Skin Deep By Liz Nugent

‘Skin Deep’ is the latest book by Irish author, Liz Nugent and has recently been awarded the award for The Cancel All Plans Award for the Book You Can’t Put Down at the Dead Good Book Awards and I wholeheartedly agree that it was totally worth the award.

The book is set in rural Ireland and is seen through the narrative of Cordelia. As a child she was idolised by her father, the prettiest girl on the island, she believes that she is special and deserves to have everything her way, but life tragically changes for her when her family are killed in a fire. Now an orphan, she finds herself moved from pillar to post and determined to get things her own way, no matter the way. The story then flows from the past tense to present tense when Cordelia finds a body in her room.

I found Cordelia to be an absolutely fascinating and hateful character that shocked me so much throughout the story. From a young age, she was led to believe that she was the prettiest woman alive and deserved to be treated like a queen, but Cordelia was a horrible, emotionless person that left a trail of heartbreak behind her without a hint of remorse. She was cold towards everyone and didn’t care how she jeopardised other lives.

The story travels around Europe and gives a hint of exotic to the claustrophobic Irish story. There were some folklore stories that made for unsettling reading as well as perspectives from people who had interacted with Cordelia and this gives an insight into her behaviour and the drama that she leaves behind her.

Atmospheric from the first page, this book is cleverly written with an outstanding lead, ‘Skin Deep’ is a brilliantly brutal and dark story, filled with drama and deceit, this book is a must read for all.

You can buy ‘Skin Deep’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.