Can You See Her by SE Lynes @SELynesAuthor @bookouture #BooksOnTour #BlogTour #CanYouSeeHer

Rachel Ryder doesn’t understand how her life has changed so completely. When she was younger, heads would turn when she walked into a room. Her children needed her; her husband adored her.

But somehow the years wore that all away. She was so busy raising her children, looking after her parents… She can barely remember the woman she used to be, the one whose husband told her she was out of his league. The woman she is now just does the laundry and makes the dinner, and can walk into a room without anyone knowing she’s there.

She knows that she hated feeling invisible. She knows that she thought: what would it take for you to see me again?

And now she’s worried that she did something terrible. Because she’s sitting in a room, being asked whether she killed someone.

When no-one is watching, you can get away with anything…

Can You See Her by S E Lynes was published by Bookouture on 22 April 2020. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review, and for inviting me to take part on this Blog Tour

When I read and reviewed SE Lynes' last book; The Lies We Hide, back in December last year, I was totally blown away by it. It has a firm place on my Top Books of 2019 list.

I was delighted to accept a place on the blog tour for this, her latest book; Can You See Her, and more than a little excited to see what she would come up with.

You know what?  I am a little lost for words. I have been totally and utterly engrossed in this outstanding story; it's so very well written, with an intelligence and depth that is just breathtaking. Move over The Lies We Hide, I have a new favourite book from SE Lynes.

Part thriller and part domestic noir; it's a difficult book to generalise. Whilst there are crimes to be solved, this is far more than a 'catch the killer' story; this is just something else altogether. 

Lead character Rachel is a glorious creation and most women of a certain age will recognise some of her feelings. The story begins 

"There are things I don't know. But I know people are dead, I know I killed them and I know it all started the day I realised I was invisible."

What an amazing opening sentence, if that doesn't hook you, then you have no soul at all. Rachel is relating the story of her last few months to a woman that she refers to as 'Blue Eyes'.
It is a sad, distressing and complex story that deals with the gradual deterioration of a person's mental health, and how that affects them, and has an impact on all of those around them. Rachel is coherent and intelligent, with more insight than many people; but are her recollections really hers, or are they the a distorted account of the truth?

There's been a spate of violent attacks in the area and Rachel can put herself at every crime scene. She has met those people, she connected with them, she empathised and saw their weaknesses, and now she's remembering just how she hurt them, and that's what she has to explain to Blue Eyes.

Rachel's issues stem back to when her son was a small baby, and have done a full circle, through recovery and now back to where she was when he was new born. Along the way, she has disappeared into herself more and more; dealing with feelings that are often too difficult to explain whilst being aware that her husband, daughter and even her childhood friend are becoming more distant.

OK, I'm struggling to write this review! To say much more would give too much away about the plot and I hate spoilers!  However, I would love to go on and on and on about the complexities and the intricacies of this quite amazing story. I love how it's structured; with Rachel's own voice being prominent and the supporting characters represented through the statements that they gave to the police. This allows the reader to see all characters in different lights; whilst we may think Rachel's family are uncaring and self centred, we find that they too have their own issues to bear; it's clever and adds depth to the novel.

So, my final words are 'go buy this book'. It is highly recommended by me, and I have no doubt at all that it will be in my Best Books of 2020 list.




Amazon best selling author of 'intelligent and haunting' psychological suspense novels, published by Bookouture.

S E Lynes' critically acclaimed debut, VALENTINA, was published by Blackbird Digital Books in July 2016. Her second novel, MOTHER was published by Bookouture in 2017, followed in 2018 by THE PACT and THE PROPOSAL. In August 2018, VALENTINA was published in a new edition by Bookouture and was followed in 2019 by gripping psychological suspense novel, THE WOMEN and the dark family drama, THE LIES WE HIDE. CAN YOU SEE HER? her new psychological thriller is available now. 

Formerly a BBC features journalist and producer, Lynes has lived in France, Spain, Scotland, Italy, and now lives in Greater London with her husband, three kids and her dog, Lola. She has an MA in creative writing from Kingston University and is a writer, tutor and mentor.

Lynes has also published three children's books in Italy: IL LEOPARDO LAMPO, LA COCCODRILLA INGAMBA, and the bilingual LA SCIMMIA SPIRITOSA/THE FUNNY MONKEY, all available at Amazon.it


Find her on:
Facebook S E Lynes Author
Twitter @SELynesAuthor
Instagram @S E Lynes Author