My Friend's Husband by Rupa Mahadevan

 

Ebook:   336 pages                                                                         

Genre: Psychological Thriller, Crime Thriller, Mystery, 

Publisher:  June 11th  2026, Joffe Books,

Source:  NetGalley

First Sentences: Prologue: Caller: Help me ...please, someone.... They....I'm scared.....please please.....

Review Quote: ‘I really enjoyed this book. It had plenty of suspense and twists to keep you wanting to read on.’ Anita W.

My Opinion: 

'My Friend's Husband' is a dual timeline domestic thriller and the first book I have read by this author.

A young woman Roshni has been kidnapped and the story centres around the to main suspects, Clara, her friend and Roshni's husband Steve. The question is will Roshni be found alive or not?

A dark and intense story with plenty of betrayals and secrets that will appeal to fans of the genre.

Thanks to NetGalley, Joffe books and Rupa Mahadevan for the opportunity to read and review.

 

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

My best friend is missing. And the police think I did it. But her perfect husband is lying.

I’ve spent most of my life getting things wrong. Bad choices. Bad luck. Bad timing.

Roshni was my fresh start. She gave me a job. A room. A second chance.

Now she’s gone.

The day she vanished, she managed one desperate 999 call.
“Someone’s taken me. I’m in the boot of a car. Please—”

Then the line went dead.

I was the last person to see her alive. Now the police are closing in.

But they’re looking at the wrong suspect.

Because Steve — the devoted, devastated husband — isn’t who he claims to be.

A brilliantly twisty page-turner packed with nail-biting tension.

Author Profile:

                                         

                                          Photo and Bio Courtesy of Amazon 

Rupa Mahadevan is a passionate storyteller of character led and page turning thrillers that keep you guessing till the last chapter. Her books aim to be an alluring mixture of crime and culture.

She grew up on the south-eastern coast of India and has called the south-eastern coast of Scotland home for over fifteen years. she currently lives in Edinburgh with her husband and two children. When she is not grappling with Excel in her day job, she loves to read and dream up stories of her own.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Goodreads - Author Page.    Amazon Author Page

We Solve Murders (#1 in series) by Richard Osman

 

                                                      

Audiobook:  10 hours  33 minutes

Narrator: Nicola Walker

Genre: Contemporary Fiction, Mystery, Humour, Crime

Publisher: Penguin Audio September 2024

Source:  Audible Membership

First Sentence:  It had finally happened. 

Review Quote: ''The thing that shines through in Osman’s writing is that he really likes people and revels in all their foibles and eccentricities. All of which makes for a delightful read – and another little slice of warmth in time for autumn' THE OBSERVER

My Opinion:

As a fan of  'The Thursday Murder Club' series despite it not being a favourite genre I decided to listen to the first book in Richard Osman's new series 'We Solve Murders' via my Audible Membership.

The protagonists of this series are Amy Wheeler and her father-in-law Steve Wheeler. They are joined by a vast cast of characters, good and bad amongst them. Amy is currently working as a security officer for a famous novelist, when chaos kicks off with Amy discovering she has not only become a target for a hit man but that there is a murder that needs solving.

Unfortunately this novel has not given me the same vibes as 'The Thursday Murder Club' so doubt I will be reading/listening to any more adventures of the Wheeler duo. Don't get me wrong the characterisation and humour are as appealing as all the author's writing, this one just did not get me excited. It took me weeks to listen to the full book which is not a good sign, just lack of enthusiasm.  Still I can recommend to true fans of the genre and those who enjoy humour in a thriller.

My Reviews 

The Thursday Murder Club   The Man Who Died Twice. The Bullet That Missed

The Last Devil To Die

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar habits and routines: the pub quiz, his favorite bench, his cat waiting for him when he comes home. His days of adventure are over: adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s business now.

Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. As a private security officer, she doesn’t stay still long enough for habits or routines. She’s currently on a remote island keeping world-famous author Rosie D’Antonio alive. Which was meant to be an easy job...

