An utterly compelling, addictive read. A domestic thriller that you will get totally absorbed into !!

Jill is a mother of three grown up sons, Tony, Pete and Darren. Tony is married to Mimi and have four daughters, including baby twins !! Pete is married to Andrea and Darren has recently split from his girlfriend Charlotte, who he is still in love with and regularly meets with her and her girlfriend.

Everyone in the family seems to have secrets and gradually all their lives seem to start to unfold in the lead up to Christmas Eve, when the whole family are travelling to a family get together. It is on this journey that there is a devastating car accident which will change all of their lives !!

This book had be hooked right from the very start. I absolutely loved the family and I found the unraveling of their secrets totally addictive!! If you have anything else planned for the day you start this book, be warned you will have to cancel !! A fantastically written domestic family drama !!

Thank you to Penguin Michael Joseph and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

This one is described by the publisher as a "thrilling family drama", but unfortunately I didn't find anything thrilling about it. Simply put, this one just wasn't for me.

From about 10% in, I had a sneaky suspicion that I wasn't going to like this book. I probably should have thrown in the towel but I decided to persevere because the synopsis sounded great and I was hoping that things were going to improve. Unfortunately they didn't. Cutting to the chase let me say this: I found this book to be incredibly boring. The first 60% of the book was immensely slow and nothing seemed to be happening. There was also a lot of focus on parenting, being a mother, kids, kids that are happy, kids that are difficult, kids that aren't properly looked after, and so on, which just isn't my cup of tea. And because there was no "thrilling" aspect to go along with these themes, I was really battling to stay invested in the story.

This story really is a family saga and not much more. Yes, the second half of the book and especially the last 30% does improve and things get more interesting with certain reveals about certain family members, but by then I was so bored to tears that I just didn't find anything much to get excited about.

I note that many others have rated this book as a 5-star read and although I'm mightily surprised by that, it does ultimately mean that perhaps the problems that I had with this book were all mine. Be that as it may, I'm happy to be done with it so that I can move on to something else.

(As a note, Goodreads seems to have logged this book on their website twice, under the two different covers. This is a mistake on their part as it means that the reviews are split between two different editions rather than being consolidated into one review page. I just mention this because the other review page contains more reviews for those of you that are interested).

What a great read! It was a bit slow at the beginning for me and it took a while for me to get into the book but boy when it kicked off  I found myself racing through the book to see what caused the accident and who survived and who didn't.
It is a story with a lot of depth with quite a few very strong characters that can carry their own story.
Highly recommended!

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion

A satisfactory family drama with a dark side to it. Set in Australia, it's the story of three brothers, their families (or girlfriends) and their mom who is dealing with the loss of her husband. There are quite a few characters and a few of them are hiding secrets, some that could be devastating for the other family members. It's a quick, solid read though at times the dialogue is a bit weak and the interactions feel forced.

Set in Sydney, You Need To Know is an extremely compelling family drama that centres on Jill Lewis, her three sons, Pete, Tony and Darren, their wives and children. All the packing has been done and the families are all setting off for their holiday cottage to spend Christmas together. However, there is a terrible car crash...

Even though there initially seems a lot of characters to remember, Nicola Moriarty skilfully gives each an identity and I soon felt as if I knew them quite well. As the story naturally progresses the reader learns more about each of their lives and relationships. I was totally invested in the storyline and the issues the characters had were convincing. The storyline was expertly plotted and the author chucked in a few curve balls here and there, creating further interest. This is a fabulous unfolding family drama that oozes resentment and tension right until the exciting conclusion. Very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Penguin Michael Joseph via NetGalley, and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

Nicola Moriarty has done it again! You Need To Know is a strong domestic thriller about Jill Lewis, her three sons, and their wives and children and how a terrifying road crash tears their family apart. The writing is brilliant and evokes such real emotions from the reader. The complex family dynamics are excellent. The story is fast-paced with plenty of twists. Highly recommended to anyone who loves domestic thrillers.

I thought this was a very good family thriller/drama, it had you counting down to the accident and dreading it all the same even though you were desperate to know what happened! It was gripping and I got through it sharpish, the dynamics of the family were interesting and it kept you guessing throughout the book, I really enjoyed this one and can’t wait for more from Nicola!

I really enjoyed this book - Nicola Moriarty writes a good story. We knew there was a car accident and with the dates noted on each chapter we could count down how close it was getting. But who was involved and how did it happen? The book is relayed by the adult females in the Lewis family: Jill and her daughters in law, Mimi and Andrea, a tightly knit trio. Their husbands and youngest brother Darren are all authors and a close knit family. Mimi and Pete have four daughters and 16 year old Callie has turned from a sweet, helpful girl to a moody teen overnight. Something is clearly bothering her but she won't confide in anyone. Each of the family has their own secrets to hide, but who needs to know what? Clearly Jill has something major she is avoiding and feels guilty about, which she refers to in the frequent letters she writes to her late husband Frank. The devastating consequences of this secret and the dangers of a mother's love bring the story to its devastating conclusion. Great characters and a good story. #netgalley #youneedtoknow

Wow what a read. Nicola Moriarty has blown it out of the water again. I love her books and this did not me down at all.

