Ben is driving on the motorway, on his usual commute to the school where he works.
A day like any other, except for Adam, who in a last despairing act jumps in front of Ben’s car, and in killing himself, turns the teacher’s world upside down.
Wracked with guilt and desperate to clear his conscience, Ben develops a friendship with Alice, Adam’s widow, and her 7-year-old son Max.
But as he tries to escape the trauma of the wreckage, could Ben go too far in trying to make amends?
The Wreckage by Robin Morgan-Bentley Review
A Thrilling Debut Not to be Missed
It can happen to anyone, right? You are driving home from work… your normal route, any old normal day… but then what if the worst happens? In The Wreckage, school teacher Ben is going about his normal day, when a man jumps in front of his car. From that moment on, his life will never be the same again.
It can all happen in a split second – but how do you go about ‘righting’ the world after such a tragedy?
Well – like I suspect many of us would, Ben tries to heal the wounds of the grieving widow. Desperate to have himself seen as remorseful. But when do you draw the line?
I am not going to lie, I have been in a bit of a reading funk for the last few weeks. The Christmas period wiped me out and I picked up this book with low expectations, but how wrong I was. Robin Morgan-Bentley has expertly crafted a fabulously thrilling debut and I already have much higher expectations for his future work.
Depression, PTSD, and Anxiety, as well as all-round mental health, is highlighted at the heart of this book, and it is an aspect of the novel I really admired. It was tackled thoughtfully and with care.
I would love to say that I connected with the characters, that they pulled me through the novel and I was left missing them… but honestly I don’t feel that. For me, the characters were irksome – but I strongly believe that was a device used purposefully by the author. Instead, the plot and themes of this book kept me hooked. That’s not to say the characters were not well drawn, in fact, the opposite is true. They were perfectly crafted, flawed and very real. I just didn’t like them – but as I said… I don’t think I was supposed to. If you want to know why – you will have to pick up a copy and read it for yourself.
Overall – it was a strong debut, one I very much enjoyed and certainly another author I will add to my ‘to watch’ list.
Many Thanks to Tracy Fenton at Compulsive Readers and Trapeze for inviting us on this Blog Tour.
Published by: Orion Trapeze
ISBN: 978-140919-417-0
