Ellie and Steven are looking forward to their first weekend away but things are not quite what they seem as the break turns into a nightmare. Ellie is a grad student and Steven is a teacher at an elite Manhattan school, but neither of them are quite who they appear to be and one of them won’t escape the weekend alive.

This is a dark read, graphic at times but very atmospheric. Difficult to say too much without giving it away but was a very enjoyable read. I am sure it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea with some of the subject matter but there is plenty to stimulate the readers.

I would like to thank both Net Galley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

4-5 stars rounded up.

Steven Harding and Ellie Masterson leave a winter NYC and head to Chesapeake Bay for a romantic weekend escape. Steven is a respected Literature Professor who also teaches at a prestigious NY high school. His career is all about trajectory in order to emulate his esteemed father whose shadow looms large. Ellie is younger and a Masters student at NYU. It’s their six month anniversary, it should be perfect, the house is a secluded modern architects dream and thus will give them the privacy they desire.

Wow. This is a character driven psychological thriller of high quality the plot of which it’s best to go into blind as it’s a very powerful story featuring a very relevant issue. It’s extremely atmospheric in a great location with a house that retains secrets within its walls. The surrounding trees seem to loom, the icy weather and the wind all add to the chill and danger. There’s a growing sense of claustrophobia and paranoia , the dense blackness outside because of its remote location adds to the readers foreboding and apprehension. The author uses all the senses in the plot, smells that overwhelm, sounds that disturb, strange images that add a vertiginous feeling and build the anxiety and pain. It’s so twisty that it constantly disarms and surprises as the storyline shifts in direction. The author cleverly uses tension and suspense and then gives you some breathing space. However, it builds and builds with tension escalating intensely towards a blood curdling end and you have no idea how it will play out. I don’t want to say much about the characters as they’re critical to what plays out between them, lets settle for they both keep big secrets. I like how Literature is used really cleverly especially Dostoevsky ( though I won’t say which one!) to highlight and reinforce situations. This works so well and is very relevant to the characters.

Overall, this really is a book that is hard to put down. I won’t pretend it’s an easy read, it’s shocking and meant to be so but what I will say it’s an incredible one. What a debut!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Penguin Michael Joseph for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this in exchange for honest feedback. There was much about the writing that I admired, particularly the treatment of setting and the literary references that helped to inform the characters and their backgrounds. Of course, this is a very topical book, and addresses important themes.

Nobody But Us is a very powerful book by Laure Van Rensburg that is a psychological thriller with shades of Gothic horror and even the barest suggestion of the supernatural.

40 year-old Professor Steven Harding and his 23 year-old girlfriend Ellie book a few days break in a beautiful remote house to celebrate 6 months together. The setting is idyllic, the house facing woodland and within a short walk of the Ocean, no neighbours, no mobile signal and ,by request,not even a landline to disturb the loving couple.............what could possibly go wrong?
After settling in Ellie prepares a romantic dinner and Steven enjoys an after dinner Gin.
From that point on things change quite rapidly............

This is a book with a message as well as a tense and riveting story-line. There is some quite graphic violence and an important theme that will make you think as the story evolves and 2 main characters' dialogue shows that they have very different views. In the Author's note at the end of the book it is revealed that the core theme of the book is an issue that has affected Ms Van Rensburg and that she feels passionate about. Apologies for the vagueness but I do try to avoid spoilers.

This is a very affecting book as well as a great thriller, both Ellie and Steven are memorable characters and I'm sure that,like me,most who read it will be thinking about it long after finishing the final page.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. This one will stay with me a long time, powerful read that I definitely recommend. College professor Steve and student Ellie head away to a remote cabin one snowy weekend to celebrate their 6 month anniversary. However, neither of them have been honest with the other about who they really are. The weekend quickly turns sour with violence, deceit and even murder on their minds. You won't want to put this one down. Very well written.

This book! I had some expectation of this being a domestic noir, and was happy to settle into that mode when it took a turn I didn’t expect, and made the reading experience truly gripping. The story of Ellie and Steven is not your average psychological thriller, far from it. Through deft plotting and prose we are led to believe this is a ‘normal’ couple - with perhaps some darker undertones - before the realisation hits that this is a deeper, richer., darker tale altogether. Like Misery meets My Dark Vanessa, this book explores issues of consent, abuse and trauma with a truly sophisticated hand. I loved it and will be thinking about it for some time.

