"AuthorHallett, Janice Publication Year 24 Jan 2023 FormatHardback ISBN-13978-1-6680-0322-0 ISBN-101-6680-0322-8 eresource icon We have ebooks, digital audiobooks, and other electronic resources available. Look for the (e) below. Summary The mysterious connection between a teacher's disappearance and an unsolved code in a children's book is explored in this fresh novel from the author of the "clever and often wryly funny" (PopSugar) novel The Appeal. Forty years ago, Steven "Smithy" Smith found a copy of a famous children's ...
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"AuthorHallett, Janice Publication Year 24 Jan 2023 FormatHardback ISBN-13978-1-6680-0322-0 ISBN-101-6680-0322-8 eresource icon We have ebooks, digital audiobooks, and other electronic resources available. Look for the (e) below. Summary The mysterious connection between a teacher's disappearance and an unsolved code in a children's book is explored in this fresh novel from the author of the "clever and often wryly funny" (PopSugar) novel The Appeal. Forty years ago, Steven "Smithy" Smith found a copy of a famous children's book by disgraced author Edith Twyford, its margins full of strange markings and annotations. When he showed it to his remedial English teacher Miss Iles, she believed that it was part of a secret code that ran through all of Twyford's novels. And when she disappeared on a class field trip, Smithy became convinced that she had been right. Now, out of prison after a long stretch, Smithy decides to investigate the mystery that has haunted him for decades. In a series of voice recordings on an old iPhone from his estranged son, Smithy alternates between visiting the people of his childhood and looking back on the events that later landed him in prison. But it soon becomes clear that Edith Twyford wasn't just a writer of forgotten children's stories. The Twyford Code holds a great secret, and Smithy may just have the key"--
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Publisher:
Thorndike Press a Part of Gale a Cengage Company
Published:
2023
Language:
English
Alibris ID:
17887123198
Shipping Options:
Standard Shipping: $4.64
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Seller's Description:
Fine. Library binding. Cloth over boards. 554 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
Publisher:
Thorndike Press a Part of Gale a Cengage Company
Published:
2023
Language:
English
Alibris ID:
17887048380
Shipping Options:
Standard Shipping: $4.64
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
New. Library binding. Cloth over boards. 554 p. In Stock. 100% Money Back Guarantee. Brand New, Perfect Condition, allow 4-14 business days for standard shipping. To Alaska, Hawaii, U.S. protectorate, P.O. box, and APO/FPO addresses allow 4-28 business days for Standard shipping. No expedited shipping. All orders placed with expedited shipping will be cancelled. Over 3, 000, 000 happy customers.
I haven't read Janice Hallett's previous book 'The Appeal', but I can see from its reviews that it's a sharp and clever thriller with an unusual narrative style. It certainly seems that Hallett has found herself a niche as The Twyford Code is very similar. The narrative style is very odd and can at first be quite jarring. The chapters are written as audio files which have been transcribed (badly) by automated software. We are warned at the beginning of the piece that certain words have been mis-typed (such as 'mustard' instead of 'must have' etc) and the whole book is quite a rambling point of view as Steven Smith, having escaped from prison tries to figure out a childhood mystery. I must admit I didn't initially get on with the style of writing, but it turned out to be a very clever narrative device.
The story itself takes on many twists and turns and we get the air of a very unreliable narrator. There are many threads to the plot and Steve flits between them constantly telling the story that landed him in jail, memories of his childhood class field trip, trying to solve the mystery of the Twyford Code - it all seems a bit jumbled in places. However, stick with it and the pay off is exceptional. The last few chapters had me gasping as they slowly revealed the truth of the book I had been reading for the past few days. My only point would be, unusually for me who loves my Kindle, that this book might perhaps be enjoyed more in paper-format as you can jump around the re-read the specific audio files that are mentioned in the denouement with new eyes.
Steven Smith is an interesting main character, a man who is almost illiterate, out on parole with a drinking problem and limited prospects in life. Although he has a shady past, we do feel some empathy for him as he tries to get his friends together and solve the mystery. I did feel like the middle section (particularly when they visit various 'banks') felt very slow moving and more confusing than it needed to be in regard to the ending.
Overall, The Twyford Code is a really clever thriller with an ending that you won't see coming and will leave you gasping with shock. Another fantastic 2022 read - thank you to NetGalley & Viper Books for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
