This book was like trying to catch fireworks in the BEST way!! Crazy twists and turns!! I just met myself coming and going! Told with precision and passion. Loved the storyline and characters!
Highly recommend this book.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I love these easy to read psychological thrillers and this one did not disappoint. I was reading along at a nice clip thinking that the story was a bit predictable although very enjoyable and then BAM! What a twist! Well done. Thank you Sarah A. Denzil and NetGalley for the ARC!

📣 Review 📣

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

If I could give this book more I would. It is only January and the bar has been set so high for favourite book of the year.

This is an absolute knickers gripper. Short snappy 'mum chapters' keep you thoroughly engaged in the lie that you're only going to read 'one more chapter'. The bags in your eyes the day after are evidence that you did not!

Fran finds a 7 year old girl in a yellow dress alone in the middle of the night. She says she is waiting on father. But even as she is reunited with her family something doesn't seem right. Where did the bruise on her leg come from? Why is her mother so young? As quick as the family came into her life, they're gone; leaving their furniture behind. Fran cannot settle, she needs to know the girl and her mother are ok and sets off to find out what has happened.

The characters in this are well fleshed out. The writing style itself keeps you constantly engaged aided by the short chapters. You are pulled in from the very first page. The story does not go where you think it is going to in the best sense.

Some trigger warnings: book contains references to infant death, suicide, domestic violence and sexual abuse

This book is released on the 14th January and is 99p on Kindle and should absolutely be your next read if you love thrillers.

Thank you to @netgalley and Victory Editing for an ARC of #LittleOne

This dark and twisty thriller will 100% keep you on the edge of your seat.

One early morning whilst out for a run, Fran finds a young girl stood in the middle of a park. Her mother, Mary comes to find her and is so relieved and grateful to Fran for her help in finding Esther. And so begins the chain of events that take place in this novel.

Mary has moved to Derbyshire from Arizona with Esther and her partner, Elijah. They seem strange and the pique Fran's interest. Who are they? Why did they move to Leacroft?

Eventually they get ousted from the village, but Fran's interest becomes obsession as she's desperate to find out the back story to this odd little family.

The short chapters are pacey and easy to read. About 50% through there is a massive, unexpected twist. The kind of twist that changes the course of everything...it kind of reminded me of Gone Girl. You know, that feeling of some much making sense early on in the story.

And thereafter, there were plenty more plot twists. It's a difficult one to review this, because the plot twist is so huge I'd hate to spoil it. If I told you who I'd recommend it to, that would ruin the twist entirely.

The only thing stopping this being a 5* for me is that it felt a touch more dragged out than it needed to be. Maybe could have been 50 or so pages shorter. I definitely enjoyed the 'after the plot twist' part of the book more - I just believe we could have got their a little faster.

But this is a yes from me!

Fran is a middle-aged woman who is just coasting through life; she runs, she reads, and she sings in her local community choir. She and her husband have both retired early and are enjoying their free time. One early morning, while on her daily run, Fran spots a little girl looking for her mother. The mother appears, and without incident, Fran parts ways with them. But she can't get the little girl, Esther, out of her mind.

As Fran obsesses over mother and child, she discovers that something is not right. While on her quest for the truth, Fran faces her own demons and opens a can of worms that may lead to her own demise.

My favorite thing about this book is that the plot veers from anything you would expect just before the halfway mark. I thought I knew what was going on, but I was very surprised to find out the truth. There's a twist at the end that I definitely was not expecting!

What an incredible unexpected twist, with all the love of mysteries and thrillers I have - had absolutely zero clue that the story would end up where it did!

It starts off with typical tales of a sleepy little village, coming from such myself, I know how people can talk and gossip about any new residents that don't quite fit in. As the chapters go by, things get more and more strange, I couldn't help but read on, desperate to find out if Fran's suspicions were confirmed.

Suddenly we're taken half way across the world, in what seems like an impossible journey to try and do the right thing by people who seemed in trouble. It was heartwarming that even after all of the strange occurrences and bad blood between families, that someone would still care that much to find them.

