What a fun ride! This thriller starts with what feels like a predictable plot line and then the twists and turns really hit. I enjoyed the way this story was told, in a dual POV.
The story itself centers around a couple who are moving into a bigger place where they can start a family. When the man in this partnership, Jake, is unable to close a deal at work, the couple has to pinch pennies. They decide to take in a boarder, who can use one of the rooms for the short term. All seems legit until things get more and more unusual. The relationship between Jake and the boarder seems to be more involved than expected. Did they already know each other? Where they cheating with each other?
This is a terrific mixture of tropes and is a pure psychological thriller. Really fun and well done. I was hooked!
Highly recommend!
#Magpie #NetGalley #SimonandSchuster

This book started extremely strong in the first 2/3! I thought the writing was immersive and I really wanted to see what was going to happen. Once the climax was reached about 60% in I was confused on what could happen next but wanted to keep reading to find out. Unfortunately, I was pretty underwhelmed with the direction the book took in the last 1/3. I feel like this could have been much shorter as well as there was a lot of overly descriptive paragraphs. I'm giving this three stars because I really did like the beginning!

Magpies. Count them; salute them: One for sorrow; two for joy. 'Why are magpies considered to be evil? Superstitions. The bird is associated with the devil and its pied plumage associated with evil and bad fortune. Magpies are also known for stealing shiny objects (like jewelry) and can deceive others. Therefore, the attribution of being evil.'

Marisa has met Jake, the man she hopes will be the love of her life. He asks her to move in with him and talks about wanting a baby. They just need a bit more money so he suggests taking in a boarder, a woman named Kate. But is there more going on here than Marisa realizes?

At about 40%, the author hits the reader between the eyes with an amazing, totally unexpected twist. As you read further, you will begin to wonder who is the real magpie in their lives? Well done!

I received an arc of this thriller from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to them for the opportunity.

Thank you @simonandschuster @netgalley for the review copy!

📖Marisa and Jake have a perfect relationship. Currently trying to get pregnant, they decide to take in a lodger to help them out financially. When the lodger, Kate, starts displaying weird behavior, it leaves Marisa unsettled.

💭I was pleasantly surprised by this one! I started off not finding any of the characters likeable and didn’t know if this book was going to be for me. I was pleasantly surprised though. I liked the way the story was told, and once I got going, I didn’t want to stop. I wouldn’t call this one a thriller per se, more like a domestic suspense. If that’s your jam, I recommend picking this one up.

⚠️Content Warnings- infertility, miscarriage

Magpie
Elizabeth Day
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Out Now!

Thank you Simon & Shuster for the review copy of this book.
Magpie is a domestic thriller unlike any that I have read before. While this book lacks what one might consider to be “scares”, the tension in this novel is taut and electric, creating an overall mesmerizing (if somewhat exhausting) experience.

I don’t want to spoil this novel for anyone, and I feel like the nature of the plot is one that can be very easily spoiled if even discussed openly. That being said, I will say that this revolves around a couple and a roommate living together, and the unexpected twists of their home as the main character becomes pregnant and awaits the birth of their eagerly awaited child. The characters in this novel are complex, obsessive, flawed, and often heartbreaking. This thriller was hard to read not only because of the things the characters must go through (see content warnings below), but also because of what they want so desperately and can never seem to really secure.

Okay, things I didn’t like: I felt that some of the characters needed more closure. There was a lot of backstory that was revealed, and I felt that the way the story ended there were too many things left not dealt with. In addition to that, despite the fact that it did effectively keep me engaged, I felt that the last third of the book should have been trimmed down a bit, as the reader has already been through so much at that point, that I felt the slow burn should have been sped up just a tad. Those are pretty much all of my negatives though, I really found this book to be solid!

I have a lot of thoughts on this book, but many are spoiler-filled, so I will say this: please check out my content warnings, and if they are something that you can handle, consider checking out this thriller that was moving, engaging, and highly memorable.

CW: Drug use, alcoholism, mental illness, sexual assault, infertility, infidelity, abandonment of a child.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day was not my kind of book, although it was very well done. It was a story about a trio of people: a couple and a surrogate. it was a portrait of mental illness its finest. Although sometimes it was hard to tell who was mentally ill and who was not. And then there were Jake's (the father) parents, at least his mother, who was definitely in the running. I read to be entertained and to escape. This was neither. It was frightening and absurd. The world has lost its mind.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Magpie by Simon & Schuster, through Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #simonandschister #elizabethday #magpie

Magpie is a twisty tale with several surprises. It is about the hardships that many go thru to maintain relationships, it is about the hard struggle to be sane, it is about love and giving, and the intricacies of the mind. Magpie is a reflection of a relationship that goes awry. Seen from two different women's perspectives it comes together in the end. The characters are all different. They all want different things and their life goals are disconnected until a baby is on the way. Two women are competing for a life they both want. A husband is confused and a mother-in-law is out of control. It is a surprising tale of life set in London with real characters in a current time frame. I enjoyed the book, it had an uplifting but boring ending compared to the rest of the book. If you like mysteries and intrigue, twisty romances, and strong women you will enjoy this book. Thanks to #NetGalley#Magpie for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Magpie’s synopsis had me hooked and I could not WAIT to get into this multi-part psychological thriller. The story is told in third person and has dual timelines, focusing heavily on Marisa and Kate’s unique experiences throughout their surrogacy.

