Say Her Name by Dreda Say Mitchell 
&
Ryan Carter - Review

Print length: 316 pages
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer
Publication date: 1/04/2022

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Synopsis

In this chilling thriller from the bestselling authors of Spare Room, one woman just wants the truth about who she really is. But she’s not the only one looking…

It’s twenty years since Eva, a biracial woman, was adopted as an eight-year-old, and Cherry and Carlton ‘Sugar’ McNeil have always been the only parents she’s wanted or needed. But when she’s dealt the double blow of Cherry’s death and her own suspension from work, Eva decides it’s time to discover who she was before she was theirs.

Against Sugar’s advice, Eva joins a DNA database, desperate for a match that will unlock her identity. And when a positive hit comes, she’s excited to learn there are relations out there who might hold the key. But the closer Eva gets to uncovering her past, the more it appears someone is trying to stop her finally finding the truth…

As she continues to dig, Eva is drawn into a dark and merciless underside to society, where black women disappear without a word. Names erased from history, no search parties, no desperate pleas for their return. Once, someone tried to save Eva from all this. Someone wanted a better life for her. But now that she’s torn down the facade of her life, has she come too far to be spared again?

Review

The story begins with Eva burying her adoptive mother. It is clear from the beginning that Eva's relationship with both her adoptive mother and father was a good one, Eva holds the highest respect for her adoptive parents but especially for her former police officer father called Sugar. What I really enjoyed about this story was how big of a part race played into the story. Her father became a policeman at a time when that opportunity for a black man was incredibly unlikely to achieve but against the odds, he was successful and was able to help instil Eva with confidence in her own beautiful skin colour. 

The story explains that Eva had a troubled past in a children's home where she was mistreated and subjected to horrific abuse at the hands of those who were supposed to care for her. Eva has spent her life ensuring that she doesn't end up as just another failure in the care system but becomes a doctor, a job of which she is very proud but finds herself in a tough spot when she is suspended. 

A big issue for me in this story was the lack of character depth, Eva's husband Joe was supposedly her rock, yet nothing in the story really highlights this. One moment Joe is supportive, the next he is shifty and then all of the sudden everything is great again. Despite Joe being described as Eva's confidante and true love, you really don't see her relying on him or even communicating with him much at all. 

When Eva finds her birth father through a DNA test, she also unexpectedly finds herself a half-sister Miriam with whom she instantly befriends. Eva is aware that there is more to Miriam than what meets the eye but she enlists the help of her birth father and half-sister to find her biological mother but in doing so, Eva finds not just dark secrets but also finds herself in immense danger. 

I loved the storyline for this book, I particularly enjoyed the fact that this highlighted how differently people from an ethnic minority group are treated when being considered a victim of a crime and how they are underrepresented when they have gone missing etc. This is clearly a very important message this book is sending out and it's something that is crucial to change and for that part, I feel this book did a great job.

The main letdown of this book is the lack of character development, Eva is supposedly an intelligent doctor but makes decisions that I would hope no doctor would, she comes across as extremely naïve which I think is bizarre when she has gone through so much in her life, she is easily manipulated and has extremely poor decision-making skills. I also feel like Joe is a pointless character, who really doesn't develop any depth whatsoever. 

Another issue is the twists in the book are extremely predictable, the story is enjoyable enough as I really liked the whole background set-up and the message that it was trying to portray but nothing was shocking about this whole book, I knew where it was going from the start and I think it needed something extra just to put a little suspense into this book. 

Overall, the actual story is a great one even if it was obvious as to where it was leading, Eva is a likeable character despite my frustrations with her naivety and raising awareness on how ethnic minorities are treated by the government, media and everyday people in cases where a serious crime may have taken place. 

Amazon purchase link: here

About The Authors

Dreda Say Mitchell & Ryan Carter

Her Majesty, The Queen appointed Dreda an MBE in her 2020 New Year’s Honours’ List. Dreda scooped the CWA’s John Creasey Dagger in 2004, the first time a Black British author has received this honour. Dreda and Ryan write across the crime and mystery genre – psychological thrillers, gritty gangland crime and fast-paced action books Spare Room, their first psychological thriller was a #1 UK and US Amazon Bestseller. Dreda is one of twelve acclaimed and bestselling international female writers contributing to a new Miss Marple anthology. Dreda is a passionate campaigner and speaker on social issues and the arts. She has been a frequent guest on television and radio including BBC Breakfast,, Celebrity Pointless and Celebrity Eggheads, The Stephen Nolan Show, Front Row and Woman’s Hour. She has presented Radio 4’s flagship books programme, Open Book. Dreda was named one of Britain’s 50 Remarkable Women by Lady Geek in association with Nokia. She was the 2011 chair of the Theakston Harrogate Crime Fiction Festival. Dreda was born and raised in the East End of London where she continues to live. Dreda’s family are from the beautiful Caribbean island of Grenada and her name is pronounced with a long ‘ee’ sound in the middle. 

Visit Dreda Say Mitchell's website: here

Follow Dreda Say Mitchell on Twitter: @DredaMBE