I love Louise Jensen books and have read them all. I love the way the story builds and you don't want to actually put the book down as there is yet another layer of suspense, that you just need to find out what happens next. This is exactly what The Family delivered. The story unfolds, each scene told from the perspective of the mother Laura, and then by Tilly her daughter, with a few chapters described by Alex, the head of the cult 'Family' he has created. The book keeps you guessing as to the intentions of the characters. It is dark and mysterious. My only flaw with the book is that I felt I didn't know enough about some of the characters to feel a great connection, and some areas felt a tad disjointed and rushed in some ways. The ending is left open, which I found a little disappointing - i felt there was still further to go, but then it ended abruptly. Having said that, its a great book with all of Louise's lovely writing style and suspense.

Another great psychological thriller full of twists and turns from Louise Jensen - I just don't know where she gets all her ideas from!! At the center of this story is Laura and Tilly, a mother and daughter recently bereaved. Things were a struggle even before Laura's husband (Tilly's father) dies suddenly, but since his death things have taken a turn for the worse and Laura finds herself drowning in debt, lies and secrets. But, she's not the only one telling lies and harboring secrets...it seems everyone has something to hide!

Brilliantly told and full of characters you will both love and hate. I'm looking forward to whatever Louise Jensen writes next.

Laura has lost her husband in a tragic accident. She now faces losing her house and her business. Her sister in law has informed her she is no longer part of the family. Its just her and Tilly, her daughter against the world.
She is then taken under the wing of a local community - Oak Leaf Organics. However, is all as it seems. Can Laura and Tilly ever leave and what do the community want from them?
This will keep you guessing to the last page. It twists and turns and leaves you wanting more.

Well, that was a queue the creepy music kind of read! All the way through it I was thinking, I would LOVE to see this on screen!
Laura has just about reached breaking point following the death of her husband. She faces losing her business and her home when a young woman from a local farm comes along just at the right time and offers her, and her daughter, Tilly, a lifeline. But can Laura really trust those she soon comes to think of as her family?
Told from alternative points of view, Laura, Tilly and farm manager, Alex, The Family is a dark and disturbing tale of secrets and lies. It pokes and prods your brain making you wonder just how far you would go to protect the ones you love. It is a sinister read and getting inside of the head of each of the characters was a genius way of telling the story. Because I knew what each of them were thinking I could hear myself scream...Nooooooooooooooooooo...a few times. But don't think that this means you have an easy read ahead of you! Nope! in true Louise Jensen style there are twists and turns galore...so much so that you will have no clue whether you are coming or going by the time you are finished.
A few other reviews have mentioned a cult element to this story but please don't be put off by this or have any preconceived ideas about what you are going to read. It is way much more than that! It explores influences from our pasts; how others can influence and manipulate, assumptions and family dynamics. Towards the end it became a little confusing at times but I think that's just because I was reading so fast in excitement! Once I focused I loved how everything was revealed. An intriguing ending which may irritate some but one that I definitely enjoyed!
My review will appear on my blog as part of the blog tour

From the prologue I was gripped, I wasn't entirely sure what had happened but I knew I wanted to find out more.

Throughout reading this I had a deeply unsettled feeling, there was so many secrets and twists, it really keeps you on your toes.

The setting I think is a big part of the creepy atmosphere of this book, as most of it is set in an isolated farm community, that has taken Laura and Tilly in. But once they are in, you have to wonder if they will ever be allowed to leave.

As you may guess from the title this book explores the themes of family, and whether ties are stronger with a flesh family, or one that you have chosen for yourself. There are so many strands of family based story, not just with Laura and Tilly, but also other members of the community.

We get to see inside Laura, Tilly and Alex's heads, although the lion's share of the book was devoted to Laura, the other voices really added to the overall story. At times I had no idea which characters I could really trust or not.

