Strange Sally Diamond

By: Liz Nugent

“I was right to trust nobody. They all let me down in the end.”

BLURB:

Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died.

Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the hungry media and worried police, but also a sinister voice from a past she has no memory of. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, recluse Sally steps into the world for the first time, making new friends, finding independence, and learning that people don’t always mean what they say.

But when messages start arriving from a stranger who knows far more about her past than she knows herself, Sally’s life will be thrown into chaos once again . . .

MY REVIEW:

I read this book based on a recommendation and review of a friend and this one hit it out of the park. I took my time reading this book (not that you cannot read it quickly, because you can) but I wanted to really get the feel for the main character, Sally Diamond. I wanted to understand her. While we know that Sally is in her 40s in the book, it was so hard for me to picture her that way. I kept picturing her much younger. She does initially come across as neurodivergent, but then the reader comes to learn that a lot of her behaviors have to do with trauma. There are some TWs in this book, but I think this book takes an important look at mental health and trauma response. I like that speaking to a therapist was central to this story as this needs to be normalized, no matter the reason. I loved how Nugent handled Sally’s growth and retreat, and growth again. No matter the age, it really takes a village.

This is an absolute must read. Get your copy here. (Affiliate Link).