Well, well, well. Who would have thought this would be the outcome of this story? I certainly did not, because I was so proud of myself in thinking that I had it all figured out. It seems like I was shooting the penalty kick but completely missing the goal. 

This is a book that slowly builds up to the climax, but once you start getting closer to the revelations, you feel like your are walking on quicksand, are being dragged into it and honestly that all you want at that moment.

It's such a pleasure being utterly wrong-footed and being surprised with something you did not see coming a mile away.

If you are more into fast paced thrillers, you might think this is not your cup of tea. I assure you that you have to give it a go, because you will not be disappointed.

Do you love books that leave you with an OMG feeling? In this case, you just have to read this one.

Thank you, Samantha Hayes, Bookouture and Netgalley.

Having loved Tell Me a Secret by Samantha Hayes I couldn’t wait to get my hands on her latest offering! The Liar’s Wife had me gripped straightaway and I flew through the pages; it was another book that I couldn’t put down until I had answers to all my questions.

Work. Home. Sleep. Repeat – this is Ella Sinclair’s mantra in life and one that she sticks to rigidly. She is obviously a recluse and we are left wondering why; what is it that she is running/hiding from? Even enthusiastic work colleague Liam can’t break through her routine and tempt her on an evening out. Ella does not socialise in any capacity, she cycles home alone to her flat every day so when she is involved in a traffic accident and wakes to be told her devoted husband Jacob has been waiting for her to wake up and take her home my brain did a little flip and my stomach dropped. Ella is obviously terrified of this man but he claims to hold information on a terrible secret from her past that he will reveal if she doesn’t play the happy little wife.

So begins a dark and disturbing story of Ella being incapacitated and held against her will by a very dangerous (and clearly demented) man. Jacob is one of the most horrible characters I have read recently, my skin was crawling over his actions and my heart was in my mouth every time Ella had a confrontation with him or broke his many rules. I was desperate to know what this secret from the past was that Ella and Jacob shared and as The Liar’s Wife reached its epic conclusion my mind was well and truly blown!

Synopsis
Ella Sinclair lives a reclusive and predictable life; wake, work, sleep. She keeps herself to herself and tries hard to keep her head down and her life people free.

That is until the day that Ella wakes in hospital after an accident to be told that her husband, Jacob, has been visiting. Confusing to Ella because she’s never been married!

After a lengthy stay in hospital, Jacob takes Ella home to begin their new life together, leaving Ella with limited choices. Escape is not an option because he knows something from her past that would devastate her whole world.



Review
This book had me hooked from the beginning. To begin with, there are the many clues about Ella’s past and why she has become so aloof and alone. Then there’s the unexpected appearance of a ‘husband’ that we know does not exist, a person from Ella’s past who has something over her, enough to make her play along with his cruel and wicked game of happy families.

The character of Jacob was written in such a way that my skin crawled every time he was there. Occasionally I would become frustrated with Ella, willing her to shout out or tell some one what was happening.

I spent the reading time sitting with a huge pit of fear in my stomach, always wondering what was going to happen next. each chapter unravelled a new element to the story. The flashback chapters provided glimpses into Ella’s life before and the people in it. The present scenes became more and more intense as the book went on with each appearance of Jacob becoming more sinister and monstrous as the previous one.

Each chapter build tension until it ends a twisted crescendo of fear and panic.

I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend it to any thriller/suspense lovers.

This is a breathtaking read which had me racing through the pages to see what happened next.
Ella likes her own space and lives alone. She doesn’t like socialising and just wants to get home rather than go out with her colleagues at work.
One night whilst cycling home she’s hit by a van and wakes up in hospital.
The nurse is lovely and brings her round gently but Ella is in for a shock when the nurse says her husband has been in everyday while she has been in a coma.
Ella is shocked as she’s not married.
Her stomach churns when she realises who he is and she knows she must go along with the charade as he knows her secret.
Ella is told that ‘her husband’ has adapted their home for the wheelchair that she will need for several weeks and the nurse tells her how lucky she is....
When Ella gets ‘home’ she finds out just how far he has gone to get her under his control.
This is a nail biting story at times and I was desperate for Ella to get the upper hand.
If you enjoy a gripping psychological thriller then this is the book for you.
Thanks to Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Whilst the book had a well thought out plot and was well written, when the twists were revealed they were not a shock as not enough information had been given for the reader to have speculated on the outcome.

If the reader had had more clues and misleading clues along the way then the suspense would have built up and the twists would have been more eagerly anticipated.

Regardless of this, it was enjoyable written, flowed well with a good storyline.

The Liar's Wife is a mind-twisting tale that will have you dangling helplessly from the edge of your seat; with heart-pounding action and suspense at every turn, you'll be completely captivated from start to finish! This first time read shocked me with it's exquisitely crafted words and had me in a state constant suspicion over every character that graced the pages. If you like your reads fast paced, filled with tension and heavy on suspense then I highly suggest you get your hands on this book, it promises to give you all of that and more! By far one of the best thrillers I have settled down with this year!

I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, via NetGalley, and I am voluntarily leaving my honest opinion.

