REVIEW: Stormy Skies at the Beach Hotel by Francesca Capaldi

 

Stormy Skies at the Beach Hotel (The Beach Hotel #5) by Francesca Capaldi

Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas, WW1

Read: 15th June 2025

Goodreads

Amazon

Published: 5th June 2025

**Due to falling sick I was unable to read and review this book in time for my date of the tour - 9th June.**

DESCRIPTION:

A new arrival at the Beach Hotel spells trouble

Chambermaid Fanny is thanking her lucky stars she has had a second chance at life. As an unmarried mother, it could have been very different and she is happy.

But when new maid, Susie, arrives at the Beach Hotel, it isn't long before sparks fly. Susie begins to meddle in Fanny's friendships and even in her budding romance with Walter, an American working at the aerodrome.

Meanwhile, a flu epidemic starts to spread and as more people fall ill, the hotel is forced to close.

Matters come to a head when Susie plots to reveal secrets about Fanny that could spell her ruin.

Can the hotel and the hardworking women who run it survive?

An uplifting, emotional WW1 saga perfect for fans of Ginny Bell and Jean Fullerton

MY THOUGHTS:

She has a second chance...now she she might lose everything...

Are we on Book 5 already? This has to be one of my favourite series and the setting is just superb - on the West Sussex coast of Littlehampton in the stunning Beach Hotel on the waterfront promenade. Throughout this series, we have seen the comings and goings as war was declared and the men shipped off to the Front with the women remaining to keep the home fires burning. And in this case, the Beach Hotel running. Each story is a standalone but to get the bigger picture of all involved, I do recommend reading the whole series.

1918: War has been raging in Europe for four years now and at last it looks as though the end is in sight. For Fanny (Francine) Bullen, head chambermaid at the Beach Hotel, it couldn't come quick enough. But that in itself brings its own drawbacks for young Fanny.

We first met Fanny as a young girl of 18 having left the workhouse in which she called home for eleven years and gaining employment as a maid (I can't remember which position she held back then). She was a rough diamond as life in the workhouse had been tough and you had to be tough to survive. But at the Beach Hotel, she had found she'd been given a second chance and after seven years she looked upon them all as a family. This was none so more true than when two years ago she found herself in the very difficult position of being pregnant, unmarried and abandoned by the baby's father. She had tried to hide her pregnancy for as long as she could, though even she wasn't aware of it for six months, but her family at the hotel were warm and welcoming of both her circumstances and the new baby she gave birth to alone in a storage cupboard.

Now two years later, the old Fanny is but a shadow of who she'd once been and now she has been given this second chance to start again. No one need know who little Elsie's father was. As far as anyone else was concerned, she'd lost him in the war. After all, so many lives had indeed been lost - why not him?

And then along the waterfront one day Fanny met Walter, an American who'd been tasked with helping to build the new aerodrome in nearby Rustington. Before long, the pair were arranging their afternoons off to coincide with the other so as to spend them together. But just as things begin to look on the up for young Fanny, her new-found happiness looks to be ruined with an unknown enemy in her midst.

Susie Shorn knew Fanny from the workhouse but she swore her to secrecy in menacing undertone. The last thing Susie wanted as people sticking their noses into her business. Of course, that didn't stop her from sticking her nose into theirs - that was quite a different matter altogether. Upon gaining the position of chambermaid, she was loathed to discover that she was to be working under Fanny whom she saw was no better than she was what with her past coming from the workhouse. Susie couldn't see what made Fanny any better than her - or why she deserved any better than she did. She listened at keyholes, in doorways and on the stairs, hoping to pick up any interesting tidbits that could be used to her advantage. And anything she could do to bring the snooty Fanny back down to size, pretending to be something she's not. She drove wedges between friends and set her sights on something better for herself - and all the while, she enjoyed every minute of havoc and heartbreak she created whilst pretending to be a friend. But then she made an error of judgement that she thought would mean a big payday for her to clear out and start somewhere new where no one knew her, but she wasn't as clever as she thought.

