I was held spellbound from the first page to the last by this intricate and devious mystery. In a genre where it is difficult to stand out, The Dead Ex conjures up a captivating plot with plenty of suspense and surprises.

Vicki narrates the story as one of 3 women that will do so throughout the book. Vicki’s ex-husband David has gone missing and there is growing evidence that she may have had something to do with it. Vicki is still in love with David, even though he is now married to Tanya, and those feelings get in the way of logic and rational decision making. She was also an ex-prison warden (and guvnor) so she is well trained in self-defence. Mix in epilepsy and we have a very strong cocktail of motive, excuse and capability. Vicki is developed as a great character with her flaws and abilities that don’t feel contrived for the sake of the story.

Ten years earlier we hear from Scarlet, as her story is told alternately with Vicki’s. Scarlet is eight and with her manipulative and selfish mother is unscrupulously played into serving her purposes to the detriment of her own well-being and protection. Scarlet’s story is really sad as her mother is sentenced to prison and she is sent to foster homes. At times her story is heart-breaking and frustrating but always captivating. How damaging can negative and abusive childhood experiences be on the mental outlook and stability of a person? Scarlet, I wanted to keep safe but she carries out some immature and destructive actions that leave you discouraged. Just what a great character should do.

The third woman, Helen’s story, joins the narration halfway through the book, just before David disappeared. She has an interest in seducing David and uses here looks and guile to get close to him. Needless to say, David doesn’t consider loyalty and his marriage vow even of the slightest importance, so it doesn’t take much for him and Helen to get together.

These 3 storylines all come together in the final unravelling of the mystery. You may guess the twist early on but you will never be quite sure. Regardless, the story is brought to a satisfactory and climactic end. One little issue I have, but I believe this to be personal taste, is that I don’t like the last chapter jumping forward multiple years to give the reader a conclusive end – just let them create their own conclusions.

Many thanks to Penguin Books (UK) Publishing Limited and NetGalley, for an ARC version of the book in return for an honest review.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.* 'The Dead Ex' is a fast-paced and fascinating novel that kept me hooked from the start until the very end. Ostensibly, the novel is focussed on the disappearance of David Goudman, the so called 'dead ex' of the story's title. There is much more to the story than that. At the beginning, the book seems to be about a number of different people living very different lives - young Scarlet, Vicki the aromatherapist in a seaside town, to photography student Helen. However, as the story unfolds, the characters' lives become intertwined until all is revealed at the end of the book. The book moves form the past to the present as the impact of people's actions is explored. A moving novel that also explores the ideas of foster care, the prison system and epilepsy. This book did not disappoint.

This is a really good read.
Vicki is working is an Aromatherapist and as the story unfolds we find out that life has not been easy for her.
She answers the door one day to the Police who ask her when she last saw her ex-husband. Vicki says it was five years ago but they soon realise this is not the case and come back again with more questions.
The stress of this causes Vicki to have a seizure which she thought she had under control, but when she ends up in hospital she starts to question the memory loss and the Police wonder if she knows more than she’s saying.
Alongside this narrative we hear Scarlet’s story. She is taken into care when her mum is arrested and we follow her through to adulthood and learn what she’s been through.
The story jumps around a bit but I was so enthralled by the end that I flew through it.
This is a gripping read and will have you desparate to know what really happened.
Thanks to Penguin and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This story follows two separate timelines in this twisty story and I enjoyed how everything is slowly revealed and comes together so well. The back and forth between character perspectives and times is done really well making it a solid read that will keep you guessing until the end.

A book full of so many twists, turns and seemingly unconnected characters kept me guessing right up until the last few chapters. Great storytelling

Th Dead Ex

Jane Corry is an amazing storyteller. She takes what, at face value, is relatively ordinary and turns it into an absolutely riveting read. The Dead Ex had me hooked from the opening pages and I finished it in a couple of literally breathless sittings.

It's very much a book in two parts; the narrative explores events from two different perspectives and there are numerous threads which explore a range of, at times, challenging themes. There's abuse and violence, miscarriage and epilepsy, to name a few. But the way Jane Corry draws these disparate threads into a compelling and convincing whole is nothing but genius. It's a genuinely twisted psychological thriller that kept me guessing right the way through.

My thanks to Penguin for a review copy via Netgalley.

Well this has been one heck of a spine tingling and enjoyable story which had me completely captivated throughout. I literally read this in a day as so could not put it down.

The storyplot was absolutely brilliant, so cleverly written, which had me sitting on the edge of my seat in eager anticipation as to what would happen next and wondering how it would all turn out.

There was a fair few moments when I gasped at what I was reading and a lot of oh my gods, really or wow didn't see that coming. It was a real page turner and just when you think you know what is going to happen next, you get the unexpected.

