REVIEW: The Dock Girl's Shame by AnneMarie Brear

The Dock Girl's Shame by AnneMarie Brear

Genre: Historical fiction, Sagas, Victorian era

Read: 14th March 2024

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Published: 16th March 2024

★★★★★ 5 stars

DESCRIPTION:

A broken heart, a shameful secret…

Wakefield, Yorkshire 1871

Loretta Chambers has spent her life working at her father’s boatyard down at the docks. She’s tried hard to keep the business afloat, but with the railways taking trade away every day, Lorrie fears for the worst.

The arrival of handsome Italian, Matteo Falcone brings a brief glimmer of hope and a yearning inside Lorrie for another life, away from the filthy grime of the dockside. But despite her feelings for Matteo, she could never travel to Italy with him, and leave her father alone.

But one reckless, impetuous moment leaves Lorrie with a secret she will struggle to hide. And when tragedy strikes at the boatyard, Lorrie is left feeling more alone than ever before.

Always a dutiful daughter, Lorrie now carries a shame that could ruin her life forever…

MY THOUGHTS:

A broken heart...a shameful secret...

This is the second in the Waterfront Women series, the first being "The Waterfront Lass" which I loved. This one is another standalone tale featuring Lorrie Chambers, one of the three waterfront lasses in which the series surrounds. As the first one was Meg's story and this one is Lorrie, I can only assume the third will centre around Fliss. As with the first book, this is another great read which I devoured in one sitting once again.

Lorrie Chambers has lived on the waterfront with her father Ernest Chambers since she was six years old after the death of her beautiful Italian mother Arianna. He was the sole owner of Chambers Boatyard Builders and Repairs, that is until the entrance of Oswald Lynch, with whom her father sold a percentage of the business to in order to save it from going under. But Lynch made Lorrie's skin crawl and she feared he had nefarious plans for the boatyard and her father. However, her father refused to be swayed. And no matter how much Lorrie tried to keep out of Lynch's way, he continued to seek her out even proposing marriage on occasion. Something which made Lorrie baulk at the sheer thought of it.

Then one day, handsome Italian Matteo Falcone enters the boatyard with a gift for Lorrie from her great grandmother, for whom she was named, who had recently passed away. It seems they were distantly related - their great grandmothers being cousins. Lorrie's father was furious at Matteo's sudden appearance and thought nothing good could come of it. But Lorrie found herself attracted to Matteo and when her father was suddenly injured, he stepped in to help run the boatyard until her father recovered.

But the more time the pair spent together, the more chance trouble would come of their union. But that was to be the least of Lorrie's troubles to come. How would she fare when more tragedy struck and threatened her livelihood?

Another good solid read from Aussie author AnneMarie Brear that I thoroughly enjoyed as I whiled away the hours of the afternoon. I didn't care for Matteo one bit. He wanted his cake and to eat it too. In my experience, Italian men are far too sure of themselves and self-absorbed. I knew any dalliance with him would spell trouble for Lorrie...and the title kind of gave that part of the story away. However, I didn't agree with the title as Lorrie proved herself to be a strong and resilient woman in the face of adversity.

I look forward to reading Fliss' story next and wonder what Ms Brear has up her sleeve for that one.

Perfect for fans of Catherine Cookson, Lindsey Hutchinson and Dilly Court.

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

MEET THE AUTHOR:

AnneMarie Brear was born in a small town in N.S.W. Australia, to English parents from Yorkshire, and is the youngest of five children. From an early age she loved reading, working her way through the Enid Blyton stories, before moving onto Catherine Cookson’s novels as a teenager. 

Living in England during the 1980s and more recently, AnneMarie developed a love of history from visiting grand old English houses and this grew into a fascination with what may have happened behind their walls over their long existence. 

Her enjoyment of visiting old country estates and castles when travelling and, her interest in genealogy and researching her family tree, has been put to good use, providing backgrounds and names for her historical novels which are mainly set in Yorkshire or Australia between Victorian times and WWII. 

