Psychological thriller full of unexpected twists. I am not sure whether I would recommend this book to friends.

Thanks to the publishers for sharing this one. I couldn't put it down! My full review appears on Weekend Notes.

This book could have been so much better! The beginning had me pulled straight in and I thought to myself yes! Oh but then sadly the second half was just blah. Overly explained plots, unlikable characters, and not in a good way, and it just dragged out to a sub par ending.

I was in a state of high tension at the start of the book so had great expectations but unfortunately they were not fulfilled by the rest of the story.
The middle section rambled on and on with unlikable characters who despite all the endless unnecessary detail never showed me why they behaved as they did.
Then the book seemed to get much better again only to waffle on into its rather strange ending.

3* Psycho Selfish Stars

The story begins in the present where a murder has taken place in Kansas. You are immediately hooked as the first chapter describes what the police officer is seeing upon her arrival. The book then alternates between the past, where you meet the main characters and get an insight into their personalities and how they met and the murder scene and how the investigation proceeds.

I liked the story of Maddie, Ian and Jo but did not love it as much as I hoped.

My main issue with the story, which was interesting and had a twist or two, was that after the first gripping chapter it dragged on with too much detail, which I found unnecessary to enjoy the storyline.

I found the characters unlikeable and selfish and the drama they created amongst each other was childish and exhausting.

Many thanks to Quercus and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Great scene setting and I loved the back story but I thought the pace dipped in the second half of the book. Original though and very interesting.

Overall this is a good, well thought out, twisted thriller. I thought the whole idea was very good but in parts the story seemed to get bogged down by the detail. I felt that parts of the story was too long and that some of the ending was a bit rushed. The twist is really good. I had not fully worked it out and it was a bit of a shock.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Maddie, an American from Kansas, works as a translator in Bulgaria and her friend Jo works in Macedonia assisting refugees. While in different countries, Maddie visits Jo quite often and it is on one of these that she meets Ian, a British soldier in the Middle East. Maddie falls hard for Ian despite the fact that he has a girlfriend, Fiona.

While the book opens with a murder in Kansas, we are transported to the Balkans to explore the relationships between Maddie, Jo and Ian. I found this sudden jolt rather disconcerting at first but soon became engrossed in the character development of Maddie and Ian in particular. Jo and Ian do not get along and Jo warns Maddie about getting involved with Ian. Despite this Maddie and Ian go on to marry and have a child Charlie, although Ian is away for much of Charlie's childhood.

The pace really picks up in the second half of the book as we get to know the characters through their different points of view. Ward plots cleverly and leads the reader in all sorts of misdirections so that all your assumptions are questioned. When we are brought back to the murder the psychological intrigue really comes into play in a way that totally works. Loved it.

Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward is an amazing psychological thriller. I could not put it down!!

Throughout the whole book there are so many unanswered questions that make you want to keep reading. The ending was twisted and unexpected also!

I read this book in two days and would definitely recommend it to anyone who likes thrillers!

Thanks to Netgalley and Quercus Books for the chance to read this ARC.

This is a fabulous read and one I just couldn’t put this down it was so compulsive and the way it was written with differing timelines and points of view it made just reading another chapter addictive to say the least. It starts with a call to the police followed with a death/ killing but we don’t know who and so the story gathers pace in setting the scene for exactly what has happened and this is where the intrigue begins as to who and why thus making it a definite psychological thriller of the best kind. The writing was excellent and the characters well described and felt very real and what a twisted ending, a real must read book and highly recommended.
My thanks to NetGalley and Quercus books for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book had 2 separate ratings for me, one part of me wanted to give it a 3, another part a 5. So here we are with a 4.

From the opening page of the book you are gripped. The book starts with a 911 call which immediately alerts you to a sense of danger. Straight away you begin to think of what could have happened and who could have done it. I really enjoyed the sense of knowing something terrible happened but at the same time trying to figure out what actually happened. That is the great thing with this book, it keeps you guessing. As it switches back between the POV of Maddie and Ian we can see the story start to unravel. You begin to think you know where it's going, but do you?

The middle section of the book continues to alternate between the same POVs to build a background for "The Day of the Killing." At times I found this section a little drawn out and unnecessary which caused me to skim read a page here or there in the middle.

However as we pick up towards the ending again, you're gripped to the edge of your seat. Even the ending itself leaves you sitting there wondering. A great 4 star book that could definitely be a 5 star with some slight editing.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and author for the free e-arc in exchange for my honest and fair review.

