Tuesday 23 January 2018

Book Review: Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan




I'm delighted to review Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan, which was published by Simon & Schuster on 11th January. I was lucky to receive an advance copy from Netgalley and the publisher.

The Blurb
A high-profile marriage thrust into the spotlight. A wife, determined to keep her family safe, must face a prosecutor who believes justice has been a long time coming. A scandal that will rock Westminster. And the women caught at the heart of it. 
Anatomy of a Scandal centres on a high-profile marriage that begins to unravel when the husband is accused of a terrible crime. Sophie is sure her husband, James, is innocent and desperately hopes to protect her precious family from the lies which might ruin them. Kate is the barrister who will prosecute the case – she is equally certain that James is guilty and determined he will pay for his crimes.
My Review

Wow - what a book! And what timing, too, with all the grimy truths being unearthed in Westminster.

This really is a gripping story about two women; one convinced of a man's guilt, the other desperate to believe in him.

Although it seems slow to start with, this builds the story as we meet the prosecutor, the accused and his wife. Later we are taken back in time, where we learn how the accused has always been cushioned by his place in society, along with his peers, protected by unspoken codes around unspeakable actions which allow these people to believe they are invincible.

I felt sympathy for both women. I was eager to see if justice would be done, but then I felt sympathy for Sophie too. Who could believe their beloved to be guilty of such a crime? Emphasis is on how the family is affected by such an accusation.

How do you prove if a crime has been committed? How do you convince a jury it was just a misunderstanding? How do you convince a jury that it wasn't? With so much in the press at the moment about miscarriages of justice, how do we know who to believe?

Anatomy of a Scandal is one book which stands up to the hype.

Click to buy now either as ebook or hardback, or pre-order the paperback.

About the Author


Anatomy of a Scandal combines Sarah Vaughan's experiences as a news reporter and political correspondent on the Guardian with her time as a student reading English at Brasenose College, Oxford, in the Nineties. Published in the UK, US, Australia, NZ, Canada and South Africa, it will be translated into 17 languages throughout 2018 and 2019. 
Anatomy of a Scandal is her third novel, her first courtroom drama/psychological thriller and her first book for Simon & Schuster. Married with two children, she lives just outside Cambridge and is currently finishing her fourth novel.

Follow Sarah on Twitter



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