NetGalley Buddy Readers discussion

We will be reading Why She Left by Leah Mercer starting November 17th. Everyone is free to join us. Please use spoiler tags as needed.



When I open the door and see her, my mind starts churning. Why are they here? What do they want? And why did my daughter leave in the first place? Am I finally, after all of these years, going to find out? I take a deep breath and usher them in…

Ruth has spent every day of the last fifteen years wondering why her daughter Isobel left. Walking around the school to which she has given her life, every child she sees reminds her of her family’s bright future which vanished in an instant.

So when Ruth opens the door to find Isobel and a teenage grandson she never knew existed, she feels a rush of relief. Despite the years of hurt she never stopped loving Isobel and wants to help rebuild her life. Enrolling her grandson at the school, Ruth wants to make sure they stay for good.

Isobel has spent her life running from a painful secret. A secret which could have destroyed her family. Now, as she flees a bad relationship, she knows that her childhood home is the only place where she can be safe.

But as Isobel looks at her son in his crisp new uniform, she is taken straight back to the reason she ran all those years ago. Soon it becomes clear that she is not the only one tormented by the past. Someone is prepared to destroy everything Ruth and Isobel hold dear. Can Isobel confront her darkest secret before it is too late?

From the bestselling author of Who We Were Before comes a powerful and emotional page-turner about devastating family secrets. Perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Emily Bleeker and Imogen Clark.

Looking forward to it, my first read by this author

Also my first by this author. I'd never heard of her before this.

New author for me too.

Are we still on for the 17th for this one? I know some of you are still reading The Maid so if we need to delay its not an issue for me

I've got the audio so I'm ready for tomorrow.

Nice one

Thanks for the reminder, Kevin. I can also start tomorrow.

Started this book this morning before work and read the first six chapters. I realise that we are in different countries/time zones so not sure if I have started this a bit earlier than the rest of you will.

Here's my initial thoughts: I think this will be a quick read, not in terms of length as such but it just seems like an easy read and I raced through the first six chapters and could have read more if I didn't want.

In terms of the story (view spoiler)[ I really disliked Ruth right away. She is so caught up in the school, it seems to blind her to everything else which is important. She even says herself at one point she doesn't know where she ends and the school begins.

Also, I am keen to find out what Cecily's deal is. Isobel seems so surprised that she is now Deputy Head and she clearly wanted a life away from the Square. It seems Ruth's stroke brought her back, but what made her stay? Did Ruth guilt her into staying or did she feel some sort of duty to her mother? (hide spoiler)]

Yes you are quite ahead of me! lol. I'm finishing up listening to A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome and then I am going to start the book. I'm fortunately able to listen to audiobooks at work.

Yes, when you posted that comment it was only 4am here! lol I haven't started it yet, but will today. I'll have to remember that you're a half day ahead of me where you are.

Lol the joys of buddy reading across continents!

I will slow down a bit to let everyone catch up so I am not too far ahead. I am also re-reading The Count of Monte Cristo at the moment so will focus on that too.

I think you will enjoy it when you start

I've made it through chapter 4. From the blurb, I have an idea of what may have happened and nothing has indicated that I'm wrong yet, but I'm hoping that the story surprises me and maybe goes in a different direction. Either way, I'm looking forward to seeing how it is all revealed.

Initial thoughts - I like the writing style; it's engaging. I find the characters interesting. I was surprised to start with Isobel's perspective since the blurb starts with Ruth's. I think it works to make us feel a connection with her and her story.

(view spoiler)[ I was immediately defensive when Ruth decided that her grandson would go to her school without mentioning it to Isobel. It felt sneaky and underhanded just deciding that she'd get him a uniform and he'd go without even considering what his mother might want. Isobel clearly didn't want to be a part of the school herself and immediately said no when asked a bout a job there.

On the other hand, I find it interesting that Isobel left the way she did when she was so close to her mother. She apparently didn't think she could talk to her about what was going on. You'd think after all this time and having a child of her own that her views might have changed a little. (hide spoiler)]

I'm curious to see where the story goes.

The Count of Monte Cristo should take a bit of time, Kevin!

Kevin wrote: "Started this book this morning before work and read the first six chapters. I realise that we are in different countries/time zones so not sure if I have started this a bit earlier than the rest of..."

I'm through chapter 6 now. It seems we have similar thoughts. (view spoiler)[ I felt the same. Ruth seems pretty self-centered. I'd be so angry at her if I was Isobel. She has only known Isaac for a day and she is already making decisions for him and planning his future. I couldn't believe she left with him while Isobel was in the shower!

I find it interesting that Isobel left her home with nothing and was able to make a place for herself, but she is unwilling to do that with Isaac in tow. I'm guessing she was homeless for a while. Did she really not have any friends she could impose on if it was just going to be for a couple of weeks? I guess she's really afraid of her ex finding them.

