The Ex Boyfriend by Rona Halsall is a thriller that was so much more than the title and book synopsis lead me to believe it would be. With an unreliable narrator at the helm this one really seems to take a reader down two different paths with only one being obvious from the description.

Becca is married to Dean and the mother of a wonderful toddler, Mia. Becca and Dean have hit that spot in their marriage where it feels to Becca like she is a second choice to Dean’s budding career. Just at a time when Becca is beginning to wonder if Dean’s eye has wandered away from her Becca receives a message from her old flame, one that she had thought she would be with forever until life got in the way.

But just as Becca gets the flash of her past and questions where she is now in her life with her marriage Mia begins to become ill. What seems to come on quickly and disappear just as fast leads Becca to seeking medical advice. Being told it’s simply a bug doesn’t sit well with Becca and when the illness keeps coming back Becca becomes more and more worried.

The Ex Boyfriend is the type of book that you just can’t trust anyone or anything that is happening at the moment. With every turn of the page it seems like the story unpeals another layer and twists things even further making you question just where things will end up. By the time the end came with this one I had more than given up guessing and just went along for the ride waiting to find out the truth of it all and when that happens I always enjoy whatever comes my way.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Becca's marriage isn't going as well as expected. Her husband spends long hours away in building up his business, along with a new employee ... a very beautiful woman. There is quite a bit of travel involved, so is he having an affair?

Their 3-year-old-daughter is the apple of her eye. But it's sometimes rather exhausting, working as a nurse, even part-time, taking care of the household, and a very active young child with no help from her husband.

Becca's first boyfriend, her first love, shows up on her social media feed after a long time away. He seems the same ... they were also best friends and she could talk to him about anything. But it's been a long while .. and he's in another country, so can they just become friends again?

But Mia, their daughter, has a medical issue. Somewhere in Becca's past, she was accused of mistreating patients, mixing up their meds, giving incorrect dosages. When doctors examine Mia, they find that she has been poisoned. Mia is okay ... for now. So who's making her daughter ill ... who's tampering in her marriage?

Plenty of suspects ... her husband, but would he try to hurt the daughter he loves? Her childless sister .. does she want Her sister's daughter? Becca's friend and sometime babysitter ... who always calls Mia her little girl? Or is the ex-boyfriend lying ...and not in another country as he says? Could he be trying to make Becca pay for dumping him all those years ago? Or is it Mia herself?

This is a well-written, psychological thriller, filled with twists and turns that move faster than a roller coaster. The characters are deftly drawn ... and one or more of them are not exactly what... or who ... you think. It's fast-paced leading to a disturbing, unexpected conclusion.

Many thanks to the author / Bookouture / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Rona Halsell is a smart author and this novel hooked me in immediately with the story of young Mia, the daughter of Becca and Dean, constantly  falling ill with a stomach illness Becca thinks could be poison. Who would poison her child?  Suddenly the hospital, husband and family think that it's Becca who in turn suspects every family member as well as the babysitter.  Becca married Dean when she was pregnant and on the rebound from Connor who she abandoned in Australia when her mother was sick.  Now her child is sick and Connor is suddenly contacting her again professing his love.   Becca is attempting to hold on to her fleeting sanity, knowing that the authorizes are judging her especially when they find out about a similar incident in her nursing career.  We are in the middle of a deteriating marriage, a dysfunctional family, a father and sister twisting her like a pretzel, a distant husband and a sick child.  Everyone is a suspect to Becca, and rightly so.  She needs to save her child, but from who? The book moves at dizzying speed and I was as shocked to discover the villain  as I was to discover I finished the book in two sittings.

The Ex Boyfriend by Rona Halsall caught me completely off guard! After reading the synopsis I dove in expecting one type of story and was pleasantly surprised when it took huge turn. The Ex boyfriend is without a doubt one of the most brilliant domestic thrillers that I have picked up in 2020!

