"It's easy to die out there. It's easy to kill too."

Wife takes husband on road trip, setting him challenges to prove himself after she discovers he is cheating. What follows is an exploration into revenge and murder. The location descriptions are vivid and convincing and added depth to the story, but I found the characters all dislikeable which made me lose interest in the outcome.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

New York, bright city lights, the start of a new life, a new adventure but what if it’s not all what it’s supposed to be, what if your husband has an affair and your life starts to fall apart. That is precisely what happened to Liv and her husband Will, so what did they do to try and put their marriage back on track? Jones did what you wouldn’t really expect, putting them in the close confines of a car as they set out on the Great American Road Trip, the delights of El Capitan, Death Valley awaited their admiration and awe. Jones gave you some amazingly vivid descriptions of the landscape, but it wasn’t just the pictures that she conjured in your mind that drew your attention it was the tangible tension between Liv and Will that dominated.

Will desperate to make up for his misdemeanour, but more interestingly the inner thoughts and feelings of Liv. Yes she was the victim but how far would she go to make Will pay for his mistake?

Jones flipped between their time in New York and the events of the road trip. She built up a vivid picture of their marriage, their pasts, each a product of their upbringing. I loved that Jones threw these two opposites together, Liv from a troubled background, Will wealthy with all the advantages of life, almost as if she was setting them up to fail, to test if opposites could endure and succeed.

In a way they had succeeded yet there was a mysterious darkness that surrounded Liv and Jones made us question her motives and actions. I swung between liking and feeling sorry for her to a sometimes intense dislike at her cunning, and her anger at the untold havoc that descended on those she interacted with. It allowed Jones to showcase human emotion at its best and worst to brilliant effect. It showed a woman at her limit, pushing the boundaries to protect what she thought was hers and hers alone.

Wilderness wasn’t your usual fast paced psychological thriller with action on every page. Instead it had an intensity that was at times unbearable, the tension taut, poised to snap at any moment and Jones took you on a wonderful road trip where the sights and sounds were immensely appealing yet you wouldn’t for a million years wish to embark on if you were Liv and Will. It was a journey that I loved watching as a witness, as a witness to a marriage, an affair and its devastating consequences. You could never tell if Liv and Will’s marriage would survive or indeed if any of the characters would survive which made the novel highly intriguing and, for me addictive. I loved Jones’s last novel Halfway but loved this just that little bit more, a sure sign that her writing, and her plots are getting better and more accomplished.

If you like to uncover the psychology behind the characters then Wilderness is definitely a novel you need to read.

This book was brilliant, psychological thrillers can be such a hit or miss for me but Wilderness was exciting and engaging from the start until the end. I think it will very easily make it into my top ten for this year because every time I had to put it down I was desperate to pick it back up again.

There are a few things that work really well for this book, I think the subject matter is something that a lot of people can relate to, even if it hasn't happened to you personally most people have felt the effect of infidelity or broken trust in a relationship. This made it so easy for me to empathise with Liv because I could feel those same emotions, felt the pain and anger that she was going through and the insecurity and indecision. It definitely caught me on an emotional level in that respect, especially the paranoia and second-guessing Will's every move.

Liv herself is a great character, at first I could empathise with her and then as I got further into the story she kept surprising me with a new touch of information which shone a light on her in a completely different way. Even though she does go to extremes, I still found her a likeable and relatable character, I quite liked her devious side because it's not difficult to imagine someone getting to the stage that she does.

I really enjoyed the plotting of the book too, I won't say much about details because you'll want to read that for yourself, but the story goes back and forth between a trip that Liv and Will are taking to rekindle their relationship and the events that lead them to be at this stage. The way everything is revealed always gives you another perspective on what you have just read and on the next part of the story. It isn't big flashy twists that can sometimes leave you a bit let down, it's a lot more subtle than that it has a lot of pivotal moments that really feeds back into the rest of the story, making you desperate to read on to find out how everything is going to change next.

This is the first book I have read by this author but after reading Wilderness I can say with total certainty that it will not be the last.

