Lucy Winters' parents have always been there for her. Loving, gentle and kind they have given her everything she could have wished for. Now, estranged from her husband, she has moved to the country to take over their thriving auction business. The moment she begins to prepare for her first sale she knows she's made the right decision. And she dares to hope that at last she is living the life she has always dreamed of.
But then, quite suddenly, her world is thrown into turmoil. She discovers a shocking truth, one that forces her to question everything she has ever known. And it becomes frighteningly possible that the very people who should have protected her are the ones who have betrayed her in the most devastating of ways. Can she ever forgive them? Can they ever forgive themselves...?
Rating: 4 Stars
Positives: This book had me gripped from the prologue. Right from page one I wanted to know exactly what had happened to Alexandra, and how Rose would cope as she faces every parents worst nightmare. And whilst the story is then a bit slow for several chapters, you get a real feel for all of the characters and as their lives start to become intertwined it's possible to work out what happened to Alexandra and exactly who Lucy is. I loved how we aren't spoon fed either, Susan Lewis keeps us guessing as to how John and Pippa tie into everything for several chapters and she manages to bring everything together wonderfully.
Its also nice to see how characters like Hanna change and develop over the course of Stolen, she goes from this horrible bratty spoilt teenager and becomes someone who is actually fairly mature for the age of fifteen.
As for what happens to Lucy's parents I pondered for a while whether or not they truly managed to escape justice. Whilst I think it would pain Rose and John that they never got to see any legal repercussions, they did at least get the joy of knowing what happened to their daughter. And personally I feel, maybe not so much for Brian as we don't see much of him, but for Daphne that although she didn't regret what had happened, she certainly felt a degree of guilt about it. Maybe it was the best way out for them both without the story then being embroiled in another huge tangle.
I was a little worried about how such a story could be pulled off, and I was sat in the maternity ultrasound department asking my dad, "But how would they get ID for the kid? How did they manage to evade what I'm sure would have been a huge media storm?" I wanted to know how the practicalities would work, and I was very glad that we were given them later on.
Also I have to admit I cried, when Lucy finds those crucial documents, again I won't ruin it for those of you who haven't read it, but my hormones kicked off big time and I just spent this afternoon embroiled in a huge pit of despair. I think that's a good thing though as it highlights how good an author Susan Lewis is.
Negatives: My main bone of contention with Stolen was the ending. I'm somewhat glad that Joe's character is still a complete and utter twat, he is one of those people about whom the saying a leopard never changes its spots is true. However the rest of the final chapter seemed too forced, too happy. Not everyone gets a happy ending, that's life unfortunately. But in Stolen everyone does get their happy ending. I won't ruin it for those of you who haven't read it though.
Would I recommend this book? Yes I would. It was an amazing read, and like I said earlier I don't know whether it was just the pregnancy hormones or not but Stolen managed to evoke an emotional reaponse from me.
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