Nuala knows nothing of heh husband James's past. He made her swear that she would never contact his family and never visit the place where he was from. But now, James is dead and Nuala is alone.

When her husband, James , dies, Nuala is all alone. Despite James's never wanting Nuala to meet his parents, Nuala ignores his warning and she goes to meet the family. Looking for a place to stay she finds Maggi's pub where she meets Maggie's niece, Emma. Nobody wants Nuala to stay in the village. Nuala does not get the comfort she had hoped for from James's mother, Lois, who is a bitter old woman.

The book is set in a small village in Sommerset. The story is told from Nuala, Maggie,Emma and Lois's perpectives. This book is dark, disturbing, tense and shocking. It deals with rape, alcoholism, incest, psychical abuse, obsession and abuse (just to name a few). A book that will mix with your emotions, that's full,of secrets and lies and on life living in a small village. The book is well written even though it is a bit slow in parts. Imdid not like any of the characters. It is full of twist and turns but the final twist will shock you! This is also a depressing read at times. This book will not be for everyone due to its content, I had to put it down a couple of times and go and do something else to take my mind off what I had just read.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and the author Rebecca Tinnelly for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book, all the way up until the end, which I did have to do a fair bit of thinking about to actually accept. It's a story of secrets and lies, of family, and of life in a small village and how people really can become products of their pasts.
Nuala is recently widowed. Her husband James has always been a bit against sharing his past with her. She knows there's a rift between him and his mum and that something happened to cause this but he had never gone into detail. But now, with him dead, she is eager to find out, or at the very least, inform his mum of his death. She is spurned on by a letter he received and so, off she goes, to the village in which he grew up, where his mum still lives. But what she finds there will shock her to the core. It seems that James has been a bit economical with the truth and there is so much more to his leaving the village than she could ever have imagined.
Well, this book had it all. Secrets, lies, duplicitous behaviour, and a veritable cast of rather nefarious characters. Even Nuala herself wasn't all sweetness and light all the way. Set in a village in Somerset I was taken back down memory lane to when I lived in a village in neighbouring Dorset and I saw parallels with what I myself experienced. Not to the extreme I very much hasten to add, just in some of the attitudes and closed ranks that occurred.
Pick a dysfunction and it is pretty much front and centre here too. Sounds like a bit of an overload but it really wasn't as the majority of things that happened in the book flowed seamlessly, and those which appeared to initially stand out, soon found their place in the whole cause and effect nature of the narrative.
This was the second book in a week where I read way past my bed time and, like the other book, I was merrily reading, looked at the %, realised I was nearly 2/3 through and it was the small wee hours already. Time just seemed to run away with me. Needless to say, as I was over half way, I just carried on and I suppose I have to apologise to my boss for being rubbish at work the next day. Thank goodness we have a healthy stash of coffee where I work!
It was creepy, claustrophobic, and so very very addictive. I needed to find out how exactly all this mess would eventually work its way out. Whilst, at the same time, the author was still delivering blow after blow of shocking discovery. Phew, by the time I got to near the end, I was near exhausted, and that's not just because of the time!
Yes I had to suspend belief a little along the way. Yes I thought some of it was a little ott even for a small close-knit village. No I didn't really 100% like the ending. But, you know what, none of these things really mattered when compared with the thrilling ride I had whilst reading the book as a whole. So yeah, the full five stars and highly recommended from me.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Never go there...well you would be missing out on a thrilling tale. This story hits all the senses and engrosses you into a village, with a brutal tale and stomach turning twist!

highly recommended.

A fantastic thriller, but also a very scary premise! What if you really didnt know the person you thought you knew inside out!

I liked parts of this book which had me gripped and then others just washed over me. By its summary I thought it would have wowed me but am afraid it fell short of my expectations. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers of this book for allowing me to read an arc of this story in exchange for an honest review.

For most of the first half of the book, I was completely engaged and wanted to read about what was to come but then I found myself not growing as interested in the story or plot and even just skipping and skimming through some parts just to finish it.

