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Midge (525 KP) rated The Perfect Betrayal in Books
Mar 16, 2019
A Perfect Thriller!
This book has all of the qualities of the perfect psychological thriller. Deftly layered with emotion and suspense it starts off fairly slowly but the tension builds into a dramatic sequence of events.
The story is told predominantly from the point of view of the main character, Tess, along with snippets from her grief counsellor and brother-in-law. Tess’ conversations that she had with her late husband were heart-breaking. It was an incredibly emotionally charged book, well written and beautifully plotted and so cleverly constructed to help conceal major reveals in the natural progression of the story.
“The Perfect Betrayal” is my favourite type of psychological thriller - where the voices and thoughts of the characters and the reader’s own imagination complement the story. From the beginning, it is an absorbing and riveting novel as well as being massively addictive. The main protagonist, Tess, did not know who to trust and nor did I.
Highly recommended, this is a sad and harrowing story of grief, love and loss, with a fulfilling but shocking finish. Lauren North’s writing is just exquisite and I will be looking out for her next offering.
[Thank you to #NetGalley, Random House UK/ Transworld Publishers, and Lauren North for my free ARC of #ThePerfectBetrayal in exchange for an honest review.]
The story is told predominantly from the point of view of the main character, Tess, along with snippets from her grief counsellor and brother-in-law. Tess’ conversations that she had with her late husband were heart-breaking. It was an incredibly emotionally charged book, well written and beautifully plotted and so cleverly constructed to help conceal major reveals in the natural progression of the story.
“The Perfect Betrayal” is my favourite type of psychological thriller - where the voices and thoughts of the characters and the reader’s own imagination complement the story. From the beginning, it is an absorbing and riveting novel as well as being massively addictive. The main protagonist, Tess, did not know who to trust and nor did I.
Highly recommended, this is a sad and harrowing story of grief, love and loss, with a fulfilling but shocking finish. Lauren North’s writing is just exquisite and I will be looking out for her next offering.
[Thank you to #NetGalley, Random House UK/ Transworld Publishers, and Lauren North for my free ARC of #ThePerfectBetrayal in exchange for an honest review.]
Christine A. (965 KP) rated The Family Upstairs in Books
Jan 13, 2020
I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.
Although I marked several of Lisa Jewell's works "want to read", I never got around to picking up one of her books. I was excited to be given the opportunity to review her latest, "The Family Upstairs".
As of 12/3/19, it has a 4.05 out of 5 with almost 14,000 ratings. Maybe it was due to my wanting to read her books for years or the high rating but to say I was disappointed would be an understatement.
It is billed as a mystery/thriller. I may have enjoyed it if I had just considered it as a work of fiction, without the mystery/thriller label. I did not connect with the characters or with the story. I think this is mostly because I kept waiting for the mystery/thriller to begin.
The book itself was a quick read. Some reviewers had difficulty keeping track of the characters and the timeline. I did not and thought was easy to keep track.
I know most of this review is not exactly positive but I still plan to read another book by Lisa Jewell. I hope it was just this book I did not connect with and not the author.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 1/12/20.
Although I marked several of Lisa Jewell's works "want to read", I never got around to picking up one of her books. I was excited to be given the opportunity to review her latest, "The Family Upstairs".
As of 12/3/19, it has a 4.05 out of 5 with almost 14,000 ratings. Maybe it was due to my wanting to read her books for years or the high rating but to say I was disappointed would be an understatement.
It is billed as a mystery/thriller. I may have enjoyed it if I had just considered it as a work of fiction, without the mystery/thriller label. I did not connect with the characters or with the story. I think this is mostly because I kept waiting for the mystery/thriller to begin.
The book itself was a quick read. Some reviewers had difficulty keeping track of the characters and the timeline. I did not and thought was easy to keep track.
I know most of this review is not exactly positive but I still plan to read another book by Lisa Jewell. I hope it was just this book I did not connect with and not the author.
This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 1/12/20.
Sarah (7800 KP) rated Kill Process in Books
Jan 16, 2020
An impressive techie thriller
I wasn't entirely sure what to make of this story to begin with and from an author I've never heard of before, but this is actually a very good, immensely detailed techie thriller.