This is the first Louise Jensen book that I've read, and now I'm wondering why I haven't read her other books, something that I intend to fix in the future, or at least keep following her new releases. The writing was fabulous, i was never completely sure which way was up, and how real this remote community was, and their way of life, was impressive. I felt as though I was alongside them.

The Family kept me hooked and guessing until the very end.

Thank you to HQ on Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Laura has reached rock bottom. Her husband, Gavin, has been killed in an accident on a building site, and due to Gavin building on toxic land, the community she was once a part of have turned against her in her hour of need. Customers to her once flourishing flower shop are now virtually non-existent and Laura isn’t able to pay her rent. To top it all, the insurance company is refusing to pay-out until further investigations into Gavin’s death have been carried out. With her parents disowning her for something Laura has done in the past, the only people Laura and her daughter, Tilly, can rely on are Gavin’s brother and his family. But now, even they are refusing to help, so when Saffron shows Laura kindness and offers her a way out, Laura takes Saffron up on her offer. But, as Laura says, things come in threes, and this was her first mistake. Her second mistake was taking Tilly with her. Both of these mistakes come very early on in the story and I couldn’t turn the pages quick enough to find out what the third mistake would be.

With a chilling prologue that immediately draws you in, the narrative continues from three points of view: the first person perspectives of Laura and Tilly, and the third-person limited perspective of Alex. It is from Tilly’s perspective that we learn Gavin was keeping secrets: ‘don’t tell Tilly.’ As far as Laura is concerned, Gavin was the love of her life, so what secret did he hide from her? As well as being caught in the middle of her father’s secret, Tilly is having a rough time of things at school. She’d always been best friends with her cousin, Rhiannon, but with the school bully isolating Tilly whilst at the same time drawing Rhiannon into the ‘in’ crowd, vulnerable Tilly soon becomes susceptible to Alex’s attention.

Handsome and charismatic Alex is the person who runs the ‘organic farm’, and has both Laura and Tilly under his spell. By giving him his own voice, the author allows the reader a glimpse into both his warped mind as well as the painful past that has shaped the man he has become. However, by switching to third-person, this allows a degree of distance and juxtaposes Alex’s perspective with the closer first-person perspectives of Laura and Tilly; leaving the reader in no doubt as to who to route for.

The middle part of the story centres around life on Oak Leaf Farm itself: the set-up, the others who live there. It is this part of the story that I found darker and much more creepy than the author’s other novels. Although, it was made clear that Laura could leave at any time, the sense of isolation from the rest of the world, both physically as well as mentally, made it feel this wasn’t possible. I just couldn’t put the book down here; I had to read on and get Laura and Tilly out of there!

The latter part of the narrative is where the strands of Laura’s past and present really come together; and it isn’t until now that the novel’s title really takes on its true meaning. I was sure I was right about the fate of one of the characters but OMG I didn’t see that one coming– what a twist that was! If you think life on the farm is dark and creepy, that ending will send shivers down your spine…

As well as her well-plotted storylines, what I like about this author is her unique writing style. Sentences are clean and uncluttered; and whilst rich in vivid imagery, the narrative isn’t over flowery. Louise Jensen says what needs saying, then gets out; resulting in a fast-paced and heart-pounding experience for the reader.

I absolutely loved The Family; yet another fantastic read from Louise Jensen. I would recommend this book for fans of Lisa Jewell, Jane Schemilt, and Jo Ullah.

3.5 stars
I'm a fan of Louise Jenson but I wasn't a big fan of the subject of this one, the cult element didn't do it for me at all. I have enjoyed other books by Louise so I will still look forward to the next one.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Full review to follow.

Another gripping thriller from author Louise Jensen. Full of emotion from the start, you can feel the slow building menace and sense the unease that follows the main characters throughout. The whole set up of the community and the isolation keeps you on edge as a reader and makes you loathe to trust anyone. Even the main characters seem to be holding something back and nothing can prepare you for what is set to be revealed.

