Jenna regularly takes the train to work but one morning she spots a fellow passenger looking upset. She offers to help and invites Allie into her home but can she really trust a stranger...?
The Woman on Platform 8 is a psychological thriller set in the UK.
Jenna is a vividly depicted character. The book is written in the first person so that we can understand her thought processes which underpin her actions. She is autistic and has trouble with sensory overload and social anxiety. She is also haunted by her mother who has mental health issues and she fears that she may have inherited the same condition. Her character felt authentic and I felt invested in her story.
Plot-wise I had to suspend my disbelief entirely. I didn't trust Allie at all and couldn't believe that Jenna would invite her to live with her family or that her husband would put up with it.
The tension builds successfully over the course of the book with Jenna's fears and paranoia worsening. Allie takes over all aspects of her life and Jenna is powerless to maintain her control. I felt so sorry for her trying to battle her demons and really cared about her. The ending was very abrupt but what a shocker! The final chapter literally made my jaw drop. Very clever, heartbreaking and horrific all at once.
The Woman on Platform 8 is a tense novel with an authentic lead character.

I wanted to love this book but unfortunately I only liked it. What I did love about it was the ending. There were things that happened that were just too unrealistic for me.

The Woman On Platform 8 is an intriguing and fast paced read. The mystery of Lucia’s past is kept right to the end of the book. I had many theories and wasn’t correct about any of them. The spiraling of her mental health was palpable and the tension was strong throughout.

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I always enjoy the author’s books, you never know what’s next, you think the story goes one way and then you find yourself wondering what happened.
In The Woman on Platform 8, a chance encounter brings one woman to confess to the other a crime she committed where she killed her abusive boyfriend.
Jenna sympathizes with Allie’s life and tragedy so she opens up her home to the distressed woman.
Great story for suspenseful fans

I received an E-ARC with a request for my honest review.

This shocking & chilling psychological thriller follows Jenna who when travelling to work one day comes across a woman she has seen before in distress.

After trying to comfort the woman she discovers a dark secret, but going against her usual routine agrees to help her and even invites her to stay in her home.

With tensions rising in her home and work life, Jenna struggles to find the solution to resolve all the issues, along with trying to work out the mystery behind the stranger she has invited into her home.

Who is the stranger? What effect will she have on Jenna’s life?

Wow, there hasn’t been a book for a while that has played on my mind so long after reading. This is in a good way, but I just couldn’t shake the chill I had from the storyline I had just been involved in reading.

I think that the reason it had such an effect is as Jenna is a relatable character to many, and although many wouldn’t take some of the actions she takes, they can relate to the characters feelings and worries.

An amazing read, and I would love to read more from this author.

Overall, a shocking & chilling psychological thriller where an encounter with a stranger leads to mystery, secrets & lies.

Thank you Netgalley, MA Hunter and Netgalley for the eArc of The Women on Platform 8 .

I've read a few of M A Hunter's books and have really enjoyed the psychological side of her writing. Her style of writing builds with some great foreshadowing and The Women on Platform 8 has all these elements and more. M A Hunters character building feels realistic and her characters evoke different emotions which I like. Within this book, we have Jenna who as an autistic women who thrives on routine and takes pity on a women who is really upset on the train. This sets off a series of events that really get you guessing on what direction this book is going to go in. I particularly liked how his author portrayed her autistic character. ( I have a family member with autism ) and really bonded with Jenna. I think that it made the story more compelling in a psychological sense as the social communication most some take for granted, makes life very difficult for neurodiverse people. I also feel that Hunter wrote this character with dignity and grace.

Overall, the pacing of the book was smooth and consistent , building up to the finale and definitely kept me invested . I also had the pleasure of listening to some of this as an audio book. Claire Storey narrated this book and she added continuity to both the characters and the tone of the book itself. Wonderful!

4 stars

I enjoyed the premise of this book. I appreciated the forward by the author to explain the main character. It helped to see things from her perspective and allowed for me to believe some of the plot twists and why she did the things she did more clearly. This was a new author to me but I will be going back to read her other published works. I will be recommending this to my reading group and on my social media.

I loved the premise of this book, as someone who used to commute to work and regularly see the same faces, wondering what some of their backstories were.

I didn’t like how trusting Jenna was of Allie, I found it a bit frustrating. But she is neuro-divergent which I guess could explain a different thought/decision making process.

I read the book in one sitting, very easy read.

4.5*

Jenna is doing her best. She’s a working mum (aka superhero) with a kind of stay at home husband who is a writer as well. Two kids and on top she’s neurodivergent. She’s got alot to handle in my mind. Then life throws a curveball in the shape of Allie and Jenna’s life becomes less organised and routine as Jenna needs it.

Spending time in Jenna’s head, I got on board with her quirks, her need for order in life – I’ll admit, I need a little of that. I can be a little scatty so Jenna’s organisation is something to aspire to.

But as life around her changed, the more erratic her narrative became. Was she becoming an unreliable narrator? Could I trust her mental state? I fully get being in that state of mind when the world around you is too much – I’ve been there without a neurodivergent condition and paranoia is a biatch.

Hunter has written another brilliant thriller that made me question my narrator and those around her. I wasn’t sure who to believe but that climax made it perfectly clear before the knife was twisted at the end.

Thank you M A Hunter and Boldwood Books to allow me to read this ARC via NetGalley.

