Thank you NetGalley for the kindle copy in exchange for a honest review. Luke Miller is surprised when his wife Rose collects him from work saying she has booked them a belated honeymoon. As their romantic break in the Caribbean comes to a close Rose confesses she killed her ex when he broke into their apartment and left him there. Luke contacts old friend Mickey Sheils to remove the body and clean their apartment. When she gets there the body has disappeared. A outstanding thriller that had me gripped.

Another fabulous head-spinner from Jo Spain.

Luke and Rose are besotted with one another, the moment they met they fell for each other - and 6 months later, they are on their idyllic Caribbean honeymoon.
The day they are due to come back to London, Rose confesses the most awful secret- that she has left her abusive ex-partner for dead in their apartment. Luke pledges to stand by Rose, and turns to Mickey, an old contact back in London who may be able to help them. But as Mickey agrees to help Luke out, there's even more to the story than meets the eye.
The story flits between the early days of Rose and Luke's relationship, and the present day, with twists and turns coming thick and fast.
The plot left my head spinning trying to catch up with who-what-where-how-when-why again and again

Jo Spain knows how to tease you with such a great story. It was such a good story and I had read a couple of the authors other books but this is definitely the best so far!

I really enjoyed this story and it was one that had me hooked.

I have read a couple of books by this author before and really enjoyed her writing style so I was delighted to get my hands on this book, her latest release.

I thought that book started really well and from the blurb there was a lot of promise and I was really intrigued. I have read some of the other reviews for the book and I do agree that the pace did drop about a quarter of the way in, but it was still one that kept my attention and it did pick up towards the end as well.

I loved that the story had a mix of lies, deceit, murder and more and there was plenty of content. I read the book in a day, starting it just after breakfast and finishing it at bedtime.

It is 4 stars from me for this one, highly recommended!

I really enjoyed reading this book there are plenty of twists and turns throughout. Full of suspense and an unexpected ending. The characters were great, the story was enjoyable and the style of writing was perfect. This is the first book that I have read by this author, I’ll be keeping my eye out for more in the future.
I would recommend this to anyone who likes reading psychological thrillers.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

Don’t Look Back by Jo Spain

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to @netgalley and @quercusbooks for my ARC of this in exchange for an honest review.

A surprise late honeymoon for Rose and her husband Luke turns quickly from a dream holiday to a nightmare with a shocking confession that will change everything.

Thriller with many twists and turns. I didn’t warm to Rose at all but overall enjoyed the character development. I loved the work done helping people who have suffered with domestic violence which Mickey and Elliot take part in, and would love a follow on book to explore this more.

It’s not the most realistic thriller but a great book to get lost in nevertheless.

Another great thrilling read by Jo Spain. Publication date 11/05/2023.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC.
This is my first title by this author and will read more in the future.
Will recommend this to anyone looking for a thriller.
I requested this book as i was drawn in by the cover and thought it looked interesting.
This book is full of twists and turns that you don't see coming.
This book had a very interesting plot which i enjoyed.
Thanks again for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
5/5 stars

Luke Miller’s life is seemingly perfect, he’s just got married to his wife Rose, and she has surprised him with a last minute honeymoon in the Caribbean. All isn’t what it seems, as on their last day, Rose reveals a violent ex from her past had caught up with her in London, breaking in to their apartment and in a state of panic, she killed him. With a dead body left laying, he turns to Mickey Sheils, a woman from his past who now makes a living from helping battered women disappear from their partners. Having not heard from Luke in years, she is shocked to revive the call, but agrees to help. But there’s more to this than meets the eye, it’s a far bigger problem than any of them could have imagined.

This was the first book I had read by this author and it didn’t disappoint! I really enjoyed the fast paced storyline, the mystery and the twists in the tale. Mickey and Luke are both very complex characters but also very similar in their own ways. This made for an interesting read! I loved it, and will definitely be reading this author again!

Thank you for letting me read it!

Your dream island. The love of your life. A secret that changes everything . . .

This is my second Jo Spain and she is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. This twisty, clever thriller takes us from the UK to Saint Thérèse in the Caribbean. Rose and Luke are on their belated honeymoon - sounds like bliss right?

