4.5 stars rounded up! This is the definition of a popcorn thriller. I absolutely devoured this book. It is fast paced from start to finish with twists and turns around every corner. The minute I thought I had it figured out, I was bamboozled again! I really enjoyed this and was completely sucked in. Some of the theatrics borderline on ridiculous, but that’s somewhat expected with this type of storyline. Overall I really enjoyed it and I recommend it to thriller fans!

Thank you to Netgalley, Thomas & Mercer Publishing, and Thriller Book Lovers Promotions on Instagram for giving me the opportunity to read this advance copy!

Did you ever speed through a book so fast to see what would happen next? Then pick up the Original Twin due out 5/28! Still cannot believe this is a debut thriller. There is many layers of drama, complex relationships and more! Looking forward to more by this author.

This book turns the unexpected into the most normal, most mundane thing. This book takes the impossible, adds a sprinkle of fairy dust of real facts, and somehow makes it all make sense and look real. This is a mind-bending, reality-shifting, yet totally down-to-earth story, and it makes you (me, that is) question your whole existence and ask questions about others, about what is normal and what is not too normal, what is a common human experience, and how many have actually contemplated what you (me, that is) thought about as of the most normal thing ever, but then you read it and wonder if… well, if maybe my lived experience hasn’t been *that* normal to begin with, even if I’m talking about the part of my life that somehow was the most normal of what I have had.
You know “Gone Girl”, right? I have always thought of myself as Amy’s secret twin, a soul-sister of sorts. This book? Take Gone Girl, crank up the volume, throw in more family drama, and dysfunctional dynamics, and – here we are now. I loved Gone Girl. This one? I think I loved this one more.
I believe others will see something else in this book, not what I did. I believe others will see crazies and weirdos, and – oh, I’m sure many will be annoyed by cRaZy wOmEn dOinG CrAZy tHiNgs, but yup, this is what this book might be for some.
For me? It was a weird therapy. A bad/extra good case of IYKYK. Does it need a star rating? I don’t think five is enough.

Wow! What a debut. It's a Twisty Twin Thriller. TTT. T cubed. 😂

The story telling was top notch, past and present, multi POVs with letters thrown in. I couldn't put it down.

The twists are non-stop and so very creative. Such an impressive debut.

I was fully immersed in listening to Original Twin by Paula Gleeson! I could not stop listening because I just had to know what was going to happen. This is the story of twins, May and June, who are quite opposites from one another, one gone missing on the same day their mother disappeared, and the connection of how it is all related. I could not resist this twisty ride that kept me guessing throughout.
Told from multiple perspectives, and alternating timelines, which you know I love, I highly recommend this buried family thriller!

A twisty dual timeline thriller with a brilliant premise that will keep you guessing all the way!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc! Opinions are my own.

There was just something about this Australian debut thriller that caught my eye, and I couldn't resist adding Original Twin to my TBR. I liked the sound of the blurb with the twin characters being so different and one of them missing... Especially since the story promises to have other family secrets to unravel as well. And I have to say that I ended up having an excellent time with this debut! Fast-paced, snappy and highly engaging; Original Twin definitely lived up to expectations for me.

This story uses a multiple POV structure, switching between May in the present, flashbacks to June a year ago (in the form of letters written to her mother) and flashbacks to about twenty years ago around the time Diana (the mother) disappeared. These different POVs helped both hide and reveal certain information, and I liked what they added to the plot. We mainly spend time in the present with May though, and it is her POV that is the most engaging with the hunt for the truth as well as her twin sister.

Things can be said about the credibility of the plot and there are some twists that are definitely farfetched, but I personally didn't mind too much. You will have to be able to suspend your disbelief to properly enjoy your time with Original Twin though! As a whole the twists added the right amount of suspense, although I do have to say that I was able to guess some of the big twists right quite easily. Especially the twists involving the identity of Diana's attacker and May's father... But then again that might just be because I read too many thrillers.

I really enjoyed the writing style in general, although the tone in June's letters did feel a bit off. That said, since we mainly spend time with May and I enjoyed the writing style there, I wasn't too bothered by it. It is quite easy to start rooting for May and keep yourself invested in her quest to find her twin sister. She is quite a flawed character of course (like most of them to be honest), but somehow the flaws only make it easier to warm up to her. Sam was probably my favorite character though.

In short, Original Twin most definitely hit the mark for me and I ended up having an excellent time with this Australian debut thriller. If you don't mind suspending your disbelief and like your thrillers with a healthy dose of family drama and secrets, this book might just be the one for you.

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley, the opinions are mine and freely given.

May and June are sisters. Twins. Fraternal. June has been missing for a year and May discovers that their mother was also missing for 3 weeks when she was 19. She went missing on the same day the June disappeared. May goes through the case file of her mother's disappearance/reappearance in order to figure out if the same person has abducted her sister.

