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Isabelle Grey

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Out of Sight Paperback – 1 Sept. 2011

by Isabelle Grey (Author)

583 ratings

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Who pays the price once tragedy strikes? In a small French town, Leonie is intrigued by a withdrawn Englishman who calls himself Patrice. He lives in a house inherited from his grandmother. He has no wife, no child, and refuses ever to get inside a car. Patrice tells Leonie little about his past, but she's certain her love will heal his emotional scars. Too late, she discovers that, five years before, Patrice was living in Brighton. He was called Patrick, and he had a wife and son. Until, one hot summer day, a moment of fatal forgetfulness changed his life forever.

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Review

'In her portrait of a damaged man's journey towards redemption, Isabelle Grey builds the emotional suspense with white-hot intensity and truthfulness' Elizabeth Buchan.

'A generous, moving and well-crafted novel, where food, France and feelings are all tenderly evoked' A N Wilson, Readers' Digest.

'An engrossing psychological portrait of a deeply damaged man and of the women who try to love him' N J Cooper.

'... she slackens and tightens tension with perfect timing ... a very good read ... a gripping tale' Literary Review.

'It is telling that the author of this well-plotted debut novel has a background as a television writer. Isabelle Grey is good at ratcheting up tension ... well-crafted ... The subject matter is fascinating' Daily Mail. --Reviews.

From the Back Cover

Can love grow after disaster strikes?
Patrick Hinde is a loving husband and caring father, but when his parents come to stay for a few fateful days one July he simply wants to flee from the difficult memories they provoke. Their departure leaves Patrick exhausted and overwhelmed. The last thing he remembers is strapping his toddler son, Daniel, into his car seat, ready to drop him off at the child minder on his way to work.
Five years later, in a village in south-west France, a young English woman is attracted to a withdrawn man, who calls himself Patrice. He has no wife, no child, and refuses ever to get inside a car. Leonie is certain that love will heal his emotional wounds, but Patrice repeatedly evades his past.
When Leonie eventually discovers his incomprehensible and fatal act of forgetfulness, will she be able to forgive him? And is it ever too late to change?

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Quercus Publishing
Publication date ‏ : ‎ 1 Sept. 2011
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Print length ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0857383167
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0857383167
Item weight ‏ : ‎ 481 g
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 20 x 14 x 4 cm
Best Sellers Rank: 6,854 in Crime, Thriller & Mystery Adventures
- 26,320 in Thrillers (Books)
Customer reviews:
583 ratings

About the author

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Isabelle Grey

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Welcome to Isabelle Grey's author page.

I enjoy writing crime and suspense because they offer a chance to explore dark emotions and psychological states alongside a range of contemporary issues. I’m especially fascinated by how any kind of uniform can change the people who wear it, and how loyalty to a job that exists for the public good can - and sadly does - lead to 'blind eyes' and institutional corruption within police ranks.

While writing crime drama for television, I was able to get to know several senior police officers (including a former head of the Vice Squad, and also Jackie Malton, the inspiration for DCI Jane Tennison in Prime Suspect), and had the chance to go out with patrol cars in south London. I also have a (retired) forensic pathologist and a forensic psychiatrist in the family, so fully appreciate the realities of police work. I have no idea what draws my family so strongly to crime!

My crime fiction series features Detective Inspector Grace Fisher, a murder detective with the Essex Major Investigation Team in Colchester. When bullying, misogynistic or bent colleagues expose her emotional and physical vulnerabilities, she becomes even more determined to fight for justice for the victims of crime and to protect the integrity of the job she loves.

Drawing on my background as a freelance journalist, Grace Fisher's investigations are followed closely by a disreputable tabloid crime reporter, Ivo Sweatman. Although his hot pursuit of a sensational news story frequently clashes with her painstaking search for evidence, they manage to come together to establish the truth.

In the latest book in the series, 'Wrong Way Home' - a Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month – Grace and Ivo also have to contend with a young and ambitious true-crime podcaster who tries to bend the truth to fit his dramatic re-telling of a cold case.

My two earlier novels of psychological suspense are 'Out of Sight' and the #1 Amazon bestseller 'The Bad Mother'. And my two 20th-century historical thrillers, written as V.B. Grey, are 'Tell Me How It Ends' and 'Sisterhood'. Do please check out V.B. Grey's author page.

Born within the sound of Bow Bells in London's East End, I grew up in Manchester, spent ten years on what was once a tidal island at the edge of the Romney Marsh, and now live and work in London.

As a freelance journalist I contributed to national newspapers and magazines. I have also written numerous screenplays for television crime dramas, including The Bill, Wycliffe, Rosemary & Thyme and Midsomer Murders. With Jimmy McGovern, I co-wrote 'Tina's Story' for the BAFTA and International Emmy-winning BBC series Accused, a series finale starring Anna Maxwell Martin as a prison officer and described by The Times as ‘the most moving and powerful drama on television in a long time’.

