"Just The Nicest Couple" by Mary Kubica is a thrilling and suspenseful novel that keeps you on the edge of your seat until the very end. The story is told from multiple perspectives, which allows the reader to see the events unfold through different eyes and adds to the overall tension.

The characters are well-developed and complex, each with their own secrets and motivations. The couple in question, Violet and Finn, seem like the perfect pair on the surface, but as the story progresses, their flaws and issues are revealed. The supporting characters are just as intriguing, with their own hidden agendas and ties to the main couple.

The pacing is steady and the plot twists are unexpected, keeping the reader engaged throughout the book. The author's writing style is fluid and descriptive, allowing the reader to fully immerse themselves in the story.

Overall, "Just The Nicest Couple" is a well-crafted and entertaining read, perfect for fans of psychological thrillers. While some of the twists may be predictable for seasoned thriller readers, the characters and their interactions make up for it, making this book a solid 4 star read.

A super fun read. Very engaging, looked forward to reading this each night. Will definitely recommend.

Christian and Lily are just the nicest couple. They are loyal to one another to a fault. Nina and Jake are a beautiful couple but are having major marital issues. We’ve all gone through rough times in our marriage but some are a bit rougher than others. An excellent story from beginning to end.

I was very unimpressed by this book, which was really disappointing because I LOVED Local Woman Missing.

Several things that disappointed me: 1) you basically knew what happened at the very beginning. While the rest of the book tries to convince you there may be more to the story, there really isn't. 2) which the small bit of "something more" is revealed, it's not exciting or suspenseful or anything. It's incredibly anti-climactic. Ultimately, I was rooting for no one by the end of this book. There's minimal action, minimal buildup, and no pay-off at the end. Very boring overall.

I have read a few titles by this author (The Other Mrs. is my favourite so far), but I'm kind of on the fence with her. I think for the most part I like her synopsis' more than the books themselves, and this one was no exception.

I didn't care for any of the characters - Nina was too entitled (what business would provide the information Nina was asking for?); Lily was presented as too fragile and beautiful; and Christian was too obsessed with his wife's fragility and beauty. I could see both the twists coming and, to me, that means they weren't too twisty, because I don't normally call these things correctly. I could have done without the Ryan storyline, which just muddied the waters unnecessarily.

This book a solid 3 from me, despite my misgivings.

This book was awful. Totally predictable and just out in out terrible. The characters were not likable at all. I don't recommend.

I always enjoy Kubica’s books and she is an auto read author for me. This one was not my favorite of hers though, it was a little too predictable and too slow paced for me. It is an entertaining read and I think several will like this one. I am looking forward to what she writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and Park Row Books for the digital galley to review.

🏠 Just the Nicest Couple - Mary Kubica

4 ⭐️ - your classic suspenseful “whodunit” story. I loved Local Woman Missing, so I was super excited to dive into this one. I have seen many mixed reviews for this one, but I thought it was good, quick, and twisty.

Jake Hayes is missing. His wife Nina thinks he left after a fight between the two of them and he’s just blowing off steam. But when does go by and no one hears from Jake, Nina starts to panic. Lily Scott is Nina’s friend and coworker and believe she could be the last person who saw Jake before he went missing. When a confession, a news story, and a cover up unfold, Nina will do anything to find out the truth about her missing husband.

Often times, suspenseful whodunit stories can be predictable BUT as I’ve mentioned plenty of times before, I love thrillers/mystery/suspense and I NEVER know what’s going to happen. I enjoyed this one through its changing POVs and different sides of the secrets. The ending felt satisfying and honestly, that’s all I can ask for. If you’re into whodunnit stories, this one’s for you! If you are new to the genre of suspense or mystery, definitely start here!

3.5 stars rounded up
This book started off strong for me, I was intrigued with both Lily and Nina's characters. I wish we could have gotten a few chapters with Lily's POV instead of them all being from Christian's POV. I was waiting for the shocking plot twist, but alas I was left with a very predictable ending. The story fell very flat towards the middle and the dialogue between the characters wasn't always the best. I was hoping there would be an ending that would help save the story but all in all it was a fairly enjoyable read.
A huge thanks to NetGalley, I received an ARC of this book from them in exchange for an honest review.

The four main characters are flat and uninteresting and make poor decisions. I could barely keep them straight in my head while reading. Even the greatest plot would have a hard time overcoming those obstacles.

Dud.

