When Helen meets a young mum to be at her antenatal class it seems she has a made a new friend but something is not quite right, can she be trusted, why is she getting quite so involved in Helens life? A great thriller, filled with twists and turns to keep you guessing and never quite sure who to trust.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

A twisty plot that keeps the pages turning... until the final chapter.

This book started slowly, but accelerated to something gripping. Unfortunately the momentum fizzled at the end with the final chapter devoted to a character’s reminiscence of what actually happened. That said, it’s worth reading, so 4 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance review copy of this novel. This is my unbiased opinion.

Greenwich Park is a compelling book which builds both curiosity and tension early on. As such, I found myself reading this book in one day. (A rare occurrence!) I had no idea what was happening. I needed answers and fortunately, Greenwich Park is the kind of book that actually provides them.

While it was an enjoyable read, I wasn’t too keen on the narrative style. It worked well in terms of the story but I think that I would have preferred fewer POVs. I also found all of the characters, with the exception of Katie, to be deeply unlikeable and so found it difficult to empathise with them.

However, I did really enjoy Katie’s sub-plot and the book overall. I’d recommend this to anyone who likes domestic thrillers with multiple POVs or anyone who enjoys books where someone who isn’t in law enforcement investigates a crime.

The story started great and had me gripped to find out what happens next.

However, I found the pacing to be quite slow and it started to drag for me.

This was not my cup of tea unfortunately.

I really enjoyed this book! I had to make myself slow down whilst reading it to focus on any little clues given about the story! That helped me figure out a couple of things but there was so many twists I didn’t see coming at all!

Oh I do enjoy these kinds of novels, when a seemingly crazy person befriends your main character, then a chain of strange goings-on and weird behaviour enfolds. Yes I do seem to actively seek out this kind of book.

So Greenwich Park was right up my alley in that respect. It was good. We had some dodgy characters thrown in to add to the 'hmm I wonder what's going on here then' aspect and it was all rather enjoyable.

I will say though there was no real shock factor for me which is what I like too, the outcome was expected to be fair and the ending all tied up in a big bow for you, which isn't always the best way I like a thriller to end I have to say.

However like I said, it was a good one, one I'm happy to recommend.
A decent debut, I will certainly look out for more by @katherinefaulknerwrites

My thanks to #netgalley #katherinefaulkner and @bloomsburypublishing for the chance to read early.

GREENWICH PARK out APRIL 15th

- Leanne 😊

This is quite a complex and well plotted suspense novel. Katherine Faulkner employs a number of narrators which allow the story to be told from different perspectives, although all is not always as it seems. The plot hinges around repercussions from an event that happened way back in the characters' pasts. Some of the solution, I was able to predict fairly early on but there are numerous small twists that make the final pages a surprise and which add to the reader's enjoyment.. The characters and events are convincingly described and you find yourself eager to learn the truth behind each character's actions, making the novel a real page turner. All in all a very enjoyable read which I would recommend to readers who enjoy authors such as Lisa Jewell or Rachel Abbott. I look forward to reading other books from this author.

Wow, I could NOT put this down. Fast, pacy, with so many twists and turns you won't know which way is up. Gripping.

I read this book within a couple of days and it did not disappoint! The suspense was killing me and I wanted to finish it as soon as possible.

It’s well written and highly addictive and although I had an indication as to what may happen (sometimes I was right and sometimes I was wrong) it really kept me guessing until the end, which is what I look for in this genre of books.

Great book from this author and I would highly recommend to anyone looking for an exciting new thriller to get into!

Gripping and relatable

This debut is a well written, entertaining, pacey psychological thriller. Greenwich Park is told from the viewpoint of three women—Helen, Katie, a childhood friend, and Serena, her sister- in-law. Helen is expecting a baby after suffering four miscarriages and she’s upset that her husband Daniel is too busy to attend antenatal classes. Helen goes by herself and there she meets the enigmatic mother-to-be Rachel, also on her own.

