This is one serial killer thriller readers won't be able to put down." - Olivia Kiernan There is no noise in here apart from Dr Sange’s slow, rhythmic breathing. His cell is the only one in the corridor. Six by nine by twelve feet. Windowless. The walls grey up to head height. Original and clever - an incredibly tense read which pulled me inexorably along to its chilling denouement." - Harriet Tyce Truly Darkly Deeply by Victoria Selman was published in Australia by Hachette and is now available. A twisty psychological thriller that goes to the heart of how and who we love. Can't wait to see what Selman does next * Sarah Pinborough, bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes *

I think this is the type of book you want to talk about after finishing so would be great for a bookclub as it also lends itself to deliberations throughout. An absorbing and captivating read, this held me in its thrall from beginning to end. Brilliant!" - S J Watson I think it’s easy to guess some of the ‘reveals’ here, though perhaps we’re meant to. I suspect part of Sophie’s telling of the story is a reflection that her adult self recognises the naiveté of 12yr old Sophie. Indeed she comments often (in retrospect of course) on her desperation for a father and family and – in her reflective style of narrating the events of two decades earlier – she understands why she behaved as she did. In 2013 she won the Full Stop Short Story Prize and her first novel, Blood for Blood, was shortlisted for the 2017 Debut Dagger Award. I kinda hate books like this because I never know how to rate them. I didn’t hate it and I didn’t love it so very middle of the road.I really enjoyed the direction this novel takes as we view events through young and adult Sophie‘s eyes. It questions and weighs up the possibilities of innocence and guilt in several ways and this is reinforced through blogs that are interspersed throughout the narrative and also demonstrate the fascination some people have for serial killers. It looks closely at the scars and damage that are left behind by those convicted of serious crimes. The novel is well written and compelling especially the characterisation particularly of enigmatic Amelia-Rose and mesmerising Matty and you certainly feel Sophie’s angst. The feelings she has are palpable and the guilt she carries feels almost like a living thing, which I guess it is as it’s lived with her for years. Matty’s portrait dangles the is he, isn’t he conundrum in front of you and you speculate just as people did at the time of the killings in the early 1980s. The letter informs Sophie that Matty is dying and hasn't long left to live and he wants to meet Sophie. Matty has haunted Sophie's dreams for years - can she now confront him and lay the ghost of guilt to rest or will what he has to say bury her deeper? What a brilliant read. From the beginning, I was totally immersed . . . riveting and dark, yet so wonderfully written it also felt full of heart." - Karen Hamilton

Overall, it’s a very well written and well paced mystery thriller which is hard to put down. I’ve read books before by Victoria Selman but this is the one I’ve enjoyed the most. When Matty is eventually sent down for multiple murder, questions remain as to his guilt — questions which ultimately destroy both women. Nearly twenty years later, Sophie receives a letter from Battlemouth Prison informing her Matty is dying and wants to meet. It looks like Sophie might finally get the answers she craves. But will the truth set her free — or bury her deeper? But despite (or in spite of) these inconsistencies and some confusion, it’s rivetting and we need to know more. Truly, Darkly, Deeply First rate. Victoria Selman has written a smart, sophisticated and compelling mystery thriller about the effects of serial murder, both on the killer's victims and, equally chilling, the ones he spares. The characters and situations absolutely ring true and she had me all the way * Mark Olshaker, co-author of MINDHUNTER *The writing was great, enthralling, and I was truly taken by the story and devoured this book in two sittings, forgetting most of the chores needed to be done over the weekend. That says something! :)

That's the problem with hindsight. It distorts memory, superimposes warning flags where before there were none. Makes you question yourself. Turns the past into a series of whys and recriminations."Although the story sometimes moves a little too slow for my taste, it was very difficult not to keep reading. The characters are very well drawn out and the writing style is very engaging. I could picture Sophie, trying to fit in a community that essentially is completely different from where she grew up, except for the language. I could picture Amelia-Rose, struggling with many secrets – although we only later learn how many secrets exactly. And I could even picture Matty, the man with many faces. Manages to be both a gripping-as-hell psychological thriller and a remarkably astute study of evil. A work of style and substance that leaves you with the uncomfortable suspicion that your world, and the people in it, are far more dangerous than you had imagined." - Dominic Nolan Dr Vernon Sange, killer of twelve, lies on his bunk. His hands are interlaced behind his head, his film-star face white as butcher’s paper from being inside so long. On his chest, a portable CD player moves up and down in time with his measured breaths. The ‘Queen of the Night’ aria plays through his earbuds. The answers will come and along the way the story is compelling, emotive and hugely intriguing. Bravo. For a young child, not having a father can be terrible in more than one way. Missing a father figure is one, being bullied in school because other children seem to think there is something wrong with you is two. Sophie is glad to move from the US to the UK with her mother and make a fresh start. We’re talking the seventies here when divorce was still a scandal. And Amelia-Rose, Sophie’s mother, is not even divorced. Sophie’s father just left them.