By the end of Part One, I hated all the main characters. Part Two started to throw me for a loop, and I really wasn’t sure where the story was going to go moving forward, especially in regards to Marisa and Jake’s marriage. The more information I was given, the more questions I had.

Unfortunately, I’d have to say this story really fell flat for me overall. I found myself really hoping the ending was going to throw in some major twist, and when it didn’t, I was left feeling completely underwhelmed. I read a lot of books in this genre, and probably won’t remember this one after a month or so.

Thank you to the author and Netgalley for providing me with a copy of Magpie to read and honestly review!

Magpie, was one of my most anticipated reads for this year.

Early on, I kept seeing Magpie, all over social media. I instantly gravitated toward the cover and needed to know what mystery the title held. Magpie? Are those not the creepy birds that surround death? Well, I had to do my research.

Magpie : bird; associated with the devil and its pied plumage associated with evil and bad fortune. Magpies are also known for stealing shiny objects and can deceive others, therefore, the attribution of being evil.

Creepy, right?

I thought so. So of course I was intrigued and needed to know everything about this book. All I can tell you is that it is absolutely amazing. Mind blowing. The list of praises can go on and on but I suggest you find out for yourself.

Elizabeth Day's narration of Magpie, was perfection. This story was expertly told and instantly draws you right in. The twist was one I never saw coming and left my jaw on the floor. I have been reading some incredible books this year but I can say without a doubt this book is definitely in my top 5.

I highly recommend this mind blowing 5 star read!

Magpie had me intrigued from the beginning. There is a twist that occurs a fourth of the way that was totally unexpected. From that point forward, the tension was high and a sense of unease was expertly woven throughout. The story is as much compelling and heart wrenching as it is entertaining. This is the first book I have read by Elizabeth Day, but definitely will not be my last. It is well paced and suspenseful ,making it an addictive read. Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for my copy.

Three Adults Plus a Baby Make Tense Roommates

Marisa seems to have everything: a handsome attentive husband, a lovely new home, and a career. One thing is missing – a baby. Marisa and Jake try hard undergoing multiple fertility treatments that puts a strain on their marriage and on their finances. To help with the expenses, they decide to get a roommate. At first Kate is perfect then things change. She becomes obsessed with Marisa, Jake and the baby. She seems to know too much about them and as Marisa’s pregnancy advances, violence is in the air.

This story is told in two parts. The first narrated by Marisa, the second by another character. If you think you know where the novel is going in the first half, you will be surprised by the second. I thought the author did a good job changing narrators and keeping the tension on in the story.

The story is heavy on the problems of infertility and the expense, emotional tension, and physical discomfort of infertility treatments. For me, it went way overboard. I didn’t need quite so many details and it was a difficult section to read.

The pace is good and the twist at the end can be quite a surprise. However, I found the ending a little to pat. It’s nice to have a happy ending, but the story led me to expect something sharper.

I received this book from Simon and Schuster for this review.

Magpie by Elizabeth Day was a captivating read that was full of surprises, twists, and turns. Marisa and Jake seem like the perfect couple, even though they have only been together for a short time. They want to have a baby, but when they face financing trouble, they take in a boarder to help. When Kate moves in and makes herself at home, even with Jake. What does this all mean? A story about marriage, fertility, secrets and mental illness, you will be captivated from start to finish.

Happy reading!

I truly enjoyed this. It had a few twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Well-written, atmospheric, and made me think about the story when I wasn't reading it. Well done.

3.5 stars. It's hard to provide a synopsis of this book without veering into spoiler territory, so I'll be brief: Magpie is the story of one couple's road to parenthood -- a road that is anything but smooth, with speed bumps and pot holes in the form of infertility, an odd lodger, and an over-involved mother-in-law.

Magpie is one of those books that relies heavily on a plot twist, and despite that fact that I should've seen it coming, the twist did take me by surprise. The first part of the book leading up to the twist is incredibly compelling; Elizabeth Day's writing has a hypnotic, unsettling quality that works so perfectly with the story she's telling. I couldn't turn the pages quickly enough. But after the twist was revealed, the book lost some momentum for me, with the pace slowing down to cover some already-explored territory from a different perspective. This trope, along with a few others that Day relies on a bit too heavily in the second half of the book, didn't really work for me.

