The Girl on the Swing
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Product Description
Product Description
Julia believes that she has lived before. Suspended from her job and grieving for her lost son, Julia's past lives become an escape from her troubles in the present. For the first time, she meets someone in this life whom she recognises from a previous existence. But this man is a murderer, convicted of killing his wife. As Julia seeks to find out more, past and present entwine, culminating in a dramatic conclusion.
From the Publisher
A stunning debut novel that draws the reader into the mind of the main character and involves them in the imaginatively-described details of her life.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
A highly enjoyable, thought provoking and well written debut. Easily the best self published/independent novel (when first released) I have read on the Kindle. I will look forward to reading more from this talented new author.
22 of 24 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Julia Spencer has more than her fair share of troubles. Her son has died from a suspected drugs overdose. Her marriage is heading for the rocks. And she has been suspended from her job as a hospital doctor over a malpractice allegation.
Not only that, Julia is convinced that she has lived before - not just once, but several times. And in one of those past lives may be the key to understanding the events that are befalling her now and avoiding the fate of her predecessor.
The Girl on the Swing is a difficult novel to categorize - perhaps the best description would be literary mystery, though it is also a psychological novel. It is beautifully written, with an engrossing storyline and vividly drawn characters. The protagonist, Julia, is a complex but engaging individual. As a male reader, one of the things I found most intriguing about Julia was her attitude towards her remote and unsupportive husband. I found myself wondering several times how their relationship could ever have worked, and why indeed she felt the marriage was worth saving.
I was torn between giving this book four and five stars. It is not perfect. I noticed the occasional error/typo, and I felt that the ending, with revelation piled on revelation, was perhaps a little rushed. On the other hand, I note that The Girl on the Swing has been self-published by the author on a shoestring budget. Viewed in this light it is a remarkable achievement, and so I am giving it the full five.
I shall be surprised if The Girl on the Swing is not taken up by a mainstream publisher soon. In that case, I am hoping that my 'first edition' will become a valuable collector's item!
Not only that, Julia is convinced that she has lived before - not just once, but several times. And in one of those past lives may be the key to understanding the events that are befalling her now and avoiding the fate of her predecessor.
The Girl on the Swing is a difficult novel to categorize - perhaps the best description would be literary mystery, though it is also a psychological novel. It is beautifully written, with an engrossing storyline and vividly drawn characters. The protagonist, Julia, is a complex but engaging individual. As a male reader, one of the things I found most intriguing about Julia was her attitude towards her remote and unsupportive husband. I found myself wondering several times how their relationship could ever have worked, and why indeed she felt the marriage was worth saving.
I was torn between giving this book four and five stars. It is not perfect. I noticed the occasional error/typo, and I felt that the ending, with revelation piled on revelation, was perhaps a little rushed. On the other hand, I note that The Girl on the Swing has been self-published by the author on a shoestring budget. Viewed in this light it is a remarkable achievement, and so I am giving it the full five.
I shall be surprised if The Girl on the Swing is not taken up by a mainstream publisher soon. In that case, I am hoping that my 'first edition' will become a valuable collector's item!
24 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition
I'll start off by being honest. Before now, when I thought of the words "self published" or "independent" in association with authors, I thought in a derogatory sense of people who can't get a book deal through the proper and traditional way, namely, a publishing house and resorting to their own means because basically they don't cut it. Actually that was an extremely prejudical and inaccurate view and I have been persuaded otherwise.
I picked this book up after just getting my kindle for Christmas as I wanted something reasonable but that also sounded like something I would enjoy. The girl on the swing was that book, it sounded much different from most books and at a cheap price to boot, so I bought it and what a great book it was. This book has absolutely everything that I wanted in a book which would keep me reading. A bit of romance, a lot of mystery/intrigue (not striaghtforward subject matter) and action.
The story centers around Julia who believes she has lived before, currently going through a difficult time through marital problems, the death of her son and an ensuing legal case against her, she seeks refuge in these past lives of hers that she sees through visions and then later, through regression. The characters are all fully developed, and I found Julia to be an extremely likeable character who managed to gain my sympathy for the hard hand that she had been dealt at in life.