Then a dead body, a bag of money, and a killer with their sights on Amy have her sending an SOS to the only person she trusts. A breakneck race around the world begins, but can Amy and Steve stay one step ahead of a lethal enemy?

Author Profile:         

Courtesy of  Goodreads

.

Richard Osman was born in Billericay, Essex, England on  November 28, 1970. He is now well known as an author, producer and television presenter. The Thursday Murder Club was his first novel. He is well known for TV shows including Pointless and Richard Osman’s House of Games. As the creative director of Endemol UK, Richard has worked as an executive producer on numerous shows including Deal Or No Deal and 8 Out of 10 Cats. He is also a regular on panel and game shows such as Have I Got News For You, Would I Lie To You and Taskmaster.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Amazon Author Page   Goodreads Author Profile  Twitter - Richard Osman

Hunger and Thirst by Claire Fuller

                                                        

Ebook:  352 pages                                                                            

Genre: Literary Fiction, Horror Thriller, Mystery,

Publisher:  Penguin, May 7th 2026

Source:  NetGalley

First Sentence:  All everyone wants to know about is the murder and what we did with the body:armchair detectives, tabloid journalists, the curious and the ghoulish, speculating on what happened.

Review Quote:  ‘An absolute masterpiece. Utterly absorbing, genuinely unsettling …like all the most terrifying horror films of the 70’s and 80’s and all the most scary ghost stories’ ― Jennie Godfrey, author of The List of Suspicious Things

My Opinion: 

Having previously found Claire Fuller's writing thought provoking I decided to read this novel. However I had no idea it was going to be so horrific, horror is certainly not a genre I'm drawn to. The author has said that this novel has the most of her in it, set in the town where she went to the art school where the protagonist of the story, Ursula works. She also has her living in the same squat but assures readers that this is where the similarities end.

Ursula's story is told across two timelines. The present day where she is now known as Uschi, a renowned sculptor who keeps her early years very much a secret. Until that is a documentary film maker starts researching into a mystery from the time she was known as Ursula, a young woman with a very troubled background. Unsettling as Ursula's memories appear to become fragmented in that she can no longer distinguish between reality and fiction.

Definitely unique! Although I am glad I had the opportunity to read 'Hunger and Thirst' I would never have done so had I known it was going to be quite so horrific and disturbing.  If you are a fan of horror stories, then this is one for you.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read and review.

Previous Review:  Unsettled Ground

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

1987: After a childhood trauma and years in and out of the care system, sixteen-year-old Ursula finds herself with a new job in the postroom of a local art school, a bed in a halfway house, and—delightfully— some new friends, including wild-child, Sue. When Ursula is invited to join a squat at The Underwood, a mysterious house whose owners met a terrible end, she can’t resist the promise of a readymade, hodgepodge family. 

But as Sue’s behaviour and demands become more extreme, Ursula who has always been hungry—for food—and more importantly for love, acceptance and belonging, carries out her friend’s terrible dare. It's a decision that will haunt her for decades.

Thirty-six years later, Ursula is a renowned, reclusive sculptor living under a pseudonym in London when her identity is exposed by true-crime documentary-maker who is digging into an unsolved disappearance. But it is not only the filmmaker who has discovered Ursula’s whereabouts, and as her past catches up with her present, Ursula must work out whether the monsters are within her or without.

From critically acclaimed and award-winning author, Claire Fuller, Hunger and Thirst is a compelling and chilling tale of loneliness and female friendship, of the dangerous line between wanting and needing, and of how far a person will go to truly belong.

Author Profile:

                                                    
                                                     Courtesy of Goodreads

 Claire Fuller was born in Oxfordshire in 1967. She trained as a sculptor before working in marketing for many years. In 2013 she completed an MA in Creative Writing, and wrote her first novel, Our Endless Numbered Days. It was published in the UK by Penguin, in the US by Tin House, in Canada by House of Anansi and bought for translation in 15 other countries. 

She is the author of six novels: Hunger and Thirst, The Memory of Animals, Unsettled Ground, which won the Costa Novel Award 2021 and was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction; Our Endless Numbered Days, which won the 2015 Desmond Elliott prize; Swimming Lessons, shortlisted for the Encore Prize; and Bitter Orange longlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award.

