Gillian Jackson - Books
The Accident
A car crash claims three lives—but the survivors have not escaped unscathed, in this powerful novel by the bestselling author of Abduction and The Victim.
When a sudden blast of severe weather causes a traffic accident, the effects will ripple through the lives of many long after the scene is cleared . . .
Hannah has lost a leg, as well as her memory of the event, leading her to fear she may have been at fault. Struggling with recovery and anxiously awaiting the inquest results, she remains at home with her husband and kids.
Joe wants to take his own life after his wife died in the accident, leaving him injured and alone.
Meanwhile, the Joneses mourn their son and decide to embark on a project to honour him: opening a centre for rescued animals.
But when the survivors find their paths crossing again, there are consequences that no one could predict . . .
The Dead Husband
Amy Cooper is running out of time…
Diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor, she is given only months to live. As she grapples with her fate, the discovery that her husband is missing sends her world spiraling further into chaos. And when Amy reports Callum’s disappearance to Detective Samantha Freeman, it sets off a series of events that will unravel dark secrets she’s kept hidden for far too long.
As the truth about Amy’s failing marriage, her sister affair, and an accident comes to light, the investigation spirals into a race against time. With Amy’s health rapidly declining and Samantha facing a personal tragedy of her own, the line between justice and survival blurs.
In a story where nothing is as it seems, the only thing certain is that every lie will eventually be exposed...
The Shape of Truth
The sordid truth or a comfortable lie: Which would you choose?
Learning the shocking truth about her past rocks Anna Greenwood’s world and shakes her beliefs to the core. The information she discovers sets in motion a quest to bring justice to a man of position and influence who appears protected by his status. However, Anna’s efforts seem futile—until help comes from an unexpected source.
Anna’s journey takes her to the brink of tragedy and the near-death of herself and another innocent woman. But can she bring down the powerful, arrogant man who caused her mother’s heartache, or will she fail in the mission she knows to be justified?
The Victim
She’s killed her husband—and now she must convince the police that she is not the villain but the victim . . .
Caron Rivers appeared to have it all. Lovely home. Loving spouse. Happy marriage. But behind closed doors, things were not what they seemed.
Why did Caron snap and kill Bill? Now she finds herself at the police station, facing questions about exactly what happened and what led to the shocking event. With Bill dead, she is free to tell her story. But the police may not believe it, in this gripping novel of emotional and psychological suspense from the author of Abduction and The Accident.
The Charcoal House
In a house filled with darkness, a woman battles to find her way out . . .
After a seemingly perfect start to their relationship, Emma marries Simon. But as soon as they return from the honeymoon, Simon changes. He forbids Emma from seeing her friends and parents. He controls their finances. And through a series of cruel, unexplained incidents, he persuades her that she’s losing her mind.
With Emma’s spirit battered and her passion for painting destroyed after a few months of marriage, she finally admits to herself that she’s afraid of her husband. The only piece she manages to complete is of a depressing charcoal house, a representation of her tortured life. Then Emma receives a cryptic message from a stranger—and shocking revelations begin to emerge one by one.
When the police become involved, events spiral out of control, and Emma’s loved ones do all they can to help her escape the monster’s clutches—but is it already too late to save her?
Ask Laura
An advice columnist’s own problems reach crisis level, in this compelling blend of suspense, romance, and family drama by the author of The Dead Husband.
Laura Green is an agony aunt for a London magazine, but recently she could use some help herself. Her teenage daughter will barely speak to her and is hiding birth control pills in her room. Her elderly mother is in a home suffering from Alzheimer’s. And her ex is about to become a father again—while paying minimal attention to the three kids he already has with Laura.
When the magazine starts getting threatening letters demanding that Laura’s column be dropped, she is helped by a young police officer but personal problems refuse to disappear.
Juggling several responsibilities isn’t easy for any divorced mum. But doing so while living in fear is much worse. Just ask Laura . . .
A Measure of Time
Can the sins of the past be left behind? A gripping, emotional novel of guilt and forgiveness by the bestselling author of Remembering Ellie.
