First Born is a total rollercoaster of a story from start to finish. The twists and turns kept me reading it long after I should have put it down for the night, so much so that I read it in one sitting, it was just so gripping.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for my ARC.

Thanks to @netgalley and @hodderbooks & @hodderpublicity for sending me this e-Arc in exchange for an honest review!

I was so looking forward to reading Dean's new book, as many of us where I believe! Last Thing to Burn was such a discovery last year!
However, I can’t deny that I was somewhat disappointed by it, especially as it was very different from his last!

Almost halfway through we get the first twist! And what a twist it was! But soon after my interest started to wane, so much so that the final reveal almost didn't surprise me.

Molly Raven has been given the worst news. Her twin sister Katie, who was living in New York on a scholarship, has been murdered. Soon after Molly, who we soon discover has major personal security issues, reluctantly flies to the States to join her parents who were visiting there when their daughter was killed.

I won't say too much about the plot because the less you know the better, but we slowly learn all about Molly's idiosyncrasies relating to her personal safety and how very different the personalities of the two sisters are. Where Katie is cheerful and outspoken, Molly is introverted and dull.

I buddy read this with two amazing ladies who really opened my eyes to a few things. Molly’s POV is the only one we get, and some of her actions were downright bizarre, which made us think there was a lot more to her character than met the eye….

I loved all the mentions of NYC, having been there twice! But while I enjoyed the setting, it didn't save the ending which, to say it was unrealistic is putting it mildly. I couldn't help but roll my eyes.

Having said that, I still think Dean’s a phenomenal writer and will be on the lookout for new releases!

Erm…….say whatttttttttttttt?!

Where do I even begin writing this review!

You would have thought identical twins would know each other inside out, wouldn’t you? You would also have thought that they would be able to trust and rely on each other more than anyone else in the world. Sadly, that wasn’t the case for Molly and Katie. Whilst one twin was an extrovert who lived life to the full, grabbing adventures by the who-ha’s, the other twin was an introvert, fiercely afraid of her own shadow and worrying about what could happen….about anything.

I wasn’t expecting the storyline to unfold the way that it did, not at all. When it got to the half way point of the book, loose ends were becoming tighter and I couldn’t understand why. Had I missed something? I hadn’t missed a thing because what came next completely caught me off guard. I think the thought of ‘what the actual f……’ went through my head like a conveyor belt for 10 minutes straight.

Now I know you’re probably wondering what on earth am I going on about, but I can’t give too much away!

I didn’t want to put ‘First Born’ down, although I had to once or twice feed my child…and the dogs. Let’s just say that it wasn’t my choice to stop reading the book! I was hooked on ‘First Born’ like a little kid in a sweet shop! I have no idea how Will Dean managed to keep the timeline so iron clad throughout the entire thing without giving anything away. I was bloody impressed!

Stories such as this, is exactly why Will Dean is one of my most favourite authors of all time. The suspense levels were flawless, the attention to detail was absolutely spot on, and the gritty nature was enough to rival a sandy beach! If Will Dean isn’t on your radar, he really needs to be. I cannot wait to find out what he’s got up his sleeve next!

Brilliantly written with such a clever and gripping storyline – a belter of a book and then some.

Now here’s a book which will blow your socks off!

Molly is a bit of an introvert – the opposite to her identical twin sister, Katie. Inseparable until Katie moved to New York a year ago, they still spoke on a daily basis until, that is, Katie is found dead in her apartment and, much as Molly doesn’t ‘do’ travel, she knows that she has to go there and do what she can to find out what happened to her other half. But no one said it was going to be easy . . .

My first thoughts on picking this one up were ‘how on earth is Will Dean going to follow ‘Last Thing to Burn’ – a novel which I have recommended many times over; but follow it he does – and then some! I felt Molly’s pain as she began to do what little she could to help the police in the Big Apple to discover what happened to her sister and I wasn’t entirely sure that she was going to get to the crux of the matter. However, this is a novel full of surprises with even one or two shocks along the way! A spectacular tale, beautifully written as always and one which has left me in awe of the author’s ability to weave such a wonderful story. Five sparkling stars and my very highest recommendation; it will not disappoint!