Becca believes that she happily married to Dean. Together they share one miracle daughter named Mia. Things aren't perfect but they are about to get a lot worse. Becca's first love randomly shows up in her twitter feed and unleashes all sorts of doubts and uncertainties. To make matters worse, Mia suddenly and repeatedly gets sick without explanation. Becca begins questioning everyone and everything, but will the answer save her family or tear it apart?

This book is loaded with guilty pleasure topics, affairs, crazy family drama, mental instability, love triangles! It will have you on the edge of your seat from start to finish! I highly recommend that you grab yourself a copy of this book and you can because it is officially published TODAY!!!!

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

If your a huge fan of Rona's writing and read every single one as soon as it comes out, like I do, then you will know what to expect from a Rona tale. 

You know you will get, twists that mess with your brain, you will get great characterisation, you will get suspecting every living thing in her books, and you will get hardly ever being right with your suspicions. 

The Ex-Boyfriend is no different. Rona has this craft to always make me suspect the innocent bystander. Its happened many times in her previous books. Poor old Mike from Love You Gone was the biggest. 

I loved how in this book, you don't only suspect everyone around Becca, but you suspect the main character herself. Is she actually deluding herself and its her all along? Well I wont tell you for thought of ruining the surprise and the twists that will take you on a roller coaster of a story, with mixed emotions and suspense. 

I will anxiously be waiting for the next work of novel art from Rona!

This book has a subtitle describing it as addictive and shocking but I have to disagree with both of those- also it is categorized as a psychological thriller, which is very misleading. Instead, I would call this a family drama, dealing most with the unfolding family dynamics of a dysfunctional family that really never recovered from grief of a loved one dying. Sure, a few times a mental disorder (which is where the psychological aspect of the story I guess plays a role) is mentioned, but in actuality, there was almost no action and lots of tea drinking and cake eating. I was bored, could have cared less what happened, only continued on because I don't know how to stop reading a book.

Some parts of the story which potentially could have been interesting happened off the pages, and instead the reader gets a super dry recap of what occurred. Basically nothing happened on the pages at all, we never get to see any kind of confrontation or suspense, but a nice and neat summation at the end. Also, everything was wrapped up with a happy little bow, everyone gets their HEA- even when I didn't think they should. Overall, this was boring and a big let down for me and I don't recommend it if you want a thriller, shocks, or an addictive read.

Keep in mind that these are my views only, and it seems like lots of other people enjoyed this story, so if this premise sounds entertaining to you definitely give it a whirl.  I will disclaimer though that I read this as a buddy read and my buddy was equally let down/disgruntled with the story.

What a twisted tale of love...or is it hate?  This one kept me so immersed I couldn't read it fast enough!  There are quite a few characters in this one but not hard to keep track of them as they are well developed and each has their own backstory.  You never quite know who is to blame and it's a shocker once it's revealed!

I received an advanced copy from the publisher via Netgalley for an honest review.

This is not a novel that I would categorize as a psychological thriller per se, more like a Lifetime movie in a book. This novel was good enough to keep reading, however, it was quite predictable and ended very much 'happily ever after' when some other situations logically would not be resolved that quickly and easily. I would not say this was a bad book because it was entertaining enough that I did finish it, however, it was rather predictable. It was also a good, easy read and something to get lost in if one needs something entertaining and not have to think too hard to get lost in. In addition, the title and hype seem very misleading.

This novel focuses on Becca and what is occurring in her life, her marriage, her workplace, and most specifically her daughter. She ends up hearing from an ex-boyfriend, potentially 'the one that got away' type situation, however, most of the novel really is about her family and not really this ex. It also was not that psychological or really thrilling, rather predictable and a very quick ending with everything wrapped up in a lovely bow. May be fantastic for some, was just okay for me.

LOVED LOVED LOVED!  Devoured it in one day!
This story is about Becca, a married mother of a 3 year old, who finds herself in a humdrum marriage to Dean, when she receives a message on social media from her ex boyfriend, Connor, who she hasn't heard from in over 10 years.  Immediately she begins to remember the excitement and connection they had and starts to wonder if she made a mistake all those years ago.  And then things begin to go horribly awry...
What an amazing thriller that kept me going back and forth on who to suspect!  A definite must read!

