Yikes. I think Tess is the most paranoid and accusatory narrator I have ever encountered. He was extremely unlikeable and not trustworthy at all. And i think all these negative characteristics deterred me from enjoying this as much as possible.
The idea of a bizarre picture that your child drew being found and investigated was an interesting premise. But it definitely fell flat with all the incredibly unlikeable characters.
Thank you, Netgalley, for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an unbiased review.

Thanks to NetGalley, BookClubGirl, William Morrow, and Harper Collins for this copy of "The Unheard."

This was my first book by author Nicci French and I definitely enjoyed it and would read more. It's been awhile since I read "The Unheard" but Tess and her daughter Poppy were unforgettable.

I did think Tess was slightly annoying and she went to some extremes to prove that Poppy saw something, but the ending was definitely memorable.

I am a big fan of Nicci French and I always love the opportunity to read and review one of his novels. The Unheard didn’t disappoint.. it has all the things I love in a thriller. Tess, is having a hard time sharing custody of her daughter with her ex. It’s a gut feeling, that nags at her, while she is away from her. She doesn’t want to read to much into it or make any problems, because her ex and his new wife will be mad. But Poppy comes home and she is tired and distant. She is not her usual self. She starts drawing pictures of someone dead. And all she can say is, he killed her.. Tess, doesn’t know what to do. She believes Poppy witnessed something and her ex says nothing happened. The deeper Tess digs, the weirder things get. The more secrets come out.. Tess has to find out the truth but will it hurt her or her daughter? Only time will tell.. this was a four star read for me.. i want to thank Netgalley and the author for my copy for an honest review. It was my pleasure to read and review this one. I look forward to reading my next Nicci French thriller.

So this was a quick read, but not because I wanted to know what happened…

LIKES:
1) true thriller with unreliable characters that did keep you guessing
2) it moved quickly and followed a well crafted plot

DISLIKES:
I want to keep this short…
1) I do not like or find enjoyment in stories where the FMC is portrayed as so crazy that no one takes them seriously. It make me, the reader, stressed
2) I do not like when characters don’t listen to reason and put themselves in dangerous situations. Again, unnecessary
3) this dealt with so much betrayal and mental abuse that it really wasn’t enjoyable.

I am sure that people will love this but this is definitely my last Nicci French book… ugh

Unfortunately, this book just didn't do it for me. I read about 30% before I DNFed. I just wasn't feeling the characters or the story.

*Thank you @williammorrowbooks for the copy in exchange for an honest review. Review not posted to Amazon/Goodreads because less than 4 stars or DNF.*

Sadly this didn’t work for me. I was excited to read my first Nicci French book. I will give the authors another shot though.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

Tess and Jason have separated and share custody of Poppy. While Tess mourns what could have been, given that now Jason has moved on and married someone else, she is getting on with her life and dating, Aidan. Things are going as best as they can but one day when Poppy returns from staying over at her dad’s Tess finds a disturbing drawing by Poppy and when she asks her about it, Poppy says, “he did killed her.”

Naturally that unnerves Tess and she tries to put together why Poppy drew this and after taking Poppy to see a psychologist, who indicates Poppy could have experienced some trauma, Tess decides it’s time to go to the police. Unfortunately a child’s drawing without any other evidence is hard to investigate and the police tell Tess there’s not much they can do which sets Tess on her own investigation.

I’ve enjoyed several of Nicci French’s books but this was not one of them. The fact that the police gave Tess so much of their time and effort just seemed ridiculous. While I appreciate that the character would be concerned about her daughter, rather than being a sympathetic character she just seems neurotic. Hopefully the next book I read by this author will have a better pay-off.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I really tried with this one and made it about 50% through, but it was such a slog, I could not continue. The writing was dull and repetitive, and the pacing was SO slow. There was nothing to hold the reader's attention, no interesting revelations, and not one likable character in the bunch. Sadly, this was my first Nicci French book and I would be hesitant to read anything else by them going forward.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC for my honest review. This story had many twists and turns that kept me guessing all the way to the end. I have read several other books by these authors and have really enjoyed them. This one seemed to stretch out a bit longer than necessary but it was still good.

3.33!!

One of my favorite authors. This is a good story. The main character, her thoughts as narrator, felt slightly immature to me.... for lack of a better word. It's possible I'm setting unfair expectations after reading so many 4 and 5 star reads from this duo author magnifique? However, I will be eagerly awaiting their next book!

