My Sister's Bones: 'Rivals The Girl on the Train as a compulsive read' Guardian

Product Information

There are surprises at every turn. It's a compelling read, very cleverly written. All the characters are fully developed .. these are people who could be your neighbors. My Sister’s Bones is an elegant, punchy thriller with a dark heart. The twists and turns aren’t entirely unexpected, but that doesn’t detract from the power of the story-telling. “We’re all of us, every day, just a hair’s breadth away from evil. If I’ve learned anything from over 15 years of reporting, it’s that,” Kate tells us, before doing her best to fight it. We are thrilled to announce that Nuala Ellwood’s gripping debut thriller My Sister’s Bones is being turned into a feature film. BK Studios CEO David Gilbery ( The Lost Daughter) and Naomi George ( My Pure Land) served as executive producers.

But something isn't right in the old family home. On her first night Kate is woken by terrifying screams. And then she sees a shadowy figure in the garden... When their mother died, Kate came home. She's now a hot-shot journalist following the war in Syria. She's seen things that most of us have never even thought of. Suffering from severe PTSD, she's an insomniac, depending on sleeping pills, and now she's drinking to escape the hallucinations. This is a really good read, and I am not kidding when I needed to find that light to stay up and read it. Sometimes no matter what, a book comes before sleep, and this was one of them. A twisty psychological thriller. I raced through it in one sitting!' Lucy Atkins, author of The Other Child The film is directed by Heidi Greensmith. This is Greensmith’s second feature, her first, Winter, garnered three awards at the New York Film Festival, including Best Director, as well as a BIFA nomination in the Discovery Award category. The film was adapted for the screen by Naomi Gibney ( Devils) and is being executive produced by David Gilbery ( The Lost Daughter) and Naomi George ( My Pure Land) from BKStudios.Gripping and beautifully written, My Sister's Bones is a tense, atmospheric, deliciously dark story Amanda Jennings The only sane person in this shadowy land of illusion is Sally’s husband, Paul. He takes care of both sisters and they work their way through childhood abuses, PTSD, and their broken relationship with each other. Kenwright commented on the acquisition: “As a producer I am always looking for that intangible something special. And I love thrillers! On reading Nuala’s novel I immediately thought this could be the one; a thriller that transcends the genre, almost reinvents it. I bought multiple copies for my friends and the verdict was unanimous: the best British thriller in recent memory. So the search begins, to find a screen-writer that matches Nuala’s extraordinary talent for character, suspense and great story-telling.” This is the story of two sisters, Kate and Sally, different in every way. They had come from a dysfunctional family, and had the scars and memories to show for it. Both chose different paths; Kate left home, Herne Bay in Kent, and was a successful war reporter and had been witness to the murders taking place in Syria, while Sally never left home but resorted to the bottle. Loved I Let You Go and Behind Closed Doors? My Sister's Bones is guaranteed to be this year's most twisty and twisted read - you'll never see what's coming!' Ava Marsh, author of Untouchable

The novel opens with Kate being questioned and detained by a therapist at a police station under the mental health act, to determine her mental state. My verdict is that this is a good read but not one that you need to rush out and buy today. If it comes across your reading path, then give it a go. It didn't blow me away, but it's a fairly decent read that will probably appeal to many people.We have to care about the central character. Kate has demonstrated extreme courage, heroically returning over and over to report on the horrors of war, so that the people’s suffering would not be ignored. She saw enough of suffering being tolerated during her childhood. Her courage makes us care about her, even if her sometimes questionable decisions keep us at a distance. It is easy to look past her need for external remedies to make the images go away. It is easy to sympathize with the burden of her memories. Nuala Ellwood was much taken with the experiences of foreign correspondents Marie Colvin and Martha Gellhorn. Not surprising as her father is an award winning journalist. She got a grant from the Arts Council to study PTSD and incorporated what she’d learned into the tale. One of the main rewards of reading My Sister’s Bones is to get a you are there look at bits of what it is like being a correspondent in a war zone. The human element of war, particularly for non-combatants, locals and outsiders, shines through. Bone-chilling stuff. The subject matter is heart wrenching, harsh, and cruel- so if you are sensitive to scenes of psychological and physical abuse, or the depictions of war - be aware of these possible triggers- most of which occur in the first half of the book.

