I really wanted to like this book, I read a couple good reviews and the synopsis looked right up my alley. However, I just couldn’t get into it. The book seems to shift between 3 characters or so but it was so quick and frequent I couldn’t tell. There was no indication I was swapping perspectives until I read a few sentences into the next paragraph. So after getting 5 chapters in and spending most of it confused I stopped. Just not my preferred way to read a book.

This is my third Gytha Lodge book and I have to say, this series is quickly becoming one of my new favorites! I thought this one was the best so far, it moved very quickly, and I also enjoyed the development of Jonah Sheens and his team. I actually wished the book was longer! The only thing I would change is I would have liked a little more background on the crime at the end, I just always want to know more and I felt like that area could have been a little more detailed.

Thanks to #netgalley, #RandomHousePublishingGroup and the author for the opportunity to read and review "Lie Beside Me", the third installment in the Jonah Sheens books by #gythalodge. I have read the previous books to this, and I have to say right off the bat that a) Gytha Lodge never fails to suck me right in to the narrative and b) the mysteries are always multi-faceted.

And "Lie Beside Me" is no different. Louise Reakes wakes up with a massive hangover and a dead body in the bed beside her - and not someone she knows! Thus begins a twisted tale of murder, possible infidelity, and deceptions, woven together with the personal lives of some of "Copper Sheens'" compatriots. And they're all present and accounted for: Juliette Hanson, Ben Lightman, Colm O'Malley and the others who we've come to know from the previous books. As a team, they work seemingly morning, noon and night to figure out how Alex Parfitt died, and who killed him and why.

And there are a number of possible perps - Louise herself, who doesn't know Alex but somehow ended up with his corpse in her bed (and in her front yard?!?); Louise's supposedly absent husband Niall and his ex-wife; the murdered man's husband (surprise!) and even Louise's best friend April.

This truly kept me guessing throughout, right up until the very end. A real whodunit. Highly recommended.

This is another twisty mystery in the Jonah Sheens series from Gytha Lodge. It's great on its own, meaning you don't have to read the books before it. But you should, because it's a top-notch series.

3.5 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC of Lie Beside Me in return for an honest review. I have noticed that several crime stories have started with a similar concept where a person wakes up and discovers a person, maybe a partner or a one-night stand lying beside them in bed, dead and murdered. Once I saw that its author was Gytha Lodge, the author of two of my favourite 5-star police procedurals, I wanted to read it immediately. The two previous books featuring DCI Jonah Sheens were 'She Lies in Wait' and 'Watching From the Dark.' I found these to be enthralling, compulsive mysteries, but this one can work as a standalone. I regret I did not find this book as compelling, but it was still better than many police procedurals I have read.

Again, Gytha Lodge has written a complex psychological thriller with well-developed, intriguing characters. She shows the cooperative efforts, the numerous interviews, and the drudgery in solving a complicated crime and get to the truth hidden by lies and coverups. I found the characters who had some part in the crime unsympathetic and flawed, and I failed in becoming too involved in the outcome for any of them.

Louise wakes up one morning after a night of drunken revelry urged on by her friend. She had been an introverted person, withdrawn, and with a low self-concept. This was only one of a series of nights becoming drunk in bars. She liked the Drunken Louise. She feels her friend has made her into a better, more sociable, confident, witty person under the influence of alcohol. She flirts with men in the bars, but she never leaves with any of them, unlike her friend. She has begun to lose control of her drinking and has been suffering from memory loss, unsteadiness walking, and blackouts. Still, she relies on liquor to avoid thoughts of her troubled marriage and other problems.

Now, she is in for a horrifying, inexplicable shock. She awakes to find a man stabbed to death in bed beside her. She cannot recall seeing this dead man before and realizes the police will blame her for his murder. She also fears the anger of her husband, who was away on a business trip. He will accuse her of bringing men into their bed after picking them up in bars while drunk. She drags the body into the yard and lies to the police.

Louise narrates part of the story through her befuddled memory. She writes about what little she recalls about the previous night and of her husband's growing indifference towards her. The rest of the story is from the perspective of DCI Sheens and his team of police detectives. They begin an intricate police investigation. Of course, Louise is the main suspect for the murder. As the police dig deeper into the events of the night, they realize there are a large number of possible suspects with motives to wish the man dead or to frame Louise. The murder weapon is an unusual knife and must be traced to an owner.

This well-written, complex plot is full of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. Recommended!

I received an advanced reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review

This one took some dark turns. It stays with you for a long time. Not for the faint of heart. Not what you’d expect. Need to shower after this one.

This is my first rodeo with Jonah Sheens and my first encounter with the works of the author!

You may easily catch up Jonah’s backstory, his new relationship and past drama with his ex which don’t directly affect the story’s progression! Because in my opinion this gripping, riveting, definitely unputdownable journey’s one and only star is Louise Reakes!

She’s struggling alcoholic, drinking her sorrows, insecurities, her flaws, her husband’s disloyalty with his ex! She keeps hanging with April who is bestie/ confidante/ protective sister/ manipulator, drinking more to bring out the best version of herself!

We read her POV via her letters written for her husband Niall! She just pour out her feelings to those letter with too much honesty which hurt your heart. The outgoing mystery and whodunnit premise of the book may deserve four stars but the POV of Louise definitely earned ten stars from me! Especially the last chapter may be read as heart wrenching epilogue which I truly enjoy! I like complex, wounded, flawed, struggling characters because most of them are the most honest characters who mercilessly criticize themselves, peeling out all the layers they wear to disguise their true identities! I always feel closer to those characters.
Let’s take a close look to the plot line! Because the premise of this book truly interesting to capture your full attention!

