A compelling book which I somehow managed to finish reading under 12 hours (never thought I could ever manage to do that... Ever!) It was thrilling- so much was going on, things happening at full speed-with twists and turns to keep you on the edge. On one end, reading about some of the things Sarah does as a result of her mental health issues was disturbing and yet you can't help but empathise with and feel frustrated for her and her desperation to prove to everyone that she isn't deluded and her son Oliver is not a figment of her imagination. As for Evie, her twin sister, no matter how good and noble her intentions were, I just felt that what she did to Sarah was low and kind of a betrayal.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Inkubator Books and the author Jane Renshaw for the e-Arc of the book.

The book was published on August 16, 2020.

The Child Who Never Was is a great thriller I'm glad I read. I was intrigued by the blurb while requesting this book on NetGalley. The premise of having memories of being a mother yet repeatedly being told you never were was interesting to me. This uncertainty set the tone for the book & played on it very well. The first half of the book was a slow burn but after that its pure thrill. I'm a big fan of twisted ending & this book with its super twisty ending was right up my alley. I loved the way the characters were portrayed in the book. Twins Evie & Sarah & their interactions created nail-biting tense moments that just had me turning the pages. The plot was compelling too. I also loved the atmospheric setting of the book. I certainly enjoyed reading this book & would recommend it.

Thank You, NetGalley, Inkubator Books & Jane Renshaw for an arc!

I liked the overall concept of the storyline but found it to be a bit of a slow burner. I found it didn’t really get gripping until two thirds through and then I couldn’t put it down. It did however highlight mental awareness and how it can become so debilitating and also the affects it has on families of the sufferers.

I loved this book it is so beautifully written. Once you start reading it you won't want to put it down. So full of twist and turns. How could a person do such things to their own twin even.

Sarah and Evie are twins. One of them has had a child. Is this child names Ollie or James? Each sister will tell you something different. But who is telling the truth?
Sarah is delusional. But feels in her heart that Ollie is her child. Her sister Evie is who James lives with. She takes him everywhere.
How far will each go to, to prove the child is theirs? Thank you netgalley

I LOVED this book! I was super invested in the characters and the ending was not as I expected! I don’t want to say too much about the plot line and give anything way so all I will say is read it!! You won’t regret it!

Wonderful book that dealt with the mental health issue. I loved the sibling relationship they had. Overall, I would definitely suggest it to suspense/thriller readers.

From the depths of Nicole’s Book Cellar (Instagram.com/nicoles_bookcellar):

Book: The Child Who Never Was (Release Date: August 16, 2020)

Author: Jane Renshaw

Genre: Mystery/Thriller/Suspense

Rating: 4⭐⭐⭐⭐!!!!!!!!!

Trigger ⚠️ Mental illness, suicide

Plot: An agoraphobic woman, Sarah, wakes up one day to her son, Ollie missing. Unfortunately, no one believes her and tells her Ollie is a figment of her imagination. She turns to her twin sister who she knows will tell her the truth, only her sister confirms she has never had a child. Sarah is so convinced- so is she imagining Ollie or has someone kidnapped him?

Thoughts: I absolutely loved this book. Sarah was so convincing that Ollie was real and Renshaw was convincing that he wasn’t. While I do not think the real answer was that hard to figure out, I loved watching it all play out.

Final drinking thoughts: I would definitely suggest you to read it. I loved the twin relationship and bond. I loved how Renshaw explored the mental illness issues and problems. This book helped pull me out of my Back to School rut.
Thank you to @NetGalley @Inkubatorbooks and @JaneRenshaw for an advanced copy of @TheChildWhoNeverWas

# TheChildWhoNeverWas # Inkubatorbooks #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #AmazonReads #thriller #mystery #Books #Wine #Fiction #BookReview #ILikeBigBooksAndICannotLie #Bookstigator #GoodReads #WinerRead #wineandread #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic

Thanks to netgalley and incubator books for this ARC.
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Wow, that was hands down one of my favorite reads of the year.
The plot was awesome, the characters were written so well, everything was perfect.
I highly recommend it

When Sarah's son goes missing, no one believes her. Everyone around her, even her mirror-image twin Evie, is telling her she never even had a son and that she is unwell and needs help. But Sarah knows what she feels is true, and won't give up that easily. She knows Oliver is real and that she isn't imagining things, and will stop at nothing to get him back.

