You Should Have Told Me

Janie is a new mother, clearly struggling to cope with the demands of a newborn baby. However, her partner Max is a devoted father who can be relied upon to support both Janie and their daughter, Freya.

However, one night Max doesn't come home and Janie seems to be the only one concerned - not his parents nor his best friend seem perturbed. However, the Police then knock on Janie's door - a woman has been murdered outside a bar where Max was last seen and now its not just Janie who wants to know where Max is.

I think reading the synopsis of this, I was expecting more a page-turning thriller however I would describe this more as a slow burner. That's not a criticism as I generally prefer books with a slower pace to those which speed along.

As well as the main narrative (missing husband, dead body) which has been done before, Konen adds an extra element to the story through Janie's struggle to bond with her daughter which, coupled with her worry over Max, really makes you feel her anxiety. Don't get me wrong, a few times I could have given her a good shake especially in how she dealt with Max's parents and best friend but she was a complex character and a great protagonist.

The story ended well and whilst there was no major plot twist or rush of excitement at the end, I thought the conclusion to the story was satisfying and was written well.

This was my first novel by the author but will definitely keep an eye out for others.

Thanks to Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House, Penguin for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was intense and gripping from the beginning. Max is Janie’s partner, baby daddy, the love of her life. Max is also missing. A murdered woman is found and Max is the last person to see her before he goes missing himself. Did he kill her?
I was going to give this five stars as it really drew me in and put me on a rollercoaster of emotions but then I worked out what happened so decided to give it four BUT keep reading and it definitely deserves FIVE stars.
My only negative is Janie sometimes makes me want to shake her!
Thank you Netgalley & Leah Konen for an advanced copy of this book.

A slow burning doemstic thriller that focuses on the disappearnace of a new father who is then connected to a murder.
The writing is good and there is a good amount of suspense/mystery/action that kept me engaged and the twists defineitely kept me guessing, however I would have preferred a faster pacing in the story, so this is a 3.5 star for me

This was a good domestic thriller with Janie struggling with the demands of new parenthood when her partner Max suddenly disappears without a word. His family and friend aren’t concerned by this until the police turn up demanding to know where he is as he’s been linked to a murder. There’s a lot of focus on Janie’s struggles in this which do detract a little from the disappearance, it’s not fast paced but there’s still plenty of suspense and questions and it’s a good writing style storyline which kept me engrossed throughout.