It wasn't a bad story but I kept getting confused with certain parts and plots which only added to the thoughts of DNFing the book, but I pushed through and was surprised by some of the plot twists which is why I'm giving it a 3/5 star rating.

The book wasn't completely for me but it might interest someone else

Thanks to netgalley for the ARC of this book. It was a thrilling read, from beginning to the end. Recommended.

This book couldn’t lose points for originality, it was a pretty strange read. I won it in a Netgalley giveaway in exchange for an honest review and I wish I’d thought to review it sooner than I have done but here goes.

The main character was made to promise to never seek out the family of her now deceased husband. Well, you can probably guess what is going to happen here though it gets even stranger than that, there are a few twists though I can never get my head around books that would get you to suspend belief that much, though maybe again it’s because as an inquisitive person I’d probably run a mile from a man who told me not to ask anything about his family.
I’m glad that another reviewer mentioned the references to domestic abuse because I wonder whether this should be referenced as a trigger. The Husband is odd from the get-go, however as the reader you want to find out what he is hiding and there are at least two twists that are worth waiting for.
I’d recommend this book however I wouldn’t say it kept me up at night reading it.

This book sounded like it was going to be good but sadly I just couldn't get into it, and gave up.

I found this book difficult to read and finish. The plot didn't hold my interest, and the characters didn't seem likeable. Sadly, although it sounded like it would be a good book, it wasn't for me.

“He said that she should never go there... but was he protecting her, or himself?”

Okay. I feel bad writing this review because it’s not very positive, so I want to start off by saying it’s not a bad story, I mean reading the description I thought, “Wow! I have to read that book!” because the premise of the book- a widow visiting the village of her Husband’s childhood, a place he asked her to never go to, and finding it full of secrets she never expected- sounded exciting and mysterious. But yeah, I just didn’t enjoy this one.

Firstly, the writing isn’t great. It’s not gripping, it’s not chilling, it’s quite amateurish. I found myself having to skim parts of the book as I couldn’t take to the writing style.

The characters are unrealistic. The things the say, the things they do, the way they react to situations and to each other just seemed a bit fantastical. People don’t really act that way. They were all unlikeable and I couldn’t relate, resonate or empathise with any of them. Perhaps that’s why I didn’t care what really happened to them.

I felt like banging some characters’ heads together for jumping to conclusions, acting irrationally and for blaming each other instead of those who cause their pains. It was quite ridiculous how people in this book hated each their with very little reasons why.

The book was all over the place with different points of views, time shifts and with characters and situations happening too quickly, confusing the timeline and the narrative.

What redeems this book, albeit slightly, is a couple of twists that I didn’t see coming that sparked my interest slightly. Kudos to the author.

Thank you to Rebecca Tinnelly, Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for allowing me to review this book.

A depressing tale of village life.

Maggie is godmother to Emma and runs the local pub which is failing. In fact, the whole of Maggie’s life seems to be failing. Things can’t get any worse, can they? But with Nuala’s arrival, there is a further downturn in her fortunes and no-one who knows her will remain unaffected. Everyone has secrets and each one appears to be darker than the last. Is anything how it seems in this depressing place?

This is Rebecca Tinnelly’s debut novel and, of its type, it is excellent. The characters bounce off one another although ‘bounce’ may not be the right word to describe their interaction as there is not a lot of energy in evidence. I am guessing that the portrayal of, almost incestuous, village life, where everyone knows everyone else’s business would accurately describe life in similar communities around the country but it’s unlikely another could be found with a greater degree of a sense of failure which pervades the pages.

It seems to be in vogue to develop a plot along different timelines and “Never Go There” is no exception. The action takes place in the present day and seven years ago. In this case, the format works quite well although, as ever, I found myself getting occasionally confused. My main criticism of the novel was that there was not an iota of relief or humour in the entire text so this is not a book to be read when in any way depressed. In fact, I found myself likening it to a TV soap without any banter to lighten the atmosphere.

