Dirty Laundry is one of those books where most of the characters are instantly dislikable, including the children. Set in a rural Irish village, it's a domestic noir centering around 3 young families. The women are all very toxic, particularly Ciara, who perfectly encapsulates the type of person on Instagram who pimps their kids out for cash. You KNOW the ones I am talking about. She's hateful 😂

She's the 'leader' of the Mum's group and she turns everyone against another Mum in the village. Fortunately though, she dies early on, and the rest of the book is a series of flashbacks while the reader tries to determine who bumped her off.

I absolutely loved it. Lots of laughs and a few twists and turns along the way. As mentioned, not many of the characters are likeable, but I did have a soft spot for Mishti and her daughter. Mishti is in an arranged marriage and her husband is not a nice man.

It's very 'Lianne Moriarty' so if you like her books you'll definitely like this one.

Congrats to Disha Bose on her highly entertaining debut, definitely an author to watch.

Thanks to @Netgalley and @VikingBooksUK for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you for my copy of this book to review.

I found this book quite a slow burner, but it was an easy read and I wouldn’t say I disliked it…I just wasn’t gripped by it.

I didn’t like Ciara at all, but I don’t think you were meant to.

I did like the build-up of each of the characters back story as it leads up to the murder so it definitely kept you guessing as to who did it…they all had their reasons for disliking Ciara so it could’ve been any one of them. And I always enjoy stories that flick between time-frames.

A very character driven story, I wouldn’t exactly call this a thriller/murder mystery but an entertaining, easy read.

Dirty Laundry is a domestic suspense set in a small village in Ireland where everybody knows everybody's business, at least they think they do. Everyone is keeping secrets, and while Ciara Dunphy's life looks perfect on her carefully curated Instagram, she has a lot of dirty laundry hiding off screen.

This was an easy to read domestic suspense full of unlikable characters that were interesting to read about, even if they had zero redeeming qualities. However, I felt like I was reading a different book to the one the synopsis promised. The murder is more of a side plot that's visited in a few chapters at the beginning and the end, the rest is just the lead up to the events and laying the ground work for the whodunnit. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing - just not the "chaos" mentioned in the synopsis intro.

While the writing was engaging and kept me turning the page, the characterisation and some of the character's thoughts were just very bizarre and I found myself rolling my eyes a lot, and praying for these women to develop an ounce of self respect.

The drama and fighting between the women quickly became very tedious and felt more like teenagers than grown women, even grown women that are terrible people. There also seemed to be no real reason behind it so it was hard to really care or take sides.

The killer was predictable and disappointing, and some of the characters' actions after the murder made little sense to me.

Overall, it was an easy read that will entertain you, but could do with some fleshing out of character's personalities and plot.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dirty Laundry follows three very different women and their partners in a small town near Cork.
Ciara likes to show her perfect house, children and life on Instagram, but is everything really as perfect as she is showing?
Her next door neighbour Lauren has 3 children with her partner, but she feels like an outcast in the town, especially living next to her perfect, popular neighbour.
Mishti is a friend to both, feeling stuck in an unhappy arranged marriage and feeling very out of place in Ireland.

When one of them ends up dead, we are taken back to before the event and follow a slow-burning tale of secrets, lies and more than their fair share of dirty laundry. A good domestic murder mystery.

3 mothers. 3 intertwined lives. Everyone harbours a secret.

This is a delicious little novel, though it seems like a murder mystery, I found myself completely forgetting we were trying to solve a murder and I instead got lost in the stories of these three women’s lives.

Ciara Dunphy seems to have the most perfect life and everyone loves her, apart from her next door neighbour who seems to see right through this shiny character she portrays online, unfortunately this means she (Lauren) falls out of favour with the rest of the women in the neighbourhood that absolutely revere Ciara.

Ciara takes Mishti, a newcomer to the neighbourhood, under her wing and strikes up a very intense friendship with her. Straight out of Calcutta, Mishti cannot believe the supermom wants to be her friend but what is that they say about shiny things? Don’t get too close lest you get blinded or at least that’s what Lauren tries to warn her about.

