I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

The Heights follows the character of Ellen Saint and her mission to kill a man who she believed to already be dead. The premise of the story is brilliant. The story is told from a few different points of view which really keeps the reader on their toes. It is soon obvious to the reader that different people see what’s happening very differently to others. Each part of the story adds a depth to Ellen’s story and past. Ellen suffers from a condition known as high place phenomenon which is an urge to jump from a high place, this was something I had never heard of before and found it extremely interesting. A very thought provoking book which I thoroughly enjoyed.

As I am coming to expect from Louise Candlish, this was a dark but gripping read.
The story is told from the Ellen’s viewpoint first which certainly leads the reader to show empathy and understanding, along with frustration at Lucas’ new friend, Kieran. There are so many situations that will strike close to home for any mother of teenage children, trying to control the narrative as your child increasingly resists and reacts against it.
Then the alternative viewpoint of Vic, Lucas’ father, opens up the whole story giving a fuller and sometimes quite different picture of events and back story to ‘Ellen and Vic’.
Quirkily there are also Sunday Times Sunday magazine excerpts, debating and reporting on a soon to be released ‘autobiography/ memoir.’
The daughter Freya and Justin the new husband have the role of ‘the steadying voice of reason’ and also very much the overlooked!
All in all this is a terrific read which I would highly recommend and will keep the reader puzzling as to what the final conclusion will bring.

The Heights by Louise Candlish is an edge-of-your-seat story of obsession and revenge. The suspense and tension in this book builds gradually, leading to a dramatic and unforgettable climax. Candlish’s writing is precise and atmospheric, making The Heights a captivating and riveting read. Highly recommended for fans of psychological thrillers!

I would like to say a huge thank you to the publisher for letting me review this title, and for Netgalley.

I enjoyed reading it and this was my first Louise Candlish book and I would look forward to reading more of her work in future

I’ve read The Other Passenger by Louise Candlish, so thought I would give The Heights a try. I really like the cover, especially the purple, and would definitely pick it up if I saw it on a bookshelf.

Ellen is trying to continue with her life after the tragic death of her son in an accident. Lucas is a well behaved teen, until the unruly Kieran comes to his school and is buddied up with him. Lucas gets drawn into drugs, drink and parties. After Lucas’ death, Ellen is hellbent on revenge as she feels Kieran’s sentence was too lenient. She takes matters into her own hands, and is confident she won’t see Kieran again. Until years later, when she’s sure she sees him at the top of a luxury apartment block, known as The Heights.

The story is mostly told from Ellen’s point of view, alternating between the time when Lucas was alive, and after his death.

Initially, I found the book to be readable and it held my interest. Unfortunately, I found the latter part lost it’s way a bit and became a bit far fetched, and at times confusing.

Ellen has l’appel du vide, an urge to jump from high places. This sort of tied in with her seeing Kieran at The Heights, could he be living there knowing she wouldn’t visit him? However, it didn’t seem that relevant to the story, unless I missed something.

Overall, this was an alright read but it was a bit far fetched at times and I couldn’t relate to Ellen’s character much.

2.5 stars rounded to 3.

Thanks to Simon and Schuster UK and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for review.

Had been looking forward to reading this book. Sadly it wasn’t for me. It just lacked a good plot to get you excited and wanting more. It was very slow paced and never picked up

Louise Candlish is the Queen of the Page Turner. She writes such twisty tales that you can't stop reading, even if that means sacrificing sleep or eating. I loved all of her previous thrillers, especially "Our House" (now an ITV drama), "The Other Passenger" (intrigue on the Thames) and "Those People" (curtain twitching leads to murder).

"The Heights" did not disappoint. Another great tale in modern-day London involving wayward teenagers and the parents who love them, shadowy investors and even trendy beer. It keeps you guessing until the end.

Highly recommended.

Wanted to like the book, but couldn't. Revenge for her son's death was understandable but the writing left me feeling weird. Too many POVs with repetitive lines, and the prose was too long and slow. I couldn't find myself engaged into the story.

Like any other thriller from Louise Candlish, this book did not disapoint.

At so many points throughout this book, we're not sure who the real enemy is. It really makes for an interesting read as you find yourself switching sides at various points.

The pacing of this book was great. It started off well, laid the groundwork of Lucas & Ciaran's relationship and then in the second half the book was full speed ahead and I couldn't put it down.

I listened to some parts of this via audiobook and I'd definitely recommend this. The phone call excerpts especially were done so well through the audio version.

The plot twists in this book were next level. This is something Louise does so well. There's so many points when you have no idea what's going on & how it will resolve. She really is excellent at weaving complex, interconnecting storylines.

Overall, this book had to be 5 stars. I definitely recommend this.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster UK, Louise Candlish & NetGalley for an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow what a read so powerful a page turner just fab I could not put it down brill characters you love to hate a full on plot so clever love it

A thoroughly miserable and uncomfortable book, I am unsure if I liked this psychological thriller overall. Ellen is a woman with huge amounts of untreated rage and resentment, and I don't know how realistic the people in her life would let her get on with her attitude and focus on the issue. I just can't like a character that is so unreasonable about an accident, that she is willing to ruin multiple lives in her revenge fantasties. I was gripped, though.