I didnt know what to expect or who or what to believe and thats what makes this book so good, just when you think you know something for sure something turns thzt on its head and you are right back guessing again. Twisty, suspenseful, mysterious, definitely worth adding to your tbr pile

What a thrill ride this was!
When starting out the book, you think you know what this is, and how it will unfold but as you read on, it takes a sharp turn that leaves you breathless to get to the end to see how it all ends.
For fans of My Dark Vanessa for sure, but with a new and exciting twist.

I appear to be in the minority here but I really didn’t enjoy this book at all. I struggle when I don’t like the characters and I’m not routing for anyone.
At one point during the story it mentions authors who tend to make each paragraph 1 sentence too long, never knowing when enough is enough and unfortunately that is exactly how I felt this book was wrote. I realise that you have to set the scene but on occasion it just felt like too much.
Unfortunately this was just not for me.
#NetGalley #NobodyButUs

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.
I was intrigued by the premise of this book, Ellie and Rick head off for a romantic weekend away to celebrate. However not everything is as rosy as it seems an interesting psychological thriller. IT touches on the #metoo movement and I found some of the descriptions around this a little scary so I think it should contain a trigger warning for sexual assault as I wasn't expecting the graphic descriptions

This is an intensely claustrophobic read, set over the course of three days, in the middle of the forest and only two characters. The opening chapter sets the final scene and we must read the book to find out what happened there. The house, weather and woods not only serve as a moody backdrop to this novel, but secondary characters to the unnerving narrative you know is simmering underneath the oh-so-perfect weekend getaway you just know is going to go wrong soon. I did enjoy this novel although wasn't surprised by any of the twists in it. The writing is quite beautiful and I would recommend it to friends.

The first page of this book intrigued me straight away, it sets a sinister tone for the story ahead. After reading a chapter or so I wasn’t sure where the story was going, I was worried it was going to be predictable and disappointing but a few more chapters in I was gripped and I could not put it down!

Professor Steven and student Ellie take a romantic weekend break. Immediately all isn’t as it seems and it’s clear there’s a deeper connection between the two of them. The different character perspectives were so clever and I was constantly left guessing and wondering what was going to come next. I won’t reveal too much, you’ll have to read it to find out more!

Laure Van Rensburg touches on very important and sensitive subjects throughout the book and it added to the tense and captivating storyline.

I can’t thank NetGalley, the publishers and author for letting me read a copy of this book. Publication date is 14th April 2022! I highly recommend this twisty, captivating read for anyone who’s a fan of a psychological thriller!

Nobody But Us is a tense, utterly compelling debut by Laure Van Rensburg. I really enjoyed this book. Right from the get go she creates an ominous tone and you know things aren’t going to go down well for the two lead characters. Laure Van Rensburg expertly keeps the tension turning up a notch and I couldn’t stop turning the pages.

We meet Ellie and Steven who are heading to a cabin deep within a forest for a romantic trip away. It should be a special weekend for them both. But instead it turns into something far darker. This really is a story where you don’t want to give too much of the plot away. From the outset I had the feeling that something terrible was going to happen to this couple. It starts off quite slow as we first get to know Ellie and Steven and then bang; Laure drops a massive bombshell which flips the novel on its head.

It becomes clear that something serious has gone on between Ellie and Steven. I had to get to the bottom of what that was and what had led to this weekend. The majority of the book takes place primarily in the house, where Ellie and Steven have gone to stay, and the house becomes a character in its own right. It gives the book a very claustrophobic feeling, almost as though the walls of the house are pressing in, crushing Ellie and Steven.

There is a very important storyline to this book which Laure delves into and I don’t want to go into too much detail about it here. I thought the flashback scenes were written very well and I could feel the emotion and the anger in Laure’s writing. There is a deep sense to get justice in this book which comes through very strongly and in a very powerful way. There are some devastating reveals and I had no idea how things were going to pan out for Ellie and Steven. As we get to learn more about them and their pasts, my opinions of them both shifted.

I’m sure that many people will be thinking about this couple long after turning the final page. This is a dramatic, tension driven book that will keep you engaged right the way through. I flew through this book. Psychological thriller lovers, this is definitely one to add to your TBR pile.