As for the characters, again they were very well written and highly executed, they were all so detailed, in-depth and completely believeable.

Brilliant book, highly recommended. This is one author to keep an eye out for in the future.

A suspenseful psychological thriller, whose complicated plot and characters keep you enthralled and guessing right to the end. Told from multi-points of view the story demands concentration, but it's worth the effort.

Vicki lives on a precipice, her past continually haunts her, and her health makes normal life difficult. The reasons for her emotional damage become clear as the story progressed and coupled with her life-altering condition, make her an unreliable protagonist. Is she telling the truth? Does she know what happened? Does she have an agenda the reader is unaware?

Scarlett is a tragic character, the catalogue of misfortunes that she suffers are heartrending and delivered with authenticity and sensitivity underpinned by careful and detailed research. Scarlett's relationship with her mother is key to her plight.

Helen is a catalyst for the book's final chapters, she is streetwise and driven, but her motives are not immediately apparent.

The plot has numerous twists; it's like sailing on a ship in a rough sea, just when you think you know what's happening, another piece of information is dropped in, and you lose your way. What makes this a compelling psychological thriller is that the female protagonists are ordinary, strong women who are faced with terrible choices and outcomes. They are easy to empathise, and you want them to find peace of mind and happiness.

I received a copy of this book from Penguin UK, Viking via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

With thanks to Netgalley and Penguin for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

I have enjoyed all Jane Corry's book and I was excited when I found out she was due to release The Dead Ex.

The Dead Ex was an uncomfortable book at times, dealing with the difficult subjects of child abuse and miscarriage. The plot was slow, interwoven with the intriguing POV of Scarlett Darling in part 1 and Helen Evans in part 2. This was so clever and I was dying to know how Helen and especially eight year old Scarlett could possibly related to Vicki's story. The book had plenty of twists and turns. Vicki was such an unreliable witness it was hard to guess If she was responsible for David's disappearance or not.

I found the portrayal of Vicki's epilepsy fascinating. I saw a man, dressed in a red boiler suit on the bus a couple of months ago., he had a cardboard sign around his neck saying he had epilepsy. I thought at the time how brave he must be to go out on his own when he could have a fit at any minute. As the storyline progressed, the revelations made me gasp in shock, I had been completely hoodwinked from the start.

Congratulations to Jane Corry for another five star read.

Gosh, but, this was a hard book to get through. It's a tale of a women with epilepsy, whose husband decides to leave her for his mistress and the husband then disappears....

It's a confusing read and I just didn't care enough for any of the characters and so found myself flicking though at times.

It's not quite the book it purports to be and I'm afraid it just wasn't for me.

I do appreciate having had the opportunity to preview and many thanks to net galley and the publishers for sending me an e-copy in exchange for this honest review.

I would like to thank Penguin Random House UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Dead Ex’ written by Jane Corry, in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Vicki suffers from epilepsy and after losing the baby she’s carrying due to an attack in the prison where she’s the governor, her husband David runs off with his assistant Tanya and divorces her. Later, David is reported missing by Tanya and the police arrive at Vicki’s door suggesting that she’s been stalking David and knows something about his disappearance. Vicki knows she’s not involved but she can’t be one hundred percent certain as the epilepsy affects her memory, so what can she do to prove her innocence?
‘The Dead Ex’ is a gripping psychological thriller which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed reading. It has a complex plot that’s been well-thought-out and executed, twists and turns, and a surprising conclusion that I wasn’t expecting. Once I’d started reading I became so involved in the story that I couldn’t stop as I needed to know what had happened. This is a fast-paced and absorbing novel and I can recommend it.

Thoroughly enjoyed this story. As well as gripping you in throughout, it also raises some of the challenges felt by those who have epilepsy and is a great way to highlight these. The story itself offers a constant guessing game, and even when you think you know it the book keeps you guessing for that bit longer...

Wow ... what a rollercoaster. This is the 2nd book of Jane Corry and I’ve enjoyed both.

As you flit between the lives off all these women tangled in the husbands life it becomes apparent that not all is as it seems

It keeps you gripped as you want to know who is responsible for the resulting murder, did she actually kill her ex, and did she kill his wife ...

As it all unfolds it shows there are unknown conflicts, and unknown players who’s hands are late to be played.

Vicki's husband David once promised to love her in sickness and in health. But after a brutal attack left her suffering with epilepsy, he ran away with his mistress.

So when Vicki gets a call one day to say that he's missing, her first thought is 'good riddance'. But then the police find evidence suggesting that David is dead. And they think Vicki had something to do with it.

What really happened on the night of David's disappearance?
And how can Vicki prove her innocence, when she's not even sure of it herself?