Cecily is an interesting character. She seems very cranky, but I'm guessing that she got stuck with a life that she didn't really want. I wonder if she blames her circumstances on Isobel. If Isobel hadn't run away and had stayed on at the school, Cecily would have been able to leave like she planned. It seems Ruth's stroke brought her back. I'm guessing she stayed to help her mother and felt she couldn't leave. (hide spoiler)]

I never have more than one book on the go at the same time, I have always finished one book before starting another but I am breaking that rule just once for TCOMC. I have so many ARCs to get through that I am reading them and then reading a few chapters of TCOMC each night to get through it. One of my favourite ever books but haven't read it in so long.

I've never read it, though I would like to some day.

Through chapter 8 (view spoiler)[ My immediate thought regarding the investor is that he is some type of scam artist. I even considered that he could be Isobel's ex, though that would be incredibly coincidental if he really doesn't know about her background or where she is.

Seems to me that they either need to raise their fees for attending the school or put on some type of fundraiser. With parents that wealthy, they should be able to bring in some decent money in one evening. (hide spoiler)]

Now through chapter 17 (view spoiler)[ Totally agree with you regarding the investor, well dodgy. I think the author has the character of Ruth written perfectly, you can see her desperation jumping off the page as she is struggling to keep the school afloat. Its funny the parallels between Isobel being unable to ask her mum for help and now Ruth is struggling she is unwilling to ask her daughters for help. With a bit of openness and honesty between them, they could be (and could have been) a really strong support for each other (says me who is the worlds worst for asking for help).

I did warm a little to Ruth over her protectiveness towards Isaac after the accident/assault however she is clearly now in a position where she wants to keep up the appearances of an accident so as not to damage the reputation of the school. I can see how Isobel will become increasingly frustrated with this as Ruth is prioritising the one place she hates over the child she loves.

On another note, there are very few characters in the book so far. Almost half way through and I am really struggling to see where this story will go (view spoiler)[ (hide spoiler)] (hide spoiler)]

Kristie wrote: "Through chapter 8..."

I thought the same thing! Until Alex met Isobel. Then I was disappointed. lol.

Ok I've made it to Ch. 10. (view spoiler)[I agree with you both about Ruth completely undermining Isobel about Isaac attending the school. And then Isobel didn't even confront her about it. Not really. Weak.

I am so disappointed that the author is using rape this way. This is disgusting to me. I obviously knew that's where it was going but what the hell. I thought we were done doing that? A woman is raped (repeatedly and statutory) but only so the woman can face her past and blah blah. Very disappointed.

I did find and like this article about how to change these rape tropes: https://mythcreants.com/blog/six-rape... (hide spoiler)]

Okay I am now finished. My thoughts (view spoiler)[ I have to say I was quite disappointed by this. Whilst the initial premise and first half of the book held my attention, I think the ending just fizzed out with no great excitement or suspense. My issue was, as mentioned before, the lack of characters apart from the family meant that it was only Alex that held any interest or could have been the key to the story. Whilst I wouldn't tell people to avoid it, its a two-three star for me and wouldn't encourage anyone to seek it out.

I'm also not sure I bought Cecily as this power mad dictator in waiting simply biding her time before the empire was hers *insert evil laugh* Just didn't feel real to me (hide spoiler)]

Looking forward to seeing what you all think

I'm through chapter 17 at 41%

(view spoiler)[ I still don't care very much for Ruth. She is just too manipulative for me. She convinces herself that her intentions are good, but honestly she does what she wants and what is best for her.

Also, I don't care for her wanting to keep up appearances. I understand that the school is your family legacy, but your grandson is even more so. How could you choose to protect a school and it's reputation over your grandson and finding out who assaulted him? Isn't she at all concerned that it could happen again? She is putting her grandson and the other children in danger by not finding out what happened.

This looks so much to me like history repeating itself. Isobel was assaulted at the school, didn't tell, and left. Now her son has been assaulted and is refusing to tell who did it. I wonder if this will cause Isobel to want to leave again or to finally tell why she left the first time.

My first thought on the assault (and I could be WAY off) and why Isaac won't tell is that maybe he is gay? Maybe he made a pass at someone or someone found out and they assaulted him? It seems possible since he doesn't want to talk about it, like maybe he is embarrassed. No matter what happened, I do feel bad for him for having that experience. I expect the truth will come out eventually.

(hide spoiler)]

Elyse wrote: "Ok I've made it to Ch. 10. ..."

I think we all knew it was going there too, but (view spoiler)[ I think there may be more to it. It seems she tried to tell him about her pregnancy and he assaulted her? Maybe he threatened to ruin the school or her family? I'm sure there would have been things said like I'll deny it, no-one will believe you, etc. and threats made against her or her family, etc. She clearly believed that her mother would choose the school over her and that she at a minimum couldn't embarrass them like that.

It was sad to read about her being groomed like that. She really didn't know what was going on. She wondered if she was sending those signals and kept going back expecting something else to come of it. She clearly couldn't process it at the time.
(hide spoiler)]

Elyse wrote: "Kristie wrote: "Through chapter 8..."

I thought the same thing! Until Alex met Isobel. Then I was disappointed. lol."

Seems to be (view spoiler)[ a bit of a love triangle there. Not happy with that idea, but we'll see where it goes. I'm not sure yet that it's headed into the romance department. (hide spoiler)]

Kevin wrote: "Now through chapter 17 ..."

