"The First Mistake" was a fabulous read that had me totally gripped from the start. With a fantastic plotline and brilliant characters, this was a superb thriller that kept me guessing throughout. This amazing second novel by Sandie Jones should certainly not be missed. A magnificent read and well worth five stars!

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel, at my own request, from Pan Macmillan via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I really didn't think it was possible for The First Mistake to blow me away as much as Ms Jones's debut, The Other Woman, but —mission successful! It is undoubtedly one of the most compelling and gasp-worthy works of domestic noir mixed with psychological thriller I've read this year so far.

It centres around two women, Alice and Beth, and the men who are their significant others. Alice has everything she could ever want: a new husband, two great kids and a thriving design business, but she can't escape her belief that hubby Nathan is being unfaithful. Whether her cheating anxiety is justified or merely paranoia will form part of the reveal. Beth, a single mother, is Alice's friend and confidante and they have both been there for each other through thick and thin. However, soon Alice is not only questioning the trust she had in Nathan but that which she had in Beth too.

What follows is a drama-filled, slow-burn thriller with a sizzling intensity and dark secrets lurking just below the surface. It's taut, twisty and so beautifully written you cannot fail to be captivated from the opening chapter. You truly feel for Alice and her situation as she is surrounded by some sneaky, underhand people who have only their own interests in mind. It's a gritty and gripping read in which no one can be trusted and nothing is ever what it first appears. I don't want to give away the ending suffice to say that it will divide readers. Some will love it, others will not. Recommended. Many thanks to Pan for an ARC.

I received an e-ARC copy of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this book sounded really interesting and like a real psychological thriller, but the actual book really disappointed. I had to rush through this book towards the end because I was really not enjoying it. I honestly don't think I enjoyed any part of this book and just became really annoyed with it.

My main gripes with the book were;
The book is not paced well at all so there are moments in the middle that just drag on and it seems like we're constantly reading the same pages over and over, and then suddenly the ending feels really rushed and the book is just over.

There were some quite confusing narrative perspective changes and it just confused me a bit. We spend most of the book in first person so moving to third person at the end was just a little bit odd.

The actual plot itself was just... too much. It felt like the author had so many ideas to try and squish in and it just didn't work out well. The plot twists were so obvious; we have Beth who is meant to be Alice's best friend and at every opportunity she avoids Alice's husband Nathan. AND ALICE NEVER NOTICED THIS OR PICKED UP ON IT. It was clear this was deliberate and it was clear that the plot twist was going to be about Nathan and not about her deceased husband.

The characters; if I don't connect with a character I really struggle to connect with and enjoy the book, and this was my main issue with this book that the characters were just quite unlikable.

This book just felt like an obvious tick-the-box thriller story. I don't think i'd be looking at reading any other books by this author at this time.

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.
This was one of those books where you think you know what’s going on and then something happens and you realise you were wrong.
It was fairly exciting, with a good pace and interesting characters. I enjoyed it but was a bit let down by the final reveals and felt it was a little bit unrealistic. Such a shame as I loved her first book and was so looking forward to reading this one.
3.5 stars

One of my favourite books of the year! I couldn't put this down, so many twists and turns and I loved the ending - can't wait for more from this author!

Great mystery and a really good read. Couldn't put it down. Will look out for more from the author. Thanks for the opportunity to read

I read The Other Women by Sandie Jones earlier this year and I loved it. Full of crazy twists and turns and a brilliant ending I didn’t see coming!

As her second book, this was also full of exciting plot twists and interesting characters. I loved how the narrative switched between Alice Present Day and Beth 9 Years Ago then finally to Alice and Beth Present Day.

I liked the characters and I felt like the book was very well thought out and interesting. It seemed well researched and I enjoyed seeing the main women in a domestic thriller have a well paid and successful business. Makes a bit of a change! But the epilogue threw me a little. I didn’t know what to make of it - perhaps that was the intention!

Overall this was a great book. I preferred The Other Woman but this was still well worth the read!

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

# The First Mistake # Netgalley
I was absolutely besotted with this book. Beth’s story and Alices. I was so so really hooked by it. However right at the very end I have to say I was so frustrated and disappointed. I knew exactly what was going to happen based on where Alice Beth and Nathan where. It became so obvious. Regarding epilogue there wasn’t really I need for it to be honest. Up until that point I was in awe of the book, well and truly just such a shame it ended as I thought it would.it genuinely was such a bad finish unfortunately.

