I have wanted to read a Shalini Boland book for a long while now and this was a perfect one to start with.

Beth and Niall decide they want a holiday with their two sons however because it was a spur of the moment decision all the hotels are booked up. So, Niall comes up with the bright idea of doing a house swap with another family and soon finds the most perfect place for the family to holiday in Italy. Amber and Renzo want to holiday in the UK so that their two children can learn a little more about their mother’s British roots. Both families are extremely happy with the arrangement to house swap for a fortnight but when sinister things start happening at the Italian villa and then Beth discovers an old photograph of her husband and Amber in a coat in Amber’s wardrobe, alarm bells start to ring. Beth can’t decide whether she should trust her gut or her husband!

This book drew me in right from the very start. It didn’t take me long to decide I really didn’t like Niall; he really was very unpleasant to Beth and frankly I don’t know how she was putting up with him. I would have kicked him to the kerb long ago. However, I always say for me to have such strong feelings over a character shows how good the author is at writing that character. I thought the descriptions of Italy were amazing and at times it really felt like I was there at the Italian villa with the Kildares but I also loved the cosy description of Beth and Niall’s cottage in Dorset. This book kept me guessing all the way through and the twist at the end was just excellent.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it to any fans who enjoy psychological thrillers. I’m so happy to know I have another 4 books by this author on my “to be read” list.

Thank you to Netgalley, Shalini Boland and Bookouture for my advanced reading copy. Out now.

Loved loved this book. This author is truly the very best raising the bar with every book. I couldn't put this one down. A wonderfully addictive read from one of the best authors out there.

Shalini Boland always writes good domestic thrillers. This one did not disappoint and I enjoyed the slow reveal of the truth. Would recommend.

This book has all the elements of a fantastic thriller, and I really enjoyed it for the most part. Such a great premise; English housewife does a holiday house swap with glamorous Italian family, but there’s way more to this than is first thought. Beth agrees to the swap, her husband Niall being the one to suggest it - their marriage is a bit stale, and she would love to take the 2 boys to the Italian sunshine & work on rekindling the spark between her and Niall. Many things lead to her suspicion of him, and quite frankly I couldn’t stand him and the way he behaves towards Beth. The family they swap with are a little less featured, being happy to settle into the quant English cottage and reconnect with Ambers English roots. The story does get a little cramped into the last third of the book, and is slow to get there, however it does have plenty drama and action when it all unfolds. A good book, not one I was glued to, but did enjoy overall. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review.

The Family Holiday by Shalini Boland is an excellent psychological thriller, with many twists and turns to keep the reader intrigued. The storyline is about two families who do a house swap which ends with the death of one of the husbands. Which one and why is just one of the many questions which the reader can only guess at.
An excellent storyline and interesting characters and plenty of secrets to keep the reader guessing.
Highly recommended.

This is the sort of book which I can't put down; the worrying thing is that it really could happen!
There are so many twists and turns in this book, that I couldn't work out the outcome - very clever.

Brilliant story based on a summer house swop. What becomes clear is that the intentions of the swop were not what they seemed to be. Gritty characters and some tense scenes. A great read

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I know I can always rely on Shalini Boland to write a heart pumping read and this was no exception. The Family Holiday had great characters, decent plot and plenty of suspense and made this a very enjoyable read.

Two families, one in England, the other in Italy, decide to swap houses for their family vacation, little realizing what they planned for their holiday would turn out in a very different way. Beth and Niall live in a modest cottage in the city in the U.K, while Amber and Renzo occupy a spacious and luxurious home in the Italian countryside. They find each other on the web through a Holiday Swap website.

During the holiday, suspense ramps up for Beth when suspicious strangers begin showing up at the Italian home, and when Amber in the U.K. cottage, begins to ask a lot of personal questions of the neighbors about the owners Beth and Niall. When Beth finds a picture of her husband in Amber's jacket pocket in Italy, she has questions about her husband and the holiday home swap that make this a more involved plot than it first seems.

