View source for You Sent Me A Letter by Lucy Dawson

{{infobox1
|title=You Sent Me A Letter
|author=Lucy Dawson
|reviewer= Zoe Morris
|genre=Thrillers
|summary= A brilliant mystery, this is a race against the clock for Sophie to find out who has it in for her… and why
|rating=4.5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=272
|publisher= Corvus 
|date=March 2015
|isbn= 978-1782396222
|website= http://www.lucydawsonbooks.com/
|cover=1782396225
|aznuk=1782396225
|aznus=1782396225
}}

It's scary enough turning 40 (I've heard) without being awoken on the eve of your birthday by a strange man who has broken into your bedroom with a rather bizarre message. Emerging from the shadows, he hands Sophie an envelope with strict instructions to open it that evening as her party is in full swing. She has no idea what is inside, but it can't be good.

This is a brilliant book that keeps you guessing at every turn. Sophie immediately suspects who the letter is from, but as the day goes on secrets emerge and she starts to doubt everything she knows to be true. It's amazing how much there is to come out of the woodwork if you start to scratch away at the surface.

There are a few elements that seem a little contrived, a little convenient for the story (like the issue with the wedding license) and other points where I felt something was up, but couldn't figure out what (such as when Sophie got a new passport in her married name the next day). You might think the story would end with a big reveal but what actually happens is that the party come and goes, some things happen and the story goes on a little further. It was a welcome surprise because you could tell there were a few chapters left so something else was probably going to happen.

This story really gripped me. I was kept on the edge of my seat waiting for the man to reappear and I understood how nervy it made Sophie. It was the not knowing, the uncertainty. I think she'd almost rather he'd been there when she answered the door just so she could have faced her fear, quite literally.

As a future second wife, I was intrigued by the Claudine element too, how it's possible to have a fully rounded opinion of someone without ever having met them, all based on what a single person has told you about them. A single person with every reason for a vendetta, I might add.

I fully enjoyed this book from start to finish, although really that wasn't all that long as I was hooked and ploughed through to the end. Very readable, very intriguing and very unusual, this is very much recommended. 

I'd like to thank the publishers for sending us a copy to review. If this sounds good, you might also enjoy [[Strictly Between Us by Jane Fallon]] and [[The Silent Sister by Diane Chamberlain]].  We also have a review of [[The One That Got Away by Lucy Dawson]].

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