I found this book very convoluted for the first half f the book. By the sway cond half the characters were beginning to get sorted out and I then wanted to find out what was going to happen by the end. It is correctly classified as a psychological thriller but was a slow read. The first few chapters covering Scarlet Darling ended with quotes on aromatherapy that did not even to the end make sense. The basic story is about a young girl Scarlet and through the story she grows up , but even that was confusing until closer to the end and the other main character is Vicki an ex prison governor and he story starts from present day and unwinds gradually to her earlier life. As I said convoluted and at times very confusing but all is made clear in the latter half of the story.
Jane Corry has obviously done a great deal of research which is very apparent and makes the book a very interesting read. I loved the knowledge about epilepsy and the prison service.

The Dead Ex kept me gripped to its meandering story, despite some confusion in places. For example, one of the two narrators disappear halfway though and a new narrator turns up. Eventually, this explains itself, but it is the start of a rather convoluted, even contrived second half.

This is the story of Vicky, a former prison governor who has a host of secrets from her past. How else would a former prison governor end up as a freelance aromatherapist? Then there’s a second, younger character, with the improbable burlesque sounding name Scarlet Darling. Poor Scarlet is passed from pillar to post though the care system and then half way through the pick, falls off the radar- or so it seems.

The prison background is well done. The author was previously a writer in residence at a prison and writes with authenticity and authority on this.

The story turns and twirls and is downright unlikely in parts, but I kept reading, despite the onslaught of twists towards the end which lost impact due to the sheer number of them.

Overall, this was entertaining read and it certainly kept my attention until the end, despite one or two eye rolls on my part.

I read and enjoyed blood sisters by the same author so was looking forward to reading this book. I must admit it took me a little while to actually get into the story with the different characters in each chapter telling their story, but once I did I really enjoyed it. There are lots of twists and turns and suspense right until the end. Another great read Which I recommend

The Dead Ex is a fantastic thriller of a book. Switching between Vicki, Scarlet and Helens interwoven stories, Vicki is an aromatherapist loving in Cornwall trying to get over her cheating ex husband and move in with her life, when David goes missing and his wife if found dead Vicki doesn’t know if she had anything to do with it or not thanks to the medication she has been taking. A fantastic book full of twists that I didn’t see coming.

Vicki is an aromatherapist who has a secret past. She can't let go of her past with her ex husband. Then he goes missing and the police turn up on her doorstep, blaming her for his disappearance. Vicki must find out the truth for herself. Lots of twists and turns in this book which keeps the reader guessing until the final reveal. The characters have depth and I couldn't wait to read on to find out about what happened next. Thank you to the publishers and net galley for letting me review this book. A captivating read.

Actually 3.5 stars.
Well, this was a bit convoluted and, at times, not that easy to follow. Although, that said, it did come together pretty nicely at the end but it did take a bit of work getting there.
Vicki's husband Daniel left her for his mistress at about the same time as she developed epilepsy after an attack at work. She has managed to rub along on her own, learning to live with her condition and she mostly gets on OK. Until that is, she is contacted by the police and told that Daniel has gone missing. Not only that, but that they also consider her to be a suspect. Something she doesn't really help herself with as she kinda lies a bit to them to try and deflect the accusation. This was something that I struggled to get to grips with due to my eventual knowledge of her past employment (no spoilers here) a past that we hear about in flashbacks.
Along with what is happening in the present and its flashbacks, we also hear from another character; Scarlet, a young girl as she struggles with her mother's addiction and lifestyle. Quite how she fits in to the rest of it just has to be sat with for the majority of the book. At times, I thought I'd worked out where we were going but, when faced with another dead end or about face, I realised that if I was honest, I really didn't have a clue and just had to sit back with all these thoughts swilling around my head with nowhere to go. There were also quite a few things that really didn't make sense along the way and, at times, I thought I'd discovered a couple of plot holes only to find out something key to the explanation later on in the book. This actually made the book a bit more uncomfortable to read. Maybe I missed things along the way, it has been known, or maybe the confusion was written in purposefully. I have no idea, all I can say is that, sadly, it didn't quite work for me.
The ending when it came was OK. Some of the things didn't quite sit right with me though and I wasn't quite satisfied enough at the conclusion. There were a couple of things that didn't gel and others that were left a bit in the air. Sadly, I think have to admit that this wasn't really the book for me. That said, I really loved the author's previous two books so I am willing to take this one just as a blip and still eagerly await her next one when it is out.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Vicki’s husband left her for his mistress after Vicki was attacked at work which left her with epilepsy. Then one day she gets the message that he has gone missing and police seem to think he is dead and vicki is responsible.

I found this book to be an easy read, but it didn’t really excite me, and I really didn’t care about the characters that much, I felt that the story lacked something. It hasn’t lived up to Jane Corey’s previous books which I loved, but it wouldn’t put me off reading any more by her.