The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett Book Review

Welcome to my review of The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett. Well, what can I say about this book? it was outstanding! I absolutely loved it and I had been a little reluctant, to begin with as I was unsure how I would get on with the unusual format of emails, notes and messages but I flew through it, unable to put it down. 

Click me to go to my Review

Synopsis

*** THE NEW MYSTERY PHENOMENON FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE APPEAL AND THE TWYFORD CODE ***

Open the safe deposit box. Inside you will find research material for a true crime book. You must read the documents, then make a decision. Will you destroy them? Or will you take them to the police?

Everyone knows the sad story of the Alperton Angels: the cult who brainwashed a teenage girl and convinced her that her newborn baby was the anti-Christ. Believing they had a divine mission to kill the infant, they were only stopped when the girl came to her senses and called the police. The Angels committed suicide rather than stand trial, while mother and baby disappeared into the care system.

Nearly two decades later, true-crime author Amanda Bailey is writing a book on the Angels. The Alperton baby has turned eighteen and can finally be interviewed; if Amanda can find them, it will be the true-crime scoop of the year, and will save her flagging career. But rival author Oliver Menzies is just as smart, better connected, and is also on the baby’s trail.

As Amanda and Oliver are forced to collaborate, they realise that what everyone thinks they know about the Angels is wrong. The truth is something much darker and stranger than they’d ever imagined. And the story of the Alperton Angels is far from over..

After all, the devil is in the detail…

About The Author

Janice Hallett is a former magazine editor, award-winning journalist and government communications writer. She wrote articles and speeches for, among others, the Cabinet Office, Home Office and Department for International Development. Her enthusiasm for travel has taken her around the world several times, from Madagascar to the Galapagos, Guatemala to Zimbabwe, Japan, Russia and South Korea. A playwright and screenwriter, she penned the feminist Shakespearean stage comedy NetherBard and co-wrote the feature film Retreat, a psychological thriller starring Cillian Murphy, Thandiwe Newton and Jamie Bell. The Appeal is her first novel, and The Twyford Code her second.

My Review

A young girl has been brainwashed into thinking her newborn son is the antichrist and the cult-like group she is part of convinces her he is to be sacrificed. Thankfully they stopped when the girl came to her senses at the last minute and called the police.

True-crime author Amanda decides to investigate to find that baby when it turns 18 and the investigation begins again to find out what exactly happened that night.

This feels like a play-along book where you read all the documents, emails and messages to try and work out what happened and who is to blame. Who are the real victims and is all as it seems?

The case presented is involved and interesting and very well presented. The twists were good, especially the ones towards the ending which were superb. This is full of mysteries, intrigue, twist, turns and red herrings meaning that for a lot of the book I had no idea how it would end.

I have already bought her past two books to read and can’t wait to get to them! I would recommend this to anyone who likes mysteries, solving cases or wants to try a different format to read, you won’t regret it!

Rated