Tag: Psychological Thriller

Truth: for a majority of story, I had no idea where the plot was going. It took me in several different directions before ending at one heckuva spot.

Yeah, it was a pretty crazy ride.

Whenever there is a character who is perfect in all of the other character’s eyes, I am automatically suspicious about them. Are they really what they seem? Are they hiding something? Who is the person behind the public persona?

That was 100% true of how I felt about Gracie. But, also, how I grew to feel about Juliet. Let’s just say that there was an awful lot going on at almost any given time, and there always seemed to be an undercurrent that I was trying to catch.

I thought that the first part of the book was a little slow. I know that it was meant to introduce and solidify Gracie’s character, but when Juliet became such a big part of the story, it seemed a little sudden. I wish that there had been a little bit more on Juliet before she took more center stage. But that’s minor.

The author did a really good job of alternating perspectives between Gracie and Juliet so that the story was always being fully told. We got insights into both women’s frame of mind and motivations. Well…for the most part.

There were two things that stood out to me as possible themes. One was pretty obvious: “appearances are deceiving.” Are any of the characters who they portray to the others, or are they all hiding something?

The other one was more subtle, but I found it many places. It’s not so much a theme as a clever parallel. Simply put, Gracie’s tips and suggestions for cooking and housekeeping could also be applied to life.

For example, one such tip came in reference to baking: “So remember, to guarantee success don’t ever cut corners. And above all get your timings spot on.”

That could not have been more applicable to Gracie and Juliet’s situations as well.

There was one question in the book that I felt was never fully answered, but it may be that I just missed it. I don’t think I did, but it seemed to get lost in light of late revelations in the book.

It was a very good read, and the last third went really wonky in the best way. Stick with it, because the payoff is definitely worth it.

Author Bio:

Sam Hepburn read modern languages at Cambridge University and, after a brief spell in advertising, joined the BBC as a General Trainee. She worked as a documentary maker for twenty years and was one of the commissioners for the launch of BBC Four. Since then, she has written several books, including psychological thrillers Gone Before and Her Perfect Life, and novels for young adults and children. She won the 2017 CWA Margery Allingham Short Story award and has been nominated for several other prestigious prizes, including the CILIP Carnegie Medal for her YA thrillers.

Sam has worked and travelled widely in Africa and the Middle East, and is a trustee of the Kenyan’s children’s charity, I Afrika. She now lives in London with her husband and children.

I have to give kudos to the author on this one. I didn’t know what was going on or whose perspective to trust up until the very last page of the book – and even then, there was one more surprise.

Well done!

I thought that this was a well-plotted story that (for the most part) revealed information at just the right points in the story.

Maya was an interesting character. As a young adult, she could be considered an unreliable perspective. She also has no memories of the formative childhood event that is the center of the story.

What made her intriguing was that it was difficult to tell whether her lack of memories was due to the traumatic event or if there was something else in play. But was her indecision also the result of her age, or her of the lack of memories and the base that they would have formed.

I read her sections with particular interest because of that conundrum.

I also found Teresa to be a puzzle. There were times that I wasn’t sure of her actual role in Stephen’s life, which made me question her motives.

I did think that her personal story was a bit weak. It seemed as if it was only in place to give her a backstory. That being said, there were a few moments where I thought she might have had more to do with Maya’s past than was being revealed, so that actually turned into a nice red herring.

There were some portions that were slow and a lot of introspective musings that went a bit long, but I suppose they were necessary to lay the groundwork for the action that really took off in the last third of the book.

I do wish there had been a few more hints dropped early on about the resolution. That sounds like an awkward sentence, but I don’t want to reveal any plot points.

Let’s just say that some of the revelations were abrupt and I think a little more groundwork would have made them more intriguing. Still vague, but there it is.

Regardless, as I mentioned at the outset, this did keep me guessing and wondering up to the very end, so I would certainly recommend it.

Author Bio:

Wendy Clarke was a teacher until the small primary school where she worked closed down. Now she is a writer of psychological suspense but is also well known for her short stories and serials which regularly appear in national women’s magazines.

Wendy has two children and three step-children and lives with her husband, cat and step-dog in Sussex. When not writing, she is usually indulging in her passion for dancing, singing or watching any programme that involves food!

How to describe this one?