You can follow me on Twitter @IsabelleGrey

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Sam James
Dark, delicate, haunting
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 September 2011
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This deep and delicate novel packs a quiet and devastating punch to the heart, and for once, all of us were in agreement that it was a great choice for our club read (thanks to the girl in Waterstone's cafe Hastings who recommended it).

Without wanting to spoil it for you, there is a very shocking incident in the book which apparently is not as rare are you would think, and this is one of the factors which makes this a gripping and original novel. Another is the great emotional insight of the writer, who manages to show how terrifying and overwhelming the fear of love can be, and how great the temptation to flee from its risks - despite the even higher cost.

The main character's strength and devoted belief in her ability to heal this man also struck a chord, and despite the bleakness of much of the story, there is something very inspiring in the affirmation of the power of love. Some of us read it and felt that the main character of the book is actually the man she loves, rather than the woman herself - but then we argued that it's this fairness of perspective makes the novel all the more interesting. The man is deeply flawed and complicated, so whilst you may well not like him, you'll certainly understand him from the inside.

We're definitely going to read her next one.

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RedDit
Food for thought on what motivates people in relationships
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 17 April 2013
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The characters in this book are sufficiently engaging to draw you in. The fact that you know there is some mystery around Patrick/Patrice gives a real edge to the recounting of the relationship from Leonie's angle. How you perceive what is "the right thing" for her to do will fluctuate as the action and the back story unfolds. This isn't a book that will change your life but is is a real page turner and one that you may well want to discuss with a friend to see what their take is on deceiving others and self-deception. My main criticism is that the end is slightly rushed and too "closed" - even if it does avoid cliche.

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SusannahB
A Damaged Man.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 October 2011
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I have read some of Isabelle Grey's non-fiction work written under her maiden name: Isabelle Anscombe - most notably: Omega and After: Bloomsbury and the Decorative Arts - so I was interested to see how her fiction writing would fare.

The main protagonist in this story is Patrick Hinde, a self-employed homeopath and loving husband and devoted father. His parents come to stay for a few difficult days bringing with them painful memories and feelings that Patrick would rather not face and, instead of confronting them, he feels he has to escape. He straps his young son into the car and, like any ordinary work day, he heads off to the child minder before arriving at his place of work. But this is not any ordinary day and at the close of it, Patrick's life is turned upside down. The story then moves on five years and we are now in France where a young English woman, Leonie, finds herself very attracted to a man called Patrice, who specializes in homeopathy, has no wife, no child and will not step foot inside a car.

'Out of Sight' is basically a love story about a damaged man who is unable to cope with the damage that has been done to him and the damage that he has done to other people. It is about emotional cowardice and how this man, in order to avoid facing up to his problems, compartmentalizes his feelings and, in doing so, commits a dreadful, fatal act of forgetfulness. This is also the story of Leonie, a woman with a failed love affair behind her, who feels that the redemptive powers of love will solve Patrice's problems - even though he resists many of her efforts to understand and heal him. I have to say that I became a little impatient at times with both Patrice and Leonie - he, because in punishing himself, punishes everyone around him even more and she, because she does not heed the warning signs and goes straight ahead with something that a more perceptive person would realize could alienate him. At the close of the story Patrick and Leonie's problems are in some ways resolved, but perhaps not in the way they, or the reader might have expected.

A rather interesting story written by an author who, apart from her non-fiction writing, has also written screenplays for several popular TV programmes, and I found this novel a quick and easy read. As an aside, I must add that the author does not forget her interest in Bloomsbury - it was amusing to read that Patrick's parents visited Charleston Farmhouse (Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant's wonderful 'Bloomsbury' home in East Sussex) and that Patrick's father had bought his wife an attractive scarf from the Charleston shop. In summary, although I have my reservations about certain aspects of the story, this novel worked as an undemanding downtime read; it's not a great literary novel, but then we don't always want that, do we?

3 Stars

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Exmciboss
Good Plot Badly Handled
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 9 January 2014
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The book started well and looked to be a gripping read, despite the unrealistic sex-scenes (a couple who both work full time and have a demanding toddler but fall into bed with "unbridled passion" every night of the week?!) Unfortunately it quite quickly became bland and long-winded.

I disliked both lead characters - Leonie was spineless and weak, acting over her relationship problems the way to teenager might rather than a 30-something woman. The cliche of her biological clock ticking meaning that she'll happily fall pregnant by anyone she comes across with no thought as to the child's future. Patrick was cold, unlikeable, unattractive, despite the numerous paragraphs dedicated to how good looking he is - I accept that he had a damaged upbringing but there was nothing about this character that warmed the audience to him in any small way. The end was quick and flat - I was on the last page before I even realised I was at the end, it was as if even the author got fed up with the whole thing and said "enough"!

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