Helen and Ellie are six year old identical twins with very different personalities. Helen is clever and popular and Ellie lives in her shadow. One day the twins decide to pretend to be each other to play a trick on their Mother but at the end of the day Ellie refuses to go back to being her unpopular self and continues to insist that she is Helen. The real Helen becomes deeply distressed that nobody, least of all her Mother, will believe in the swap...
Helen, forced to live her life as Ellie, spirals into mental illness and is rejected by her family while the real Ellie (in her new life as Helen) thrives and becomes a minor celebrity. Years later, a serious car accident to bring the sisters back into each others orbit. Maybe now real Helen can convince her family of the swap?
It's a complicated story to describe without giving too much away but if you are a fan of psychological dramas I suggest you pick this up and give it a whirl as it is a real page turner. There is a high level of suspense and something menacing throughout this dark tale. So many questions crop up that you need to find the answers to that I am sure you will be enthralled.
Beside Myself a haunting and disturbing tale that totally drew me in.
It isn't a comfortable read, adult Ellie has many problems and some serious mental health issues but the author handles everything with such immense skill I found it hard to believe this was a debut novel from a young author. It's smart, clever and accomplished.
Recommended.
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