Much of the story makes absolute sense, the feeling of loss experienced by the central characters, the kind of mental breakdown that one or two of them seem to be going through. Even the feeling of inadequacy that Tilly experiences through being ostracised by her school friends all feels authentic and adds to the emotional depth of the story. Great stuff and a very addictive read that I finished in a couple of days.

Now, The Family is a very tense thriller from Louise Jensen. Louise’s writing made this book so utterly gripping. I was intrigued by the residents of Oak Leaf Farm, especially the dark and mysterious Alex, who is their leader and holds everything together. The darkness creeps into the pages of Louise’s book. It kept me turning the pages as I wondered what was going to happen next.

Laura and her daughter, Tilly, have already suffered unimaginable trauma. Laura’s husband and Tilly’s father, Gavan, has fallen to his death after a visit to one of his construction sites. But in the wake of Gavan’s passing, disturbing details about his business come to light, and people begin to turn on Laura and Tilly, including their own family. Desperate for help, Laura seeks refuge at Oak Leaf Farm and very soon Tilly is pulled into Alex’s orbit. Infatuated by Alex, Tilly is desperate to stay, but Laura is starting to see what is going on here and wants to get out. But someone is very keen to make sure that they never leave.

I found Louise Jensen’s latest thriller to be completely unpredictable. As Laura and Tilly became a part of the community at Oak Leaf, I initially thought this would be a good thing for them. It soon starts to become clear, however, that Alex was keen for them to stay for an altogether different reason. I never felt though that the community was completely shut off from the wider world. Although they use all their own homegrown produce and don’t use technology, I didn’t get the sense they were prisoners there. It felt like a very welcoming community, and this is what made the characters who were a part of it all the more fascinating. I wanted to know just why they wanted to be a part of it and what made them stay.

The tension soon begins to build as the story progresses, and I started to fear for both Laura and Tilly. I couldn’t work out what was going on behind the scenes. Tilly, I felt especially sorry for, particularly for what she was going through at school, reminding us that school can be an incredibly tough time for teenagers. I could see why she was desperate to feel accepted at Oak Leaf and why she wanted to form new friendships there. I could also see why she was so drawn to Alex.

I’ve read Louise Jensen’s previous work, and I have to say that I think The Family is my favourite. I thought that the darkness was done really well, and it kept me thinking about the characters and what was going to happen to them. There is a very creepy vibe to the story as it develops. I’m sure that many readers will be pulled into Louise and Tilly’s new home. Dark, very addictive and with some very sinister revelations, I’m sure this book will be a big hit among readers.

How would you cope after suddenly losing your husband and find yourself and daughter without a home or money to live on?
This is what's happened to Laura and her daughter Tilly but when a local community Oak Leaf Organics offer not only a job but a safe place to stay Laura jumped at the chance.
When things start to get a bit weird Laura wants to leave but Tilly is determined to stay.
Tilly believes everything Alex says and will not listen to a word against him even when Laura discovers a disturbing secret.
How can she save herself and her daughter?

Laura’s husband dies suddenly after falling off scaffolding at his construction site. Laura and daughter Tilly are distraught and have no money due to the insurance not been paid out until after the inquest. Not only are they going to lose their home but, Laura will lose her flower shop business because she can’t pay the bills and her husband was being sued to the new houses been on a toxic waste site.
One day Saffron comes into the shop and offers her help. Saffron lives on a farm in a commune and has offered Laura and her daughter Tilly a place to stay until the insurance money comes in. She only asks her to help her with their Organic vegetable business. Also, the commune leader. A charismatic character called Alex will help her get her money.
The story is told mostly of Laura and Tilly’s point of view and a little bit of Alex’s at the end. We are shown how desperate people can get, to get what they want. There is also a lot of twists and turns in this book to keep you entertained. 4 stars from me.