After setting up a psychologically suspenseful story in the first part, the second part of the book becomes more of a meditative character study. But although that threw me off at first, there was still a lot about Magpie that I enjoyed. It's an intensely personal, devastating chronicle of infertility and examines the relationships between mothers and children from both a healthy and a destructive standpoint, conveyed in Day's effortless, luminous prose. I'm not sure she covered a lot of new ground with Magpie, but she definitely told this story in a way I didn't expect.

Content warnings: infertility, pregnancy loss, sexual assault.

This was a good twisty psychological thriller, not so far fetched and not super obvious. The writing was British but still accessible for an American reader, the pacing was just right and the switch in perspective was pulled off perfectly in my opinion. Best of all I was satisfied with the ending which isn't always the case in these type of books.

Where to start? Marisa is looking for love and stability which she did not have before. She falls in love with Jake very quickly and decide to move in together. Deciding to have a baby is not easy and there are infertility problems. To help pay for help, the couple takes in a boarder, Kate. You can imagine the problems that might cause. Then there is Jake’s mother. There was a twist at about the half-way mark. Then…the book moved slowly, I was not sure where it was going. I question the ending. My thanks to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an ARC of this book. The opinions in this review are my own.

This is exciting, twisty, high tension, character driven, claustrophobic, intense book I was drawn into at the first chapter and I couldn’t put it down!

Marisa decides to move with Jake and build a new life with him including having a baby even though she has known for a few months. But their financial struggle force them have a lodger Kate who doesn’t respect to personal bounds and privacy, having interest in Jake that puts poor Marisa into unputdownable position! Did they know each other? What Marisa keeps into herself that ruin everything she’s built?

This is a well written novel that wasn’t spoilt for me by guessing some of the twists. Lots of emotions and some great characters make this a very good read

Thank you to netgalley and publishers for gifting me an e-copy to enjoy and leave my honest feedback. Run, don't walk, to your nearest book store and pick this one up asap. you wont be sorry

Marisa and Jake are the perfect couple and with the income, they'll receive from their new lodger, Kate, they can even afford the baby they both desperately want. Something is off about Kate though. She just doesn't seem to understand personal boundaries, and Marisa becomes convinced that there is something going on between Kate and Jake.

Nothing is what it seems in this extremely tightly plotted extraordinarily exciting psychological thriller full of twists. In fact, the central premise of this story revolves around one particularly shocking twist. You can't believe anything you read in this story. Every time, you think you know what is really going on, something new is revealed.

What makes it even more horrifying is that the central plot doesn't revolve around some outlandish premise. At its center, it is a story about the quest for motherhood and the heartbreaking struggle with infertility that so many couples deal with. That only makes the story that much more relatable, that much more irresistible, and that much more unputdownable.

Magpie feels like a book that could've been an edge-of-your-seat thriller. It certainly captured my attention in the beginning. There are some pretty easy-to-figure-out hints dropped here and there, but the tension was good, and I wanted to see how it all played out. Then, things changed with what could've been a brilliant twist, but it's like something got lost along the way. It became more women's fiction and drama than thriller. At this point, the author does give us a poignant look at infertility, but the book lost that tension of a good thriller, which is what I was looking for. In the end, we get back to some tension in the story, but it was from another angle. By the time I turned the last page, I really wasn't sure what this one was supposed to be. It's almost like three stories in one, and combined, they lack what I was looking for based on the promise of "a taut, psychological suspense" we're told about in the blurb. Really, the thing that impressed me most was the author's gift with words. She writes an engaging tale and crafts characters that I wanted to know more about even as the storyline frustrated the daylights out of me. So, I would check out more of Elizabeth Day's work. I just don't think this was the book for me.

⚠️TW: Infertility, IVF, sexual assault, mental illness and toxic relationships⚠️
Magpie is a thriller where the storyline is definitely not what it seems from the blurb. A couple looking forward to a beautiful child in a new house and then their life is overtaken by a lodger sounds like a clichéd story, right? That's where the story takes a complete turn which will turn your head.
As a premise this novel works well. But Magpie is a very hard book to read. It should come with major trigger warnings. The subjects of infertility, mental illness, sexual assault and toxic relationships are present in this novel.
My personal opinion is that the author has handled these subjects as just a matter of fact. As a survivor of mental illness I am unhappy about it. It lacks empathy and compassion. I don't even want to go into the subject of a retired doctor taking care of a mentally ill patient. Overall, I was not a big fan of this book. 2.5 stars which I am rounding upto 3 stars for the storyline.