Just like another usual meeting with her friend April at the bar, Louise drinks a lot but this time she finds herself lying with a dead man she doesn’t recognize in her own bed! Who was the man? Who did kill him? Could she be the one stabbed him? What really happened to her that night?

A simple stabbing incident directs the team to different back streets of drugs, lies, sex predators and too many ugly secrets!

There are so many unexpected, WTH twists truly surprise you! This book is freaking amazing wild ride! I enjoyed to follow ongoing investigation and team members’ own issues, including a stalking ex who is also member of the squad!

The author wrapped up the conclusion smartly. Some parts are unexpected and well played!

Louise’s story truly ached my heart! For so long she was best written, saddest, most realistic character I’ve ever read which pushed me to give 5 full stars to this exciting, intriguing page turner!

I’m planning to read the previous books of the series after realizing the incredible talent of the author!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

Put yourself in Beth Hardcastle’s place. Your husband’s late for dinner and it’s time to put your three year old daughter Poppy to bed. You don’t know whether you are angry or worried when the doorbell rings. You open the door, expecting Tom. But it isn’t him, it’s the police.

And when Tom comes home, he’s taken in for questioning. His former girlfriend Katie is missing and he is a suspected of killing her. Of course, he says he is innocent. The next day, he’s arrested and their house is searched. Beth’s life becomes a nightmare as her friends alternate between kindness and suspicion. The press is a constant, annoying and intrusive presence. Beth is supported by Adam, a recent widower with a daughter Poppy’s age. As their relationship begins to grow, Tom is accused of another crime.

The Serial Killers Wife is a suspenseful, tension filled domestic thriller. You won’t be able to put it down and the final twist will leave you breathless. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Avon Books UK and Alice Hunter for this ARC.

Thanks you Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group for the eARC.
This is the third in the DCI Jonah Sheens series and the first I've read. I found it a good standalone.
Louise wakes up with the hangover from hell, cold and sweaty. She reaches over to huddle against her husband for warmth, but he's cold and...not her husband and also very dead.
The nightmare has only just started for Louise. She calls the police and they find the dead body on her lawn. As the story continues we find out how the body ended up on the lawn and that Louise has absolutely no idea who the man was. She started out the night with her best friend, an American free spirit, but that's all she remembers.
This is such a twisty, breathtaking story that I had to remember to breathe at times. Louise is an interesting woman; she has low self-esteem when sober, but becomes a fun life-wire when drunk. She's insecure about her marriage; her husband is away on business a lot and seems to still carry a torch for his ex-wife. Which makes her drink even more.
An excellent read that should become a bestseller. Highly recommended!

I found the initial premise very intriguing, but I think it could have been presented in a more engaging way. There were so many characters introduced in the first few chapters that I found myself getting distracted and starting to skim. Ultimately, it just couldn't hold my attention, but I hope it's a better fit for other readers.

It’s become a somewhat common theme, woman wakes up in bed next to a dead man with no memory of how he came to be there. For Louise, it’s a shock not to see her husband, Niall, who’s recently become a real knob, beside her. He’s a mystery man who also happens to be dead. DI Jonah Sheens considers Louise a prime suspect in the murder, but she’s by far the only suspect. Lodge makes this old plotline fresh with quirky characters and a twist that will surprise readers

A truly gripping crime thriller which kept me on the edge of my seat throughout.
Gytha Lodge writes well, her characters and setting are spot on, and the plotting is good.
Great read!

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

I have loved the previous instalments in this series, but this one didn't really work for me. It started promisingly - Louise wakes up to find a dead stranger in bed with her. I also enjoyed the parts which described the police officers' personal issues and relationships.

Then there was the rest: alternating chapters in the second person (which always read as odd to me, and break down when the narrator recounts dialogue) in which Louise refers to herself in the third person as "Drunk Louise". The whole thing was very artificial and extremely boring; basically Louise recounts endless trips to clubs with her friend April where she gets so drunk that she blacks out. Her husband is upset about this and then she goes and does it again and again and again.

The ending was very drawn out as the team think they have got the answer and then have to reassess, and Louise thinks she remembers what happened while she blacked out, but then remembers another version. The actual perpetrator was some one I didn't really care about, so that was an anticlimax. The character whose comeuppance I was really looking forward to was allowed to escape and the plot fizzled out disappointingly.

I do think the recurring characters are excellent though - hopefully #4 will be a return to form.

I really wanted to like this one. The first few chapters drew me in when a body was found in a local drunk woman's yard. However, from there, I found myself skimming a bit and skipped to the ending.

After a night of heavy drinking, Louise wakes up to find a man lying next to her in bed, very dead, and she has no idea who he is or how he got there. That premise propels Lie Beside Me, the third book in the DCI Sheens series, and it’s a winner. This book had me hooked right from the start, as the author wastes no time in getting the story rolling, and that pace continues throughout the book, with no-nonsense dialogue, an ever-evolving plot, and lots of red herrings. This is a great series, but each book is a stand-alone whodunnit. If you haven’t tried this author yet, dive in to this book, you won’t be disappointed. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a solid story with some good twists. The beginning sets it up for a great premise. I hadn't read any of the other DCI Sheens books (I didn't realize it was part of a series) but it didn't detract from the story, though I did have a hard time remembering who some of the characters were.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.