The Stepmother by Sally Rigby and Amanda Ashby
Genre: Psychological thriller, Suspense
Read: 14th November 2023
Published: 30th October 2023
★★★★ 4 stars
DESCRIPTION:
She’ll do anything to protect her family…
Libby Curtis never wanted children, until she met Nathan, a gorgeous widower with two young children. Now ten years later she can’t imagine her life without Sam and Sienna – she’d do anything for her precious kids. Anything….
So when a missing teenager is found lying on the side of the road, Libby’s first thoughts are for her own kids. Are they safe? Are they home?
What Libby doesn’t expect is for her children to be involved in the girl’s disappearance. But when she discovers an item in her stepson's car linked to the victim Libby’s fears increase.
She can't believe that the sweet boy she's raised could do something like that. But if not Sam….who?
Libby must discover the truth before her family is ripped apart. But someone is determined to make sure their secrets stay hidden - even if the consequences are deadly...
MY THOUGHTS:
Disclaimer: I fell ill whilst reading this so it was shelved for some 10 days while I recovered. So apologies for the delay in posting my review for the blog tour.
This dynamic writing duo have done it again with another compelling psychological thriller with an addictive plot that is engaging from start to finish. It centres on Libby, a paramedic, who responds to a call with her partner on shift, Jonathan, where a teenage girl has been found unconcious. Upon arrival, Libby can see that she is clearly under the influence of drugs. But had she taken them willingly? Or had she been drugged? The girl, Hayley, was distraught as well as disoriented stating she had escaped from a locked room where she had been locked up. But this is all too close to home for Libby who recognised Hayley as being one of her stepdaughter Sienna's friends. But then she comes across some troubling pieces of information which lead Libby to thinking that her children may have been involved in Hayley's abduction.
We also meet Gemma, a woman who hosts a small blog devoted to serial killer Colin Wallace who was said to be responsible for the abduction of many missing boys in the eighties. But then Wallace was sent down for the boy he was caught with though he denied responsibility of any others, even after having made a full confession to them prior to going on record. Wallace then died in prison taking his secrets to the grave. But now Gemma has arrived in Bournemouth after hearing about Hayley's abduction online based on its similarities to Wallace's crimes. She begins to dig further and tries confronting Libby with her information but to no avail.
Then just as she was closing in, the predator becomes the prey. Is it too late to save Gemma? What really happened all those years ago? And how can she protect her family at all costs?
This was a compelling read that I devoured just as soon as I was a little better. I did guess the villain and thensome but that never ruins my enjoyment of a well told story. I did find Libby's constant second guessing everything a little tiresome but I found the teenage angst of Sam and Sienna even moreso.
Still, there are plenty of twists along the way to keep you entertained as well as guessing as little by little the secrets and lies all start to unravel. Overall, an enjoyable read.
I would like to thank #SallyRigby, #AmandaAshby, #Netgalley, #BoldwoodBooks and #RachelsRandomResources for an ARC of #TheStepmother in exchange for an honest review.
MEET THE AUTHOR:
They have now penned three psychological thrillers together: Remember Me? (2021), I Will Find You (2022) and The Ex Wife (2023).
Social Media links:
Website (Amanda Ashby) | Website (Sally) | Twitter (Amanda Rigby) | Twitter (Sally) | Facebook (Amanda) | Facebook (Sally) | Instagram (Sally) | Instagram (Amanda) | | BookBub | Goodreads
No comments:
Post a Comment