A long and winding road to publication led to her first novel being published in 2006. She has now published over twenty-seven historical family saga novels, becoming an Amazon UK best seller and with her novel, The Slum Angel, winning a gold medal at the USA Reader's Favourite International Awards in 2019, and a silver medal for The Market Stall Girl in 2021. Two of her books have been nominated for the Romance Writer’s Australia Ruby Award and the In’dtale Magazine Rone award.

AnneMarie now lives in the Southern Highlands of N.S.W. Australia with her husband and her family.

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REVIEW: At the Stroke of Midnight by Jenni Keer

At the Stroke of Midnight by Jenni Keer

Genre: Historical fiction, Contemporary fiction, Mystery

Read: 13th March 2024

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Published: 12th March 2024

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

It’s an invitation that will change everything…

It’s 1923 and in a decade that promises excitement and liberation, Pearl Glenham and her father are invited to a mysterious country house party on the Dorset coast, by a total stranger.

Her father claims not to have any prior association with Highcliffe House, but upon arrival, it is apparent that he has a shared history with several of the guests, although he won’t admit it. Belatedly discovering that her father was blackmailed into attending, Pearl’s worries are compounded when their host fails to arrive…

Intimidated by everyone at the party, she escapes to the nearby cove and stumbles upon a mysterious mercury clock hidden in a cave. This strange encounter sets in motion a series of events that will culminate in an horrific house fire, claiming the lives of all the guests, including Pearl herself.

But then Pearl wakes up back in the cave, seemingly destined never to live past midnight. She can repeat the day. But can she change its outcome?

A completely addictive and unforgettable 1920s mystery – with a timeslip twist – perfect for fans of Daphne duMaurier, Agatha Christie, and Lucinda Riley.

MY THOUGHTS:

Until the mystery is solved, she's trapped in time...

After reading the author's previous novel "No 23 Burlington Square" and absolutely loving it, I had high hopes for this one. While the previous one had a sliding doors theme, this one is more Agatha Christie meets Groundhog Day. And it was rather cleverly done.

The year is 1923 and Pearl Glenham has lived a somewhat sheltered life with her father Raymond in a parsonage cottage in rural Suffolk. But life as she knows it is about to change when her father receives an invitation he can ill afford to refuse. A weekend at Highcliffe House on the Jurassic coast of Dorset. Both father and daughter do not mix well in social circles and both would rather not attend. But with a curiosity to know more, Pearl sought out the letter that summoned their presence and was shocked to discover that her father was is essence being blackmailed to attend...alluding to secrets of the past that he did not wish to become public knowledge.

From the moment they arrived at Highcliffe House, they are greeted by an overfamiliar manservant and a harried cook-cum-housekeeper - the only two staff on hand to serve them. That and the pompous Harlow Standfield who had arrived just moments before them. But they were not the last to arrive, with Celine and Aldo Revallo sweeping in annonce their arrival. Each of them were curious as to their host who had yet to arrive himself - a Mr Badgerwood.

Almost from he first moment, Pearl had the distinct impression that the gathered group had met before but none of them admitted that fact. Her father had indeed stated he had never been to Highcliffe before but it was clear that he was familiar with the house. Why was he lying? Why was any of them?

Eager to escape the stifled atmosphere, Pearl changed into hr bathing costume and stole herself down to the private cove for a swim. It is on the shingled beach that she steals across a cave heralding its own treasures...and in her curiosity, set in motion a series of events that would see her relive the same afternoon over and over for weeks...each day ending before the stroke of midnight. 

To escape the time in which she is trapped, Pearl must uncover a twenty year old mystery. But can she unravel the truth in time to save them all?

A rather novel concept with a Christiesque feel and a hint of Daphne du Maurier to the equivalent of Groundhog Day. I must admit I was stumped as to the mystery but I did figure out at least part of it and what happened to one of the missing members of the family. That idea came to me right from the beginning and stayed with me until it was revealed at the end.

I didn't care for any of the characters except Pearl and Ellery. Pearl's father treated her as an unpaid servant when he could quite easily accomplish the tasks himself but expected her to fulfill them. Celine and Standfield were incredibly self-absorbed.

An interesting tale which I found entertaining and whiled away a few hours this afternoon. But her previous one is a hard one to top.

