First Lines Friday – 16/02/2024
Happy Friday fellow readers and welcome to another First Lines Friday feature post!
When I decided to share this feature, I kept my options open as to the book I could feature in today’s post. I’m glad I did that, as conversations within my family this week inspired today’s choice.
I’m not going to give you too much ramble here because I am keen to get stuck in. However, one thing I will say in the interest of transparency is that today’s First Lines Friday introduction contains swearing.
Read on at your discretion…
‘It’s an unfortunate situation.’
Bishop John Durkin smiles, benevolently.
I’m pretty sure that Bishop John Durkin does everything benevolently, even taking a shit.
The youngest Bishop to preside over the North Notts diocese, he’s a skilled orator, author of several acclaimed theological papers, and, if he hadn’t at least tried to walk on water, I’d be amazed.
He’s also a wanker.
I know it. His colleagues know it. His staff know it. Secretly, I think, even he knows it.
The Burning Girls – C. J. Tudor
Genre: Horror/Thriller
Pages: 396
Audience: Adult
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: 23 Nov 2021
An unconventional vicar moves to a remote corner of the English countryside, only to discover a community haunted by death and disappearances both past and present–and intent on keeping its dark secrets–in this explosive, unsettling thriller from acclaimed author C. J. Tudor.
Welcome to Chapel Croft. Five hundred years ago, eight protestant martyrs were burned at the stake here. Thirty years ago, two teenage girls disappeared without a trace. And two months ago, the vicar of the local parish killed himself.
Reverend Jack Brooks, a single parent with a fourteen-year-old daughter and a heavy conscience, arrives in the village hoping to make a fresh start and find some peace. Instead, Jack finds a town mired in secrecy and a strange welcome package: an old exorcism kit and a note quoting scripture. “But there is nothing covered up that will not be revealed and hidden that will not be known.”
The more Jack and her daughter Flo get acquainted with the town and its strange denizens, the deeper they are drawn into their rifts, mysteries, and suspicions. And when Flo is troubled by strange sightings in the old chapel, it becomes apparent that there are ghosts here that refuse to be laid to rest.
But uncovering the truth can be deadly in a village where everyone has something to protect, everyone has links with the village’s bloody past, and no one trusts an outsider.
My Thoughts…
The Burning Girls, and CJ Tudor, have been topics of conversation amongst my family in the last week. It’s this inspiration that led to The Burning Girls being featured in today’s First Lines Friday post.
Mum has been reading The Chalk Man, CJ Tudor’s debut novel and we’ve been chatting about it. I’m pleased to say that Mum enjoyed this debut just as much as I did, and she is very quickly moving on to The Taking of Annie Thorne.
The recommendations have also gone the other way. Mum and Dad have been watching the TV drama based on the featured book in this post, The Burning Girls. Mum recommended this to me to watch last weekend as they thoroughly enjoyed it. I do intend to watch the TV series, but it’s also making me think about picking up the book. Shock horror, you say?
I picked up a copy of this in paperback format fairly recently, even though the book has been on my TBR since December 2022. Part of the reason I wanted to pick this up and physical format was because that’s how I’ve read CJ Tudor’s other books to date. I also bought it in this format so I could pass it on to Mum to read if she wants to after me. I did the same thing with The Chalk Man and The Taking of Annie Thorne. Although in practice, Mum does the majority of her reading at lunchtime and so purchased kindle copies for ease. And why not!
Either way, I hope I enjoy The Burning Girls as much as I did her other books, and that I can pass on this copy as a recommendation once I’ve read it to somebody I think will love it!
Have you read The Burning Girls, watched the TV series, or any other books by CJ Tudor? Have you enjoyed this First Lines Friday feature? As always, I would love to hear from you!