Samantha Hayes

The Liar’s Wife

5 Stars

I am a fan of Samantha Hayes but this book is one of her best and it does keep you guessing until you reach “The End”.

This is a story about Ella, who lives on her own and keeps to herself at work, she is a self-contained unit of one and that is how she wants it to stay. However, things change dramatically when she is hit by a van whilst cycling home from work one evening and when she comes round in the hospital there is a man sat beside her bed who says he is her husband and he will, and does, do everything to keep Ella under his control.
I do not want to give any more of the story away because it will spoil it for the reader but you will not be disappointed. Word of warning – you may need to read this with the light on and a box of tissues to hand.
Samantha has not only written a physiological thriller but also a tale of abuse and terror. Ella is a believable and strong character who will stay with you long after you have finished her story.

The story flips between the present day and Ella’s University days, and the friendships and relationships she made at that time. Both present and past are equally engaging and I raced through each era to get to the next. Samantha has packed a lot into her story and every time I thought I had sussed out the characters - BANG there was another plot added.

Take a bow Samantha and hurry up and eagerly await your next book.

What can I say other than what a creepy and intense read this book is! Well alright I can say more although I'm not entirely sure where to start or even what to say as I would hate to ruin a single moment of this book. The Liar's Wife follows Ella who appears to lead a quiet kind of life and who sticks to her own company until an accident puts her in hospital and everything changes but not in a good way!

This book has such an addictive feel to it with me feeling ever so curious as to what was actually going on. It really is a one more chapter kind of book until before you know it you have nearly finished the book! My mind was constantly trying to come up with answers and the not knowing was half of the fun. The main question being who is Ella's husband? 

There were quite a few moments where this book felt increasingly claustrophobic and I felt as if I needed to read it through my fingers! There were times where in a way I guess I had to slightly suspend disbelief but to be honest this probably added to the drama of the story. The characters in this story really made this book especially one in particular who sent shivers up my spine. Put it this way they were responsible for providing plenty of dark, unsettling and disturbing moments. 

The Liar's Wife is full of secrets and Samantha Hayes revealed them at the perfect points so that the tension was kept pretty constant throughout. I had my suspicions regarding certain things and I couldn't wait to see if I was going to be right. There are a few threads within the story so the reader gets to see the past, present and a couple of different perspectives too. This all helps to keep things interesting but the moments where Ella and her 'husband' are at home really do make a chilling impact and I was especially addicted to these chapters.

The Liar's Wife has mystery, suspense and a deep rooted tension running throughout, loved it!

With thanks to Noelle at Bookouture for my copy via Netgalley.

I'm a big Samantha Hayes fan, but this one had me in a tailspin. Meaning – I enjoyed it but there were too many moments when I sat back and thought, 'Nope, not buying this'. For me, it comes down to the 'improbable versus impossible' conundrum. There are certain things I can swallow while reading a book – especially a twisty thriller where nothing is quite what is seems – but from the outset I was screaming at main character Ella to just bloody open her mouth and say something!
I won't go on about the plot, which was certainly well thought out and executed. I figured out the twist early on, despite a plethora of red herrings. And there were other 'fishy' moments, particularly surrounding Ella and Jacob's baby. I just couldn't believe that kindly neighbours would accept her version of events so readily.
All that said, this is an eminently readable book. The author writes with fluidity and style and knows how to suck you in with each chapter. I just don't think – compared to The Reunion – that it fully hits the mark.

I tried so very hard to like this book, because it sounded so intriguing - but unfortunately it didn't work for me at all. This is partly due to the fact that it hinges on actions by the main character I found to be totally far fetched and unbelievable, and I am ready to admit that I am terrible at suspending disbelief. Secondly, I found it hard to relate to any of the characters, both in the past and the present, which didn't help matters. Seeing how this is a slow burning, character driven story, I was therefore doomed from the very beginning! Even the lure of the unexpected twist could not salvage this for me, and I resign myself to the fact that this is not the right book for me at this time. I have read and enjoyed Samantha Hayes' books in the past, so I will definitely give her another go, but decided to DNF this one around the halfway mark. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review it.

As I recently mentioned I’ve read far fewer psychological thrillers than usual in 2018 but occasionally a book, or author has come across my radar that begs to be picked up. The Liar’s Wife was one such book; I’ve read previous books by this author, her earlier books being published long before this genre burst into popularity.

And The Liar’s Wife has a premise that you know is going to prove to be a gripping one if only to work out what on earth everyone’s motivation is!

Ella works on promotional films and one night after working a little later, as usual refusing to go for a drink with her colleagues, she gets on her bike to go home. On the way a van clips her bike and she hits the ground. The van driver, as she finds out later speeds off and an ambulance is called to take Ella to hospital.
Ella wakes from a coma to a nurse saying that her husband is on his way to visit her but Ella doesn’t have a husband. However unlike any normal person even when Ella is on the road to recovery she doesn’t tell the nurses who are devoted to her, who this man is. No she keeps quiet and lets him take her home to his house in a gated community. The thing is you see is Ella knows who the man is and keeping quiet is a far better option than that secret being exposed.