The fact that I questioned the motives and actions of too many of the characters and could not relate to any of them, plus my not being able to suspend belief long enough to buy into what happened has resulted in 3 stars.

mr zorg

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review

Never Go There is a very dark and depressing read, the first few chapters I found confusing but there was something that compelled me to turn a page more and more until I reached the end.
The village this dark thriller is set in is so miserable, dark and bleak it’s too bad to be true. The people that lived in the village seemed to be depressed, related to everyone and knew everyone else’s business and if they didn’t they made it up.
Nuala Greene is distraught after the sudden death of her husband, several months after his death she decides to visit this village that is just outside Somerset to visit her mother in law to tell her of her sons death. Nuala has never met Lois as James her husband told her to never go there. After arriving in the village it soon becomes clear why her husband told her this.
This book is a strange one for me as at times the book moved very slowly and at others I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough, there were plenty of twists and turns along the way and sometimes left me confused especially with the timeline going backwards from present time. This is a quite a violent read and a lot of sick was mentioned and perhaps a few too many unliveable characters.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent debut novel from Rebecca Tinnelly. Very dark and tense read which kept me hooked until the end.

This book did not do it for me. It did not grab me or make me want to keep on reading. I did not like the way It was written. Unfortunately this book is not for me.

This was a tale of a very dark village, I found the description of the village to be rather bleak,but it painted a picture that set the tone.The villagers were as you might expect them to be living in a small quite cut off place where everyone knew or was related to everyone else and strangers were viewed with suspicion .It would have been some where I would not want to spend any time in .As the book went on truths were revealed and what a murky puddle it was.I can't say too much it is the sort of book you need to read for yourself .I think it is a book that you will remember though.I would like to thank the publishers and netgalley for an ARC.

I liked the sound of this novel, and mostly enjoyed it, but I did struggle with parts of it. I found it a bit slow in places and then other chapters I couldn't put it down.

A solid 3* read for me. Not my normal read as it's very much a book about an abusive husband and how his wife discovers his family secrets. However, it is well written and therefore I persevered. It's a decent read for those who like this sort of thing and definitely has a good twist at the end.

Thanks to net galley, Hodder and Stoughton and the author for the opportunity to preview.

I was really looking forward to Never Go There. The book blurb intrigued me and it’s definitely one of my preferred genres. I was expecting a tense, gripping thriller but was left disappointed. There was a lot going on and sometimes confusing. Also I couldn’t gel with any of the characters. Sorry but this book wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and the author for the chance to review.

With thanks to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

Nuala Greene was devastated after the sudden death of her husband James from a brain aneurysm. Nuala lost both her parents in a house fire when she was very young. When Nuala and James got married his mother Lois was not invited, James said 'never go there, please never go there..

During their marriage James persuaded Nuala they only needed each other. When James died Nuala had no one to confide in..
Three months after James's death Nuala decided to visit Lola her only family. Before moving to London James was brought up in a village outside Somerset. Nuala soon realised why James told her to never go there. Lois was a cruel bitter woman who did not believe that James would ever marry someone like Nuala.

Nuala decides to stay in the local pub owned by Maggie who James loved as a child. However it turns out James had to escape the village after a local scandal. The repercussions of his actions all those years ago were still felt today. The story is told from the POV of Nuala, Maggie and her niece Emma.

Whoever said nothing ever happens in villages should read Never Go There. The moment Nuala drove Into the village and entered the pub I could sense the secrets and lies waiting to come out. This was a dark, thriller which dealt with abuse both mental and physical. It was very hard to like any characters because they were so deeply flawed but I could emphasize with a couple of them. I think it would of been nice if the detectives personalities had come through to relieve the tension.

But OMG I could not put this book down. The plot was brilliant with plenty of twists and turns to trip you up. The final chapters left me sat on the edge of my seat it was genius, I did not see it coming. I thoroughly recommend this book if you are a fan of psychological thrillers.

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