Marriage, Motherhood, and Truth

He Said He Would Be Late is Justine Sullivan's debut psychological thriller that dives into the complexities of marriage and motherhood. The story revolves around Liz Bennet, who suspects her seemingly perfect husband, Arno, of infidelity. As Liz grapples with her suspicions, she navigates the tumultuous waters of new motherhood and the search for truth.

In conclusion, He Said He Would Be Late is a compelling debut that offers a deep dive into the psyche of a woman grappling with suspicions and the realities of new motherhood. Justine Sullivan's exploration of emotional depth and nuanced character portrayal makes it a worthwhile read, despite some predictable elements in the plot.

Ehh I hate writing not great reviews. It’s my least favorite thing but this book dragged for me. And I did not like the characters. I couldn’t wait to be done. I listened on 3x just to get through it.

Liz Bennet has the seemingly perfect life: a rich, handsome, charming husband; an adorable 13-month-old daughter, and a successful book. When she sees a text on her husband’s phone from a female coworker with a couple of kissy face emojis, though, she worries that her husband might be cheating on her. Rather than asking her husband about it outright, she decides to investigate herself, going to increasingly desperate lengths to find out the truth about Arno.

The plot for this story was very slow, mostly spending time in an unlikeable character’s head as she increasingly relies on alcohol and loses her grip on reality. There were a couple of twists in the plot that did not come as surprises. It would be better labeled under general fiction, as it wasn’t a thriller or suspense. In the end, this book just wasn’t for me.

Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an audio ARC of this book.

First of all the premise is every woman’s nightmare. I was so curious to find out what was going on in Liz and Arno’s relationship. I did have a bit of trouble with the unreliable narrator trope. Overall this was a suspenseful drama that I had to get to the bottom of.

This audiobook was a hard listen as the story progresses pretty slow. I won't spoil the end, but let's just say there aren't any good twists and it ends in a way that didn't make any sense.

The main character, Liz, is a young mother who becomes convinced that her husband is having an affair with one of his coworkers. Her paranoid suspicions lead her to do all kinds of irrational acts.
I found Liz to be super annoying and irritating. The only part of this book that I enjoyed was the last sentence, which gave me a good laugh. I was given an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
#netgalley
#hesaidhewouldbelate

This book is about finding yourself after having a child. It is hard readjusting, after devoting your every minute to a newborn. It is hard finding that balance between mom and self. The story is also about the family unit and trust. How many married women can say they totally trust their husbands to be devoted and never even think of straying? This is where the paranoia comes in. If she is having a struggle with her own self confidence, then why would she think that her husband would be totally devoted to her, especially when he works long hours? It is a good read, I recommend it.

4.75/5

I am a little shocked by the low average for He Said He Would Be Late by Justine Sullivan on Goodreads because I thought this was a deviously delicious read! There is a little bit of repetition, and if I never hear the words 'he said he would be late' ever again I would be fine with it, but that didn't really take away from my enjoyment. You are doing a deep dive into Liz as a character and not only getting to see her struggles with motherhood but also her eventual obsession with trying to figure out if her husband is cheating. It was wild to see the lengths she would go to, and it made for a very captivating read since I kept thinking that Liz's life as she knew it was about to blow up.

I'm still undecided about how I feel regarding the ending, and I will say that while it confirmed some suspicions I was having, it also left me a little unsatisfied. In reality, it was probably a brilliant way to end the story and is left a bit open to interpretation as well. I got to listen to the audiobook, and I thought Kelli Tager was an absolutely brilliant narrator. Even if you don't like the book, you can't dispute how great the audiobook is, and I loved how Tager brought Liz to life and made her feel like a real live person and someone who could be sitting right next to me. There is lots of drama and sneakery going on and a couple of times I thought it was downright suspenseful! This debut was a winner for me, and I can't wait to see what Sullivan will write next.

This book was incredibly repetitive and kind of frustrating. The entire book has you back and forth on it she's just overreacting hardcore or if he actually is the cheat that she believes him to be. The ending was a little surprising but wasn't hard to see coming.

A great thriller. Justine wrote some amazing characters. The audiobook brought it to life. I would definitely recommend this book to others.

Liz Bennet has a nice home. She is married to Arno, a quite successful businessman. They have a small daughter, Emma.

Liz has been experiencing some difficulties. She is a published author and her first novel was successful. However, since delivering the baby, she has suffered from writer's block and has been unable to finish her second one. Having her agent call her on her progress is not helping. The second issue she is dealing with is the lack of a bond she has with her daughter. Then, things get worse when one morning, her husband receives a text from a female worker. Liz becomes suspicious of Arno. Is he cheating? Are all those late nights not really work-related?

Liz spirals into a frenzy of stalking the woman's social media and her husband's other coworkers in the hope of finding clues.