The imagery is Aleppo is haunting, reminding us that journalists are out there in the crossfire, and can suffer the same ill effects of war as soldiers, and even lose their lives on occasion. What happens to Kate in Syria easily explains her PTSD, and how she ends up in the shape she does. At times I found it difficult to work out which sister was the most disturbed or whose narrative was the more reliable which made for an highly engaging read. This book really messed with my head as you try to work out if Kate and her sister are imagining things or if there is something much more sinister going on, and for me that’s what a book of this genre should do, keep you guessing right up to the end. As the plot progressed I really felt I was no nearer to guessing the outcome than when I started, and I remained in the dark until the last couple of chapters. I liked this book, but I did have some concerns and problems with it. Firstly, I thought that the flow was a bit disjointed and the actions of the characters seemed strange at times with no clear and gradual link between their normal actions and then the craziness. For example, and this doesn't give anything away, Paul's actions towards Sally were so strange. From one extreme to the next with no indication to the reader that his mind set was starting to change. Secondly, and probably because of the jump from a pretty normal story to a strange one, I found things a tad overboard and unlikely. I know that this could probably be a criticism of many psychological thrillers but in this one, it just seemed more pronounced. I didn't feel that the story pulled together well. But that's just me. This noticeably has a very topical feel to it from the start as we meet journalist Kate and realise she has been a witness to the atrocities taking place in Syria. The first part of the story is split in two, with Kate coming home to Hearne Bay following her mother's death and this is alternated with Kate being questioned by police following her arrest for an undisclosed crime. This part was left deliberately rather vague reflecting Kate's fragile mental state. She is obviously suffering from PTSD so the reader comes to the conclusion that this may not make her a reliable narrator. She sees and hears things that aren't there and her nightmares are graphic and realistic so what is real and what only exists in Kate's imagination? But when I read the end of Part One.....oh my goodness, what a gasp out loud moment! And that's when the book suddenly became totally unputdownable for me!

Your browser is not supported

Kate tells her story shifting between her life before she went to Syria, the events while she was there, and being interviewed in a prison cell about what she’s been up to since she got home. It’s immaculately told, the pain, the suffering, the fear, and the love of her life. Kate is strong, and everyone is out to prove she’s gone crazy. She’s determined not to fall into their traps; she’s used to asking tough questions, she can see where her interrogators are heading and can evade them. This book is amazing - harrowing and compelling...a clever plot that twists right to the very end Luana Lewis UK theatre and film producer Bill Kenwright ( Broken) has optioned the screen rights to British author Nuala Ellwood’s well-received suspense thriller My Sister’s Bones.

I loved that it covered relevant themes such as war, the effects it has in those reporting whilst allowing us an insight into the war zone. Quite frankly, I found myself having a new-found respect for journalists. Those that put themselves out there to report the truth and give voices to those that have been silenced. After all it is a sad and disturbing and tragic story. The author did a great job, the writing and structure is superb. I enjoyed it not from the beginning but I got more captivated the further I read. This book is definitely different to other thrillers and I highly recommend it. A stunning book. Compelling, unsettling and powerful this is a book that will stay with me for a long time.' C. L. TaylorKate Rafter is a successful war reporter. She’s the strong one. The one who escaped Herne Bay and the memories it holds. Her sister Sally didn’t. Instead, she drinks. But when their mother dies, Kate is forced to return to the old family home. And on her first night she is woken by a terrifying scream. The cast includes Ben Miles ( Andor, The Crown), David Bradley ( Harry Potter franchise), Maggie Steed ( Paddington 2) and Lovi Poe (upcoming The Chelsea Cowboy). While this book adheres to the standard requirements, the author turns the genre on its ear by producing a multi-layered literary piece told from the first -person perspectives of two sisters, both of whom are dealing with immense loss, psychological demons, and emotional scars, but unable to find comfort in each other. Psychological thrillers are not all created equal. They can come in all shapes, sizes and forms and still solidly fall within the specifications applied to this genre, but with various degrees of success. Kurylenko is represented by Independent Talent Group and UTA; Seagrove by Independent Talent Group; Friel by The Artists Partnership, UTA, and Todd Deiner; Miles by Markham, Froggatt & Irwin; Bradley by United Agents; Steed by United Agents; and Poe by SMS Talent and More / Medavoy.