Photograph and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites.

Goodreads Author Profile   Claire Fuller - Official Website    Amazon Profile

Twitter Profile

The Opposite of Murder by Sophie Hannah

                                                           

Hardback:  357 pages

Genre:  Contemporary Murder Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery, Thriller

Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton 2026

Source:  Tywyn Public Library

First Sentence: This is my story and no one else's. In it I am a killer.

Review Quote: An ingenious puzzle of a novel that crackles with energy and menace -- Nicci French-Author 

My Opinion: 

Although I prefer Sophie Hannah's psychological thrillers, I have read some, but by no means all of her Spilling CID series of which 'The Opposite of Murder' is. Detectives Simon Waterhouse and Charlie Zailer are on the case again, this time investigating a murder that was confessed to before the event!  As with the previous novels in the series, this can be read as a stand alone story.

The story is set around the complicated family relationship that the female protagonist Jemma Stelling has had with her step-mother. This leads her to walk into a local Police Station and confess to a murder that she has planned but not yet committed. Most of the officers she spoke to did not take her seriously though. At the same time as Jemma is confessing a murder takes place that she would be the prime suspect for had she not already got the perfect alibi. Will Simon Waterhouse, Charlie Zailer and colleagues be able to solve this case, the twists and turns keep them and the reader guessing. The result was certainly not one I had expected.

Although I found this novel intriguing, I still prefer Sophie Hannah's psychological thrillers which I find more entertaining. If you are a crime fiction fan you will probably enjoy this one.

 

Previous Reviews:   Haven't They Grown  Little Face  Hurting Distance  Point of Rescue  

The Other Half Lives.  The Couple at the Table

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

What if the only way you could prevent a murder was by confessing to it?
5.05pm. A terrified Jemma Stelling walks into a police station and says she is about to commit a murder.
She knows that the person she hates most in the world, Marianne Cass, might soon be killed. She knows this because she is the one in danger of killing Marianne, and the urge to do so is growing stronger.
The only way to stop the struggle in her mind is to inform the authorities that Marianne is at risk - from Jemma herself. Desperate to be free of her frightening obsession, she seeks out police officer Simon Waterford and makes what she thinks of as a 'preventative confession'. 
5.05pm. Marianne Cass is murdered in her home.
But while Jemma is talking to the police, Marianne is brutally murdered. The time of death window means Jemma is unequivocally eliminated as a suspect.
The problem for Simon is that he's now positive that Jemma Stelling is a ruthless, cold-blooded killer, and possibly the most ingenious one he's ever encountered...

Author Profile:         

Sophie Hannah is a Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling writer of crime fiction, published in forty-nine languages and fifty-one territories. Her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. In 2014, with the blessing of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, Sophie published a new Poirot novel, The Monogram Murders, which was a bestseller in more than fifteen countries. She has since published two more Poirot novels, Closed Casket and The Mystery of Three Quarters, both of which were instant Sunday Times Top Ten bestsellers.

In 2013, Sophie’s novel The Carrier won the Crime Thriller of the Year Award at the Specsavers National Book Awards.  She has also published two short story collections and five collections of poetry – the fifth of which, Pessimism for Beginners, was shortlisted for the T S Eliot Award. Her poetry is studied at GCSE, A Level and degree level across the UK. Most recently, she has published a self-help book called How to Hold a Grudge: From Resentment to Contentment – The Power of Grudges to Transform Your Life.

Sophie has recently helped to create a Master’s Degree in Crime and Thriller Writing at the University of Cambridge, for which she is the main teacher and Course Director. She is also the founder of the DREAM AUTHOR coaching programme for writers. She lives with her husband, children and dog in Cambridge, where she is an Honorary Fellow of Lucy Cavendish College.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Sophie Hannah - Official Website  Twitter - Sophie Hannah  Facebook Profile 

Goodreads - Author Profile   Amazon Author Page.   Instagram Profile

The Weekend by T.M. Logan

                                                 

Ebook:  410 pages      

Genre:  Contemporary Thriller, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Suspense.                                         

Publisher: 26 Feb 2026 - Bonnier Books UK  Zaffre Publishing Group

Source:  NetGalley

First Sentences: We're lost. Jason won't admit it but I can always tell by the way he walks: striding ahead full of confidence as if he absolutely knows where he's going.

