A slow read to begin with as a couple who are struggling with their marriage take a weekend away to try to save their relationship. From the moment they arrive, strange and creepy things happen while the true motives of the couple remain unclear. There is a huge twist in store as the story progresses towards its conclusion.

I literally could not put this book down as I was desperate to find out where the story was leading. Very, very clever.

A domestic psychological thriller that had kept me trying to work out the main twist!

A good read which really forms the characters well. Unlikeable quirks to all but this keeps you guessing. Not read any books with facial recognition blindness before so found this element really interesting.

Not a tense read but the pace does pick up in the last third. I think this is one you need to give a chance to get going as the slow pace took a while as I expect thrillers to be more gripping.

I’ve just finished Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney and it’s probably one of the most chilling and complex domestic psychological thrillers I’ve read. By comparison, Rock, Paper, Scissors is not quite as tense and twisted. Not for the first part, where a couple trying to revitalise their marriage arrive at a holiday rental in the Highlands. It all feels quite oppressive and menacing as the weather is dreadful and the property is spooky, with weird people lurking.

The story picks up pace in the second half where various deceits and backstories emerge. It’s full of unexpected twists and I rattled through the latter half, not knowing what was going to happen next. I enjoyed the book and it’s well written, just lacks a bit of pace.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

I've loved Alice's previous books in the past and I'll be honest, 60% through the book I was wondering if Rock Paper Scissors was written by the same author because it didn't feel as good - it felt a bit slow. But then came some fantastic twists that were really well executed and and they are so worth trudging through the first half of the book. In fact, I'd argue that if it were not for the slow start, the twists wouldn't be as effective. The characters are an interesting bunch, that's for sure and not entirely likeable at that. I thought Adam's Prosopagnosia was a really interesting touch and not something I was aware of. The book touches on a variety of subjects and while I do think some one of the last twists felt a bit much and unnecessary, Alice has crafted a really clever plot.

An easy read but not as good as the author’s previous books. The main characters are Adam and Amelia who go away for the weekend to try and revive their marriage. The chapel that they stay in is full of surprises and secrets. It was rather a slow burn.

Adam and Amelia win a weekend away in Scotland which might be just what their marriage needs. Almost as soon as they get there strange things begin to happen. Each chapter is from Adam or Amelia's perspective. Neither of them are really likeable but the story is very gripping and very different to anything else i have read. I can really recommend this book.

Wow!

What a rollercoaster this read was!

Full of exciting twist and turns with an ending I did not see coming! Alice Feeney has done it again creating another fantastic thriller which keeps you guessing throughout.

I loved the setting depicted and also the character development of the main characters, as you see that not everything is as clear cut as it seems.

Oh my days! This book is fabulous!
This book just felt so right from the minute I picked it up and when I wasn’t reading it, the urge to pick it back up was always there.
This felt like a game of Cat and Mouse between Amelia and Adam and I honestly didn’t know how it would end, and I definitely say that when the reveal of something comes towards the end of the book, I was flabbergasted!! I thought this book was so cleverly written and felt like it just kept on giving even though you thought you knew everything that needed to be known.
Thoroughly enjoyed this book and felt completely and utterly satisfied after I had read it.
Definitely recommend this book.

This is the first Alice Feeney book that I have read and probably won’t be the last.

An enjoyable read with some interesting twists although I did find some of the events difficult to believe. The story is told from several viewpoints and is also interspersed with historical letters all of which means that the minor cliff-hangers at each chapter end naturally lead one to keep reading. I’m not sure how I would classify this novel, it’s not dark enough to be called horror but as other reviewers have mentioned it can be a bit creepy.

All in all worth reading.

Thanks once again for letting me read this book for my honest review.

Another great book to read on your vacation or at home or even when you need a little release from everyday life this book has it all from rollercoasters to twist and even a few bumps in the night if your anything like me and fall asleep reading because you can't put the book down.

This is a real spooky book and Scotland was a great setting and really made the story pop and feel like you could almost be in Scotland too.

From beginning to end this book with grip you but the question is are you reading for the read of a lifetime

This is my fourth Alice Feeney novel and the more of her books I read, the more impressed I am with her work!

