A slow start to a story told in the viewpoints of three characters and over the then and now periods. An ending I didn't see coming. Well worth a read

A brilliant page turner! I really enjoy Phoebe Morgan's style of writing and this book was just as good as the doll house! I loved it and will definitely recommend it. Great ending too!

Unfortunately I really struggled with this book, just didn't grab me and I found it very hard to get into and keep interested with the plot.

I hope other people enjoyed it more than myself.

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ Publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

I enjoyed Morgan's previous novel, The Doll House, so I was pleased to be approved for this NetGalley request. 

The Babysitter wasn't as dark as I was expecting it to be, but it certainly was interesting. The more I read, the more involved I became with the plot and the characters. 

The characters all felt really authentic, and I particularly enjoyed reading Caroline's flashbacks - and the police interviews. 

I was able to predict some twists in the book - others, however, I did not, which was good.

As I said, it's not a particularly dark or creepy, but it may be a fun "summer thriller" to read on the beach. Are "summer thrillers" a thing?

It took me a couple of chapters to get into the swing of this book but, once I found the rhythm, it was a real page-turner.
The way the story flips from the past to the present means that the murder story builds steadily and it’s impossible not to try and guess what happened in Caroline Harvey’s flat.  I must say, I usually manage to figure out ‘who-dunnits’ but, I only came close with this one.
Phoebe Morgan does a sterling job of describing the emotions of the various characters.  Callum’s denial of any wrong-doing, Siobhan’s utter heartbreak, Emma’s contempt for her mother’s weakness and Maria’s need to make sure that her sister, Siobhan, is safe.
I would recommend this book if you enjoy a thriller where the tension is tangible but, don’t try to read it whilst distracted because you may miss a clue!
I would definitely recommend this book.

Fascinating story that keeps you involved from start to finish. All the twists and turns had me fooled! You have to keep reading to find out the answers. Definitely recommended to those readers who enjoy reading this type of detective story.

Firstly a big thank you to hq for accepting my request on netgalley. I am a huge fan of phoebes books so was really excited for this one.

Heart racing and nerve wracking this is a brilliant psychological thriller.

Who is telling the truth and where is the baby? Terrifying as a parent!

Unpredictable and exciting to read. Its written in alternate narratives and timelines so we get to build a picture of what has happened .

Twisty and full of suspense . I highly recommend !

When I first started reading this, I thought that it was going to be one of ‘those’ thrillers full of mostly dislikeable main characters. Then the twists started, and I had to keep on reading (I ended reading this in 2 sittings!)
I was invested in baby Eve (I have a one-year old granddaughter, so it doesn’t take an expert to realise why!) and thoroughly disliked the murder victim, especially as the story went on. 
I thought I’d guessed who the killer was about 2/3rds of the way through, so the actual ending was a surprise.
I enjoyed the story very much and feel that it would make a perfect holiday read.

Oh dear I struggled with this book,and I was so disappointed. I liked the sound of it, but just struggled to connect with it.I always hope other people enjoy a book even if I didn't and can only hope that is true with this one.

Absolutely loved this book.  Initially it felt like it  was just a run of the mill murder book but then the twists started.  Lots of different people thrown into the mix of who dunnit and very clever clues in the book.

Siobhan and Callum are holidaying in France with there daughter Emma.  They are staying in the villa of Siobhan's sister Maria.  their holiday is disturbed one morning with the arrival of the French police to arrest Callum.

Back in the UK his lover had been found dead.  There is also the issue that the child she was babysitting is missing.  Its a race against time to find Eva.  As time goes on there looks to be no possibility she can be found. So where is her body.

Throughout the book you are constantly changing your mind as to who is the guilty party.  However, one thing stands out. Callum is a totally dislikeable man.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review
#TheBabysitter #PhoebeMorgan #Netgalley

I wanted to enjoy this book more than I did. I felt it was too clichéd. It’s another book where the women are stylish and pretty with lustrous hair, nice houses and good jobs, and the man is rich, but serially unfaithful. 

The chapters are written in first person, and they jump about between different characters, which gives distinctive perspectives on the action, both in the present and in the past, leading up to the murder. 
The plot revolves around the Dillon family – Siobhan, her husband Callum, daughter Emma, and Siobhan’s sister Maria. They travel to Maria’s villa in France for a holiday, but on their second day there, the French police arrive to question Callum on suspicion of murder. The story then unfolds that a woman Callum had been having an affair with, Caroline Harvey, had been found dead in her flat. Her friend’s baby, whom she had been babysitting, is missing. This brings into the story the parents of the missing baby, Jenny & Rick Grant, and the police team in Ipswich, where the Dillon’s Grant’s and Caroline all lived. 

It may be because I read a lot of crime fiction / thrillers but I predicted the outcome at about a third of the way through, and the subsequent twists and turns didn’t change my mind. The characters were a little two dimensional, and I didn’t feel much connection with any of them, except Siobhan. 

It was well written, but a bit too formulaic.

