Arden Ward is a highly successful crisis management expert working for a top tier company. That is until her boss and mentor finds her expendable when he has to choose between a client’s misguided accusation and supporting her.

"One Wrong Word" by Hank Phillippi Ryan is a masterfully crafted thriller that expertly blends suspense with sharp wit and intricate character dynamics. The story revolves around a seasoned journalist who uncovers a chilling conspiracy while trying to navigate the murky waters of personal and professional relationships.

Ryan’s writing is both engaging and precise, drawing readers into a fast-paced narrative filled with twists and turns. The protagonist is a compelling character—resourceful and determined—who faces ethical dilemmas and moral quandaries as she delves deeper into her investigation. Ryan skillfully captures the tension between ambition and integrity, making for a thought-provoking read.

The plot is tightly woven, with each detail contributing to the larger mystery. Ryan’s background in journalism adds authenticity to the narrative, and her portrayal of the media landscape is both insightful and relevant. The interactions between characters are nuanced, revealing layers of complexity in their motivations and alliances.

Overall, "One Wrong Word" is a gripping and intelligent thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats. Hank Phillippi Ryan has delivered a compelling story that is as much about the pursuit of truth as it is about the human experience. This novel is a must-read for fans of suspense and mystery, offering a blend of intrigue and emotional depth that will resonate long after the final page.

Really gripping thriller. I enjoyed the twists and turns, although I was a little annoyed with the ending. It felt really obvious and I couldn’t understand why the main character hadn’t considered it or dismissed the idea of it earlier. If not for that, it’d be 5 stars.

After being accused of having an affair with a client, Arden is let go from her job. Her boss assigns her one more project that entails more than Arden bargained for. The story is ok. Narration is good.

A wonderful suspense filled listen. As the story progresses we are able to hear and feel the rising tension of the various characters. There was lots of twists and turns and had you working trying to figure out the mystery. The story was fast paced and exactly what a psychological thriller should be.

This was a fun and captivating story that pulled me in right away. I loved the audiobook narration that really added to the character driven plot, and kept me on my toes as I dived deeper and deeper into the lives of each character.

I would definitely recommend the audio format which was done so well. It had just the right balance of plot and suspense.

*many thanks to Forge/Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Thank you Macmillan Audio for allowing me to read and review One Wrong Word on NetGalley.

Narrator: Gail Shalan

Published: 02/06/24

Stars: 3

Too busy.

The audiobook starts well. I don't want a book to grow on me. One Wrong Word intrigued me right away and kept me tuned in until roughly midway? This is two-fold: the narration is at best one dimensional. She has a nice librarian voice, however she needed to distinguish multiple characters. Secondly, the characters started blending into one. Between no discernible voice lines and the dialogue going south boredom started settling in. By the end of the book, I didn't care.

The characters were not believable during the reveal. There were too many moving parts and no power.

I think it's funny, but interesting how differently I'll rate thrillers versus romance or historical fiction. It sounds terrible but it's almost like I don't expect as much from them, which isn't fair. But here we are. This book is getting 4 stars, even though it wasn't anything life changing or overly memorable in the world of thrillers, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and was interested throughout the whole book. It didn't really have my heart racing much and I wasn't super on the edge of my seat, but I was consistently interested in finding out the end and had me guessing for much of it.

Audio version was excellent!

Captivating story, definitely kept my interest, but also felt very long. I did not see the end coming and loved the smell of justice in the morning.
Excellent narration as well.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for my advance copy of this audiobook

I could not connect with this one at all. I tried 3 different times. I will not say it was bad but it just wasn’t for me.

Great book. Deep character development. Enjoyed the story. Was invested in their lives and never really knew who to trust. Was happy to see the way the twisty tale turned.

I'm ready to embrace my new title of "Hank Phillipi Ryan Superfan." Her legal thrillers are always reliably exciting, realistic (I'm a lawyer so this is important to me), yet full of drama and twisty fun. This audiobook was an especially fun listen, and tackles the story of a defendant who at the beginning of the book is acquitted of a horrible crime, but still apparently needs some good PR. Because as we all know, "not guilty" doesn't always mean innocent in the minds of the public. The cast of characters here are very intriguing, and include the accused murderer husband, his long-suffering wife, and a PR fixer who is asked to take in one last special project on her way out the door after an unceremonious termination.

The audiobook is well-narrated and suspenseful, and the plot is tightly wound and full of good twists and fun characters. I can't wait for the next mystery by Philippi Ryan!

Another one by Hank that did not disappoint!

I was drawn in and didn't want to put it down! (Or stop listening, in my case.) The narrator's voice made me forget it was being narrated, and I was able to listen at 1.7x speed.

It was thrilling, captivating, and made me wonder what was going to happen next!

Thank you NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ALC!

One Wrong Word
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Hank Phillippi Ryan

I requested an audio advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Macmillan Audio and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: One wrong word can ruin your life. And no one knows that better than savvy crisis management expert Arden Ward. Problem is, she's now forced to handle a shocking crisis of her own. Unfairly accused of having an affair with a powerful client, Arden’s life and dreams are about to crash and burn. Then, Arden is given an ultimatum. She has just two weeks to save her career and her reputation.

Is Cordelia Bannister the answer to her prayers?

