‘Thrilling, unputdownable – I was obsessed’ BA Paris The brand-new domestic thriller from the #1 bestselling author of Obsession A new couple moves in next door. And nothing will ever be the same again… I watched you move in and thought we might be friends. I saw you watching from the window – and knew I’d have to keep you away from my husband. I started to trust you. Confide in you. I started … husband.
I started to trust you. Confide in you.
I started to mistrust you. Suspect you.
I was confused when I blacked out after an evening at your place. Was I really that drunk?
I came up with a plan. A plan to make you both pay . . .
Sexy and sinister – this book will keep you up all night . . .
‘The tension builds and builds and then… BAM! Dark, gripping, brutal. I loved every minute’ Jackie Kabler
‘As more-ish as a box of chocolates. I kept trying to put it down, but it was almost impossible. A wickedly twisty plot with a satisfying end’ Emma Curtis
‘Robson delivers shock after shock in her new page-turner which is filled with characters behaving badly. Dark and utterly twisted. What a ride!’ Sam Carrington
‘Another addictive, wonderfully descriptive and vibrant domestic thriller from the queen of the page-turner’ Caroline England
‘A delicious tale of sinister rivalry that descends into darkness. An excellent page turner – loved it!’ Elisabeth Carpenter
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Hoooooooooooooly cow!
This book is dark, twisted, and compulsive.
Part forensics cat and mouse game, part Basic Instinct and part Quentin Tarrantino nuts, I devoured it!
Amanda, Ms. Robson if you prefer, I am sure you are a wonderful person but I am a teensy bit afraid of you.
Thank you to AVON for sending me a widget in exchange for an honest review.
I would like to thank Avon Publishing and the Netgalley website for allowing me to read this book.
It all starts when a couple, Jade and Thomas, move in next door to Alastair and Emma’s house, except that after that it will never be the same again. Jade thinks Thomas is having an affair with Emma. And Jade has a plan to make them pay.
A book read in one sitting so I was immediately hooked on the story so gripping, addictive, captivating, full of suspense and twists with endearing characters.
How much do you trust your new neighbors?
When a new family moves in, the couple next door watch very carefully. Thinking the neighbors might be friendly, they’re invited to a dinner party … a great way to introduce yourself to learn about your new potential friends.
But then the mistrust starts in … does she want my husband? Is my husband cheating on me? I confided in you and this is how you repay me?
Someone has a plan … a deadly plan. This will not continue….
This is well written with short chapters full of suspense, angst, mistrust, suspicion, lies and secrets. Twists and turns are in abundance …. who tells the truth … who lies? The characters are well-defined, intriguing. Like an accident on the side of the rod, it’s hard not to look.
Many thanks to the author / Avon Books UK / Harper 360 / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological drama. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
Wow….this is one crazy thriller. I enjoyed the way the author told the story from three different perspectives. This was a very fast read for me because I couldn’t put it down. I had to know what was going to happen next. There were so many unexpected twists I did not see coming. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley and Harper 360/Avon in return for my honest review. Thank you for the opportunity
My Darling by Amanda Robson is an absorbing contemporary psychological thriller that I read in just one sitting.
The action is suspenseful and fast paced as suspicion points this way and that. There were multiple narrators enabling the reader to have insight into several minds. My heart raced as I longed to see justice served.
Everyone has a past. We need to learn from it and move forwards into the future.
There are the difficult topics of mental illness and abuse. It is always important to seek help.
All the characters were well drawn and realistic. My responses to them varied from character to character, being guided by the action.
Amanda Robson produced a well thought out and executed plotline. I read with baited breath as everything played out. My Darling was a fantastic read and would make a marvellous, if rather scary, movie.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.
This author’s style of writing has always fascinated me, it takes a while to get used to but it draws you in. This book is one of my favourite genres, a psychological thriller. One thing I always noticed in Ms. Robson’s books is that her female characters are strong, independent and messed up in some ways.
This tale is narrated through the four main characters view points. It was a bit confusing at first because there are no separate chapter in each character’s narration. In one paragraph you get Jade’s inner thoughts and in the next one it’s Emma’s narrative and it throws you a bit. Alastair and Emma are a new couple, they met through Tinder and are just getting to know each other. Tomas and Jade are the new neighbours that move next door to Emma. To say that Jade has troublesome issues is an understatement.
The plot is intriguing and although at first I thought I had it all figured out the twist in the last half of the book will blow you away. I would have given this book a perfect five stars but the narrative flow of each character was a muddle and a hard slog. All I can say is that if you want to find out if someone gets away with murder then take a chance and read this one. 3.5 stars from me.
Emma is a dentist who has moved into a new home. Her boyfriend, Alistair, stays with her many nights. His ex-wife, Heather, left him and their young son, but he gave her half of everything anyway. However, she constantly wants more money.
Next door to Emma is Jade and Tomas. They are welcoming when Emma and Alistair move in and invite them to dinner. Jade warns Emma that Tomas has a roving eye.
Alistair loves Emma and is proud of her. They try to avoid Jade because she is grating and appears to be paranoid. But, when Tomas is found murdered, it’s shocking who is blamed.
