The Feud

by Amanda James

When secrets run deep, revenge will surface . . .

Matthew Trevelyar leaves his job in London to return to his Cornish roots in the village of St Agnes. After losing his wife to leukemia, he wants to make a fresh start. 

His new life is going well until Matt returns to his cottage to discover a grim warning on his doorstop. The message is clear: Leave now and go back to London.

Not wanting to give up his new life, Matt eventually discovers that there has been a 200-year-old feud between his family, the Trevelyars, and another local family, the Penhallows.

When Matt learns that one of his ancestors burned down a barn belonging to the Penhallows, and that there were tragic consequences, he understands why his family name is mud. But why is Matt paying for the sins of his ancestors now? And is there more to the feud than meets the eye?

Amanda James is the bestselling author of the psychological thrillers Another Mother, The Cornish Retribution, and Deep Water, as well as the heart-warming women's fiction novel, The Calico Cat. The Feud is a suspenseful drama which will appeal to fans of authors like K.L. Slater, Shalini Boland, and Lucy Dawson. 

• ISBN13: 9781912986200
• Publish Date: 15 April 2019
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 2 March 2022
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Bloodhound Books
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 242
• Language: English

Reviews

[zooloo1983]

This is my fourth outing with Ms James and it is another belter set in Cornwall. I am going there in May, so I am going to be wary of every single person – will be watching you all.

I was not sure where the story was going at one point and it felt like we might be stepping into the supernatural side with witches and feuds, but it instead we stayed with a taut thriller that moved at a thrilling pace. So much happened in a short space of time, I finished this in one and a half sittings (I say half because I was picking it up and down throughout the day surrounded by my little one) it was just so exciting! Plus you just did not know what was going to happen next! All I can say is, I was so happy to be back in crazy town again!

One woman, Morvoren Penhallow, holding a grudge in this little sleepy village of St Agnes, takes up issues with Matt Trevelyar returning, the surname bringing up bad memories for her and she is hell-bent on destroying him. I will admit I suspected so many different endings for this book, I suspected everyone and some of the events were shocking, especially the finale.

What I love about Ms James books, they are believable and I don’t think they are over the top. I could envisage these things could (and do) happen, maybe the police need to be a bit more clued up, but again, who would believe this crazy out of towner with the predicaments he ends up in!

I was sucked into The Feud straight from the get-go, the writing is so fluid you find it so easy to sit back and watch everything unfurrow in front of you. Through the manipulation of one person to the innocent bystanders who all get caught up in the feud the outcome is quite haunting and destructive. Like the other books I have read by Ms James, she spins your head around and around where you suspect everyone and everything and just when you think everything is calm, you get the biggest dizzy spell of them all.

As soon as I see “Amanda James” I don’t bother reading the blurb, all I say is “Yes please!”