Review Quote: A fiendishly gripping 'What would I do?' thriller, which explores what it takes to crack apart a group of lifelong friends. This is T.M. Logan at his finest, delivering a rocketing pace, whiplash twists, and a stylish denouement. ― Lucy Clarke - Author

Setting:   Yorkshire Dales, Northern England

My Opinion: 

I first discovered the writing of T. M. Logan a couple of years ago. He is now definitely on my list of favourite thriller writers and this is the third of his novels I have read and enjoyed.

What would you do if you came across a large amount of cash, previously hidden in what must have been thought to be a safe place! This is the moral dilemma facing six friends when they come across a rucksack full of money, whilst out hiking during a weekend break together in the Yorkshire Dales. The story line is full of secrets and lies as the situation escalates, to what for me were some unexpected twists.

A fast paced gripping read that will keep surprising you. A must read if you are a thriller fan.

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads:

Six friends. Five secrets. One holiday to die for . . .

Welcome to THE WEEKEND.

When a group of friends rent a converted farmhouse in the Yorkshire Dales, they have little idea that this one weekend may change the course of their lives forever.

While out on a walk, a storm descends and the friends take shelter in the mouth of an old lead mine. Inside, they discover a backpack filled with more money than they've ever seen.

Of course, they agree, they will hand the money to the police at the first opportunity. But as the storm continues and time passes, some of the party begin to think again. Because there are secrets festering at the heart of this group. Debt. Obsession. A career on the brink. Problems that could be solved instantly with an unexpected windfall.

And perhaps they don't know each other as well as thought they did.

Before long, six good friends find themselves sliding headlong into a world of deceit, treachery, betrayal and murder . . .

Previous Reviews: The Dream Home.   The Daughter

Author Profile:                                                                                                

                                      

Bestselling author TM Logan was a national newspaper journalist before turning to novel-writing full time. His thrillers have sold more than two million copies in the UK and are published in translation in 22 countries around the world including France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, South Korea, Poland, Hungary, Serbia, Greece, Romania and the Netherlands.

He was born in Berkshire on the 19th of December 1975 and grew up in Reading, the youngest of three boys and a fully-fledged bookworm from a very young age. He read history at Westfield College, part of the University of London, and went on to do a postgrad at Cardiff University.

Wanting to write journalism seemed an obvious choice, and after five years as a reporter and then education correspondent on the Nottingham Evening Post he moved to London to work on the Daily Mail. The next move took him back to the East Midlands, where he worked for the University of Nottingham as a press officer, writing fiction in any spare time he could find. In January 2017 his first thriller was published. a few weeks later his current position as a deputy director in charge of the university’s communications team – was scrapped as part of a restructure. That was when he decided to take the plunge into writing full-time.

He lives in Nottinghamshire with his wife and two children, and writes in a cabin in the corner of his garden.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Goodreads Author Profile.    Amazon Author Page   Official Author Website

Twitter Profile.    Instagram Profile.   Facebook Profile

  

Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall

                                                 

Hardback:  307 pages 

Genre: Fiction, Historical Fiction,Romance, Mystery, Thriller,

Publisher:  John Murray 2025

Source: Tywyn Public Library

First Sentence: “The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.”

Setting: England

Review Quote: 'Excellent . . . a vivid, forceful love story which plays out at the pace of a thriller' Irish Times

Favourite Quote: “It’s strange, the patchwork stories we tell someone when we want them to catch up, a shortcut to knowing us, as if such a thing were possible.”

