I had problems with the beginning (too slow) and the end (rushed)., but the middle was very entertaining. Two hard scrabble, willing to do anything women, and the man caught in the middle. The women were treacherous. I felt so sorry for Daniel. This was a unique clash of forces. Could have been a five star with a better end and beginning.

This story drew me in from page one and never let go. Even when I had to stop reading to deal with real life stuff, I could not stop thinking about it and could not wait to see where the story was going. Very fun, addictive read! Thank you publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

A definite page turner. The writing was very good and I liked the changing points of view. There were twists and turns that I didn't expect and I found it hard to put the book down toward the end.

This book is marketed as a 'chilling psychological thriller' but it is a domestic drama at best. It lacks tension and depth to the story and instead gives readers a long-winded, slowly paced story with lukewarm characters who behave exactly how you'd expect, making this debut 'just okay' at best.

The premise had heaps of potential, but the author couldn’t pull off a 'thriller'. It just wasn't clever enough. It felt like the author had to lay out every character's thoughts and didn't trust her readers to be able to piece together a more intricate plot. This may appeal to people who want a mild, family drama read but for avid readers of the psychological suspense genre, like myself, this doesn't add anything new to the genre (either domestic drama or psychological thriller).

With thinly constructed characters, a weakly executed premise and a lack of suspense, this quickly became one of those books that I wasn't eager to get back into.

Disclaimer: This ARC was generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This book is so good! It was really hard to put down when pesky things like work got in the way, because I needed to know what was going to happen next. The characters were great, the villain was so creepy and disturbing but put on such a victim facade. I definitely recommend this book!

4* Jealous Stars

Don’t come between a mother and her son!

This domestic thriller is told from multiple points of view, Laura the mother, Daniel the son and Cherry the girlfriend. The characters were realistic as were their situations, however I struggled to like and find anything good in Cherry.

This story revolves around and very protective mother and a money hungry girlfriend from the wrong side of the tracks who are in constant competition for Daniel’s attention and love. They will both go to extreme lengths to protect and hang onto what is theirs. This story is filled with lies and deceit and is chilling in parts.

Despite it being a long read it was fast paced and quite addictive and disturbing.

Thanks to Kensington Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was a decent book but personally, it just didn't keep my attention. Maybe it is because I just wasn't in the mood for a Mystery/Thriller when I was reading it or maybe i am just in the beginning of a reading slump and just couldn't enjoy this story as much as I should.

See link for goodreads review

Wow ! That was creepy and nail-biting AF!

The story revolves around two most important women in Daniel's life. Daniel Cavendish has always led a privileged life, he's smart, he's sweet, he's rich and he's very close to his mom, Laura. Laura Cavendish is living in a facade of a marriage, her husband in love with someone else, but she sticks to the marriage because of social pressure. Her son is the apple of her eye, and is happy that he's found someone !

Enter, Cherry with exotic looks, a real estate agent who helps Daniel buy a house. Although it's Daniel who makes the first move, it's Cherry who sinks her hooks in deeper. Cherry despises her poor background, is very manipulating and conniving. She can't wait to enjoy the perks of being with Daniel, mainly his money.

When Laura invites Daniel-Cherry for a vacation in France, she is looking forward to getting to know the woman who has her son's attention. But things get awkward and uncomfortable in France as Laura uncovers some lies about Cherry. Cherry on the other hand, is ridiculously shallow with Daniel's friends and family, and is irritated with his Mother's interference. She subtly but surely sidelines Laura, creating rift between mother and son. What was creepy was, she enjoys this !

And from here begins the tug of war between the two women, trying to prove their mettle. Cherry is thoroughly conniving and always puts Laura in a spot with her son. Laura is almost losing the battle and is very worried about her son's future. Laura tries to remove Cherry out of her son's life with more lies. Will her son ever see Cherry's true form ? Can she ever overcome the guilt she feels for lying ? Will Cherry successfully isolate Laura from her son ? So many possibilities..

Many scenes were very creepy. There's a reason why "meeting-the-boy's-mom" is considered so scary in most relationships, because this bond is tricky yet important. This story depicts all that and more. Cherry was scary AF! The extent to which she could stoop was shocking ! Her calmness was unnerving. I will go as far to say that she is definitely insane. Her actions in retaliation to Laura were beyond inhuman and so conniving. Borderline psychopath !



Laura's lie in the middle was so unexpected ! She should have known that such a big lie would definitely backfire. She could have handled it better. Howard, Laura's husband, was irritating. I didn't like him taking Laura for granted. Daniel was okay, I guess. Cherry was really good in reading him and manipulating him. So, he was a dummy most times.

I couldn't wait to know what would happen in the end. There's quite a lot of drama as well. It got a little stretchy in the middle, but all that plays a part in this story. I felt left hanging in the end, because the end seemed so abrupt. It was like, the entire plot is building up to a crescendo and then a sudden bang ! And then's it's over. I wish I could have been let down slowly after that end, it would have calmed my nerves a little. But this plot had me riveted, I'll give it that !

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to Net Galley and Kensington Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
Laura is a typical mother, she loves her only son Daniel and will do anything to protect him, she is a little jealous of his new girlfriend Cherry and she has a suspicion that Cherry is more interested in Daniel’s money than Daniel himself.
There is an accident and Daniel is seriously hurt, he is in a coma, Laura is under a lot of stress and finds herself telling Cherry a huge lie, she regrets it almost immediately but can’t seem to find the appropriate moment to tell the truth and one lie leads to quite few more.
It is some months before Cherry learns the truth, she is a woman who wants revenge and enjoys making Laura’s world a living nightmare, laura’s son has stopped speaking to her, her husband wants a divorce, her business is suffering and she is frightened in her own home. Laura knows who is behind it all but can’t get anyone to believe her. Both woman are vindictive and manipulative and Daniel is caught in the middle
This is a chilling psychological thriller, fast paced and very enjoyable read, the ending for me was a little disappointing.

