This is an entertaining read focussing on two women and the men in their lives. Alice, whose first husband Tom dies, but now has a wonderful husband Nathan and a business that is going from strength to strength. She still suffers anxiety over what happened to her first husband and so it is unclear if her fears about Nathan being faithful are justified or paranoia. Beth is her new friend. she is a single Mum and midway through the book, her back story is filled in. Their lives are more closely intertwined than Alice realises, and there is a big twist at the end that brings everything together.
However, (probably because I read a lot of thrillers) I did guess the twist early on. The plot was somewhat disjointed and not as strong as it could have been. Essentially everything happens because the women are so gullible / too trusting. I would perhaps have felt more invested if it was a little clearer how close Beth and Alice were supposed to be. There was also a strange focus on Thomas's tattooed arm which kept making me laugh every time it was mentioned.

My thanks go to the publishers and Net Galley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.

This is a really good read with an ending that was a total surprise to me. I had not guessed the ending at all. There is a lot of suspense throughout and it builds slowly as the book continues. I would definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

thank you for allowing me to read this book. it was very easy to read. i enjoyed the story line and the characters. look forward to reading more from this author.

After reading and loving ‘The Other Woman’ by Sandie Jones I was really excited to see what this second book would be like. I have to say was not disappointed this is another brilliant book.

Alice has it all, a loving husband, two beautiful children, a successful business and a beautiful home but Alice is haunted by the sudden death of her first husband, Tom. Despite her never getting over the loss of Tom, Alice has worked hard to build up their business and build a loving home for her family.

But then her world is turned upside down when she suspects that her husband, Nathan, is having an affair. Could this really be happening to her ? Alice turns to her best friend, Beth, for advice but is Beth really a great friend or is there more to their relationship than Alice knows ?

This is a fantastic psychological thriller that will keep you hooked to the final page. If you lived Sandie’s first book you will definitely love this one too. If you haven’t then you really should read them both !!

Thank you to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

What a fantastic read, I was second guessing through the whole book with what I thought was going to happen and who was who, but couldn’t have guessed by the twist ending! Really well written, and definitely worth a read. Took longer then I wanted to read, due to other commitments, but hadn’t been able to stop thinking about this one. I wonder if there could be another book after this one?! Brilliant!!
Thank you for accepting my request 😊

I suspect I may be in the minority here, as I didn't love The First Mistake.

Of course, there were things to like about it. Alice and Beth are both well drawn characters. And it's an easy, quick read.

My main issue with the book was that I found the unfolding plot so obvious. I predicted all the twists from miles away. There are so few key characters that it's not hard to figure out who's responsible for what. Even the final 'twist' was telegraphed with all the subtlety of a fire engine.

At the same time, not a great deal really happens. There's a lot of Alice angsting about her two relationships and whether one or both men betrayed her. If you've already worked out where the plot is going, this stuff is just frustrating.

Finally, I felt that the last third of the book was rushed and underwritten compared to the first two thirds. And I wasn't sure why it had switched to third person; it had a distancing effect and neutralised one of the key strengths of the book, the strong characterisation of the female leads. The ambiguous ending, too, was a let-down. I think I know what happened, but why not come out and say so?

Overall, it was ok but I don't think it will stick with me.

To say I absolutely loved this book is an understatement, if your a fan
of psychological and domestic suspense thrillers Sandie’s Jones second novel will not disappoint. I was totally gripped from first to last page .
From page one I was transported effortlessly into her characters lives and I liked them all especially Alice.
The authors uncomplicated writing style and the way she makes you doubt what you thought you knew makes this book stand out from others.
Unexpected Twists and turns kept me turning those pages as fast as my eyes ( and children ) would let me .

After the death of her first husband Alice has remarried has two children and a beautiful house, life has never been better.
When Alice begins to suspect her husband Nathan is having an affair, she turns to Beth to help her find the truth. A friend without judgement, she is the most trustworthy and loyal person Alice knows .
I don’t want to give to much away about the plot ,I don’t want to spoil it for you but when there’s a husband , a wife and a best friend in the mix , you just know your in for a treat but this book is so much more!

If you liked the mother in law , Our House or Sandie Jones debut The other woman then you need this book in your life , I cannot recommend enough.

Another winner from Sandie Jones,!, I loved The Other Wonan and The first. Mistake did not disappoint with Sandie’s unique storytelling skills, keeping me hooked from beginning to end.