Chilling yet with a sense of calm at times which was even more scary.
Full of twists and turns that no one could see coming, this book definitely keeps you on your toes plus fingers that won’t turn the pages fast enough.
I read it in one sitting and was surprised how my opinion of each character kept changing.
I haven’t read a book with this fast pace in a while, congratulations to the author.

Following the sudden death of her husband, Laura and her daughter,Tilly, are drawn into the arms of a cult in Wales. Alex is the charismatic leader of the cult and they both find themselves attracted to him. In the background we have the other members of the 'family' particularly Saffron. Who is she and what is she to Alex?

I enjoyed the book and wanted to find out what happened but for me, ultimately, there were a couple of twists too many which spoiled the believability.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins for this review copy in exchange for an honest review

This ARC was courtesy of netgalley - all thoughts and opinions are mine and unbiased

Loved this thriller - couldn't put this down and read through the night - thank god I didn'thave to get up for work the next morning!! It was still all in my head the next day - which doesn't happen often.

Loved the way it was written - switching from mother to daughter and seeing their different perspectives

So many twists and turns, I changed my mind throughout. Tense and fast paced - kept me engrossed throughout

Great characters, thought provoking - absolutely loved it !!

My thanks to Netgalley for my kindle copy of this book.

I have never read anything else by Louise Jensen so I wasn't really sure what to expect but I was somewhat disappointed. It was a good enough plot and the writing was good but it was just too long for me. I hate being negative when someone has put their heart and soul into a book but it was fairly clear quite early on what was going to happen but it just seemed to take forever to get anywhere.

There were also quite a few annoying errors that should have been picked up by a proofreader/beta reader but publishers don't make this a priority anymore and I for one get very irritated by it.

It's not a terrible book and I am sure many others will love it but unfortunately it wasn't for me.

I was a little bit disappointed with this one especially as I’ve previously read and thoroughly enjoyed other books by this author.

I found it hard to get in to and to keep my attention. It weren’t a bad read but I’ve read much better.

This book opens with someone being shot !, But who? This is the first of many twists which kept me page turning late into the night!!

Laura has been recently widowed and her one source of comfort is her teenage daughter Tilly. Their relationship is tested as they both struggle with grief,secrets, financial difficulties and local gossip. Laura has no support network to help her cope as she has been estranged from her family for many years.,so when a member of a local community (cult) invites Laura a helping hand of friendship she feels welcomed into their fold. Alex the charismatic leader charms both mother and daughter with his kindness , but soon cracks begin to show which leave both Laura and Tilly questioning their new lives, friends and even each other,!

The narrative which switches from mother to daughter is fantastic as the reader glimpses the story from both sides helping you understand how events can be interpreted differently according to each persons understanding.

The bond between a mother and her child is portrayed beautifully. The twists and turns in the story had me believing one thing and then changing my mind. It’s fast pace and psychosocial undertones kept me interested right to the end.

Are we born good or bad? Is keeping secrets ever justified? Is blood thicker than water or are friends more loyal ? Can you be brainwashed into believing things you normally wouldn’t? These are some of the questions this book made me think about. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for my chance to read this engaging read.

Laura is recently widowed, and her teenage daughter TIlly is proving particularly difficult. What is the secret Tilly feels she has to keep, and why has Laura lost contact with all other family? The duo are gradually drawn towards a community living in the wilds of Wales, but are they really as hospitable as they seem? A dark and interesting thriller, it does seem to unravel a little towards the end, but nevertheless an engrossing read.

* spoiler alert ** 2.5 stars


Whilst this may have passed a few hours whilst I avoided housework,I don't think I'll be remembering much about it in a months time.
Apart from possibly the large amount of coincidences that we read about towards the end.
Nothing wrong with the writing,I'd certainly pick up another book by this author,but it felt a bit same old if I'm honest.
Like a book I'd read before.

This book just wasn't for me at all . The storyline was so unbelieveable I couldn't wait to get to the end .
A predictable Cult/Family tale that would be better suited to a Y.A audience.