The Holiday Home by Daniel Hurst
Genre: Domestic thriller, Suspense
Read: 2nd March 2023
Published: 1st March 2023
★★★★ 4 stars
DESCRIPTION:
The perfect holiday or the perfect nightmare…
I sit sipping champagne in the warm water, bubbles frothing around me as I admire the breathtaking view of gorgeous blue skies and mountains. I can’t believe I’m here, at this stunning holiday home. It’s to die for…
My best friend and her husband have invited me and my family to their lakeside property for the weekend, to experience their luxury lifestyle. I’m not envious of their wealth, although I know my husband Ryan is. All I want is to escape from our recent troubles and get my marriage back on track.
Then I overhear Ryan having a whispered conversation late one evening, and he says something that sends a shiver down my spine. In this beautiful paradise my whole world is turned upside down.
Just when I think things can’t get any worse, I discover a second secret. The truth is even more shocking than I imagine, and now I have no idea who to trust.
This was meant to be the perfect holiday, but someone isn’t going to survive it…
A twist-filled psychological thriller that will keep your heart pounding until the very last page. If you love Behind Closed Doors, Gone Girl and The Housemaid, you’ll be gripped by The Holiday Home.
MY THOUGHTS:
The perfect holiday...or the perfect nightmare...?
There's no place like a holiday home, especially a beautiful log cabin nestled away in the Scottish Highlands with only the birds for company and the stunning views of the loch from every window. A spa (hot tub) on the deck and a roaring woodfire to nestle in front of on those cold rainy days or nights.
Sounds perfect, doesn't it? And that's exactly what Nicola thought when she first laid eyes on it as and hubby Ryan began their weekend escape with her best friend, her hubby and each couples' respective children.
Nicola and Ryan live a modest life where they just about get along without all the extras. Unlike Nicola's best friend Kim who married well and whose husband is able to keep her in the lap of luxury to which she has become accustomed. Hence the stylish holiday home in the Scottish Highlands purchased probably in excess of seven figures. And so when they invite them on a weekend escape to the said holiday home, how could Nicola and Ryan resist? Each have their own reasons for wanting to be there...or not. But there is already mounting tension between the men, as Lewis keeps goading Ryan whilst Ryan matches him with wit and humour.
When Nicola catches Ryan staring at sexy Kim in her bikini, she begins to wonder if he finds her friend more attractive thus leading to her second guessing herself. I was a bit over the "fat shaming" Nicola was doling out to herself. It made her seem a little shallow that it was even important. But I bet I'd need a magnifying glass to spot the rolls of fat she claims to have.
But soon Nicola will realise that she has far more to worry about than how many pounds more she carries next to Kim. And pretty soon, things will explode in a way no one saw coming (except maybe the reader) leading the characters on a merry dance that was a tad predictable, but still enjoyable.
And before the weekend is over, secrets and lies will be uncovered leaving one of them dead and another running for their lives.
Who will survive?
THE HOLIDAY HOME is one of those books that you can't say too much about as some of the reveals come early ramping up the tension in what becomes a pressure cooker of walls closing in on them from which all of them want to escape.
Since I discovered him just fourteen months ago, Daniel Hurst has become one of my favourite authors that I auto-request without even reading the description because I know whatever he delivers will be worth it. There is no such thing as a bad book by Daniel Hurst (I say that about Shalini Boland too but it's true in this case also) as I know every book will be entertaining from start to finish. And up until now I would have said every book was a thrill ride but I found THE HOLIDAY HOME, as enjoyable as it was, was lacking in the usual thrilling elements and twists that have become Hurst's own unique trademark. It's true I guessed all the twists long before they were revealed...except the final one, which I felt cheapened the main character and made her just as bad.
I do love Daniel Hurst's domestic thrillers and I always look forward to the next one as his unique style is just exceptional. As he is such a prolific writer I doubt we will have long to wait for his next offering...and I can't wait!
I would like to thank #DanielHurst, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheHolidayHome in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
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.
Social Media links:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads
Social Media links:
Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads
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