Olivia and Will, a Welsh couple, living in America after he gets a job there. Olivia discovers he’s been unfaithful and so makes various plans for their road trip! Warning - do not upset Liv, you might not like the consequences. Loved this book from the very first sentence and ended up slowing down and rationing it simply because I didn’t want it to end! Brilliant descriptions of the vivid U S wilderness/New York, the weird, larger than life characters and especially Olivia who was amazing but not in a good way! A must read book, definitely.

Don’t you just love a flawed character? Or is that just me? Well Wilderness has a brilliant character that completely captured my attention. I loved Liv’s unpredictable nature, I was never quite sure how she would react in the situations she found herself in. A lot of her emotions are bottled up but the reader gets to experience her thoughts and feelings which gives the story an interesting if dark spin.

Wilderness is an edgy and tense story that easily pulled me in there isn’t just one thing that works in this story it is everything from the characters right through to the setting. I will admit that I have a soft spot for America’s National Parks and I’ve been lucky enough to visit some of the places mentioned in this story so I think this made me love this book even more. However I still think that even if I hadn’t travelled there myself B.E. Jones easily set the scene. Which really helps to make you feel as if you are right there with the characters experiencing the beauty, the danger of nature and also what could happen if a person finally reaches their limit. Within a few chapters I found myself completely immersed in Wilderness it has this addictive edge that once I picked it up I didn’t want to put it down!

I’m trying to be as vague as I can regarding the plot because I loved every little surprise, twist and reveal. Wilderness is a dark story of obsession, revenge and forgiveness. I felt as if I was on the road trip of a lifetime but with dangerous and unexpected speed bumps perfectly placed to unsettle me every step of the way!

Wilderness is the latest release from B.E. Jones and was published by Constable (Little, Brown) in ebook format on 4th April 2019.  The paperback is to follow next April.  I received a free eARC of Wilderness but that has in no way influenced my review.

I loved this book.  It's the first book I've read by B.E. Jones but I can safely say that it won't be the last.  Boy, can this author write a dark and dangerous character!  If you're a regular visitor to the blog then you will know that I am a sucker for characters.  The plot and the setting (which are both brilliant in this novel, by the way)  can be 'okay' providing the characters stand tall and leap from the page.  I want living breathing people who make me feel something - that's not asking too much, is it?  Wilderness is a cracking example of exactly how to write incredible, believable characters and also tick the all-important plot and setting boxes with confidence and flair!  I absolutely loved Liv.  I'm still not entirely sure I was supposed to love her as she's very much a character on the edge.  But hey, I do like a dark undertone and it's often the more complex creations who appeal to me more!

Liv and her husband, Will, are living the dream.  Following Will's promotion, they up-sticks from picturesque Wales and move to the hustle and bustle of New York City.  Everything is perfect...until Liv discovers that her husband has been unfaithful with a colleague.  Will apologies for his error of judgement and promises it will never happen again.  And then it does.  Liv is utterly heartbroken and enraged by the deceit and immediately starts to plan her revenge.  One 'dream' holiday to America's national parks and three chances for Will to prove he's sorry.  If he fails, well.....sometimes terrible accidents happen in the wilderness, don't they?

The plot, the characters, the setting, the cover, the blurb - I loved absolutely everything about this book.  It's very likely it will feature in my top 10 books of the year list in December.  Liv is pushed to her absolute limit  - the repercussions of which were fascinating to watch.  I couldn't look away as she slowly unravelled before my eyes and I HAD to find out how the story would end.  It's not often I wish for a happy ending in my books but I was desperate for life to turn out OK for Liv.  Does it? Well, you'll have to get hold of a copy of Wilderness and find out for yourself.

