The Ex-Husband is definitely a slow burn sort of story. The backstory was interesting but it wasn't until Charlotte started working on the private luxury ship that I found things picking up. While the ending seemed a little bit over the top, there were some twists that kept me intrigued along the way.

The main character, Charlotte, is a former con who now desires to be honest. However, she's constantly worried about her past catching up. I found her character quite selfish and lacking any true repentance for her past. Unfortunately, I neither loved nor hated her for that. She just kind of was. I wish I could have connected with her character deeper.

The setting was fun though! I'm always down for a thriller set aboard a form of luxury transportation!

Recommended for those who enjoy slow burn thrillers.

This was my first book to read by this author but I hope to read more soon! The characters and the story stay with you long after you finish it. Good, fast read. Highly recommend!!

Then: Charlotte and her husband Sam are con-artists, swindling unsuspecting travelers out of jewels, money, and other valuable items. They are both caught up in the thrill of the chase... until things went to far. Now: Charlotte is out and her estranged husband Sam is out there somewhere, maybe still a con-artist, maybe not. The lies and destruction may soon catch up with Charlotte as someone starts leaving her messages that have an ominous link to Sam.

This is one of those books that keeps you guessing. The people that Charlotte and Sam harmed in their past may have found her, or maybe it's Sam coming back for what he thinks he's owed. There are parts of Charlotte that I really liked and there are other parts that are extremely unlikeable. She kind of got in over her head at the expense of love... and doesn't that happen to all of us at some point?

I enjoyed the fast pace of this book and the duel timelines (then and now). It was an entertaining read with a few twists that made it fun.

Where is Sam? He was always there with Charlotte making some deal or conning someone, but now he is missing.

Charlotte met Sam on a cruise, he proposed on an airplane, and he taught her the tricks of his trade….conning rich folks on cruises to give money to a cause or to steal their jewels.

We move from THEN and NOW.

THEN was when Charlotte and Sam were on cruises and NOW is when we see Charlotte on her own but receiving threats and having the police ask her if she knows Sam is missing, and if she knows where he is.

When Charlotte gets anonymous e-mails demanding money and warnings about complying with what the anonymous person asks, she starts to get nervous.

She again is left cleaning up the mess Sam made and now with people seeking revenge. Where can he be?

She then gets a job on a cruise line, but someone knows about her past.

Who could it be?

Who is threatening her to pay a million pounds?

Who thinks she has that kind of money?

Is Sam alive and behind it?

Charlotte gets worried when a bracelet Sam took from her appears on her pillow with a note that time is ticking for her to come up with the million pounds.

THE EX-HUSBAND takes us on cruise ships and has an undertone of menace as we wonder how Charlotte and Sam got away with what they did and how we follow Charlotte and her fears about what is going on.

If you enjoy Karen Hamilton’s books and her always-great endings, you won’t want to miss her newest. 4/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book. I enjoyed The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton and had hoped for a thrilling story. However it didn’t really captivate me and I was a bit disappointed by the plot.

The Ex-Husband follows Charlotte, a luxury events planner who finds herself stuck in a yacht with a blackmailer threatening to kill her if she doesn’t return funds she had stolen. Charlotte and her ex- husband Sam were con artists who deceived travellers when they worked on cruises. But then they had a falling out after one of their schemes and ended up divorcing. Charlotte tried to start a new life and make money the decent way. But recently, Sam has been reaching out to warn her of danger. Now Charlotte finds herself getting ominous notes, which continues after she accepts a job planning an event for a yacht set to sail to Barbados. Will Charlotte escape or will her past catch up to her?

The premise of this novel sounds fun and promises a lot of thrills. But sadly, it didn’t deliver. I didn’t really get to know the party guests so I couldn’t really suspect anyone. I also found the recollections of Sam and Charlotte’s scams uninteresting. I found it hard to believe that many affluent people would fall for those stories.

Although the thrill was lacking, I did find this read suspenseful and wanted to finish just to find out who did it. When I learned who the perpetrator was, it only surprised me a little bit.

Ultimately, this was a flat read. But I do like the author who has a background in travel and hope to read her future books.

Another Karen Hamilton page turner,I picked the ex-husband up and couldn’t put it down.The cruise ship setting the characters enjoyed from first page to last.#netgalley #harlequin

Ohhh my!!! Karen Hamilton is a master at writing heart-pounding thrillers that entertain from start to finish! I love when a suspense novels have my mind doing backflips and this novel delivered! Throughout the book, I mentally created several conspiracy theories that I knew were correct …but they weren’t lol! This 5 star read will keep you guessing until the very end and I AM HERE FOR IT! The Ex-Husband is the third novel I’ve read from Karen Hamilton and she has officially become an automatic read me for me, I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next!

Everyone has a past and things they are not so proud of. Charlotte, is one of those people. The good thing is that Charlotte has changed her life around.

Somehow, your past always comes back to haunt you. Sam was once a sweeter talker, charming, and had Charlotte hanging on his every word. Charlotte married Sam but then things went a little too far.

Sam was a con man, used to getting what he wanted and playing people. Sam has disappeared but not before leaving a message saying someone was threatening him. The same person who has also been threatening Charlotte.

Trying to put the past in the past Charlotte takes a job as an assistant aboard a luxury yacht but things start to go awfully wrong. Someone is out to get Charlotte and will not stop until they seek revenge.

This is an incredible cat and mouse story that will have your anxiety going. I loved it from the minute I started and I look forward to what Karen Hamilton puts out next, she made me an instant fan.

The book started out great- the wife is getting off of a cruise ship, and she has hidden contraband in her suitcase, and she is about the get searched and her husband set her up. (this is not a spoiler since this happens in the first few pages). I was dying to know what happened, where is the husband, what is going on...

Then as I read further I realized the main character was trying to go straight but the past keeps coming back and she can't escape into her new life. Sounds great, right?

Well, it was good, but not great. Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind, maybe I had higher expectations, but I needed more. I wanted a connection to the main character. I wanted to be sucked in, but at one point I found myself kind of skimming.

There were lot of red herrings, and I thought the cons they pulled were really interesting. If you are looking for a good, fun book, try this. If you are looking for a book that will grab you and not let go, this isn't it.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and #netgalley for the ARC which did not impact my review,

This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review…it is he story of a dysfunctional couple…much intrigue…cruise ships…the wealthy and not so wealthy…the story moves somewhat slowly with many red herrings. However, the author is creative with the characters…they come alive on the pages…I do maintain that a book written on real-time is so much easier and more pleasant to read and enjoy…the then and now can be confusing and sometimes just aggravating…that being said, the book is a fun read…

This was entertaining, loved the writing and the heroine. If You've read one of her previous books you'll know what to expect with her MCs in here the heroine was kind of pathetic and that Made You root for her. This was a type of Agatha Christie plot that Made You suspect everyone. I liked the author portrayal of the life of the people working on a Cruise, that was interesting. I liked the ending and how everything wrapped up

Charlotte married the wrong guy, but when she got caught up in his nefarious schemes, she decided to leave and start over. Now, Sam is missing and Charlotte knows that he was being threatened by someone, as was she. But her old life is behind her and now she’s accepted a job on a cruise ship. As the ship sales in to the Bahamas, things should be looking up for our heroine, but it seems there’s someone on board who knows about Charlotte’s past. someone who intends to make sure she pays before the ship docks. A side of paradise accompanied by murder, a potent cocktail for mystery lovers