Adam and Amelia are off on a weekend getaway Amelia won through her company. A former chapel in the Scottish Highlands is Amelia’s idea of a perfect escape. Well until they arrive and the power is sketchy, the place is covered in dust and there’s not another soul in sight. Oh and a major snowstorm is upon them. It’s just a weekend, though, and the wine cellar is fully stocked. Maybe this is just what the two need to get their marriage back on track. Or maybe not ….

So a couple of things to know before going in to this one. It’s a slow roller, but one that sucks you in. I should have buckled down and stayed up most of the night to finish it in one go. The creep factor and atmosphere were definitely the driving force and putting it down for the night brought back a reality check and had me noticing plot holes that really shouldn’t have bothered me in a story that was obviously not steeped in reality. I think it’s also safe to say if I had read this during the winter I may have enjoyed it even more with the woods behind our house making it feel a lot more isolated than it really is. But that’s not going to sell any copies of a book that is being released when it’s still 90 degrees outside so pretend I didn’t say that.

The good news is I didn’t guess any of the twists. Best news is houses (or churches) on the front are always a good thing. Ah come on! You knew I had to mention the cover : )

My 3.5 Stars is on the low end of my friends’ ratings so check this one out of you are in the mood for a domestic thriller. I just couldn’t get over the ending. It was like Feeney was simply done writing and left things in the most unfathomable way possible.

ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

So, here Kendall is on here outlier island again with Alice Feeney.

This author has HUGE hype with all of her thrillers. I am always hesitant to read hyped up authors and thrillers because I always tend to be disappointed.

This domestic thriller involves a married couple Mr. and Mrs. Wright.... Amelia and Adam win a weekend getaway in Scotland and they're hoping this will save their marriage.

It really started off slowly and wasn't invested too much. Then it picked up and felt it was more addicting. I pieced a lot of the story together myself and the twists/turns were not that exciting in my opinion. I also felt the ending didn't leave a satisfying conclusion. It just wasn't there for me unfortunately.

Her books are like popcorn... addicting and I will always read her books. I can't miss out!! haha FOMO.

Overall, 3.25/5 stars

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Macmillian for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: 9/7/21
Published to GR: 9/7/21

Adam and Amelia Wright have been married ten years .. but things have been a little rocky. Every anniversary the two exchange traditional gifts .. paper, leather, tin. Each year Amelia writes her husband a letter .. but she never gives them to him.

Recently Amelia won a weekend away to Scotland. Amelia has determined that this weekend will either bring them closer together .. or the marriage will dissolve. But Amelia did not randomly won this trip ... one of them is lying and someone wants the happily ever after .. destroyed for good.

Very well written, the story is told in part by the letters Amelia has written. Alternate chapters are voiced in turn by Amelia and then Adam. They both know this weekend .. this anniversary ... will make or break them. They each have secrets they've kept from each other and there are twists and turns that change first this way and then the other. The characters are solidly drawn and Adam, in particular, is unique in that he has been inflicted with face blindness. he can't recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. The suspense lasts throughout leading to an unexpected conclusion.

Many thanks to the author / Macmillan Publishers / Macmillan Reading Insiders Club / Netgalley for the digital copy of this domestic thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Twisty twisty twisty! Amelia's marriage to Adam is shakey- he's a workaholic screenwriter who is spending more time writing than with her- so a weekend away in Scotland with their dog Bob is hopefully going to pull them back together. Well, it does. The converted chapel where they're staying is creepy and bleak and it's snowing. Terrific atmospherics. This is told from both of their perspectives, as well as in a series of letters. It's so hard to review this without spoilers because you should be as surprised as I was about what was happening. Know that Adam's face blindness is key to a lot of what happens. This does goes over the top but I was all in by the time that happens and suspect you will be too. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. It's a page turner that kept me guessing.

"We’ve tried date nights, and marriage counseling, but spending more time together isn’t always the same as spending less time apart. You can’t get this close to a cliff edge without seeing the rocks at the bottom, and even if my husband doesn’t know the full story, he knows that this weekend is a last attempt to mend what got broken.
What he doesn’t know, is that if things don’t go according to plan, only one of us will be going home."