Meanwhile, it looks as though the war was indeed nearing its end and for Fanny that meant heartbreak as Walter would surely return home to America and she feared she would never see him again. And with the Spanish Flu striking so many down, how will they all survive? And will Fanny get her happy ever after?

There was so much going on in this book - from the war to the Spanish Flu to Fanny's romance with Walter to the unscrupulous Susie. But I enjoyed every minute of it and it was refreshing to hear Fanny's story at last. She's always been in the background as a troubled young girl from the workhouse. She has certainly grown over the course of the books into a lovely young woman. I was happy the book ended the way it did and not up in the air as it could well have. At least we got closure for those involved. And it was a wonderful story.

So we've had Edie, Lili, Helen, Hetty and now Fanny (I much prefer the name Francine) - I think it's Gertie's turn next and I would be interested to see what lay in store for her. And if she continues with the women's football now that the war is over. Already looking forward to the next one.

I would like to thank #FrancescaCapaldi, #Netgalley, #HeraBooks and #RachelsRandomResources for an ARC of #StormySkiesAtTheBeachHotel in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Francesca has enjoyed writing since she was a child. Born in Worthing, Sussex, and brought up in Littlehampton, she was largely influenced by a Welsh mother who was brilliant at improvised story telling.

A history graduate and qualified teacher, she decided to turn her writing hobby into something more in 2006, when she joined a writing class.

​Writing as both Francesca Capaldi and Francesca Burgess, she has had numerous short stories published in magazines in the UK and abroad, as well as in anthologies. Four pocket novels have been published by DC Thomson, one of which, Danger for Daisy, is available as an ebook.

Her Welsh World War 1 sagas were inspired by the discovery of her great grandfather's war record.  They are published by Hera Books

​She is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and the Society of Women Writers and Journalists. 

Francesca currently lives on the North Downs in Kent with her family and a cat called Lando Calrission.

Social media links:

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SPOTLIGHT: Stormy Skies at the Beach Hotel by Francesca Capaldi

Stormy Skies at the Beach Hotel (The Beach Hotel #5) by Francesca Capaldi

Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas, WW1

Goodreads

Amazon

Published: 5th June 2025

**Due to falling sick I have been unable to read and review this book in time for my date of the tour. I will review it as soon as I have finished reading just as soon as I recover from my bout of flu.**

DESCRIPTION:

A new arrival at the Beach Hotel spells trouble

Chambermaid Fanny is thanking her lucky stars she has had a second chance at life. As an unmarried mother, it could have been very different and she is happy.

But when new maid, Susie, arrives at the Beach Hotel, it isn't long before sparks fly. Susie begins to meddle in Fanny's friendships and even in her budding romance with Walter, an American working at the aerodrome.

Meanwhile, a flu epidemic starts to spread and as more people fall ill, the hotel is forced to close.

Matters come to a head when Susie plots to reveal secrets about Fanny that could spell her ruin.

Can the hotel and the hardworking women who run it survive?

An uplifting, emotional WW1 saga perfect for fans of Ginny Bell and Jean Fullerton

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Francesca has enjoyed writing since she was a child. Born in Worthing, Sussex, and brought up in Littlehampton, she was largely influenced by a Welsh mother who was brilliant at improvised story telling.

A history graduate and qualified teacher, she decided to turn her writing hobby into something more in 2006, when she joined a writing class.

​Writing as both Francesca Capaldi and Francesca Burgess, she has had numerous short stories published in magazines in the UK and abroad, as well as in anthologies. Four pocket novels have been published by DC Thomson, one of which, Danger for Daisy, is available as an ebook.

Her Welsh World War 1 sagas were inspired by the discovery of her great grandfather's war record.  They are published by Hera Books

​She is a member of the Romantic Novelists' Association and the Society of Women Writers and Journalists. 

Francesca currently lives on the North Downs in Kent with her family and a cat called Lando Calrission.

