once again it was a brillint read.

from the plot to the characters

highly recommend.

when alices home house was burgled and turns out a totally different circumstance.

‘The Break-In’ is a story about a young man who is killed while breaking into a house. On the surface this sounds like an interesting read, but under the surface Faulkner examines loss, drugs, manipulation, abuse, trauma, and health issues.

The beginning of this thriller was engaging and hooks the reader; but as we continue reading; the layers of the plot add to the experience and you can’t help but get lost in the story.

The characters develop depth throughout the book, and your opinions of them and their intentions will change. Faulkner slowly reveals the truth, and, with the truth, the ugliness of some characters if revealed, as are their traumas.

This book will stay with you after, and will make you think to not judge a book, or more so a person, by its cover.

When a man breaks into Alice’s home and enters her child’s room, her natural instinct is to hit him over the back of the head and in self defence she ends up killing him. But is there more to this break in than there first seems, was her house chosen at random or is there something else going on here. Lots of twists and turns will keep you guessing throughout this thriller.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I felt mostly frustrated at the end of reading this book. The start was really good and as soon as the whole social media trolls got going I was agreeingbthat unfortunately that is exactly what would happen today. With the wrong person being seen as the victim. That is how I foresaw the story was going to continue (and I’ve not given any spoilers away) However then some more than unlikely behaviour by Alice is probably the most sensible part of the rest of the book which just spiralled into the most complex jumble of culprits you could ever wish to meet. Not for me but it did have the germ of a good plot for a whole.

Katherine Faulkner does it again! Another stunning read, full of twists and turns. Unputdownable....check out her other books! Psychological thrillers at their very best!

This was great fun as a psychological thriller.

At a play date an intruder breaks in and the mother of the household ends up killing him. This led to a rollercoaster ride as we delve into the reasons why he broke in, and the various side shoots this led to - exposing different parts of the lives of all involved.

This was a book you didn’t really want to put down, and had many twists along the way. It was well-paced and had some great character twists amongst these as the layers of the onion were slowly revealed. I can’t say I always liked some of the characters in the book and there were are a few stereotypes along the way but it was a fun couple of days to spend with a book.

I recommend it and look forward to reading more books by this author.

This psychological thriller by Katherine Faulkner kept me guessing right to the end.
A break in at a £2 million house in Hackney sets the scene. Alice was hosting a play date with some friends and their children when an intruder burst in through the kitchen door. Alice fearing for the safety of her baby fatally wounds the intruder. From there an emotional roller coaster of a trail leads us through guilt, lies, betrayal, distrust and compassion.
The story weaves through the protagonist’s lives leaving us intrigued until the final reveal. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

If you are drawn to domestic psycological thrillers then this is a winner. Lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. You will begin questoning your own life if this was you. Interesting read from this author. one not to be missed

I thought thi book was ok

Blurb

The police conclude that she acted in self-defence, but wracked with guilt, Alice sets out to apologise to Linda, the mother of the young man she killed - only to find she is unable to come clean about who she really is.

Without meaning to, Alice finds herself drawn more and more into Linda's world, struggling to balance her growing obsession with starting a prestigious new job, caring for her daughter and being there for her husband.

But as Alice learns more about Ezra - and finds herself uncomfortably enmeshed with his family - she begins to wonder whether she really has the full picture about why he came to her house that day.

A Break-In and so much more.
Alice, Jamie and their young daughter Martha have an intruder burst into their kitchen during a play date, he grabs a knife and makes for the room where the children are playing. Alice grabs a kitchen stool, hits him over the head and unfortunately the young man Ezra, dies. Alice was acting defensively to protect her daughter, she only meant to stop him getting to the children. Alice struggles to come to terms with what has happened. The police are investigating Ezra’s death, Alice is overwhelmed by guilt, she becomes obsessed by wanting to find out why he came to her home, she goes to his family home, she tells herself she just wants to see where he lived, but she finds herself being invited in by his mother, she does not immediately say who she is and when she goes back a second time his sister, who is pregnant, thinks she is there from a charity to help assess her needs for the baby and she goes along with this.
All the characters are rather unlikeable and they all seem to be hiding something, including Jamie, Alices’s husband, their nanny Becca, Ezra’s sister Jenna, her journalist friend. Things begin to spiral out of control as Alice ramps up her own investigation. Lots of tension throughout the story with some twists to keep the reader guessing.
A thoroughly enjoyable read. Well deserving of 4 stars
Many thanks to Net Galley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

This was a really enjoyable thriller, guilt over a murder for which she isn’t charged drives Alice to examine her whole life and the author unravels it in spectacular fashion as everyone comes under suspicion. Alice’s response to a home invasion is framed very much from her defensive perspective as a mother and motherhood in general becomes a strong theme throughout the books and the lengths women go to in order to protect their families. Alice’s experiences as a mother are incredibly relatable and you really feel like you could put yourself in her shoes. The book begins with newspaper clips and disturbing online comments but it’s not a thread pursued throughout the novel which I think would have enhanced the atmosphere.