This spooky masterpiece takes place in the Scottish Highlands which is the PERFECT setting for the events that unfold within these pages! It was such an atmospheric read because the ever-changing and uncertain weather conditions seemed to be closely linked to the turbulent ups and downs of the story. While I didn’t find the characters especially likeable, they were certainly interesting and I quickly discovered that they all had secrets - it was very enjoyable trying to figure out who was hiding what. I absolutely didn’t see the big twist coming until it hit me in the face and I thought it was genius! I’m pretty sure my jaw actually dropped. I really liked the way this novel is set out with alternating chapters from the perspectives of Amelia and Adam interspersed with secret yearly marriage anniversary letters. The heavy inclusion of the game Rock Paper Scissors that was woven into the story was very clever and added to the creepy vibes I was getting. I very much enjoyed this book and as always will keep my eyes peeled for future Feeney books!

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley & HQ for my ARC of Rock, Paper, Scissors by Alice Feeney.

What can I say - Alice Feeney does it again!!! Adam and Amelia have gone on a giftes trip to Scotland to try and save their marriage.

Told from Adam and Amelias POVs and a letter written to Adam each year on their wedding anniversary the book was set out really well.

Believe me when I say the twists and turns in this book you will not see coming! I audibly gasped a few times when a new twist was revealed!

I was in a bit of a book slump before picking this up and raced through it, absolutely brilliant book I couldn't put it down!! Alice Feeney never fails to provide a good thriller than leaves you wanting more!! 5/5!

I absolutely devoured Rock Paper Scissors! What an addictive, gripping rollercoaster of a book! This is the second book of Alice Feeney’s that I have read (I loved Sometimes I Lie also) and I am excited to go read her other novels.

Adam and Amelia are having marital problems. On the advice of a marriage counselor, they decide to take a romantic trip to a remote location in the Scottish Highlands in a last ditch effort to figure out whether they are really still in love and if their marriage can be saved. The trip goes wrong in the worst way imaginable and Adam and Amelia have to figure out if they can trust one another.

This story captured my attention within the first two pages and I consumed the book within a day. It was so hard to put down as the story moves along at a fast pace and you become completely immersed in the creepy atmospheric surroundings that the characters find themselves in. Rock Paper Scissors is full of suspense and Feeney manages to come up with one of the most original thriller plots I have come across in the last couple of years. The spooky and anxiety-inducing elements in the story makes the heart rate increase rapidly a number of times throughout and I would suggest not reading this in the dead of night or during a storm/blackout (for reasons that will make sense when you read the book).

I love how Feeney presents us with the characters of Adam and Amelia and even though they seem to have it all, their marriage is full of cracks which threatens to break them apart at any given moment. The twists are fantastic and Feeney never takes the foot off the throttle in terms of completely altering what you think is about to happen in the story.

Rock Paper Scissors is an addictive read, perfect for thriller fans out there. I just found out that it’s going to be made into a series for Netflix and I am really looking forward to seeing how this fantastic, gripping rollercoaster of a story is translated onto the screen.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for the advanced reader copy of what I can guarantee will be a very popular book this year.

I absolutely devoured this book. It’s not the first book I have read from Alice Feeney but it’s by far my favourite so far. Alice has won a weekend away in Scotland and her and husband Adam journey there. Their marriage is more or less a shambles and to be honest I can’t imagine why she would want to stay with him. The story is told from the alternating viewpoints on Alice and Adam but also a third narrator, Robin. I’m not going to give any more of the story away as it would spoil it. Highly recommended. A real 5 star read.

✨REVIEW✨

Rock, paper, scissors
By Alice Feeney

When Amelia and her husband Adam are having marriage problems their councillor says maybe a weekend away would do them some good. Amelia thinks this is a great idea and as she won a trip away to Scotland in an old refurbished church, it’s the perfect opportunity. After a long drive they find the remote building passing only a dilapidated cottage and a long closed pub. They’ll have plenty of time to sort their marriage out with no interruptions.

From the moment they arrive something seems off. The place is creepy, cold and dusty like nobody’s been there in a lifetime. Will this weekend away be the thing to fix their marriage or will it be the thing that breaks them for good?

After reading his and hers by the author I was so excited to receive this book. This book has is all, there are twists and turns that you really don’t see coming, right up to the end you are kept on the edge of your seat waiting for the next shocker. The story is told from Adam, Amelia and Robins points of view and the different perspectives tell the story so well. I’ve really enjoyed this book, I couldn’t put it down. If you love a thriller check it out when it’s released on the 19th August 2021.

This is my first encounter with a book by this author.

