This is a difficult book to rate and review. On one hand, the book kept me wanting to read without stopping until I got to the end. However, once I reached the end I found the ending to lack cohesiveness and to be somewhat unclear. The writing was overall fairly strong, especially the portions of Nancy’s diary entries and Ella’s sections in the first half of the book. Alice’s sections were weaker. The pacing was on point and the plot plausible. But I was left with questions at the end. I think the premise was excellent, but it failed to totally live up to its potential to me.

Thank you Netgalley for the free advanced copy. This did not affect my review.

After an earlier life going from foster home to foster home, having been given up by her Mum at the age of 6, Ella is happy with her life. She’s in love with her Husband Chris, and loves their home which they’d shared with her Mother-in-Law before she died. But then she receives a note through the post……telling her Chris is having an affair! After she confronts him, everything spirals out of the control….

He wants her out of the house but she won’t leave….it’s the only place she’s ever felt settled. So to help her afford it, she invites her new friend Alice to move in. But is Alice really what she seems? Who is the other woman that Chris has left her for? Will she get to stay in her beloved house? And what other secrets will she discover?

The story is told from the alternating views of Ella and Alice, with additional chapters that are from the viewpoint of an old diary……but what do they tell us? And what secrets do they hide?

I honestly loved this book so much! I’ve not read anything by Sanderson before but will definitely be finding and reading her other book (if my TBR ever decreases!!!). This intriguing, gripping and brilliant psychological thriller is most definitely highly recommended by me!

I have not yet read Lesley Sanderson's first book, The Orchid Girls, but saw the cover and blurb for The Woman at 46 Heath Street and didn't want to pass it up. Admittedly, I've been trying not to read that many thrillers lately; I tend to go through phases of reading a lot of them, then realising that many can be quite samey, and I've been feeling that recently. But I saw this one and decided to give it a go, and was so glad I did.

Ella's life is turned upside down when her husband Chris walks out on her, not long after the death of her much-loved mother-in-law, who Ella had looked after in the family home on Heath Street. Having found out Chris has been having an affair, Ella's devastation doubles when she finds that someone wants her out of the beloved house.

Refusing to move, Ella takes in a lodger to help her afford the mortgage. Alice is young, confident and good company to broken-hearted Ella. But Ella has yet to realise that the house holds some hidden secrets.
This is a brilliantly-written, well-paced novel that beautifully weaves in an additional mystery from the past. I may seem to be presented as a thriller but I didn't find it to be thrilling in the usual way; more suspenseful, and quite heartbreaking, with some chilling elements. To be truthful, I had worked out the twist a while before the ending, but that didn't make the book any less enjoyable.

This is ultimately a great, suspenseful read, and I can't wait to read more from this author.

I hate to disappoint anyone. However, this is not nail-biting, keep the lights on scary! This is a domestic abuse situation, with the main character being afraid of everything! I did not like her husband Chris, what a failure, Alice was too mean for me to handle. I grew up in a violent home, where my father hit me, therefore, I take this type of story, seriously! In 1974, the Mother could have, should have had him arrested, put in jail, to rot! I would kill someone; before I let them hurt my children! The more natural thing to do is leave, take your children and get out! If you like depressing stories, this is for you. I wished they had put it in Literature!
Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this book.
carolintallahassee.com

The Woman at 46 Heath Street by Lesley Sanderson is one of those books that I’m a bit hesitant to completely label a thriller but maybe more of a drama with some suspense. The story in this one is told from different points of view and different timelines.

Ella is the housewife at 46 Heath Street who thought she had a wonderful marriage and life since moving into the home. Hard times had hit when Ella’s mother in law had passed after the two had grown close but Ella never expected to lose her husband too until she finds a note that suggests he is cheating.

Once Ella confronts her husband he doesn’t make any attempt to deny the affair and almost happily packs up and leaves. The problem though? 46 Heath Street belongs to Ella’s husband and Ella is not ready to leave having been the first real home and family she had known.

The story in this book was easy to follow despite changing POVs and flashing back to the past. However, maybe that was one of the problems with The Woman at 46 Heath Street, it’s very straight forward which doesn’t lead to an overly thrilling read. While the writing was solid I longed to be shocked and awed instead of seeing right where I was going to end up. I also thought Ella was a bit too weak of a character for me to fall in love with so that also didn’t help my excitement and left me with a bit of a meh feeling.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I really tried to like this book, as the synopsis sounded interesting enough and something I’d enjoy.
Unfortunately it just really didn’t hold my attention, as it was too predictable - maybe I have read too many psychological thrillers?
The writing was nice enough and the characters were ok, but as I said, it was too predictable for me!