The story is full of suspense with the twists and turns kept to the right number, enough to allow the reader to get swept up in the story but not so many that the reader gets that travel sickness feeling as the road ahead is switched backwards and forwards before you’ve got your bearings.

Samantha Hayes knows how to write a good story, the tone is right with the dialogue perfectly pitched (one of my biggest gripes is that the villains in these stories often do little more than menace and grunt while their supposed charm would raise the red flags at an alarming rate of knots). I’d like to stress just how well the author recreated married life for Ella once she was at ‘home’ and the scenes were right up there on the creepy scale and I was absolutely on the edge of my seat for these. And then it all tipped over into the unrealistic territory which was a great shame as my enthusiasm then waned somewhat before the ending. That said, I will stress that part of my ‘problem’ with the genre is the number of books I have read within it. I know that if my brain starts flashing ‘I can’t believe that would happen’ types of warnings that no matter how good the author is, I’m unlikely to buy into anything else and of course what I find unbelievable won’t necessarily apply to the next person.

So if you really do enjoy a fast-moving and well-written psychological thriller The Liar’s Wife has a lot to offer.

I'd like to thank the publishers Bookouture for allowing me to read a copy of The Liar's Wife before publication later this week on 22 November 2018. This unbiased review is my thanks to them.

This is a really good read. I did not suspect what the twist was which made it more of a thriller. Parts of the story are unbelievable and I did not warm to any of the characters but the plot compensates for that. The whole idea and the way the reader is told everything bit by bit makes this a good riveting read.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

A compelling psychological thriller that's impossible to put down!
Ella likes her quiet life. Work, sleeping, microwave dinners for one. That's the life! Or is it? Riding home from work one rainy night she is struck down by a van. She awakens in the hospital with a broken wrist and a metal pin in her knee. She has been in a coma. Sue, her nurse brings her up to date on things, which she tries to comprehend in her medicated muffled brain. She is not so overly medicated and in such agonizing pain, to know that she doesn't have a husband. No matter how many times Sue tells her how wonderful and lovingly concerned he's been. He has been sitting at her bedside since she was brought in. What!?!
Then he steps in, Zack! Or was it Harry, or maybe Jacob? One is her boyfriend, one is her lover and one is her twin brother. Now, one of them is her husband. What a terrifying husband he is! He will get his way one way or another. Even if he has to blackmail her. After all he has proof she's a murderer.
A truly exciting and intriguing read! Had me guessing right up to the end. A definite must read!

In The Liar's Wife, Ella has a quiet, ordered life—work, home sleep—until she is the victim of a hit-and-run on her way home one night. She emerges from an induced coma to a broken body and reassurances that her husband will be back soon. Except that she isn't married. Things get much worse when she recognises her so-called husband – a man from the past life she has hidden herself from. A man who has a hold over her because of something she did a decade ago. And so things get much worse for Ella as she tries to play the part of dutiful wife... The Liar's Wife is a slow-burning psychological thriller that builds into a pacey read as it comes to its bloody end. I found this an enjoyable, twisty read.

3.5 stars for me. This was a good read, which you are always guaranteed with Samantha Hayes. But... I didn't enjoy it as much as her other books. Something just didn't quite click with this book for me. Still a good read though.

The premise was honestly jaw-dropping. It 100% lived up to that in the novel itself. I really hope this becomes a big hit because there are SO many books in this genre that have tons of fans but aren't that good; this is SO GOOD!

I love Samantha Hayes' books. I think she writes some of the best characters and her plots are always so twisty.
The Liar's Wife is another fantastic twisty, unsettling and ultimately shocking book, just what I've come to expect and just as brilliant as the rest.
If you haven't read Samanthas books this is a great place to start. If you have, then you know what your are in for, a real treat! A superb psychological page turner, I'd recommend to everyone.

Thank you!

Wow! What a complete and utter page Turner! This had me gripped at the edge of my seat all the way through. The storyline was so complex and compelling as were the characters. I had completed and utter empathy for Ella, my stomach even flipped for her in certain situations. All of the characters were completely believable.

The only reason I have given this book 4 stars is because I worked out the plot twist quite early on in the story.

Would give 4.5 stars if I could. This book is a definite must read for all those interested in the thriller genre.

This book is a very slow burner - if you like your thrillers to start off fast and get faster, maybe look elsewhere. If you're willing to marinate on a book for a while though and then let it slowly unfurl its story like a budding flower, check this one out!

This is a dark, unsettling read with the necessary twists and turns to make this genre work.

Trapped by her past in a horrific situation after waking from a medically induced coma the badly injured Ella is desperate to escape from her husband.

It's more of a slow burner than the author's earlier books and although I was eager to see what happened and whether I'd solved the twist some of the characters, events and reactions were for me a little implausible and did niggle and interrupt my enjoyment of the book.

I'm sure that readers new to Sam Hayes' books will love this one, for me as she is one of my absolute 'go to' authors this one just fell a little short when compared to her earlier books. 3.5-4 stars

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read this book. My honest thoughts and opinion are expressed in this review.