Loane Marks, a forty-two-year-old ER doctor, faces a pivotal moment when her husband, Ethan, a police detective, cheats on her. In response, she confronts the choice of either forgiving and moving on or seeking revenge. Her desire for retribution leads her to consider getting involved with Brody Carr, but their relationship becomes far more complicated than Sloane initially anticipated. As Sloane grapples with her decisions, the question arises: can she find it in her heart to forgive Ethan, or will her thirst for revenge destroy any chance they have of building a family together?

At the beginning I had to struggle a bit but this turned out to be a very engrossing thriller!
This was the first time I listend to a narration by by Nancy Wu and Kyle Tait and I just can say that I enjoyed it!!
Thank you #NetGalley #OrangeSky Audio for this advanced audio book

I wanted to like this but just couldn't get into it. It switched characters too often, was fairly dry and just did not pique my interest...

Not the same old tale of a marriage and betrayal… who will you believe? What a twisted web Cole weaves. Excellent reveal!

My biggest criticism for this one is the narration. They sound like robots and it was super difficult to get use to their voices and inflections.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Nancy Wu and Kyle Tait (which is not a version listed on goodreads).

This was a slow unnecessarily angsty story. The first six chapters should have been deleted. Actually, everything about this story was superficial and contrived. There were way too many flashbacks. I suppose, this was to try to establish each character's personal history. Sloan is seriously considering having a child at 42. Wow, I couldn't even imagine. Ethan is a mess. Both are unable to speak their truth and be intentional with their marriage. Brody came across as a cliche. Billionaire, pilot, handsome... ugh, not even realistic. After a handful of encounters, they're falling in love 🙄 and yet Sloan still wants to stay married to Ethan. What an idiot.

All right. I don't even know what this story is about. It was all over the place. The three main characters were all nutters.

Audrey J. Cole wrote a good thriller that kept me guessing. Man oh man, this was a hot mess of infidelity, lies and murder. I was upset and frustrated during the whole thing and it just kept getting more complicated. Lots of feelings and a twist I didn’t see coming.
I enjoyed it and chose to listen to it and both narrators were good. They did a great job and I highly recommend listening to it.
Thanks OrangeSky Audio via NetGalley.

The narration on this one was painful--I wanted to throw in the towel, but I stuck it out. The readers sounded robotic, leaving me unable to feel any kind of connection to the characters. No one was likable, so unfortunately this was a total miss for me. 1.5 stars rounded up.

This is my second book by Audrey Cole and I'm definitely loving her style. The book was quick and easy binge, I listened to the entire book in one day. Thank you Orange Sky Audio, Netgalley, and Audrey Cole for the advanced copy of both the ebook and the audiobook. Having both was a great way to make sure I could read/listen no matter what I was doing.

This book gave me big Gone Girl vibes and there is definitely some unreliable narration happening that keeps you hooked and on the edge of your seat. Until the first major twist comes you wonder what exactly the main conflict is going to be but then wham you see it coming and know that it is going to be like a freight train going off the rails and all you can do is keep watching (or in this case watching). There was a level of predictability to the story but it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book.

The narration was fantastic for those who like audiobooks and I'd definitely recommend checking out Audrey and all her books! I'm planning to grab up many of her backlist books soon!

The One by Audrey Cole is the first book I’ve read by this author and it won’t be the last! This fast pace romantic / domestic thriller had me at page one. A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC in exchange for my honest opinion. I loved the dual narrators, they kept me engaged and guessing to the very last page.

If you’re looking for a fast pace summer beach read this book is most definitely for you! You’ll be truly captivated. 4 stars. It read like a Lifetime movie and I’m here for it!! Happy Pub Day!!

I liked the narrators and the storyline was interesting. The characters were all deeply flawed and at times I didn’t know who was good and who was bad. I’ve read others by this author and I enjoy their writing style, I will definitely read more. Highly recommend!

Careful what you wish for

This particular story promised an exhilarating experience and certainly had its captivating moments. A game concocted by a wife to incite jealousy in her husband takes a deadly turn. Sloane, after discovering Ethan's infidelity, decides to seek revenge by engaging in an affair with the wealthy Brody, who harbors his own secrets and hidden motives.

While the abundance of domestic drama isn't my preferred genre, the unexpected plot twists kept me engrossed. I couldn't help but question Sloane's choices and found it difficult to understand why she resorted to cheating in response to her spouse's betrayal. Nonetheless, I appreciate Cole's writing style, which effortlessly carries the story forward and maintains reader engagement. Although the narration on this audiobook initially faltered in the first few chapters, it eventually found its stride and flowed seamlessly.

