I would like to thank Avon Publishing and the Netgalley website for allowing me to read this book.

It all starts when a couple, Jade and Thomas, move in next door to Alastair and Emma's house, except that after that it will never be the same again. Jade thinks Thomas is having an affair with Emma. And Jade has a plan to make them pay.

A book read in one sitting so I was immediately hooked on the story so gripping, addictive, captivating, full of suspense and twists with endearing characters.

Holy heck that was a lot of crazy!! Lies upon lies, misdirections, revenge, manipulation, and just plain Cra-zeeeee!!! I was engrossed by the characters and the turns the story took. You definitely have to suspend a bit of belief. I mean, what are the chances that all these wackadoodles were smart enough to figure out what the others were doing and to plot the things as expertly as they did. I understand maybe one of the bunch was that intelligent...but not all three. Or maybe I just need to hang out with smarter people...then again, maybe not!!! The very short chapters (usually just a page or two, or sometimes even just a paragraph) added to the frenetic feel of the story itself. All in all, I found this to be a thrilling thriller.

This book was a really quick read which was good and would be a great beach read for some but unfortunately wasn't for me.

It is quite similar to alot of other books and none of the twists surprised me at all...and the element of surprise is needed to make it work.

I also don't think Jade's mental health issues were explored or dealt with sensitively enough.

Having 4 character view points immediately at the start of the book made it hard to get an understanding of anyone. I also didn't always know who the "you" they were talking about was. If these initial character chapters had been longer and more in depth, then this would have worked better and at least given us a basis for these characters later on.

I never got the individual voices of the characters...they all blurred into one. Each character should have a distinctive voice..should be able to recognise who the character is without the header but I literally had no clue.

As I didn't understand any motivation or the characters themselves certain questions such as Why did Emma stay in that relationship? Made absolutely no sense to me at all and I found that frustrating.

I hated ALL the characters too...and I think in this type of book you needed some affinity with at least one....I needed that to enjoy the book at all.

The story often felt very patchy and more intent at shock value than character development which was a shame and the character development was sorely needed.

Overall a quick easy read but not for me.

Thanks to the author, publisher and Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I always enjoy books from this author and this one is no exception. It hooks you in from the start and keeps you gripped all the way through. I can't wait to read more from them in the future - great book.

What makes this book stand out is its sheer escapism value. It’s a bit far fetched but who cares?! It’s really good and I’ve just spent 3 hrs devouring it. And so will you!

I enjoyed this book but found it creepy all at the same time. Slightly worrying that it could happen and how easily we trust people on the face of it all.

Really enjoyed this book. Fast paced & full of twists, it’s a well thought up story that all goes together nicely would highly recommend.

A fantastically well written and well plotted story - intense in all the right places and with great depth,. Highly recommended to fans of the genre.

Meh. It was juvenile and the writing was uninspiring. I couldn’t make it halfway because the storyline just didn’t develop fast enough.

Is anyone safe? Maybe not. Jade is a retired forensic pathologist and has severe mental health issues and finds love with a hedge fund investor. I can't say more without spoiling the book. It was definitely a guilty pleasure whilst reading it. Is it ok for bad things to happen to bad people? Well read the book and find out for yourself.

How much do you trust your new neighbors?

When a new family moves in, the couple next door watch very carefully. Thinking the neighbors might be friendly, they're invited to a dinner party ... a great way to introduce yourself to learn about your new potential friends.

But then the mistrust starts in ... does she want my husband? Is my husband cheating on me? I confided in you and this is how you repay me?

Someone has a plan ... a deadly plan. This will not continue....

This is well written with short chapters full of suspense, angst, mistrust, suspicion, lies and secrets. Twists and turns are in abundance .... who tells the truth ... who lies? The characters are well-defined, intriguing. Like an accident on the side of the rod, it's hard not to look.

Many thanks to the author / Avon Books UK / Harper 360 / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological drama. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Sparks fly when a new couple move into the neighbourhood, but not in a good way! I loved the story (and cover) no matter how implausible it got but what turned it from a solid 4 to a 3 star read was the way it was written - second narration. This just confused everything when it needn’t have. No one behaves “normally” in this twisted tale but there’s a certain something which compels the reader to hurry to the dizzy end. Obviously the author knows or has researched the forensics very well and it shows.

Oh my! This was one heck of a twisted book where I didn't know whose dark actions would shock me more.
Two couples, one moved house next to the other, and one character suspected her partner having an affair with the other one. And the other couple wanted to retaliate to the allegations.

