Thank you for the opportunity to read this. Unfortunately, this left me with a feeling that this is an overly used plot line. I didn’t find the characters particularly likeable. It seems to have mixed reviews - either loved or not. Maybe it was because I’ve just come off some heavy and deep reads.

This story was a page turner from the beginning for me! After several years of married life, Natalie and Will don’t have the best marriage, not even on a good day. But when Natalie finds out why the police are at her son’s school, this becomes the least of the family’s problems.

What do you do when a crime has been committed affecting someone in your family, and as a defense attorney, you know all too well how legal system will let your family down. Do you take matters in your own hands? And if you do, could you think up the perfect plan?

I didn’t know where this story was going to end up, and I was worried maybe the ending might disappoint me, but I loved the fun twist at the end! If you love a great thriller like I do, you can whip right through this one and it will not disappoint!

I received this advanced copy from NetGalley and Harlequin-Mira in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. This book will be published December 11, 2018. I hope you will check it out!
This review posted November 11th on my blog.

The topic of this book was not something I would have chosen to read had I known beforehand, so for me personally, it was hard to get through. This is a mystery that like some others have said, was not difficult to figure out but the writing is good. All that said, this is a 3 star book for me.

This was another one I wanted to enjoy but I found it so predictable. It was an original idea but I just couldn't get the thrill of it. The twist was easy to figure out as well.
I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

The blurb basically tells you most of what happens in the book. For me that already eliminates a “star”, there should be more mystery left for the reader to discover. Here is part of the blurb:

“Their young son Charlie’s principal is accused of molesting a troubled student. It’s a horrifying situation—and the poison spreads rapidly. One night before bed, Charlie tells Natalie he is a victim, too. In that moment, her concept of justice changes forever. Natalie decides the predator must die.

To shelter Charlie from the trauma of a trial, Natalie concocts an elaborate murder plot and Will becomes her unwilling partner. The Clarkes are about to find out what happens when your life partner becomes your accomplice—and your alibi “

To this reader I did not find that Natalie “concocted an elaborate murder plot” but a method of killing someone that has been used by hundreds of authors in mystery books for at least the last 50 years. So this was a huge disappointment, I was waiting for a unique murder plot but what I read was very mundane.

The main characters, Natalie, Will and Charlie were not very well described. We jump from law school to this event 15 years later in their marriage. I didn’t like either Natalie or Will, they were both self serving, narcissistic and completely dishonest with each other. I need to have characters that I can care about and understand.

The worst part of this book, for me, was that it took a very sensitive topic, children being molested, and turned it into a story of vigilante justice, which is never alright even if the crime committed is terrible, scary and horrific to parents. One of the police officers, Reddick, stated this well “You see, vigilantes piss me off. They keep me from doing my job. He pointed to himself. If you’d come to us, filed a report, we could have nailed that _____________. It’s how it’s supposed to go. We work the case, we take the bad guys down, they rot in jail for the rest of their lives. I believe in that system” . I guess I believe in that system also.

I was hoping for a really good ending, but that did not happen. The ending is very unbelievable and then the Epilogue One Year Later wasn’t any better.

I guess the two stars would be for an interesting premise and it did make me turn the pages and was a quick read. I will need to be more picky in choosing thrillers because I seem to be in the minority when it comes to this book.

I received an ARC of this book from the author through NetGalley.

Will post to public media upon publication.

The idea of this book was interesting but the main characters were so annoying. While I can understand their response to the situation, it was highly unlikely that it would happen the way it played out.

I will start by saying that this is a quick and addictive read; once I started, I couldn't stop! However, I think there are some elements missing to consider this a true thriller. The narrators were unlikeable but not sinister. The story was pretty predictable, actually; I never got a shock from any of the plot twists. I feel this might be better marketed as a domestic suspense. The title is a preview for a story about how a married couple reacts to learning that the principal at their son's school has been accused of sexual abuse by one of the students - which is truly one of the worst things that a couple should have to endure. They live in a small town and this news spreads quickly, revealing that a troubled foster child is the one who accused him of the abuse. They have their doubts about the incident, but when their son admits he was also exposed to the same act, they know it isn't a false accusation. The reader is taken through their journey of coming to terms with the fact that their child is never going to be the same again. My mom heart broke just thinking about how awful that would be! What can you really do? This mother takes matters into her own hands and drags her husband into it, as well. I think the reason I am a bit let down after reading it is because I didn't believe it was realistic. If something like this actually happened, (and it does) things wouldn't be as simple. It makes for a good story but something like this is never really settled.