“That was the thing about having a twin: you had no option but to love them more, more than all the other people in the world, because the bond you had shared from the womb was stronger than any other.
Any other but one.”

This story is told from Sarah's perspective and I have to say she is one of the most unreliavle narrators I've ever read. I found myself siding with her just as much as I found myself doubting her and believing she was indeed, completely unraveling. You don't find out who to trust until the very end of the book, when it all becomes clear.
I have to say even though I was becoming suspicious, I still didn't see /that/ plot twist coming. Well done, Jane Renshaw!

Even though I enjoyed reading this book, it was a little too slow and detailed for me at times. Some chapters could've been less detailed to me, while others (especially some of the twists!) could've used a lot more detail to them. I will say that the author did a good job touching on subjects like childhood trauma and its long term effects, and mental illness.

All in all, it was a good psychological thriller that keeps the reader guessing and having doubts. You just can't help but want to find out what's real and what's not, and how it will all end.

I'd like to thank Inkubator books and Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“There were ways and ways of hurting someone. Damaging them in ways that no one could see. Damage that left no scars. Damage so subtle that you might not even know it had happened to you until one day the monster, the whipped beast crouched at the back of your head, reared up and pounced.”

Overall rating: ★★★½

WOW! What a rollercoaster of a ride this was. Sad to see it finish, great twist and turns and extremely well written. Will be looking out for this author in future.
Highly recommended

This book could have been exactly what you'd expect from the title, in fact, partway through it I thought It was heading in the exact direction I'd assumed. How wrong was I? At once an expertly written insight into a tormented mind, whilst also being a wonderful story.
I found myself darting back and forth in much the same way as Sarah's delusions came and went throughout the story. And still, when the twist hit, I sat eyes wide in disbelief unsure if this was just another trick of Sarah's mind or if it was actually happening.

It can be said that neither of the main characters are particularly likeable, but then that is to be expected when you are constantly unsure of who exactly you are supposed to trust, who are you supposed to root for here??
I cannot recall another book I have read recently that had me agog, literally slack mouthed, eyes pinned open in shock at what was happening in front of my eyes. So many books of the genre have become formulaic, The Child Who Never Was is a breath of fresh air.

Just so bloody clever. Cannot wait to read more of Jane's work-and lovely to discover she's a local lass.

Wow! I did not see the ending coming of this one. I love a thriller with an unreliable narrator and Jane Renshaw delivers that in The Child Who Never Was. I read the last 70% of this book in one day cause I just had to know how it ended. It’s easy to feel for Sarah throughout this novel but also wonder what is the truth? Is she really delusional or has her twin sister really set all of this up? With multiple unpredictable twists, The Child Who Never Was really is a thrilling read til the end. Thank you NetGalley for this eARC!!

I really disliked the writing style and flow of this book. I never got attached to any of the characters. It was definitely not for me

The plot had me gripped as did the characters. Such a great idea for a story. I was emotionally involved the whole way through. Lots of feelings experienced which I love, I enjoyed choosing a side but often wondering if I'd picked the right side. I think the fact I'm a mum myself made the story and emotions more heightened for me. I couldn't wait to see how it ended but I also didn't want the book to end. The book could have been drawn out more and made longer quite easily, but maybe I just wanted to read more! It was well written, intense, on the edge of your seat at times but heartfelt and poignant as well. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Would definitely recommend, it was a pleasure to read.