The twins father is so distraught. He lost his wife, Diana, three years ago and then his daughter went missing. The twins aunt is so self absorbed. She thinks her sister lied about her abduction and now thinks that June has done the same thing. The only redeeming characters for May, is Pat, her grandmother and Sam the detective that investigated Diana's disappearance.

Sam met with June before she vanished, and she left clues for May in Diana's casefile. Hoping that she wod follow her footsteps and find her. Diana's college roommate didn't report her missing immediately and her boyfriend, Brad was out of town at the time of the disappearance. So who could have been responsible? This is a very twisty story and I couldn't put it down.

This story has alternating chapters where May is doing all of investigating, and letters from June to her dead mother.

Do you love a story packed with secrets and lies? How about complex family dynamics? Or an expertly drawn unreliable narrator? If your answer to any of the above is yes, then you simply HAVE to pick up Original Twin. To be frank, I was rather shocked that this one was a debut novel. With a heaping dose of twists and turns—including one right at the end—there wasn’t a chance of me working it out ahead of each perfectly timed reveal. Well, except for one teeny, tiny piece of the puzzle.

As for the characters, they were each complicated and mostly true-to-life. From two diametrically opposed twins to the aunt you’re simply going to love to hate, the multiple POVs were brilliantly interwoven with letters and treasure hunt-like clues. The full picture illustrated a plot that must have taken one heck of an outline to write. Layered much like an onion, the conclusion was quite the shocker even for this thriller lover.

All said and done, while there were brief moments that required suspension of all disbelief and dialogue that felt stilted at times, I couldn’t have fallen for this one more if I tried. Fast-paced, addictive, and with an ending that will definitely take you unawares, it is no surprise that those of us at Thriller Book Lovers: The Pulse have been raving about this book for weeks. I mean, I finished this in just one sitting. If that doesn’t say it all, I don’t know what will. Rating of 4.5 stars.

May and June are fraternal twins and looks aren’t their only difference. May is the rule follower, while June is the wild child.
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When June goes missing on the exact day their mother disappeared for three weeks years before, could it just be a coincidence?
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A year has passed since June went missing. May believes June is alive and is determined to find her. She’s finding clues apparently left by June. These clues lead her to uncover a lot of family secrets (and I do mean A LOT!)
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Don’t want to give too much away, so I’m stopping there. But there were so many twists and turns, along with clues and red herrings. I loved this fabulously twisty debut!
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I had this on audio, which was amazing!

This one DELIVERED! I didn’t want to put it down! June, May’s twin sister, went missing. After doing some digging, she learned her mom had also went missing as a college student….years earlier, the same day June did. Coincidence or not? May starts find treasure hunt clues from June (a game they have played since they were kids) but these clues led her down a path to discover what really happened to their mom. Along the way, she learns LOTS of secrets. I loved everything about this novel, especially the end! WTH! This is a book you DON’T want to miss!

This was quite the wild ride! When May's twin June goes missing on the exact same date that their mother was abducted many years ago it's only the beginning of May's journey of self discovery. But will May be happy with what she finds out??

This is how you write a debut!! May and June are twins. June has been missing for a whole year and now presumed dead. May is unaccepting of this idea. May decides to do some digging… BOOM 💥 a whole can of family drama and carnage is opened up.

I flew through this book. It was all just deliciously twisty! One giant scavenger hunt of chaos and family drama. The grandma… 😎

I loved Gleeson’s writing and I was utterly hooked from start to that whopper of a finish - OMGeeee!!!

I’m here for Gleeson’s next book please 🙋🏼‍♀️

You’re about to see this one all over your feed cause it’s kicking up a storm with us at @thrillerbookloversthepulse

4.5 stars rounded up.

This book had all the twists and turns that you want in a thriller. Twin sisters uncover secrets that will change the trajectory of their lives forever. I loved the plot and the plot twists. There is mystery and suspense and murder. Dual point of views and two different time lines going at the same time but very easy to follow. Thank you Paula for allowing me to be an ARC reader for you! Such a great debut novel!

This is the best debut thriller I’ve read in a long, long time! I could not out this down and wanted to find out what happened. The twists kept coming and did not disappoint, especially the one at the very end! Definitely a must read.

I am lucky to get an eARC of this title through @thrillerbookloverspromotions @netgalley. And, these past few days, #thepulse team has been roaring what a pageturner this book is.

Publication Date: 1 June 2024

May returns to her hometown for her twin's funeral. Her twin, June, was missing, and as she's never been found, the family had to hold the funeral with an empty casket.
Roaming around June's bedroom, May found June's beloved horse statue, and unexpectedly, a hidden note falls from the hole in the bottom. It's a cut out from an old newspaper, and it's shocking as it's about her mum's went missing at the same date when June was also disappeared.
So, are those two missing cases connected? It seems like too much of a coincidence.

