Goody One Shoe | Julie Frayn | Book Review

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn is a psychological dark thriller. This is a story about a girl, Billie whose life changes when she witnesses her parents’ murder and is also left with only one leg by that traumatic experience. Taunted, bullied, and pitied, she has become a loner. But her life changes when her random fantasy edits to real life crimes where she gives them justice start coming true. Is this coincidence or something sinister? Then she also comes across the criminals who murdered her parents. So fuelled by rage and the fire to avenge their deaths, what will Billie do?

An engrossing read, read the book summary, similar book recommendations, and book review of Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn in this post below.

What happens when the fiction Billie writes starts becoming a reality? Read Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn #BookReview on #NjkinnysBlog #IARTG #NjkinnyRecommends #BookBoost Share on X

About Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn:

No. of Pages: 261
Publication Date: 24th May 2015
Genre: Psychological Thriller, Dark Thriller,  Indie Author, Contemporary Fiction

Buy From: AMAZON

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Summary:

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn is the story of Billie who witnessed the murder of her parents when she was only eleven years old. That night, so long ago, not only took her parents away from her but also left her with only one leg. Burning with the need to exact revenge from the men responsible, Billie takes solace in rewriting the newspaper stories of bad guys going free. Her stories always have these bad guys getting what they deserve. Supposedly a harmless venting mechanism soon turns into a frightening nightmare for Billie when villains start dying just like in her stories.

How is this possible?
What will Billie do now?

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Review:

Things I Liked:

Title, Cover, Blurb:

I just loved this book. When I first heard about it, I was intrigued by the title which is unique. Also I was looking for books with number one in the title!

So, eager to checkout this book which promised memorable entertainment, I was not let down by the blurb either. It is interesting, arresting and leaves the reader eager to read the book. Then the cover is so stunning that even if I didn’t know about this book, the cover alone would have attracted me to check it out!

Plot and Pace:

Looking like a superhero story, this book is unlike any other book that I have read so far. It has a physically challenged heroine who, despite her disability is even better than the average people who have all their body parts intact. She can do all her work, is athletic and energetic even with only one leg!

The plot has novelty and is beautifully executed by the author who has an engrossing and fluid style of writing. She was able to take me inside the story and feel everything that Billie felt as if it was happening right in front of me. The story moves at a moderate pace and switches from the past to the present effortlessly.

Main Character of Billie:

The suspense and mystery is maintained and the thriller element keeps us on the edge of our seats throughout. The heartfelt emotions, insecurities, dilemmas and troubles of Billie are so normal that they felt right at home for me. I could empathise with her troubles at work with a jealous and biased boss, an irritating co-worker, and the hassle of riding the tube to work with its many elements of distress and smells {Ugh!}.

Then I loved how she coped with bullies through her imaginary red pen making the people who teased her a caricature!

I hate such people who torment and tease people like Billie. It is so heartless and never justified!

The people who killed Bruce Wayne’s parents didn’t shoot him full of lead. Didn’t cost him a leg. They just shot him full of angst and cost him a normal life. Billie had fought for normal. Fought to keep friends, freaked out by the eleven-year-old’s missing limb, by the metal and rubber that replaced flesh and bone. No fancy skin-like cover… Grandmother couldn’t afford that. But still, she fought for normal. It just never found her. No date for the prom, no sleepovers with her girlfriends. There were no girlfriends. Just books. Books and her father’s mother, who tried her best to be a replacement for Billie’s own mom. Billie vowed to be as normal as possible, just to spite the bastards who took her family. To spite the kids who couldn’t see past her handicap, past her deformity. Who couldn’t see her at all.”

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Quote

"Billie had fought for normal. Fought to keep friends, freaked out by the eleven-year-old’s missing limb…But still, she fought for normal. It just never found her." – #BookQuote Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn #BookReview on #NjkinnysBlog… Share on X

I cried for Billie and then applauded her bravery!

"Billie vowed to be as normal as possible, just to spite the bastards who took her family. To spite the kids who couldn’t see past her handicap, past her deformity. Who couldn’t see her at all." – #BookQuote Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn… Share on X

Billie and God:

Billie’s relationship with God is so relatable and humbling. She brings the true essence of having faith in a higher power to fore with her thoughts on God and how he really is.

But that wasn’t her God. Not anymore. She wasn’t afraid of her God. He was her friend, her confidante. Her God understood that all good people aren’t perfect. That those who are the most broken need the most leeway.”

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Quote

"She wasn’t afraid of her God. He was her friend, her confidante. Her God understood that all good people aren’t perfect. That those who are the most broken need the most leeway."- #BookQuote Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn #BookReview on… Share on X

I cried at the injustice that Billie experienced. So, her daily struggles made me all the more thankful for all my blessings.

No matter how often she strayed from His side, Billie always found her way back to God. They had a complicated relationship. And a silent understanding — as all understandings with God are. She agreed to be a good girl on the outside. But on the inside, if she kept it to herself, she could think bad thoughts. Swear and curse and imagine a tortuous revenge inflicted on the evil beings of the world. The evil that God couldn’t control. God agreed to let her have those silent indiscretions. So that she could survive her wretched life.”

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Quote

"No matter how often she strayed from His side, Billie always found her way back to God. They had a complicated relationship. And a silent understanding…" – #BookQuote Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn #BookReview on #NjkinnysBlog #IARTG… Share on X

Romance:

The romance and love angle when it came into Billie’s life had me smiling and thinking that it was high time she got someone who truly cared about her.

Bruce is a nice man who accepts her with her “stump leg” and still loves her. So, his feelings for her had me going misty eyed and rooting for a happily-ever-after for them.

World building:

The world building is very finely done. So, the author takes us to a shady and dark city that reminded me of Batman’s Gotham city with its abundance of corruption, crime and a downward trend of humanity.

Bruce, with his name, was again a reminder of the superhero. Then the vigilante element who believes in “an eye for an eye” and the ineptness and corruption prevalent – all remained a stark reminder of this dark superhero. But all this is just the base. So, this story is completely different and a unique experience.

Things that could have been better:

The only things that had me feeling discontented with the story were
– Not much is told about Bruce’s life before he met Billie and I really wanted to know more about him. So, a bit more background on him would have helped add depth to his character and make him more relatable.
– The end is good but still doesn’t satisfy all my queries. What happened to Billie’s dreams? Then did she get better? Did Bruce suspect her? Also did they get married? Did Billie continue her secret journey? and so on.

Conclusion:

All in all, Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn is an entertaining story full of dark overtones, a vigilante superhero, a headstrong heroine, a strong plot and an engaging narration that will hook you till the end. 4 stars out of 5 to it and Njkinny recommends this amazing book to all lovers of suspense and thrillers. Had the loose threads been more crisp this would have been a 5 star rated book from me. Anyhow, despite this, I loved reading this book, and felt so humbled and empowered. Julie Frayn is a talented writer and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.

One must dare to be himself, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be.”

Goody One Shoe by Julie Frayn Book Quote

"One must dare to be himself, however frightening or strange that self may prove to be.”- #BookQuote Goody One Shoe by @JulieFrayn #BookReview on #NjkinnysBlog #IARTG #NjkinnyRecommends #BookBoost Share on X

Buy From:

AMAZON

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