After that Helen keeps running into Rachel and soon enough she’s living in Helen’s house, much to Daniel’s chagrin. Helen becomes increasingly annoyed with Rachel and then suspicious, but Helen also feels isolated. Daniel, Katie and Serena never seem to have time for her.

It becomes increasingly clear that Rachel has a lot to hide. But it isn't until an ill-advised Guy Fawkes party that Helen realises there’s something deeply disturbing about Rachel. And later it turns out that Daniel has secrets of his own.

A subplot involves an historic rape case, which strongly hints at being a key element to unlocking the mystery.

The characters are believable. I rooted for Helen but sometimes I just wanted her to man up and stop acting like a victim.

I read Greenwich Park all in one sitting. Sure, like in most thrillers, there were some loose ends and a few details that I thought were far-fetched. Still I found the ending satisfying and plausible (for a thriller). I’ve already recommended it to friends.

It had been a while since I picked up a thriller and after joining in #BloomsburysNightIn and hearing Katherine Faulkner speak about her book, I felt so grateful to receive an ARC from Netgalley.

[please research trigger warnings but main ones are rape, assault, miscarriage and suicide]

I absolutely devoured this book in less than 48 hours. I was hooked from the first chapter, needing to know who Helen was. Told from mainly Helen’s POV, with some interspersing POV’s of other characters, you get a real feel for who Helen is. Her life is perfect - beautiful home, loving husband and a baby on the way. It’s her dream come true. But what Helen doesn’t expect is to meet Rachel. Who is this Rachel?

Well Faulkner has written a gripping thriller. Some may say it follows a typical cliche thriller but it’s just so much more. I loved loved loved this book. The plot was so good. I thought I’d figured it all out and then bam, another twist. Phewwww - it was a rollercoaster.

The bite told from other people’s POV add suspense and make you question what is really going on with Helen and Rachel.

It becomes clear why everything is happening but you are left until the end almost to put the story together.

There is a slight plot fault in one of the chapters but I reached out to the publisher directly about this. It may be my reading of it.

Apart from that, I cannot fault this book. I loved every page, every twist, every character. All of it was so clearly thought out and it was just what I needed. Faulkner’s writing style is easy to read and grips you.

I’d highly recommend this to everyone who loves a thriller.

This is an excellent book. It is told from several viewpoints but mainly Helen. She is finally pregnant after several miscarriages and is quite a vulnerable person. She meets Rachel at an antenatal class and things start to go wrong. What is Rachel after? What is the link to past events? It is hard to say more without giving the plot away. I found the characters believable. Some of them were very sympathetic, others distasteful. The ending was very satisfying. I read this in two sittings as I needed to find out what happened. It’s unsettling to read but well worth it. Thanks to Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

A great read for a debut! A twist after a twist and, when you look back, you can appreciate all the little hints left by the author throughout the book.

"Greenwich Park" focuses on three siblings, their partners and close friends. The actual story is told from the perspectives of three women, connected by family ties and friendship. Helen, who lost her parents and had multiple miscarriages, but now is about to give birth to her first child, is the main protagonist. She is an interesting character, albeit such a wet blanket, fully dependent oh her husband and taken advantage of by various people, plus she constantly moans about her parents ("mummy's blanket" and "daddy's wine collection" etc.) - it becomes tiring!

Voices of the other two characters were very similar, without the chapter headings it was a bit hard to distinguish whose turn to tell the story it was.

"Greenwich Park" starts off fairly slowly and it took me over 25% into the book to fully get into the story. If you read carefully and pay attention to various hints, you might not have too many groundbreaking surprises at the end, but definitely at least one good revelation!

This was a very satisfying read. A twisty tale and an ending which I had not predicted.

I liked the combination of voices and felt for Helen in the middle of it all struggling to find her way.

A promising debut - I will be watching out for more from this author.