(view spoiler)[ I also liked Ruth's initial response to Isaac's attack. I liked that she stayed at the hospital and didn't try to take over anything and even missed school. However, she was pretty judgemental and blaming Isobel when she thought it was her ex. Then, when she realized it wasn't him and might be someone from the school, she did a complete 180.

I also liked Cecily's response. She really wanted to support them however she could. I think there's more to her than we know yet.

Just a random thought, but Ruth didn't tell Isobel that Cecily was thinking of them or wanting to help or anything. She really could have given their relationship a little boost there and created more of a support system for Isobel.

It seems that Cecily is always ready to step up and help. It makes me think that she is stuck at that school for her mother. At this point, I really don't think it would be a bad think for the school to close.

(hide spoiler)]

Kevin wrote: "Okay I am now finished. My thoughts ..."

I will probably finish in a few days. I look forward to reading your final thoughts.

Up through Ch. 30. (view spoiler)[Ok so Alex definitely beat up Isaac because he wanted Ruth to not bat an eye at the 40% stake in the school that he wanted. I think he wants to bring down the school because of whatever happened to cause him and his sister to leave the school. Ruth talked about the brother and sister a couple of times and now we know that Alex had a sister who died the year before current events in the book. Maybe the teacher also assaulted his sister, they told her, but Ruth covered it up and maybe paid them off or something so the school's name wouldn't be tarnished. But Alex has been harboring revenge for a long time. The way he basically said "can't believe you're not investigating when it's your own grandson" was a BIIIIG huh? because he was trying to see what she would do. But all Ruth saw was dollar signs for the school. Isobel is right, Ruth has always put the school first and will always. Before her children and her grandchild. (hide spoiler)]

Still at 41% through chapter 17 - Getting ready to add a couple of chapters and was just thinking that (view spoiler)[ it could be Alex that assaulted Isaac. I don't know why he would at this point, but he's one of the few other characters that we know and we don't know much about him yet. (hide spoiler)]

I've made it to chapter 26. I should be able to read your spoiler tomorrow, Elyse. (view spoiler)[ I still don't like Ruth. I know when Alex mentioned thinking of the school's reputation she was a bit insulted, but that is exactly what she's doing. Believing that no one attacked Isaac is just denial because it fits the narrative she wants. (hide spoiler)]

I finished last night. (view spoiler)[I was wrong about who beat up Isaac but right about who Alex was, though not his intentions for the school after owning 55%. But what the hell? Cecily set up Isaac to get "scared" but didn't intend for him to get beat up. CECILY?! Did not seem like a power hungry, control hungry person at all, just resentful. No, that just doesn't feel right. And the ending was lame, we're all in agreement, we'll all change the school and live happily ever after. Umm no? Isobel should still hate Cecily and Ruth. I did not care for this book. I gave it 2 stars.

I agree, Kevin, that it was too easy to figure out because the cast of characters was so small. They ruled out Silas so early on that it could only be them! (hide spoiler)]

My review

I finished today. I enjoyed the story, but knew most of the 'twists' before they happened. That isn't necessarily a deal breaker for me though.

(view spoiler)[ I knew Cecily wasn't a good person when she suggested to her mother that they claim Isaac had mental health issues that Isobel couldn't deal with. However, it didn't make a lot of sense that she was crazy to keep the school open and keep a good reputation when she didn't really want to be there anyway. I could go with it by thinking ok, she's just scared to go somewhere else because that didn't work out for her last time, but that didn't seem to fit her character really either. She was someone who wanted to travel and experience different places and cultures. That isn't typically a person who is afraid to go out and apply for a job after being rejected a couple of times. Plus, she gave up awfully easily after everything she did once her mother told her they were closing the school. I guess her behaviors just didn't ring true to her character.

I figured out who Alex was early on and so nothing around him was a real surprise. I did wonder if he was the one to hurt Isaac for a bit and I was glad that it wasn't him.

I never warmed to Ruth. She just seemed selfish and manipulative the whole time. Her last minute attempt to rescue her daughter and grandson was just too little too late for me.

Elyse - re: Silas being ruled out so early. All his absence in the story made me think that Isobel never really needed to go to her mother's house to begin with. He didn't end up being much of a threat at all. She started from scratch on her own once, I'm sure she could have done it again.
(hide spoiler)]

Overall, I thought it was a decent story even if the end was a bit unbelievable, convenient, and too neat. I was interested in it and what was happening. I wasn't surprised by much, but I was entertained for a while. I'll say it's a pretty average 3 star book. I think I enjoyed it more than either of you did though. :)

my Why She Left review

Kristie wrote: "my Why She Left review"

It's funny you say that about the narrator in your review because I felt there wasn't enough distinction between Ruth and Isobel! lol. (view spoiler)[And I found it weird that Ruth was in first person and Isobel was in third person. Ruth was the actual main character, I suppose. (hide spoiler)]

Oh that's interesting! I thought she did a good job making Ruth sound older.

Seems like we all broadly agreed on the book. Despite the books shortcomings, I really enjoyed the buddy read with you. Looking forward to the next one I can participate in