And let's just take a moment to admire that simply stunning cover!!

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

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Jenni Keer is the well-reviewed author of historical romances, often with a mystery at their heart.

After gaining a history degree, Jenni embarked on an career in contract flooring before settling in the middle of the Suffolk countryside with her antique-restorer husband and their four teenage boys. She has valiantly attempted to master the ancient art of housework, but it remains a mystery, so is more usually found at her keyboard writing fun romantic comedies with #blindcat Seymour by her side.

When not up to her elbows in family life, she can be found busy with her Edwardian marquetry business, planning her next fancy dress party or practising her formation dance moves.

Most recently published by Headline and shortlisted for the 2023 RNA Historical Romantic Novel of the Year, her first book with Boldwood No 23 Burlington Square was published in October 2023.

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REVIEW: The Good Wife by Gemma Rogers

The Good Wife by Gemma Rogers

Genre: Psychological thriller, Domestic thriller

Read: 5th March 2024

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Published: 5th March 2024

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Appearances can be deceiving...

After a whirlwind romance and three years of marriage, I’d tried to be a good wife.

But Tom, my husband, is always watching, controlling my every move. He chooses my clothes, my hairstyle, even instructing what and how much I’m allowed to eat – just ten measly mouthfuls.

I’ve become isolated from those I love, forbidden to work and stuck at home to fulfil his every whim.

My identity along with my life is long gone.

I am slowly suffocating but I know Tom will never, ever let me leave alive.

A chance encounter with Savannah changes everything. Tom couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. Could she be my saviour?

Could my husband’s desire for another woman be the answer to my prayers, to my freedom?

Bestseller Gemma Rogers is back with another gripping, page-turning thriller. Perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty, Shari Lapena and Lisa Jewell.

MY THOUGHTS:

** Please note: I did not complete this book because of the content which I found triggering. However I have still rated it highly because it is well written and sensitively handled.**

TRIGGER WARNING: coercive control and abuse

Appearances can be deceiving...in a marriage of control, can she break free...?

Before I begin, I have to say I love Gemma Rogers and always eagerly await her next thriller. And this one was no different...until I began reading it. Unfortunately the content was too triggering for me to complete it and I found myself tossing it aside in anger, my blood boiling. I would have loved to finish it but I just couldn't. Coercive control and abuse is something that is a little too close to home for comfort for me and while I can usually read them with an open mind, this time I just found it too confronting and close for comfort to occupy the same headspace.

The story tells of Chloe, the good wife, who after a whirlwind romance with Tom three years before he whisked her away to the Seychelles for what she discovered was a surprise intimate wedding for them both. Only later did she realise it was a tactical move on Tom's part to stop anyone from stepping in and putting a stop to the wedding. Tom had carefully moulded Chloe into the perfect wife he wanted who would see to his every need as and when he required. She was essentially at his beck and call.

Chloe had been an editor at a successful publishing house but Tom soon put a stop to that too. And moved them out of London to a sleepy village in Sussex where she could devote every minute of the day to him alone. He expected nothing but perfection in keeping house and having his meals on the table as soon as he walked in the door. He chose her clothing, what she ate and how much, isolated her from her friends and limited her contact with anyone outside of his carefully curated bubble. After ruining her previous phone, he bought her a new one but loaded it with spyware so that he could track her movements, her browsing history and her call log. He entered only two numbers into the list of contacts - his own and her mother's...only he changed her mother's number by a digit or two thus preventing her from contacting her family.

And then one night they were attending a Director's dinner for the company Tom worked for when Chloe met Savannah. She was a stunning redhead and Chloe knew right away that Tom would not be able to resist her, knowing his weakness for redheads (despite her being blonde). And so Chloe puts a plan in motion to enable Savannah to steal Tom's heart, if not other parts of his anatomy, thus leaving Chloe free to leave him once and for all.

As soona s Tom sees Savannah, it is lust at first sight. He wins an hour with her at the dinner in a raffle, and after that he is smitten. He spends most of his waking moments lusting after her, thinking about her and their time together. He continues to seek out Savannah unaware of the plan his wife, whom he believes to be an open book where he is concerned, has set in motion.