This book pulls the reader in like a fish on a line. I could not stop reading it. Rather like a tennis match. Back and forth to see who has the upper hand this time. I loved it and highly recommend it for those of you who like a good whodunnit. Well done. Just remember: Don’t try to outfox the fox.
Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.
This was a very interesting and twisty book. In fact there are so many twists you may get whiplash! There are fully developed characters and not a likeable one to be found. It is a fascinating tale of who-dun-what and whether revenge is as delicious as it sounds.
What did I just read??
If you love crazy this is the book for you!
I can’t decide who was crazier, who was more devious , who was more believable!
I just did not know who to cheer for , not than any of them deserved to be cheered for !
Secrets , secrets, secrets , secrets.
Froze my e reader a few times. Have pre ordered this book for my daughter , but I just might keep it for myself!!!
I will say no more!
Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for a whirlwind of a read !!!
3.75-Stars
Although I’m an avid reader of contemporary romance novels and most subgenres, the short synopsis of My Darling grabbed my attention. It left nothing to the imagination and more so because normally a third-person present tense is used regardless of the story’s structure. Could it be that the first-person narrative takes precedence in this book? Well yes, but the protagonists’ thoughts regarding other characters resembled direct speech as ‘you’ is spoken frequently. The catch—three voices are heard, yet a fourth is felt strongly. And I have to say that Robson’s writing style is daring. There’s no prologue, chapters or epilogue; just names at the beginning of new passages, and the reader gets to learn about past happenings in sporadical flashbacks. One would think it’s not going to make for easy reading, but I found the book’s tone thoroughly engaging.
To begin with, I had trouble matching the characters’ love interests. Never one to let these details get the better of me, I jotted down who was who and lift off, the story started to flow. It’s quite fast-paced, extremely descriptive whilst in some scenes commentaries about what the players were wearing and more I found a tad overdone. However, this other hiccup was nothing in comparison to such a thrilling read. Basically, jealousy is the menu of the day. Throw in psychotic minds for seconds worked wonders and becomes the backbone of the story. Sitting back, I seriously had to consider certain actions taken. Were they a form for worse or greater things to evolve? It’s up to you to judge!
‘Men never mean what they say.’
Jade and Tomas are newbies in the neighborhood. She’s sharp-witted, pushy but more important, mistrustful of her husband. Her account of how she felt showed me how mentally unhinged she is. Tomas is loving and despite being aware of his wife’s issues, he’s quick to excuse her. Goodness me, who lives and works across the street I didn’t know whether to pity, applaud or breathe deeply in hope.
‘She comes every day. Watching me like a hawk.’
Overflowing with twists; the one in which I never saw coming certainly left reeling! I have to mention the cover. You’ll understand its perfection when you dive into the book. I’m not going to say too much about the other characters or the well-thought-out plot as it would be a shame to spoil this riveting standalone for you. Seeing as Emma’s a professional woman, I have to add with tongue in cheek that I found her naïvity somewhat misleading. And the boyfriend—could he hold the key? One thing’s for sure, the police will have their work cut out for them.
‘I have taken such a risk for you.’
I liked the exactitude of Robson’s research and even though I’m not a fan of choppy prose, it worked well because more often than not, this is how we speak. Albeit having had trouble rating this story, it’s bitingly memorable and for readers who like spine-tingling cut-throat suspense, this is for you! Bravo, Robson!
Thank you Avon Books UK and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read My Darling in exchange for an honest review.
The book is entirely made up out of snippets of thoughts and observations from the 3 main characters. The tension slowly builds when you notice that there are 2 unstable women in this story. There are also memories from an (at first) unnamed person about violent domestic abuse during his/her childhood. Those elements combined, create an atmosphere of a certain doom hanging over the group. What it is that’s building up, do you find out only when the crime really happens.
At the start of the story, Emma and her boyfriend of 4 months observe how the new neighbours Jade and Tomas move in next door. They get acquainted very quickly, but despite liking the husband, Jade is strange and unsympathetic. Between themselves, they call her ‘clusterfuck’. On top of that, she grows an obsession that Tomas is having an affair with Emma who’s a dentist that treats him for a root canal infection. Her paranoia drives her to kill Tomas and frame Emma for the murder, using her intimate knowledge of forensics to plant evidence and stage the crime scene.
Can Alastair (also working in forensics) prove that his girlfriend is innocent and is being framed by the murderous wife? He’s got other problems as well. His ex-wife demands more money and acts jealous, despite being the one who left him and her son. She threatens him with hell-fire and even contacts Emma to slander his name.
If you think this is bad, you ain’t seen nothing yet! The story becomes more and more twisted. Nobody is exactly who or what he /she appears to be on first sight and everybody seems to have a hidden agenda. Despite its slow start with its multiple points of view on the same event, keep reading past those initial introductions of the characters. This story really builds up the tension to the level that you can’t put the book down and you simply have to know what happens next. Another night of missed sleep!
You can consider this story a humoristic warning against tinder-dating, as nothing good or lasting seems to come from it.
The main criticism about this book were multiple and severe formatting and editing problems in the Mobi file (for Kindle), that are absent in pdf format. I trust that those will be repaired in the final commercial version.
I’m grateful to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for their free ARC copy; this is my honest, unbiased review of it.