In a sea of identikit 'psychological thrillers' this one stands out - primarily for its complex, multi-dimensional characters. The strapline ('beautiful home, beautiful family') is rather misleading and inaccurate as for most of the book Maddie is living in the Balkans with neither stable home nor steady boyfriend - I almost passed this one by since I thought it was going to be another one of those 'how well do you know your husband'-type tales, but it isn't, and it would have been a shame to have missed this one.

While it does conform to many of the genre conventions (someone's dead at the start but we don't know who, toxic friendships, troubled marriage, a woman in therapy, fractured timelines, switching PoV), it all comes together here beautifully. The characters are what made it for me: Maddie, Joanna and Ian are more than cardboard cut-outs and I was wrong-footed a couple of times - rare but oh so delicious when it happens!

It's only in the final 10% or so that things take a slightly silly turn... all the same, one of the best 'domestic thrillers' I've read.

This book shocked me! It lets you create a theory in your mind of what’s happening, runs with it for a few chapters and then something happens that completely ruins that theory! I just couldn’t work out what was happening. The only thing I didn’t like is that it would have been good to have a few more chapters in the point of view of the police officer, Diane. I am really hoping that there’s going to be a book two because I would love to know what happens next. There’s so much more that could happen! The characters in this book all have such strong personalities and I really enjoyed reading about them all. Charlie is adorable! I was intrigued right from the start of this book. Before being approved a proof of this book by NetGalley I had seen a lot of people posting about this book saying how good it was or how they couldn’t wait to read it. I always get a bit nervous when there’s a hype about a book because I sometimes feel a bit disappointed by them. However this book did not disappoint! I’m definitely glad that I read this one and would love to read more from Annie Ward in the future.

Loved it! Easy to read manageable storyline. Kept my interest throughout. Will definitely be looking out for this author.

This book is a psychological thriller that outlines a troubling marriage. It switches back and forth between the perspective of husband and wife. I liked the first 3/4 of the book. It was easy to read and engaging. The ending was disappointing for me, which brought down my rating of the book.

Well written and very twisted in it's thought process. Annie Ward has taken a lifestyle that is more common then most think and shown the other side to it all and where this can end up.

Not sure if I’m in the minority with my thoughts on this. I’m noticing average to fantastic.

I put it somewhere in between for several personal reasons.

I struggled at times with the back and forth in time. It took me a while to get it all in my head, especially from the beginnings 911 frantic call the opens the book. It slowed down its pace and although I’m aware the information had to be narrated I sometimes got to a place in my mind where I wandered. That’s not saying it was useless information, not at all. I just wish it was just too many pages of facts at one time.

Thinking about Ian and Maddie and how they became attracted to each other at the beginning was written really well.

The chapter headings were brilliant as the lead up to THE DAY OF THE KILLING chapters came to the forefront.
That gripped me.

This author can really spin a tale when she’s writing the action scenes.

This is a book written in reverse and written well. It worked.

So to sum up.....
I think the books pages could have been shorter and skimmed down and still have impact on a reader.

The narration although needed was just too many pages of information that I tended to wander off in my head.

But.....
The actual psychological story was good, the ending brilliant.

Publishers, please please stop comparing books to others. Let it stand in its own right.

I’ve given this 4 stars as the ending redeemed itself.

This is my review and you may have different thoughts, nonetheless I think it’s a book well worth reading. Just don’t expect fast pace all the way through.

Firstly this book is brought to the reader in 3 time lines- Past, Present and the Now. It is a psychological thriller. It is slow to get going but I think that it adds to the atmosphere created by Annie Ward.
It is based on a couple and Maddie has an accident that leaves her with a servre brain injury. She has no memory of what happened to her.
Yes you do feel like you are time traveling but it is needed for the flow of the story.
It has a strong plot and characters
Thank you to both NetGalley and Quercus Books for my eARC in exchange for my honest unbiased review

Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward is a psychological thriller that was slow to start but soon had me hooked.
Maddie a journalist and Ian a soldier fall in love and eventually get married. They have problems from the start. Maddie has an accident while they are on a camping holiday and is left with a brain injury and no memory of the incident.
I enjoyed this book except for the timeline going back and forward but eventually I saw the reason for this and it made sense.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Quercus Books my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic to read!

The story is gripping and full of tense moments. Twists and turns await every page! I really enjoyed reading this a lot and can highly recommend it.