This book took me by surprise. I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did. The plot is gripping from the first line, and kept me hooked. I finished reading this book in two days. The characters are realistic and relatable. I also love the way the author describes Arizona, I live here and her words are a perfect description ( well aside from the crazy cult). The twist that is thrown at readers also took me for a shock. I couldn't believe it. Normally, I catch hints and figure out the surprise before it happens. I did not with this one.

ENJOYABLE read with good characterization, well written with lots of intrigue woven through the plot. Fabulous ending!! First time reading this author but definitely won't be my last. RECOMMEND totally. Thanks to NetGalley & Victoria Editing NetGalley Co-op. for this ARC in return for my honest review.

I have read quite a few books from this author and enjoyed them all including this one which is well written. All the characters were good and I soon got involved in the story line, although for me, it isn't a page turner and it didn't keep me on the edge of my seat.

Thank you to Netgalley and Victory Editing for giving me the opportunity to read this book which I can recommend.

This one I found it for my New Release Challenge for january.

And it surprised me very good, when I began reading it gave the sensation that the protagonist was a little lost in a way but after a while you discover a torn but brave woman underneath, that think for herself and take action when she deem necessary and important, I liked that about Fran.

Adrian in the other hand was so calm, I was relating to him a lot during the book, he had this inner peace disposition until you saw a little more closely, and as they say not everything is what it seems.

The introduction of Mary and Esther was chaotic in a good way because it's what moves us forward and wao the motivation that this book gives you to learn the truth and put the pieces together it was masterfully done, I loved it.

The twists and turns were very interesting and cool and it left me putting pieces of the puzzle together all the time, it was an awesome thriller.

The synopsis of this book got my interest and I was looking forward to reading it. This is also my first book by this author. The book was quick to read with short chapters which kept me page turning. The plot idea was good and although I did feel it got a little far fetched in places it didn’t stop me enjoying it. The characters were likeable and although I didn’t always agree with what Fran was doing I did find her a strong person and understood why she was being drawn in. You would definitely want her on your side but you could easily see how people with deep issues like her could get caught up with the wrong sort of people. There was a great twist at the end which I’d never even considered so to me that is a good book. The only small thing I would like to point out is that the book cover shows Esther with dark hair yet in the book she’s described as having ‘straw-golden’ hair. Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for letting me read and review this book.

Love this Author and this book was just another great one.
The beginning catches your attention and the book goes in a direction that I didn't see coming. Well written with just the right amount of intrigue to keep you interested.
Didn't take me long to devour this book.

Thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book.

I love this author and was really looking forward to this book. And I was not disappointed. Dark, creepy and a little disturbing. Brilliant story x

*Thank you to Victory Editing, Sarah Denzil and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

Little One is one of those books that you start at 10pm and stay up all night to read! It was that good!

Fran is out for her early morning run when she sees a child in the darkness, standing by herself. When she tries to coax the child to come with her, she refuses. The story that follows is both creepy, fascinating and brilliant. What follows is Fran's interesting but eerie interactions with the child, Esther, her Mother and Father, Elijah and Mary. They disappear one morning and Fran, despite her Husband's reservations, follows them to Arizona from their small village in England.

This is such a great story. It is well written with several jaw dropping moments through out. I am one of those readers who can see a twist coming from a mile away but there were several shockers here that caught me completely off guard. I just could not put this down. Definitely Five Stars!

Fan finds in the park, one morning, Esther and Fan think she is lost. But Esther is not lost, she is just looking for Father, which is misunderstood from the beginning. It is a lot of mysteries in this story and it was a pleasure to find the truth.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for this book.

I had never read anything by Sarah A Denzel before, but I will be reading many more authored by her. Little One starts out in a small town in England. Fran is a married woman in her mid-forties who runs very early every morning. One morning, she sees a little girl standing in the town square by a tree. She is all alone, so Fran tries to help her. The girl is quite disheveled and is wearing an old fashioned dress. The girl did not want to go with Fran and only said she was waiting for Father who lives in Arizona. The girl’s mother, Mary comes running down the street calling for Esther, who doesn’t appear to be happy to see her mother but leaves with her. Fran feels as if there is something “off” with the two and works to get to know them, until the family suddenly disappears.
This book kept me reading non-stop, at times turning the pages as quickly as I could. I was offered an ARC without expectations for a review.


