The Cold Cold Sea @LindaHuber19

About The Cold Cold Sea

They stared at each other, and Maggie felt the tightness in her middle expand as it shifted, burning its way up… Painful sobs rose in her throat as Colin, his face expressionless now, reached for his mobile and tapped 999.

When three-year-old Olivia disappears from the beach, a happy family holiday comes to an abrupt end. Maggie is plunged into the darkest nightmare imaginable – what happened to her little girl?

Further along the coast, another mother is having problems too. Jennifer's daughter Hailey is starting school, and it should be such a happy time, but the child has become moody and silent. Family life has never seemed so awkward, and Jennifer struggles to maintain control.

The tide ebbs and flows, and summer dies, but there is no comfort for Maggie, alone now at the cottage, or for Jennifer, still swamped by doubts.

My review of The Cold Cold Sea

The Cold Cold Sea is a story that unsettled me. It's a story about the bonds of family, about caring for a child and of the emotional and physical frailties following the disappearance of a child The subject matter is dark, with beautiful and stark writing that cannot help but touch the soul. It's a chilling read about human fragility. I loved this book.

The book has has three interweaving stories At first we meet Maggie and her husband Colin, who while on holiday in Cornwall suffer a family tragedy, when their three year old daughter goes missing, and is believed to have been lost at sea. We read Maggie's thoughts and feelings during this period,  of how she blames herself. We watch a family slowly unravelling under the emotional pressure.

The story also focusses upon Jennifer who is mother to five year old little girl. Her daughter is moody and it's obvious that there are deep rooted problems. Jennifer has to deal with this alone as her husband is away in America, at the bedside of his dying grandmother. The strain in their relationship is palpable on the page, as is the strain and difficulties between mother and daughter.

Although this book is beautifully written, the prose set against the wildness of the Cornish coast, it was a difficult book to read due to the subject matter. Any book that focusses upon a missing child is difficult to read, but the author manages to tackle this subject with sensitivity and great care, so that what you then get is an insightful and  engaging read, that you simply can't put down. Although I guessed pretty early on the 'how', I wanted to understand the 'why'. This is the central core of this psychological chiller.

The Cold Cold Sea is one dark and unsettling read.  This book sent chills down my spine and left me thinking about the characters long after the final words.

With thanks to the author for providing a copy for review purposes.