Completing the Catherine Steadman set

I've now read all four books that Downton Abbey actor, Catherine Steadman, has written to date. This post reviews the first two books that Steadman published. See my reviews here of the two later outings, The family game and The disappearing act.

I really want to love Steadman's books. She's a British writer so that earns a tick from me for a start. Steadman writes well and I'm drawn into her stories from the first page. They are atmospheric and enticing from the outset. I've enjoyed the journey each novel presents, right down to the endings. And that's the problem. The payoff just isn't there. I am a mad-keen thriller reader, and there is some expectation of suspension of disbelief involved in reading this genre, but not to the point of ridiculousness.

The other issue I have is that the premise for each of the novels is tantalising, so there is an expectation that something intriguing and complex will come of it. Sadly, though, Steadman has the ideas down pat, just not the execution. She sets up interesting stories that keep me engaged, and I find myself trying out different possible scenarios to explain what is happening. None of the things I thought were happening actually do happen, though! That's fine, it's just that the endings make little sense and create a bunch of plot holes the size of the Grand Canyon. Weirdly, I devoured each book and eagerly awaited The Big Reveal, but there is so much build up and so little payoff that I have been left disappointed each time. There is potential for all Steadman's books to culminate in a clever, twisted and surprising way, but they tend to go off the rails in the last part, leaving the reader wondering how the author could make something potentially thrilling into such a hot mess.

Anyhoo, if you still want to know what I thought of Something in the water and Mr Nobody, read on.

Something in the water | Published June 2018 | Read January 2024

Something in the water is the story of Erin, a documentary filmmaker, and Mark, an investment banker. The novel begins in London prior to their wedding, then shifts to beautiful Bora Bora for their honeymoon, where they find...something in the water. The reader knows from the get-go that Erin Does A Bad Thing and they are taken on a rambling journey to find out what that thing was all about.

There's a chunk of the beginning of the book dedicated to the build up that I think is unnecessary. It is clear early on that the main event happens on the honeymoon, so all the explanation of the Erin-Mark love story, their wedding plans, and Mark's stalled career in finance despite his inherent hotness, feels like a waste of time.

Things heat up once the couple return from Bora Bora and they are forced to deal with the consequences of their actions. The story is fast-paced once Erin and Mark make their watery discovery, it's just that the whole thing is quite implausible. I wanted to like Erin but I found her increasingly naïve, making silly decisions along the way, much like Harry and Mia in the other two Steadman novels I had read at the time.

I guessed what was going on. I don't mind it if I guess, and I still enjoy Steadman's writing. However, the unexplained plot inconsistencies, characters who are shoehorned in to advance the story, and Erin and Mark's clueless actions severely impact on the reading experience.

Rating: ⭐⭐

Mr Nobody | Published January 2020 | Read January 2024

Of the four Steadman novels, I enjoyed Mr Nobody the most. I'm rather drawn to amnesia stories. I liked the opening parts of this book and the way Steadman sets up the intrigue surrounding Mr Nobody's background after he is discovered dazed and confused on a Norfolk beach. I warmed to Matthew, the name given to him by hospital staff, and to Dr Emma Lewis, a neuropsychiatrist who travels to Norfolk from London to assess him.

There's a lot of super interesting stuff in Mr Nobody about amnesia and dissociative fugue. I found myself trying out a few different ideas as I read the novel to explain Matthew's past and his intentions. Emma is asked to sign a Non-disclosure Agreement before she takes on the case and there are suggestions that the government has an interest in Mr Nobody. All very intriguing! There is added intrigue, too, as the reader knows that Emma has a connection to the Norfolk town where Mr Nobody is found. There's much hinting that the two central characters are connected, although the reader doesn't discover until quite a way through the book what happened to Emma in her childhood that forced her family to move away and adopt new identities.

Steadman adopts a two-narrator literary device, framing Mr Nobody's perspective in the third person and Emma's in the first. The two stories jump around in time, as the former is in real time, and the latter starts when Matthew has been in hospital for six days. That approach alone kept me interested, along with the peripheral characters in Emma's world: her brother, a local police officer and childhood friend, and a kindly nurse.

Unfortunately, like Steadman's other novels, things start to go downhill in the last part of the book. The ending is unexpected and not in a good way. It made me go from love to dissatisfaction, especially as my feelings for Matthew were impacted by his actions in the final pages. The potential for Mr Nobody to be a complex and surprising thriller is sabotaged by the somewhat absurd ending, although you have to hand it to Steadman, I didn't even go close to guessing it. I suppose you could say the ending is creative and out-of-the-box, just a little bonkers. I'm giving it three stars, my highest rating of the four Steadman novels, for the journey rather than the destination.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