Thank you NetGalley, the publishers and the author for my free advanced copy to read and review!

From the description of the book I was really looking forward to reading it. Unfortunately I found it a bit too predictable and a little disappointed with it.

Don’t get me wrong, the writing was good and the characters were okay. It’s just that it didn’t turn out to be as good as I’d hoped it would. This is simply my opinion, and I know others will enjoy the story a lot more.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing a copy.

Bookouture book so just clearing this down as a review for my profile so my feedback looks better - Kim Nash

I am the biggest fan of anything published by #Bookcouture and now I'm a fan of @LesleySanderson too, being this was my first book by her. I want more.
This book had so much depth and the more I think about it, its more like the WOMEN at 46 Heath St.
Ms Sanderson did a damn good job at introducing the characters and following up on them. I really loved the relationship between the original neighbors Doris and Nancy. I could just picture it..sitting outside with lemonade in the garden in the 70s in their shift dresses. It was just a beautiful and timeless friendship. And I loved that she followed up on it in the end. I had so many feels.
I thought this book was going one way and it went that way and then another. This was truly a book that makes you feel with your heart and every other emotion, including the heart pounding OMG moments we have come to expect from #Bookcouture books. It was definitely a psychological thriller, and had SO much more going on to hit on all the emotions. I absolutely loved that we got to witness the same house and the secrets it held from the 70s to the present.
The author did an amazing job at setting the scene. I could picture the house so perfectly. But she also brought the characters to life. There were characters to love and characters to hate. Many of the feels in this book were disheartening. But, we know that going into it.
I can promise you that you will NOT be able to put this book down. I cringed, cried, and turned my kindle pages with fury.
Thank you #NetGalley, #Bookcouture, and the author for my opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review. 5 stars.
Cover: 5 stars

The author wrote a thriller that started with a bang and just kept going! The twists kept coming, so I couldn't put it down. I cannot wait to read more from this author!

From the prologue to the very end, this was an excellent suspenseful read! I love how everyone had secrets. Even the very house at 46 Heath had secrets! 
Sanderson created a cast of characters that I loved to hate or hated to love. With just the right amount of plot unraveling at just the right pace, she kept you guessing until the end. Just when Ella thinks her life is perfect. One note scrawled on a piece of paper and dropped through the mail slot changed her life forever. Was it her? Could it be? You'll have to read this thriller to find out just what Sanderson has in store for you!

This book should have been called 46 HEATH STREET or THE SECRETS OF 46 HEATH STREET rather than the titled THE WOMAN AT 46 HEATH STREET. Why? Because it has more to do with the house and its secrets rather than any one woman who has lived there. It is a beautiful home in a desirable area backing onto the affluent Hampstead Heath. A home that has been owned by the same family for several decades. A home with secrets hiding behind its doors and buried within its walls. So what IS going on at 46 Heath Street?

Ella lives at 46 Heath Street, a house she and her husband Chris inherited from his mother Nancy. Abandoned by her own mother, shifted from foster home to foster home, then finding love with Chris and a mother figure in Nancy whom she nursed right up to her death, Ella loves her house at 46 Heath Street and finally has somewhere she can call home. Her life at 46 Heath Street has been nothing short of perfect...until the day she receives a letter, informing her that her husband is having an affair. Confronting Chris upon his return home she is shattered when he not only admits to the affair but that she has six weeks to move out. Ella is devastated. This is her home. The only place she has felt safe and that she could put down roots. The only place she has been able to call home. How can Chris be so cruel? He knows how much this house means to her.

Then Ella begins to receive anonymous messages. A single word through the mailbox - LEAVE. Her car alarm going off exposing scratches down the side, also with the word LEAVE etched in the paintwork. A package on the doorstep revealing dead meat inside crawling with maggots. A bloodied dead mouse with a note informing her to LEAVE. Phone calls in the middle of the night - a woman on the other end asking for Chris, laughing. Is this her? Is this the other woman who has stolen her Chris? All this has to be the work of this other woman. Chris certainly wouldn't be that cruel - would he?

So Ella hatches a plan of her own. She asks her friend Alice to move in, to help keep her anchored. She hates being alone and having Alice there will keep the loneliness away.