Suspense and curiousity about what's really going on made me want to finish the book right away. Well written and plotted, with vivid characters, this thriller was also atmospheric in its descriptions of place and setting.

The Family Holiday is set around a house swap between a family in Devon and one in Italy; people in both families have hidden secrets about the other group unbeknown to the rest of their own family. It wasn't really the book for me I'm afraid, I didn't like any of the characters, particularly the British husband, and although I know you don't need to like the characters in some stories, this book didn't grab my attention enough to distract from the main characters. When the big reveal came, it wasn't so much of a surprise as it could have been, and the parts where the two houses were endlessly compared to one another could have been shortened without any effect on the storyline.

This is actually my first read by Shalini Boland and I really enjoyed the story and her writing style.

We meet two families, Beth who lives in the UK and Amber who is an ex-pat living in Italy. Beth's husband Niall suggests a much needed holiday - a house swap with Amber in Italy and Beth is taken aback as this is unlike her husband to suggest such a thing. Beth feels like her marriage is not what it used to be so feels that a holiday will do herself and Niall an excuse to get things back on track.

They go ahead with the house swap and obviously this is not just your everyday holiday, these two families are entwined from the past but Beth has literally no idea.

As far as characters go, Niall is a horrible man and I took an instinct dislike to him, the same with Amber. I do not want to give too much away of this story but it made for a really good read, and I read it in a few sittings as I really wanted to know what was going on in the back story.

This novel swaps chapters from Beth and Ambers' point of view and I really liked Beth as a character. At times she can be very niave and basically a bit of doormat for Beth but I did really feel for her as she has really lost herself thanks to her marriage. Amber is a hard, cold woman and not likeable.

A good summer read and the description of the surroundings really make me want to go to Italy as it sounds beautiful.

Thanks to NetGalley, Shalini Boland and the publishers for allowing me a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Shalini Borland is one of the most solid thriller writers out there, but this one didn’t wow me as much as some of her other books. It did have her signature twists and turns and characters you love to hate. Very enjoyable but didn’t stand out for me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for review.

I do love Shalini Borland’s books but I was a little disappointed with this one. It was pretty complicated and stretched the imagination beyond its limitations at times. Some of her books have been memorable but I’m afraid this wasn’t one of them. Numerous books centre on a quiet unassuming wife who goes along with whatever situation presents itself, content to being second in line to their husband and accepting whichever curious deeds he may get up to, sometimes beyond what is logical and real. For some reason quite a few of these scenarios take place on holiday.

Beth is a bored stay at home mum from England, but she has a picture perfect family and life Amber is living the dream wirg her Italian children and husband in a lovely mansion in Italy. So when Beth find Amber's house on holiday home swap she is surprised Amber would want to stay in he modest cottage. As the families holiday in each others homes, secrets and lies are reveal and one or more life is in danger tye question is whose being watched.


I love Bolands work and I enjoyed the family holiday. I suppose I'm not sure what I was expecting from this book as I'm naturally a very suspicious person I had come up with a list as long as my arm which would explain the twists, I think that's why I was a little let down by the twists. This is the first book by Boland I haven't finished in 48hours. I found this to be a slow burner and right when it got juicey it ended which I was gutted about (so thsts one consistent with Boland she always leaves me needing more!!).

The book is told from three POV Amber, Beth and a mystery person. Both if our female leads seemed to be just two average mothers wirh somewhat over bearing husbands but at completely different ends of the spectrum ones over bearing and the other is too nice. Either way they both have their issues and I did like reading their characters although I liked Beth's a little more than Amanda. Only thing is I think it would of been nice to hear a husbands pov occasionally throughout the story, a lot of assumptions had to be made when analysing their behaviour there where still a few unanswered questions though.
The end wss sooo good a few flaws in the logic but to me it elevated the entire book foe me personally.