This book deals with a lot of different themes that lend to its plausibility which makes it highly enjoyable. My favourite character was Mishti, she really was thrown into the deep end with this group, I felt so sorry for her but overall the characters were written very well and the author managed to make you care about their stories even if the majority of them were unlikeable people.

I can’t wait to read more by this author in the future.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great domestic thriller which seemed very believable. Quite a few of the characters were really unlikeable but still very real. A good read!

If you’re looking for an easy beach read this summer, Dirty Laundry is worth adding to your list. Desperate Housewives, but make it Cork-based.

This is Irish-based Indian author Disha Bose’s debut novel and it’s an accomplished domestic thriller/drama. It features thoroughly dislikeable skincare influencer Ciara, earth mother Lauren, lonely Indian immigrant Mishti and their respective (useless) partners, all of whom become embroiled in airing their dirty laundry, culminating in Ciara’s murder (not a spoiler, it’s in the blurb).

Ciara might just be the most cartoonishly villainous character ever to feature in an Irish thriller but she does make you want to keep turning pages in a love-to-hate-her way. She’s the worst.

The book lacked a little bit of humour and nuance for me, and I felt Mishti’s backstory and marriage were by far the most interesting parts of the book - perhaps there’s a spin-off book there.

A minor quibble but the cover art is suggestive of something a bit more humorous or edgy or noir, when actually this is a pretty conventional domestic drama. Having said that, it’s a nicely written debut that you can tuck into and devour in an afternoon. 3/5 ⭐️

*Many thanks to the publisher @vikingbooksuk @penguinbooksireland for an advance ready copy via @netgalley. Dirty Laundry is published today. As always, this is an honest review.*

Three couples living in a neighbourhood, all very different, especially the three woman.
Clara is perfect, everything in her life appears perfect, she constantly posts pictures of her perfect life and her perfect children on Instagram, Clara feels her husband is uninterested in her.
Lauren is quiet, she isn’t married to her partner, but does have have 3 children with him, Lauren has always felt like an outsider and feels she is not good enough. Her partner has cheated on her over the years and Lauren is sure he is interested in their glamorous neighbour Clara.
Then there is Mishti who is Indian, her marriage was arranged, she feels like her husband treats her like a belonging rather than his wife, the only thing that keeps her going is her daughter. She also thinks her husband is interested in the glamorous neighbour, Ciara.
The story tells us about all three woman and their obsessions and insecurities and they definitely do have ‘Dirty Laundry’ I could have shook all three of them and their men! Couples behaving badly! An entertaining read with some twists as the book comes to a close.
Interesting that the book really started at the end. A great debut novel, well deserving of 4 stars.
Many thanks to Net Galley and Penguin General UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.

I find domestic noir books hit or miss with me. I'm more a thriller lover. But this story was well written and I enjoyed the dark humour throughout. I also liked the detailed relationships between the women.

