Paradise Girl: the diary

by Phill Featherstone

Overview

An unstoppable virus sweeps the world.

17-year-old Kerryl Shaw records its approach and the devastation it causes in her diary. Finally all aound her succumb. Left on her own, it isn't long before the isolation affects her sanity and she begins to lose her grip on reality.

She imagines a reader for her diary, and calls him Adam. As the empty days pass, Adam becomes increasingly real to her until he dominates her life and she becomes emotionally obsessed by him.

Is he there, or is he a figment of her deluded imagination? It's only in the final pages that we discover the truth in this captivating psychological thriller, which saves its final suprise until a twist at the very end.

Paradise Girl received mutiple awards and is 'A gripping dark tale that draws you in from the very first page and holds you until the last word. A brilliant read!'

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781999332402
Publisher:	Opitus Books
Publication date:	11/12/2018
Series:	Reboot , #1
Edition description:	2018, Second edition with new cover
Pages:	418
Product dimensions:	5.06(w) x 7.81(h) x 1.04(d)
Age Range:	13 - 16 Years

About the Author

Phill was born in West Yorkshire, England. After taking a degree in English at Cambridge he taught for several years before starting, with his wife, an educational publishing business. He ran this for ten years before selling it to a large UK publisher. Since then he has devoted his time to writing fiction. His first novel, Paradise Girl, was published in 2017. It's the opening volume in the REBOOT trilogy, a series that tells the story of a pandemic that sweeps the world. It takes place on the northern hills where, amidst the majestic beauty of the rolling moors, a young woman faces the future alone. REBOOT book 2, Aftershocks, appeared in 2019 and continues the tale of the killer virus, developing the issues raised in book 1. The final book in the REBOOT trilogy is Jericho Rose, published 2020, in which the story reaches a conclusion and the outstanding questions surrounding the pandemic and those it has spared are answered. Phill has also written The God Jar, a tale of magic and adventure in the style of Dan Brown which straddles 16th century Europe and 20th century England. It was published in 2019. Phill's latest novel, The Cost of Dreams, will be published in late 2020. Phill's collection of short stories, Undiscovered Countries, is available online. All Phill's fiction is published by Opitus Books. He can be contacted through his own website, www.phillfeatherstone.net. Phill lives in Sheffield, England. When he's not writing he enjoys reading, walking, visiting galleries, music and the theatre. Oh, and he plays the saxophone. Badly!

Table of Contents

Paradise Girl is in three parts. The first two are diaries written by the heroine, Kerryl Shaw. The Purple Diary describes her life with her family and friends before the spread of a deadly virus. It goes on to give an account of the onset of the infection and deals with the deaths of those around her and the destruction of the world Kerryl knows.

The Green Diary is Kerryl's day-by-day record of her life alone, and alows the reader to delve into her mind as she tries to cope with total isolation and the problems of being entirely self-reliant. Through her entries we learnhow she imagines a reader for her diaries, who she calls Adam. She becomes increasingly obsessed by Adam, until she's convinced he's real. The reader knows that Adam is Kerryl's fantasy - but is he? The diary concludes with her account of how she responds to what she thinks is an invitation from Adam to meet him.

Part three, called 'After', deals with life after the infection, the outcome of Kerryl's meeting with Adam and points the way forward to the next story.

Editorial Reviews

'An engrossing read ... writing of a high literary standard ... which lingers in the mind long after reading.' (Sarah Vincent, author)

'The working through of the story to its finely wrought ending is gripping and emotional.' (Anne Williams - 'Being Anne Book Blog)

'The author has a wonderful gift for conveying the emotions of his characters and there are enough twists and turns to keep a reader up all night.' (Indie BRAG reviewer)

'A gripping dark tale that draws you in from the very first page and holds you until the last word. A brilliant read!' (Chill With a Book reviewer)

'The writing and voice of the book were excellent. I was totally pulled in.' (NetGalley reviewer)

'A compelling read, expertly crafted - I loved how you are kept guessing right up until the last page.' (Amazon reviewer)

'The perfect crossover from Dystopian YA, to Psychological Thriller.' (Goodreads reviewer)

From the Publisher