Release

By: Lucy Christopher

Narrated by: Lucy Christopher

Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Both a courtroom drama and a road trip in the searing heat of the West Australian desert, Release is the story of two people confronting each other, each intent on destruction and survival.

‘Ever since I got here, I‘ve been scanning the courtroom, waiting for you. Even after everything, it is still always you, inside my head, inside me. Will it ever be any different?’

Ten years ago, 16-year-old Gemma Toombs was kidnapped from Bangkok Airport by an infatuated drifter, Tyler MacFarlane, who took her to a secret den in the Australian desert. Now her name is Kate Stone, and it’s her turn to confront Ty and try to find answers to the questions that have obsessed her since her ordeal.

What is the legacy of this coercive relationship? Who holds the cards now? In the confusion of past and present, will Kate remain trapped in a deranged dance of desire and revenge? Or will she regain control and find release?

A companion to Lucy Christopher’s best-selling novel Stolen, Release explores a young woman’s discovery of the complicated truth about a relationship that once seemed alluring.

©2022 Lucy Christopher. First published by The Text Publishing Company Pty Ltd (P)2022 Bolinda Publishing

Critic reviews

‘Gripping and totally twisted—you’ll break social engagements so you can stay home and finish it." (Christian White, author of Wild Place)

"Utterly compelling, clever, heart-stopping." (Jo Nadin, author of The Talk of Pram Town)

"Dark, compelling and unsettling." (Claire Kendal, author of I Spy)

A beautiful ending of a forbidden love story.

A surprising ending to a beautiful story. Bit of a cliff hanger but wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.

Heartbreaking and beautiful

I read the prequel to this book years ago and sobbed like a baby, I always wished there was more to the story and was so happy when I found this. I was on the edge of my seat the entire book and was always surprised with what happened next!

I also loved that this one was narrated by the author because she really gives feeling to the story.

I don’t even know how to feel about the end but it was definitely surpirsing

Brilliant

Sad but brilliant. Lucy Christopher writes in an engaging way that draws you in and makes you part of the story. I've listened to the whole book in a day and it was absolutely brilliant. So sad that it has ended.

Left me just as emotional as the first

I finished Stolen years ago and had never read anything like it ever, it wasn’t until last week I saw she wrote the sequel and I was so excited for the many mysteries the first novel left you wondering.
Lucy Christopher writes as if you are there watching and feeling every emotion Gemma feels.
The sequel had me crying towards the end, her novels are unpredictable and keep you wondering throughout.
My only complaint sadly- I wanted more closure and answers between Gemma and Tye, it simply wasn’t enough closure from everything the INSANE things that happened in the first novel.
Overall an amazing visual story with complex characters. Sad it is done.

Just Awful

Honestly, I have nothing good to say about this book. I really enjoyed "Stolen" and this sequel kinda ruined everything that was good about that story. There is nothing likeable or sympathetic about these characters. Gemma has no personality beyond kidnapped trauma. In 10 years she has made no progress whatsoever, and she doesn't even want to try. She whines and vassilates between wanting to kill Ty and wanting to sleep with him. She talks about desperately needing a release from Ty and what happened to her, but moons over him and the wilds of Australia. She simultaneously wants a normal life and despises a normal life. She has zero introspection, no realizations about herself, her life, or what she wants. She just blindly follows every bizarre impulse she has and expects to feel better. On to Ty, don't expect the rugged, nature loving artist. He's been reduced to a slimy drug addict/dealer. Despite being hopeless and uninterested, he still comes across as the more sensible. I feel like the author was trying to defy expectations and make this book edgy, but this wasn't the place for that. She could have told virtually the same story, but made the characters more. They could have learned from their individual traumas, even if it caused them to be twisted and damaged, but still have grown, progressed. I really enjoy role reversal stories, but this one was wholey unsatisfying.