Goodreads Choice Award

Nominee for Readers' Favorite Historical Fiction (2025), Nominee for Readers' Favorite Audiobook (2025)

My Opinion:

Having heard nothing but praise for 'Broken Country' I was delighted when my library reservation was ready to collect. From the first page I felt this was going to be a read to get fully immersed in.

A dual timeline story that follows the lives of the three protagonists Beth, Frank and Gabriel. We first meet them as youngsters in 1955 when their lives first become entangled. By 1968 when they catch up with each other again, after many years, the dynamics have changed somewhat and a murder is committed.

An emotional read, but beware it deals with the grief of losing a child. Although it is also a romantic story which will tug at your heart strings as passion is intertwined with grief. Highly recommended.

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

Beth and her gentle, kind husband Frank are happily married, but their relationship relies on the past staying buried. But when Beth’s brother-in-law shoots a dog going after their sheep, Beth doesn’t realize that the gunshot will alter the course of their lives. For the dog belonged to none other than Gabriel Wolfe, the man Beth loved as a teenager—the man who broke her heart years ago. Gabriel has returned to the village with his young son Leo, a boy who reminds Beth very much of her own son, who died in a tragic accident.

As Beth is pulled back into Gabriel’s life, tensions around the village rise and dangerous secrets and jealousies from the past resurface, this time with deadly consequences. Beth is forced to make a choice between the woman she once was, and the woman she has become.

A sweeping love story with the pace and twists of a thriller, Broken Country is a novel of simmering passion, impossible choices, and explosive consequences that toggles between the past and present to explore the far-reaching legacy of first love.

Author Profile:       

                                                                                                                                    Courtesy of  Goodreads

Clare Leslie Hall is a novelist and journalist who lives in the wilds of Dorset, England, with her family. Under the name Clare Empson, she published two domestic noir thrillers, Him and Mine, that were published in the UK and Germany. She has always loved The Go Between by LP Hartley and Broken Country is a nod to it, featuring a forbidden love affair with catastrophic repercussions. Broken Country is her US debut.

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

Goodreads Author Profile.   Amazon Author Profile

Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell

  

Hardback:  456 pages  

Genre: Mystery,Thriller, Contemporary Psychological Thriller,                                              

Publisher: Penguin Random House 2025

Source: Tywyn Public Library

First Sentences: The house is spectacular. A huge white stucco villa on three floors plus attic rooms, a direct view of the sea visible through tall windows that frame the vista at the back and the front.

Review Quote: 'Lisa Jewell is a STONE COLD GENIUS! Don't Let Him In is a PHENOMENAL achievement' MARIAN KEYES

My Opinion:

Over the years that I have been reading this genre Lisa Jewell has become one of my go to favourites. In my opinion she is the queen of the contemporary psychological thriller.

In ‘Don’t Let Him In’ we meet a man of many names, Nick Radcliffe being one of his many pseudonyms and it this persona that finally brings him down. The man is a chilling and frighteningly plausible character, whose behaviour will shock you. To quote, ’He’s the perfect man. It’s a perfect lie.’ The women he has tormented over the years always fall for his charms and welcome him with open arms. Until one day someone starts to question his motives and his creepy world starts to fall apart.

If you have experience of the (author’s words) 'terrible men in this world' of which sadly there are some, you might find this rather a raw read. Worth doing so as the author successfully explores the psychology of such men. Highly recommend this novel to fans of the genre.

Links to Previous Reviews:  Then She Was Gone,  Watching You, The House We Grew Up In, The Family Upstairs,  The Night She Disappeared,  The Family Remains,  None of This is True

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

He’s the perfect man. It’s a perfect lie.

Nina Swann is intrigued when she received a condolence card from Nick Radcliffe, an old friend of her late husband, who is looking to connect after her husband’s unexpected death. Nick is a man of substance and good taste. He has a smile that could melt the coldest heart and a knack for putting others at ease. But to Nina’s adult daughter, Ash, Nick seems too slick, too polished, too good to be true. Without telling her mother, Ash begins digging into Nick’s past. What she finds is more than unsettling…

Martha is a florist living in a neighboring town with her infant daughter and her devoted husband, Alistair. But lately, Alistair has been traveling more and more frequently for work, disappearing for days at a time. When Martha questions him about his frequent absences, he always has a legitimate explanation, but Martha can’t share the feeling that something isn’t right.