I would like to express my gratitude to NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for providing me with the opportunity to listen to and review this ARC.

*Audiobook*

Sloane is a busy ER doctor who finds out that her husband, Ethan, a detective, cheated on her with his partner. She is devastated but wants to work through it. Sloane soon decides that she must make Ethan jealous in order to save their marriage. She runs into billionaire app founder Brody Carr, her lab partner from college, and an affair quickly ensues. But when Brody’s wife dies in a tragic accident, Brody is the main suspect and Ethan leads the investigation. The more Ethan learns about the affair, the more he feels Sloane may have been involved in the death. To save her marriage and her life, Sloane must take matters into her own hands.

I generally don’t get sucked into audiobooks, but I was invested in this story. It has the typical format of a marriage thriller: Sloane and Ethan are in a toxic marriage which leads to a lot of distrust, paving the way for the conflict that drives the plot. Chapters alternate between Sloane and Ethan’s perspectives with different audio narrators. I always enjoy hearing different narrators for main characters. It immerses me in the story and feels more like a movie or play. The chapters are primarily told in the present, but there are several chapters that focus on the past when Sloane and Ethan first met. The past doesn’t ever have any significance on the plot other than to show how far they are from the loving couple they once were, so I didn’t see much of a point in those flashbacks.

This book varies from most marriage thrillers in that there isn’t any major twist. Everything that you think will happen is exactly what happens, which sounds like a terrible plot set up, but it works. It’s more of a psychological thriller than a murder mystery. I grew to dislike Sloane and felt bad for Ethan as the story progressed. I wasn’t sure if I could believe Sloane, and as the tension between her and Brody builds, I wasn’t sure how it would end. Overall I really enjoyed this. Thanks for NetGalley, Orange Sky Audio, and Audrey J. Cole for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

2.5 rounded up.

Didn't love this domestic thriller. Lots of unlikeable characters who all cheat and kill without much compunction. Okay on audio but I should have gone with my gut and DNF this one. Not terrible writing, I'd still probably read something else by this new to me author but it was just kind of meh for me. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review! Would recommend to fans of authors like Jeneva Rose.

This is an audiobook that had me smiling almost immediately. Why? It grabbed my attention quickly and never let go.

Early on I learned that Dr. Sloane Mark’s husband cheated on her once. He is remorseful but as a policeman, he can’t always be there to soothe her lack of self-confidence or suspensions. She doesn’t always interpret his late nights doing police work and phone calls requiring him to return to work as legitimate..And when he misses a very important banquet due to work, she comes up with the perfect way to make him sit up and take notice of her.

Sometimes people end up making a mountain out of a molehill. Sometimes solutions don’t turn out as we’d hoped for.

I fairly flew through this audiobook. It was believable enough to keep me glued to my seat and wanting to know more. I kept hoping that the ending wouldn’t let me down.

Cole’s prose didn’t drag or require me to suspend believability completely. Most of the story caused suspense to mount as it unfolded to an unpredictable ending.

My Concerns

Most of these are small things that niggled at the back of my mind. I’m not going into detail since it might spoil the book.

--The female narrator took a lot of getting used to. Her voice didn’t work for me at all.

--More character development would have helped me understand the character’s actions better.

--I questioned the quick attraction that Sloane and Brody felt for each other. (I think I can answer that question, but it caused me to wonder.)

--Certain things seemed to fall into place quickly with Sloane. Quicker than seemed possible.

--As I listened to the epilogue my first thought was that I didn’t like it. However, it has caused me to keep thinking about the book, so maybe it was okay.

Final Thoughts
Cole penned a fast-paced story with twists and turns that I didn’t see coming.

If you like a thriller based on relationships, infidelity, settling scores, and twists you likely won’t see coming, this audiobook won’t let you down.

And, for me, this is an author I will start following.

My thanks to NetGalley and OrangeSkyAudio for an early-release audiobook.

I had mixed feelings about this book. I think overall I liked it, but I did find it a bit boring in some parts. I felt like I kept waiting for a twist but one never came.
I’m already very picky with audiobook narrators but these ones I really struggled with. Ethan’s voice when quoting other people really bothered me. His accent when speaking as Chelsea’s parents was wild.
Sloans voice had some weird inflections and she pronounced a couple of things wrong to the point where it takes me a second to realize what she’s saying.

