There is a podcast, named in honour of Agatha Christie, and there is a young woman who is badly concussed during a mugging. How these things come together forms the basis of this novel. Isla is slowly recovering from her attack when things start to feel wrong to her, and she starts to suspect it may not have been a simple act of theft. House-bound with fear, she seeks the help of the producers of a local crime podcast. An entertaining read, where the reader really needs to power on to get to see whether Isla is right to be suspicious of those near to her.

Absolutely loved this thriller about a young-age couple trying to navigate a horrific incident. Great psychological thriller and some of the best narrators! Will want to read more by the author. Thanks for the review copy NetGalley!

I must have picked this up at least three times, got to the same point each time and stopped.
I. Just. Don't. Like. It.

I don't like the characters, I don't like what I've managed to read, so that's it...no more.

Isla sits at home all day, traumatised by a brutal mugging which occurred after leaving a works “do”. Boyfriend Zak moves in to look after her.

I can't get any further than this. I cannot stand either Isla or Zak; I don't like the construction of the book with the podcast thing. I've given it a fair chance – in fact three, or more, fair chances but that's it, it's been deleted off my Kindle.

Thanks for the free download Netgalley, but life's too short...

It took so long to finish this book as I couldn’t get into it. I have read a few books by this author and every one of them I enjoyed and didn’t disappoint me. But in my opinion this wasn’t to my taste which is a shame. I will continue to keep my eye out for more in the future, hopefully this was just a one off. Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

I love a good thriller and the was no different. Really appreciated the length of the chapters! Kudos!

Oh wow this book was a CHORE.
The pacing is so slow that if it was any slower it would go backwards.
The characters are lukewarm at best and the protagonist is moronic. I don't mind naive characters (ok, fine I do mind, but now as much), but I do mind stupid.
The true crime podcast parts were literally pointless and did nothing to the plot. They mostly annoyed me to no end.
The plot itself had such a promise but felt flat on every level. The ending was so obvious that it was a but sad and a bit laughable. Like, if you read at least one thriller in your life you'll know what happened after more or less 10% of the book. And this is the biggest failure of this book imo.

A most excellent read from start to finish.Would recommend this book and author to anyone who likes mystery crime thrillers.Had me guessing from start to finish.So pleased the ending was what I expected.Thank you.

The Couple on Maple Drive by Sam Carrington is a bit hard to sum up. I struggled a bit with the writing style for the first quarter of the book. I felt that Isla’s account of her attack and subsequent psychological struggle was a little lacking in depth. To be fair though the book did keep me guessing with some twists and turns until the last section. Without introducing any spoilers the plot felt like it stumbled a bit with the reveal of Isla’s attacker but the final section was certainly bloody and fast paced. Overall a very decent 3.5 star read

The synopsis of this book intrigued me from the start. I especially wanted to know what happened on their doorstep, and what did it have to do with Isla and her mugging?

However, the story, in my opinion, just never lived up to its potential.

To begin with, I couldn't connect to or sympathize with any of the characters. Even before the glaring truth came out, I hated Isla and Zach as a couple (and as people since we're being honest). They were constantly sniping at each other, constantly being rude and picking fights only to do a complete 180 a few seconds later and be back to getting along. It was tiring, and while I know Isla had been through something traumatic, that was no reason to take it out on Zach.

And then early on we are told who was behind the attacks. And then Isla decides she is an armchair detective who needs to know what happened that night (and really, I can't fault her for THAT). What I did have a problem with was the fact that one, when she began to suspect Zach might have had something to do with it she continued to let him live with her to "keep an eye on him". Even knowing what he might have done to her, what he might still be doing to her, and completely overlooking the fact that while she was keeping an eye on him, he could also be doing the same to her. I hate it when characters are too stupid to get out of their own way.

The second issue I had with this is that when Isla DOES start remembering bits and pieces of that night (and when she goes and speaks to people who give her other ideas on who might have been behind it), instead of going to the POLICE who are in charge of her case and giving them evidence, she instead chooses to go to the creators of the true-crime podcast that she has become obsessed with and ask them for help (although these people have no problem getting their hands on high-tech spying software apparently and no qualms about using it unlike the police).

Of course, the police also wouldn't have let her run off on her own, and if they had, wouldn't have left her after promising to be there for her for a bit of unexpected camera footage on another case that they could have sent any of the others to fetch, or again, called the police and explained what was going on, but anyway. All of that of course leads up to an ending that is meant to be shocking, but like the rest of the book just .... isn't. It's once again glaringly obvious to the reader who is behind what happens, but we are made to suffer, ahem, read, through several more pages and an epilogue just for an ending that is sadly as dull as the rest of the story turned out to be.

And while it seems like the door might be open for this author to explore more with this true-crime podcast team, I doubt I will read more. At least not anytime soon.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

Read in one sitting! The anxiety in this book was immense, you could feel it building from the beginning then exploding towards the end, the questions you wanted to ask some of the characters in this book filled your head and clouded your judgement. Until the shocking revelations lead you to take a moment to sit back and digest.