Two couples. Two close friends. One missing husband.
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Jake Hayes didn’t come home last night. His wife, Nina, attributes it to the fight they had the night before, but soon it’s obvious not only is Jake not coming home, he’s not going to his job as a neurosurgeon, nor has he spent any money from their accounts. Lily Scott, Nina’s teacher coworker, was the last to see Jake alive. She tells her husband, Christian, and two try to figure out a way to keep Lily out of the missing person investigation. But someone is lying and it’s only a matter of time before the truth comes out.
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Mary Kubica is an auto-read for me and I can always count on great suspense and page-turning mysteries! This was such a great thriller I had to know what happened so I devoured it in one day! Highly recommend all her books!

CW: miscarriages (recounted), blood, murder, violence, vomit, gun, theft, cancer

Another great thriller from Mary Kubica. Kubica followed her pattern of using multiple narrators throughout the text but this novel stayed in the same span of time instead of her normal pattern of one narrator in the present and one in the past.

The characters in this book were unlikeable, normally that isn't an issue with thrillers because there should always be an antagonist, but they were all bad. I like the way it picked up in the second half, and there was a good twist in the end, but for the most part the book was boring at times, and I didn't like the characters enough to constantly read it.

This was an interesting book and was one that I enjoyed. There were times it was a little more slow paced for me than I would have liked but overall I enjoyed it. I'm looking forward to more novels by this author as I've loved all her previous novels.

Kubica’s second novel was one I devoured in less than two days…however, it fell short. I was hoping for some more depth Amon the characters and their relationships and some of the plot points just didn’t quite make sense. This domestic thriller is a quick read that follows two couples with plenty to hide. And when one of the husband’s goes missing and the other wife might be the last one to see him, tensions run high.

Thank you so much @ParkRowBooks for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 10 January 2023)

SYNOPSIS | Lily is pregnant again after several miscarriages and her husband (Christian) is worried about her during this anxious time. One day he comes home to find Lily distant & fearful and learns that she thinks she might have been the last person to see Jake (her co-workers husband) who is now missing.

WHAT I LIKED:
- lots of red herrings that kept me guessing
- the blindside ending
- each of the characters are pretty untrustworthy

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- the short staccato abrupt sentences where lots of details felt repeated
- the plot unfolds extremely slowly & doesn't really get going until 50 pages from the end
- the main characters make a lot of stupid decisions that had me rolling my eyes & frustrated at times

3.5
This was such a fun thriller that kept me entertained! There aren't a lot of players in the book which helps keep it somewhat simple and easy to follow.

There are 2 couples that are addressed and we rotate between two POV of the man of one couple and the woman of the other. They each tell their story as time moves on and we hear their perspectives...skewed as they may be. Hearing the others perspectives helps keep the author on their toes to try to deem what is actually going on.

I loved that the premise was a missing husband (instead of the always, floofy missing wife that seems to happen in thrillers these days). We have a good idea of where he is and what happened but there are holes and inaccuracies. The book keeps you guessing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Park Row for the e-copy of this book.

#JustTheNicestCouple:

I’ll be honest, Mary. This just ain’t it.

Big fan of Kubica here, but this felt sloppy and not like the amazing seasoned thriller writer we all know and love. The stories were disjointed, it was choppy and then thrown together for a viola finish. It reminded me of spaghetti. Let’s throw all this stuff together and hope it’s still edible.

Nina is as boring as a dinner plate. I wanted substance. Lily was the worsssst but I’d love to hear her moan and groan that Nina. Everything could have been avoided if someone just STOPPED for 2.5 seconds and said, “let’s think this through” but no. It was a snowball of bad decisions.

Well, now I’m hungry for spaghetti. Thanks @mira here’s to hoping the next Kubica keeps my hunger at bay.

TW: Major TW on infertility, loss of baby.

Unfortunately, I decided to set this book down at about 50%. I am a huge fan of Mary Kubica, but thought the writing was too distracting in this case. Things were over-described when they didn't need to be, and the way they were described was just awkward. It made me think that the Kubica was just beefing up the word count to hit a quota. The story itself wasn't super thrilling. However, I will be first in line for her next novel. Thank you to Harlequin for a widget of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

JUST THE NICEST COUPLE is a fast-paced domestic thriller with twists, turns, and deceptions. Kubica continues to write wonderfully addictive reads that will have the reader second-guessing everyone’s motives.

Oh, how juicy this book was! It pushes the perceptions of how a person is seen. What is real? The carefully crafted image presented to the world sees or what lurks under the surface? Then, as each layer is pulled back to reveal the truth, the relationships of the characters begin to change. There is always a moment when reading Kubica's books when I wonder in anything presented at the start of the book is real. It is one of the best parts about reading one of her stories.

The author masterfully creates a tale of duplicity filled with tension. Even if you can see under the surface and read between the lines to figure out its conclusion, JUST THE NICEST COUPLE is a book that will take you on a ride well worth it.