Only Alice has her own reasons for moving in to 46 Heath Street.

But for Ella, having Alice in the house helps keep her grounded. She has someone to talk to, to confide in...and before long the whole sordid mess involving Chris and the house is revealed. But instead of being put off, Alice consoles Ella and helps her put things into perspective. But Alice herself is a closed book. She doesn't reveal anything about her own life beyond the photo of the tanned woman in her room - her cousin, she tells Ella. And it isn't long before we wonder what Alice's game is. What is she doing at 46 Heath Street?

Then Ella finds herself being woken in the night to sounds coming from outside, where she sees a torchlight roaming behind her house. Who is out there? What do they want? Is it Chris, trying to scare her? Is it the other woman?

Then when Ella opens the door one day to an estate agent informing her that her husband Chris has arranged with him to put the house on the market, Ella is furious. Armed with a new-found strength she didn't know she had, Ella stands her ground. This house is half hers; she pays half the mortgage and Chris cannot sell it without her.

Soon Ella begins to hear things about her husband she had no idea about and finds herself wondering just what is really going on? Is Chris in trouble?

Then there is the diary entries dating back to the 70s up to the 90s by an unnamed woman who we soon begin to realise must be Nancy, Chris' mother. These entries are something all together different starting when they first moved into 46 Heath Street. It tells of a life so completely apart from the one in the present. As the entries progressed, the story Nancy told was one of horror; a life so awful to live in constant fear as she did. But as each entry came to an end, it left you wanting to find out more. What happened to Nancy that left her as the last one standing? What happened to her children? To her husband?

And why, when she was dying, did Nancy make the emphatic plea to Ella to ensure that whatever happens that Chris NEVER sell the house? That 46 Heath Street must remain in the family forever? If only the walls could talk!

There are so many facets to THE WOMAN AT 46 HEATH STREET that are woven into the story you find yourself wondering is Ella going crazy? Or is something more sinister going on? It added an extra creepiness to the story that could also make one question their sanity. Was there an element of "gas-lighting" taking place, or was it just made to scare Ella out of her home? With Chris' drastic personality change, one wonders just what is really going on and why did he want to suddenly force her out of the home she loved? Did he want to move his new woman in? Or did he want to sell? Questions begin to mount as things spiral out of control for Ella and she uses everything in her power to hang onto 46 Heath Street.

The POV shifts in the present day between Ella and Alice and in Nancy's diary in the past. I love this aspect and I am always drawn to books that shift between the past and present. It helps give them an extra perspective and adds that little bit of mystery, wondering how both stories relate. Then when the past and present meet it leaves you with that sense of closure.

And I must comment on the descriptions of the house and of the surrounding Hampstead Heath. It was breathtaking and really gave a sense of foreboding of Hitchcockian proportions.

I must say that the story was slow to start, with Ella coming to terms with her perfect life falling apart to becoming obsessed with finding out who this other woman was. Alice seemed like a perfect fit when she moved in as she got Ella to shift her focus and helped her grow from strength to strength. Whatever her underlying goal was, Alice was good for Ella in that respect. Of course, as the reader we just want to tear strips off Chris the more we learn about him. His behaviour is so random - one minute he is demanding Ella move out, the next he is all apologetic with her - it is clear that there is something more going on with him. But what?

While it is slow to start, THE WOMAN AT 46 HEATH STREET is an intriguing and compelling thriller that will have you turning pages late into the night! I read the bulk of this book in one sitting as I simply could NOT put it down. Some may find it predictable, others may not. And although I pieced together most of the puzzle from early on, it didn't deter my enjoyment of the ride. I really enjoyed it and loved unearthing the secrets of 46 Heath Street.

I would like to thank #LesleySanderson, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for this deliciously disturbing ARC of #TheWomanAt46HeathStreet in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review.

This was a good quick read that I enjoyed, unfortunaly I had most of it figured out very early on. I would definitly read other books by this author.

A story of women who resided at 46 Heath Street over the years with a few twists that were predictable. I appreciate NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this psychological thriller/mystery.

Ella Rutherford loves the house she lives in with her husband, Chris, at 46 Heath Street. The couple came there to stay with the ailing Nancy, Chris's mother, until she died. Ella finds such comfort in the old family home having been raised in foster care and never having family ties. Her blissful life is shattered, however, when she finds that her husband is having an affair and when she is told she must move out. Ella is having none of that for the house was refinanced with her money so she's part owner, and she is happy when Chris leaves her there alone long enough for Ella to find a friend to move in with her temporarily to share expenses. Alice is such a blessing and helps Ella deal with all manner of things. But nothing is as it seems and Ella soon discovers that the house holds secrets.

This is a mystery wrapped in domestic drama. Though predictable in every way and not really suspenseful, I enjoyed seeing how the narrative played out against my guesses. I do get irritated, however, when the female characters are so weak-minded and easy to push around as their emotions get the better of them. It's also annoying to have the main character go on and on with stream of consciousness angsting that is repetitive and pitiful. Instead of stirring up empathy, I just want to shake them. Since the main focus of the tale was wrongs done to women, the male characters as written were deliberately horrid jerks. All seemed one-dimensional and I found it hard to relate or to get too invested in the outcome. It was a quick, easy read that provided a few hours of entertainment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review.

Six words to define a novel.
Six words capturing the essence of an author’s work, exposing the skillful ability to hook a reader from the first page.
But I need more than six words to put my thoughts in order and pretend I am able to convey the beauty behind The Woman at 46 Heath Street.
Only the author has stolen my thoughts, leaving me staring through the window as I beg words to appear to me.

The Woman at 46 Heath Street. Interesting title. So, there will be a woman. And a house, apparently. With this in mind, I entered Ella’s world. Little did I know then that there would be so much more than the story of a woman and her place. To be honest, I had no idea what to expect, and that’s how I prefer my books to be!

There are two schools when it comes to prologues. I don’t mind them. Usually, they are good enough to intrigue me, to make me sit tighter on the couch and forget the pizza in the oven. The Woman at 46 Heath Street has a prologue. There, you’ve been warned. BUT. Don’t make the mistake to assume it is another of those cryptic and useless pages which make you roll your eyes and wonder why authors and editors think it is a good idea. In this case, each word of the prologue felt like candy, and I was the kid in need of yummy sugar. I ate it all, carefully, as if licking my fingers after every sentence. Somehow lyrical and heavy with meaning, this short introduction told me I would not leave the book alone until I had figured out the who and why. Different from a prologue in crime fiction, this taste of what was to come made me delirious with the urge to dive into the dark domestic tale I had chosen as my next read.

Don’t you love this moment when life crashes down around someone and you watch it all unfold, almost in slow motion? (I am not sadistic, I just really like exploring all life scenarios with no risks hanging over my own life!) You can see the cracks appear, grow, and then explode in a resounding explosion. When Ella discovers a note saying her husband is unfaithful, I spotted the first lines in the walls… Minutes later, the water overwhelmed everything like a tsunami destroying all she’d built, and Ella’s life vanished from under her feet. I won’t lie, I enjoy those moments tremendously. Call it a cathartic thing, or whatever, but I can’t escape the feelings overcoming my own life for a few moments, cutting me from the real world. Now, there’s a good dramatic scene and The dramatic scene with a big T. Lesley Sanderson blew my mind away by making me care and take side with a woman in a matter of pages.

What stands out the most in this novel is the characters created by the author. Ella, her husband Chris, the shadow of Nancy, Alice, her neighbour. If you think a nice house in London and a seemingly safe life is the key to everything, think again. Ella thought her hardest years were behind her. A tough upbringing had left scars and yes, I did find her needy. But I couldn’t blame her. Holding on to what had made her happy for the first time – a man and a house – was her way to keep her head over the water threatening to engulf her. Very quickly, the title reveals itself to the reader: the house is not a house. It is a character, with a personality, knowing eyes and bruised walls. It is a breathing witness of the passing of time. So when Chris wants Ella out, she refuses. I would have done the same! And what best than to stay afloat with the help of a lodger? Friendly and warm Alice, ready to listen to Ella’s stories and struggles. Very early on, I felt something was wrong, but I couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Was Ella too extreme in her reactions? What was in Chris’s head to put his wife in such an awful situation with no warning sign? I could hear the house whisper but I didn’t hold the cards to understand. Without the bigger picture, I was a slave to Lesley Sanderson’s brilliant writing.

Lies, deceipt, pain, obsession, you name it. My favourite is definitely obsession. Not only over the house itself. We all have something spurring us to react, and before we can measure the consequences of our acts, we fall into a downward spiral. I plead guilty. I was obsessed with this book! I was consumed by the need to grab a shovel and dig, I wanted to get my hands dirty and set free all truths. Oh, I was simply passionate! So passionate I didn’t want it to end. Would the ending live up to my expectations? Would it be good enough for me to find the strength to say goodbye to Ella?

