This book wasn’t for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters and just felt as though they were awful people.
It was also a very weak thriller

I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

Review done 10th May 2021

The book I found was quite predictable but pleasant. Not wanting to spoil the read, Connie the main character, is a tour guide, so we as readers get to visit the places she does.. Her retire GP husband is somewhat unhappy with his lot. You think at the beginning of the book that maybe it may be him who has and affair when infact it is Connie whose head is turned. Her new lover however, is obsessive and the grass it seems isn't always greener on the other side. An easy read with a dark side

This is an interesting book about loneliness whilst in a long term relationship and I did find it an easy read.

However, the characters needed to be much more rounded. Connie appears difficult and selfish, when I really wanted to like her more. Devan was Jekyll and Hyde...and so very difficult to have any sympathy with. Jared...made no sense whatsoever. What exactly was his motivation? Did he have a mental illness? What exactly was going on with him! None of that was explored and that's pretty fundamental for a book like this. The story was pretty superficial and never really scratched the surface of the characters or the ideas itself but was not a short book!

Connie's exile was unbelievable. Do people really leave their loved ones alone at Christmas? With a stalker on the loose? What awful horrible people surrounded Connie and then again that changes the story and the motivation. I don't think we were supposed to dislike Caty and Devan but their actions were so much worse than anything else!

Had this book ventured into the characters more think it would have been an interesting psychological thriller but as it was, it is just a light beach read with no real depth unfortunately.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

4.5⭐

I was fortunate to receive a copy of this ARC from NetGalley. This book was much darker than I expected it to be! Obsession can be a very powerful thing. I did find Connie a bit naïve for her age though. I also now really want to visit Lake Como!

This was full of emotion and was quite a powerful plot, I was intrigued to see what would happen and found myself getting through this quite quickly

This book was everything I look for in a book. It was so exciting. The plot was fantastic. It really had me on the edge of my seat, and my heart racing. It was very well written and flowed well. It had everything love, lies and obsession all rolled into one

This is a story which runs the whole gamut of human emotions. You pass from happiness and love to sorrow and despair and eventual recovery. The characterisations were great and the story felt so real. Fortunately every story has an ending and your emotions can return to normal. An amazing ans well written story..

This is an odd one. I found the premise quite predictable, but also pretty unbelievable. I finished the book feeling quite confused and unsure of how we got here. As a story it's well written, but the characters are all very stereotypical and lack depth.

So I thought I would try something non-crime, non-psychological and sorry but I wish I hadn't.

This is a bit of a cross over book - saga and pseudo psycho and just didn't work.

Really enjoyed this and found it gripping. Shocking ending - very clever! Looking forward to reading more from the author.

I thought I would try a different genre of book, normally I wouldn't pick up something like this and after reading this, I realise why! A cross between an 'aga saga' and one of the those chick-lit pseudo-psychological thrillers, I can imagine that it will appeal to the masses - it's just not for me

A slow read and story and characters that I could not engage with. Ideal holiday read for others for the setting. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

This was a good story, I was intrigued as to what was gonna happen and I'm glad I picked it up! Want to read more from this author

Actions and reactions and consequences of one's actions were the core of this book. A rough patch in marriage caused her to lose sight of what she wanted. A fast-paced read about consequences and regrets, the book kept me entertained in the afternoon. A good read.

The theme for this months netgalley choice was love/hate so I picked this one. To be honest I found the whole thing a bit ridiculous. I know things like this do happen but how could Connie have not picked up the signs that Jared wasn’t as he seemed. I didn’t really like any of the characters, maybe that was the point?! I don’t know. I kept reading to see how it would turn out after the reveal and the ending was just so flat. At 400 pages it was just too long. I did however, think the writing itself was good and the descriptions of the countries visited on Connies travels were fantastic. A great #tickoffthetbr but unfortunately not for me.

Loved this book, a gripping read and one that has you from page one, it didn’t let up, a fast paced book with a fair few twists and turns, what more could you want!!!! Defo a must read!

I haven't read much by Ms Boyd before, so didn't really know what to expect. I was entertained until the end, and really enjoyed the book. Will read more by this author in future.

Great story of an affair becoming an obsession and stalking. I read it in one go as I couldn't put it down as unsure how it would end. Real page turner with great characters and lovely setting

Now this is a review of two halves.

Firstly... the story of an obsessive affair. I LOVED it. I loved the creepy stalking, pure obsession and the fact that it was an older couples relationship explored for a change.

A tale of how one wrong act can have awful consequences, could your relationship get through an affair unscathed?

The plot was chilling, suspenseful and raw with a believable ending.

Now secondly.. repetition, unfortunately the whole story was full of it which at times drove me a bit bonkers and in truth dimmed the shine that the book could otherwise have.

The first half of the book slowly builds up the relationship between Connie and her husband Devan, their life together and Connie's travels. The second half was definitely my favourite, things became sinister and the suspense starts building brilliantly.

Basically a slow building suspenseful tale with an 'out of nowhere' ending that had me invested the majority of the time. I just wish the constant repetition had laid off a bit!

3.5*

Thanks to netgalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the ARC.