Alice wasn't looking for anyone when she met Jamie. But then who is in their late 30's?

If you've got that far without a significant other then why would you bother?

At least that's Alice's opinion before she met Jamie...

But now everything is perfect, including Jamie.

When their house is broken into her only thought is the safety of the children present.

She has guests around when the break-in happens and is worried that she is about to be murdered in front of them. So she reacts in the only way that she can possibly think of.

She uses self defence. And in doing so, finds herself in a whole world of trouble.

What follows is a complex web of lies and uncertainties, which at times is hard to follow, and I will be honest, I found a lot of this novel to be a little far fetched.

Linking everything back to a young woman that Jamie was having an affair with seems a little too convenient.

But who am I to judge, I am by no means an author, and I still found myself hooked!

A very powerful book that gives you food for thought on people and relationships.

I must say that I was so impressed with the main character, Alice.

How she survived (relatively intact) the ever increasing traumatic adversities happening around her was incredible.

It was amazing that she still managed to detach herself from personal issues and feel empathy for others where possible.

The big question is how well do we really know our spouses? What is really going on in their head, in their lives?

The book was most entertaining. I felt the plot evolved smoothly and each character in the book had an important part to play.

There was a growing feeling of suspense towards the end as I turned the pages, faster and faster.

Katherine Faulkner is an auto buy author for me. I have loved all of her books and rated them all five star reads. I saved her latest book for my holiday as I knew it would be a great read!
The story is mostly narrated by Alice and it begins when she accidentally kills a young man called Ezra after he breaks into her house with a knife. Alice was protecting her child but she is obviously filled with remorse and goes in search of the reason behind Ezra being in her house.
She anonymously visits Ezra's mum (Linda) and sister (Jade) to try to find out more about his past. Was it a random break in or did Ezra have a reason to be there?
The tension is relentless in this story. The short pacy chapters keep you turning the pages! I was desperate to find out the truth behind the break in.The book had me questioning everyone's motives. I wasn't sure who Alice could trust! Although mostly narrated by Alice, most of the central characters also narrate parts of the story which slowly reveal the motives behind the events. There are so many twists in the story too. It was really hard to predict which I loved! This was such a great psychological thriller. I can't wait to read more by this author.

I didn't enjoy this book as much as I expected. The plot was slow and un-exciting. Some of it just wasn't believable too.. such a shame.

The children are happy watching a film with the nanny, the mums are enjoying a glass of wine, it’s the perfect play date. Then a young, erratic man breaks in through your back door, you grab the first thing you can to stop him charging through to your daughter. You know in your heart you were only protecting your little girl and yourself but still the guilt eats away at you, that you took a life from someone so young. As the guilt builds does it make you see things that aren’t really there? Your life as you know it has changed and may never return.

An edge of your seat psychological thriller soaked in twists. Every time I thought I know what happened another spanner is thrown in to the works and I realise I am so far off base. There were a lot of avenues to this story and I was not sure they would all come together but it did and each branch was neatly woven to tie up each one.
I thoroughly enjoyed my first read from Katherine Faulkner and will be recommending this 5star read to anyone who loves a twisting thriller full of mystery and intrigue.

Thank you to NetGalley and publishing for offering this ARC in exchange for my personal thoughts.

This had an interesting premise, unlike any that I've read before, which was a definite plus.
The start was really absorbing and had me drawn into the story.
It did start to get a bit long and winded towards the end though. And the ending itself wasn't as surprising as I thought it might be.
I would still be interested in reading more from Katherine Faulkner though, as I liked her writing style, overall.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The break in is a complex tale, full of twists, turns and surprises.

The story follows Alice and her family, set in three parts. The story unfolds and eventually all the gaps are filled in.

A story that starts out with clear right and wrong but soon makes you question who is in the right, what you would do in the characters positions, does seeking revenge change the parameters of right and wrong?

A complex web of lies and connections, a gripping read.

I was gripped during the first half of this book but then it turned too implausible for words. Not for me – sorry.

I enjoyed The Break-In by Katherine Faulkner. It’s a tense, twisty read that kept me turning the pages late into the night. Faulkner does a great job of building suspense without going over the top — it felt grounded and believable, which made it all the more gripping.

The characters felt well-drawn, especially the lead — flawed but relatable, which made the emotional stakes hit harder as the story unfolded. There were plenty of red herrings and little clues dropped along the way that kept me guessing (and second-guessing) what was really going on.

It’s the kind of thriller that makes you wonder how well you really know the people around you, and I loved the London setting too — moody and atmospheric without being cliché. If you’re into psychological thrillers with a domestic edge, this one’s definitely worth picking up.