Social media links:

Wesbite | Blog | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads

REVIEW: The Bride's Secret by Rosie Walker

The Bride's Secret by Rosie Walker

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 3rd June 2025

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Amazon

Published: 4th June 2025

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

I gaze into my fiancé’s eyes as I toast to our love, relieved that tomorrow we’ll be married. After we say ‘I do’, no one from my past will ever be able to find me.

On our wedding day, I wake with a smile. Today I get to marry the love of my life. He may not know everything about me, but Robert and I fit perfectly together. I can’t wait to put on my perfect white gown and walk down the aisle.

In just a few hours, I’ll be his wife. And my secret will be hidden forever.

I turn to wake him up, but his eyes don’t open. There’s blood smeared across the white bed sheets, across his body, across my own trembling hands. My fiancé is dead.

It’s only then that I realize there’s a knife in my hand…

If you love Gone Girl, The Housemaid and The Girl on the Train, you won’t be able to put this absolutely gripping and addictive psychological thriller down. It’s sure to keep you turning the pages until late into the night.

MY THOUGHTS:

They say I killed him...but only I know the truth...or do I...?

Bride-to-be Maeve lovingly toasts her husband-to-be Robert on the eve of their wedding in front of their close family and friends. Tomorrow is their big day and after three decades as a lifelong happily unmarried woman, Maeve cannot wait. Robert is the love of her life and she cannot wait to be his wife. What could go wrong?

So when Maeve goes to sleep on the eve of their wedding, she wakes in the early hours just before dawn excited at the prospect of the day ahead. What she doesn't expect is to find her beloved fiance laying dead beside her covered in blood with wounds that she, as a martial arts instructor, would know how to inflict. Maeve knows that justice is rarely just and that with the scene before her, she will be arrested for a crime she knows she did not commit. Or did she? Maeve has battled with sleepwalking all her life. Did she do this to Robert in her sleep and not know about it? Either way, she isn't responsible and in a moment of madness she hurriedly packs a few items and escapes to a remote cottage. There, she attempts to come to terms with her grief whilst trying to unpick all that had happened and who could possibly be responsible for Robert's brutal murder.

In the alternating chapters we meet Gilly who is happily married to successful dentist Callum with two beautiful children, Jake (9) and Polly (6). Whilst she is mostly a stay-at-home-mum, she also volunteers for a mental health helpline. The job is thankless and arduous at times but she comes away feeling as though she has made a difference in others' lives at times when they have needed it most. One such caller has kept her on the line for over an hour, saying nothing and only sobbing before hanging up. When the caller calls again, it's pure luck that Gilly picks up the call (which are randomly allocated) and recognises the same sobbing she endured just the day or so before. But this time the caller speaks - to thank her for being there. And in that moment Gilly knows she has made a difference to this person, whoever she may be. So when she violates procedure and insinuates when she will next be on shift at the helpline, Gilly had no idea of the chain of events that she would unleash taking us all on a wild journey through the Scottish highlands.

Two women - two different stories. How do they intersect? 

Both women had a sense of hopelessness about them and yet one was doing something with her life while the other drove me mad with her inner self flagellation. I found it hard to sympathise with Maeve - apart from the fact that she was innocent and obviously being framed, so why did she flee? It only made her look guilty! But as we delved into her past and her backstory, we learnt why she did what she did, even though I thought her decision to run was stupid. However, if faced with such a prospect, I may well do the same. One never knows what one would do until they walk a mile in another's shoes. Now Gilly, I felt a whole load of sympathy for. Yes, she made a stupid decision in revealing something of herself to her caller which was not a smart move but Gilly had an air of naivete about her. Maeve does not. She is a strong woman.

The title had me a little puzzled. What exactly is the secret she is carrying? And is it enough to change the course of her life forever? Moving forward, both Maeve and Gilly wonder who they can really trust. After all, someone has surely betrayed both women. The question is - who? And what do they have in store for the women?

