This is another brilliant book from this author. Her descriptions are amazing and you can almost believe you are in the story as a bystander. She has the ability to weave the story and characters without it becoming too complicated to follow.

All in it is a great story with a brilliant little twist at the end

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for providing me with an ARC of It’s Always the Husband by C.L. Taylor in return for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this twisty, addictive read! As always, C.L. Taylor delivers a gripping plot full of secrets, lies, and expertly placed red herrings that kept me guessing until the very end. The tension builds beautifully, and just when you think you’ve figured it all out—bam! Another twist hits.

The only reason I’m giving this four instead of five stars is that there are quite a few characters to keep track of, and at times it got a little confusing, especially early on. That said, once I settled into the story, I was completely hooked.

3.5/5

I'm just gonna start off by saying I spent majority of this book picturing the mums from Motherland as the mums in this book because of the whole kids pick up thing, and because we don't see their husbands that made it funnier for me.

Anyway, this book was interesting. I didn't know where it was going to go, there were several plot twists. Personally a couple worked for me but the others didn't, purely because I didn't know the characters well enough to feel any sort of reaction. The biggest twist within the book fell flat because of this.

However, the ending (epilogue?) shook me to the core and left me wanting more, which I don't think we'll ever get, but that was crazy good.

The writing in this is good and easy to follow. I liked the multi-pov but I would've preferred them to be in first person and if we're getting two POVs in one chapter, I would've preferred them to just be split in the chapter instead to make it less confusing.

The plot was fast and intriguing, you wanna keep reading to find out what's happening, there were multiple storylines and each other as mysterious as the next which was more fun than focusing on one plot line. Definitely recommend!

It’s always the husband is the new book from C.L. Taylor. The author is one of my go to authors so I was excited to receive a copy of this.
Jude moves into a new town of Lowbridge with her daughter. She doesn’t really click wth the other mums at the school gates only single parent Will. But there a rumour about Will that he killed his wife, and his second partner has gone missing, presumed dead and if anyone else gets close to him they might end up like that too. But Jude doesn’t take no notice of that and forms a relationship and the two daughters’ bond too.
This is another gripping psychological thriller from the author, and I did enjoy most of this one. Except at time with so many characters and back stories to contend with I did still felt a bit confused of it all. 3.5 stars from me.

I have been a big fan of CL Taylor’s books so was delighted to read this arc. This story is told from the view of many different characters but despite this it is easy to follow and flows really well. I really couldn’t decide who was guilty and it kept me guessing throughout the book. A fast paced domestic thriller, I really enjoyed this one too - highly recommend!

3.75⭐️

This book was really gripping! I enjoyed the different characters and their various storylines. No dull moments. Not all of the twists landed with me, but I really liked the last chapter. It was a nice touch.

My only complaint (and perhaps this was only because I have an ARC) was that I wish there was more of a break when we would switch from talking about difference characters within the same chapter. When it kept switching it made it more challenging to follow.

Do I recommend? Yes. This was my first book from this author and I definitely want to check out more of her work in the future!

‘One dead wife is tragic. Two looks like murder…’

I’ve literally just finished this and holy moly! The beginning, the middle and the ending was just exceedingly good.

Thankful I got to read an ARC of this. I adore Cally’s work.

A must read for mystery and thriller readers.

This is told via multiple POVs but is easy to follow along despite there being a lot of characters. It will have you swinging between who is guilty throughout the whole book. Great pacing, a great domestic school run thriller, I enjoyed this, and have a read a few books by CL Taylor and haven’t been disappointed.

A group of school mum “friends” with secrets and hidden agendas.
The newest mum to the group appears to like the single dad but the rest of the group don’t trust the single dad.

There is lots going on in this book which is really fast paced. Despite the amount of characters it was really easy to follow and a great read from CL Taylor.

Thank you to the team at Avon Books UK and C.L. Taylor for allowing me to read this ARC copy of the book.

It's Always the Husband features multiple POVs from the Lowbridge community. We have Jude who is a new arrival to the neighbourhood, Sorrell – a mum who is in the group of mums but somewhat of an outcast, Victoria – the self-titled queen bee of the community and Andy who is the ex-husband of Victoria. Jude becomes friendly with Will Ledger who's wife has passed away and his girlfriend has disappeared and everyone in the community believes he was involved. Jude wants to find out the truth, rather than listen to the idle gossip from the other mothers.

The storytelling through the POVs was enjoyable, with each of the chapters nice and short which helped make it easy to follow.

As I was reading, the title of the book started to bother me as it didn't seem to be the right fit for the story. Whilst there were different story threads related to a few of the husbands, it felt as if the story was more of a focus on the cliques and mothers in the community/group and the title became a little lost on me. Coming to the end of the book I can understand to a degree on the naming choice but it didn't feel right.