As they’re getting ready to leave, Rose drops a bombshell to Luke - she’s left a dead body in their apartment 😳

While Rose and Luke are the main protagonists there’s an array of interesting characters that made the narrative all the richer. Mickey, who thought she’d not hear from Luke ever again, decides to help after he reaches out to her. She was such an adorable and fierce character, someone I’d like to have on my side. Her relationship with Elliott was gorgeous too - I’d love to read more on these two!

Overall a fast paced, suspenseful story, with lots of action. I was on the edge my seat!
Highly recommended 4.5 stars

Many thanks @netgalley @quercusbooks for a complimentary reading copy.

Another great read from Jo Spain. Luke and Rose are just finishing a fabulous Caribbean holiday when Rose says that she cannot go home as before they left she killed a man. She swears that it was in self defense but will not go back to face it. Luke has to get in touch with an old friend Mickey Sheils to help them.
Yet again Jo Spain keeps you entertained with plenty of twists and turns. I flew through it! I am already looking forward to the next one from her.
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for granting me an advance copy.

#DontLookBack #NetGalley
Awesome.
Luke Miller's life is perfect. Surprised with a belated honeymoon by his wife, Rose, he's had seven days with her in a Caribbean paradise. It's more than he ever thought he'd deserve. But as they pack their bags, Rose breaks down, confessing that on the day they left London, a violent man from her past tracked her down and broke into their home. He wasn't expecting her to fight back. And, in her terror, Rose killed him. Now there's a dead body in Luke's apartment, and only one person he can think to turn to. Mickey Sheils never expected to hear from Luke again, not after he disappeared the first time. Luke knows Mickey can't deny a woman who needs help, so she promises she'll deal with things - she'll make sure Rose doesn't have to keep running.
Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books for giving me an advance copy.

Don't Look Back was an truly excellent read - as always from the author.
I was completely sucked into the storyline Rose spun. And was stunned as the tale unwound to reveal her and Kevin's true identity. The nervous tension when the story came to a head in wild Donegal was fabulous 👌
Look forward to many more books fro this author

“The day we left. Before I collected you from work. I killed somebody… There’s a dead body in our apartment.”

Don’t Look Back is the sixth stand-alone novel by Irish author, Jo Spain. Towards the end of a surprise week on a Caribbean Island with his wife of just three months, Luke Miller discovers the reason for her reluctance to return to London. What do you do when your wife has accidentally killed a man and his body is lying in your apartment in a different country?

Luke loves Rose Gillespie and will do anything to keep her safe. Truly, anything at all. If that means abandoning his life and going into hiding with Rose, that’s what he will do. So he contacts the one person he knows he can trust, Mickey Shiels. Their history means that she has every right to refuse to help. But Rose was once an abused wife, and that’s Mickey’s speciality.

Much more can’t be revealed without spoilers. Suffice it to say that each time the reader feels they have a handle on things, Spain throws in another wrinkle, another twist, another surprise that will keep the reader fully engaged all the way to the last page.

The narratives from multiple perspectives fill in the events that lead to this intriguing situation, and its aftermath. Spain’s characters are interesting and mostly appealing for all their very human flaws. Their dialogue and actions are credible, not requiring much suspension of disbelief. It doesn’t hurt that parts of this tightly plotted tale are blackly funny. Set aside a day: once you start this, you won’t want to put it down. Gripping crime fiction.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Quercus.

1.5 stars rounded down

I ended up profoundly disappointed by this book. I enjoyed the first half well enough and read it fairly quickly. But around the 45-50% mark, my enjoyment and my reading motivation went way down. There was even a point where I no joke forgot that I hadn't finished it yet. (It was at the approximately 75% mark, where I should have been so fully into it that I couldn't wait to finish it.)

I loved Mickey and Elliot and their dedication to helping abused women. They were the only real saving grace of the book for me.

I just couldn't connect to Rose or Luke at all - I just didn't care, and even though I only just finished the book, I couldn't tell you much about their personalities. I know what happened to them and why, but who they are? Not a clue.

