I do like a Luca Veste novel. He knows how to draw me in and hold my attention, right from the start of the book. That was certainly the case when it came to Trust In Me, a book which seeks to deceive and misdirect at every turn. No matter what you think you know is happening, and, to a degree, the why of the book is pretty much explained very early on, be prepared to be surprised. This is not as straight forward as you might believe, just the way I like it.|

Now I have a very mixed history when it comes to psychological thrillers. I don't like the way in which characters, who know quite well what they have done wrong and why they are being targeted, think cryptically about said problem until somewhere around the 60% mark of a book. No-one does that. If we have sinned in such a way that it is payback time, we automatically equate that in our heads and start obsessing about it (not that I would know from experience - this is how I expect I would behave 😬) That is totally not the case in this book, where the protagonist, Sara's, sins are spelled out very early on. I say her sins but it is largely guilt by association and a very bad thing from her past is now coming to bite her on the arse - really hard. So we know the why. We also, mostly, know the who. It is the timing and the connection between who and why that is missing - a much more believable scenario for me. That mystery is what kept me reading, kept me invested in Sara's story, as much as the characters themselves.

Luca Veste is an adept storyteller. the pacing and rhythm of this book was spot on. Moments of quiet reflection when Sara took us back to the past, to the fateful night that has led to her current woes, but also moments of real jeopardy where the tension is high and the edge of the seat fear factor nearly off the charts. Whilst there is a strong air of intimidation, Sara's resilience and defiance really had me rooting for her, in spite of her past mistakes. The author has made her strangely sympathetic, maybe because of her current circumstances, and despite that fact that we know she is not entirely innocent, I wanted to see her come good. In fact, as I have come to expect from this author, the book is packed with authentic characters who we could love and hate in equal measure, some of whom managed to surprise me by their behaviour. As a therapist, Sara is used to getting to the bottom of people's fears and what is motivating them, and this is reflected perfectly in the way in which Luca Veste has created the characters on the page.

You would be forgiven for thinking that having so much of the facts of the story laid out early on would spoil the edginess or the mystery of this book. You would be wrong. There are many layers to this book, secrets being kept and a wonderful use of misdirection to keep us all guessing. There are many shock reveals after the author has led us through a succession of potential suspects for Sara's trauma, and towards the end of the book the stakes are raised even higher with the outlook seeming inescapably bleak.

The author still has some aces up his sleeve though, and it is with a wry smile that I read the closing chapters of the book. It just hit the spot for me, that mix of mystery, action, tension and brilliant characterisation that I love in my reads. If you love the author's standalone thrillers, yiu are really going to enjoy this one.

I usually love this author's work unfortunately their latest Trust In Me was very hard to get into. A very slow burner and the characters were so unlikable. The premise was good but the story itself was so predictable. Not one of their best.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the Arc in return for an honest review.

As a therapist you meet all kinds of people and hear all kinds of stories, but when Sara hears a new patient confess to a murder, the details sound a little too familiar…

Trust In Me is a cat and mouse thriller of Sara, who has a murder hidden in her past, and Ella who seems hellbent on getting Sara to admit it. I really enjoyed the beginning of the novel, the tense scenes in the psychologist office as Ella is telling Sara’s story word for word. However, as the novel goes on it starts to get more and more convoluted and you have to suspend your disbelief in a lot of places.

The novel is mainly told from the perspective of Sara, who isn’t really much of a likeable character. She makes some silly decisions and has a tendency towards violence which makes you wonder if she might be an unreliable narrator. The plot only really works if you are rooting for Sara and I’m afraid I wasn’t. There aren’t a lot of other characters to be onside with either which might be why I wasn’t as engaged with it as I could be. Sara doesn’t like sister-in-law Stephanie, so we don’t either, Ella is shady and her husband Jack seems aloof and distant. There are also chapters from the perspective of two hitmen who have been hired into this mess as well. I didn’t really understand why these perspectives were included, they did little to advance the plot and I found myself wanting to skim past them.

The book dragged a little in the middle and there were some repetitive phrases used throughout which didn’t help the pace. I didn’t initially guess the main twist but the ending is very rushed and didn’t feel realistic at all with a lot of smaller ‘twists’ and misdirection.

Overall, Trust in Me is a cat and mouse thriller but has rather an unrealistic conclusion and unlikeable characters which hampered my enjoyment. Thank you to NetGalley & Hodder & Stoughton for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sara is a happily married mother of two children. Her hectic life revolves around her family and her job as a therapist. Her first session with a new client becomes a nightmare situation when the woman claims that along with her boyfriend, she murdered a man and hid the body. Every detail fits the secret Sara has been hiding for 18 years.

