She Said, Three Said by David B. Lyons | @TheOpenAuthor @DamppebblesBTs | #blogtour

I’m delighted to kick off the blog tour for She Said, Three Said today! My thanks to Emma at damppebbles for the invitation to join and for the review copy.

Author : David B. Lyons
Title : She Said, Three Said
Pages : 314
Publisher : n/a
Publication date : January 22, 2020

| ABOUT THE BOOK |

Ever wondered what it’s like to be a juror in a high-profile celebrity trial?

Well.. now you don’t have to. Step inside the jury room to deliberate one of the most talked-about court cases of the decade.

SHE SAID…

…all three men got her drunk, led her to a hotel room and took advantage of her.

THREE SAID…

…she was a willing participant and consented to sex with each of them.

After five-weeks of listening to all of the evidence and all of the arguments in a celebrity rape trial that has gripped an entire nation, the jury sit down to begin their deliberations.

But they don’t know who to believe…

…will you?

| MY THOUGHTS |

Why, yes, I have always wondered what it would be like to be on the jury at a trial but I have to tell you, after reading this book, I can safely say it’s an experience I’m happy to do without.

After five weeks of listening to evidence in a rape trial, jury members start their deliberations but they have no idea who to believe. There is little or no evidence to go on and it’s very much a case of she said, three said. She said three men got her drunk and took her to a hotel room to take advantage of her. The three men say she was willing and everything that happened was consensual. To complicate matters further, one of the three men is a well-known football player.

There are always two sides to every story and the truth is often found somewhere in the middle. But with a case like this, how do you keep a clear head? How do you remain objective? How do you leave prejudice, instinct and personal opinions out of the jury room and merely focus on the evidence in front of you? It’s a hard thing to do and being in that room with the other jury members really brings that to the fore.

Bar one, all jury members remain anonymous for most of the story. No names, no genders. They are merely known by their numbers. It felt a little odd to read the story like that but at the same time, it stopped me, as the reader, to be prejudiced against the jury members. None of that “of course, he’s going to vote not guilty” because you don’t know if the person is male. Personally, I thought that was quite a clever way of tackling things.

The chapters alternate between the deliberations in the jury room and snippets of what actually happened on that fateful night. This allows the reader to try and make up their own mind. Or does it? Because quite frankly, I didn’t have a clue and I kept going back and forth. This isn’t an easy read and at times it made me pretty uncomfortable but it also shows how quickly we can point the finger, see what we want to see and judge a book by its cover. I’m desperately trying not to give anything away here (and hopefully not failing) but sometimes things just aren’t what they seem. And all the while, it is immensely difficult to keep in mind that this is information the jury members just do not have.

In these times of the MeToo movement, this story is incredibly apt and the inclusion of statistics really drives home how tough it is for women everywhere to even get a case like this to trial, never mind about a just verdict. She Said, Three Said is an extremely thought-provoking and compelling story. Days after finishing it, it is still very much at the front of my mind. Who’s telling the truth? Who do you believe? How would you vote? Guilty or not guilty? And once you’ve made that decision, would you be able to live with yourself? I cast my vote, purely based on the evidence in the jury room, all the while ignoring what I was being told in the other chapters. I’m obviously not going to tell you what my verdict was and whether I was right or wrong but do feel free to get back to me when you’ve cast your vote and let’s discuss. Because if there is one thing She Said, Three Said is perfect for, it’s a (book club) discussion. An uncomfortable, compelling, clever story that I won’t forget any time soon.

She Said, Three Said is available to buy.

Affiliate link : Bookdepository
Other retailers : Amazon US | Amazon UK | Wordery

| ABOUT THE AUTHOR |

David B. Lyons is an international bestselling author — a writer of psychological thrillers.

He has reached No.1 in charts in Ireland, the UK, Canada and Australia.

David grew up in Dublin – the city his novels are set – but currently spends his time between Birmingham in the UK and the Irish capital. David is married to a Brummie, Kerry, and they have one daughter, Lola.

He has lectured in Creative Writing in colleges and universities in both Ireland and in the UK and coaches people how to write with free tutorials at TheOpenAuthor.com.