This was a true cat and mouse game where I didn't know when the hunted would become the hunter. The moves played by the couples were like those of the chess game each wanted to annihilate the other They were calculated and dark, and I sincerely didn't want to be at the receiving end of games like these. The plotline was twisted and so was the hand that wrote this book.

This book was good started out a bit slow but it picked up and had some good twists and turns along the way...

This book was full of twists and so compulsive that I couldnt put it down. How well do we really know anyone? The characters were so despicable. It can be a little over the top in some areas but you dont want to put it down. the characters were definately crazy. Its a fast paced read which Im sure you will enjoy.

Dnf. I didn’t connect with the writing style or content. The cover and description drew me in but that’s where the excitement stopped.

Head spinning! You find out early on whodunnit so then wonder what the rest of the story is going to be about. Well don't worry - it takes off from here. Cleverly written. A fast paced thriller with a difference.

« A new couple moves in next door.
And nothing will ever be the same again… »

My Darling is a domestic thriller and it is a the fourth book written by Amanda Robson.
It centers on 4 characters- Emma, Alastair, Jade, and Tomas.
Jade and Tomas are a married couple who move in next door to Emma, who is in a relationship with Alastair, though they don’t live together. The whole plot starts with Jade suspecting that Tomas, her husband is having an affair with Emma.

I found that the story between these two couples was too superfical and unrealistic from the first pages. I think the alternating point of views from the three narrators often got confusing and it was hard for me to get into the story. I usually like reading from different perspectives but here the chapters were too short and it seems too repetitive.
This story certainly had a lot of twists and turns and seems to be appreciated by a lot of readers so you can give it a try !
Thank you Netgalley for giving me a free copy !

I must say the blurb for this book does not even get you ready for the crazy that goes on. There's historical abuse, domestic violence, rape, stalking, attempted murder and murder and this goes on within the storyline of four people all entwined with one another it is so crazy I couldn't put it down.

The story follows two couples Alastair/Emma and Tomas/Jade. They all bring to the story their own unique experiences. Emma is rich dentist who is living in a lovely area of London by herself but is dating forensic officer Alastair, their relationship mainly takes place on weekends Tomas is a business man who works in the city his wife Jade was a forensic lecturer but is currently staying at home. They move next door to Emma and invite her and Alastair over for drinks. It is during this engagement that things start to get a bit wierd when Jade offers the information that her husband has a wondering eye to Emma. Things start to go arigh from there.

I honestly haven't been kept on my toes by a book in so long. The story is just so well written. I loved the incorporation of memories throughout and trying to guess who they belonged to (I didn't guess correctly). There are so many plot twists I'm surprised its pulled off so well in less than 400 pages, I honestly could of read a series based on this book.

It can make for difficult reading with domestic violence and rape discussed so I will offer that as a trigger warning.

This book had me laughing, crying, gasping, confused and wanting more. I could not put it down. This is my first time reading Amanda Robson but it won't be my last I'm hooked. This is the standard of psychological crime thriller I enjoy reading.

I highly recommend to all lovers of the genre! I honestly can't say more without giving away spoilers and I think the less you know going into it the better. The writing style reminded me of You the way its narrated it just adds to the creepiness of it all. I happy give 5 stars to 'my darling.


Thank you netgalley, Amanda Robson and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my fair and honest review, I wish I had read this as soon as I got it!

My first Amanda Robson book, it won’t be my last!

Like most people I have my favourite authors and I try to read every book that they write but it is unusual for me, when I have read a book by a different author, to immediately want to read the back catalogue. Amanda Robson has done this for me with this book. I absolutely loved not only the brilliant plot but also her way of writing by telling the story from the point of view of the 3 main characters.

The story revolves around new neighbours. Jade and Tomas have just moved into their new house. Their next door neighbour is Emma, a highly successful dentist who is in a relationship with Alistair a forensic scientist. This relationship is in its infancy as Alistair is relatively recently divorced and is caring for his young son so is only at Emma’s on the weekend.

It is soon apparent that Jade is obsessive about her husband and immediately assumes that Emma will have an affair with him. The author writes each chapter from the viewpoint of the characters and we soon realise that Jade automatically assumes that her husband is unfaithful with almost every woman she comes into contact with so Emma is just the latest in a long line.

It is difficult to reveal this storyline because it twists and turns so quickly and reveals something new about every character all the time. Just when I thought I had worked out what was going to happen the author throws us another shocking twist. I read this book in a couple of days because I needed to know what was going to happen next. Even the ending was brilliant and unexpected.

I am really pleased that the author has written previous books and I will be putting them on my kindle as soon as possible.


Dexter

Elite Book Group received a copy of the book to review