I would have liked to have a bit more complexity added to the story, maybe have the characters developed a bit more in order to really understand their emotions. I haven't read anything by this author before, but I'd bet her books are usually picked as vacation reading. If you want something fast-paced without much depth, this would be a perfect choice.

Trigger: Child Abuse

Natalie and Will fell in love when they were in Law School and on their first date they joke that they were so smart they could get away with murder. It was just a joke.

Fast forward 15 years into a stale marriage. Their son Jacob has been molested by the school principal.
It is in that moment everything changes for Natalie. Natalie is a criminal defense attorney and in her mind she thinks that she will not put her son through the trauma of testifying and decides that his predator must die. When things go amiss, she drags her unwilling husband Will into it.

I did enjoy this book quite a bit. I read it in one sitting. The subject of this kind of abuse was very well researched and the detail was not too much that it was impossible to read. There were definitely quite a few twists and turns that I didn't expect and a great surprise ending. One thing that I did not like was that as part of Natalie's murder plot she kept telling her son she couldn't say the name of her perpetrator. While I understand that this was part of the plot, it was distracting to me, because that should never be told to a child thats been abused. If it wasn't for that detail, this would of been 5 stars.

This book was crazy! It tells the story of basically every parents worst nightmare- their young son is molested by his school principal, someone you trust your children with on a daily basis. His parents are both lawyers, and even they don't trust the criminal justice system to prevail for their son, so they don't want to open a case against the principal. His mom wonders about taking matters in to her own hands, and what unfolds is an intense story of deception and shows what lengths will a parent go to save their child. Great read!

Thank you NetGalley, Margot Hunt and Harlequin – Mira for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

Natalie and Will fell in love in law school and joked that they were both smart enough to plan the perfect murder and get away with it. After fifteen years of marriage, their relationship is quite different and they are enjoying being parents to their young son Jacob. Then Jacob’s principle is accused of molesting a troubled male student. One night Jacob tells Natalie that he has also been a victim and Natalie decides the predator must be put down.

I adored the way this book started out and how Will and Natalie start their relationship. I really enjoyed Natalie’s character and her need to do whatever needed to be done to make sure that her son was safe. This book kept me intrigued the whole way through and I didn’t want to put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen! I loved the way this book was split up into three parts and how you get to see the story through both Natalie and Will’s perspectives and how differently they cope with what is going on. This novel really shows that a mother can be a fierce opponent when it comes to protecting her child.

I loved the writing in this novel and I could really feel the pain of the family and the anger over what happened. I enjoyed that it was Nat that had to be the strong one for the family and Nat who took matters into her own hands. The lead up to the murder and the fall out afterwards were not what I expected and made it all the more enjoyable! I will definitely be recommending this novel to those who love a good thriller! Margot delivers another intriguing, tense thriller that you won’t want to put down!

Out December 11th!

My first mistake was starting this book around 10:30 at night, telling myself I'd only read the first few chapters till I fell asleep. The reality is that I didn't put the book down till around 1:30 AM and thought to myself, "Wow."

My second mistake was underestimating what a total badass Nat is/was, at first judging her based on the person she decided to marry. I figured out what Will was up to almost immediately, and disliked him immensely since the beginning. Was it wrong of me to hope that in the end she'd somehow come up with a slick way to pin it on her husband and walk away scot-free? The ending did surprise me and I was pleasantly surprised at what else she was planning on doing.

This was an easy read despite the topic. It was easy to follow and easy to get consumed by, which I wholeheartedly did.

Could you get away with murder? And would you commit murder in revenge for your son? Nat was confident she could. After all, she is a criminal defense lawyer. She knows all the details detectives look for and how they find them. Plus her husband, Will, would back her up. This was a totally justifiable murder. But then it all starts to unravel. The bad alibi, the wronged convict. I was thoroughly engrossed but could not decide how I wanted it to conclude. Great twists!

Wow! Going into this, I knew the main characters - a married couple - would be involved in a murder, and I was pleasantly surprised with how witty and fast-paced it is. Nat, Will and their son Charlie are all likable character, despite Will coming across as a bit of a wimp, but their actions throughout are all understandable. The entire time I was reading, I was wondering “what would I do” and the twists and turns pop up quick. We hear the story from both Natalie and Wills point of view, and the writing is incredibly profound, and thoughtful while also being realistic. I also love how MArgot Hunt does not shy away from using a bit of sarcasm and dark humor. It makes the heavy subject matter a little bit lighter, and the story that much more real.