Nothing like having a positive attitude when you’re trying to salvage a troubled marriage.

I reached a significant benchmark in my marriage while reading this book, a twentieth (china) wedding anniversary. It was the second time, for me. (I am nothing if not tenacious.) So, I appreciate the marital issues that arise in this wonderful thriller. (Sorry, no thriller material in either of my marriages, well, none that I will admit to in court. And no, my wife and I have no weekends planned for some remote snowy locale.) Adam and Amelia are trying to save theirs. (marriage, not thriller). A winter weekend away to a remote part of Scotland. Do or die. He is a successful screenwriter. She works at the Battersea Dogs Home. (Does that make Adam a rescue?)

"We’re both pretty good at keeping up appearances and I find people see what they want to see. But behind closed doors, things have been wrong with Mr. and Mrs. Wright for a long time."

All right, this is getting way too close for comfort. (see first marriage, noted above) The mutual discomfort in their marriage is clear, to the reader, anyway, but there are mitigating circumstances.
Adam has a neurological glitch called prosopagnosia, which means he cannot see distinguishing features on faces, including his own.
Face blindness makes it tough to deal in a very social world, if one cannot differentiate friend from foe, or lover from casual acquaintance. But, as is the case for many people with unusual qualities, he has learned to compensate. The sound of a voice, a personal scent, individual physical movements. Enough so that he found someone willing, eager even, to marry him.

Adam’s great personal screenplay is Rock Paper Scissors. It won him early acclaim (at 21) but never got made, despite repeated attempts. Now, he adapts novels by other writers, and is good at it, makes a nice living. The Rock Paper Scissors motif repeats from time to time. The notion of the story is incorporated into the structure of the novel. The game is played, sometimes with very serious stakes.

Blackwater Chapel is remote, in the Scottish Highlands (zero bars), quite beautiful landscape thereabouts, on Blackwater Loch. It is indeed a renovated place of worship. The power is not the most reliable, particularly in dire weather. Amelia had won the weekend away in a contest at work. It may not be the best of all possible times for such a visit, an eight-hour drive from London, Amelia doing ALL the driving in her Morris Minor. A tin-can antique on four wheels, is what Adam calls it. While they are there, a huge winter storm seals them in. Travel would be far too risky in the old car. They are quite effectively isolated.

Isolated, yes, but, well, maybe not entirely alone. A supposed housekeeper leaves a few notes for them. Maybe she is the person living in the only other structure within miles, a thatched cottage. There is a flock of local sheep to offer some light scares and barriers. And, of course there is Bob, their giant black lab. (Asked in an interview which of her characters she would choose if she was about to be stranded on a deserted island, Feeney did not hesitate. Bob, she said. Maybe that is because Bob, the author’s creation, so much resembles her real-life black lab, down to their mutual fear of feathers.) But is that it? There have been rumors of odd doings at the chapel, with unseen things calling the name of the more corporeal sorts who show up on the premises. And doors have an odd way of becoming locked or unlocked. There is plenty more of this sort. Mysterious sounds. Evocative scratches on walls. It is definitely a spooky joint. Enjoy!

Feeney offers us plenty of atmospherics.

"Adam was right, there are no ghosts or gargoyles, but the place definitely feels spooky. Everything is made of ancient-looking stone—the walls, the ceiling, the floor—and it’s so cold down here that I can see my breath. I count three rusted metal rings embedded in the wall, and do my best not to think about what they were used for."

A basement crypt, reached via trapdoor, has been converted to a wine cellar. Is vino the only spirit down there?

"The light from the old-fashioned candlestick holder he is carrying casts ghostly shadows around the bedroom, so that now I feel like I’m in a Charles Dickens novel."

Much of the inspiration for the book derived from a visit Feeney made in 2018, to a creepy renovated chapel in Scotland, a visit that featured a “Beast from the East” snowstorm, and a mysterious face in a window. Some other personal items made it into the book. Feeney does her writing in a garden shed, a characteristic she bestowed on Adam. There was a discomfiting wardrobe in Feeney’s real-world chapel. She imagined secret stairs from there, which became the basement wine-cellar/crypt, accessible only via a trap door.

