Bleed for Me
by Michael Robotham

Release Date: 10th Jun 2010
Publisher: Little Brown
ISBN: 978 1 8474 4218 5
RRP: £14.99

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As contrastingly frank and poignant a thriller as we’ve ever read...

Bleed for Me opens on a sobering scene. Former Clinical Psychologist, Joe O’Loughlin, is at a parole hearing. Liam Baker was institutionalised on O’Loughlin’s recommendation after he bludgeoned a teenage girl, nearly killing her and leaving her in a wheelchair. No longer practicing professionally, O’Loughlin has an intimate knowledge of the deep impact of Liam’s actions – he knows the family of the victim. Zoe’s younger sister, Sienna, is the best friend of his own daughter, Charlie. O’Loughlin family bears its own scars. Charlie’s abduction a few years ago led to his separation from his wife, Julianne and he has never quite forgiven himself for not protecting his family better.

If O’Loughlin is the narrator; Sienna is the reluctant leading lady. This is her story as much as it is O’Loughlin’s. When she is found covered in blood, at first there is confusion as to where it has come from. Then, the body of her father is discovered in her bedroom. His throat slit and a child’s handprint in his blood. Whilst the police follow the obvious evidence; the psychologist is convinced that Sienna is the victim not the perpetrator. It is this instinct and obstinate, dogged persistence that makes him brilliant and is the cause of his marital problems. Like a bloodhound that has caught a scent, O’Loughlin cannot let go – and it leads to all kinds of problems, not least multiple visits to the hospital.

Bleed for Me is a snapshot of modern-day Britain. With references to current politics, the financial meltdown, the rallying of anti-immigration causes, racial tension and the disquieting permeation of sexual predators within our society; it is a sombre portrayal of the darker sides of human nature.

Psychologically intense with provocative undertones, Robotham shows no compunction with poking fun at controversial issues such as Gordon Brown’s political ineffectuality or the miasma of political correctness; injecting rare snatches of light-hearted humour into an otherwise stark and bleak narrative. His short, blunt style suits the fast-paced thriller genre and ensures the reader barely has time to catch their breath before they are transported to another crisis, another crucial event, another dramatic scene. Bleed for Me stays with you like stray flint on clothes; you find yourself unconsciously picking at threads of the story, looking for clues you missed, behaviour you misinterpreted – be under no illusions, this is a story that will get under your skin.

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