Hertling has an enthralling writing style and manages to keep a decent pace throughout, and the huge amount of detail that he has put into the technology side of this book is rather impressive. From the detail around the social networks and tech startups to the tools and abilities of a hacker, this really spares nothing when it comes to the descriptions of Angie's world and skills. Admittedly even for a fairly able techie myself, this maybe goes a little overboard on the detail side, but that's preferable than being too vague! Angie herself is an interesting protagonist and pretty likeable, although I did find her actions a tad irritating at parts. I did appreciate though how well this managed to integrate domestic abuse into a tech thriller.
My biggest gripe is with the ending. Angie's actions were a little predictable and over the top, and I was expecting a big reveal or twist that never came. Still despite the ending, this is still an very good read and would definitely recommend to anyone especially if you're into your technology.
Hertling has an enthralling writing style and manages to keep a decent pace throughout, and the huge amount of detail that he has put into the technology side of this book is rather impressive. From the detail around the social networks and tech startups to the tools and abilities of a hacker, this really spares nothing when it comes to the descriptions of Angie's world and skills. Admittedly even for a fairly able techie myself, this maybe goes a little overboard on the detail side, but that's preferable than being too vague! Angie herself is an interesting protagonist and pretty likeable, although I did find her actions a tad irritating at parts. I did appreciate though how well this managed to integrate domestic abuse into a tech thriller.
My biggest gripe is with the ending. Angie's actions were a little predictable and over the top, and I was expecting a big reveal or twist that never came. Still despite the ending, this is still an very good read and would definitely recommend to anyone especially if you're into your technology.
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Molly J (Cover To Cover Cafe) (106 KP) rated Schoolgirl Missing in Books
Mar 15, 2019
Palm Sweaty Thriller!
Holy Smokes. That's all I can say to start this review off with. Sue Fortin is a new-to-me author. I was browsing for some thriller novels to review and saw the cover of this one. It caught my eye. So, I proceeded to do something I don't often do. That's read the blurb. I read the blurb, dropped my jaw, sent it to my Kindle and devoured it. I don't mean I devoured it in one sitting. It was through a few sittings. Because with this book, I had to keep stopping to process all that I read, to pick the bones, so to speak.
This isn't your normal psych thriller. This is so much more. Poppy, Neve, Kit, and all the other characters that come to light in this story will have your heart pounding, your hands sweaty and your seat tipping from being on the edge of it for so long through the story. This is a story about a family. Not an ordinary family. A family full of secrets. A family that takes a trip, and has the unexpected happen, and only one person in this book, knows the absolute truth of what happened to Poppy.....and why.
Just when I thought I had it figured out, just when I thought I knew who was getting their way in the story, Fortin through another twist and left me back pedaling to figure it out all over again. That's the kind of writing that makes a phenomenal thriller novel. So many peaks, only to have so many twists thrown at you to leave you wondering just what exactly is going on and who did it.
By the end of this 5 star thriller, I was ready for another. This book is filled with intensity like I haven't read in a while. It is, by far, one of the best books I've read this year. If you are looking for a novel that will make you sweat, make you mad, make you turn the pages long into the night, then I highly recommend this novel. This is an author who has quickly made me a fan and I absolutely can not wait until another intricately written novel is released by her. Well done, Fortin!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harper Collins, NetGalley and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
This isn't your normal psych thriller. This is so much more. Poppy, Neve, Kit, and all the other characters that come to light in this story will have your heart pounding, your hands sweaty and your seat tipping from being on the edge of it for so long through the story. This is a story about a family. Not an ordinary family. A family full of secrets. A family that takes a trip, and has the unexpected happen, and only one person in this book, knows the absolute truth of what happened to Poppy.....and why.
Just when I thought I had it figured out, just when I thought I knew who was getting their way in the story, Fortin through another twist and left me back pedaling to figure it out all over again. That's the kind of writing that makes a phenomenal thriller novel. So many peaks, only to have so many twists thrown at you to leave you wondering just what exactly is going on and who did it.
By the end of this 5 star thriller, I was ready for another. This book is filled with intensity like I haven't read in a while. It is, by far, one of the best books I've read this year. If you are looking for a novel that will make you sweat, make you mad, make you turn the pages long into the night, then I highly recommend this novel. This is an author who has quickly made me a fan and I absolutely can not wait until another intricately written novel is released by her. Well done, Fortin!
*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harper Collins, NetGalley and was under no obligation to post a review, positive or negative.*