The book is told from alternating POVs, Adam’s and Amelia’s. It is from these that we know their marriage is in trouble. But wait, there’s more! A third character (fourth if you count Bob) is introduced about a quarter the way in, Robin, residing near the chapel. She is up to something. It seems that there is certainly madness there, but is there a method to match? Finally, there are wifely letters written on the annual wedding anniversary, but never given to Adam. These let us follow the history of his marriage through his wife’s eyes. They are introduced by a “word of the year” that sets the tone for the chapters to come. They also note the category of gift that is considered traditional for each year. (A partial list is in EXTRA STUFF) In each of these entries the gift, at least the sort of gift, is significant in the ensuing narrative.

There is a layer-by-layer unveiling of secrets, from both of them, which gives us a better look at who they truly are. (More of a He-Lied-She-Lied than the more traditional His-v-Hers perspectives.) Well, from all three, if we add Robin. Lots of excellent, very hairpin turn stuff. (Keep both hands on the wheel at all times) Maybe not as dangerous as riding the Do-Dodonpa, but wearing a neck-brace might not be a bad idea while reading towards the end. You may hear yourself utter more than a few “wait, what?s” There are some twists at the finale that seem inter-dimensional in their impact.

So, who is out to get whom? Is anyone, really? Are they both there to salvage their marriage or torpedo it? And what is making all the strangeness at the chapel happen? Is it really haunted? Will they both make it out alive? Will anyone? Will Adam’s screenplay ever get produced?

I do not really have any gripes with the book. It maybe asks us to suspend a bit too much disbelief, no biggie. But I take serious issue with the marketing, which I believe to be dishonest, or, at best, misleading. I will not say what it is about this that is not true, or is unfairly misleading, but after you read the book, I urge you to take a close look at this. You will see for yourself. Having an unreliable narrator is one thing, but this seems a step too far to me. The ff is from Macmillan’s page for the book.

"Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife.

Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts--paper, cotton, pottery, tin--and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

Ten years of marriage. Ten years of secrets. And an anniversary they will never forget."

Rock Paper Scissors is a delight of a read. Feeney does an excellent job of inserting hooks at chapter ends to make sure it is a challenge for you to either get up and do things that need doing, or turn off the light and go to sleep.

It seems like it would be a good idea to dress warmly when you read this. The cold of the Feeney’s fictional world might give you a chill. A hot toddy might be an appropriate accompanying refreshment, or maybe some Scotch whiskey. And make sure that neck brace is firmly in place when you are entering your final chunk of reading time. You will need it.

"The first match I strike goes out almost instantly—it’s an old box.
I use the second to try and get my bearings, but I still can’t see the steps, and I’m struggling to get enough air into my lungs.
The third match I strike briefly illuminates part of the wall, and I notice all the scratch marks on the surface. It looks like someone, or something, once tried to claw their way out of here.
I try to stay calm, remember to breathe, but then the flame burns the tips of my fingers and I drop the final match on the floor.
Everything is black.
And then I hear it again. My name being whispered. Right behind me.
Amelia. Amelia. Amelia.
My breaths are too shallow, but I can’t control them and I think I’m going to faint. No matter what direction I look in, all I can see is darkness. Then I hear the sound of scratching."

Review posted – September 3, 2021

Publication date – September 7, 2021


I received a free ARC of Rock Paper Scissors from Macmillan in an exchange for an honest review, and the keys to my country retreat for a few days.

This review has been cross-posted, with one image and a passel of links, on my website, Coot’s Reviews. (https://cootsreviews.com/2021/09/03/he-lied-she-lied/) and on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4187309640). Stop in and say Hi!

I really enjoyed this one! Alice Feeney has a way with words that keeps me hooked, and Rock Paper Scissors was no exception.

The book alternates POVs primarily between Adam, his wife Amelia, and letters that are written to Adam each year. We follow Adam and Amelia to Scotland for a weekend getaway that Amelia won, and when they arrive, they start to question whether or not there is more to the stay. In lieu of a fancy resort, they end up at what appears to be an abandoned chapel that has been converted into a home. As strange events start to happen, Adam and Amelia both wonder if they can trust each other. The atmosphere was creepy, and it made me think that this would be a perfect book to read around Halloween!