What would you do if you know who caused your child's death? Would you take justice in your hands? The Heights is the story of a grieving mother with a vengeance and the choices she makes that causes a ripple to other people in her life. I thought this is an intriguing book that captures my attention immediately from the start. For once, the conflict is between a mother and her son's friend. Ellen is clearly privileged and has ideas about the boy her son befriends, yet how reliable is she? Is he as hostile as she suspects? I loved the tense interactions between them in the past, and the anxious questions she has about him in the present. Ellen's ex-husband is also involved and plays a part in how everything unravels. This book brings up interesting ideas about accountability, class differences, and whether revenge is worth it. Everything builds up to a shocking ending. Recommended if you're looking for a thriller that's a little outside the box!

I’d like to thank NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for approving me of an ARC of this book.

From the beginning I was instantly drawn in. I loved the excerpts from the Time Magazine Article and how it jumped back and forth between present day and the time surrounding Kieran’s death. I wanted to know what happened and why Kieran was still around.

I sympathised with Ellen so much. As a mum I can imagine how heart breaking it is to see your child take a path that you wouldn’t of chosen. I could also understand her animosity and concern with Kieran, after all Lucas’ life had been plain sailing until he was on the scene. As a parent you are forever trying to make judgement calls on when to get involved and when to take a step back and Ellen struggled to restrain herself at times. The relationship between Ellen and Vic was very interesting. Whilst they clearly didn’t love each other they were bonded by their love for Lucas. The worked together to try and see him through this rough patch and it was refreshing to see two separated parent’s on the same wave length.

When Vic’s narration was introduced the story took a completely different turn. Once again his part in Kieran’s death was revealed piece by piece and whilst I knew I would be shocked at the ending I hadn’t expected it to go that way!

This is a brilliant, compelling novel that explores the depth of family bond, loyalty and grief. A fantastic psychological thriller that will leave you dizzy from being up on The Heights!

This is another successful book by Louise Candlish. As a mother myself you actually imagine this happening if you have lost all faith In the court system.

Ellen is married to Justin they have one daughter Freya, Ellen has a son, Lucas, from a previous relationship with Vic. Lucas is in his last year before going in to sixth form. He is given the task of being buddy to new boy Kieran who has spent his life going from one home to another, his parents are dead, his mother was a junkie. It’s only as Lucas starts spending more time with Kieran that he starts to change, his grades are dropping, he stays out late, his moods change.

The first half of the book focuses on everything Ellen believes. The second half is how Vics point of view.. Neither are happy with the amount of time Lewis is spending with Kieran. Although Vic is slightly more relaxed than Ellen.

One night there is an accident, one boy dies, one comes out uninjured, but seems to make no effort to save the other. How do you deal with the aftermath?

Ellen sets up a campaign trying to get sentences lengthened. But it seems to get them nowhere and before she knows it Kieran is out of prison and is living and working locally. It’s then that Ellen decides stronger action is needed she wants to hire someone to make him disappear for good. She only talks to Vic about this. But what if 2 years later you are called to a job and across the Thames you see Kieran in a penthouse. She believed him dead,if he’s not, what happened? How has he made enough money to live where he lives?.

The second half of the book is from the POV of Vic. Some of the story differs slightly from Ellen’s point of view. With a twist at the end I didn’t see coming. At times Ellen really annoyed me, she was so obsessed with Kieran right from the start..

What would you do if you didn’t like the company your son is keeping? Would you take matters Into your own hands or would you accept things as they are?

This is a brilliant storyline, about the love a parent has for her child and how far they will go to protect them from what they believe is a bad influence, but what if your child isn’t as sweet and innocent? Is he mixing with the wrong person? Or is there more to it than Ellen’s side of things.

Ellen is absolutely obsessed with Kieran, believing him to be responsible for everything, she wants him dead, her son is no longer around to live and enjoy his life so why should Kieran. How will this story end?

I would like to thank #netgalley and #Simon and Schuster for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest, fair and unbiased review.

This is a good book - but I'm not sure enjoyed it. To be honest it gave me major anxiety and I had to put it down for a week or two. I'm so glad I gave it another go though and (my own personal issues aside!!) it is a cracking story. I'm sure fans of Candlish will lap it up.

This book felt very far fetched to me in places and I just didn't enjoy the writing style personally, which is a shame.

The Heights is another great novel from an author whose books I know I’ll always enjoy – Louise Candlish. This is a really interesting premise: one day, at a client’s apartment, Ellen sees a man she thought had died years ago – someone she thought she’d killed – at the top of a building called The Heights.

The book then switches backwards and forwards in time as we witness the lead up to the man’s death, ‘back then’, as well as seeing Ellen in the present day as she deals with this heart-stopping discovery.

I was completely intrigued as I started this novel – I wanted to discover why she was so determined to get rid of this person, and soon it becomes clear. But what we don’t know is how on earth this man is still alive today! And that’s the story the reader is taken on.

The Heights is not your average fast-paced thriller but more of a slow burn, building in intensity as we learn more about Ellen’s relationship with the person she thought was dead, and with the rest of her family.

I felt that impending sense of doom as I read about how her son Luke changed and I could completely understand why Ellen was so desperate to take action – though I like to think I wouldn’t go that far myself! 😉

There are twists and shocks along the way, and I loved the way we got to experience the story from Ellen’s ex-husband’s perspective too. Definitely recommended.

Louise Candlish is the queen of fiendishly plotted thrillers.

The first book of hers I read was Our House which made me sweat at the end.....but in a good way, so I was excited to read this. As expected, it twists and turns along the way and keeps us guessing about what actually happened, keeping it up right until the end!

A must for fans of the author and of thrillers alike.

If you like really not knowing what is happening, not until the last minute, then this book is for you! We hear from now and from the past, and this book is wonderfully dark and mysterious. It ambles along and builds up, treating the reader to a real plot crescendo! A must read!