Thoughts on : Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan

Posted by on May 22, 2018 1:20 am in 3.5 stars reads | 3 comments

Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan
Audio narration : Julie Teal, Luke Thompson, Esther Wane, Sarah Feathers
Genre : Mystery
Series : Stand alone

About the Book  :

Sophie’s husband James is a loving father, a handsome man, a charismatic and successful public figure. And yet he stands accused of a terrible crime. Sophie is convinced he is innocent and desperate to protect her precious family from the lies that threaten to rip them apart.

Kate is the lawyer hired to prosecute the case: an experienced professional who knows that the law is all about winning the argument. And yet Kate seeks the truth at all times. She is certain James is guilty and is determined he will pay for his crimes.

Who is right about James? Sophie or Kate? And is either of them informed by anything more than instinct and personal experience? Despite her privileged upbringing, Sophie is well aware that her beautiful life is not inviolable. She has known it since she and James were first lovers, at Oxford, and she witnessed how easily pleasure could tip into tragedy.

Most people would prefer not to try to understand what passes between a man and a woman when they are alone: alone in bed, alone in an embrace, alone in an elevator… Or alone in the moonlit courtyard of an Oxford college, where a girl once stood before a boy, heart pounding with excitement, then fear. Sophie never understood why her tutorial partner Holly left Oxford so abruptly. What would she think, if she knew the truth?

My Thoughts :

I love watching courtroom dramas; shows like The Good Wife and How to Get Away With Murder entertain me so much, even though I’m not always clear on the procedures! And since  suspense novels are some of my favorites, it was almost a foregone conclusion that Anatomy of a Scandal was a book I would enjoy.

The story in itself had a good pace, and I loved how we got to see both sides of the story. It’s heart wrenching when you appreciate two characters such as Kate and Sophie, and want them both to get a good ending, knowing it’s quite probably impossible. I felt there was a good balance between both and enough doubt and clues to make me hesitant about where the truth was.

But what interested me most was the subject itself, James’ possible crime and the consequences pertaining to his case.  Especially right now, when issues of consent are such a big topic, the book’s discussions felt incredibly important. I thought the author did a great job of exploring the case from different points of view. It’s a sensitive topic but I thought she approached it with empathy and solemnity.

I listened to this book and I think it was a good choice. The different narrators gave life to the characters and helped me relate to them, even when, in a few spots, I thought the story dragged a little. And while the revelations and twists didn’t surprise me, they were just what was needed to give this story a little more thrill. 

Overall I quite liked Anatomy of a Scandal. I’d easily recommend it to fans of thrillers and courtroom dramas, and it’s a nice change of pace from the psychological and domestic thrillers that are more popular right now. It’s also incredibly relevant to today’s important issues, and a great opening for discussions.

3 Comments

  1. I love books that entertain and tackle important issues so I think I’d like this one.

    • I do too! It was a good one for that, I think you might enjoy it.

  2. This sounds like a good one. I enjoy watching courtroom/crime dramas as well. Anatomy of a Scandal sounds very good and it does touch on current relevant topics. Great post.

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