Helen Reid has received a devastating diagnosis—and as she contemplates the life she’s lived, she is haunted by a terrible mistake she made in her youth after her boyfriend Rob struck a cyclist with his car. Compelled to find some sort of redemption, she journeys back to her old hometown to track down her ex and finally bring the truth to light.
But Rob isn’t quite so ready to face his past, and it soon becomes clear that he’s willing to do anything to avoid the consequences. Will Helen find redemption—or revenge?
The Pharmacist
Alice’s husband is missing. Has he left her for another woman, or has something more sinister happened?
In a world that is becoming increasingly muddled, Alice is unsure whom she can trust. Even her daughter appears to be lying to her. How much heartache can one person endure?
As strange things begin to happen, Alice struggles to separate reality from fantasy—and to make sense of a mystery surrounding Millie, her beautiful five-year-old granddaughter. Sometimes it takes a stranger to help. And sometimes you need a detective....
Abduction
A heart-wrenching kidnapping thriller. Perfect for fans of Cara Hunter, Liane Moriarty, LJ Ross, and Lisa Jewell.
What do you do when the unthinkable happens?
August 8, 2000: A carefree birthday party goes horribly wrong. The children scatter to play hide and seek. But one little girl never returns.
Three-year-old Grace has vanished without a trace.
Fourteen years later: With the case long since gone cold, Grace's family has done its best to move on. But her sister, Elise, has never given up hope. And now Elise thinks she may have found her....
Is Elise going crazy? Could Grace really have returned? And if she has, where was she taken?
Abduction is a must-listen kidnapping mystery that confronts every parent's worst nightmare. This emotional psychological thriller will stay with you long after the book ends.
Remembering Ellie
A woman wakes with no memory of the past ten years, in this twisting tale of mystery and mistrust by the bestselling author of The Charcoal House.
When Ellie Graham wakes from a coma, she thinks she’s eighteen years old. In reality, Ellie is twenty-eight, married, and has a baby son. She just doesn’t remember any of it.
Fearful of returning to a man she doesn’t recognize, Ellie chooses to stay with her parents to recuperate and await the recovery of her memory. As she starts to spend time with her husband, Phil, and their son, she feels stirrings of love for her baby—and hope for renewing her attachment to her husband.
But that hope is threatened when an old school friend alludes to Phil’s controlling behavior, leaving her with dread that her marriage was far from perfect. Worse, a neighbor indicates that he wants to resume their affair—and is willing to tell Phil all about it if she refuses.
Trapped and confused, can Ellie ever fully become a part of her forgotten family? Or is she stepping back into a nightmare she can’t recall?
The Deception
Murders past and present will unite a couple against their enemies—or tear them apart forever - in this suspenseful thriller from the author of The Victim.
Rosie Cantrell has a past that even her husband knows nothing of. Born Samantha Ashby, she abandoned her old life when her twin sister was murdered and their trust fund was stolen.
Journalist Frank Stokes knows Rosie’s story, and, nearly ten years later, he intends to write a book about the sisters. Tracing Rosie, he visits Thursdale, the village where she now lives with Mike and their baby son, Noah.
Compelled to reveal her past to Mike, Rosie tells him of the man she dated who later killed her sister—and who was subsequently killed while in prison awaiting trial. To this day, there is no sign of the two-million-pound trust fund.
When Stokes goes missing, the police question Rosie and Mike—and when Stokes’s body is found close to their cottage, they become persons of interest. Soon, the investigation uncovers even more secrets, and threatens to destroy both their marriage and their lives . . .
Snatched
When nightmares become reality, how do you find the strength to keep hope alive?
When eleven-year-old Danny Stone is kidnapped on his way home from school, panic grips his parents, Martha and Richard. As authorities scramble to find answers, their home in Bristol becomes a battleground of suspicion - until a ransom demand arrives, leaving Martha ready to pay any price.
But as Richard hesitates, secrets begin to unravel and Martha fights to untangle her husband's web of deception while the fate of their son hangs by a thread.
Will Danny make it out alive? Or will one horrific moment cause irreparable damage to all three of their lives?
Perfect for fans of Cara Hunter, Liane Moriarty, and Lisa Jewell.
From Victim to Survivor
If you, or someone you know, has been subjected to sexual abuse in childhood then this book is for you.
