“Helen has it all…

Daniel is the perfect husband.
Rory is the perfect brother.
Serena is the perfect sister-in-law.

And Rachel? Rachel is the perfect nightmare.

When Helen, finally pregnant after years of tragedy, attends her first antenatal class, she is expecting her loving architect husband to arrive soon after, along with her confident, charming brother Rory and his pregnant wife, the effortlessly beautiful Serena. What she is not expecting is Rachel.

Extroverted, brash, unsettling single mother-to-be Rachel, who just wants to be Helen’s friend. Who just wants to get know Helen and her friends and her family. Who just wants to know everything about them. Every little secret.

Masterfully plotted and utterly addictive, Greenwich Park is a dark, compelling look at motherhood, friendships, privilege and the secrets we keep to protect ourselves.”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of Greenwich Park by Katherine Faulkner. Greenwich Park is published today (that’s Thursday 15th April 2021) by Raven Books and is available in hardcover and digital formats. I chose to read a free ARC of Greenwich Park but that has in no way influenced my review. My grateful thanks to Raven Books for sending me a copy of the book.

Greenwich Park is a book which is impossible to resist. I mean, have you SEEN that cover with the stark white and vivid green?! Gorgeous. And then you have the blurb which intrigues the reader, piquing your interest to the point where you have to find out more. I was looking forward to reading this one A LOT, particularly as it’s one of Raven Books lead titles for the year. And oh boy, it’s a creeping, compelling and ultimately satisfying read which I could not put down. The debut authors are absolutely smashing it this year!

Helen has the perfect life. Daniel, her architect husband, adores her, they live in a beautiful house in exclusive Greenwich Park and they’re expecting their first baby after years of tragedy. Life is good and quite literally perfect in every way. So when Helen decides to book herself, Daniel, Helen’s brother, Rory and his pregnant wife, Serena, into an NCT class, Helen is full of hope and excitement. But they all cancel at the last minute leaving poor Helen alone. That is until single mum-to-be Rachel arrives and takes an instant shine to lonely Helen. Rachel is over the top, brash and domineering. She’s the opposite of Helen in every way. But Helen is far too polite, far too British to get rid of Rachel. Before long, Rachel worms her way into Helen’s perfect life and wants to know everything about her marriage to Daniel, her friends and her family. And she will stop at nothing to discover every little secret….

I was completely drawn into this book from the very start. Helen is an interesting character if not a little needy and naïve in her approach to life. She’s also quite frustrating in her pursuit of perfection (a little smug at times perhaps?) and how generally nice she is. But I kind of liked her, in a strange sort of way. She’s certainly not the type of character who normally appeals to me – I like a darker edge – but she’s so well written that I couldn’t help but warm to her. Rachel has something mysterious and dark about her which I really liked. I couldn’t work out her motives for worming her way into Helen’s life which kept me turning the pages, looking for that elusive clue. One aspect of Rachel felt a little obvious but it all added to the big question – WHY was she doing this to sweet, naïve Helen?!

The ending of Greenwich Park is one of the most satisfying, most fitting endings I’ve read for some time in a book, and I loved it. You know those ‘memorable last lines in a book’ lists you sometimes see?  THIS book needs to be on that list. It was perfect and I closed the back cover with a smile on my face. The author does an excellent job of tricking the reader into thinking that’s it, story over. But that’s not the case. There’s a more juicy detail to be told and I thoroughly enjoyed the reveal. Superbly done!

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Greenwich Park is a fantastic debut from an author to watch. I was hooked by Helen and Rachel’s story, desperate to find out the reasons behind Rachel’s actions. I found Greenwich Park to be a very addictive and compelling page turner with a deliciously dark edge. A fantastic story full of well-written characters which piqued my interest from the outset and kept me hooked until the hugely satisfying ending. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free ARC copy of Greenwich Park. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Greenwich Park by Katherine Faulkner was published in the UK by Raven Books on 15th April 2021 and is available in hardcover and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | Foyles | Book Depository | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop |

Katherine is a London-based author and journalist. She studied History at Cambridge University, graduating with a First,  then completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Newspaper Journalism. Since then she has been working as an investigative reporter and latterly an editor. Her work has been published in many national papers, and she most recently worked at The Times, where she was the joint Head of News.

While working as an undercover reporter, Katherine won the Cudlipp Award for public interest journalism and was nominated for a string of others. She was also commended by a committee of MPs for ‘the highest standards of ethical investigative reporting.’

Katherine was inspired to write her debut novel about the complexity of female friendships after attending NCT classes when pregnant, and her experience of sudden intimacy with complete strangers. She spent her maternity leave juggling looking after her newborn daughter with completing the Faber Academy Writing a Novel course, with her final manuscript attracting the interest of sixteen different literary agents.

Katherine lives in Hackney, East London, where she grew up, with her husband and two daughters. Her favourite things (other than books) include tea, the north Cornish coast, France (especially Provence), yoga, the rightmove app, daytime property programmes (especially Love it or List it with Kirsty and Phil), walking, open fires, red wine and ravioli.