I ripped through this novel in about on sitting as it had me hooked from the first few paragraphs straight thru to the slight cliffhanger of an epilogue.

Loved. Super fun and interesting thriller. I loved how the parts were divided up. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. Because I am a criminal defense attorney, I was super intrigued to read about a main character who has the same job and see how she was portrayed. Obviously, as in all thrillers, I was frustrated with the decisions the characters made but that's just the way it goes in stories like this. I still liked the characters and was definitely invested in where the story was going. I didn't know how they were going to end the story but I was satisfied! *Definitely TW for sensitive topics like child abuse and pedophilia.

How far would a parent go to seek revenge on a trusted authority figure who hurt their child? Margot Hunt’s latest, For Better and Worse, explores this. Natalie and Will have a precarious marriage to begin with but when their son tells them that he has been abused by the principal of his school, things go from bad to worse and the couple contemplate a seemingly unthinkable act.

I liked the original premise of this and found it to be a page-turner with excellent insight into the minds of the characters. I did not care so much for the ending and found it rather implausible, however I do not know how it could have been done differently. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Mira and Margot Hunt for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

3.75 Stars* (rounded up)

A Frightening, yet Fun Fast-paced Read!

When Natalie and Will met their attraction was instantaneous. Who knew that planning the perfect murder could be so sexy?

What started out as thrilling dinner conversation on their first date turned into the real thing some fifteen years later when their son Charlie’s school principal is accused of sexual assaulting a student. Natalie, a criminal defense attorney, sees red and it has the principal’s name all over it. Can Natalie and her husband Will get away with murder? Only time will tell in this delicious tale.

What a quick, crazy read “For Better and Worse” turned out to be! I tore through this mystery / suspense in a matter of mere hours, desperate to find out how it ended. For me, this was a really enjoyable read right up until the very end, which unfortunately, I found to be somewhat far-fetched. All in all however, this was a fun one, with truly intriguing characters which I highly recommend it to mystery lovers.

This was yet another thrilling buddy read with Kaceey!

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin – MIRA and Margot Hunt for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Published on NetGalley and Goodreads on 11.1.18.

Natalie and Will met in law school. Their first date consisted of all the awkward conversations that come with first dates. (Who hasn’t been there?!) Including an interesting little game called “getting away with the perfect murder.” Just a game...right?

Now married with an 11 year old son Charlie, life in small town Florida has become slow and easy.
That quickly changes when the principal at Charlie’s school is suddenly dismissed, now under suspicion of being a pedophile.

What lengths would you go to protect your child? Natalie and Will have a decision to make. Go to the police, or...well you get the picture!

Margot Hunt writes a very clever and entertaining thriller that will captivate you, keeping you glued to the pages! This is a super-fast read I devoured in one day! It kept me interested and on the edge of my seat beginning to end. This is the second book I’ve read by this author, and I’m ready to stand in line for her next!

My only issue was the ending felt a little rushed. After such an explosive read, I wanted the ending to match the intensity. Overall, still enjoyed it and would recommend for anyone looking for a fast, entertaining read!

A speedy buddy read with. Susanne!🍁

Thank you to NetGalley, Harlequin-MIRA and Margot Hunt for an ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

What a fantastic book! This had me hooked, I'd try and put this down but each end of a chapter had me hooked.

What would you do if your child told you they had been abused? You would kill the abuser.

Well this book has it all, a murder plot, a family in turmoil. You are rooting for Nat even though she is a cold blooded killer. But it was amazing!

I recommend this book. Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this in exchange for my honest review.

For Better and Worse was completely up my alley and a book that I absolutely loved. The author, Margot Hunt, is new to me, but I'm checking out what else she has written as soon as this review is done!

The plot is fast paced and the main characters, Natalie, Will and Charlie are likable and relatable. Well, okay, Will is a bit of a wimp. Okay, okay, a bit more than a bit, but so be it.

When one of the things every parents fears happens to their son, Natalie reacts pretty much the way I think I would have. She's all about justice and getting it now without dragging innocent victims into the search for justice. Good for Natalie!

But, whoops! Not everything is as easy as we think it will be and there are twists and turns to this that will make you sit up and take notice. I found myself wanting to read faster and faster to find out how this book ended and to me, that is a sign that this is a winner.

If you like high tension thrillers with a great plot, this is definitely one for you to read. I want so badly to write more, but it would be far too easy to delve into spoiler territory, so take it from me. Read this book!

I requested an ARC and was thrilled to be approved. Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and author. All thoughts and this review are my own, freely given.

The whole time I was reading this book I was thinking , "what would I do". This book was very well written. Great job.