I really enjoyed the alternating perspectives in this book! I thought it worked really well to give us insight into their marriage, but also into their pasts and the bumps they've hit along the way. Little clues and hints are dropped throughout the novel that all lead to an explosive ending, and I couldn't wait to see how everything tied together! I was able to figure out one part of the story, but there were several others that I hadn't figured out before they were revealed, so I enjoyed that!

Overall, I rated this one 4 stars, largely because there was one plot-line that I didn't love, and I wished that there had been one more chapter, maybe set in the future that resolved everything that happened in the actual last chapter. Overall, those were fairly minor things, and I found myself glued to the pages. I could see this one working great as a mini-series, especially if it was released in the autumn.

⌛Amazing! Could not put it down!😳

Author Alice Feeney really had me fooled! This nail-biter just sucked me in and I thought I had a handle on where it was going until, wow, everything upended! I loved the shock factor and the manner in which Feeney takes her time to reveal the true underpinnings for the Wright's getaway to Scotland.

The tension in this thriller never slackens and the setting, in a snow-covered, remote part of the Scottish Highlands, made Adam and Amelia Wright's worsening circumstances all the more ominous. Add to that unexpected noises, locked and secret rooms, musty crypt and power outages and the stage was set for a decidedly creepy weekend.

This plot is full of twists and, I decided, inconsistencies, until I really thought about it and realized that my assumptions had tricked me as much as the characters in the story. Brilliant!

Thanks to Macmillan, Flatiron Books and NetGalley for sharing a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest opinion.

In Alice Feeney’s upcoming release Rock Paper Scissors, a couple named Adam and Amelia wins a weekend away to the Scottish Highlands in a raffle, where they hope to reconnect after some rough patches in their marriage. Adam is a workaholic screenwriter and suffers from face blindness, a rare condition that makes it impossible for him to recognize faces, even his own wife. When they arrive in the repurposed church they are staying in and weird things start to happen, the couple realizes one of them is lying and maybe the raffle win wasn’t so random after all.

So my synopsis couldn’t go into too much detail, because this book is best experienced with no prior knowledge of the plot. The book gets off to a slower start, with basic elements of a domestic thriller to set the scene. While I was engaged the entire time, if you are someone who needs intense action from the get-go, you might not be as interested initially. But I PROMISE the payoff is worth it! My pulse was racing and my jaw was on the floor from the 80% mark to the end. Alice Feeney is a brilliant storyteller and officially an auto-buy author for me!

Thank you so much to @macmillanusa and @flatiron_books for the eARC! Rock Paper Scissors will be published on September 7, 2021.

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney is a psychological thriller. The story in this one is told from different points of view during the story including that of the main couple and in between those chapters are old letters to Adam, the husband, written throughout the years from his wife telling her true feelings.

Adam and Amelia have found that their marriage is on shaky ground so when Amelia wins a trip for two she thinks it will be a perfect chance to work on her marriage. The couple find themselves in the middle of a storm on the way but they manage to safely arrive in Blackwater Loch in the Scottish Highlands at an old chapel.

After arriving at the chapel Adam and Amelia quickly see that this is not the romantic weekend that they expected it to be. With no one to great them they make their way inside of the doors finding it has been converted into a home but things get increasingly weirder when they find the bedroom looks exactly like their own and being cut off by the storm they decide to just spend one night and leave in the morning.

Rock Paper Scissors is one of those novels that it becomes immediately clear I wasn’t going to “like” the characters as they definitely fall into the unreliable category. However this would be one of those times it was perfectly fine to not like them as they weren’t unlikable to a point of not enjoying the book either. I quickly found myself pulled into the story with the eerie surroundings that almost had a horror type of feel and the mystery of the marriage couldn’t help but intrigue me as I waited for the story to unfold.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I loved this creepy thriller. Alice Feeney is a master storyteller. She knows just how to introduce characters in a way that you aren't quite sure what you are getting into. I loved how the characters were drawn out and developed. I loved the slow pace of the middle of the story to keep you turning the papers. A great read. Highly recommend it.

Thank you to Flatiron Books and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this great summer thriller by a killer author who knocked it out of the park.