How will it all end? 

Unfortunately I didn't see how it ended up but I'm sure there were plenty of fireworks as there were bound to be where Tom was concerned. He was the most despicable character, unlikeable in every way and I wanted to smash his face in. Gemma Rogers did handle to the topic of coercive control and abuse sensitively but for me it was just too close for comfort. But I still rate it up there as a great read, from what I did reach. Just be aware that the content may be triggering for some.

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

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Gemma Rogers was inspired to write gritty thrillers by a traumatic event in her own life nearly twenty years ago. Her debut novel Stalker was published in September 2019 and marked the beginning of a new writing career. Gemma lives in West Sussex with her husband and two daughters.

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REVIEW: The Colleagues by Daniel Hurst

The Colleagues by Daniel Hurst

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 7th March 2024

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Published: 10th February 2024

★★ 2.5 stars

DESCRIPTION:

How far would you go to keep a secret at work? Would you kill for it?

I used to enjoy my job. I was good at it and felt fulfilled. I also used to enjoy spending time with the people I worked with. They say you spend more time with your work colleagues than you do with your family members, but that was fine by me because I made two very good friends at the office. I also allowed myself to get a little too close to my boss, but I soon realised that was a mistake.

Unfortunately, it was too late by then, and as my personal and professional lives quickly blurred into one, that was when everything changed.

My workplace became the scene for plotting, revenge and murder, but none of us were cut out for things like that. We were just three colleagues who became friends before things went too far. But there was no going back from what we did. We could only hope that we would get away with it. But not all of us would.

A gripping, page-turning psychological thriller from the author of The Couple's Revenge, The Passenger and the number one bestseller, The Doctor's Wife

MY THOUGHTS:

Well...where do I begin with this one? Daniel Hurst is one of my favourite authors. I pre-order everything he publishes and I don't even read the description because I know whatever the story, I'm going to be entertained and thrilled. Largely, I'm never disappointed. That is, until now.

What happened here? This is so far removed from the Daniel Hurst I know and love. Where is the fast paced plot? The thrill ride guaranteed to keep us entertained? This one was so slow in places it was like wading through quick sand. And the characters were all, and I do mean all of them, were so unlikeable it was difficult to find any sympathy for them.

Liz, Bev and Natasha were colleagues but remained friends even after the termination of each of their employment with the company for which they worked. But each of them came away with the same tale of woe. Their boss Edwin Van Dekker had either propositioned them or sexually assaulted them, thus resulting in the termination of their employment with a hefty payout and a NDA signed, sealed and delivered.

But this was not enough for the three women. They wanted him to pay for what he did to them. To pay the ultimate price...with his life. And so that's what they set out to do. But how do they do it? And how do they now get away with it?

Regardless of the positions they now find themselves in, Liz and Bev continue to make stupid mistakes over and over. Natasha never has the chance, having decided she can't live with what they've done. But is that what really happened? Or did one of the women silence her before she could go to the police and confess?

But the stupid mistakes didn't end there. They went right through to the end (almost). From incriminating texts to the lost phone to confessing to the boss' son without being the least bit suspicious?

The ending was kind of OK but not the shocking twist that was tagged as having and nothing really earth shattering either. In fact, it was an ending I thought the author would naturally come up with as is his style. But the rest of the book was something of a disappointment. I prefer his domestic thrillers and his other psychological ones. 

However, I know that even our favourite authors can publish one we aren't endeared to and up until now that had never been the case with Hurst. I will continue to auto-buy and pre-order his books because I know what great things he is capable of. It's just this one wasn't for me.

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.

Social Media links:

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REVIEW: In Sickness, In Health...and in Jail by Mel Jacob

In Sickness, In Health...and in Jail by Mel Jacob

Genre: Biography, Memoir, Non fiction

Read: 5th March 2024

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Published: 24th August 2016

★★★★★ 5 stars

DESCRIPTION:

'So why did you marry Dad?' my daughter asked. 'Well, over time I got to know him and he made me laugh, and . . . and I knew deep down that, that . . . even though we were really different . . . he was a good person.' Without skipping a beat, she said, 'He's not that good, he's in jail!'

