The Lexie Elliott catalogue: Highly recommended!

Lexie Elliott is another favourite British author of mine whose current complete catalogue I have now read. Her books are categorised as thrillers, mysteries or suspense novels, and they are all those things. The strength in Elliott’s writing, though, comes from her strong characterisation and the way she evokes a deep sense of place. These strengths make her books less like your standard thriller and more about people and their motivations, where the setting becomes another character in the story. Elliott's novels are not fast-paced or particularly suspenseful, nor do they tend towards wild, creative endings. They are more of a slow burn, where the mystery unravels to a satisfying conclusion. There is usually a unique literary device employed that is woven throughout the story to keep the reader on their toes and there are often suggestions of paranormal connections to the central plot.

I like Elliott’s beautiful writing and her explorations of ordinary people doing terrible things. Thriller readers may find her books boring, but I do not. The pace remains the same throughout. There is no mad dash to wrap up the story at the end or present a Big Reveal that is designed to shock and knock the reader off kilter. Elliott’s novels avoid that approach, casting doubt throughout the story as to the identity of the killer without a hugely suspenseful build up, while focussing on deep character studies of the players involved. Elliott is a gifted writer, and that talent alone is enough to hold my interest.

The French girl | Published February 2018 | Read November 2021 and again December 2023

I have read The French girl twice now and each time I have enjoyed being part of Kate Channing’s story. Kate is one of a group of six Oxford university friends who spend a week together in an idyllic French farmhouse one summer. The group encounters next door neighbour, Severine, the French girl of the book’s title, who upsets the group’s equilibrium and fractures existing relationships. Severine disappears on the final night of the group's holiday. She is found dead ten years later during renovation works at the farmhouse, in the bottom of a well on the property.

The discovery of Severine’s body brings the friends back into each other’s orbit in London, reigniting old wounds and dredging up events of that fateful summer holiday. The hunt for the killer is on, and each member of the group is a suspect.

I was completely drawn into Kate’s world and her desire to find out what happened to Severine. Kate and the rest of the group are questioned by quirky, clever French detective, Alain Modan (one of my favourite characters in the book). The group's dynamics and potential motivations to kill Severine are intriguingly played out, as are the changes to their lives and friendships ten years on. Severine’s ghostly visits to Kate add another layer to the novel and allow the reader to be transported back to the story’s origin to piece together the crime.

The killer is not particularly difficult to spot and, unlike other reviews I have read, I think the ending works. It is not anywhere near as outlandish as other thrillers I have read. The book overall is not as dark as my usual fare but I connected with Kate from the outset and enjoyed becoming immersed in the group's dynamics and the unfolding mystery.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The missing years | Published April 2019 | Read December 2021

The missing years is set in the Scottish highlands where Ailsa Calder finds herself living after inheriting half a house from her mother’s estate. Her father still owns the other half, but he disappeared some twenty-seven years earlier. There are lots of creepy goings-on in the house that hint at the paranormal. Ailsa is joined by her estranged half-sister, Carrie, and together they must figure out why the house is targeting them.

The book is another Elliott trademark slow-burn. It is deeply atmospheric and contains a cast of intriguing characters, all with their own secrets, who add to the gothic feel of the book. Elliott does an excellent job of fleshing out the cast of characters and I was invested in the story from the outset. The hints at the paranormal add to the creepy atmosphere. The suggestions of what may have happened to Ailsa’s father presented throughout the story add a dimension to the mystery that keeps the reader interested.

Again, I was drawn to the novel through the strong characterisation and deep sense of place. Readers may be put off by the paranormal suggestions and a strange affliction suffered by of one of the characters in Ailsa’s orbit, but I found those parts intriguing. I warmed to Ailsa, as I did to Kate in The French girl, and the pacing worked for me.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

How to kill your best friend | Published August 2021 | Read April 2022

The title of How to kill your best friend was enough to draw me into this one. The three main players in the story are Georgie, Lissa and Bronwyn, friends since competing together on their college swim team. Georgie and Bronwyn come together some years later at Kanu Cove, the luxury resort that Lissa owns with her husband. Lissa, the strongest swimmer of the group, mysteriously drowns and this tragedy sets the scene for the mystery.

The book is yet another Lexie Elliott slow-burn character story. The premise is intriguing and I liked the inclusion of the chapter notes on how to kill someone. This exploration of ways to ‘kill your best friend’ helps build the tension through the reading journey as the reader wonders what happened to Lissa and how her death might be connected to the two remaining friends.

Elliott writes beautifully and she again evokes a keen sense of place and of the characters. The swimming theme takes centre stage in the novel, as do the mythical elements of the resort and the tension and sense of danger from the ensuing storm on the island. Those parts of the story I found quite creepy, but then storms, swimming in open water and the ocean itself all frighten me!

Elliott alternates between Georgie and Bronwyn as narrators, slowly unravelling their web of lies and deceit. There is a growing sense that Lissa has mental health issues, and this is part of the novel’s conclusion. I did not connect with Georgie and Bronwyn as much as the main (female) characters in Elliott’s other novels. That said, I did not guess what was going on, and I liked that I was surprised!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Bright and deadly things | Published February 2023 | Read January 2024

Bright and deadly things has the trademark Elliott atmospheric elements and deep sense of place. This time the story takes place in a remote retreat in a chalet in the French Alps, where there is no electricity or running water. Emily Rivers is a young, recently-widowed Oxford academic who is invited to the chalet, along with a group of colleagues and students. She hopes her participation at a traditional ‘reading week’ event will help her cope with the grief of the sudden death of her husband.

Elliott again does a bang-up job of the characterisation, especially given the large cast of players. I found each one well fleshed out. The setting becomes another character in the book, and I felt like I was staying in the chalet along with Emily. Potential paranormal activity surrounding the chalet’s ancient grandfather clock is woven throughout the story and this creates an added interesting dimension, appealing to the history nerd in me.

There is a sense of intrigue in the story from the outset, as Emily misses her flight and returns home to find her house has been broken into. This sets up one of two mysteries in the novel, as it appears someone is after Emily's husband’s research. I connected with this part of the story having spent most of my career in academia. I also warmed to Emily from the opening pages.

The second mystery involves the disappearance of one of the female students in the group staying at the chalet. Elliott takes the reader on a journey through each possible suspect, and they all have realistic motives. I was captivated by the search for the killer and the person determined to get their hands on Emily's husband's research, all played out in a powerfully evoked setting. Sure, the book is another Elliott slow-burn, but I love her writing, characterisation, and purposeful sense of place. I do not need an off-kilter ending or masses of suspense. I rather like that the endings and motivations for the murders are not too bonkers in Elliott's books, as thrillers tend to be, and this is how Bright and deadly things plays out.

I loved Emily’s journey through her grief and her growing connection to Mike. Elliott crafts an intriguing, layered story as she takes the reader through Emily's suspicions of the group staying at the chalet in both of the mysteries in the story. I also liked that Elliott explores the competitiveness that dogs academia.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