I didn't mind following Liz's decompensation. She was a little nuts for sure. I also thought her postpartum depression had something to do with her paranoia. The narrator, Kelli Tager did a great job in making me feel sorry for Liz's predicament. I did love how lucky Liz got with her babysitter. She was awesome to Emma and Liz.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Macmillan Audio via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars

In the same vein as We Spread by Ian Reid, this book is a character driven thriller about postpartum depression. Although intensely psychological, it is slow moving and focuses on the downward spiral of mental illness.

Liz Bennet is a new mom. Since having her daughter Emma, she has had great difficulty embracing motherhood and bonding with Emma. She has lost her identity as a writer and she no longer feels attractive. Meanwhile her handsome and successful husband Arno spends most nights working late and focused on getting a promotion. This leaves little time for Liz and Arno as a couple. One day, Liz happens to see a text from one of Arno’s female colleagues that could be benign but could also indicate there’s something more going on between them than just work. The idea that Arno and Viv are having an affair slowly consumes Liz and her precarious mental health.

I will emphasize that readers looking for a twisty plot driven thriller should look elsewhere. He Said He Would Be Late isn’t that kind of thriller. It is a full on character study that examines the horrors of postpartum depression. Having experienced symptoms of PPD first hand, I could totally relate to Liz and had much empathy for her plight. As a reader, we are faced with the task of having to decide if Arno is really having an affair or if Liz’s paranoia is a symptom of PPD. I thought the author balanced both possibilities brilliantly, keeping the reader guessing. And that ending was the icing on the cake!

The audio performance was engaging with the narrator using a wide range of voices. It brought the story to life.

Thank you #NetGalley and @macmillanaudio for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a pleasant surprise. I expected a shallow thriller and instead got a thoughtful, engaging novel.
Very much enjoyed this book.

Where there’s smoke there’s fire, or is there? That is the driving question behind this drama. I definitely wouldn’t classify this as a thriller. The story centers around Liz. She is a new mom that is convinced her husband is being unfaithful. Is she paranoid or perceptive? Is she unhinged or intuitive? Although it lacked thrills, it kept me interested in Liz’s predicament. Saying she has issues is an understatement. The audiobook is entertaining with suspense sprinkled throughout. There were also bits of humor and I appreciated the pop culture references. The narrator brought the characters to life while adding a dose of realism. Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for my audiobook.

I really liked this one. And the twist at the very end got me. Which was nice because most of the time I can see it coming before the end of the book.
The things someone will go through to keep their happiness, sanity, and family together when their relationship is going wrong, is truly interesting.

Thank you to the publisher for this ALC. Truly thrilling with no idea of where this was going and being inside of Liz's mind through the audio was stunning.

I love a good domestic thriller, but this one was just okay for me. I wanted more.thrill and characters I didn’t hate.

I went into this one thinking it was going to be suspenseful, but it was more of a domestic drama of sorts? Did Arno cheat or did he not? Liz focuses on this basically the entire book based off of one text and maybe a few other little things throughout. The book is very heavy on the little aspects of her daily life. At times, that sort of dragged for me. I can’t decide how I feel about Liz. I didn’t really care for her, she clearly has an alcohol problem and she wasn’t a very good mother. She had narcissistic tendencies and was selfish in every relationship she was in except maybe the one with Arno. But you can’t help but feel sorry for her. And some of her inner dialogue was funny/entertaining. My main issue with the book was the ending. I wanted more, it sort of ended abruptly.

I consumed this book as an audio book and quite enjoyed the narration. It really added to the book for me, and I believe the narration actually made me like the book more than had I read it on my own.

Bottom Line: It is worth the read.

**I received a copy of He Said He Would Be Late from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

Thank you to the publisher for my copy and macmillan audio for my audio copy.

So I ended up listening to most of this and the narrator did a great job with this character. The character drove me insane for about the first 1/2 of the book. The main character was a big worrier, and the narrator did a great job of conveying her stresses and keeping me engaged in the story.

I ended up really enjoying this book around the middle mark. I absolutely loved the Las Vegas part. I don't get to read much about Vegas in books and the author did an awesome job of transporting me there and making me feel like I was there for the ride. I don't want to spoil anything, so it's kind of hard for me to put into words what I didn't like about the end. But there were some things towards the end that had me shaking my head and saying "Really?"

All and all I would definitely read more from this author in the future I thought she did a great job of conveying all the emotions the main character was going through in this one. And it was easy to listen to. I think I finished this in a day or two.

It took me a while to get through this one. I listened and kept going back and forth on it. This book wasn’t quite the mystery or thriller I was expecting. It kind of drug on a bit and was way longer than it needed to be.

The narrator however was great.

I will say the ending saves the book with a little bit of a twist. I was expecting something with more of a shock factor, but I guess it was decent being the only one in the book.