Thank you Netgalley for this book.  I love each page a new emotion, very well written and interesting.  I think they drink around 5 litres of tea in this book lol
I will read everything by this author !!!

The Ex Boyfriend is a twisty read and one I was looking forward to read and I’m glad to say it didn’t disappoint.
Becca is married to Dean and together they have a three year old daughter, Mia. Life from the outside looks good as it so often does but on the inside cracks are appearing. Dean is working longer and longer days and weekends away whilst Becca struggles to manage child care and her part time nursing job. Connor an ex boyfriend she met in Australia years ago gets in touch through social media saying how much he misses her and still loves her that she has to respond. Meanwhile her dad is struggling living with her sister and everything blows to head. Mia is being continuously ill and Becca has no idea why. 
This was a very full thriller, I use the term full as with every page turn something was happening, being revealed or a red herring appearing. I loved that at no point did my mind wander from the book. I did pin my hopes on the wrong person and was shocked when the truth was revealed.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

The story is about Becca who, like many women, is caught up in the mundane life of being a wife, a mother, a daughter and a full time job to deal with too.  Out of the blue she is contacted by an ex boyfriend from her time out in Australia and she begins to re-evalue her life coming to the conclusion that no harm would be done by renewing their friendship especially with him being so far away.  And that is the start of everything going wrong in Becca's life with it all pointing to her past!
Rona is very good at feeding the reader the plot little by little and just when you think you have it all worked out, she sends off on another tangent to think again as well as becoming even more determined to find out what is going on! And then there is the ending.......I shall say no more!
Great writing with plenty of mis-directions to keep the reader guessing and turning the pages. i would definitely recommend this book.
Thanks to Netgalley and the author for the ARC to review. All opinions are my own.

Yet another great psychological thriller from Rona Halsall. 
There’s lots going on in this book and when it all comes crumbling down it’s hard to know who to suspect. 
Becca is tired from working and looking after her three year old daughter and her husband is working away more and more. An ex boyfriend gets in touch and Becca wonders what could have been if she’d gone back to Australia several years ago. 
Her childminder has a health scare so leaves Becca with no-one to look after Mia so she asks her sister, Kate, who is living with their dad after their mother’s death. 
Kate is not happy as whilst working from home is ok she’s feeling trapped and it’s clear her and her dad aren’t getting on. 
Frank comes to stay with Becca for a few days which seems to work well as he’s there to help with another sickness episode that Mia suffers. 
Becca is worried that the vomiting and diarrhoea is happening too often so demands that some tests are carried out. 
It’s found that Mia is being poisoned and Becca is suspected of doing it and Mia is taken away from her. 
What follows is heartbreaking to see as Becca longs to be with her daughter but the authorities won’t let her. 
When the truth comes out, there’s multiple shocks as several people close to Becca have been hiding things from her and someone wanted her to lose her child. 
This is a gripping psychological thriller that well and truly had me hooked throughout. 
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

The overall story and how it develops is brilliant and it definitely left me feeling uneasy at times. Especially with children of my own, I really felt how Becca was feeling, worrying about her daughter, people not listening and then being taken away from her. It was heartbreaking. 

There are plenty of characters that you will suspect throughout and even though I did guess who it was it was still a shock and I definitely don't think every reader would guess it so easily. 

I scored this 3.5  stars as already mentioned, for the brilliant story and concept, however my only criticism was that I didn't really warm to the characters. Becca left me feeling frustrated and the others were not pleasant. There wasn't much background on them. I felt like it could have looked at the past of her husband and sister more. Parts of that felt a little rushed. 

Apart from that the overall concept was great, it did leave me with a knot in my stomach at times and early on had me changing my mind numerous times as to what could be going on. 

I think it's definitely worth a read!

Who can you trust? Your family? Your friends? Your husband? Or…your ex-boyfriend? These are the questions Becca faces in this absolutely gripping psychological thriller by Rona Halsell.