Generally, it was an okay read, albeit a little underwhelming but the twists and ending were an unexpected joy for me.

Loved this book, found it fast paced as I couldn’t put it down! Loved the multiple point of views! Did not see the twist coming either I was heading in a completely different direction loved it!

Okay, it's always a treat to settle down with the latest CL Taylor novel.
And her latest novel, "It's Always The Husband" is no different.
With an intriguing, fast-paced storyline and relatable characters, this story is attention grabbing from the opening page. Now, I did say "relatable" characters. I'm not suggesting that we are all murderers or committing blackmail, with their concerns of juggling business, family and meeting the expectations of other parents at the school gates, allow readers to find themselves in a world that we can recognise and also partially understand.
We have 3 main protagonists:
Jude - a recent arrival in the town, and finding herself drawn to Will
Sorrell - a long term resident of the town, but on the fringes socially
Victoria - the Queen of the local social circle and Parents group

The three women are not friends and have very different views. With Will considered a murder suspect by most villagers, our three protoganists will find themselves struggling to find the truth before the killer strikes again.
My only issue is ... the book is being published in June and I'm writing this review in April ... how will I wait for two months to talk about it??!!

I’ve read most of the books by this author and so knew this was going to be a good read. Written from different perspectives with plenty going on I loved this thriller. Liked the last chapter too, wasn’t expecting that!

It's Always the Husband by C.L Taylor

When newly divorced Jude arrives in the small town of Lowbridge, she is soon drawn to widower Will, the father of her young daughter's best friend.

But Will's past is shrouded in tragedy, with questions that no one knows the answer to – and after two tragedies tore his life apart in just a few short years, gossip and rumours abound about what really happened to the women he loved.
Loved the characters and the intrigue of the plot. As always the author has wrote another brilliant book . Its always the Husband or is it ?
Will keep you guessing and changing your mind .

One dead wife is tragic, two looks like murder….

What a refreshing idea for a plot - a story told through multiple POVs that centres on a group of school mums and their husbands.
It reminded me of the tv show Motherland.

I was kept entertained throughout. I’ve read this author before, and I think she’s skilled at keeping the reader guessing.
I didn’t know who to believe and that’s exactly what I’m looking for in a thriller!

I would definitely recommend! Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for the arc

This book definitely keeps you on your toes. The twist the end really threw me for a loop that I didn’t expect. The story really never lets you see who the killer is until you get to the end and even then there is more than one murder in this story. It has a lot of ups and downs throughout it and it’s sad cause most husbands aren’t who they say they are.

C.L. Taylor’s forthcoming psychological thriller, It’s Always the Husband, to be published on June 5, 2025, is a tale of small-town secrets and the complexities of human relationships, especially the inexplicable relationship of the school run mums! Jude, a newly divorced mum of Betsy, arrives in a small village called Lowbridge, where she has to the navigate the treacherous waters of local gossip and suspicion and always feeling like she’s on the outside of the “in” group!
Jude becomes friendly with Will, a man shadowed by tragedy. Lowbridges’ rumour mill is relentless, with many quick to assume the worst about Will. Jude sets out to uncover the truth and embarks on a journey that intertwines her fate with the enigmatic Will.
The book is masterfully crafted and filled with tension and unexpected twists. Any parent can relate to the school gate dynamics and Taylor captures the cliques and judgments that permeate such settings. Each character harbours their own secrets, which adds depth to the unfolding mystery.

I found the plot engaging and kept me on my toes, but felt that there were moments where the various plots and characters felt a little cumbersome. That said, the intricate web Taylor weaves ultimately converges in a satisfying and unforeseen conclusion.

In summary, I found this book to be a gripping read that throws you into the many human emotions of betrayal, trust and the impact it can have on individual relationships.

I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this book to any psychological thriller fans. Taylor’s writing has been excellently executed with a crafted twist which you may not have seen coming!

This book was just an okay one for me. Lots of characters alternating between different point of views, which I usually love, but there wasn't enough depth to the story.

For almost half of the book I couldn't figure out the plot line here. It just felt like a bunch of women gossiping. The second half of the book proved to be much better, as a group of women band together to get to the bottom of a series of events that occurred in their town. This one just didn't do it for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, C.L Taylor and their publisher for the approval to read Its Always The Husband.

This is my first book that I’ve read from C.L Taylor, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Her style of writing is very easy to follow, the chapters are at a perfect length which I love.
You get to know each character well and the plot of the book is great too. I must admit, I did get confused at the beginning of the book and towards the end as the chapters were jumping to different characters however that didn’t hinder my enjoyment with the book.

Very enjoyable book, great plot, great twists and turns.
Thank you so much for the approval and I wish every success for publication day.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy