What Lies Between Us has to be one of the most frustrating thrillers I've ever read. It's sad, tragic, depressing, infuriating, and at times, nonsensical. It stayed with me for days after I read it, but not for any good reason. 

When I read a thriller, I'm primarily in it for the mindfuck. There were never any jaw-dropping surprises for me in this story, so that was disappointment by itself. However, the lack of communication, reason, and common sense displayed throughout the story by multiple characters didn't help anything either. Add in uneven pacing and an upsetting ending to the mix, and this story just didn't do for me. 

That being said, most people seem to enjoy it. I'm clearly in the minority here, so I would still encourage anyone to read it if it sounds interesting to them and judge for themselves. I'll definitely give this author's work another try in the future. This is probably just a case of this particular story not being a good fit for me, and that's okay. It happens.

I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The first half of the story felt like it dragged on a bit too much for my taste. I know a lot of readers enjoy the slow-burn style, but it just wasn’t engaging enough for me. The beginning had great promise, but as the story unfolded, I found the twists and reveals to be less impactful and, unfortunately, a bit messy. Without diving into spoilers, some of the plot developments and character decisions just didn’t add up, making the story feel increasingly implausible.

While I can appreciate the complexity of the narrative, the choices made by the characters ultimately took me out of the experience. Despite all that, I still enjoy John Marrs’ writing and storytelling, so I’m sure others will find this book more to their liking. It just didn’t quite resonate with me as much as I had hoped.

I received a complementary ARC of this book from NetGalley on behalf of the author and the publisher.
I have been wanting to read a John Marrs book for a long time and I don't know if this was the best one to start with. This book was crazy! Crazy good and kept me guessing the whole time. I didn't know who was crazy, bad, good or guilty. Up until the very end I didn't know what was going to happen. If you want to read a family based crazy thriller then this is your book. I will definitely be reading more from this author!

A sinister mother and daughter story.
It was well written and flowed well, I enjoyed the chapter layout.
Overall a great psychological thriller and I will read more from this author.

what the bleak
this was so dark???!
and frustrating!!!!???
actually insane LMFAOOO
like shellshocked rn
basically be careful who you cover for because sometimes people truly need to be held accountable and not protected
good god this book was totally insane

My first John Marrs read - and I will definitely be reading more from him!

This gave me all the feels - it felt creepy and was full of shocking twists and turns.

This really is a house full of secrets, and it isn't just Nina pulling all the strings. The situation can be quite heart-breaking at times but it can be hard to feel much sympathy for either of the main characters. A great, page turning thriller that keeps you guessing and will keep you up late!

Jeez Louise and a lot of blasphemous words! I mean my head is scrambled and what a complete mind f**k. It's the ending for me! Just.blew.me.away! I am so gutted and shocked and so much more! I DID NOT SEE IT COMING! Just gutted.

This was such a dark tale and such a sad tale. I have seen a few reviews complain of the use of mental illness being 'demonised' - I personally didn't think it was used in such a way. I know what the character is suffering can be deemed as being demonised, but I think it highlighted what could happen if left unchecked and not dealt with properly. Plus this is a work of fiction and a pure escapism!

Aside from that, this was dark and terrifying and oh the secrets!!!!

John has blown this one out of the park! I am still sitting here trying to unpick it and find words to describe how much I loved this book - although loved probably isn't the right word - but it's my favourite by the author!

I was left with my jaw hanging and screaming at the audiobook at the end because seriously it couldn't be the end! That's not how I wanted it to be - it was dark, depraved and brutal. One to make your heart break with no way of mending it. I think that is why I love it even more - it wasn't a Hollywood ending.

Maggie and Nina are two despicable people. Both believe what they are doing is the right thing - Maggie probably has more good in her and she tries. Nina, nothing, nothing is redeeming about her - and you can see this as we delve further into the book. The narrator really added menace to her narration with Nina and I was hating and loving the story unfurling in front of me.

Gah!!! I was so hooked and addicted to this book - I had to race to the end, I needed the truth but all I was getting were more secrets! He kept me on edge the entire way through! I need to talk to someone about this book - so if you have read it - please reach out - I need to unscramble my mind and settle down!!!!!

What Lies Between Us by John Marrs is a suspenseful Mystery Thriller which will keep you on your toes. You will be shocked at every turn.

A 6 STAR READ and Highly Recommend.

Where have I been?

What Lies Between Us by John Marrs was sitting on my shelf for ages and I had the opportunity to get the audiobook......WoW This book was excellent! and soooooo hard to turn the audiobook off.
It was full of twists and turns, that just had me sitting on the edge of my seat,
John Marrs has now become one of my favourite authors he has a way of bringing you into the story and will have you guessing till the end! Brilliant and superb psychological thriller!!!

I highly recommend this book and especially the audiobook. The narrator Elizabeth Knowelden was spot on.

Why does this always happen.

I finally get to a book that I’ve had for ages and I absolutely loved this!
I downloaded it from audible and sometimes I listened and sometimes I listened and read.

I was totally engrossed in the storyline. Halfway though I guessed “something” and although I was right it didn’t throw me off the rest as the author reeled me in with more events.

A very entertaining mind blowing theme that wasn’t something I came across before in a thriller so I enjoyed it immensely.

Darn it, I should have read this in 2020 when published.

I am on the fence about this one. I definitely got THE WOMAN UPSTAIRS, WUTHERING HEIGHTS and all the other books that have the same theme. While it is twisty and page turning, it was very predictable.

4 stars!!! I wanted to read this one for so long and I just kept putting it off. The relationship between Nina and Maggie was incredibly interesting to me and as history revealed itself I couldn't help but want to dig deeper . I couldn't ever tell whose "side" I was on the whole time as I empathized with both characters. The plot was interesting, captivating and a little different than most,

I gave this a three out of five stars. I enjoyed this book but as I was reading I sometimes got confused on who whose pov I was reading from. This also has a non reliable character.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

You will think you'll know exactly what's happening in this book. You abso-damn-lutely will not!

Oh, the author takes us on a journey here - and, oddly, much of that journey is chained up in one spot. The tale is dark, horribly sad, and absolutely compelling.

And the truth of everything is simply horrifying.

Loved this!

One of my favorite reads by John Marrs. Great story line and characters. Would definitely recommend.

Another great read from John Marrs. This book kept a great pace and kept me guessing.the tension was great and the characters interesting.

Honestly an amazing book. It kept me on the edge of my seat. Normally I can guess the twists and turns coming my way in these books, as I have read them from years. But this book threw me for a loop. READ THIS! You won't regret it.

I could not turn the pages quick enough! This thriller was full of the best twists and turns. An enjoyable roller-coaster ride of read! 4.5 stars

This book kept me going up until the very end. So many twist and each one was crazier than the last! I cannot wait to make this my new staff recommendation at work. The characters were great, the plot was great, the story was phenomenal. From the moment I started reading, I couldn’t put it down. Five stars ++++