Six words.
Enthralling. Stunning. Rooted. ‘Leave me alone I’m reading, I swear I’m gonna hit you with the remote control if you interrupt me again’ good. Tragically real. Intense.

I love every minute of it!

I think the title is what first drew me to The Woman at 46 Heath Street. I do enjoy books where a house is central to the plot and Ella, the main character, adores the house that was her husband's childhood home. When she receives a note through the post saying that her husband is having an affair she wants to stay in the house no matter what and so gets herself a lodger, Alice. Alice at first seems like just a good friend to Ella but I very soon got a sense that there might be more to her than met the eye.

I must admit that I guessed what the something more was quite quickly but I still enjoyed reading along with Ella's own journey of discovery. The chapters alternate between Ella, Alice and the diaries of Nancy, Ella's late mother-in-law. I liked the differing viewpoints which enabled the story to unfold really well.

It's a very twisty sort of story, one with some sinister aspects and some unusual goings-on. As it's relatively short at around 280 pages, it didn't take me long to read and it was a book that I found kept my interest. I thought it was well-plotted and it offered a storyline that was a bit different from the others. The focus is not particularly on Ella's husband's affair and revenge, but more on secrets from the past and how they can resurface many years later.

Overall, a very good, easy read.

I love a good, twisty psychological thriller and this one will keep you on the edge of your seat. I loved the two stories centred around a house overlooking the Heath and the connections between them. The trope of the lodger turning out to have an ulterior motive is a familiar one but the author manages to throw in a few red herrings and deliver a twist at the end. The protagonist, Ella, is shown at her most vulnerable at the start, so of course, the reader is rooting for her, especially when we see what a cold and manipulative person her cheating husband is. Ella however, manages to find an inner strength to deal with what life has thrown at her. Some great supporting characters and a marvellous insight into the male and female psyche.

First, thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read an e-galley of this book.

What an amazing book! From the beginning, the suspense got to me! I couldn't read this book fast enough!

Ella's husband sent her away for a weekend at a spa. When she returns home, she gets the mail from the slot, and at the top of the the pile is a letter that says, "Your husband is having an affair." From that moment on, the plot twists and suspense kept me on the edge of my seat! I couldn't read fast enough, and couldn't put the book down!

I think you will love this book, I sure did!
#NetGalley #TheWomanat46HeathStreet

Ella Rutherford has just returned home after a spa weekend gifted to her by her husband, Chris. He has seemed a bit distant lately, but it could just be his busy work. The house is quiet and neat. As she goes through the post, she finds an envelope with just the address written on it. Inside, a note says, “Your husband is having an affair.” Shocked, Ella can’t believe this could be true. Yet, when she checks the credit card bill, she finds charges for dinners and drinks that had not included her. When confronted, Chris confesses that it’s true and that he and the other woman want to be together.

Ella and Chris took care of his mother, Nancy, until she passed away some months ago. Now, Chris has given Ella six weeks to find another place to live.

Ella had grown up living with foster parents after her mother gave her away when she was six-years-old. Ella had dearly loved her mother-in-law, Nancy, who had been like a real mother to her.

Ella runs her own small business. The day after Chris leaves, she gets a call saying that the mortgage payment is late. Chris always pays it from his account and Ella gives him half of the amount. Now, with a maxed-out credit card and a late mortgage, Ella is really frightened. To help with the mortgage, Ella decides to get a lodger. She met Alice last year at yoga class and she finds she’s perfect.

1976

Nancy and Edward moved to 46 Heath Street. Nancy loves her new home and has made friends with her neighbors, Doris and Fred. One day after Nancy and Doris had spent the afternoon chatting, Nancy comes in the house to start dinner. Edward is waiting for her. He is angry that she was not there fixing his dinner when he got home. That’s when the abuse began and when Nancy started writing her diaries.

This book switches back and forth from present day to the 1970’s. The author slowly reveals clues from the past that affect what is happening today. It is a great story with good characters. However, I felt that Ella needed to get a grip on life and stop being so whiny. The character of Nancy is my favorite and her revenge in spot-on. Go, Nancy! Come put this puzzle together and enjoy the stories. The house itself gave me the creeps and I would gladly have moved away. I wonder if other readers feel the same.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.