Two women - two vastly different lives and stories. How they connect is the biggest twist of the book - one which I easily worked out for myself as I did with the "who" behind it all (I don't think that was too hard to work out). But it didn't spoil my enjoyment of the story. As long as it's entertaining, I'm happy. In fact, I quite enjoy it when I am able to work out the twists - especially if they aren't predictable ones that leave others speechless. I don't look for the obvious but rather what isn't. Then I look for possible links that may be there or just alluded to. The major plot twist wasn't an easy guess so prepared to be shocked. The "who" wasn't hard to figure out but it is still surprising for those who don't expect it.

The ending chapters were a bit of a confused mess as the reader is thrown various pieces of information that we have to decipher which is reliable and which isn't...leaving us second guessing everything. Just who can these women really trust?

Another addictive read by Rosie Walker that is equally hard to put down.

I would like to thank #RosieWalker, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheBridesSecret in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Rosie gained a Masters in Creative Writing with distinction from the University of Edinburgh in 2011, where she learned to talk about writing over a gin and tonic, and accept critical feedback with grace.

She also has an undergraduate degree in Psychology from Lancaster University, where she learned how to pull an all-nighter to hit a deadline right at the last minute.

She lives in Edinburgh with her husband Kevin, daughter Elsie and their dog Bella.

Social Media links:

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REVIEW: Troubled Times at Harpers by Rosie Clarke

Troubled Times at Harpers (Harpers Emporium #9) by Rosie Clarke

Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas

Read: 27th May 2025

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Trouble’s brewing and times are changing. If you play with fire you may just get burnt!

London 1929

Torn between the love of his family life in London and a deathbed promise to an American relative, Ben Harper makes a fatal decision that may change the course of many lives.

Honour-bound, Ben remains in New York to investigate who is responsible for the suspected fraud, corruption and the department store's failings. His findings point towards organised crime and shadowy gangsters who will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Meanwhile Sally Harper and their children safely return home to oversee the smooth running of the thriving Harpers Emporium. With the help of Beth Burrows, Kitty Wilson, and Ruby Rush, Sally plans for an ever-changing future with the cards she’s been dealt.

Will Ben heed the deadly warnings before it’s too late or will his honourable promise bring despair to those he loves?

A tale of hope, dreams and survival set against an ever-changing era.

Perfect for fans of Lizzie Lane, Pam Howes and Dilly Court.

MY THOUGHTS:

Another delightful installment to the Harpers Emporium series although I found this one a little slower off the mark than previous ones in which I easily dived and devoured. It is still a fairly quick and easy read though it feels as though so many have come and gone with only a few of the originals left. I normally eagerly await a Harpers book but this one didn't feel as though it hit all the marks as previous ones. But that could just be me too.

The years is 1929 and Ben's aunt has summoned him back to America to take over her affairs during the course of her illness and in the event of her subsequent death. This of course takes him away from London and Harpers, though the latter is left in Sally's capable hands. She has promoted Kitty Wilson as her assistant and taken on a new secretary Ruby Rush.

Meanwhile Beth has new neighbours but there is something familiar about them but she isn't quite sure. She continues her several mornings work at Harpers whilst caring for her husband Jack, children and father in law Fred whom she has encouraged to return to Harpers on a part time basis since the loss of his wife.

Sally is busy running a household and the store, along with her many charities she patronises. A face from her past returns with some sobering news but is on hand to offer her assistance should she need it. Meanwhile she has her hands full with children Jenny and Peter and the ever-changing future before her. She hates being separated from Ben but he is honour-bound and hopes that they will soon be reunited.

There is love on the horizon for one or two of the Harpers girls but will anything come of it? And yet, troubled times are ahead of them. Will those concerned heed the warnings before it's too late? 

Unlike many previous books, Harpers features more of a backdrop than the feature but that's OK because the store is well established and is the heartbeat of all those who are employed there and those who walk through its doors. This is one of my favourite series and can't wait to see what's in store for them next. I'm especially interested in Ruby's story. And I did like that this one did not end on a cliffhanger.