Domestic noir has always been a bit hit and miss for me - mainly cos it is usually character driven so the characters have to be top notch. I am pleased to say that this one was a hit!
We follow three neighbours - Ciara Dunphy the Queen Bee, she has a skin care brand and is also the go-to for motherhood tips. But that is her public face, in private she is anything but confident...
Then we have Mishti Guha, arranged marriage wife of a Calcutta immigrant who really doesn't like Ireland, especially the cold and damp. And then there's Lauren, the outcast who basically shuns the rules and etiquette of the society and does her own thing. Mishti is caught up between the two... Ciara's supposed best friend but also wanting to be an ally to Lauren...
When Ciara is found dead, fingers start to point, her life as it really is and as portrayed is examined and as those around her are also brought into the mix, the Dirty Laundry of the title starts to be aired...
This is a bit of a slow burn. But the pace matches the story being told. Yes it is a murder mystery, as we do have a dead body and a bunch of suspects. But it is way more than that. As already mentioned it is very character driven and it is the characters that lead the story rather than the narrative - if you get what I mean!? It's obvious that the author is an avid people watcher, or has an interesting pool of friends and acquaintances to flesh them out. It was easy to connect to them all, and not all positively, and I am mostly talking about the men in this comment!
There are secrets and lies aplenty to be found herein, and more than a healthy slice of duplicitous behaviour. All of which left me flummoxed. We go back and forth in time and eventually learn the truth... Which I loved.
As always, if I like a book by an author new to me, I go check out their back catalogue and. blow me down, if this isn't a debut! Definitely didn't read like a first book. This author has definitely hit the ground running and I can't wait to see how they follow this one...
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Three couples who couldn’t be more different live in a village near Cork, Ireland. There’s Gerry and ‘flawless’ Ciara Dunphy, an Instagram sensation featuring skincare routines and children! Her daughter Bella is, shall we say, challenging, and Ciara is being pushed to her limits so much so that she’s itching to pick a fight today. Maybe she’ll pick one with Gerry, there might be some justification in that but her target is much more likely to be Lauren Doyle. Lauren has been sleep deprived for years and she has her own issues with partner Sean but she thinks she’s way luckier than Ciara though she’s aware things have to change. Finally, there’s Misthti and Parth Guha and theirs is an arranged marriage and it’s fair to say that Parth treats Mishti like a servant. She is from Kolkata and is perpetually cold in the changeable Irish climate. Ciara and Mishti have been good friends but things are a tad cooler lately. The unfolding shebang is certainly dramatic and centres around Ciara which is just the way she likes it!

Well, this lot need to get a boil wash on pronto as there’s plenty of dirty Irish linen on display for your delectation and delight! I love the way Disha Bose draws you into these peoples lives and makes it feel almost like viewing a fly in the wall television drama as we rarely know exactly what goes on behind closed doors. Desperate Housewives eat your heart out!! This is a fascinating insight into the dynamics of marriage and relationships, warts and all. You also are witness different styles of parenting or lack of. Despite the fact that’s there is friendship and marriage, there’s also loneliness in places you least expect it.

The characterisation is very good, Mishti is my favourite character as bless her, she’s so out of her depth. Ciara is an acquired taste at the very least. Most of the characters are unlikeable and all of the men are worth diddly squat having their own very dirty laundry. Wash it yourselves chaps. The storyline builds and the doo doo definitely hits the fan in a really entertaining ending.

Overall, this is an enjoyable and entertaining novel and it’s clear Disha Bose is talented. Can’t wait to read what
shenanigans she imagines next!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Penguin General UK for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

I'm not a fan of domestic thriller but I enjoyed this story as I loved the analysis of the relationship amongst three woman and the secrets that they hide.
Ciara is a bit over the top: a perfect image, a bully, a woman with a long list of people who want to kill her. Lauren is the wild child but also not a very likeable woman. Mishti is a victim or may be she isn't.
There's no relevant/decent male character and there's a lot of unhappiness.
The author delivers a good story and the dark humour makes it entertaining.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

Dirty Laundry is an intriguing domestic thriller (a genre I always enjoy) that delves into the intricacies of relationships, betrayal, and appearances.

The novel’s characters are skillfully crafted, each with their own flaws and vulnerabilities – but most of them are rather unlikeable! Ciara has very few redeeming qualities – she’s in an unhappy marriage but seems to go out of her way to be awful to her husband – whilst Lauren, who Ciara seems to bully, is seen as the outsider but doesn’t always endear herself to other people (but then again, should she have to?). Mishti is the only character I felt sorry for – I wanted her to behave differently but also understood why she didn’t. The women’s husbands – two in particular – seem to be at best useless and at worst, awful people. Yet despite many of these self-absorbed, selfish characters, the story still drew me in. I tend to enjoy books with unlikeable characters so this was no surprise, but I felt that the animosity and bad behaviour added to the tension.

