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The Poison Tree - Erin Kelly

It's been a while since I read this book so apologies for the late blog.

Maybe this is a test for the book - how well do I remember it 2 months later? Well I had to refresh my memory when it came to the names of the characters as I couldn't remember them. Not a good start but then it started to come back to me.

We commented on how everyone in the book leaves Biba and Rex, the sister and brother main characters. Many people were drawn to the house where they lived but never stayed. In many ways Biba was the poison tree, turning those she loved against her by her demanding, selfish attitude that Rex, too afraid of her reaction if he stood up to her, encouraged.

We talked about why then, given above, did Karen stay. We understood why she was attracted to Bibas lifestyle, the total opposite to her boring straight laced in may ways pre mapped out life. Karen had come to a natural break in her life - university ended, flat mates moving on without her and tennis club boyfriend dumping her. In many ways she was at a loose end and Biba coming along was the perfect distraction/escape. We thought that Karen possibly would have left Biba and Rex when the summer ended and she continued with her studies however the events that happened put a stop to all that and she felt tied to Karen and Rex and by the injustice of it all.

I will warn you that the next section does contain spoilers as cant really discuss things in detail without giving certain things away!

Karen didn't feel tied to them because of Alice, as we found out later that didn't automatically trap her. She felt guilt at Rex taking Bibas blame and her allowing him to do it. We talked about how realistic it was that after 10 years she would have had no other man and still be willing to pick up where her and Rex left off when he was released from prison.

We liked the setting of the book - 1997 in London. It was often very descriptive and really caught the mood of the time. The house in Highgate was perfect, it conjured vivid pictures and totally fit Biba and her bohemian lifestyle.

I didn't like the fact that it was deliberately written so you would think one thing as opposed to the actual true story. It helped suspense and provided an excellent twist but it deliberately led you up the garden path which I found annoying. Kelly couldn't let you guess like a good who dunnit author does.

We all, surprisingl,y agreed with Bibas ending although thought it was too quickly dealt with. The summer in Highgate was very slow to pan out and whilst the quickness with which Biba was dispatched helped to add to the tension it for most of us was over too fast and convenient. 

This lead on to the fact that the book felt like 2 parts. The London story and the present day story. You initially thought you were going to be reading a crime novel which many of us were quite excited about and wanted more of. It then rewound 10 years to become almost a summer romance novel at times. I have noticed that a few times now with books. Authors keep dotting from past to present almost afraid to present one story to the reader. Does this represent todays reader? We either no longer have the patience or authors feel that they can't keep our interest so need to keep switching. Does it show lack of confidence in delivering a continuous timeline?

I cant remember what score we gave it but think it was average. As a side when googling for characters names I came across this link http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/a-poison-tree/ have a read.

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