Nobody But Us is a tense, claustrophobic thriller taking place over a few days in a secluded house where a romantic weekend away results in a crime scene that horrifies even the police department. There are too many smart revelations to say too much about where the plot goes but Laure Van Rensburg creates an unnerving atmosphere from the moment the couple arrive in the house and what follows is a close examination of the abuse of power. The way the past is woven into the intense present day time frame is deftly done and the characterisation is so strong that even when I was not reading the novel, my head was full of Steven’s toxic behaviour. This is a real page turner, one which is hard to tear yourself away from!

A chilling powerful debut that glitters and shimmers with rage.

I am in awe of how Laure conjures up a set of ordinary words into unique phrases of beauty. Sentences I have never seen before immediately feel familiar. It is as if she puts life under the microscope then magics it up for us on paper.

Therefore, having read Laure's brilliant short stories before, I knew her debut novel would be special but I didn't expect to miss a night's sleep reading it or to still be thinking of it days later. Stunning, powerful, timely - what other words can I throw at it - although it doesn't matter. None would suffice because words couldn't possibly describe this book in n a manner that befits it.

Gorgeous prose shapes an eerie sense of unease from the beginning. I could almost feel the bitterness of the unrelenting snow and taste the isolation that surrounded them. And there was no escape from it, as the floor to ceiling windows in the house are a constant reminder of what lies outside. It may as well have been a cage. A luxurious one yes, with its red wine and emperor-sized beds, but there was ice in the air.

Once settled into where our story takes place. Once we have our bearings. Once we are jumping at every creek of a floorboard. Laure's writing style changes. The beauty in the narrative is still abundant but the pace becomes faster, the prose tighter. Harsher. And we can hardly breathe as we build up to the twists and reveals that lie ahead of us. The violence so expertly crafted that it causes us to flinch.

Who are these f*cked up people? And what do they want from each other? I want to say so much more but I don't want to give anything away. Suffice to say I was raging and cheering.

There are four main characters in this powerful novel. Steven. Elle. The house. The weather. All four interact to create a gothic sensation of dread that you can't turn away from.

But there is one voice. The voice of nearly every woman.

Highly Recommended and will no doubt be a film very soon. Buy It.

Woah! An intense and atmospheric ride through the pages of this book. An isolated house, lots of snow and two characters who will make the hair stand up on the back of your neck. The book starts with a bang and twists and turns until the end. An excellent thriller.

I really enjoyed this book. Wow, what a read, gripping from the start until the very end, kept me guessing throughout, would definitely recommend!

This book was everything I hoped it would be! The story of an esteemed professor and a supposedly innocent student on their way to a romantic getaway started never prepared my for the twists ahead! A marvelous and beguiling read.

How to catch a predator ★★☆☆☆

When student Ellie books a steamy weekend away with her professor boyfriend we quickly learn nothing is as it seems.

What begins as a confrontation about infidelities quickly turns into something more sinister and unsavoury. How old are the other girls? Who is the shared ghost of Ellie and Steven’s past?

In a shockingly violent and sexual game of cat and mouse both of their true identities begin to come to light. Will either of them survive the weekend in the remote snowbound cabin?

The graphic sexuality and unclear diary entries give way to a brutal vigilante quest for revenge for the voiceless.

The diary writer’s identity remains a mystery for most of the novel: which one of Steven’s conquests is she? Perhaps that is exactly the point: she could be so many young girls.

A disturbing thriller which questions the nature of consent and exposes the true predators lurking in the daylight, drawing on the author’s own experience.

Handsome college professor Steven Harding and naïve young student Ellie Masterson drive from New York to a remote cabin for their first holiday together. Expectations are high for a romantic weekend, but what unfolds over those few days will totally blow your mind. Neither of them are who they say they are, and the dark truths underlying their twisted relationship are gradually exposed.

I literally could not put this book down, and found myself holding my breath at certain moments. Ellie and Steven were both compelling characters and one of the things I loved most about Nobody But Us was the way in which I got to understand how they had come to this dark place and what motivated their actions. It was such a compelling read. And the atmosphere and sense of danger was ratcheted up by the setting – an ostensibly beautiful cabin in the remote wilderness, surrounded by trees, in the deepest of snowy winters – it totally heightened the almost-cinematic sense of jeopardy throughout.

Timely, thought-provoking, deeply atmospheric, full of suspense – this has got to be one of the best psychological thrillers I’ve read for a very long time indeed.