A lot of tension, a slow build up that creates distrust in the characters (for multiple reasons), a pivot to some crazy stuff, resulting in an ending that didn’t quite live up to the build.

I guess that’s it in a nutshell.

But that doesn’t do it justice.

I found Julia to be an unreliable character. I wasn’t sure if she was genuinely good or if she had ulterior motives. There were times when I thought she was putting on an act so she could “go along to get along” in her new job.

But I couldn’t tell if that act was because she was nervous due to her past experience or if she was the sinister one.

I’m not telling you which perspective is correct, if any.

It was clear, however, that Nathan had massive ulterior motives for many different things. He came across as somewhat of a caricature to me – successful plastic surgeon who everyone loves but who hides a darker side.

It reminded me of the television show “Nip/Tuck” quite a bit. If you’ve seen the show, you’ll understand. In fact, I pictured Julian McMahon as I read Nathan’s sections.

I did think the “men bad” was a bit heavy at times. The drunk ex-husband who shows up unannounced and unwanted more than a few times, the “good ol’ boy” network at the hospital. We get it – it’s tough for a woman in a man’s profession.

But is it really? I mean, Julia is pretty accomplished. Does there have to be that sense of she’s not good enough? Or she had ulterior motives at her previous job? It does get tiresome.

All in all, the build is what saves the book. The reader knows (because Julia tells us) that bad stuff happened in the past. But the past doesn’t always stay in the past.

So, you know that something is going to happen. The wait for that shoe to drop is delicious. I just wish it finished a little bit stronger. I would still recommend it though.

Author Bio:

Lucy has been writing psychological suspense novels since 2008, when her first bestseller – His Other Lover – was published. Since then her work has been translated into numerous languages.

Her gripping books jump in at the deep end… the extraordinary things that can happen to ordinary couples, families and friends with devastating conclusions.

Might as well tell the truth here – the second I read the last page, I put my Kindle down and said, “Holy crap…wtf was that?”

And I mean that in the best possible way.

Seriously, what started out as a seemingly straightforward “who is telling the truth” psych thriller ended in a cacophony of revelations and…yes…wtf moments.

From the very beginning, Vivien was an unreliable narrator. Not that she was flaky, in fact, quite the opposite. She was extremely well-put-together. Almost too much so. It seemed to me that she was hiding something.

The same could be said about Ashton. Again, very put together, well-respected neurosurgeon, pillar of the community…you just know that it’s all too good to be true. Somebody has to be not what they seem…but who?

The further into the book I went, I still had the feeling that something wasn’t quite right. I thought that maybe it had to do with the façade that she was upholding regarding her marriage.

Turns out I was only part right about that.

At almost exactly half-way through the book there was a revelation that turned pretty much everything on its ear. The first part of the book was clarified and from then on, it became a roller coaster of those aforementioned “WTF moments.”

I liked how the book was divided in this manner. It pretty much tore the rug out from underneath me. In retrospect, the first half was setting the scene of psychopathy (but on whose part?) and the second half was the application of that.

I will say that there were a couple of things that didn’t ring true to me in the first half of the book. Even after finishing, with all of the secrets being unraveled, I’m still not sure they entirely worked. But I did gain a better understanding of why those were what they were.

Purposely vague there…sorrynotsorry.

I’m not going to give away spoilers (anyone who has read my reviews knows how I hate them). But I will say that when you think you have a character figured out, you don’t.

When you think you know someone’s motivations, you don’t.

When you think you have the bigger picture, you don’t.

And if you assume this is a run-of-the-mill psych thriller, you’re wrong.

There are surprises right up until quite literally the very last page. Definitely one of the most unique and intriguing books I’ve read in a while, and I highly recommend it. And while you’re at it, check out The Wife’s House – also a pretty good psych thriller.

Author Bio:

Arianne Richmonde is the USA TODAY bestselling author of the psychological thriller, THE WIFE’S HOUSE (released by Bookouture Aug 24, 2020) and suspense and romance. Her Pearl series has sold more than half a million copies worldwide. Her stories are always character-driven and full of unexpected twists and turns.

When not writing about the passions and fragilities of human nature, she loves to spend time with her husband and their animals, including a femme fatale Husky with one blue eye and one golden eye. Arianne’s a chocaholic and sometimes sneaks off to sunny, exotic locations, all in the name of research.