As soon as I read the synopsis, I wanted to read this book. And as soon as I started reading it, I was gripped. It's just such a unique plot, completely unlike anything I've ever read before, and one of those books where as soon as you think you've got a handle on what's going on, everything twists and changes and you're thrown right back to the start of trying to work it all out!

Plot wise, I won't comment, as there's a lot of potential for accidental spoilers. But what I will say is that Sarah is a fantastic character to read about, as she's just so unreliable, and right from the start you're questioning whether her take on things is trustworthy or not. The relationship between Sarah and her twin Evie was also really well written, portraying both the positives and negatives of having such an intertwined relationship.

Now, there were some issues with pacing, whereby some sections were very fast-paced and kept your interest, whereas others were a bit slower and a tad repetitive, so that is something to keep in mind. And as with most thrillers, some sections did seem a bit far-fetched. But that's me being fussy, as I personally don't mind my books a bit unrealistic - it is fiction after all! So all in all, a really unique and enjoyable read, and a welcome addition to my growing collection of psychological thrillers.

Disclaimer - I was fortunate enough to receive an advance reading copy of this book from the publisher in conjunction with NetGalley. This has not affected my review in any way, and all opinions are my own

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

This was an exciting read with a let down ending. Most of the time it's hard to tell who is doing what, or even what is going on. In places it seemed like something I'd read before, but there would be a twist that I didn't expect. It was a good read...but not great.

Trigger warning: the main character has more than one psychological condition. The most prominent being her agoraphobia. If you suffer from this condition, you will understand some of her difficulties in certain situations. But you will most likely need to step away after.

I love a book with an unreliable narrator and this book delivered! It centers on Sarah, who is convinced that her twin sister Evie's son James is really her own son, Oliver, who Evie and doctors tell her never existed. Sarah has been in and out of mental hospitals suffering from this delusion but cannot let it go that something is amiss, and continues to dig deeper and deeper into her family's past.

There were a lot of twists in this book- if you think you figured them all out, a new one is coming! I loved that the characters were not clear cut good or bad, but they all had reasons for doing what they were doing (right or wrong) and nobody was really clean. This made them believable, and kept the book moving at a fast clip. I thought the author did the twin relationship well too, highlighting the things for which they relied on each other, and articulating the "twin language" that they still fell into even as adults. It felt very authentic.

There are a couple situations in the book where you have to suspend your disbelief a bit, but all in all it was an exciting and twisty read, and I'd recommend it to those who like psychological thrillers.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for an early copy.


Aaah, mirror twins. Perfect twins. The idea of talking to someone and not having the slightest idea which of the siblings you're talking to. Don't we all love that idea?

No. No, we certainly don't.
Which might well be why twins have become such a huge part of thrillers and crime books. Who did it, it's the same DNA??? Well, it's the twin, of course!

It could become old, seeing murderous twins everywhere, and yet, The Child Who Never Was twists the usual story upside down and fully loses you in the plot. Is there a nice twin, a bad twin?
One page, you'll be sure twin 1 is the meanie; the next one, you'll be feeling for her.

It's truly an efficient thriller in the number of twists there are – especially as I really didn't see the last one coming.

There is, however, at least to me, an issue with the writing rhythm. Sometimes, everything happens in the space of a few pages, to the point that your brain is finding it almost a bit hard to follow. And then, suddenly, for a dozen of pages, nothing much happens except for the repetition of things that have already been said.
Sadly, this slightly broke my involvement in the book, hence the slightly lower note that it has compared to other thrillers I've reviewed.

I am, however, really impressed by the twists and turns of the story, and the way the author managed to confuse us as to who to like best!

Thank you Jane Renshaw, Inkubator Books and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give my unbiased opinion.
The beginning held my interest and I was intrigued by the characters. I liked the in which way Jane Renshaw crafted the characters and her description of Sarah's psychological problems. However, although I liked the book and wanted to know what happened at the end I did find it a bit far fetched at times.
Hence the 4 stars and not 5.