I would like to thank #RosieClarke, #Netgalley, #BoldwoodBooks and #RachelsRandomResources for an ARC of #TroubledTimesAtHarpers in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Rosie Clarke has been writing for several years and has written under various names for a variety of publishers.  She lives in Cambridgeshire, is happily married and enjoys life with her husband.  She likes to walk in the Spanish sunshine and eating out at favourite restaurants in Marbella is a favourite pastime, but writing is her passion.

Rosie loves shoes, especially those impossibly high heels you can buy and has a gorgeous pair of Jimmy Choos but can't wear them so they sit on the mantlepiece.

Rosie also writes under the name of Anne Herries and Linda Sole.

 

Social Media links:

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Stay up to date with upcoming releases from Boldwood Books by following them on these social media accounts.

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REVIEW: The Mother by Valerie Keogh

The Mother by Valerie Keogh

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 25th May 2025

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Amazon

Published: 27th June 2024

★★★★★ 4.5 stars (rounded up)

DESCRIPTION:

A terrible wife...

Sarah Westfield is unhappily married to perfect husband Nick. Handsome, devoted and kind, he should be the ideal man for her, but Sarah knows their marriage is the biggest mistake she’s ever made…and she wants out.

But then Nick offers her one last chance to make their marriage work – a baby.

Sarah is horrified – a baby would tie herself to this man forever…wouldn’t it? Or could it be exactly what she needs?

So Sarah agrees.

A terrible mother?

When the baby arrives, Sarah struggles with motherhood and her resentment towards Nick only grows. Sarah feels more trapped than ever, but she loves her precious daughter...doesn’t she?

And then baby Kaya goes missing...

And everything Sarah has ever believed in comes crashing down around her...

Don't miss another page-turning, nail-biting read from the queen of psychological thrillers, Valerie Keogh! Perfect for fans of J.A. Baker, Keri Beevis and Nina Manning.

MY THOUGHTS:

Be careful what you wish for...

It's been awhile since I read a Valerie Keogh thriller (because some could be hit or miss) but I needn't have worried. This one is a definite hit! I don't know what I was expecting going in except maybe a slow start (which is usually Keogh's way) and yes, it was a slow burn to start but boy did it pick up pace into a fast-moving narrative! And while it did venture into crazy land a tad towards the end, it was still believeable, readable and thrillingly enjoyable! Even if none of the characters were all that likeable. Really, they weren't.

Sarah is a thirty eight year old GP married to Nick. Unhappily married, I might add. And with the distance Nick has been keeping lately, Sarah is sure Nick feels the same way. They met and married after a whirlwind romance, her on the rebound of a three year relationship to who she felt had been the love of her life. But six months later, she and Nick are married and are a happy...for a while. Now she dreads returning to the flat they chose together each night, stopping at a pub on the way and numbing her senses with a double vodka before going home. 

But when Nick suggests they have a baby, instead of saying how she really feels, Sarah stupidly agrees hoping she won't fall pregnant. After all, her biological clock is ticking. But she does. And she has a rough time of it. But at the end of it all, baby Kaya is born and she is perfect. Nick is sputtering platitudes of how beautiful and perfect she is while Sarah struggles to find any emotion for this screaming bundle she just ejected from her body.

Naturally, as the reader would expect, things do not improve - neither for Nick and Sarah or for Kaya and Sarah. She does not love her husband and she cannot feel any love for her baby daughter either. Can things possibly get any worse for her? She wanted out before a baby was added to the mix; and nothing has changed. If anything, she wants out more than anything. She wished she wasn't married to Nick and she wished she never had a baby. She wished both of them would disappear...and she could continue her life and maybe fulfil her dream of becoming a country GP.

So when baby Kaya is kidnapped (rather stupidly, by all accounts), Nick is understandable distraught since he's the one who has doted on her from the beginning; he's the one who wanted her. But Sarah is detached. It's hard to find any emotion on the woman who has just had her three week baby daughter kidnapped from under their noses and yet there is none. None that the police could see, at any rate. Which naturally raises their suspicions. But Sarah was trapped in a marriage she felt stifled in to a man she didn't love and it was clear she was suffering post natal depression. Wasn't it?