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

This is one hell of a ride so buckle up! I know this would be fabulous as I loved last thing to burn. It’s gripping thrilling & full of mystery! It definitely opens your eyes. You think you have it all figured out then everything changes!

I enjoyed this authors previous book so was excited to read this one. It kept me hooked from start to finish and there were definitely some wonderful twists that kept me guessing. This book didn’t disappoint although last thing to burn was fantastic and would really take some beating

Molly Raven is one half of a pair of identical twins. She and her parents are in New York to visit Molly’s other half, Katie or KT as she calls her. 14 months earlier Katie accepted a scholarship to study in the city and is having a great time. It’s almost Halloween and the Big Apple is gearing up for it.
But all is not well with the Ravens. Paul, the twins father, has lost his business and they’re all staying in a budget hotel. Molly is the opposite of Katie in that she is fearful, risk averse and very safety conscious whereas Katie is outgoing and gregarious. As Molly says ‘they are identical but not identical’. Katie is the first born of the title as she was 3 minutes older.
And then her parents visit Katie’s apartment and find her lying dead in bed. The NYPD soon suspect it was murder and Molly is bereft as are her parents. Suddenly, she is no longer one of a matching pair and, instead, she is now alone. Her parents decide to return to England with Katie’s ashes but Molly stays on in NYC to try and conduct her own investigation and makes a vow to avenge Katie’s death. She soon lines up a list of suspects; Katie’s boyfriend Scott, her landlord’s creepy son who lives in the basement, her tutor Professor Groot and Violet Rosebery, her BFF. The latter is described as ‘intense and needy.’ Molly finds Groot through creepy emails on Katie’s computer. She remembers their childhood secret language and breaks the code to get into the emails. Now she has access to part of Katie’s life that she kept private and another name that she finds is added to the list.
The police tell Molly that Katie took out a life insurance policy shortly before she died with their parents being the main beneficiaries so will they also end up on the list?
But all is not what it seems and there are hints about who might have murdered Katie and they started to ring warning bells with me. Can you really believe anything Molly says?
It’s hard to review this book without giving out spoilers. But I will say that its is one of the most twisty, serpentine plots I’ve read in a long time. The author takes the reader on an almost mind bending journey through the world and eyes of the Raven twins.
At times however, First Born felt almost too clever for its own good and I kept thinking ‘she did what?’ and ‘how did that happen?’ Twins are a staple of the thriller and horror genre and I felt that the author, through Molly, described how it felt to be a twin, especially an identical one, to never be an individual but always one of a unit with no choice about it. Another mini me always attached to you. What would one twin be capable of to be rid of the other? I felt that the author really captured the rivalry and the rage that can often happen between twins.
This was a quick read and would be an ideal holiday read. Ingeniously plotted with New York as a fabulous backdrop. Molly soon becomes acquainted with the city as she explores and begins to understand what attracted Katie to move there.
If you’re looking for a book that will leave you questioning everything you’ve beent old and will send you racing back to the beginning again to see the clues that you missed after it has raced towards a shattering ending, then First Born is for you.

My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC.

I absolutely tore through this in one evening, compelled by the tense & paranoid narrative voice, the twists and turns, and the sheer delicious meanness of it all.

Although enjoyable it's more of a muddle than a mystery. Even suspecting the main twist the events didn't stack up. The end wasn't realistic and didn't really explain everything. I got the feeling that the author lost the plot half way through.

A classic twin trope based thriller that falls short in avoiding the obvious.

With the runaway success of The Last Thing To Burn, the expectations were sky-rocket high. Sadly, this doesn’t live up to its predecessor.

Synopsis -

Molly and Katie Raven are twins that have nothing in common. While Molly sticks to a structured, introverted and routine life in London, Katie is gregarious, outgoing, leading a dazzling life in New York. But when Katie is found dead in her apartment, life changes dramatically for Molly. So when she heads there to find out more, she realizes that Katie wasn’t really the person she claimed to be.