Alice is enjoying her life again after tragically losing her first husband leaving her with a small daughter. She has now found happiness with Nathan her second husband ands EE seems to have it all with a beautiful home ; 2 beautiful children and a successful business..

Nathan is Alices Knight in shining armour. He has brought back happiness to her life.

Beth is Alices best friend and a constant in her life. They are there for each other through good and bad times.

When Alice’s world is rocked by her suspicions of Nathan’s infidelity, who would she turn to but Beth, As secrets begin to be uncovered Alice begins to question her trust in both her husband and her friend Who should she trust.? Who is telling her the truth.? .

The journey Sandie took me on was one which had me questioning each character and thinking I had the plot figured out only to find out I was completely off the mark. The twists and turns just kept coming and the ending was definitely the icing on the cake,,,

This book is guaranteed to have you addicted to the story, page turning at every opportunity,, definitely one to add to your TBR list . Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for my chance to read this fast paced page turner .

I absolutely loved this book. Fabulous writing style, amazing twists & very fast paced. I’d recommend this to anyone.

Argh!!! I feel worn out after reading this book! But in such a good way!! I loved Sandie Jones first book so had high hopes for this one and it did not disappoint. A brilliant phycological thriller with loads of twists and turns. Fabulous book!

I like these types of book where key themes are around, who to trust? who is telling the truth? etc and how your view on this often changes (several times) throughout the book. Some interesting twists along the way, some that I found less believable how they could have worked but that is the nature of artistic licence!

I have really enjoyed this novel. It is by first read by Sandie Jones and wont be my last.
This tells the story of Alice and her husband Nathan - they run their own business which was purchased with her dead husbands Tom inheritance money.
Living in wedded bliss, things are going so well, the business is moving up and up and her children are happy. Could life be any better?

But then, things slowly fall apart for Alice . she starts to suspect Nathan is being unfaithful to her, so she turns to her best friend Beth for support . Could she be imaging it all, could she still be struggling to come to terms with the death of her first husband, or could it really be true? Can Beth help her find out, or will she hinder matters further when dark secrets are found out.
I wont say more as it will spoil it - what I will say, is to begin with I found it a little slow, but it really does get better so preserve!!!!

I loved Sandie Jones's first thriller and I may have loved this even more. The writing and suspense of the novel drew me in right away and kept me gripped throughout. I enjoyed the many twists and turns and was completely blindsided by them. Nothing is ever as it seems. A very difficult book to put down. The ending blew me away. fantastic.

Following on from her debut novel which for me was excellent Sandie Jones has once again excelled herself with her second book The First Mistake.It is a gripping psychological thriller which had me gripped from page one,After the death of her first husband Alice is now happily married to Nathan. With two children and a successful design company her life couldn't be much better until after a series of strange events she starts to suspect Nathan of having an affair,she confides in her best friend Beth but is Beth the best friend Alice thinks she is ? The book is very well written and is full of twists and turns which keeps you turning the pages,i would say that this is up there with one of the best psychological thrillers i have read and having read both of Sandie Jones's books i think there is a new name in town to compete with the rest as queen of this genre.Superb 5 star read,keep up the good work Sandie !

Absolute rollercoaster ride of a book! Like the best books do, this one kept me guessing all the way through and did not disappoint with the twist at the end. Fantastic read not to be missed!

I loved The other woman so I was really looking forward to this. I was disappointed. It just felt messy and I couldn’t relate to any of the characters. I got to a point in the book and I looked down and saw it was 75% read, I was shocked as nothing had really happened. It all happens at the end but that didn’t really seem believable. Easy read but didn’t really stand out.

I loved this book at the beginning but found that it got just too confusing by the end. The novel jumps between two different women and their husbands and different time periods. I did see to through to the end because I can't stand not knowing how a thriller ends but I found this a total slog and quite painful by the end!

A very interesting plot with a few twists I did not see coming. However the ending left me unsatisfied.

Very well written and I would certainly read another book by this author.

Taught and twisty with a gritty edge I really loved this novel and it’s chatacters. Well written I, I raced through the pages and finished it in 24 hours. Don’t miss this one!

The First Mistake is everything you could ever possibly want from a thriller, I was on edge the entire time and I let out a gasp when I got to the ending! I thought I had it all figured out but Sandie delivers a magnificent twist. Highly recommend to anyone who loves a good creepy book! 5/5