Becca, mother of three year old Mia, is married to Dean who spends long days trying to grow a new business. She works part time as a district nurse and relies on Ruth for childcare. Although stressed by her changing schedule and Dean’s late nights and travel, Becca manages well until two things happen at nearly the same time. Connor, the Australian ex-boyfriend she broke up with ten years ago, texts her a friendly message. She replies and the two begin regular messaging. Then Mia gets sick. Becca tries frantically to have the mysterious illness diagnosed. What happens next will shock you but why it happened will have you on the edge of your seat!

This is the first book Ive read by Rona Halsell and it will definitely not be the last. I’m so looking forward to her next! This fact-paced, suspenseful thriller deserves 5 stars. 

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Rona Halsell for this ARC.

This book kept me at the edge of my seat and I had to read it in one sitting. Fast paced and really intriguing, I couldn’t help to feel so much compassion for Becca and everything she was going through! 

There were a fair amount of twists and turns and even though I did figure out some things, I was taken aback a few times too. Becca and sweet little Mia were definitely my favourite characters throughout. I was a bit suspicious from the beginning about the other characters but I don’t want to spoil the book for anyone so will not comment on my mains suspicions. 

I liked how mental health was explored in this book and how the author found a tactful way to go about it and the importance of not judging someone by past actions or behaviours. Thrilling and mysterious, with the right amount of despair and relentless will to find the truth. 

I would really recommend this amazing mystery and psychological thriller and can’t wait to read more by Rona Halsall. 

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read and advanced digital copy of this fantastic book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

From the first chapter I was intrigued - I had to know what was going on with Mia.  I did find it hard to relate to some of the characters initially as I was suspicious to most if not all of them at different times throughout the book.  I had myself convinced that I knew who the ‘bad guy’ was until I continuously changed my mind and then found I had no idea - I certainly did not see the conclusion coming.  
As a mum I truly felt for Becca and Dean with their daughter being so inexplicably ill, especially for Becca who was so desperately trying to find the cause knowing that something was wrong.  

A truly gripping story that had me needing to read on to find out what was happening!  A very quick read for me that was superbly written with plenty twists, suspense and suspicion.

DNF at 40%. Just could not get into it. I do appreciate the free ARC in exchange for the honest review. All opinions are my own....

Well, this really is a psychological thriller - it will mess with your head!

Becca has a lot on her plate; she looks after her three-year old daughter Mia while her husband works hard at building his business which takes him away from home a lot of the time. With her mother dead and her father in poor health since his heart attack, she is always being made to feel guilty by her sister who moved back home to care for their father. Throw in a stressful part-time nursing job and you begin to see why she is thrilled when an ex-boyfriend makes contact on social media. Can she share her worries with him? Then things get worse as Mia get ill over and over again, and Becca begins to realise that not all those who profess support are on her side. Who to trust?

The tension is palpable in this novel - you can almost feel the immense pressure Becca is put under. Well-written and carefully plotted - as always from Rona Halsall - this one had my heart pounding in my ears more than once. I had no idea where it was going until all was revealed, and I liked that the book went on to include an epilogue explaining where everyone ended, tying it all up and leaving no questions unanswered. I was so drawn into this one that I read into the early hours long after I should have been asleep, and I would definitely recommend this to every reader who enjoys not knowing what's going to happen next. Another five star read from this author!

My thanks to the publisher for my copy via NetGalley; this is - as always - my honest, original and unbiased review.

I have to own up to the fact that although I was recently gifted four titles written by this author they have remained on my teetering book mountain, yet to be explored. Why, I ask myself have I allowed this to happen? Too many good books to read and not nearly enough time is my answer! However I’m so glad I have finally rectified the situation and chosen her latest book The Ex Boyfriend to satisfy my penchant for an engaging psychological thriller.