If you’ve read any Feeney book, you know there’s a big twist at the end. So far, I’ve read all her novels. The way she writes, you kind of just ride the ride and not even try to guess what happens, especially with this one because the whole book I was like “what is happening?!” Rock Paper Scissors was definitely a slow burn, but there was definitive creepiness throughout the whole book down to the last page. Especially at the half way mark I needed to stop reading in the middle of the night because I got too scared. At first, all the characters were unlikeable until about 80% when most things are revealed you start to cheer on at least one of main characters. Can’t wait to see what others think of this novel, I know this one is the perfect Fall/winter spooky read!

Thank you to Macmillan Reading Insiders Club for letting me read this in exchange for my honest review.

Things have been wrong with Mr and Mrs Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter Adam Wright has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts – paper, cotton, pottery, tin – and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

I liked the idea for this book. The concept of face blindness is nothing I have previously read about before. I also liked the twist that the author presented and how the story was laid out.

Rock Paper Scissors is more than just a childhood game. Just ask Mr. and Mrs. Wright.

Amelia and her husband, Adam, travel from London to Scotland with their dog, Bob, during a snowstorm. Their destination? A converted and mostly isolated chapel. Amelia won the weekend trip from a work raffle, and she thinks it’s the perfect opportunity to try and fix their marriage.

Adam is a workaholic screenwriter. He also happens to have Prosopagnosia, aka facial blindness. Going on this trip is the last thing he wants to do, and he makes it very clear.

Things are off to a rocky start before they arrive at the chapel, and quickly go from bad to worse. The chapel is cold and damp. Then, the power goes out, strange noises are heard in the darkness of night, and it soon becomes clear that Amelia winning this trip wasn’t as random as it seemed.

Told from a few POVs, and from the letters that Adam’s wife writes to him every year for their anniversary - but doesn’t let him read, you will be immersed in this story as lies and secrets come to light. Just like in a game of Rock Paper Scissors, not everyone can be a winner.

This is an enthralling read that kept me on my toes with some amazing twists! I only guessed a couple minor ones, but was completely blown away by the main one. I don’t know how Alice Feeney always manages to surprise me so well, but she certainly has a knack for it. The book is oozing with atmosphere, particularly in the beginning. There’s a sense of unease and dread that doesn’t let up as the story progresses..and what a story it is!

This clever and compulsively readable novel is my favorite of the author’s, and I already can’t wait to see what she blows me away with next.

Thank you to Macmillan, who sent me a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected publication date: 9/7/21.

Review also posted at: https://bonkersforthebooks.wordpress.com

Games People Play.

I've never grasped the concept of Rock Paper Scissors, but luckily it wasn’t necessary to love this story.

The tension starts early as we explore the marriage of Amelia and Adam, both with secrets to spare.

Clues to the possible ruination of one or more of these folks are alluded to without being fully uncovered until the end. This gave me an increasing feeling of trepidation and doom - but for which character?

Annual letters written by Adam's wife detailing their marriage from inception plus present day narrations from three protagonists shape the plot. I would describe this as a closed room thriller with a slight para-normal vibe and ghostly overtone.

As much as I loved the atmosphere, I really appreciated the understated craftiness and clever use of the title beyond the obvious.

I enjoyed Rock Paper Scissors from beginning to end. A perfect twist caught me off guard and I have myself to blame since the hints were right there in the words in front of me. A special mention for the sublime ending which tickled my slightly wicked sense of humor.

I’ve now read three books by this author and Ms. Feeney has created an informal trademark for deliciously deceitful characters. From her first debut, one of my all time favorites, to this - her fourth - they were all the more fun because I have to admit, Sometimes I Lie too.

Thank you to Macmillan and Flatiron Books, the author, and Netgalley for my electronic review copy set to publish on September 7, 2021.

Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney

Adam and Amelia, a married couple whose marriage is on the rocks, travel to a converted chapel at Blackwater Loch in the Scottish Highlands. Amelia won a free stay there from a contest at work, they are heading into a snow storm, and they know nothing about the chapel or the area. What could go wrong in an Alice Feeney novel with this scenario?