A brooding storyline of family, friends, relationships and the bonds that tie them together. The inability to read people or complex situations due to the loyalty and secrets that distort perception of characters and situations. A dangerous catalyst escalating into mayhem and murder as a result of a long held secret and decision that came back to haunt a group of privileged Cambridge students a decade earlier. Unable to decipher between villains, and the innocent bystanders,. A stretch to accept that a tragic and depressive background could have left the heroine of the story so eager to believe all that was thrown at her with vulnerable acceptance and innocence or merely was it a need to avoid all and any confrontation . Would a Cambridge graduate in spite of her academic background and gifted lifestyle fail to apply logic and common sense to a bizarre situation without question. Yet we the reader watch a train crash gathering momentum as actions result in fatal consequences for all involved towards a conclusion if not perfectly explained certainly warranted for the villains and in particular the femme fatale instrumental in manipulating the resulting carnage. Many thanks to publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

Brilliantly twisty tale of pregnancy, court reporting, hidden secrets and infidelity with a clever and unexpected ending. Very smart writing, highly recommend.

I received a copy of this e-arc thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing.

This is a fantastic psychological book. It was twisted but I kept wanting more.

At the beginning, it didn’t seem like a thriller. Nothing was happening that fitted that genre. Until the story unfolded. As more was revealed, the creepier it got. The last couple of chapters where everything is revealed, it completely makes sense when you look back on what seemed like minor details. It’s a very clever plotted thriller.

I really liked this book, and read it in one evening. The characters were clearly defined, and there were so many twists. A couple of them were obvious (that may have been intentional) but I didn't get the full picture until the final chapter. A real page-turner. Fans of Gone GIrl will enjoy this.

The story takes you through Helen's pregnancy and mainly kicks in when she meets Rachel at the antenatal class. You can tell immediately that something isn't quite right with Rachel, but you can't put your finger on it. Then she starts turning up everywhere and you just want to shout at Helen to stay away. You just can't guessing what she wants. Then she disappears.....

All the characters are pretty well established as the book goes on and they all have some kind of secret. I found Serena deceiving, Rory was totally oblivious and Daniel, is he as innocent as you think? Rachel, well slightly mad.

Great read that you struggled to put down, because you want to know how it is all going to come together, especially with the flashbacks of Cambridge many years ago.

Thank you @bloomsburypublishing and @netgalley for allowing me to read this.

It’s hard to believe that this accomplished novel is the first by Katherine Faulkner; I can’t wait to read her next book - hopefully soon.

Its the story of Helen who’s married to Daniel and her brother Rory who’s married to Serena. They’re in a friendship group and were at university in Cambridge together. Daniel and Rory work together at the family firm. We first meet Helen at a NCT class where she encounters a stranger, Rachel. It’s obvious from the outset that Rachel is a larger than life character that will have a profound impact on the lives of the four residents of Greenwich Park. Helen is from a privileged background - heirloom tomatoes and sourdough bread in her shopping bag as well as her inherited house overlooking the park clearly define her middle class origins. By contrast, Rachel appears to be working class but doesn’t work and mysteriously always has large sums of cash. They strike up an improbable friendship and from there their lives will never be the same again.

One major positive I found was the strong female characterisation of Helen, Serena and Katie. The story is told from their perspectives and this works effectively as does using the timeline of Helen’s pregnancy. Initially I found Helen’s passive woe is me attitude frustrating but as the book wore on and we learnt more about her past I found myself feeling more sympathetic towards her. Serena, her sister in law and friend who is also pregnant ,is less difficult to warm to and overall it was Katie (a friend of Helen’s and the ex-girlfriend of Charlie, Helen’s other brother) a determined and principled journalist who I found myself liking the most. What was particularly interesting was that Rachel was represented by other peoples impression of her. I found the two main male characters to be a little underwhelming and their motivations for their actions never clearly explained.

After a slow start I found myself gripped by the relationship and growing tensions between Helen and Rachel (and Helen and Daniel) and the increasing sense that something awful was looming. At one point I had to slow down to avoid missing vital clues as to what was really happening behind the facade of happy marriages and long term friendships. This is a dark thriller; the plot has twists and turns a plenty and I failed to see the outcome despite the clues.

This book will be THE talked about book of the summer and to say anymore about the plot would be detrimental to the enjoyment of the book by other readers.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing PLC for the arc in return for an honest review.