Review -

The plot started off brilliantly. With Molly’s narrative filled with palpable tension, extraodinarily unusual paranoia and the hint of suspicion about her persona, I was really invested in her journey to NY to uncover the secrets hidden in her sister’s life.

The twins personalities were complementing each other perfectly and I loved how the author pictures their relationship. As Molly sinks deeper into the case, so many new threads begin to unravel, adding to the intensity and complexity of the web around it.

Progressing further, when our minds begin to speculate, it was convincing enough that Dean’s writing will pull off the impossible and not settle with the inevitable clichés. I just knew that would be the case.

However, the storyline takes a 360 degree turn where it felt like it is just crashing head on into a tree mindlessly. The inclusion of some threads were unnecessary.

In my view, thrillers needs to be believable, yet at the same time blow our minds off. But unfortunately, the opposite happens here. The level of ask for belief suspension was humongous, that it just sort of felt flat, deflating rapidly like an air balloon.

Nevertheless, I know that Dean is a fantastic author with incredible imagination. I surely look forward to reading more of his wonderful works in the future.

Thanks NetGalley, Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC in exchange of an honest review!

We have all heard that identical twins are like 2 peas from the same pod but that is a slightly inaccurate description.

This mystery is about identical twins who feel/believe/are convinced that whilst they look alike their make-up is such that their skills and traits are not the same but more that they are divided between them. Where one twin has a strong trait, the other feels she is weak. For example, one twin feels she is outgoing, the other feels she is introverted; one is a fussy eater the other is not.

This difference in their make-up is the theme for this book and Will Dean has done a very good job of building a story around them from a very simple start to a very intriguing conclusion. What seems to be a straightforward tale of 2 sisters and their lives takes on some very odd twists and turns to build a very worthwhile ending.

If you like your tales to be twisty and skilfully told, this is certainly a book worth reading.

If you follow my blog then you will know I am a HUGE fan of Will Dean’s books and his first standalone thriller THE LAST THING TO BURN went straight into my TOP TEN books of 2020, even though it wasn’t published until 2021 so when I received an invitation to join the blogtour for his new standalone thriller FIRST BORN, I jumped at the chance without even checking the blurb!

As a lover of dark, psychological thrillers there are a few things that immediately spark my interest and tick my boxes, so when I settled down to start this book and saw it was about TWINS and one twin in particular was QUIRKY, I was literally salivating with excitement!

I can’t go into much detail without spoiling the book in this review but I can say with confidence FIRST BORN is seriously addictive, twisted and has some real WTF, OMG moments which left me reeling, confused (in a good way) and utterly shocked.

Will Dean has an uncanny talent for creating female characters that get under your skin, into your head and leave a lasting impression and 23 year old identical twin Molly is no exception.

Molly is a real “quirky” character, she takes “cautious” to the next level, sees danger or risks everywhere and lives quietly alone in Camden Town. Her identical twin Katie (KT) is the polar opposite, outgoing and adventurous she’s now living in New York having an absolute ball – until she is found dead in her bed under suspicious circumstances.

With the story set mainly in New York, I was immediately transported to the busy streets of Manhattan, could smell the hotdogs and onions, feel the steam coming from the roads and hear the traffic and sirens so clearly.

FIRST BORN is a very clever, atmospheric, twisted tale which left me open-mouthed and speechless at times. Another easy 5 star review from me and I can’t wait to read more of Will Dean’s standalone books.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

First Born by Will Dean
This is the first book which I have read by this author. The story focusses on Molly Raven, the monozygotic twin of Katie Raven. Although they are identical they are very different in the way they live their lives. Molly lives in London; she is hypervigilant, always on high alert for possible dangers. She perceives danger in every activity. KT meanwhile lives in New York. She is carefree and due to a very generous sponsorship is able to live life to the full. Then Molly receives a dramatic phone call from her parents who are visiting KT in New York; her sister has been found dead and has possibly been murdered. This terrible news means Molly will have to confront her worst fears and travel by plane to New York. Molly narrates this terrible story but there are twists and turns aplenty and just how reliable a narrator Molly is will only be revealed later; how reliably only time will tell.
This is a thriller which builds slowly and then about halfway through the rug is truly pulled from under your feet and this is not the only shock in store as the novel reaches its interesting climax. The descriptions of New York are dramatic and the dangers which Molly sees at every turn become nerve wracking for the reader. It is a fascinating book and the way in which it explores the relationship between twins is gripping. It is a book which I will be recommending to others.
I would like to thank the author, the publishers and Net Galley for the opportunity to read the book in return for an honest review.