I was hoping for so much more. None of the characters were likeable or relatable. Three unreliable narrators with no clear plan of action was too much.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

The dual narration on this audiobook really made the story come to life for me! Both the male and female narrators did a fantastic job! The story is about what a couple goes through to keep their marriage together when cheating and deception is involved. Towards the end I had no idea where it was headed or what was going to happen next, which I love! I really liked the ending as well, as I felt it was perfect for all characters in this book!

I absolutely loved Audrey Cole's last book. Only One Lie, so I was ecstatic to see she was publishing another! I think Cole is an instant read for me no matter what. The latest book, The One, was preordered long before I was approved on Netgalley for the audio arc. After listening, I can't say it was my favorite. I really wanted to love it, but it was just, meh.

First and foremost- the woman narrator's voice slightly drove me nuts in the beginning, but eventually, I got used to her. However, I really enjoyed the male narrator's voice. They both still did an excellent job at telling the story.

This story follows a middle-aged married couple and is told from both their points of view. Sloane, an ER doctor, finds out her husband Ethan, a homicide detective, cheated on her with his partner, & she is reluctant to forgive him. She considers leaving him but ultimately decides her new desire for a family would be lost at her age if she had to start all over, so they decide to start marriage counseling and work through it. A few months later, Sloane bumps into an old classmate turned app founder billionaire who just so happened to be going through a separation and invites her out for coffee. As she spends more and more time with Brody, she starts to question her feelings. After a glorious getaway weekend to his private island in the San Juans, Ethan starts really picking up on Sloane's lies and suspects an affair. What really heats things up is when Brody's wife winds up in Sloane's ER after a major diving accident and dies. Ethan becomes the lead investigator. Is Sloane the reason she's dead? Can Ethan trust his wife? Will they both lose their jobs due to secrets and lies? Who is the real bad guy here?

This book was more domestic suspense than what I would say thriller. There was less thrill and more curiosity as to what happened. I had to keep listening to see what would happen next. Some events that happened seemed to literally come from out of nowhere. Brody is not a character we know much about, and he seems to pop up in crazy places at unexpected times. I also have so many questions to details that were left unanswered or unexplained. Her last book was so original that it wowed me. This just seemed kind of like it's been done before. Maybe I am biased because of my love for that one. This did not compare.

If you read it for what it is and don't think too deeply about it, it can be a solid 3 stars. If you have the same questions I do, as much as I hate to do it, I have to give this one less.

Still, thank you to #Netgalley and the publishers for an audio arc in exchange for my honest review. I still look forward to the next book by Ms Cole.

2.5 stars rounded up.

This was my first Audrey Cole book. I will be reading more.
The audiobook alternates narrators for Ethan and Sloane. This is the story of Ethan (a homicide detective) and his wife Sloane (an ER doctor). After finding out that her husband cheated on her, she decides to cheat on him. She bumps in to a friend from college. Brody is a billionaire and founder of a dating app called "The One". Brody's wife is murdered and Ethan is one of the detectives that investigates.
I don't want to give the ending away. You go through many twists to find out whether Ethan and Sloane will stay together. If I had been reading the book, I would have been turning the pages anxiously wanting to find out what was going to happen.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for the opportunity.

This book got my attention from the start! Finally a thriller that does what was promised and doesn't waste 100s of pages on unnecessary backstory. It was fast-paced and plot-driven the entire time. The narrators did a wonderful job. I loved how quickly it moved, and listened to this this in a day. It had the perfect pacing and had twists right up until the end. I absolutely recommend!

Going to round this up to a 3. I think I may have enjoyed it more as a book than audiobook.

After learning that her husband Ethan cheated on her with a coworker, Sloane and Ethan begin therapy, deciding that they'll work on their marriage. With no boundaries between work and home for Ethan, a detective, he continues missing important events. Feeling he's no longer working on his end, Sloane decides it's time for a little tit for tat, and sets her sights on a former classmate turned billionaire.
When the billionaire's wife dies under mysterious circumstances (and a giant load of medical shenanigans that implicate Sloane), she needs to convince her husband of her innocence.

It was going along pretty decently but went fully off the rails with the wife dying. I could've used just maybe a hint that it was headed that direction to make the plot more plausible.

The narration was an issue for me. I'm unsure why, but Sloane's "voice" didn't match for me, and there was too much *dun dun dunnnnn* for me in Sloane vs Ethan's narrations. For this reason, I'd say the written version may be a better bet. YMMV of course.

Thank you to OrangeSky Audio and NetGalley for an audio ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.