I found Trust In Me by Luca Veste to be an intriguing read. The opening pages hint at a huge secret, this then jumps to a family situation, a scene where there is obviously an undercurrent of tension. We very quickly learn that hidden away in the house is a dead body. The story then switches to days before the scene with the body and we learn about Sara Edwards and her day-to-day life.

Sara is a typical flustered working mother; she's the one that makes sure the family is fed, watered and packed off to school/work each morning before rushing off to work herself. Sara comes across as a little disorganised and always in a rush, however, it's obvious that she loves her family deeply and will always put them first.

The story becomes very intriguing when Sara accepts a new client, Ella. In the first session Ella is suffering from anxiety because of something she has done, a crime she has committed. Sara eventually persuades her client to tell her all the details. Ella then explains that when she was with her boyfriend they lay in wait for a young man and beat him to death then hid the body. As Sara listens she realises that the description fits with exactly what she did 18 years before. Sara has kept this secret and wonders how a woman who is only about 25 years years old can know.

At the end of the consultation, Ella disappears. Recovering from a state of shock. Sara realises she has to track the young woman down to find out how she has discovered Sara's secret and what she wants. As Sara discovers that the details Ella has provided are fake you can feel her turmoil. She is torn between survival or finally admitting what she has done. Self-preservation for herself and her family is the overriding feeling.

I had a pretty good idea of who was responsible about a third of the way in, then changed my mind following some of the interactions. I then kept chopping and changing my mind the more I read; this indecisiveness continued for almost the rest of the book.

By the end the story has come full-circle and the conclusion shows the formidable character Sara is when her family is threatened. We also learn how manipulative people can be to get what they want.

Perfectly Executed…
Sara certainly seems to be living her perfect life - a therapist with a successful practice and an idyllic home life, husband and children included. Things are about to change. When a client confesses to a murder, Sara is certain that it is no coincidence that she has come to her. No one knows about Sara’s past. Do they? One thing is absolutely certain - Sara will go to any lengths possible to keep her own secrets safe and to preserve her family. The premise is perfectly executed in this breakneck suspense with a pacy, dramatic and tension fuelled plot combining a deftly drawn and credible cast and a constant underlying vein of menace.

An affluent couple in their early forties, two young children, beautiful home and both with good jobs are living the dream. An incident in her twenties resulting in a fatality has been a closed secret between both man and wife for over twenty years and she believes, now firmly put to bed allowing them to move on assisted by a fresh start in a new country. A young woman, not a previous patient unexpectedly insists on a session with our young professional protagonist insisting it must be her , only to see the secret of the past resurrected: blackmail, threats, and open hostilities escalate to the point of physical, mental and criminal damage with the family in serious danger from an unseen unknown presence threatening their very existence. The psychological impact compounded by seriously violent acts of aggression moves events towards a frightening conclusion that gains momentum as the facts of her previous life threaten the very foundations of their lives. A storyline of unspeakable acts implemented by unsavoury characters with each carrying the heinous stigma of an immoral life. Many thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for ARC.

Sara appreciates her life is very different to that in which her patients exist. As a trauma counsellor, she hears the worst of times, of troubled pasts and frustration at wanting to move on, but she couldn’t predict a patient who speaks of a crime that’s almost too close to home. When it comes to it, Sara is willing to do whatever she can to keep the life it’s taken her so long to build.

Thank you to the author, publishers Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley UK for access to this as an advance reader’s ebook. This is an honest and voluntary review.

Sara is a therapist. A Brit now living in America with her husband and two children, she enjoys her career, loves her family, and if her husband would just spend a few less hours working everything would be perfect. Until a new client comes in and confesses to being responsible for a murder, telling a story that is all too familiar to Sara.

The opening and ending chapters of this story are perfect. I won’t spoil the ending, but the start where Sara gradually realises that her new client Ella is describing the darkest night of Sara’s own life, claiming Sara’s part for her own, is chilling. There’s a real sense that this story could go anywhere and I was very ready for the ride. And, the ending provides a brilliant payoff to that feeling and to the various threads that are unearthed along the way.

To be honest there was a portion in the middle where I lost that sense of being pulled along by the story. I think that’s because as it twists and turns and we get to know Sara better there are insights into her character which make her easier to doubt.

But, if you’re struck by a similar feeling, stick with it. The ending is worth any small bumps in the narrative road to getting there.

Trust In Me centers around Sara, a therapist, who has a session with Ella who confesses to a crime that Sara herself has committed. Sara then must work out how much Ella knows and try to silence her in order to protect herself and her family.

The premise of this book sounded so interesting and very unique compared to other thrillers so I was really excited to read this. I thought the pacing of this book was done well and it was very fast paced and easy to get through.

However I found it very difficult to connect with any of the characters and found them all quite one dimensional and a bit bland. I found the plot twists quite predictable and overall found myself not really caring about what was happening.

