"The Chinese Twin" is a thriller that catches your attention with its first line and never lets go. It is really hard to put the book down.

Talking about the positives first, I have to mention how much I loved the writing. It was gorgeous at times but also could change the tone to a darker one that was the perfect fit for this type of story.
It's very fast-paced, which is a quality that I look forward to in thrillers. And even though the story is confusing since so much happens at the same time, it's not overly confusing to the point where nothing makes sense.
The plot felt quite original, at least to me. And all the characters felt very individual, so it was easy to distinguish them, which was helpful when trying to put the pieces together.

There aren't many negatives but I do have to mention that the ending fell a little flat for me. The resolution was interesting but the last couple of chapters felt a little empty. I wished we had gotten more information about what was going on rather than speeding things up so much.

Overall, this is definitely a thriller that I recommend to anyone who wants a fast-paced, intriguing and very well-.written novel to add to their TBR.

Narrator 5 stars

Story 4 stars

Wow this was fantastic and had me hooked from the very beginning. I was so engrossed in this story that I couldn't stop listening and had to finish it in one sitting. Will definitely be buy more of this author.

A complicated unusual plot with strange characters and different time lines to contend with. The narrator did an excellent job but he book whilst interesting failed to entertain me. I never felt like any of it was real and I was never eager to start listening again which isn’t a good sign as I’m addicted to audio books on my dog walks now.

My thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to review this audio.

I'm not sure where to start with this. Though an interesting style of writing, I found myself confused. Story is told from some alternating time lines and too many directions in the narrative. I'll illustrate with these points:

1. Ava has a still born baby and her husband Statin goes into a psychosomatic paralysis because of the trauma. At times she talks to him he answers, other times he is blinking to answer her. No continuity.
2. Then there are these breaks in that story point with all of this Chinese culture items which I could not see how it connected to Ava and her husband. Ava did find these Chinese drawings but still no answers for me.
3. Ava then finds out her husband has a mother and siblings he never told her about, so story goes to that angle as to why he never told her. Ava investigates and confronts her husband.
4. Story then addresses a kidnapping at the school Ava works at. Another direction in the story.
5. Thrown in to the mix as well is a character that marries a corpse. Creepy!

Narrator was good and very engaging, but this story was not for me. Though interesting and creepy, I was very confused and didn't get it.

I totally appreciate how well this book was written and the beautifully descriptive passages, however, I was not impressed with the plot. I found it difficult to accept that a woman would not find help for an immobilised husband. The chain of events was pretty transparent and again I found myself wondering if a woman whose lost a child would be so self absorbed to notice nothing amiss.
The narrator was very good and added to the enjoyment of this book and the writing kept me entertained

I listened to the audiobook version of this book and I think it was the right move, the narrator Olivia Vinall was excellent.

I am conflicted about The Chinese Twin, not because of the strange premise: a couple who experience a stillbirth, with the father becoming inexplicably paralysed from the neck down, the day after and the mother deciding to hold on to this family unit no matter what. Admist this tragedy comes a series of difficult, mysterious and desperate events happening in their local town. Which seemly they are directly and indirectly related to. How much misfortune can one family experience before it begins to crack? Culminating in family secrets and desires revealed.

That wasn't the problem, nor the way the story was revealed, eerie in places and the slow drip feed of information tantalising the reader to discover more with the insight of fleeting glimpses into the past.

I guess it's more about character perception and development which I took with a pinch of salt and the stance that going through a traumatic event allows one to be oblivious in part and unobservant in others. Living in a small town, perhaps allows you to do things a certain way, because it's small town and you've always done it that way.

In truth, it may have been the theme of Chinese heritage and descent, which was central to and drove the plot, but it did not resonate. It was more of an interesting vehicle to surround the story. Plus there were minor gripes around race which bugged me such as why a character could not tell the difference between Korean and Chinese. And if the ethnic minority population was that small, it would have been obvious about who was who and where they resided.

However, all in all, I liked this mystery, the double bluffs, being wrong footed on occasion but overall it was a straightforward tale told well. If perhaps there was less references to the movements of bluebottles, it would have been more amenable and I certainly, would have sincerely appreciated it.

I wanted to love this book, but the truth is, I had a hard time resonating with it. At times, it was confusing and I found it difficult to understand.

The story did eventually reveal secrets, lies and crimes, and had some creepy elements to it, I also thought the narrator’s rendition was lively and pleasant to listen to.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for an advanced Audio Digital Copy in exchange for an honest review. 2.5 Stars rounded up

Eva has just given birth to a stillborn baby and her husband has been suddenly rendered paralyzed. Not wanting to be left alone, she stubbornly (stupidly) hides his condition so she can care for him herself with the help of her sister who’s a veterinarian. The story then switches to a Chinese family who has some seriously messed up stuff going on. And it’s very hard to see the connection between the two stories in the beginning. I guess that’s part of the suspense but I personally found it very annoying and confusing.

The story has some decent creepy surprises and disturbing revelations to keep you going but it was hard to accept the believability and the gullibility of some of the characters.

The narrator Olivia Vinall did a nice job and has a very pleasant British accent but it would’ve helped if she had better male voices so it was more obvious who was talking especially when she flipped back and forth between the two storylines. Or better yet if they had alternated with a male narrator.

Thank you @netgalley for the advance copy of the #audiobook! This book will be released on Aug. 5, 2021.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ / The Chinese Twin by Sarah Engall / Pages: 301 / Genre: Mysteries & Thrillers / Release Date: Aug. 5, 2021 / Narrator: Olivia Vinall

Something really different from I usually read. But it was so intense and interesting. Also very difficult to understand human beeing act in that way was described. It was really shocking reading about the past and the consequences were terrible. But worth to read it till end. A little confused at the beggining but so well put together.

Eva was fighting for her self and the family she did not knew. Her husband become paralyzed and she is alone in this terrible discovering. Very dark chinese symbols lead her to a not expected conclusion. Sometimes you lose and sometimes you save.

Thank you Netgalley and thanks to Saga Egmont Audio for a free copy in echange of an honest review. I really like Olivia Vinall as the narrator.