From the get go, this book had me hooked and i loved the way i was so easily absorbed into the story. 
I felt i became to know the characters very quickly and i thought i had guessed fairly early on who was responsible for Caroline Harvey’s death and the abduction of baby Eve....how wrong was i though!!! This was the advent calendar of all crime thrillers, the surprises just kept coming.
Another book to add to my list of recommendations to others.

ARC via NetGalley 

A ‘who dun it’ with a twist I really enjoyed The Babysitter - my first exposure to the a Phoebe Morgan’s novels. 

Caroline is found dead in her flat, draped over the travel cot. She’s been stabbed whilst babysitting her friends one year old baby Eve and the baby is missing. Her lover Callum, a married man is prime suspect, but having an affair doesn’t make you a murderer, does it? And where is the baby? Was Caroline the target or was she the unfortunate result of a kidnapping?

A slow starter, The Babysitter took a while to get going; but really picked up in the 2nd half of the book. Told in the viewpoint of different characters including Caroline, Callum (her married lover), Siobhan (his wife) and the detective, it flits between past and present, piecing together the events running up to Caroline’s death from different perspectives. I really liked this. 

I found myself suspecting many of the characters and then changing my mind. I did however predict correctly and I have to admit this was quite early in, however the plot was still clever enough to bring a final twist that I didn’t expect, and threw me off on a tangent a fair few times! 

I loved the police transcripts and the moments that made you draw in breath but wasn’t so keen on the ending. 

Overall a really good read and I would definitely read more of Phoebe’s books based on this experience. 

Lucy

I recieved a digital arc from the publishers through netgalley in exchanhe for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own and given freely.

My actual rating is 2.5⭐

So i expected to really like this one... I was a little annoyed at the way the time jumps back and forward but i got used to it and was eager to see where the story went... 

I was thoroughly bored with most of the book... We start out when Callum gets arrested and then it goes back over to a week before... So I knew what happened befoee it did but i didn't believe it was him who murdered Caroline... But i couldn't figure out who it was.

The writing was dull and the stotyline was sooo slow, it felt like nothing was happening despite the chapters from Caroline's pov... I ended up skipping the chapters that didn't have Caroline in them until Emma came along... The ending was very disappointing and was totally boring. I expected more reaction from Siobhan, Maria folded quickly and it wasn't even shown, and Emma writing to her years later was over kill. Overall it was disappointing... The chapters from Caroline's pov were the only good ones... Setting up the murder and pointing at most of the characters. 

I didnt sympathise or empathise with any of the characters becaise they were all flat. There was nothing remotely interesting about Caroline except her death and nothing that would strike me as anything to connect any of them.
Siobhan was a wet blanket, totally and utterly unlikeable and very boring and so pathetic. 
Emma was annoying amd hardly there and the best bit was the couple of chapters in her pov. And even then I didn't like her character. 
Callum is boring and pathetic and I have no clue how he gets all these women to faun over him and sleep with him. 
Maria... There was something i disliked about her from the beginning i think it was the fact that she thought she w so much better than Siobhan and her calling her S annoyed the shit out of me.

What a gripping read from start to finish. I couldn't put it down. This us another fabulous read from Phoebe Morgan.

Just because he had an affair doesn’t make him a murderer. Or does it? 
I raced through this book. Loved the characters, the storyline and the ending.

This was my first book by this author and I really enjoyed it! The different perspectives worked really well, and it was fast paced and believable. I even thought I’d guessed the ending only to realise I wasn’t quite as clever as I thought!

I enjoyed this book, despite struggling with which character I was supposed to associate with. There was also one element of the story (no spoilers) towards the end that was unbelievable. But if you can suspend belief momentarily, it doesn’t spoil an otherwise enjoyable holiday read. The story has a good pace and carries you along, wanting to know what happens next. There was one part where I felt like I needed to read through my fingers because I knew what would happen and didn’t want it to. This is well written and carries you along. 

Thanks to @NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

#TheBabysitter #NetGalley I love Phoebe Morgan's style of writing. It is fast paced and edgy with lots of action.  I particularly like the police interviews written as a transcript which speeds things up and makes you feel part of the action.  A well written story with a twist that I didn't get until it happened.  The only thing that stops me giving a full five stars is that I couldn't really warm to any of the characters. A great read nevertheless.

I do love an expected turn with an unexpected twist! 

This is a real solid "who done it" novel, absolutely full to the rafters with twists and turns at every corner that will have you wanting to speed through it (after the first half) but at the same time slow down and get your Detective's cap on. 

You'll find yourself accusing a different character constantly which made it all the more readable.

Although none of the characters were overly likeable they were really well written and all seemed to have this undertone of mystery to them.

Although I'd guessed the "who done it part" the build up was fantastic and the wrapping up of the What's and Why's was brilliantly held back until the very end.

The first half is quite slow but the second half definitely gains speed and has you gripped. 

A brilliant binge worthy read!

Solid 4*

Thanks to netgalley and HQ for the ARC.