There were so many things to love about this book, the unique way of setting chapters up with letters, the different POV'S that the story is told through and how creepy some of the chapters actually were.

It's not often I find a book that actually gives me physical goosebumps from.

I read this book coming out of a reading slump and what a book to do that with. I found it easy to just jump straight back into the story after a break. It wasn't too heavy, but kept me hooked and reading and kept me interested which is unheard of recently.

There is a huge use of metaphors in this book, sometimes overly so, but others are perfect and so relatable that I saved one because it hit deep inside!

'If every story had a happy ending then we'd have no reason to start again. Life is all about choices, and learning how to put ourselves back together when we fall apart'

Thank you! We've included Alice Feeney's Rock Paper Scissors in our Caboodlers' Corner article '22 books to look out for in your local bookshop.

It’s February 2020 and Amelia and husband screenwriter Adam Wright journey through inclement weather to a weekend stay at a converted chapel at Blackwater Loch in the Scottish Highlands. The weekend away is an attempt to save their marriage though the atmosphere outside the Morris Minor matches the ominous one inside, with the exception of their chilled black lab, Bob who snoozes in blissful ignorance! The story is told in alternating perspectives, interspersed with undelivered letters to Adam during the marriage. The less you know about the storyline the better the enjoyment, so I’ll keep it general!!!

If Alice Feeney’s a football team then she’s Man City at the top of her game, if she’s a champagne she’s a Krug, a Dom or Crystal with her storytelling fizzing perfectly and her plots are as delicious as a Michelin meal and she’s definitely the winner of a Rock Paper Scissor competition! Setting this principally in the Scottish Highlands is perfect as you can match the rapidly changing weather conditions to mood and the unfolding drama and she does this expertly. Right from the start you get bad vibes, things off kilter( or should that be kilt!), a bit spooky, it feels suffocating, claustrophobic and weird. The characters are interesting though not necessarily likeable and Adam suffering prosopagnosia (face blindness) adds a terrific element to the storytelling allowing all kinds of possibilities. You realise quickly that we have a set of liars, they’re chock full of secrets some being huge and the further we progress we see relationships are rotting on the vine. To use some of the fantastic words of the year included in the letters, there’s a lot of ‘shenanigans’ and ‘hornswoggling’ going on, they’re not very ‘chuffed’ with each other and eventually we get ‘schadenfreude’. There are some little moments of magic which is closely followed by a touch of horror or malice, interspersed with recurring images from nightmares that make Adam wake. As you would expect from the mistress of twists, there are several and some shocking revelations which are eye popping and jaw dropping. The use of Rock Paper Scissors appears throughout and in several clever ways but especially at the end! Gulp!

Overall, I expected to love this one and I do. It’s a bit more understated than her other books but that’s what makes it so clever as it leads to some events really standing out and socking you between the eyes. I’m pleased to report that lovely Bob comes to no harm. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to HQ for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

It is no secret that I am a huge Alice Feeney fan. I read His & Hers last year in lockdown and it knocked my socks off. Rock Paper Scissors is no exception. If you haven’t read an Alice Feeney book I guarantee you, you will be desperately pre-ordering it soon. If you are a thriller fan and love going to bed at night looking over your shoulder, this book is for you. Rock Paper Scissors will be released on August 19th.

Alice Feeney has a way with thrillers like no other she is honestly up there with the legends such as Tim Weaver and John Marrs. Rock Paper Scissors has multiple narratives and flicks between past and present. We have a thriller full of unreliable narrators. Husband Adam who suffers with a neurological condition prosopagnosia, a condition meaning that he cannot see distinguishing features of a face including his own. Meaning he doesn’t recognise his own wife, or himself. Screenwriter by day, Adam is following his passions and is happy to wreck his marriage along the way.
Doting wife Amelia is frustrated with the lack of interest in her. He doesn’t want to talk about her job or any parts of her life. A last-ditch attempt to fix their issues, she suggests a weekend away. Conveniently she wins a raffle for a free trip to the Scottish Highlands.

They arrive at a creepy old chapel; most doors are locked except their bedroom. The bedroom eerily is almost identical to their bedroom at home. Their dog, Bob goes missing when panic ensues. A snowstorm hits and the heating doesn’t work. Can they find Bob?

Third narrative Robin whose identity isn’t revealed until the end. Her family ties make this book even more creepy. I can’t say too much without giving the plot away, but this psychological thriller has chilled me to my core.