It has an easy-to-read format and is presented in a simple way, cutting through jargon to offer down to earth help and support.
Moving On From Victim to Survivor has been born out of the author’s personal experiences. It offers positive help and practical ideas for dealing with the trauma brought about by an abusive childhood. The text is purposely short with chapters which can, if desired, be dipped into rather than read from cover to cover.
It is a guide to the journey of regaining your self-respect and love of life, in order to live your life as a whole person and finally shake off the shadows of the past.
Number 34 Appleton Close
Nothing much surprises Counsellor Maggie Sayer. She has seen it all, or thinks she has. Meeting two very different clients, both with complex needs, challenge Maggie's perception and professional outlook.
Lindy is incarcerated in a young offender's institute, a place where she feels safe, and experiences a degree of comfort previously unknown in her young life. Abandoned by her mother and cruelly separated from her brother, Lindy is alone and afraid. Can Maggie take a step back from Lindy's situation or will her instincts and emotions take over?
Carol expected to find happiness and security in a marriage to an older, wealthy man, but soon learns that life is not what she hoped it would be. Maggie does her best to help Carol untangle her problems, but soon discovers that everything is not as it seems at number 34 Appleton Close.
The Counsellor
Widowed at twenty-nine, Maggie Sayer's perfect world is shattered and she struggles to cope with overwhelming grief. It does, however, become the catalyst for a complete change of focus, as Maggie trains to become a therapeutic counsellor, eventually finding fulfilment in helping others to overcome their problems.
Julie lives in fear of an abusive husband and struggles to protect her two young children.
Janet is crumbling under the weight of a secret she has kept for over forty years, and
Karen has never recovered from her mother's violent death.
Maggie is drawn into each of her clients' issues as she seeks to empower them to move on with their lives. And then she is faced with an ethical dilemma of her own when she meets Peter...
Sensitively written, poignant and compelling, 'The Counsellor' is the first book in the 'Maggie Sayer Series' by Gillian Jackson.
Pretence
For Rae Chapman the months before her wedding should be the happiest time of her life but the same troubling nightmare that disturbed her sleep in childhood has returned once more.
Could something from the past be trying to re-surface? Are they only dreams, or long lost memories? Rae begins a journey to find out more about her past and discovers a family secret which throws her world into turmoil.
Lydia appears to have led a life of ease and privilege but now has a decision to make, one she has put off for nearly forty years and one which will shock her family and friends. As time is running out she turns to Maggie Sayer for help but is it already too late?
Linda thought she had escaped an oppressed life when her husband left, but has she simply exchanged one difficult situation for another and how can she support and protect her only child but still do the right thing?
As always, therapeutic counsellor Maggie Sayer seeks to give her best to these clients but is shocked by an unexpected turn of events in her friend's life and finds that her support is needed much closer to home.
The First Stone
Winning eight million pounds on the lottery seems like a dream come true for Jenny and Malcolm Grainger. But their delight quickly turns into a nightmare when a stranger appears and secrets from the past resurface.
Painful memories are resurrected which threaten to divide the family, and Jenny feels that she no longer knows the man she married. Can their difficulties be overcome, or will this stranger succeed in destroying their family?
For as long as she can remember, Alice has been intent on remaining single, a decision based on an unhappy childhood. There is, however, a vital piece of information not in her possession, which may make her think again. How can Alice persuade her mother to reveal the truth about her past, and what effect will this shocking secret have? Alice embarks on a journey of healing, and accepting the past in order to move confidently into the future.
Maggie Sayer's involvement with these clients comes at a time when her own family need her more than ever as they are confronted with an insidious, heart-breaking illness.
Maggie's World
Ellie Graham wakes from a coma to a strangely different world than the one she remembers.
Sarah is a newlywed whose fairytale romance and marriage is turning into a nightmare causing her to doubt her sanity.
Ruth, desperately longing for a child of her own is sinking beneath the weight of a long kept secret.
Therapeutic counsellor Maggie Sayer is no stranger to grief herself and uses her skills to help these three young women. But Maggie's own life has its complications too, her new husband is suffering from a degenerative illness and a past client returns to her door with problems she is unable to solve.
Maggie uses every possible approach to give the very best to her clients, but not every story can have a happy ending.