At the start of the book, we find out that one of the characters has been murdered. We then switch backwards in time, in the lead-up to the murder, as we get to know them all better and start to see that various people might have reasons for wanting this particular person dead. But which one actually killed them?

The story is definitely not about the murder; it’s about the characters and their relationships, friendships and interactions with their community. It’s a fairly slow burner of a novel so don’t expect anything too action-packed, but I really enjoyed it.

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I loved it! And I think you will too - if you like books by Liane Moriarty and Marian Keyes. "Dirty Laundry" is a totally engrossing and believable multi-layered story of life, love and friendship - between women! I enjoyed reading about three lead female characters, which were well-thought through and multi-dimensional. I loved that there were no ultimately bad or good characters here - they were all "real people" - some flawed, some striving for perfection, some trapped in the circumstances.

I will certainly look out for more books by Disha Bose, she knows how to tell a gripping story!

Overall, the story is compelling and has you chomping at the bit for the next juicy installment. That said, in this modern day of female empowerment, I wish the characters had more layers and strength. Instead, they tended to rely on stereotypes which disappointed and frustrated me.

We have:
The villain, Ciara, with her perfect life and perfect social media presence, who treats her husband, her kids and anyone who opposes her with disdain and spite. (Nobody gets away with being this mean!)

Her neighbour, Vishti, the ultimate victim and lapdog, oppressed by her culture, her traditions and her badly arranged marriage. ( I cringed and prayed she would find her courage).

Her other neighbour and nemisis, Lauren, who is also a victim, a product of abuse and infidelity, who gets bopped on the head anytime she tries to make any kind of stand. ( I cringed and prayed she would find her courage).

When Ciara is found dead, the book delves deeper into the events that preceded and there are lots of potential suspects.

So, I'm in two minds about this book, because I actually enjoyed reading it. It had a great pace, with lots of twists and turns and interesting back story.

But on the other hand, I found it quite degrading to women with no characters that I could admire. The only character with any strength was downright mean and selfish, and died. And the other two characters were weak and unempowered and never grew beyond this.

This book has everything for a good read. It's well written with excellent characters. I thought it lost its way somewhat in the middle but was well worth continuing as it's a good ending.

This book didn’t initially grab my attention but it quickly turned into a brilliant read. Ciara is the queen bee in the village, with her Instagram followers and her seemingly perfect life. The relationships between Ciara, Lauren and Mishti are skillfully crafted and not just the playground bitchiness often used to portray such situations. Their partners play a lesser part but all characters are realistic. I found Mishti’s childhood in Calcutta particularly interesting. I really enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it.

I do love a domestic thriller and I really need to read more of them. I really enjoyed this one and it’s clear that the author is honing her craft, this is her debut after all. i liked that the plot was quite choppy in places as that’s kind of how real life is.

I ended up reading this in one sitting because I was glued to the pages and wanted to see how this was all going to play out.

Definitely pick this up if you like thrillers!

Thank you to Viking/Penguin UK for sending me a proof of this one.

This has an interesting cast of characters that carry the story along a nice pace and create depth to the story. Great plot and I found myself filling an afternoon reading this in one sitting as I found it so enjoyable. Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest , unbiased review. 4 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sadly, this book didn’t really deliver for me, which was disappointing, as I was very intrigued by the blurb and it did get off to quite a good start.

Where did it go wrong?

Without being disrespectful to the author — it is her debut after all — let me just say my main issue was with the characters, none of whom felt very convincing. Two of them — Ciara the bitchy, manipulative influencer, and Lauren, the bohemian earth-mother — seemed especially clichéd and had weirdly split personalities that were never fully explained.

I also felt that the plot was fragmented and directionless, and while some of the flashbacks to the women’s pasts were revealing, others had no bearing on the plot and served only to confuse and distract. Also, towards the end, there’s some really cringy stuff about one of the male characters that actually made me laugh it was so absurd and out of place.

The above notwithstanding, I do think that Bose has some raw talent that just needs time and practice to develop. My disappointment in this book will not stop me coming back to her at some point in the future.