I enjoyed the Last Thing to Burn and had high hopes for First Born. However, the plot and characters became increasingly implausible and I guessed the major twist quite early on. Other readers might enjoy the book more but it was not for me.

The first Will Dean book I've read and definitely won't be the last! Wow, did this take on a completely different track to what I'd expected. Shocking and surprising with twists to the very end, First Born is a brilliantly written book from Will Dean and one I'd highly recommend!
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Thank you to NetGalley, Will Dean and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Will Dean is officially in my top 5 best authors list without a doubt!

I love WD’s writing as it’s easy to read but packed with information and hidden meanings. His stories always have layers upon layers.

The same goes for his characters. They never are what they originally seem and that’s the beauty of his books.

I loved everything in this one too. I don’t know how is this possible but I loved every single one of his books that I read! The plot that originally felt a bit predictable, had a twist in the twist and I didn’t see that coming. It isn’t packed in action but don’t let this fool you as you’ll get your share of suspense and doubt.

Please read this!

After reading the previous book by this author, I was excited to be able to review this new release. However, I felt deflated because it wasn't up to the same standard. The plot seemed too unrealistic for my preferences, and I struggled to invest in any of the characters. There was a lot of potential for this read, but unfortunately, it just wasn't to be for me. I am sure that there be readers who will find this enjoyable, as it's not overly awful. I will still be reading more from this author, but I won't necessarily be on the lookout for them anymore.

Molly and Katie are inseparable as twins, until Katie unexpectedly moves to New York. Molly is lost without her sister nearby but then things worsen when she hears of her sister's sudden death. Flying all the way to the US is out of her comfort zone but she will do it for her parents. Determined to find out what happened to her sister will test her but she can only rely on herself now.

This was my most anticipated read of 2022 after The Last Thing to Burn was my book of 2021 and also after loving Dean's Dark Pines series. When I heard about the release of First Born I still wanted to go in as blind but did know it was a dark story set in New York so I was sold! Unfortunately I was really disappointed. It is not as if I expect every book by an author to be the same but this one felt like it was written by someone else entirely. I was ready for a well crafted domestic noir but instead I got a murder mystery painted by numbers. Everyone was given suspect characteristics and even more annoyingly very suspect names, Professor Groot anyone?! I was on tenterhooks at the beginning eager to see where the story would lead but ended up being more interested in where Molly was headed in New York rather than in her amateur murder investigation. There were surprising parts within the story but these were overshadowed by implausibility and I was left more exasperated than excited by anything going on.

I'm on the edge as I had a love/hate relationship with this book. I usually love Will Dean's mystery but I was in love for this one for a better part of the story and fell out of love in the last part.
Not my cup of tea but Will Dean delivers and I look forward to reading the next book.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This was so intriguing right from the beginning!

Molly is an eccentric character who calculates the risk of everything she does and I will say I didn’t really warm to her, however she was completely fascinating.

It all picks up once she gets to New York. It’s a little slow at first but then about halfway through you are hit with a pretty big twist which I didn’t see coming at all. From then on the story pretty much spirals as Molly goes full detective trying to find out who murdered her sister along with some other odd behaviour / events which I won’t go into but it’s like they came from nowhere.

The story was great, I was gripped and couldn’t put the book down as I was so intrigued as to how everything was going to work out. However, I have to admit I was a little disappointed with the ending and the plot at times. There are a few more twists after the initial shocking one which I rolled my eyes at because it felt a bit cliche.

Overall if you don’t look too deeply into the plot or the reasons why some characters do what they do then this is a gripping read which I thoroughly enjoyed. I was just hoping for a more impactful and better ending.