A twisty, domestic thriller with great characters, and a captivating plot. The story had so many lies it was hard to predict who was telling the truth. This book kept me thinking, guessing and wondering. Loved it. Would have like a little more at the conclusion, but overall a MUST READ.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

What a read! Who actually is The Bigamist?

I devoured this compelling thriller, having been completely hooked in by the blurb and I couldn’t stop reading!

Emma meets and becomes close friends with Faith at a bereavement group and is then introduced to Faith’s brother, Sam, who she marries and is starting a family with. However, the prologue has alluded to Sam already being married, so what is actually going on?

All of the characters were brilliant, all of them were just a little bit shady and sinister and with more twists than a pretzel, plus a banger of an ending, this is an easy 5 ⭐️ for me, loved it!

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC in return for an honest review.

There’s nothing I enjoy more than a book where the reader is left perpetually on edge, anxiously anticipating what shocking event will unfold next. THE BIGAMIST is one of those books! For a psychological thriller to work, I need those delicious ‘OMG’ moments. I need to feel I’ve been played at every turn and Rona Halsall accomplishes this with ease. Emma meets Sam, they marry and then the old saying springs to mind “Marry in haste, and repent at leisure”. And boy does she have lots of time to repent, especially when the evidence points to Sam being a bigamist.

The characters are well depicted. I must admit I ended up hating most of them! But that’s a good thing, as it made the book all the more interesting. The characters are untrustworthy. They tell so many lies and half truths you are constantly second guessing who is actually telling the truth. Every time I thought I knew where the story was headed, the author slyly pulled the rug from under me.

Rona Halsall has an uncanny ability to craft tension throughout the entire duration of THE BIGAMIST, progressively evoking a growing sense of unease and apprehension in the reader as the plot unfolds. The plot twists were perfectly placed and I hold my hands up and admit ‘I never seen them coming’ a rarity in its self. I had one small niggle I wanted more from the ending, but maybe there will be a follow up, well here’s hoping. I really enjoyed this book. It made for an addictive and gripping read with plenty of surprises along the way.

I love a good thriller and this one did not disappoint! When a book can hold my interest from beginning to end, it gets 5 stars from me.

Emma joins a bereavement group after losing numerous loved ones, including her husband who was in a horrendous accident. There, she meets Faith and Sam, a brother and sister who are also suffering grief. When Emma and Sam fall in love, and she quickly becomes pregnant, they decide to marry and build a house with the money that Emma received from her first husband’s accident. Their lives though are far from idyllic. Emma begins to have suspicions about Sam when she catches him in lie after lie. Did his first wife really die? That is the biggest question when a woman answers Sam’s phone and insists she is his wife.

This book is a true nail-biter with so many clever plot twists! It’s brilliant. And I do believe there might be a sequel given the ending of this one.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC. This is due to hit the shelves on July 5, 2023.

Book Title: The Bigamist
Author: Rona Halsall
Publisher: Bookouture
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Pub Date: July 5, 2023
My Rating: 4.42
Pages: 318

The Prologue:
Thirty-four year old Emma is eight months pregnant and while in the Doctor’s waiting room is browsing through a magazine and sees a modern room with a familiar painting that she is sure is hers. Her husband Sam is an architect and his name is connected to the article so she gives him a call at work. When the phone is answered Emma states - Hi, it’s Emma, Sam’s wife. Do you think I could speak to him, please?” There is silence and then “WHAT are you talking about - - ‘I’m his wife.’
The woman than states that Sam told her about a weirdo who was stalking him!
Emma’s world is now spinning out of control.

Chapter One: Fourteen Months Ago-
Emma met Sam at a Bereavement group where people who have lost someone close go for help, advice and comfort. Emma’s mother died two months ago, Emma had a miscarriage, and her husband Zach was in a terrible accident. Sam’s wife Alice died in a fire.
They immediately feel a connection which is more than sharing the experiencing of grief.
The Group is run by Sam's sister Faith and soon. Emma becomes friends with both Sam and Faith.
Emma and Sam have such a strong connection they soon start making plans for their future.

This was certainly a roller coaster ride with twists and turns and more twists and turns.

In the author’s “A Letter from Rona’ she tells us about how she came to write this story. It actually came from just throwing ideas around. She thought this was a compelling topic. Who doesn’t want to know why someone becomes a bigamist? After doing research she discovered this situation is more common than you can imagine.
She hopes readers love this story and find it entertaining.
She was right about that!!
This is my first Rona Halsall and I will definitely read another!

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture for granting me this early thriller.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 5, 2023.

With thanks to Netgalley for the book arc in exchange for an honest review.

Emma is grieving the loss of her husband, her mother, her mother in law and a miscarriage. When she decides to attend a bereavement group, ran by the comforting and kind Faith, she meets Sam, a fellow mourner who can relate to her pain. Following a whirlwind romance, Emma’s rose tinted glasses start to fall as she questions if Sam can be trusted… and is Faith in on it?

This was such a great concept, with so many plot points. Each part of the book follows a character’s storyline and viewpoint. This was expertly done, as each new perspective added seamlessly to the overall narrative. As the reader looks back, from the perspective of this new information, it makes sense that the signs were there, while being subtle enough to not be revealed immediately. The different plot lines leave you second guessing all the time who is telling the truth and who is behind different acts.

The twists were very enjoyable and I liked that the ending was left open-ended. I would highly recommend for thriller lovers and will be reading more by the author in the future!

Absolutely brilliant, a great storyline which had me on the edge of my seat all the way wondering which way this was 'going to go.

All the characters were good and I felt I knew them all personally, just a great read from one of my favourite authors.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC which I can thoroughly recommend.