Shared on Facebook, Reader’s Coffeehouse. By Mari Kam

Thanks to Netgalley and Victory Editing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Fran is out for her morning run when she finds a lost 7 year old girl looking for her father. Esther is quicky reunited with her mother, Mary, but something seems off about these Americans who dress strangely and appear to be very religious. Fran can't let it go and quickly gets mixed up in their odd situation, even as her husband, Adrian, encourages her to leave it alone.

4.5 stars.

I was really drawn into this one right out of the gate. The American family was strange and while I sort of thought I knew their story and was sort of right, I was turning the pages to find out how this would play out. I thought the part just before the end was a little slow and that is why it wasn't a 5 star, but there was certainly a twist near the end that I did not see coming. Another good one from this author.

When Fran discovers Esther alone in the park, her only thought is to help the little girl return home safely. But when the mother, Mary, comes running up just moments later, Fran’s concern for the child turns to fear. Esther claims to be waiting on her father from Arizona who she believes is God. Mary explains it away as an imaginary friend, but Fran senses something’s terribly wrong. Mary’s nothing more than a child herself. And both Mary and the little girl have suspicious bruises beneath their old-fashioned, homemade clothes. Suspecting Mary’s husband is controlling and abusive, Fran’s desperate to figure out what’s going on. Still grieving the death of her own child years before, Fran’s worry quickly turns into obsession. Fran can’t escape her gut feeling that Esther is in grave danger. When the family disappears, leaving all their belongings behind, Fran races to find them.

Chilling, dark, and disturbing, “Little One” by Sarah A. Denzil is an addicting, heart rending tale of child abuse and control. Brilliant character and plot development help to create the feelings of eeriness and dread that permeate the book. Mary and Esther come off as creepy (and a little spooky) with their dress and behavior. You know what’s ahead must be bad. Fran seems rather one-dimensional, but it’s because her life is as lacking and flat as she appears to be. She’s lost her child. Her husband is only reluctantly supportive. Her life is rather empty. Until she meets Esther and Mary.

It’s hard to review “Little One” without spoiling the plot. Short chapters make it easy to blow through hundreds of pages in one sitting. The story unwinds at a steady pace, the tension and suspense growing and becoming more intense with every passing page. What Fran ultimately discovers will fill you with disgust and make it hard to keep reading, but you can’t look away. The things that happen to Esther and her mother occur in real life. As you read, you know how tragic the ending might be if Fran’s too late. But will she be? The ending will leave you thinking.

This book remained heavy on my mind for hours after I finished it. Even as Fran fought to save Mary and Esther from abuse, she caught herself getting partially sucked in by the man perpetrating it. Finding the emotional support and warmth she didn’t get at home, she would have become a victim too if she hadn’t already discovered the truth. Aside from being a compelling, stirring read, “Little One” by Sarah A. Denzil offers a commentary on how easily we can be led astray (and even into danger) when someone offers us the one thing they know we need most.

This book is a must read.

This was a book of two halves for me. I found the beginning really interesting and was intrigued by the characters. However,it proved to be really disappointing from the point where Fran follows the family to the US . I found this second half of the book unrealistic and the characters implausible. A shame, because it showed such promise!

On her morning run Fran finds a little girl alone in the park. After her mother find her, Fran can’t get the pair out of her mind. Something is off about them. They dress in very modest clothes and don’t visit with others. The child seems scared of her father. One day the family disappears and Fran is certain there is more to the story. So she sets out on a mission to find and help them.

The ending of this book will shock you. In the beginning I was drawn in by Fran. I didn’t understand at first why Fran was so interested in this family but then I started to wonder about them also. As the story progressed and Fran followed the family to the US, things about the family start to make sense. I enjoyed this book.