This book is the first I've read by Sandie Jones, it's full of twists and turns. I thought I'd sussed it all out but oh boy was I wrong. This was told in three alternative narratives. Alice in present, Beth nine years previously and then Alice and Beth in present day. I think it would of been interesting to have have another narrative to see it through other people's eyes. I really enjoyed this and look forward to reading more from Sandie.

Thanks goes to net galley and the publishers for providing me a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillian for this advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review and feedback. This was a really good fast paced domestic thriller which I could not put down. One or two well played out twists kept me guessing right until the last page. Another great page turner by Sandie Jones

Tom was the love of Alice’s life and the Father of her first child. Following Tom’s death, Alice meets Nathan and within their first year they are married, with a baby on the way.
Alice has everything, her own successful business, a great marriage, two children, a beautiful house and her best friend, Beth.
Cracks begin to show in various aspects of Alice’s life and she soon suspects her Husband of having an affair, but is she being paranoid? She turns to Beth, who is keeping secrets of her own and Alice soon learns who she can trust.
This is a very cleverly entwined psychological thriller, but it could be argued that it is a little overcomplicated. I guessed early on how the main plot was going to pan out, but it didn’t spoil my reading experience as there were still lots of unforeseen twists to come.

I absolutely loved this authors first book so was very excited to read this one. It was full of twists and turns which kept me hooked the whole way through. I read it in two sittings and would highly recommend it.

Oh my goodness, this book is amazing! I loved every page and I’m gutted that I’ve finished it. The book is fast paced and the ending great. It’s one of the best that I’ve read this year and worthy of 5 stars.

The Other Woman was one of my favourite books of last year and one that I recommended to many especially as a holiday read as, once started, it was impossible to put down. So Her First Mistake was a must read for me!! Did it live up to my super high expectations?! Absolutely!!! It’s another twisty relationship thriller which will keep you guessing until the very last page.

I love it when a book takes me in a totally different direction to the one I was expecting and here, Sandie Jones made me do a complete 180 degree turnaround in my expectations with a twist part way through Her First Mistake that I hadn’t seen coming! With my jaw firmly planted on the floor, I had to then reassess my opinions of characters I thought had been thrown in to support our protagonist but who had been quietly waiting to surprise us.

Sandie Jones writes involving and gripping moral dilemmas with characters that you can empathise with even if you don’t find them particularly likeable! Expect your emotions to be played with throughout with some shocking twists and behaviours but, OH MY GOODNESS, what a thrilling denouement!

This is a brilliant second novel from Sandie Jones and I loved every page!

Another cracking read from this author. It was hard to put down and I didn't guess the end but I like that.

love this author and this book did not disappoint! and this was another hit for me!! enjoyed every page! i cannot wait for more!

Brilliant read that has you guessing in all directions. Not often I lose sleep staying up to finish a book but I did for this one. Lots of originality. and very contemporary. An author I will look out for as she has a great future

Thanks to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is another good, fast paced, quick read from Jones. I really enjoyed this book but I just don't think it had as much of a shocking twist as her previous book. And the ending was quite abrupt. I'd still recommend it to people who enjoy a thriller and who like guessing what the twists are before they come.

Wow! I was captivated from page 1...........A thriller with so many twists and turns that I hadn't a clue as to what was going on and that's just the way I like my thrillers. I read this book in 2 sittings and I'm thinking of re-reading it - and that's something I NEVER do with a book. The last few chapters left me breathless wondering what the outcome was going to be. I won't say any more as to do so would be to spoil the enjoyment for other readers.

This is an entertaining read focussing on two women and the men in their lives. Alice, whose first husband Tom dies, but now has a wonderful husband Nathan and a business that is going from strength to strength. She still suffers anxiety over what happened to her first husband and so it is unclear if her fears about Nathan being faithful are justified or paranoia. Beth is her new friend. she is a single Mum and midway through the book, her back story is filled in. Their lives are more closely intertwined than Alice realises, and there is a big twist at the end that brings everything together.
However, (probably because I read a lot of thrillers) I did guess the twist early on. The plot was somewhat disjointed and not as strong as it could have been. Essentially everything happens because the women are so gullible / too trusting. I would perhaps have felt more invested if it was a little clearer how close Beth and Alice were supposed to be. There was also a strange focus on Thomas's tattooed arm which kept making me laugh every time it was mentioned.

My thanks go to the publishers and Net Galley for the advanced copy in return for an honest review.