The author cleverly weaves a tangled web of lies and deception, manipulating not only her characters but also her readers' opinions of the main characters. One could be forgiven for feeling at first sympathy for Sarah before becoming frustrated with her and then suspicious of her motives and behaviour. As frustrating as Sarah was, I could relate to her not wanting a child despite her husband thrusting the choice upon her. And then when she loses that child her emotions are even more confused. Did she want her baby to just disappear? Or is it a case of "don't know what you have until it's gone?" and she is inwardly distraught at what's happened but feels she doesn't deserve the right to grieve because she never wanted her in the first place? Emotions are complex and are running high in this incredibly emotive and deceptive tale.

The narrative included one of Sarah's confused state, the police investigation into the abduction and the perspective of an unknown character peppered in between. Together, it weaves a deceptive tale that is both complex and clever. Keogh cleverly manipulates her readers to the point we are second guessing every move and every twist right up to the shocking end.

Admittedly, I had begun to piece it all together with Zoe-Lee and Sarah completing the picture before the next big reveal - no, Keogh wasn't finished with us yet!

Very clever, very addictive and very twisted. A must for psychological thriller fans!

I would like to thank #ValerieKeogh, #Netgalley and #BoldwoodBooks for an ARC of #TheMother in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Valerie Keogh is the internationally bestselling author of several psychological thrillers and crime series, most recently published by Bloodhound. She originally comes from Dublin but now livesin Wiltshire and worked as a nurse for many years. Her first thriller for Boldwood will be published in August 2022.

Social Media links:

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REVIEW: Your Husband's Fault by Kerry Wilkinson

Your Husband's Fault by Kerry Wilkinson

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 24th May 2025

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Amazon

Published: 12th May 2025

★★★★ 3.5 stars (rounded up)

DESCRIPTION:

A girl went missing. Was it your husband’s fault?

Sarah is so happy to have moved from the city to her husband’s small hometown. James was strangely reluctant at first – but she convinced him their little cottage is the perfect place to settle down. The perfect place to give their six-year-old son a new life.

But then a woman at the school gates asks Sarah if she is really married to ‘that man’. ‘Which man?’ Sarah asks. The woman replies…

‘Don’t you know what your husband did?’

Because Sarah and James moving back has caused old wounds to surface. James’ best friend, Lucy, went missing 20 years ago. Everyone thinks he was responsible.

Sarah is reeling. Why did James never tell her about Lucy? What really happened to the missing girl?

And can Sarah ever trust the man she married again?

An utterly addictive psychological thriller that will keep you up reading late into the night. Perfect for fans of Shari Lapena, Lisa Jewell and T.M. Logan.

MY THOUGHTS:

A girl went missing...is it your husband's fault...?

A small town, small minded gossip and plenty of secrets is what fills this tale of tangled webs. Like the main character, it's hard to know who the reader can trust with all the allegations and stories flying about. But what exactly is going on?

This one is a bit of a slow burn and takes a while to ramp up a bit but my interest held enough to keep me turning that pages, at least. I was certainly left guessing that's for sure and the visit to Carnington in this tale of woe was tinged with a bit of mystery that is enough to keep the reader ploughing on. The pace is slow to steady so don't expect any fast paced adrenaline-fuelled thrill rides here. It's more a walking pace through the village.

We meet Sarah who has recently moved to the village from the fast paced London with her husband James and young son Oliver. But with James currently working in New York, the move was left to Sarah and her father, whilst introductions at the school gate were made in his absence. It's there, after dropping Oliver off one day, that Sarah meets Pamela who is full of questions of the new mum in their midst. But the moment Sarah discloses her husband grew up there and mentions his name, Pamela's face pales. 