Would I recommend this book? Absolutely.  It's one that shouldn't be missed and the perfect Summer holiday read partly due to the fabulous setting (maybe not the murders!).  Speaking of the setting, I loved how the author conveyed the stark contrast between the two locations in the US.  You have the wide open space of the national parks versus the built up and somewhat claustrophobic feeling of New York City.  It's all so beautifully written that you can't help but 'live' the locations with the characters.  An absolute joy to read! Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review an eARC of Wilderness.  The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

This will go live on 17 May:

First of all, massive thanks to Emma Welton for inviting me on this blog tour and to Constable (Little, Brown Book Group) for providing me with a free eARC via NetGalley!

Olivia’s husband Will is a cheating bastard. I’m really sorry, pardon my French and all that, but he is. He has forgotten that when he took Olivia for his lawful wife and promised to have and hold her for better or worse, it was only supposed to be Olivia, he was not supposed to add some skinny girl at work to the mix. Liv found out, was furious but decided to give the hubby and her marriage a second change. Except that the hubby went and forgot all about his promises all over again and now… Well, Liv has had it and who can blame her?! It’s said that hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and Liv is that woman if ever there was one. While she’s going through various stages of grief, feeling like the Will she knows and loves is gone, she eventually realises getting over her grief would be a lot easier if he was actually gone for real. And she starts to think that maybe she could help fate a little with that. After all, it wouldn’t be the first time she exacts revenge. But a little wrath goes a long way, sometimes a much longer way than anyone could foresee…

I loved Olivia as a character. Yes, she’s so furious that she spends half her time seething and plotting and calling both her husband and his mistress names whenever she thinks about them (which is pretty much constantly), but I couldn’t really blame her. The more I found out about her though, the more I began to suspect that she has perhaps a bit of a psychopathic mind. I felt I could never quite grasp her true nature and it had me tapping my e-reader as fast as I could. Liv as a character really carries this story, and it’s trying to figure her out as much as the suspense in the story itself that made Wilderness a very enjoyable read for me. One definite WTF moment there as well; you may all see it coming, if so then kudos to you, but I sure didn’t. I had stopped reading at a pivotal point in the story and I thought I knew what had happened and what would follow (so blasé, I know). The next day, I continued reading and found out that I had known diddly-squat! My jaw dropped and I went back to reread the previous chapter, had I missed something?! I hadn’t, Ms Jones had fooled me fair and square!

One last shout-out: I adored the setting! Ms Jones and her husband went on a road trip in South-West USA, it was where she got lots of ideas for Wilderness, and it really shows. The hubby and I have been on a similar road trip (for the record, neither Ms Jones nor I fantasised about offing our husbands!), and I recognised lots of what Olivia and Will encounter. The vivid (but to-the-point!) descriptions of the scenery, locations and situations brought back some very fond memories.

A suspenseful story in a gorgeous setting, recommended!

Fast paced, character driven thriller focusing on wife, Olivia, who uncovers her husband’s infidelity and plans to exact her revenge on a road trip through the American plains.

This is definitely more of a cerebral thriller, that relies heavily on the strength of its characters, particularly Olivia. The drama feeds off her paranoia and jealousy, clouding her judgement with thoughts of murder and payback. Their isolation also helps drive this feeling of claustrophobia and builds a feeling of tension that permeates most of the writing. This overall feeling of betrayal and a break down of trust demonstrates just how much damage an affair of this nature can be to a couple, and I felt it highlighted the thought process well. The plot itself also doesn’t slow at any point, maintaining this high level of emotional turmoil throughout as we see Olivia start to unravel.

I found Olivia a well developed character, with enough of an interesting background and character development to hold the plot up. Will, the husband, I found less appealing. He’s not as fully formed as Olivia, and his thought process and reasons behind the affair are less obvious. He doesn’t come across as a particularly sympathetic character, and as such I wasn’t too invested in what happens to him. He’s more like a means to an end in the conclusion of Olivia’s journey.

An interesting psychological thriller, that’s one for those who enjoy heavily character driven stories in tense situations, faced with morally ambiguous decisions.

Wilderness is a terrific page-turner by B.E. Jones. In the harsh, vast expanse of the American wilderness, a terrifying thought slips into Olivia’s mind. It would be very easy to kill her husband out here. It could be passed so easily off as an accident. Would she get away with it?