After fourteen years of marriage, Mel Jacob's life looked as perfect as the roses perched above her white picket fence. The nice house in the suburbs, two great kids, a good husband. Until . . .

Her life took an unexpected detour when her seemingly saintly husband was jailed for two years. In Sickness, in Health . . . and in Jail follows Mel's funny, moving and insightful journey as she navigates single parenthood, prison visitations and nosy neighbours.

Mel's revealing account is the story of the family left behind. It chronicles the grief, the stigma and the conversational minefields of her husband's whereabouts, as well as the logistical problems of making a baby sibling for her two children, and why it's not appropriate to tell people that Daddy's in jail.

In Sickness, in Health . . . and in Jail is a funny and touching account of grief and love and forgiveness.

MY THOUGHTS:

I met Mel when she was the guest at a lunch I was attending for a small group of women. Her story was encouraging for those who may find themselves in similar circumstances and she was open and honest about her experience. She gifted a few of us her book addressed to each of us with words of encouragement. That was several years ago and the book went on my ever growing TBR list. 

Yesterday I plucked it off the shelf and sat down to read...and I kept reading right through to the end, finishing some 6 hours later. I usually read fiction and don't read a lot of non fiction which is generally bogged down in facts and drone on and on. But this is not like that at all. Mel writes it in such a way that it feels like a story as well as being her own experience. She incorporates humour into some of the more entertaining conversations, letters and so forth. I even had to laugh at her description of court. That on TV courtrooms are filled with impassioned speeches and witty comments but in reality being in court is right up there with watching paint dry. It really is.

Her conversations with her children are some of the most endearing and entertaining, particularly Miss Five who decided she no longer wanted a cat but a baby (preferably a sister) for her birthday. This while her father is languishing in prison six hours away and in NSW conjugal visits are really not a thing. Her understanding of where babies come from and thus her solution to the problem preventing her mother from having a baby with daddy locked away was hilarious. 

Not only was this a memoir of how they got through the experience but how it affected each of them. I could feel the shock of finding, not one or two, but eight police on her doorstep, the disbelief that this was happening to them, the treatment by the police during the search, the feeling of violation as they searched her house and she not even allowed to be left alone during the process to the dread of being faced with the court process, which is not in any way shape or form, quick. It is a long drawn out and often expensive process. And then to have the worst luck in the judge they were given for their case. It seemed that things were always stacked against them. The sentence Patrick received was, in my opinion, incredibly harsh in the grand scheme of things and the fact that police are allowed to entrap someone to virtually encourage them to break the law just so they could arrest and prosecute them is just beyond unfair. Because placed in that situation at any other time with anyone else, it would never have happened but the police persisted until they got him to break the law. I can't see how that is fair. In my own experience of the police over the years, I have indeed lost a great deal of faith in them. 

Mel's book is a wonderful insight into what it is like to endure such a heartbreaking and lengthy process. Prisons are incredibly confronting if you've never visited one before and each of them indeed have different rules. And while I could understand taking the children to visit their father in prison, it really isn't a place for children. It is bleak, confronting and children would find it very very difficult to stay seated for the entire duration of the visit. But Mel did the best she could for her family and I daresay rural prisons are different from metropolitan ones.

I laughed and I cried throughout the book and by the end I was still crying tears. It may have been over but the next journey was just beginning.

A wonderful insightful account of what it is like to be left behind when your loved one is sent to prison. A compelling read.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Mel Jacob is an experienced journalist and scriptwriter. Her journalism has been published in The Good Weekend, Sunday Life, The Brisbane Times, The Adelaide Advertiser, Radio National, Kidspot, MCA and The Australian Museum. She was a finalist for Best Comedy Riverina Short Film Festival 2004, Ford Mummy Blogger 2009 and 2010, winner of the first ever blogging competition at MotherInc 2009. In 2011 her manuscript Mother of the Year was short-listed for the Harper Collins Manuscript Development Award.

Social Media links:

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REVIEW: The Lost Girl by Mark Gillespie

The Lost Girl by Mark Gillespie

Genre: Psychological thriller

Read: 1st March 2024

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Published: 21st February 2024

★★★★ 4.5 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Darcy vanished thirteen years ago. Today, she’s coming home.