Becca is a part time district nurse, living in Llandudno, north Wales, married to the rather beige Dean and mother to three year old Mia. She immediately comes across as an anxious individual often left in sole charge of  her energetic young daughter whilst Dean is busy building his own business. I suppose she is your typical harassed, stressed out mum juggling too many balls at once, not helped by her strained relationship with sister Kate and father Frank who live in Bangor.For unknown reasons  yet to be revealed neither of them are particularly fond of Dean which naturally makes Becca piggy in the middle, always an awkward position to occupy. Apart from support from childminder Ruth, Becca’s sense of isolation is obvious and her marriage appears to be floundering. Theirs doesn’t seem like a match made in heaven, definitely not aflame with passion or bound by all consuming love. So when ex boyfriend Connor gets in touch via Twitter, is it any wonder Becca revels in some much needed attention, reliving past memories and wondering her life could have been like had circumstances been different? Connor Cynwinski was her Australian love, a relationship brought to an abrupt end due to her mother’s death prompting Becca’s return to the UK to attend the funeral and help her father through his grief. Just as Connor renews contact with his past love, little Mia starts experiencing bouts of illness that are distressing for all concerned. What’s the connection between these two events, if any?

This is a storyline very much governed by the past and Becca’s relationship with her family as well as with Connor, with her working life also having an influence over the direction of events. How the past and present collide is the intriguing aspect of this psychological thriller that severely tested my detective skills and found me wanting. I didn’t like any of the characters,with childminder Ruth portrayed as rather too involved in Mia’s life, Dean not anywhere near as involved as he should be, an obnoxious Kate whose complicated  relationship with Frank made me raise my eyebrows more than once and Becca who plays right into the hands of those who have had reason to mistrust her in the past. Thanks to the author’s brilliant way of deflecting attention away from these individuals at just the right moment you’re never sure who to trust.

The kind of storyline as depicted in The Ex Boyfriend always makes me inwardly seethe at the injustice of placing a woman, in this case, Becca as the obvious culprit in the firing line from both family members  and the authorities. I don’t know why but I’m always quick, sometimes too quick to believe in the protagonist’s innocence, but what will you decide? The author has created an atmosphere whereby EVERYBODY  is a possible suspect so I found myself marvelling at the author’s talent for misdirection. She nicely sets up Becca as prime suspect with enough of a backstory to make this particular theory plausible, yet manages to do exactly the same with husband Dean, father Frank, sister Kate and the rather creepy childminder Ruth and indeed Connor the ex boyfriend. Who is the fly in the ointment? Who can Becca, or us as the reader trust? Is Becca a reliable narrator? The fun is in the guessing, playing amateur detective and I found my head full of wonderful theories, thoughts spiralling in one direction before abruptly shooting off in another, switching allegiance in the blink of an eye.  I will also admit to feeling rather smug at one point, convinced my brain had finally joined up the dots in the correct order, only to have the author cleverly wiping that short lived smugness off my face! Whilst it’s brilliant to feel you have outwitted the author’s attempts at misdirection, I prefer to blindsided by the truth,  which when revealed makes you gasp and exclaim “of course, it’s so obvious!”
The Ex Boyfriend is such an easy read in terms of writing style, the kind of psychological thriller that will hold your attention and keep you entertained without giving you too much of a fright, so you can read it anytime of day or night knowing it won’t cause you any nightmares. I love a storyline that can also educate, inform,or open our eyes to something new, prompting a good old Google search! That is exactly what you can expect from this read. The human psyche is such a never ending source of fascination to me, with a myriad of conditions affecting our well being, a subject at the heart of Becca’s story and naturally providing plenty of fodder to make this  a good psychological thriller.

I wasn’t disappointed with the ending although  a part of me was hoping for a volte face rather than all the strands being so neatly tied up but that is a minor criticism. I like to play devils advocate in my head, imagining how I would have chosen events to play out but since I’m not an author, just a voracious reader, I’m content to leave myself in the expert hands of the likes of Rona Halsall who know how to engage the readers interest until the last written word. I  definitely recommend and at least I am now in the possession of other books by this author so she can continue to delight me with her accomplished writing skills. My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read in exchange for an honest review.