Olivia and her husband Will, head to the States for a break, for a chance to heal their marriage after Will’s affair. But Olivia can’t stop thinking that she can never trust him again and she can’t forgive him for what he has done. As dark thoughts crowd in, a plan starts to hatch inside her head, but she doesn’t realise the disastrous consequences it’ll have for them both.

There is plenty of drama that plays out in this book right from the opening page. I was immediately gripped from the first line which had me thinking, how on earth was Olivia going to carry this out? The setting was absolutely perfect for this scenario, and I could see just why Olivia would think this. They are with a small group of people, but they are very isolated, and throw into the mix the woman that Will had an affair with, and there is heightened tension right from the get-go.

I really enjoyed this one, the first book I have read by this author, so I will definitely be catching up on her previous novels. This is an excellent psychological thriller that will have you watching the characters with every move they make. I loved it.

Liv and her husband have left the green valleys of Wales and moved to New York City for his exciting new job at Piper-Dewey. They’re living the dream, a beautiful company apartment in Manhattan and summertime is coming up as well. But Liv is not happy at all because she has discovered that Will has been having an affair with a work colleague. In fact, although he promised to end the affair, he has returned to Jenna and Liv is beside herself with jealousy. In fact she has been stalking her rival and messing with her head. She doesn’t want to lose him because she really loves him. She would fight to her last breath to keep him as hers. The sexts sent to Will have driven her mad, but the video of them making love and then the love token he has given to her, have caused her intolerable pain. But Liv has an idea. She will not give up without a fight. They need a holiday together to save their ten year marriage and contrite Will has agreed to the idea and even seems to be looking forward to their 1,500mile ‘Great American Road Trip’ passing through four North American states. It may be his last two weeks to make Liv happy and prove himself to her.
Liv has planned the trip in the minutest detail. She’s always been an organiser and relishes this trip and its happy outcome. What Will doesn’t know is that she has set him three tests; not only to save their marriage but to save his life. If he can manage to save his own life then their marriage can be saved. Will doesn’t know this as he is oblivious to her challenges. He doesn’t know what is coming at all. Liv wants him to change his ways, perhaps surprise her once or twice and to be a little more thoughtful and romantic. If he can live up to Liv’s challenges she will reward him with her forgiveness.
This dark, psychological thriller is full of suspense and is all about love, infidelity, naked hatred and revenge. The characters are well crafted and carefully developed. I found the first and larger part of the story very slow paced, though intriguing and quite addictive. By far the best part of the story is that last 20% which is absolutely breath-taking. What was going to be a 2.5* review, earned another star on top of this because of the vision, ingenuity, flair and creativity of the author. It is honestly one of the best and most surprising endings I’ve read in quite a long time. I loved the vivid descriptions of the tourist hotspots like the Grand Canyon, Yosemite Valley, Mariposa Grove and Death Valley, to name but a few. They highlighted the best attributes of this author, making her plot come alive. I really could envisage the locations and felt I was actually there in these parts of the storyline.
I received a complimentary copy of this memoir from publisher Constable through my membership of NetGalley. Thank you for my copy. These are my own honest opinions without any outside influences. It’s a 3.5* review from me.

I loved this book. It does have a Gone Girl esque to it. I could relate to Olivia's frustrations in her relationship, although thankfully not the cheating element, nor do I have murder in mind! Well written, good tension, descriptions of the trip, I now want to go on an American road trip!

thoroughly enjoyed Wilderness, a brilliantly paced character driven drama/ psychological thriller hybrid with a fascinating central protagonist who gets just a little grumpy when betrayed…

An affair uncovered and a “healing” road trip to the wildest places soon becomes a twisty, addictive tale with Liv scrambling to deal with unexpected spanners in the works and save her marriage. Assuming she wants to. Girl changes with the weather so the whole novel is beautifully delightful.

Insightful human drama mixed with plenty of edge of the seat near misses and a coolly immersive central premise, Wilderness is a great read.

Recommended.