The writing of the book was not juvenile in any sense which I would expect from most authors writing their debut novel, this was impressive and captured my attention as effectively as though Ms Cooper had been a well seasoned pro at writing books and this definitely didn't show as being a first novel.
All in all I would even go so far as to that I would include this as one of my favourite books, its so different to all the other cliched books and genres that exist out there and the moment and I would strongly recommend it be read.
I have also learnt something valuable. Not to prejudge before experiencing....I shall be now actively supporting independant and self published authors and more willing to buy from them because the reality is, bad authors exist, but not because they are self published. They exist regardless of the publishing method and in fact many authors I don't like are published the traditional way.
Anyway I would strongly advise people to pick up this book. Its great! I look forward to reading more of this authors work!
I picked this book up after just getting my kindle for Christmas as I wanted something reasonable but that also sounded like something I would enjoy. The girl on the swing was that book, it sounded much different from most books and at a cheap price to boot, so I bought it and what a great book it was. This book has absolutely everything that I wanted in a book which would keep me reading. A bit of romance, a lot of mystery/intrigue (not striaghtforward subject matter) and action.
The story centers around Julia who believes she has lived before, currently going through a difficult time through marital problems, the death of her son and an ensuing legal case against her, she seeks refuge in these past lives of hers that she sees through visions and then later, through regression. The characters are all fully developed, and I found Julia to be an extremely likeable character who managed to gain my sympathy for the hard hand that she had been dealt at in life.
The writing of the book was not juvenile in any sense which I would expect from most authors writing their debut novel, this was impressive and captured my attention as effectively as though Ms Cooper had been a well seasoned pro at writing books and this definitely didn't show as being a first novel.
All in all I would even go so far as to that I would include this as one of my favourite books, its so different to all the other cliched books and genres that exist out there and the moment and I would strongly recommend it be read.
I have also learnt something valuable. Not to prejudge before experiencing....I shall be now actively supporting independant and self published authors and more willing to buy from them because the reality is, bad authors exist, but not because they are self published. They exist regardless of the publishing method and in fact many authors I don't like are published the traditional way.
Anyway I would strongly advise people to pick up this book. Its great! I look forward to reading more of this authors work!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Well worth a read
I bought this book after stumbling across comments from the author on one of the Amazon forums and enjoyed it enough to have just ordered her second novel, Cave. Read more
Published 1 month ago by lmhh
Excellent book - original storyline
I really enjoyed this book. There are so many books that I read nowadays that seem to follow a set formula and you can pretty much guess where it's going once you are a few pages... Read more
Published 1 month ago by R. Sivier
OK, but safe and predictable
For the right reader, this book would score 5 stars. It's a contemporary story about a doctor who sees images she believes are from a former life which in turn are distracting her... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Rossi
Beautiful Writing
I started this book on a plane journey from Spain to England and I have to admit I couldn't put it down. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Hannah M Davis
An absorbing read.
I found this book absorbing and enjoyed the story. The past life regression worked well in my opinion; the central theme without being too 'new agey'. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Janet
when does the story start
I'm two thirds through this book on my Kindle and I can't wait for the story to start, someone tell me if I've missed something or a thread somewhere because it's not exactly... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Mr. Philip R. Gardner
Excellent
Every detail, every nuance of Julia's daily life pulls you in little by little to the increasing intrigue of her true (or imagined?) past existence. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Simon B
When the trendy use of language distracts
The story is certainly original and compelling, but I find the pretentious use of the present tense distracting, unnecessary and awkward to read. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Captain Tweaky
Some potential
This is a nice, easy read, and, with more thought and development, and a little less obvious signposting, could have echoed D.H.Lawrence. Read more
Published 10 months ago by J. Sproxton Miller
Brilliant, shocking, loving, all in one.
A brilliant first novel, written with clear passion, and what feels like years of experience. Intelligently planned and neatly tied up at the end. Read more
Published 10 months ago by E Talbot
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