📍 England
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Vibes: 🚆😵‍💫👨🏻‍👩🏻‍👧🏼‍👦🏼💻🔪😈
Rating: 3.25 ⭐
Tropes: autistic fmc / stranger with a secret / blurred reality / gaslighting and manipulation

Started off reading thinking one thing about the main characters, and as the plot progressed, I thought I would able to predict what was going to happen but definitely was a wild ride.
Hard for me to really get my thoughts together for a review. This one really messed with my brain.

I appreciated the forward by the author but the book as a whole didn’t work for me. It seemed I was re reading other books where a good deed goes very wrong. and the whole plot relied on a very unrealistic premise of how a person would behave.

2.5 stars.

This story has an interesting premise. But I think the whole random woman shows up and inserts herself in someone’s life then takes over is an over done plot line.

Also, the character is autistic which the author mentions constantly. However, her behavior seems very counter to what you would expect. The author wanted to write a neurodivergent character which they expressly stated bud for me it just did not work. You can write about it without having to point it out constantly.

I disliked the ending greatly. If left way too many unanswered questions. It was done for shock value - which it was that but it did not match with the story or tie things in.

It was also a similar ending to the first book I read by this author so I’m thinking it’s maybe time for a different focus from him.

I’ve read 3 books by this author. The first one I thought was awesome, second one “meh” and this one was painful. I do not think I would read additional stuff from him at this point.

How many women would welcome a complete stranger into their home with their husband and children? That’s exactly what Jenna does when she meets Allie, a complete stranger, and decides to take her in. Jenna approached Allie with great concern for her well-being and safety. Not only did Allie appear injured, but her story also stirred up protective instincts in Jenna.

The question that arises is, who is the vulnerable one, Jenna or Allie? It’s not difficult to sense Jenna’s vulnerability, a woman on the autism spectrum. She misses social cues, and while some may find bells and whistles clear to recognize, Jenna does her best to navigate life, while missing crucial things. Beyond her autism, Jenna’s past is deeply sad, which undoubtedly influences her decisions.

It’s easy to feel compassion for Jenna while also criticizing Allie. Brett, Jenna’s husband, was undoubtedly a good person, but he had his flaws. If you’re looking for a book that will keep you on the edge of your seat and rooting for Jenna repeatedly, then this latest book by M. A. Hunter is the perfect choice.

Many thanks to Boldwood Books, Rachel’s Random Resources and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Jenna meets Allie on a train. Allie's distressed and tries to help her, soon learning the meaning of the saying "no good deed comes unpunished"...

This was a twisty book with lots of surprises. It was also interesting to get the story from Jenna’s point of view as a woman with autism. Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the arc.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the chance to read this ARC.

A great thriller which I really enjoyed! I just wish it had tied everything up at the end.

A full review has been left on Goodreads and linked below.

Oh this was good. Dark, twisty and definitely deserved to be read in one sitting.

The author teases with a slow start, allowing the tension and uncertainties to build, and when they hit, boy did they hit hard! I didn't see that one coming, did you?

Very much a character driven read, it threw up the whole stranger danger scenario for me. I don't even like talking to strangers, let alone in inviting one into my home. Like wtaf!

A thoroughly enjoyable, intriguing read.

A good, fast and easy read. I enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend as an easy read. It also had some surprises that I'd never have guessed.

As a neurodiverse woman I found this particularly interesting but incredibly frustrating where Jenna was concerned. Neurodiversity in women is all too often misdiagnosed as a mental health issue or personality disorder. Jenna's lack of support from those around her was sad particularly as nearly all were meant to be people that knew her. If you know a neurodiverse person we'll then you can see changes when they are struggling, just as Jenna's brother was able to identify shutdown in his sister, even after he'd moved away and not had as much contact.

Stereotypes say neurodiverse people aren't meant to get ahead, aren't meant to form long-term successful relationships and are unable to communicate effectively (amongst other things). I think Jenna proves the stereotypes are false but her story is a sad one and she ultimately loses a life she'd worked hard to achieve

Jenny Morgan spots a regular commuter who boards the train on platform 8 of London Waterloo and gets off at Winchester. Today this woman boards at Winchester and Jenny feels signs of distress coming from this unknown passenger. Jenny asks if this stranger is okay and so the story begins.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Woman on Platform 8, which is a dark and twisty psychological thriller. It is told in the first person and this narrative is ideal for this novel. Everything is from Jenny’s point of view and readers are told from the beginning that Jenny is “openly autistic”. It works well that this family, friends and work story is told ONLY from Jenny’s point of view. Although the author is a man, he puts the reader FULLY in the mindset of Jenny, regardless of your gender or neurology. The focus of this story is so strong and very easy to relate to, that you feel that you can “live the book”.

Doubts begin to grow in your mind as the story builds. The character development of Jenny Morgan is terrific and you get just enough from The Woman on Platform 8, Jenny’s husband, son and daughter, brother, mother, mother-in-law and workmates to fully understand Jenny’s world.

I was very impressed by the quality of writing and feel The Woman on Platform 8 is an OUTSTANDING 5 star read. The plot is very good and I did not work out what was going on in the background. I was barking up the wrong tree and the ending was a HUGE surprise, totally unexpected. The shock - no spoilers from me - is that anyone could fall victim to this scenario, which is frightening.

I will not quote from this book but health care providers generally name their buildings/trading names “kindly” - not for Jenny’s mum who is a patient in a hospital called Graveside. Sleep well everyone!