I can't believe this is a debut from this author, and she's also an Australian author. It's definitely a page turner with multiple suspects. And, the revelations will have you in shock.

Thank you to THomas & Mercer for the ARC and Brilliance Publishing for the ALC!

She’s always been second best…now she is the only one left…

May and June are twin sisters, but where May is quiet and self-conscious, June is outgoing and magnetic…and also missing. It’s been a year since June’s disappearance, 365 days of May waiting for her twin to turn up with an explanation. In her investigation, May finds an old newspaper article that shows her mother once disappeared on the very same day as June…it can’t be a coincidence, can it? June didn't think so, and as she was looking into their mother, she left May clues to continue her searching. Now, if May wants to find June, she’ll have to back step and look into their mother’s past.

When I saw this book compared to the likes of Mary Kubica and Gillian Flynn, I knew I had to read it. Indeed, it reminded me quite a bit of Gone Girl, in how mysterious the plot was and the deeply descriptive way it was written. I had no idea how June’s disappearance was going to relate to their mother’s (if at all) and I was really hanging onto every bit of the clues that May uncovered. I’m so glad I had the audio so I could continue listening to this one, because I needed to know what was going to happen! Also, II shocked that this was a debut! I can’t wait to see what this author comes up with next, because I will be first in line to grab it :)

“Original Twin” release June 1, 2024. This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)

Wow this book is such a page turner!
It’s a fast-paced, twisty and shocking suspense mystery thriller which had my eyes glued to my kindle!

This story was told in multiple POVs which made the readers got to know all the dark secrets these characters had.
This family has a lot of secrets and not little ones or white lies, it’s huge ones….
Just when I thought one of the characters is a good person, this book just throw that idea away….

I couldn’t talk more about this one cause I’m afraid it’ll spoil the story for you guys.
Overall, for a debut novel this was a great and entertaining book, the mystery keeps me at the edge of my seat!
I’ll definitely keep an eye out for more books from this author in the future!

I received an advanced review copy for free through Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Huge thank you to the author and publisher!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: violence, brief mention of sexual assault, grief and confinement

This book ranks in probably my top 5 of 2024! So it's no wonder there was a ton of buzz (and still is) @ThePulse over this book! Original Twin was NOT at all what I expected. Actually, I don't even know what I was expecting! This book gripped me from page 1. It was so hard to put down! The story is told from several different perspectives, both past and present. With a few 'letters' thrown in. I think almost every main character, except Gary and Pat, had a chapter with their perspective. I found that I really enjoyed that. To get ALL sides of the story! Everything is so twisted together. The ending was partially what I had seen coming, but the other part......did not see that coming at all. Once I finished reading, everything just made sense. All the little hints dropped along the way. I have to say, I loved May. She was so smart and strong. She had been kept in the dark for almost everything, but she didn't let it stop her! Now, her sister, I wanted to slap her. Omg. As the story grew on, that did not change, but only increased. I did not like her at all. Ugh. I don't want to give anything away but I just want to say this story was so good! It's hard to say much more without spoilers. But you should definitely put this on your TBR list! Go ahead and preorder it now! You won't be disappointed!

I did have the chance to read both the ebook and listen to the audiobook courtesty of @paulagleesonauthor and @amazonpub
This book was narrated by Anthea Greco and Leeanna Walsman. They both did an amazing job. They really brought the story to life.

This debut novel is filled with secrets and plot twists. It is hard to say anything about the story that isn't a spoiler. It was a fast-paced, compelling read.

The story is told from three main viewpoints. May and June are the twin daughters of Diana who recently passed away in a swimming pool accident. Then June disappears leaving May to try to find out what happened to her twin.

May and June are quite different characters being fraternal twins. May is quiet and introspective while June is loud and boisterous.

May's thread of the story begins one year after June's disappearance when she has come home for the empty casket funeral. She discovers a newspaper article which indicates that Diana also disappeared when she was nineteen. She was gone for three weeks and claimed ever afterward not to remember what happened to her while she was missing. One thing is certain though, she was or became pregnant during those missing three weeks.

This article comes as a complete surprise to May detailing a family past she had known nothing about. As she tries to find out more, she learns that many people were keeping secrets. As she talks to her grandmother Pat and her Aunt Sue she learns precious little and decides to investigate - with the help of June's clues.

As May searches, we get chapters from Diana with give us some information about her missing three weeks and about her raising May and June. We also get letters written by June to her dead mother detailing her own search for what happened to their mother nineteen years earlier. She's also trying to find out who her father was.

I enjoyed this story and was gobsmacked by all the twists and turns in this complicated plot. I liked the growth May shows as she progresses through this story.