This book had everything a domestic thriller should have! The suspense, the plot twists, the doubting every single character. I loved it and couldn't put it down!

I have been reading Rona Halsall books from the very beginning and wow I must say that ‘The Bigamist is her best one yet.
Emma goes to a Bereavement meeting after her husband’s Zach’s fatal accident She meets Sam who sister Faith runs the support group. They soon fall in love and early on she finds that she is pregnant with Sam’s child. She thinks it is a gift as she had several miscarriages in her previous relationship. When Sam hears the news, he is thrilled, and they decide to make their relationship more permanent.
Sam is an architect and is always on trips away for his job. So, when Emma rings him up on his latest trip, after discovering one of her paintings in a magazine saying it belongs to a local actress, a woman answers claiming to be his wife. Is Sam a bigamist? What the hell is going on? And what secrets is Emma herself hiding?
Thank you, Bookoutre for Rona Halsall’s latest offering. Wow this book is mad. There is so many twists and turns in this story and when I thought I figured what was going on, it took a different turn. But I loved it. The only criticism for me I felt the story finished abruptly leaving me with some unanswered questions. Is there going to be a second one? 5 stars from me.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advance copy to read.

This is my first book by this author.

The story follows Emma and her new relationship with Sam after both suffering loss of their spouses.

It's a twisty book full of suspense. If you like psychological suspense books this is for you. I don't want to say too much and give anything away.

I did see most the twists coming and I found some of it a bit too predictable (I know that's not the general consensus). Also it's extremely over the top in places and unbelievable. That said it's entertaining.

4 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the chance to read this mostly captivating book. I loved the story and the many twists, but the ending was a puzzle (unless there's a follow up in the works). It just ended and there was so much more story to tell. It was well written, and I loved the changes each character went thru. I thought this was an excellent, jaw dropping, can't put down book until the very last page and then it was over. A big disappointment. I wanted to give it 5 stars but the end made me give it only 4.

I've loved all of Rona's books, and each time I say this one is my favourite, and then she goes ahead and writes another belter.
The prologue alone was enough to pull me into the novel and the urge to read didn't leave until the very last sentence. Rona took me on a rollercoaster of a ride and I had no idea who to trust or believe. As I was reading I thought I had the measure of the characters but then Rona threw another curveball into the story and took my mind onto a totally different tangent. Fabulous read.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy, I'm under no obligation to leave my review

This book was different than what i was expecting, it started slow but i was happy with the book overall, thank you so much to NetGalley for providing me with this advanced copy!

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for my ARC of my new favorite book!!! “The Bigamist” by Rona Halsall kept me on my toes the entire time. Every time I thought I had it figured out, I ended up being very very wrong. I could not put it down. My heart was pounding. I was sweating. It was everything a psychological thriller should be and now I’m off to buy all her other books. 5/5 ⭐️.

OKAY WOW. There’s not many books I’d like to see made into a TV series - but this is definitely one..

In the Prologue we see scandal right off the bat - another woman is claiming to also be Sam’s wife. At first, I didn’t think I would enjoy reading on since knowing what the premise of the book is, based on that
prologue - boy was I WRONG. What a ride this was!!

This plot was THIIICKKK. So many twists and turns. Several jaw dropping moments & an ending that could absolutely be left to go into a second book (please Rona 😉)

Full of scandal, red flags, & what-the-hell moments. Easiest 5 star review I’ve given.

Thank you so much to Rona Halsall, the publisher, & NetGalley for early access to this book in return for my honest review.

This is another fabulous thriller from Rona Halsall. I loved this book! It’s very fast paced and so many big twists where everything is turned upside down. It even made me dream about fire! I liked the way the book surprised me and the ending is unexpected. Five stars ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wow wow wow, from beginning to end this book had me on the edge of my seat!! Just when you think you know what’s going on, nope! Another twist! I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from Rona Halsall! Thanks for this Arc!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. There was a point in the middle where I got a little worried it was going in a very cliched direction, but the author did a very good job of putting a fresh twist on a lot of common thriller tropes.

One thing that I really want to highlight is the characters and how well fleshed out they are. Every one serves a purpose and they do it well. No one in the story is strictly a good guy or a bad guy(with one possible exception), which makes it really engaging. And all three of the POV characters have distinct voices, which is a must if the reader is put into the head of multiple people.

There were two things that kept me from giving this book 5 stars. One, it reached a point where Emma’s stupidity became a little too much. I know that thrillers would be incredibly boring if everyone always did things the “smart” way but there has to be a limit. And two, I did not care for the last chapter. If a book is meant to stand alone, it shouldn’t have a cliffhanger ending. Normally that would cause me to take off more than a star, but honestly the rest of the book was so good I’m just gonna pretend it didn’t exist.

Sorry I need to dnf this one as it's not for me. The dialogue is a bit young. I thought I'd enjoy this one but I can't. To be fair I have given 5 stars.

Sam, who is in a similar situation as Emma, is someone she meets while attending a grieving group. Things go swiftly as their friendship and love develop, Emma begins to wonder if Sam is speaking the truth about everything. It is understandable that Emma is distraught when she phones Sam one day and a woman answers who claims to be his wife. Emma, who is pregnant and bewildered, believes she is going crazy.

And what about Emma, is she really truthful? Nothing is as it seems.

This is ideal for fans of domestic suspense since it is full of interesting twists and surprises. Good read for a boring evening.

To really appreciate this work, you must suspend all skepticism, and that is huge although. Simply put, people do not behave as this book portrays them to. It is highly implausible.

"Bigamist" was disappointing all around. I had hoped for a narrative that was more interesting and well-developed, as well as for characters that were real and understandable.

Too soapy for my liking.