In the first half, there was a bit of a mystery of what happened back in London, Rose's background, and what they'd do about the new drama. In the second, it turned into more of a money-motivated conspiracy theory with unnecessary crime family links.

I also didn't like the flashbacks to the beginning of Rose and Luke's relationship. It just reduced the tension that I was supposed to be feeling during the present dramas.

There was also no way to predict the ending. I love books where I can look back after the reveals and go "Oh, I can't believe I missed that". That was not the case with this one. I just didn't like this one in the slightest.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advance copy of the ebook. I'm sorry I didn't like it as much as I wanted to.

Don't Look Back is perfect summer read , containing Jo Spain's characteristic empathy, cracking pace and clever twists.

Don't Look Back by Jo Spain kept me guessing right up to the end.

Recently married, Rose and Luke Miller enjoy a blissful holiday on a Caribbean island but when it is time to go home, Rose tells Luke that she cannot go home as she was attacked in the apartment before they left and there has been a dead body there since.

Luke takes control of the situation both at home with his good friend Mickey and on the island where they extend their stay.

As the story progresses we learn more about each of the characters until we get the full picture of what really happened.

Jo Spain very skillfully discloses the story piece by piece to leave you wondering what is going to happen.

My Review
If you are looking for an exciting, tense and nerve racking read,
then I think many readers won’t go past Irish author Jo Spain.
She writes with huge confidence in her storyline and her
characters. I find I take to most of her characters too. We meet
Luke Miller and his wife Rose in this story. A young couple who
haven’t been together for very long.
I enjoyed how this story was told through a dual timeline. The
couple now and the couple when they first meet and how their
relationship develops along the way. I loved the insight it gives
the reader into their relationship and the type of people they
are.
Rose is quite a nervous character and we see early on the
reasons for this. Luke wants to protect her and I admired him
greatly for this.
Enjoyable too are the settings for the story between Ireland
and the Caribbean.
Ex girlfriend of Luke’s Mickey you will love. A straight-talking
young woman who just wants to help abused women leave
their partners or husbands.
She still holds a torch for Luke it would seem and it was almost nice.
What I enjoyed most I think was the web of deceit, the lies and the who done it author Jo Spain hatched
throughout. It kept me on my toes whilst reading.
A very enjoyable read.

This book was a really tense thriller. It has great characters, most not likeable, and has and interesting plot. Lots of twists and turns to the story which kept me on my toes!

Your dream island. The love of your life. A secret that changes everything .

Husband and wife Luke and Rose are on a spontaneous holiday in a beautiful villa on the Caribbean island. It should be an amazing holiday for the couple but before they fly back home to London Rose drops a massive bomb shell. Rose has killed someone and left the body in the apartment and fled the country. Her ex-boyfriend found her and a fight occurred. From here we get introduced to Mickey – she was a laywer and now helps women who have been abused to start a new life away from it all. Luke calls her to help with the body but when Mickey turns up at the apartment something is extremely wrong.

If you are looking for a book with non stop action, plenty of twists and turns don't go past Don't Look Back by Jo Spain. This book is out now. I really enjoyed this one, it had everything I like in a book - action, plot twists, great locations.

Thank you Netgalley and Quercus Books for a copy of this book for my honest review.

A digital copy of this book was provided to me by NetGalley and Quercus Books. The opinions are my own and freely given.

Rose has a hard time trusting anyone man but when she meets Luke, all of her fears disappear. One day, Rose picks Luke up from work and has planned their "honeymoon" vacation that they hadn't gotten to go on. They spend a wonderful week in Saint-Therese. They day they are scheduled to go home, Rose tells Luke she can't go back. That she had killed her ex-boyfriend and left his bleeding dead body in their apartment.

Luke decides to go on the run with Rose, but first he needs to get something out of his safe. Enter his ex -girlfriend Mickey. Mickey goes to the apartment ot retrieve the item only to discover, there is no body.

This starts the game of who is Rose really, who is her ex-boyfriend, and what is Luke hiding?

I enjoyed this book. There was a lot going on to keep you guessing.

Thank you NetGalley and Quercus Books.