REVIEW: Her by Mira V Shah

Genre: Thriller | Mystery | Fiction

Release Date: Expected 23rd March 2023

Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton

Rani is tired. She's tired of her tiny flat that doesn't feel like home, she's tired of her strained relationship, tired of only ever being called 'Mum' instead of her name. And honestly, she's tired of everything.

But then, she meets Natalie and something about her just calls out to Rani. As Natalie moves into the luxurious house across from her with her perfect husband, high-flying career and flawless life, they become friends. She wants to be around Natalie, to know her - but she can't deny, there's something more than that. She wans to be her.

So she watches, and she listens. And that perfect life that Rani has been coveting may not be so perfect after all. As their lives intertwine, they both see the hidden sides to their new friend that they'd never had expected - and danger they'd never have imagined. 

"I never once considered the sacrifices she's made to be here, to intertwine herself in my fate. And I have a strong sense of impending danger. But not to my life. To hers."

A compelling, convoluted story about an unlikely friendship that turns into something dark and dangerous. About obsession, ambition, desire - and the true power of real connections that can shed light on even the darkest moments. 

Natalie and Rami were both exceptionally human - but aside from their astounding writing and relatability, their characters raised both timely and important themes about race, class, identity and relationships that are woven carefully into the story and raised naturally. Both women were much more than met the eye - Natalie was almost a caricature of a rich, privileged white woman at the start, but as you know privileged might remove obstacles but it doesn't stop someone adding more to your path. And Rami was a woman lost in her own life, trying her best in a world that doesn't want her to succeed and drowning in the current. They're both haunted by something, running from monsters - but maybe not just the ones in their nightmares.

I found empathy with them both, their relationship grew and evolved so naturally and clearly, their bond deepening with such authentic care and love as they really learned to see each other. We jump between both their perspectives, hearing directly as they try to figure out what's happening around them and learning things the same time they do. They spoke personally and candidly to the reader, letting us follow them on trains of thought and journeys down memory lane. It was intriguing to find myself giving compassion to these women as they judge themselves, compare themselves, edit themselves - wanting to comfort them and reassure them and then realising that I and others do the exact same thing with such conviction, so maybe we deserve some comfort in these moments too.

This was a slow-burner to me, quick to start and set the scene but then stopping to spend time in the domestic daily lives of our characters while the embers smoked in the background. Moments of intensity and action flared up before disappearing again, leaving us waiting for the next explosion. The detail in the setting was amazing - making a simple residential street feel alive. It felt like home, it felt a prison, it felt like a nightmare, almost like it was an active part of the story.

All the little details aren't revealed with a bang, but allow themselves to slowly be seen, layers quietly peeling back as the hidden links and connections appear and you have to question if you've really figured it out or if you're still in the dark. Now, I figured out a couple of things early on, but the journey to find out if I was right was delightfully anxious and just as nerve-wracking.

The quiet intensity of a domestic drama mixed with the cinematic highs of a psychological thriller and plenty of mystery set against the background of an unsuspecting suburbia - Her is a story about the monsters that leave our nightmares and sneak into real life. Shah is a powerful voice that is definitely going to be heard, and I can't wait to see what they do next. 

"We're not the same people any more. We won't ever be again. But maybe that's okay." 

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I was gifted an advanced reviewers copy of this title in return for an honest review.

cw: alcohol, terminal illness, grief, mental illness, infidelity, abuse, sexual assault, gaslighting.