Interspersed with chapters from Adam's perspective and Amelia's perspective are anniversary letters that Adam's wife writes to him. These letters are her true feelings about each past year of marriage, detailing how she really feels about their marriage and the way Adam treats her in comparison to how he seems to feel about anything related to his career as a screenwriter. She knows that his job comes first, it's everything to him, but she's still there, year after year.

Nothing is as it seems and with Adam and Amelia at such odds before they even get to the chapel, it doesn't help that so much doesn't seem to go right once they are there. Strange things start happening, the electricity goes off, there are weird sounds, a face in a window, the phones don't work, things are not right. Is it really one of them or is it someone or something else? I'd think I might have an inkling to what was going on but really I was mostly confused, suspicious, and was totally clueless to the main twist. The way the chapters were presented worked to keep me from figuring things out and I liked that about this story.

Thank you to Macmillan Publishers/Flatiron Books and NetGalley for this ARC.

Mr. Wright is a self confessed workaholic and screenwriter, who has lived with face blindness his entire life.
Success has been elusive despite the fact that he sold the rights to his first screenplay, Rock, Paper, Scissors at age 21-sadly it never made it out of the development stages.

Disappointment can take a toll on any marriage.

Mrs. Wright has been his biggest supporter. It’s clear from the letters she writes on each of their anniversaries (an idea she got from his screenplay) that they began their marriage very much in love. Each would try to outdo the other, by finding the most creative ways to exchange the traditional anniversary gifts-paper, cotton-pottery-tin etc.

When disagreements arose, or big decisions needed to made, they would play the childhood game of Rock, Paper, Scissors to decide the outcome-always knowing who would win.

So, what went wrong with Mr. and Mrs. Wright?

Now, Adam, Amelia and their Labrador Bob, are on their way to Scotland, for a weekend away to SAVE their marriage, despite a blinding snowstorm.

Each knows it could be their LAST.

Conveniently, Amelia won the trip through a raffle at her place of employment, the BatterSea animal rescue.
But, they didn’t randomly win this trip.

WHO lured WHO, to the secluded, converted Blackwater Chapel, and WHY?

I love this author’s prose…passages like “words don’t come with receipts-you cannot take them back” really resonate with me.

I couldn’t figure out if either Adam or Amelia were reliable and the very atmospheric Chapel with its SUPERNATURAL history, was seeping in atmosphere-CREAKY STEPS, LOCKED DOORS, NARROW STAIRCASES, COBWEBS, and WHISPERS which taunt you by saying your name THREE times…

The first TWIST was a good one-though I questioned if a certain character could so dramatically transform themself, more than once.

The final REVEAL, shown through the eyes of a minor character, was also a nice touch, which I enjoyed.

Who best played the game of ROCK PAPER SCISSORS?

There are some tense moments with Bob, but he isn’t harmed. However not ALL of the pets mentioned in this book were as LUCKY.

Overall-a CAPTIVATING read, making me already wonder how long I will have to wait for another book from this talented author!

Available September 7, 2021.

I received a free ARC of Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney from Macmillan in exchange for an honest review …

This is my third Alice Feeney book, and she continues to write books that surprise me! I’m reading along and I think I know what’s going on and can predict how things will turn out. Then, a fantastic twist comes along, and I have to question everything I just read!

This time we have a struggling married couple, Adam and Amelia, headed to a remote part of Scotland for a weekend away to try and save their marriage. Adam is a screenwriter, adapting other writer’s works for the big screen. He’s a workaholic and that doesn’t help his marriage, although he promised no work this weekend. Another interesting thing about Adam is that he has face blindness – prosopagnosia – and that makes some parts of life a struggle for him. Imagine passing your wife on the street and not recognizing her!

We are also treated to letters that Adam’s wife writes him every anniversary, but she doesn’t give them to him to read. These give us insight into what she’s really thinking!

They stay at perfectly remote and creepy old chapel with ghosts, a raging snowstorm, a stocked wine cellar, and plenty of lying to go around. Will they both survive the weekend?

I really enjoyed this one! A minor deduction for a few loose ends, but I have to round up for the way I was sucked in and totally hoodwinked! I also love the way she mixed in appropriate words of the year and the game rock, paper, scissors has a recurring place in the book. I need to go read the first book by this author.