*Thank you to William Morrow & Custom House via NetGalley for the DRC

Pretty engaging book. I muat have had different notions of what this would be. At least I finished it. But it just ok. Characters didnt stand out, nor did the plot.

Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book and I apologize for not submitting this review earlier. This is my honest review. I tried reading this book several times and was ready to just hit the no feedback button. But I decided to give it one more try while I was on vacation. I didn’t completely hate this book. It had enough suspense to keep me turning pages. It was decently written. I just hated Tess. I understand as a mother how you worry about your children and I understand that her daughter’s behavior was concerning, but she went about this the wrong way. I am glad that the crime was discovered and that the person who committed the crime was punished, but she really screwed up the investigation and almost got in deep trouble as well. This book had gaping plot holes as well.

Tess is a young, newly single mother with an adorable three year old, Poppy. Poppy spends the weekend with her father and upon her return home, Tess notices changes. She swears, wets the bed and tells her mother an unbelievable story. Tess believes that Poppy has witnessed a murder. Poppy's father refuses to believe it or help. Tess spends the balance of the book discovering what is really behind Poppy's change in behavior. A bit long in places but overall a good story.

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I had trouble getting in to the story and even more trouble staying interested.

I must admit to only recently getting around to reading this book even though I purchased it many months ago as a paperback. It is the first book I have read by Nicci French (a husband and wife writing team), and I would certainly read her work again. The Unheard revolves around Tess, who is surprised when her three-year-old daughter returns from a weekend with her father (whom Tess is no longer with) and promptly draws a violent image in crayon of a woman falling. When her daughter, Poppy, starts to exhibit other signs of distress, like wetting the bed, Tess begins to think that something happened on that weekend with her father at Jason's house. When no one else believes her, Tess digs deeper, only to find out that there's. more to Jason than meets the eye.
Overall, I liked the story. It was well-written and the dialogue was good. My only complaint is that I found some of the situations a bit far-fetched. I didn't find it to be a fast-paced read, but the ending was twisty enough to provide a satisfactory conclusion. I will certainly check out other titles by this writing team.

I tried to get through this one, but I couldn't finish. The characters are frustrating and Tess's behavior is ridiculous. Maybe I've just read too many domestic suspense novels like this lately but they are all starting to blur together. I may try again later.

It's a terrifying prospect. Your toddler scribbles a drawing of a woman dying and insists, "She did die. He did kill. Kill, kill, kill!" To top it off, she begins cursing, lashing out, and wetting the bed. Such is the dilemma of husband-wife writing duo Nicci French's protagonist Tess in their new standalone novel The Unheard. When Poppy, Tess's daughter, draws a purported murder and begins acting strangely, Tess will go to the end of the Earth to give Poppy a voice and uncover the truth about what her daughter witnessed.

The Unheard is my first Nicci French novel, and I appreciated how easily I slipped into the world that they built in this gripping page turner. I was quite fascinated by the notion that children often see and hear more than they can give a voice to, and that they may be haunted and forever changed by the things that they have witnessed. Although she often borders on neurotic, Tess does what any caring mother would do when she realizes that her young daughter is being tormented by something that she has seen - she vows to solve the mystery, no matter what the cost.

The Unheard is an easy-to-read mystery centered around a child's muddled testimony. As Tess becomes more entrenched in solving this riddle, she pushes herself to the point of irrationality, turning to every person in her life, not knowing who to trust. The novel follows Tess as she tries to piece together the puzzle of Poppy's drawing and discover what her daughter saw that day.

I was entertained throughout my reading of this novel, but did find myself disappointed by the ending, which left many questions still unanswered. If you don't look too closely, The Unheard is a fast-paced book that you can easily get lost in, but don't expect everything to make sense at the end.

(So I was supposed to read #theunheard by #niccifrench for #netgalley. I clearly forgot I got approved for it, so I listened to the audiobook a couple months back. The audiobook is the version For which I’m providing feedback.)
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A little girl draws a picture of a crime. But did it really happen? Her mom has to discover the truth in order to protect her daughter.

This book is full of suspicious characters. I definitely did not guess the truth. If I remember correctly, this one ends on a more even keel than a lot of thrillers.

There are several trigger warnings associated with this novel, including some very, very strong language.

Thank you so much to @netgalley for my original #arc.

I did not download this book prior to its archive date. I do plan to read this title and will submit a completed review upon finishing.

I have read other books by Nicci French so I was excited to get the arc from NetGalley and Nicci French. I was not disappointed. The story had me from the beginning. I was guessing right along with Tess (the main character). There was a surprise ending for me and I enjoyed reading this story.