"I just don't understand how you can be married to that man," she says. "Don't you know what your husband did?"

Sarah is speechless and at a loss as to what to say. What is she talking about? What is he supposed to have done? But before she could elicit any kind of answer, Pamela moves away to the huddle of other mums christened "the coven". Their whispers and sidelong glances her way spoke volumes. Sarah hurries home and wishes James was there for her to question. This is not something she could drop via a text or even FaceTime. No, it has to be in person. James will be home in two days at the most; she'll ask him then. But then so much happens in between. Their garden wall is vandalised, threats are made and Sarah is sure everyone is whispering about her and what her husband is supposed to have done. 

Since no one is forthcoming with answers, she decides to dig for them herself. Especially after a visit by the man who claimed her husband killed his daughter over thirty years before. She refused to believe it. She knew her husband; they'd been together twelves years - she'd know. Wouldn't she? But at least now she had a name and a few pieces of information to do some digging herself. 

But the more she uncovers, the more she wonders how much she really knows her husband? And when James returns from New York, things only serve to get weirder. There's a murder and a fire and a whole host of secrets that lay buried in midst of Carnington that are just bubbling beneath the surface. And all eyes and fingers are pointing to James.

There was a lot to unpack in this one but at the end it still ended up a ball of tangled mess. I didn't like the ending as it was too open-ended and not clear-cut. What are we supposed to think? There were also a few questions that were left unanswered and to me that is an unsatisfactory end. However, it was an interesting tale that had the potential to be better but it was still a good read that I largely enjoyed.

It is a slow burn, so don't expect the pace to be anything but a walking pace till it starts to get a little more interesting. The main mystery in the story was very easily solved and I even I had that pegged early on. But the biggest twist was a good one though I felt it could have packed a bit more of a punch that it did. 

Overall, not an excellent read but a good solid one that keeps the reader engaged and interested throughout. The ending and the pace throughout does let it down a little.

I would like to thank #KerryWilkinson, #Netgalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #YourHusbandsFault in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Kerry Wilkinson has had No.1 crime bestsellers in the UK, Australia, Canada, South Africa and Singapore. He has also written two top-20 thrillers in the United States. His book, Ten Birthdays, won the RNA award for Young Adult Novel of the Year in 2018 and Close To You won the International Thriller Award for best ebook in 2020.

As well as his million-selling Jessica Daniel series, Kerry has written the Silver Blackthorn trilogy - a fantasy-adventure serial for young adults - a second crime series featuring private investigator Andrew Hunter, plus numerous standalone novels. He has been published around the world in more than a dozen languages.

Originally from the county of Somerset, Kerry spent way too long living in the north of England, picking up words like 'barm' and 'ginnel'.

When he's short of ideas, he rides his bike, hikes up something, or bakes cakes. When he's not, he writes it all down.

Social Media links:

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Stay up to date with upcoming releases from Bookouture by following them on these social media accounts.

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REVIEW: My Secret Ex by Daniel Hurst

My Secret Ex by Daniel Hurst

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 20th May 2025

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Amazon

Published: 12th April 2025

★★★ 3 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Some secrets never stay buried...

When I met Dermot, I was finally ready to move on from my troubled past. He seemed like a great guy - funny, charming, handsome - and he was the man I felt I deserved. He was nothing like my ex...

My relationship with my previous boyfriend, Carlton, has been over for years, but that doesn't mean it's been easy to forget about him. Not with how it ended. But I've tried my best. I've also tried my best to make sure my new man does not know about him. It's safer that way...

But as my relationship with Dermot deepens, my past with Carlton begins to intertwine and suddenly, my secret ex is not so secret anymore. Now we're all in danger - me, my son, my new boyfriend - everybody

A fast-paced and twist-filled psychological thriller from the author of The Couple's Revenge, The Baby Swap and the #1 bestseller The Doctor's Wife

MY THOUGHTS:

Some secrets never stay buried...

...and some people are just born stupid. I think just about everyone in this book must have been. It's hard to feel much sympathy for any of them with the situation in which they find themselves completely of their own making.