There are some amazing descriptions of local attractions as well as just in general you can really tell when an author has first hand experience where they are describing as it reads so much better than someone whose writing about it from a second information

Would I recommend family holiday yes, if you are new to the genre otherwise you might find it a bit slow pace the writing itself is flawles. It's a great concept with twists and turns through great read 3*

Thanks to netgalley, Boland and the publishers for the family holiday in exchange for my fair and honest opinions.

My thoughts: This book was a slow burn up until about 2/3 through the book. It did have little sparks of “omg” moments thought throughout. The last third of the book was an absolute whirlwind! So much happened and I never would have guessed how it all played out, especially the epilogue!!

I love all of Shalini’s books and this one was no exception. I love the idea of a house swap and it reminded me of the movie The Holiday in that regard. I loved the characters and the story, pacing was great as well.

Thank you Netgalley & Bookouture for an eARC of The Family Holiday! I devoured this book and can't believe this is my first read my Shalini Boland. I absolutely will be reading more of her now that I've gotten a taste of her twisty writing and plot lines. I highly recommend going into this book blindly and NOT reading the synopsis. It gives away a lot of the plot and would certainly take away from the anticipation of what's going to happen next.

The holiday from hell is truly a nightmare for all - and this one gets much more twisted and darker than I had expected. I really enjoyed the multiple POVs between both wives in the holiday house-swap scenario. The atmospheric writing had me dreaming that I was in Italy sipping limoncello and eating a ton of gelato. Great job Shalini! 👏🏻

A holiday house swap seems an amazing idea. One family lives in an English country cottage and the other in a modern Italian villa. For both families the getaway seems to have come at just the right time, however from the outset things take a sinister turn.

Great writing and interesting characters with some plot twists that I wasn’t expecting. Told by the mothers of each family in the main we see the complex relationships between them as families and some surprising connections too.

Well thought out and at a great pace, the ending was unexpected and a great twist. Many thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to read and review this book in exchange for my opinions.

The Family Holiday by Shalini Boland was another excellent book. I was hooked within the first few pages till the end. Shalini is an excellent author and I just love all her books. This latest book is about a House swap for a holiday.

Now........Would you do a house swap? Stay in someone else's house? Sleep in their bed while they do the same?
Hmmmmmm........Depends where about on the world the house swap was......

So when Beth, a stay-at-home mum to Connor and Liam, and Niall her husband who is a historical fantasy fiction author, find a house swapping site and immediately jump at the opportunity. They decide to do a house swap that belongs to Amber, Lorenzo and their family who have a beautiful villa with pool, in Italy, sun and picturesque views. Just what the doctor ordered.
Beth’s and Niall's place is so different and is an eighteenth-century English cottage, there's no sun just the lovely British weather for their guests.

So, why did Amber, Lorenzo and their family choose this cottage. It could be all innocent Until Beth finds a photo of her Husband wearing a pale green shirt in one of the many wardrobes in the Italian villa.
Beth is puzzled, How does the Kildare's know her husband??? When Beth asks Niall he denies knowing the Kildares especially Amber.

Then someone ends up dead on the ground .OMG!!!!!!

This book was excellent with brilliant twists and turns throughout that will have you on the edge of your chair! or lack of sleep if you start to read it before you go to bed! like I did

I highly recommend this latest book. 5 Star book. So be-aware if you do a house swap with someone, it may seem a cheap holiday away But you never know what may happen whilst you are there!

Bog Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture for a ARC copy for an exchange of a review.

Shalini Boland always writes such juicy, exciting, unbelievable thrillers and this one is just like all her others!
When Niall suggests to wife Beth that they go on a home swap holiday she is really keen to go, having always been left behind on his trips! We are very soon aware of what an absolute douche her husband is - but we also know someone is out for some kind of revenge…..what for? Well you have to keep reading!
Totally impossible to put down, this was just the read I needed to cheer up a gloomy day!