I found the description of Leila taking over absolutely fascinating. This is ludicrous (and there is a question of computers identifying locations, which is never addressed) but that didn’t matter, it was such a flat-out great concept that I was quite happy to go along with it. So: Leila is to take over all Tess’s online activities, particularly Facebook and email, and pretend to be her, talking to her friends and describing a new life abroad.

As a result of this she is asked – by the very sinister Adrian - if she will help another woman: one who wants to commit suicide, but would like to do so without her family and friends knowing.

The concept has been widely described and discussed: Leila, a lonely young woman without much of a life, but with some computer expertise, gets involved in a strange online forum. But actually it’s tremendous stuff, and if I could I would have read it in one sitting. That all leaves me very straight-faced indeed, and I was in no hurry to read Kiss Me First. The author is the daughter of Deborah Moggach, a very successful author and screenwriter – perhaps best-known for the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (book and now two films) – and this book was described as a new kind of thriller, tackling life online, and ‘a much-anticipated debut.’ Observations: This is a book I was happy to be proved wrong about. I don’t have any interest in clothes and didn’t know what she was talking about most of the time – vintage Ossie, my old Dries top – but I quite enjoyed it, too. Tess seemed to enjoy the session, happily rummaging through her stuff, holding things up for my opinion, exclaiming with delight as she chanced upon a favourite jacket she thought she’d lost. She then emailed them over for me to check.

Once dressed, I directed her how to use the self-timer on her camera to take photos of herself wearing various outfits against a blank wall in her room, in a variety of poses. Once we had agreed on certain outfits, suitable for different seasons and weather conditions, she put them on… One evening I asked her to show me the clothes in her wardrobe, and she positioned the laptop on the side of the bed and pulled them out, one by one, holding them up against her. I also decided that we should take photos of Tess for me to later superimpose on scenes of wherever it was she was going, to post on Facebook.

Kiss me first by lottie moggach