Darcy Drummond was four when she was kidnapped on a crowded beach. A massive police search and media frenzy followed but the girl was never found. Most people gave Darcy up for dead. Or worse.

Then, one fateful night, she walks into a police station. Seventeen years old. A chance to start over.

As the world celebrates Darcy’s return, Margo Martin, journalist and friend of the Drummond family, receives a strange phone call. A call which leads her step-by-step towards a horrifying revelation…

The real reason for Darcy’s disappearance is a long-kept secret. A secret so shocking, so unexpected that it will plunge the Drummond family into a nightmare they will struggle to survive. 

MY THOUGHTS:

Sometimes the truth is best left hidden...

Where to even begin? That was...INTENSE!! I actually finished this a day ago but I just had to let it sit and think about it because it was just...wow. So where do I begin?

Darcy Drummond disappeared from Bournemouth Beach when she was four years old and for years her parents, Sophie and Mike, have always lived in hope that she would return.

Now thirteen years later they are still trying to pick up the pieces, with Sophie self medicating with pills and Mike with drinking and gambling...and trying to forget the moment they took their eyes off their little girl for a few seconds and she disappeared never to be seen again. 

And then they get the phone call. It's the police. A seventeen year old girl has walked into a police station in Glasgow claiming to be Darcy. There have been imposters in the past making the same claim...but this is the first time the police have called them.

Of course there are doubts. Is it really her? Where has she been all these years? How quickly can they do a DNA test to confirm her identity? But all doubts dissipate as soon as Sophie sees her. She is the mirror image of herself at that age. This is Darcy. At last she's come home.

But what should be a happy reunion is tinged with a wariness and apprehension. There are unanswered questions about where she's been and what happened to her and how she escaped. What sort of life has she had? And what about the couple she had been living with who are now dead? But at whose hand? Their own? Or Darcy's?

Once the DNA test confirms her identity, the media awaits the story. But Sophie gives the exclusive to friend and aspiring journalist Margo Martin. Like everyone, Margo is salivating for the details but what Sophie gives her is the bare minimum resulting in a dull story. But it's what the Drummonds are not saying that pique Margo's interest. Something is not right in that house...and it's no surprise when she begins to dig a little she receives an anonymnous phone call urging her to look closer. What are the Drummonds trying to hide?

There is little else I can say without revealing spoilers but all I can say is that nothing is what it seems. This is not the usual missing child trope and what it does reveal is far reaching and shocking. It's no surprise that Darcy will have had a tough life after being kidnapped so the little girl the Drummonds hoped to have returned to them is long gone. But who is the girl in her place?

The story unfolds through the narratives of Sophie, Darcy and Margo and is divided into four parts. As each part develops, the turn the story takes ramps up and will have you flipping the pages faster than the speed of light. 

This is no light breezy story with a happy ending. This is gritty, intense and brutal. But wow! What a read! And what an ending! I'm still digesting it all...

I would like to thank #MarkGillespie and #InkubatorBooks for an ARC of #TheLostGirl in exchange for an honest review.

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Mark Gillespie writes psychological thriller and suspense novels. He’s a former professional musician (bass player) from Glasgow, Scotland who spent ten years touring the UK and Ireland, playing sessions and having the time of his life. Don’t ask though. What happened on the road stays on the road.

He now lives in Auckland, New Zealand with his wife and a small menagerie of rescue creatures. If he’s not writing, he’s jamming with other musicians, running on the beach, watching mixed martial arts and boxing. Or devouring horror and thriller movies.

Social Media links:

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REVIEW: His Double Life by Nicole Trope

His Double Life by Nicole Trope

Genre: Domestic suspense

Read: 28th February 2024

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Amazon

Published: 28th February 2024

★★★★ 4 stars

DESCRIPTION:

Loving father. Loyal husband. Liar?

In our large family home on a peaceful, tree-lined street, I clear away the breakfast things whilst my husband ignores me, his eyes on his phone. Leo comes home from conferences with flowers for me and hugs for our twin ten-year-old boys, but each time I smell an unfamiliar perfume on his shirt. I know all about his affairs and it’s tearing my heart in two.