Nina, Martha, and Ash are on a collision course with a shocking truth that is far darker than anyone could have imagined. And all three are about to wish they had heeded the same warning: Don’t let him in. But the past won’t stay buried forever.

Author Profile:

Lisa Jewell is an internationally bestselling author of successful  novels, including, Then She Was Gone, I Found You, The Girls in the Garden, and The House We Grew Up In. Her debut novel in 1998 Ralph’s Party, was an instant bestseller. In total, her novels have sold over 2 million copies across the English speaking world. Her work has also been translated into sixteen languages. Lisa lives in London with her husband and their two daughters.

For more biographical information check out her Goodreads Profile


Photograph, Trailer and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites.

Amazon Author Page    Lisa Jewell - Official Facebook Page     Wikipedia - Lisa Jewell

Twitter Profile    Goodreads Author Profile

Never Look Back (#3 in Christy Ward Series) by Susan Lewis

                                                           

Ebook:  320 pages 

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction,  Adult Fiction, Mystery 

Publisher:  HarperCollins (6 Nov 2025)

Source: My Kindle Library via NetGalley

First Sentence: 'I think my love, that I might have come up with a way out of the unfortunate situation we're in'

Review Quote:  Its a brilliantly written novel and has characters full of intrigue. Highly recommended Reader Review 

My Opinion: 

It is over twenty-five years ago that I first read a novel by Susan Lewis and I have continued to read her writing from time to time over the years. She is a prolific author, who writes across a broad range of genre, crime, thrillers, suspense and family drama. 

'Never Look Back' sees the return for a third story of podcasters Christy and Connor and their team with another mystery for 'Hindsight' their podcast. This time the company has been approached by a friend, as a close friend of their family has disappeared. they are worried about her safety as her behaviour is very out of character. Christy and Connor have doubts about the suitability of this live case for 'Hindsight' but curiosity gets the better of them and they decide to try and unravel the mystery.

In inevitable Susan Lewis style this cautionary tale for our times will keep you guessing and the use of Artificial Intelligence is particularly disturbing! Although the books in this series stand alone, reading them all in order enhances the understanding of the relationships between the characters. Recommended to those readers following the series, fans of mystery and the authors many fans.

Thanks to Net Galley, Harper Collins UK and the author for the opportunity to read and review.

Previous Reviews:  A Sicilian Affair.  Don't Believe A Word Nothing to See Here

Précis Courtesy of Goodreads: 

A dead husband. A missing wife. Will they find her in time?

Romy Kaplan has vanished from her home.

Or has she?

When Romy begins posting on her social media accounts asking everyone to stop looking for her, the police are certain she is safe. But Romy's nearest and dearest are far from convinced.

Her husband died in the bath under inconclusive circumstances six weeks ago. And Romy would never disappear without telling someone where she is going.

As true crime podcast host, Cristy Ward, picks up Romy's case… she has the whole world asking…

Where is Romy now?

Author Profile:         

                                                                         

                                      

                                               Courtesy of Official Author Website 

I was born in 1956, in Bristol.  My father was a Welsh miner, a poet, an engineer and a thinker.  My mother was one of 13 children who, at 20, persuaded my father to spend his bonus on an engagement ring instead of a motorbike.  We were a normal, happy, nuclear family, living in a spanking new council house on the outskirts of town – my mother’s pride and joy.  But we were going to do better, my mother had made up her mind about that.  My father, an unabashed communist, was writing a book, I was signed up for ballet, elocution, piano and eventually a private boarding school, and my brother, (the real great love of my mother’s life) was going to succeed at everything he set his mind to.

The rest of this fascinating biography can be read on the authors  Official Author Website

Photographs and Biographical Information courtesy of the following sites:

 Official Author Website  Twitter Profile   Instagram Profile   Facebook Profile 

Amazon Profile    Goodreads Profile