This is the first time I have read a book by H. M Lynne so didn't really know what to expect. I loved how quick paced and simple the plot is, it was very easy to emerge yourself into the story. Plenty of twists along the way and it makes the reader think one way then completely throws them off by revealing the outcome. A very good read.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reader copy!
Always love a thriller that keeps your attention!

The Student by H.M. Lynn is a gripping, atmospheric psychological thriller that delves deep into the secrets of a haunted past. The protagonist, a university student running from the trauma of losing her parents, is just trying to rebuild her life in a new town. But when she accepts a ghostwriting job from a mysterious high-profile client with one strange condition—their identity must remain secret—things quickly spiral into a nightmarish situation.

The story builds tension with every page as the client’s distorted voice becomes more unnervingly familiar, revealing unsettling knowledge about the protagonist’s dark history. As the pressure mounts, she’s forced to confront the skeletons in her closet while trying to uncover the true identity of this client—someone who seems to know far more than they should. When her oldest friend goes missing, everything she thought she knew about her life is thrown into chaos.

Lynn masterfully creates a sense of dread and paranoia, keeping readers hooked as the protagonist unravels a mystery that feels dangerously close to home. The psychological twists are well-executed, making it hard to trust anyone, including the narrator herself. The Student is a chilling exploration of guilt, trust, and the haunting power of secrets, making it a must-read for fans of intense, character-driven thrillers.

This was such a fast paced and twisty read, it definitely gripped me and kept me reading until the very end.

We follow our FMC, Francesca. Her parents are murdered, and she becomes well known for it (rap way to be known for, tbh). This kind of continues until she is much older and starts college. She interviews for an opportunity to become a ghostwriter, but in the most odd way. After some time, she thinks she blows it, but unbeknownst to her, she gets the position. Her client is this mysterious Dr. B who conceals himself in every way possible. This is when all the weird, mysterious things start to happen, and they're all related to what she writes. The story starts off really strong. Don't get me wrong the plot is good, you get glued to the storyline and for the most part you stick to it. It almost seems like a rollercoaster of emotions. The chapters are short so you will end up going through the book in no time!

Fast paced and twisty. So much so that the second half had my head spinning.. For anyone liking psychological thrillers, this is a must read .Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in return for an honest review

Another easy five stars for Lynn!

Lynn has fast become one of my favourite author's right back from the days of Peas and Carrots and every one of her books, no matter what the genre has been a five star read for me.

Once I'd started The Student, I found myself flying through the pages as I became so wrapped up in the intrigue and suspense surrounding the enigmatic Dr B.

The pace is fast and took me on twisty ride through a tangled web of secrets and lies.

Fantastic plot, unerring characters and a superb ending!

The Student is a fast paced thriller with some good twists. I found the plot interesting and the characters were intriguing. The book starts with Francesca who is a student and is interviewing for a ghost writing opportunity with the mysterious Dr B. She is making a fresh start after a dramatic incident and no one in the new town knows her.

I like how the main character had her secrets which made her and her perspective of things appear unreliable at times. I also found myself feeling suspicious about other characters as well. I did find Francesca jumped to conclusions quickly and she had some strange interactions with the other characters. I did guess some of the ending but not all of it, so I was still surprised by the ending. I did find the ending rushed and I would have liked to have read more about the ghost writing part.

I did enjoy reading this book and I found myself speeding through the chapters as they were short and snappy. The book was different to anything I have read before and it was gripping. This book is definitely a quick read and it is my first book from this author.

If you loved The Housemaid, you are going to devour H M Lynn’s latest chilling thriller, The Student.

Frankie needs a fresh start. After the tragedy that had cost her everything, she needs to start over somewhere new where she isn’t the subject of gossip or the recipient of open-mouthed stares by people who know about her past. However, Frankie’s new beginning as a university student hasn’t worked out as well as she’d hoped. Barely scraping a living, each day is a struggle to keep the wolf from the door. Finding a ghost-writing job seems like the break she had been hoping for. But will her lucky break turn into a complete nightmare?

Frankie’s client is very high-profile, but mysterious. She cannot communicate or get in touch with them through any means other than an app and even then the voice that comes through is distorted beyond all recognition. Still, Frankie needs this job and is not in a position to question any of these conditions. However, when she starts to work with her client, she is immediately taken aback by their ideas which are hitting a little bit too close to home…

Frankie’s client seems to know everything about her life and her past. Realising that she cannot trust her client, Frankie needs to watch her step – especially when her oldest friend goes missing and she finds herself in the firing line of somebody from her past desperate to wreak their revenge on her.

H M Lynn’s The Student is an excellent thriller. Dark, pacy and twisted, The Student is a nail-biting page-turner where nothing is what it initially seems. Full of shocking secrets and jaw-dropping revelations that will leave you breathless, The Student by H M Lynn is an unputdownable chiller that demands to be devoured in one sitting.

This book has so many twists in the second half it will have your head spinning, in a good way. The book can almost be split into two halves. The first half is Frankie working as a ghostwriter to someone who keeps themselves private. Frankie can’t see them and they use a voice changer. The action drives up in the second half of the book making me question what was real. A good thriller that will keep you reading until the last page.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BoldwoodBooks for the book #TheStudent by #HMLynn. Full of secrets, this book will keep you sucked in till the very end. Frankie has moved to escape a family tragedy hoping no one knows what happened. She takes a job as a ghostwriter but is not allowed to know who she is writing for. The mysterious person seems to know more than they should and makes her wonder if they know her. Now her best friend is missing and she is concerned if she is next.