Laura is a controlling, over-protective, possessive mother. It surprises me Daniel turned out so well. When Daniel meets Cherry - the gold-digger Laura can't accept her as worthy of her son. Cherry of course has her own devious agenda. These are the two love-to-hate characters in this book. The format was a little tricky to read but I enjoyed the book nevertheless. Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for letting me read it.

4.5 freakishly scary stars

Can money buy happiness?
Laura has what seems to be everything, money, a gorgeous home, a wealthy husband, and a wonderfully loving and handsome son, Daniel They live in a gorgeous home and even have a villa in the south of France. Life, it seems, is wonderful.

Then Daniel meets Cherry, a young real estate agent, and things start to click between them. Cherry has never had much. She grew up poor and is ever so embarrassed by her roots. She wants more, a lot more, and sees Daniel as a possible a way into the lifestyle she feels she so deserves. She feels herself falling for him and the fact that he is rich only adds to his allure.

However, tragedy strikes and a lie is told. As the repercussions of that lie happen, we see the ways in which the characters react and how it changes the direction of their lives.

Ms Frances has written a wonderfully engrossing psychological thriller which propels the reader into the minds and hearts of her characters. This was one of those hard to put down stories that often keep one up burning the midnight oil. However, the ending did seem slightly rushed but overall this was quite the exciting read.

Many thanks to Michelle Frances, Kensington Books, and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this novel.

This debut novel was absolutely fantastic! Thank you to the publishers for the advance reading copy. I will certainly be recommending this new novel to both libraries I am associated with. It was a fast paced read...in fact, I finished it in less than two days. The novel was so new, so clever, I was kept in suspense most of the book. I think this will be turned into a movie....it was would great.

Three stars about right for this. Not bad but not great.

It’s the story of a mother, a son and a new girlfriend and the battle between the two women for the sons affections. The problem is one of them is a little unhinged.

Laura is a successful tv producer, has a long standing marriage to a very rich husband and is mother to her only child and the centre of her world, 23 year old Daniel.
When Daniel announces he has a new girlfriend Cherry, a girl from a working class background, Laura is a little wary but wants to meet her and become friends with her. When they meet and Cherry is less than open and friendly with Laura she becomes a little suspicious of her, especially when she seems to become more possessive of Daniel which sees Laura spend less and less time with him.
As the situation developes Laura notices little things about Cherry that make her convinced that she is trying to separate her from her son and may be a bit of a gold digger. Fearing she may lose her son to a woman who is being less than honest with him, she tries to convince Daniel that Cherry is not what she seems. Little does she know thought that Cherry will do anything to keep Daniel for herself and she won’t let anyone get in her way.

So this one is the proverbial three star rating. It’s not a bad book per say but it’s not great either. The story is straight forward and you know you are working your way through the book for the final inevitable showdown.

It’s a bit overlong for what it is. The characters are a little thinly written. Not badly written per say but instantly forgettable. The story is pretty much set up from the start and you just know it’s going to tick along for the entire book until the finale. It should ramp up in the intensity of the actions of our “unhinged” character and, although it does a bit it’s fairly pedestrian and not overly interesting.

It’s a fairly predictable tale and it didn’t really draw me in at any stage, feeling like I was reading from a distance rather than being in the thick of it. It’s not terrible by any means but it’s just not that good either. Not bad but instantly forgettable.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Wow! I hated everyone but loved the story. I was tense throughout the whole book. It was hard to decide who I disliked more, the girlfriend or the mother, but in the end I decided they are both terrible. Is this being made into a movie? I think it would be great!

Easy read with predicable ending.. But sometimes you need a book like this to change your reading paterns
Would read books from this author.

I was not able to read this one on my kindle due to the format :(. I will have to wait until it is released and borrow from library.

***DNF, but impressions are shared in the review. Will mention book in month-in-review blog post.***

I chose this book not expecting it to be anything spectacular, but I always love breezing through thrillers and I often read them in one or two sittings because there’s something inherently suspenseful about them that makes them difficult to put down, so I was looking forward to that.

However, I got through about 20% of the book and nothing was happening, which was unfortunate because a gripping pacing is what I love so much about thrillers. I thought about buckling down and giving it a chance past 20%. But I realised that even if the plot picked up, I wasn’t invested in the characters either. Laura and Cherry were both insecure, petty characters that I didn’t have empathy for.

If I had picked up this book a few years ago, I would have forced myself to read it to the end, or at least skim through the rest of the book. But recently I’ve been trying to only spend time reading books that I truly enjoy; there are too many great books out there to spend time reading mediocre ones!

This book has been advertised as a thriller but I would classify it more as a suspenseful drama. The battle between maybe-she-is-bad-girl Cherry and her boyfriend’s overly protective and somewhat creepy mother is intense but not thriller material. The book definitely relies on characterization more than a fast moving plot. It’s told from three points of views and unfortunately the only likable character’s view (Daniel, the son/boyfriend) is the most minor. While I enjoyed it I did feel let down because of the way the book has been marketed and I was expecting something different.

Thank you to the publisher, Pan Macmillian and Netgalley for an ARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.