Many thanks to Tracy Fenton for inviting me to take part in the blog tour for ‘Control’ by Hugh Montgomery, and thank you to Zaffre Books for the ARC via Netgalley. I am delighted to be reviewing this book for my stop on the tour today. Enjoy!
Renowned surgeon Michael Trenchard locks his office door and prepares for a relaxing evening. But what follows is a living nightmare when later he is discovered in a locked-in coma, the victim of an auto-erotic asphyxiation.
It is left to Doctor Kash Devan, Trenchard’s young protégé, to uncover the truth. And what he discovers is chilling . . .
In his ruthless pursuit of wealth and success, Trenchard has left a trail of wrecked lives, and angry people, behind him. Which of Trenchard’s victims hated him so much that they wanted to ruin not only his reputation, but his life as well?
Not all doctors are heroes . . .
What does TWG think?
Goodness me – I have never, EVER read a book like this before! A book which was so gripping, yet mindblowingly farfetched at times, I just simply couldn’t tear my eyes away.
I didn’t dislike the book, in fact, I really did enjoy it. However, certain eventualities within the storyline were a bit too unbelievable at times, and my enjoyment dipped ever so slightly because of that. I am fully aware that ‘Control’ is the work of fiction and the author is well within their right to overuse their imagination wherever they see fit and, seeing as I have my own overactive imagination at times, I don’t mind when situations go off on their own little tangent. To a point. There’s always that fine line, isn’t there?
Kash Devan is fresh meat, so to speak, and he finds himself under the wing of an exceptionally well known surgeon, Michael Trenchard. As far as Kash is concerned, as soon as he steps foot onto the various wards, the life and health of his patients take precedence over everything else. Did I mention he was under the wing of a well known surgeon? I never stated whether Trenchard was well known due to his positive actions, or whether he was well known because more people seemed to dislike him than genuinely like him…..
Let’s just say that Kash Devan’s mind was elsewhere due to the Chinese whispers around the hospital. Were they true, or were they purely fiction?
What I enjoyed most about ‘Control’ was how the author incorporates the reader into the storyline which enables them to form their own opinion of certain characters, as well as trying to work out who should be in the firing line, if anyone at all. It was as though Hugh Montgomery refused to steer his readers down his thought path in an obvious manner, even though deep down I knew that that was going to happen, simply because he knew what was going to happen and us readers could only attempt to guess.
The medical side of the book were incredibly eye-opening and very, very dark. Some of the descriptions are a teeny bit graphic, however the book isn’t full of scenes which would make you chuck up your previous meal. At times I thought that there was a lot of medical jargon which flew over my head, but I just went with the flow as ‘Control’ is centred around medicine due to it being predominantly set in a hospital. That said, if you’re wanting to feel as though you could go on and become a doctor right after finishing read this, kudos to the medical jargon!
‘Control’ is a compulsive, complex and psychologically twisted novel which kept on surprising me and left me in a false sense of security. I thought that the characters were brilliantly written, each adding their own dynamics to the overall vibe of the book.
I really do recommend picking up ‘Control’ if you’re a fan of dark, medical reads – just not straight after eating food….
The Writing Garnet 