Amazon.com.au:Customer reviews: In an Instant

Reviewed in Australia on 3 February 2021

Didn’t think I was going to like this book at first, but it becomes more interesting after the accident. Two families plus two others are in a van heading for some fun in the snow when a stag on the road sends them crashing down the mountain side. The driver father is badly injured. His daughter in front dies and from then on becomes a ghostly fly on the wall reporter on the aftermath. Some good and some bad choices are made. Some truth is fudged. There is guilt and self recrimination as well as bravery and we can’t help but consider what we would do in such a situation. The two marriages are severely tested and the author makes the point that - sadly - it is the people with the least amount of conscience who suffer the least, unburdened by regret. The author has made good choices in her characters and the psychic lines that tie them together. (Or which loosen.)

Other points raised: is one death better than two? What is it okay to do when your own biological instinct to survive is running you, especially if you’re a parent? How would our beloved dead prefer us to react? If you’re in loco parentis, what obligations do you have to the child who is not your own? The author tells us in an afterword that in a similar situation in her young life, her father ran to get help. The remaining father rubbed the hands and feet of his own children but not hers and her brother’s, which led to her brother losing some digits to frostbite, as in this story. An interesting and thought provoking read.

One person found this helpful

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Leonie Lynch

So So Good!!

Reviewed in Australia on 12 February 2020

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What a great story. I enjoyed every minute I spent reading it. Generally I would not think that writing from a teenage point of view would be something I would like but wow.........this was excellent. The fall out after an accident was incredible and I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a story about the dynamics within families. A truly wonderful read - did not want it to end.

2 people found this helpful

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Lisa Bacon-Hall

Ghostly

Reviewed in Australia on 20 January 2021

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Loved this book, it reminded me of The Lovely Bones...a death and then the dead person becomes the narrator. Relationships are handled well, great insight into trauma after an accident. It was sad but also uplifting.

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Patricia

Twists and turns

Reviewed in Australia on 13 May 2020

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Interesting view of the repercussions of a serious accident. Held my interest beginning to end.

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A MOVING NARRATIVE 4.5 STARS

Reviewed in Australia on 20 June 2020

'In an Instant' is a story about one person's unique observations of the various actions and reactions of family (and others) following a life changing, dreadful accident. The observer is sixteen year old Finn, as she oversees and processes the various human emotions that follow the tragedy, including: survival, guilt, bereavement and reconciliation.

The author's approach to telling the narrative (and I won't give too much away) is very moving, as we readers also experience what Finn sees and feels, along with her own sense of helplessness. Through Finn, we witness the unpacking of this deeply character-based plot and the unfolding of the stages of grief, as well as secrets and revelations.

Given the insightful writing, I wasn't surprised to find that author, Suzanne Redfearn, had experienced a similar circumstance as a younger person. In turn, that experience inspired her to write 'In an Instant'.

I'm not sure if the book will be appreciated by everyone, as it is frankly, very sad, but it's also touching, heartfelt and well-written.

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Debbie Harris

Oh my goodness, this story hit a nerve!

Reviewed in Australia on 20 March 2021

This was so close to what happened to me when I was 16 on a school excursion overseas. On a wet and stormy night the bus we were on skidded off the winding road, rolled down a cliff, landing upside down in a river. I was thrown out of the bus as it rolled down the embankment suffering injuries and concussion. I made my way down to the river and helped aid people as they were rescued from the upside down submerged bus. Then I made my way with some of the others, up the cliff to get help. Three people, two of them students, died that night and many of the others, including teachers, were badly injured. I returned home, attended funerals, sought medical attention for the glass embedded throughout my body and went back to school for my final year exams- without any help, counselling or much support, apart from family and friends, it was as if it never happened in some ways Although this all happened to me over 40 years ago, I can still remember it vividly and this book brought it all back again in an instant. I couldn’t stop reading and despite the story being different, I could relate to it so much. The drunk bus diver (I didn’t learn this until later), the fear, the sadness, the depth of my feelings and the sheer resilience I found in myself to continue on, to make the most of my life, to live boldly and use it as a positive rather than dwell on the negatives. A friend read this book, and knowing some of my story, she said it made her think of me at the time. I was in two minds about reading it but I’m so glad I did. I copied so many of the quotes as they could have related to my story. I didn’t write about this accident until a few years and this has helped me too.

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Yorkshire Lass

Fantastic story that takes you on an emotional journey

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 February 2020

Verified Purchase

I was lucky enough to receive this book free as part of Amazon First Reads.

The book's own blurb does a very good job of explaining the story, so I won't be able to add much there, without spoiling the plot.

In an Instant takes you on an extremely emotional journey, with the story told from Finn's perspective, the girl who dies in the horrendous accident (that's not a spoiler - it's in the blurb). All of the decisions made in the accident play out over time and the reader sees the consequences of every one of them. And boy, some of the those decisions have terrible consequences.
You are taken through the aftermath, seeing what each character does next. Again, some people make better decisions than others.

What I found so amazing was the author's note at the end of the story (DON'T READ IT, UNLESS YOU HAVE FINISHED THE BOOK - SPOILERS).
It details the story behind In an Instant and I implore you to read it when you have finished the book. Don't just skip it. You need to read it.

Anyway, it was a brilliant, entertaining, emotional read. I read it over two sessions, as I couldn't put it down.
I hope that you enjoy it too.

5 people found this helpful

Fiona Girvin

Heartbreaking, sad but reviting book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 February 2021

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When 16 year old Finn is on a trip away with her family and best friend, tragedy strikes leaving Finn dead in an instant. So begins our journey with Finn while she watches and hopes and waits for the others to be rescued and the devastation her death and the accident causes for everyone she loves. She sees how some are strong and silently do what it takes to survive while others are selfish and only think of themselves. Everyone will be changed forever by their actions, and lack of, in some cases.
I loved everything about this book and while it was heartbreaking, it was also reviting and really makes you think. We all assume we would do the right thing and help in this situation but we don't really know and at the end of the day ,no one will look after your children like they would their own. A must read book. I highly recommend it.

2 people found this helpful

MO

5* read I loved t

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 January 2021

Verified Purchase

Superb. This is a new author to me and I was a little unsure whether this would be my type of book but I’m so glad I took the chance. What a beautiful story, told so sensitively, of life after a horrendous experience. Family and friends whose lives are destroyed as they come to terms with their actions on that fateful night when their van leaves the road in a terrible accident leaving them stranded in severe weather. It is told from the interesting perspective of one of the group who died and watches over loved ones as things develop in the months afterwards as everyone deals with the choices they made in terrible circumstances. Truths are revealed, lives fall apart. You think you know people, but do you? How would we react when faced with terrible choices ? A great read. Highly recommend

Ruju

Entertaining and enjoyable from start to end

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 4 September 2021

Verified Purchase

When I came across this as a Kindle Deal and read the blurb, at first I was going to give it a miss. Dead narrators are nothing new and it sometimes seems to me a convenient device for a lazy author. However, I read some of the reviews and decided to give it a try. When Finn dies in an accident but remains behind as an omniscient narrator, she takes the reader on a journey that reveals the truth of the other characters. Emotions are tugged in every way as through Finn we follow the other occupants of the camper van that rolled down a snowy hillside as they deal with the aftermath of the accident. There are one or two hiccups but overall Suzanne Redfearn handles her style choice well when it could easily have gone wrong. Entertaining and enjoyable from start to end.

5 star		57%
4 star		32%
3 star		9%
2 star		1%
1 star		1%

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