When one of the boys tumbles into the kitchen, full of laughter that he beat his brother in the race home from the park, I smile despite everything. When his brother isn’t right behind him, I start to worry… and then I get a text that makes my blood run cold. If you want your child to come home, your husband needs to tell the truth.

Is my husband hiding even darker secrets than his affairs? As I realise his double life has put my children in terrible danger, I make a promise: I will not let my husband’s lies destroy my life. And I will do anything to get my son back…

A totally addictive page-turner about terrible secrets within a marriage, perfect for fans of Big Little Lies and Sally Hepworth.

MY THOUGHTS:

Loving father...loyal husband...liar...

The queen of domestic suspense is back with this tale packed full of secrets, lies and deception by the bucketload. I finished this book last night in one sitting, devouring it in a few short hours. I had to think about it before beginning this review. Because so much is packed into this quick read and yet nothing is left to chance.

Leo Palmer thinks he's God's gift to his profession, not to mention women, and it is at a conference in Queensland that he meets the stunning Serena. As soon as he sees her, he wants her. Forget the conference and his boring colleagues. He'd much rather be wrapped in the silky sheets with Serena. Once a year, he attends conferences around the country and each time partakes in a one night stand. But this year he breaks his own rule. He brings what is usually a fling home to his doorstep and continues to see Serena upon his return to Sydney. There's something about her. He just can't give her up.

Diana has been married to Leo for nearly 15 years and they have ten year old twin boys, Rowan and Sawyer. She is a mother and child nurse while he is a real estate agent. They have a beautiful house in the suburbs with a park just a block away so that the boys can race each other to the park and back to kick their soccer ball around. 

It was one such Sunday morning when Rowan runs into the house after playing at the park announcing "I win!", expecting his brother to be close on his heels. But when he doesn't materialise, Diana feels a prick of fear. Just as she and Rowan are about to return to the park to find him, she receives a text message:

"If you want Sawyer to come home, your husband needs to tell the truth."

Diana is frozen staring at the screen. What does this mean? What has Leo done?

The questions are flying fast and free as the reader mulls over every possibility but are any of them close to the truth? The story unravels through the multiple narratives of Diana, Leo and Serena and is told in three parts. As each part unfolds it soon becomes clear what is going on. But still, Trope has another twist to deliver before the end. And even I didn't see it coming, so well played.

The characters are few but then that is all you need to make a compelling story. I did wonder at Diana's choices especially as she was well aware of Leo's indiscretions. He was obviously not going to change so why punish them all by sticking around? I understand it's for the boys but really resentments will colour any good intentions she may have had and the boys will be on the receiving end. And as for Leo. Well, he was the epitome of the narcissistic egotistical self indulgent man child who is so completely unlikeable I couldn't not care less what happened to him. I think when all is said and done he got off bloody lightly. He was an appalling character. But then I didn't really warm to Diana either. I think I found more sympathy for Serena.

The cover wasn't as eye-catching as previous titles but then I don't always judge a book by its cover either. However, if I was to do so I wouldn't have picked up this book solely on its cover. But the tightly written plot is well written and compelling from start to finish. It wasn't my favourite by Trope by any means, but it was still a cracker of a read with some good twists throughout.

I first discovered fellow Sydneysider Nicole Trope when I read "The Boy in the Photo" and I loved it! Since then I have read everything she has published with the exception of a couple that came before that one. I can't wait to see what she delivers for us next!

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

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Nicole Trope went to university to study Law but realised the error of her ways when she did very badly on her first law essay because-as her professor pointed out- ‘It’s not meant to be a story.’ She studied teaching instead and used her holidays to work on her writing career and complete a Masters’ degree in Children’s Literature. After the birth of her first child she stayed home full time to write and raise children, renovate houses and build a business with her husband.

The idea for her first published novel, The Boy under the Table, was so scary that it took a year for her to find the courage to write the emotional story.

She is now published by Bookouture and is an Amazon top 100 bestseller in the USA, UK, AUS and CAN.

She lives in Sydney with her husband and three children.

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