Ketchup Clouds - Book Review

Ketchup Clouds - Annabel Pitcher

Zoe Collins has a dark secret: she has killed someone. And still, 3 months later no one has found out that she is to blame. The guilt gnaws away inside her, every minute of everyday, so she decides enough is enough. In the dead of night on August 1st, she picks up a pen, heads to the shed at the bottom of her garden and decides to tell her story. She writes letters to a prisoner on Death Row - Stuart Harris - and tells him the story of how she came to be a murderer, using the fake name and address of Zoe Collins, 1 Fiction Road.

Zoe lives with her sisters Soph and Dot (who is deaf) and her parents who seem to do nothing but argue. About Grandpa, about Dot, about jobs, about money... Will they end up getting a divorce?

Her story begins with a house party, where Zoe meets The Boy With The Brown Eyes (Aaron). When he disappears from the party before they can learn each others names, Zoe ends up sharing a kiss with the school heart throb Max Morgan. Soon Zoe meets Aaron again and becomes tangled up in having feelings for both boys. She enjoys being with Max, as he is the boy everybody wants and is quite vulnerable underneath all of his bravado, but Aaron and Zoe share a unique sense of humour and the chemistry between them is undeniable. Zoe manages to juggle both boys for a while - until she learns that they are brothers. 

With Stuart's execution date on May 1st fast approaching, Zoe tells him of that fateful night at the Spring Fair when the revelation of her betrayal leads to the death of one of the brothers... But which one?

I read this book in two days as I was desperate to find out which of the brothers died and how Zoe played a part in that. The ending was heartbreaking and even though my lesser favourite brother was the one who died, my heart still ached for the characters in the story.

My favourite character though, is Dot. She brings humour and a lightheartedness to a story which would otherwise be quite dark. I particularly enjoyed the 'Dot's Diary' feature at the end which made me laugh out loud even after shedding a tear or two only a few pages before.

★★★★★ 5/5 (yes, it was that good!)

Ketchup Clouds is one of the best books I have read in a long time and will no doubt do again and again. I loved it - Pitcher's writing style was so relatable  and quirky, making it feel like Zoe was a close friend of mine. As a lover of stories about first love, mysteries and family life, Ketchup Clouds was everything that I love in a book. 

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