The Lies by Mark Hurst
Genre: Psychological thriller, Suspense
Read: 12th September 2023
Published: 9th September 2023
★★★★ 4 stars
DESCRIPTION:
When Samantha and David decide to have a night out separately with their friends, events overtake them, and the lies lead them down a path of destruction.
To everyone else, it looked like Samantha and David had the perfect life. From meeting at university and falling in love to starting a successful business together, they made a great team. However, as everybody knows, appearances can be deceptive…
That one night out changed everything between them and things would never be the same again; not unless they could face up to their own truths and correct the wrongs.
Neither thought they could become the people they became and do the things they did. But that’s just what happens when two people wronged become consumed by a need for the truth, for justice, and ultimately, for the price to be paid.
If either of them had let it go, it could have all been so different – but neither of them could.
The fast paced and gripping debut novel from crime and psychological thriller author Mark Hurst that will keep you turning the pages as you try to answer the question yourself – could you have let it go?
MY THOUGHTS:
How far would you go to get what you want...?
I am huge fan of Daniel Hurst so when he announced that his father, Mark, was dipping into the psychological thriller realm I just had to take a peek! Then having been given a preview to his talents with his free short story "The Last Woman", I was keen to delve into his recently published debut. And having just closed the book...where do I begin this review?
So I downloaded a sample to begin with to see if it would be up my street, and it certainly piqued my interest so off to Amazon I went to buy the full book. If RL was not as busy as it is, I would have finished long before now.
The story begins with friends on an innocent night out. Samantha heads into Manchester with the girls whilst her husband David undertakes something of a pub crawl with his mates in Bolton. But the night ends abruptly when news of David's arrest after a pub fight resulted in the death of the other party. The victim, nicknamed Snarler in David's narrative, continued to get in David's face and rile him for whatever reason that alludes David. All he knows is that he threw a punch to leave him alone and he did. Next thing they knew, Snarler is dead and David is arrested.
Samantha remains by her husband's side throughout the investigation and subsequent trial, which doesn't appear to be going his way at all. In the end he is found guilty and imprisoned for manslaughter for a term of ten years with parole in six. And so begins his sentence...
But then new information comes to light regarding her husband and given this information, Samantha takes steps to distance herself from David before removing him as a board member of the fledgling company they started together and then divorcing him. Angry at first, David accepts his lot in life and puts his head down to serve his time.
In the meantime, research they had been working on for many years brings forth results in the form of a lifesaving miracle drug. As a result, Samantha becomes a very wealthy woman, a very powerful woman, with celebrity status and very much in demand. Such demand results in all sorts of problems such as stalkers, which she inadvertently finds herself on the receiving end of, and one who gets just a little too close for comfort.
Then when David is released about five years into his sentence, he meets up with Samantha to bring closure to that chapter of both of their lives. But what he does instead is inadvertently opens a Pandora's box...
This book was fast paced from beginning to end with such short snappy chapters (my favourite kind) that keep the pace moving at a rapid rate. The narratives drift between David and Samantha primarily with the investigating police officer also thrown in on occasion. The story takes us all over the world and culminates down under here in Australia!
Having said that, I do have to mention an error made in relation to Cairns and Cape Tribulation. When Samantha first arrives, the chapter is titled "Queensland, New South Wales". At first I thought it was going to take place over the two states - being Queensland AND New South Wales - but instead Samantha heads to Cairns and Cape Tribulation in far north Queensland. Later in the Epilogue, it referred to New South Wales police looking into an investigation but given as it took place in far North Queensland, it would be Queensland Police that would be investigating. Queensland and New South Wales are two separate states that border each other and not one inside the other's jurisdiction. So that chapter should have been titled "Queensland, Australia". New South Wales is entirely separate and had nothing to do with this story whatsoever. For clarity and accuracy, I felt this should be mentioned to save confusion.
I do love the style of writing. Don't be fooled into thinking "like father, like son" as their styles are completely different. But both are equally enthralling. I love how each of the chapters entirely separate snippets and how it kept the pace moving quickly. The epilogue wraps everything up neatly like a newspaper article. But it's the final lines I was most interested in...could there be a follow-up? The path has been paved for one with those final words. I would certainly be interested to read Blade's story, if that may be the case.
A fast paced thrill-a-minute read weaving a tangled web and mind-boggling twists that will blow you away. Definitely worth reading this fantastic debut.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
He entered construction at the age of 18 and has been involved with hundreds of large civil engineering projects for the last 40 years as a Civil Engineer and Surveyor, Estimator and Commercial Director, working in various far flung locations such as Hong Kong, Scandinavia and Wigan.
Mark has a passion for reading legal, crime and psychological thrillers; he often claims he can predict the end to a story … and when he gets it wrong, he’s pleasantly surprised. He also enjoys first hand accounts of military and espionage events and when he’s not reading and writing, he can be found watching the History Channel.
Married with two grown children and four grandchildren, his son Daniel convinced him it was time to start committing some of his own stories to print … and there are a few. Drawing on his own life experiences, Mark weaves them into his stories but with a twist … it all could have happened.
Why Wooded Hill Books?
The origin of the surname Hurst – ancient Anglo-Saxon topographic name for someone who lived near a wooded hill or thicket.
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