A good solid psychological story which highlights how easily someone who already has some mental health issues can be made to feel that she can trust no-one in her life as she jumps from one person to another believing that they are the ones doing her wrong. Did I guess the outcome - no although I had suspicions from midway. Solid story.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC to review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

H. M. Lynn's "The Student" is a chilling exploration of the dangerous allure of obsession. This darkly compelling psychological thriller grips the reader from the very first page, drawing them into a claustrophobic world of paranoia and deceit.

Lynn masterfully crafts a chilling atmosphere of dread, where the lines between reality and delusion blur. The narrative unfolds with a slow, deliberate pace, allowing the tension to build relentlessly. The protagonist, a brilliant but troubled student, is a complex and deeply flawed character, making her both sympathetic and terrifying.

This story delves into the darkest corners of the human psyche, exploring themes of ambition, isolation, and the corrupting influence of power. Lynn's prose is sharp and incisive, cutting to the heart of the characters' motivations and fears.

"The Student" is a haunting and unforgettable read. It's a must-read for fans of suspenseful thrillers like "The Girl on the Train" and "Gone Girl." Recommended for readers who enjoy psychological thrillers with a dark and unsettling tone.

The twists and turns in the book will have you thinking that you are on a roller coaster. Francesca is dealing with family hardships that have left her hiding from people. Missing person and ghost writing and other different things happen that will keep you interested in what is happening with the story.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Boldwood Publishers and leaving a review by my own accord.

University student, Francesca is an aspiring writer so when she is offered the chance to become a ghostwriter, with a lucrative pay out, she jumps at the opportunity as the money offered would give her and her boyfriend the opportunity to rent a place of their own. However, when Francesca meets the enigmatic client online she is met with a sinister robotic figure, who seems to know far than is comfortable about Francesca’s troubled past. With little choice but to continue with the job, Francesca soon finds that strange and frightening things start to occur and her trying to keep one step ahead of danger, whilst doubting her instincts, is what makes this story all the more compelling.

The story moves quickly, with short and snappy chapters, which helps to keep the suspense level set to high. There are lots of twists, turns and red herrings and I enjoyed trying to put all the pieces in place. Francesca is a complex protagonist, with some major flaws in her character, which makes what is happening to her all the more fascinating. The way in which the tension builds certainly helped to keep my attention and I thought that the last few chapters were particularly tense with all the threads of the plot finally coming together in a way I really didn’t see coming.

The Student is a real pager turner of a read which fired my imagination from start to finish.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of The Student by H. M. Lynn published by Boldwood Books

This was a really great novel. I loved the characters, setting and plot. Great description was used, writing style was great, the story was easy to follow, I was hooked from page one. It had me wondering right till the end who the culprit was going to be. Awesome twist at the end that leaves us hanging
This is the first book I've end by this author, but won't be the last.

The Student by H.M. Lynn is a compelling fast-paced psychological thriller that has you guessing until the end. Filled with survival, trust issues and secrets this book will have you hooked while you unravel the fmc's life. Francesca is a university student wanting to change her life after a terrible family tragedy. She is struggling to make ends meet when her favorite professor suggests that she takes a ghostwriting job. Her client the mysterious Dr. B insists on remaining completely anonymous and using a voice disorder to conceal his identity. But Dr B knows far more about Frankie then she knows about him. Soon Frankie is struggling to figure out fiction and reality, further spiraling her into danger and paranoia. Who can she really trust?
This book was a great narrative with a fast pace. It looks intimidating with 80 chapters but they are super short and engaging so it flies by. Frankie is very relatable and the paranoia she has just ramps up the tension that builds throughout. There were a couple of questions that I still had but overall I really enjoyed this book.
Thank you to NetGalley, H.M. Lynn, and Boldwood Books for this ARC. Expected release day is January 28th 2025.

This was a fast paced book due to the short chapters and some twists I did not see coming. It missed that wow factor for me that I enjoy when reading a thriller but still a good read. Thank you to Netgalley, Boldwood Books and the author for the advanced copy.

This book was mysterious and had you thinking about the next steps and who did what and when! This was exciting and also scary when thinking about who was at risk.

The Student by H.M. Lynn
I received an advance review copy for free thanks to Rachel's Random Resources and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Blurb

I’ve spent years running from my past.

After what happened to my parents, I needed to start fresh, far away from the whispers and stares. Now, as a struggling university student, I barely scrape by, living in a new town where no one knows me or the tragedy I’ve tried to forget.

To make ends meet, I take on a ghostwriting job for a high-profile client. But the deal comes with one strange their identity must remain a secret.

At first, it seems like just another job. But as I work with this mysterious person more, their ideas hit too close to home. It’s as if they know everything about me, even the darkest parts of my past.

When my oldest friend goes missing, I realise I can't trust this client. But I can't escape their hold on me.

Because they know how this story ends. I survived once, but can I survive this?

My Opinion

The Student was a fast-paced novel with a lot of twists. H.M. Lynn has written such an intriguing plot that I managed to read this book in a few hours, I was unable to put it down. With short chapters this was a quick and easy book to read. A great thriller.

Rating 4/5