Overall, this was an okay, fast-paced read but it didn't stand out to me. I felt the premise had so much potential but it just fell flat for me.

This book is not unique enough for me and I found it rather predictable. The characters were uninspired and the plot was disengaging at points.

I was really captivated by the premise and couldn't wait to get started but the book wasn't as engaging as I'd hoped. The plot definitely didn't go the way I was expecting and resulted in more of a cat and mouse rather than a thriller. It leans heavily into the fiction element of things but if you don't ask too many questions and take it all at face value then it was quite a good read.

From the premise, I expected a story about someone admitting to a murder and believing they were responsible, not realising this other person actually was....... but its more just someone knows the main character got away with a murder and so they bring it up to her as if they did it to wind her up basically..... and she spends the rest if the book trying to figure out who knows her secret and why they're tormenting her with it. Stilla good premise but not the one I was expecting

I absolutely love Luca Veste but I really struggled with this. Don't get me wrong the writing is excellent as per but I found the protagonist to be really irritating and I could guess the ending from a very early point. Not for me this one sadly

#TrustInMe #NetGalley
Humdinger of a novel. 5 ⭐
Sara seems to have it all - a thriving practice as a trauma counsellor, a comfortable home, a loving husband and two children. A world away from her troubled past. She's the only one who knows that her entire life is built on a lie.
Until a new patient confesses to a crime that hits too close to home. Sara is thrown into a quest to hide the truth: from her family, her co-workers, and most importantly, the police. How can this person know about Sara's past? And how can Sara silence her before it's too late? One thing is certain: she will do anything to keep her family safe.
Loved it
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder Straighten for giving me an advance copy.

Sara has a comfortable life in the north-eastern United States, a good job as a counsellor, a loving successful husband and two children she adores. However, this life is a million miles away from her troubled past in the United Kingdom. This seems tucked away firmly in its sealed box, that is until she has a new client. As Ella tells her story, Sara gets a distinct sense of familiarity, a sort of déjà vu, and though Sarah does her best to deflect Ella, to throw her off, it’s clear, she’s actually telling Sara’s story. Who is Ella? How can she possibly know about Sara‘s past? One thing is for certain, Sara will do anything to protect what she has. This is a tale of dark secrets, of a life spiralling so far out of control it’s almost in orbit.

The start of this psychological mystery/thriller between Sara and Ella is utterly gripping and beyond tense. Sara’s fear almost bounces off the pages and it sure sets off a chain reaction. It leads to so many questions in your head which little by little get their answers. The pace rises and falls giving you some much needed breathing space as Sara tries to process what is going on in her rapidly imploding life. A suspenseful cat/mouse game ensues and some scenes are high octane. It’s dramatic, there are some very exciting encounters where you almost hold your breath and it’s very entertaining in a suspend your disbelief kind of a way. It does get a bit convoluted but I cannot deny there are plenty of twists that make your head spin and keep you reading on! One element of the endgame is not a total surprise, because quite simply it has to be. Just goes to show you can rarely “trust in me”.

Do I buy at all? Probably not, but it’s a very diverting read with truly awful characters who deserve all they get and that certainly keeps you glued to the pages.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Hodder and Stoughton for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Just WOW!!! This was an incredible read! I couldn't read it quick enough!! Literally I had to stop myself as it was silly o'clock and I had work early but let me tell you the struggle was REAL as I needed to find out how this was ending.

This was a brilliant storyline which unravelled beautifully, I was soon engrossed in Sara's past and wanted to see how this was going to unfold. Really well written and paced just right. I thought the way it just seemed to flow was incredible and loved the deja-vu moments also.

It had me literally on the edge of my seat I was that gripped and the ending I gasped out loud!

What would you do if someone confessed to a murder you were guilty of?
THE THERAPIST
THE PATIENT
THE CONFESSION =
A GREAT READ
Luca Veste never fails to deliver and this book is no exception,a solid fast moving written book that unfolds nicely.
I did work out who was involved very early into the book but it didn't hold me back from continuing to read on.and there's nothing like a nice bit of comeuppance to end a book.
Recommended
Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC.

Trust in me was a very good book from start to finish which had great twists and turns throughout which had me guessing right till the end, which made it a great page turner.

Sara has be living the perfect life since she moved from the UK to America she has a loving husband two amazing children and a great carer as a therapist. But Sara is hiding a dark secret one she can’t let escape so when she meets a new patient who tells Sara about something that has happened Sara can’t believe it is just coincidence that she has came to Sara. With her life spiralling out of control what will Sara do to protect her perfect life.

Great suspense thriller with great characters which you love to hate. I Can't wait to read what the author brings out next. Highly recommend this.
Recommend reading.