Cordelia needs Arden’s help for her husband Ned, a Boston real estate mogul. Though he was recently acquitted in a fatal drunk driving accident, his reputation is ruined, and the fallout is devastating not only to the Bannisters' lives, but the lives of their two adorable children.

Arden devotes her skill and determination—and maybe her final days on the job—to helping this shattered family, but soon, revelations begin to emerge about what really happened the night of the accident. And then—another car crash throws Ned back into the spotlight.

This case is Arden’s final chance to protect her own future and clear her name. But the more she tries to untangle the truth, the more she’s haunted by one disturbing question—what if she’s also protecting a killer?

Gossip. Lies. Rumors. Words like that can hurt you. And Arden knows the reality. Sometimes one wrong word can kill.

My Thoughts: This was a captivating, gripping, expertly crafted psychological thriller that will keep you on your toes, turning the pages (or listening) as fast as you can to get to the end, because you have to know. Cordelia’s husband, Ned, is a wealthy real estate developer who has just been acquitted of murder, however, the damage to his reputation has already been done. Arden, a public relations expert, fixes reputations and she is really good at her job, so much so that this will be her final assignment, fixing the reputation of Ned Bannister. The more she digs into Ned’s life, the more that she is haunted by who the actual killer was on that eventful night. Secrets. Betrayal. Lies. The wealthy. Rumors. Gossip. One word can be deadly.

The story is narrated by our three (3) unreliable female protagonists, each having a slightly skewed viewpoint. The three female protagonists were Arden, our fixer; Cordelia, our desperate and needy client; and finally, our hungry, yet impassionate assistant district attorney. As Arden is working on Ned’s case, he is involved in a second incident, bringing him to the focus of attention again. As she is working to find answers, she soon discovers that it may not be as black and white as she hoped and that it falls in the grey spectrum. The characters were created with depth, mystery, intriguing, and very authentic. The author’s writing style was complex, twisty, engaging, and had a ratcheting suspense that really elevated the novel. I loved how the author shifted the storyline in one way and then boom, shifted in a completely different direction. The characters were layered throughout the story. The plot was really the star with red herrings, clues that seemed obscured, a cat and mouse game that seemed deadly, and layered with twist after twist. Then the ending with the final reveal was dramatic with nerve bending twists that was really unpredictable. I have read thousands of thrillers and even this ending had me guessing. Ryan really is masterful at curating unpredictable twists that rises to the top of the thriller genre.

The narrator, Gail Shalan, had great voice variation with character distinction. The pitch and flow was excellent, I had no issues listening on 2x. The infliction, emotion, excitement, and fear came through crystal clear, you felt like you were there. This was a stellar read that will keep you guessing and will likely put all of your other duties to the waste side to finish this in one sitting. I highly recommend picking up today.

Very fun, fast psychological thriller. I found this one intriguing from the beginning and appreciated the well placed red herrings that kept me guessing. Perfect for a weekend or vacation binge read.

I have more than one word for One Wrong Word: boring, drawn out, and scattered. This book could have easily have been cut in half. I found all the unneccesary details and side plots confused the main storyline: one too many cooks in the kitchen makes for a terrible meal. By the time I got to the end of this, I didn't even care who the culprits were; I was just glad it was over.

One Wrong Word is Hank Philippi Ryan’s latest best seller. This is a fast paced, intriguing suspenseful psychological thriller told only in HPR style. The characters are multi-layered, complex and you will love them and hate them!! It is filled with lies, deceit, murder, blackmail and secrets…….ohhhh the secrets! Ms. Phillippi—Ryan had me guessing from the start, constantly going back and forth thinking I had it all figured out until that jaw dropping ending I never saw coming. I read and listened to this one, just to see if I could figure it out faster!! I highly recommend this very talented author and all her books. I look forward to each of her books.

Thank you NetGalley, Forge Books, Macmillan Audio and Hank Phillippi-Ryan for this heart pounding thriller to read, listen to and review. The opinions expressed are strictly my own.
#netgalley #forgebooks #macmillanaudio
#hankphillippiryan. #onelastword. #psychologicalthriller

Talk about a wild, fast-paced and heart pounding ride. This is one of those books that will keep you guessing and at the edge of your seat. Hank Phillippi Ryan knows how to write gripping and masterful stories, I have a new favorite from her.

Thank you Suzy Approved Book Tours for this tour invite.

𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝗪𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗱 by Hank Phillippi Ryan released February 6, 2024.

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Thank you to netgalley for this audiobook.

I tried to get into this book but it just wasn’t for me. A very rich man is accused of killing a man by driving drunk and hitting him with his car. Then he gets off on a technicality. The wife is worried about the image so she hires a PR professional to basically make him look better. Then suddenly his lawyer is run over by a car and put in the hospital. The pr professional is trying to get to the bottom of what is going on. The man gives her the ick and seems like he’s lying. Did he do it? Was his wife involved? This basically sums up the first 75% of the book. For me the book moved to slow and didn’t go anywhere. I’m sure a lot of people will like this book though so go read it and prove me wrong.

"One Wrong Word" is a slow burn with snippets of suspense.
Multiple perspectives makes it hard to follow at times on audio. However, Gail Shalan narrates the audiobook well with a clear voice differing for each character. The narration helped keep me invested in the story. Multiple natrators would have been more effective and enhanced the listening experience. If you don't mind a slow burn that turns into an intense rollercoaster of twists at the end, then this one is for you. Overall an entertaining read ranking 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for the twisted ending.