This is a story about the dynamics of family life. It is the Christmas holidays for Jill and her family and they are all ready to get ready to go on their journey. A horrific accident occurs and this is where the main story lies.

I normally read books that have more of a thriller element to it but I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I love Nicola's writing style and I always feel like I am in the midst of the writing.

Thanks to NetGalley, Nicola Moriarty and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

This is the blurb from the back cover:

The holidays are here. The extended family has gathered. The cars are packed and the convoy sets off. The cottage is a few hours' drive - but not everyone will live to see it ...

For Jill, her three sons, their wives and children, a terrifying road crash will tear apart their family.

The crash will be an accident but the shattering that follows has been long coming.

Because at the heart of this family lies a secret - concealed, wrestled with, festering and harmful - and nothing now can stop it coming out.

But will any of them survive it?

You Need To Know is another brilliant read by Nicola Moriarty. A well written twisty family drama.
The book is set in Sydney, Australia with Jill being the main character. She has three sons, two daughter-in-laws and four granddaughters. Jill lost her husband a year ago in a terrible accident on their way to their holiday home for Christmas. All the family travel to the holiday home to be together over the festive period. They are all ready to go this year but not all of them will make it.
This was a well written book that I thoroughly enjoyed, I don’t want to go into the storyline too much as it will definitely spoil it for you. I thought with the amount of characters I was going to get confused but each woman has her own chapter and this really enables you to know them and their family really well so there was no confusion. I thought all the female characters were good strong characters and I liked them all. I would definitely recommend this one.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

This compelling family drama is set in Sydney and centres around Jill her three sons their wives and children. When I first started reading this book I was sure I would be confused as there were a lot of characters but that was not the case as the author has the gift of describing each one so skilfully I soon felt as if I knew them personally.

The families are all packed and ready to drive to their cottage to spend Christmas together. but a tragedy is about to unfold and it will change everything and everyone in an instant.

I loved how we got to know each character and their lives and relationships throughout the book. It really had me invested in the storyline and the issues each one encountered were very true to life. The storyline was beautifully plotted and threw a few curve balls along the way.

I throughly recommend this fast paced book, thank you to netgalley and the publishers for my chance to read and review it.

Great family drama with interesting characters. Thought the Christmas event was very cleverly woven through - giving us just a teaser of the disaster heading our way.
There were some powerful storylines. Scenarios that are happening the world over and they were very cleverly handled.
The most explosive was kept til last. Didn’t see that coming! I thought the author really got across the anguish caused to all in this particular storyline and it was really well handled. We did have our share of happy bits too though - especially with Doggo! Thoroughly enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it.

Another fantastic book by Nicola Moriarty! Fantastically written, gripping from the very start and kept me guessing with twists and turns! Would definitely recommend!

Great family drama with many different facets. Good twisty novel and very easy to read. Good solid tale from this author.

A novel filled with the domestic drama of the three Lewis brothers and their families. I found the first half of the book incredibly slow paced and nearly threw the towel in but I persevered and the second half progressed at a greater speed. The book was enjoyable in the end but it didn’t grab me as I thought it would. Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Michael Joseph and the author for the chance to review.

This book was brilliant. I devoured it in a couple of sittings as I couldn’t put it down. It kept me hooked from start to finish and I loved all the different character viewpoints. So many family secrets which linked together wonderfully at the end.

My thanks to Netgalley for my copy of You Need To Know, an absolutely amazing family drama. It took a little while to draw me in but once all the details of the relationships and the more than believable characters within that family were in place I couldn't get enough of it. I had to ration myself so as not to race through it. There are some twists in the plot and some difficult subjects were touched on with sensitivity. Overall I was left with the feeling of wondering what happened to them all next. A brilliant book that I'm sure I'll want to read again in the future.

I raced though this one I just couldn't put it down soooooo addictive!!

A sensational multi-layered beautiful paced family drama. An emotive unpredictable read that will leave you wanting more!

A gem of a read!

This was a fantastic read. The story opens with a horrific accident. The book then follows with chapters taking you back to three brothers, their families and their mother and the lead up to the day of the accident. A stunning family saga with secrets, lies, loyalties tested and a shocking outcome. I loved it all.

‘You need to know’ is a novel based in Australia.

It is a very ‘real’ novel, the beauty of which is the relationship between characters. It is a great portrayal of the ‘stuff’ that goes on in families.

Jen is one of the main characters, a mother to 3 grown up sons, she was sadly widowed a year prior to the current timeline.

One of her daughter in laws is fraught mother, Mimi, she has twin babies, and 2 older daughters, one of whom is a teen acting out some issues, which prove to be highly relevant.

Other daughter in law is Andrea, her husband is struggling author, Tony. Andrea finds herself questioning their decision not to have children, which proves highly significant. Tony has secrets which also prove significant as the novel plays out.

My favourite of her three sons is bachelor, Darren, still nursing the breakdown of a long term relationship, his ex asking a favour starting a whole chain of events that provide no end of entertainment.

All these storylines come together in a quite spectacular way.

This is a really entertaining book, some serious content, but also in parts lighthearted and even a little humorous. This is a book with a gratifyingly satisfactory ending (which is no mean feat given done if the earlier content!). I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this novel.

My thanks to NetGalley, author and publisher for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.