Release Date: 8th April 2021
Publisher: Penguin Random House
Pages: 368
Find it on: Goodreads. BookDepository. Waterstones.
Source: The publisher kindly sent me a copy of this book to review

Synopsis

An exhilarating, emotionally powerful and superbly written thriller that’s Winter’s Bone meets The Road

Winter. The sky is dark. It is cold enough to crack bones.

Jack Morton has nothing left. Except his younger brother, Matty, who he’d do anything for. Even die for. Now with their mother gone, and their funds quickly dwindling, Jack needs to make a choice: lose his brother to foster care, or find the drug money that sent his father to prison. He chooses the money.

Ava Bardem lives in isolation, a life of silence. For seventeen years her father has controlled her fate. He has taught her to love no one. Trust no one. Now Victor Bardem is stalking the same money as Jack. When he picks up Jack’s trail, Ava must make her own wrenching choice: remain silent or help the brothers survive.

Choices. They come at a price.

Review

What Beauty There Is is a stunningly beautiful story that follows Jack Morton who will do anything to look after his brother Matty. With their mother gone and their father in Prison, Jack will do whatever he can to stop Matty being taken into foster care. Jack has only one choice: find the drug money that put his father in Jail. But Jack isn’t the only one looking for the money.

This book was completely not what I expected. Going in I thought this would be a quick mystery thriller but what I found was a really heart wrenching story of a boy fighting to protect his brother. It was an incredibly compelling story with really engaging prose. I raced through this story in a couple of hours because I was so completely wrapped up in the story of Jack and Ava.

Anderson has a lovely writing style that is really lovely and this multi-layered story is well crafted. Cory Anderson does a terrific job of creating a tense atmosphere as the story races to the end. It’s rare you find a book that breaks your heart and has you on the edge of your seat, but that’s definitely how I felt with What Beauty There Is.

The thing I liked most about this story was the fascinating characters. Jack is a really likeable protagonist and I was rooting for him so much. Ava was really interesting too and I loved seeing the characters get to know each other and grow. What Beauty There Is is a dark and enthralling read full of atmosphere and well crafted characters. I enjoyed this one a lot and this is definitely a book you will not want to miss out on.