The characters in this book was incredibly well written even the ones you knew you should hate. They still had something about them that made you like them. Top marks!

I listened to the audio version of this book via Netgalley.

Unfortunately for me it was too predictable, very slow and the main character was difficult to like let alone care about

It also bugged me that despite growing up in Scotland and moving to Devon only 5 years ago the narrator gave the main character a thick Cornish accent but her mother had a Scottish accent.

This just didn't work for me and I was actually relieved to finish the book.

The Couple On Maple Drive is a book I persevered with, it took me a long time to read this as it didn’t shout “read me!”.
Isla is attacked on her way back home from her works promotion get together with other members of staff. She survives but is luck to do so but can remember nothing from the night after leaving the party early. With the help of a true crime podcast team she slowly pieces together what happened and realises she is in more danger than she first thought.
This book was very slow going, it didn’t pick up pace at all, I found Isla and her boyfriend, Zach, hard to gel with and although Isla was trying hard to move her memory forwards she just lacked a bit of oomph for me. The storyline was ok it just needed to get where it was going quicker. I have read other books by this author so hope that I enjoy the next like I have done the others.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

This is my first book by Sam Carrington and I found it enjoyable. It was an easy read and I found it predictable in parts although it was still a good domestic thriller and kept you guessing in parts to what happened.
Isla was attacked on a night out. Who did it?
I enjoyed the Christies true crime podcast throughout the book. I would recommend this to others and I'll be looking out for more by Sam Carrington in the future.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an Arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thanks NetGalley, Sam Carrington and the publisher for a copy to review.
A true crime blog tells us about the couple on Maple drive
Who was murdered and who did it?
Isla was attacked on her way home after a night out celebrating her promotion
She is house confined scared of everything and everyone even her boyfriend living with her.

The Couple on Maple Drive by Sam Carrington is the third book I have read by this author and it was another brilliant book.This new book was narrated several people and they worked really well together. The narrators are:: Georgia Maguire, John Hopkins, Elliot Fitzpatrick, Beth Chalmers, Russell Bentley. The Length:is 9 hrs and 20 mins.
Its full of twists and turns throughout that will have you gripped! I listened to this in 2 sittings

This book had me gripped from the very beginning till the end. I loved it. 5 star read and audio book from me!

I highly recommend this audio

Big Thank you to Harper Collins Audio UK, Avon and Netgalley for my advanced listening copy

My Third book by Sam and this one did not disappoint.
It started off a little slow but once I really got into it and the pace picked up, I found myself not wanting to put in down.
I liked the Podcast aspect thrown into the chapters made for interesting extra drama.
This book is the epitome of the quote "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer"!
Thank you to Netgalley. Avon books UK and the Author, Sam Carrington for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Let me begin by saying how much I enjoyed this book. I read it in the space of two days, I had to know the culprit.

Isla has been viciously attacked and mugged after a night out. She suffered a concussion and retrograde amnesia – she cannot remember the days leading to her attack and the night in question.

What she does know is that she can rely on Zach, her co-worker and boyfriend. They haven’t been going out for long, but because of what she endured, he gladly stepped in to look after her and make sure she was safe. However, she gets the odd feeling that Zach is watching her every move and scrutinising her recovery. Is he being controlling and overprotective, or is it just her imagination?

As Isla recovers at home, she watches every true crime documentary she can, and she discovers a local crime podcast Christie’s Crime Addicts. She decides to take matter in her own hands and approaches Jase from the podcast. He immediately becomes intrigued and promises to look into Isla’s case.

Soon, a spiral of shocking secrets is revealed and Isla’s life is at stake. It seems that her attacker is close and he is ready to deliver the final blow…

This is a great book, perfect for fans of psychological thrillers, mystery, and suspense. My favourite parts of the book were the excerpts from the Christie’s Crime Addicts podcast, I thought they were the ones that kept the story flowing and moving forward. In my opinion it was very cleverly done.

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but it won’t be my last!

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books UK for a copy of "The Couple On Maple Drive" in exchange for for my honest review.

Sam Carrington never disappoints! This book is another brilliant read from her. The story grabs you from page one and you just don't want to put it down because you need to know what will happen next.

Isla is mugged and refuses to leave the house, her boyfriend Zach moves in with her to keep her safe. When things continue to happen, they try to figure out who might be trying to hurt Isla and why. But Isla and Zach are also keeping secrets from each other. There are many great twists and turns that leave you thinking that you know what is going on only to turn the page and find that you were totally off.

This book's quiet beginning means that it's a little while before you realise that the story is full of danger and deceit. Isla's unreliability shows her vulnerability, and the reader empathises with her. Dual timeframes give the reader insights into the characters' past as Isla's memories gradually return.

The suspense is multilayered; Isla's internal battle with her anxiety, the domestic tension between Isla and Zach and the overall suspenseful nature of the plot as the story plays out. The ending is impactful and satisfying.

I received a copy of this book from Avon Books UK via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

A slow paced and somewhat disappointing read. I disliked the main character and the story did not grip me.