Marissa is a 37 year old single mum to seven year old George. Life is going swimmingly for them...until it doesn't. If only they'd left things as they had been. If only she never decided to go on that blind date. If only she never slept with Dermot. If only she never told him about Carlton. If only she wasn't so easily led. If only she stayed at home until George was 30. If only, if only, if only.

If only she hadn't met Dermot.

Dermot is a single guy who matched with Marissa on a dating app. He's had his fair share of setbacks in life and now he's put them all behind him and has started afresh. Marissa is his first date since his divorce. And on their date he opens up freely about that and why. And Marissa, being the kindhearted gentle soul that she is, feels his pain and applauds him his bravery at owning up to his mistakes, picking up and moving on. And for trusting her with this part of his life. It's his transparency and their easy camaraderie that cements the knowledge that she is sure to see Dermot again. She likes him and, judging by their easy banter, he likes her too. And he has opened up to her about a very painful time in his life. Which makes her secret sit all the more heavy in her baggage. She's sure than as soon as she reveals that part of her life to him, she can kiss goodbye to any chance with him. He is sure to run a mile.

The fact is both Marissa and Dermot have baggage. A lot of baggage. And it's that baggage - for both of them - that catches up with them, changing the course of their lives forever.

And then there is Carlton. He is serving time in prison for some rather heavy crimes. Until he receives something that sets the wheels in motion for a pretty wild ride. And he isn't stopping until he gets what he wants and comes out on top. No one gets the better of Carlton O'Connor. And no one takes what's his - ever.

OK, I'll be honest. This was not Daniel Hurst's best work. It's not even one of his better books. But it is a quick and easy read. The first half is fairly mundane, switching between Marissa and Dermot respectively on their date. And then when they went home. And then the ensuing days. And their next date...and so forth. Until it got just a little more interesting. Things ramped up a notch more but only slightly. I wasn't overly excited by things and both Dermot and Marissa made some stupid decisions. When she was in that police station asking for protection, nothing (and I mean NOTHING) should have made her leave again! Not until she got the desired result or the police did. And she certainly didn't know Dermot enough to trust him completely...especially given his reaction. And Dermot? Did he really think nothing was going to happen to him if he did as he was asked?

This book was more of a telling of what happened rather than a showing of events and I really felt it was lacking what I know this author is capable of. The twists weren't really twists and I wasn't shocked by anything other than the characters' gullibility. Having said that, I was still compelled enough to read to the end. I did like the final showdown (hats off to Mr Edwards), which was a nice touch.

And unlike others, I certainly hope the story ends there and that there is no book 2. There is honestly nothing more to tell here. End of.

I love Daniel Hurst's thrillers but even our favourite authors can deliver something that doesn't excite us while another of theirs can blow our mind. Specifically "The Passenger" or "The Couple in the Cabin" or "The New Friends"  or his freebie book (when you sign up to his newsletter) "Just One Second"- to name a few.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Daniel Hurst was born in the northwest of England, a part of the world famous for its comedians, pasties and terrible weather.

He has been employed in several glamorous roles in his lifetime, including bartending, shelf stacking and procurement administration, all while based in some of the most exotic places on the planet, like Bolton, Preston and South London.

Daniel writes psychological thrillers and loves to tell tales about unusual things happening to normal people. He has written all his life, making the progression from handing scribbled stories to his parents as a boy to writing full length novels in his thirties. He lives in the North West of England and when he isn’t writing, he is usually watching a game of football in a pub where his wife can’t find him.

Since following his lifelong passion for writing in 2020, he has amassed a loyal and devoted set of readers, and regularly has several books in the top 100 of the Psychological Thriller Charts on Amazon. His title The Passenger became the #1 selling psychological thriller in the UK in October 2021. The Doctor's Wife is his first publication with Bookouture.

A prolific writer, Daniel likes to keep readers on their toes by self publishing even more books in between those released through his publisher.

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