Stacy Willingham's novel All The Dangerous Things I found a little bit slow to start of with but i liked the characters so I persevered and I'm so glad I did, the novel slowly evolves between the present with Isabelle Drake a sleep deprived mother whose son, Mason was taken a year before and no one wants her to keep looking for him, the police have their suspicions, her husband has walked out so all she has is her own investigations and inner termoil of what happened and Isabelles past and the death of her sister. The story covers quite a lot of issues surrounding mental health and infidelity and the authors notes at the end were an interesting insight. definitely worth a read.

Not a book to read if you have mental issues! An engrossing book with an interesting plot. Flips between her childhood and current motherhood. I was pleased about the ending

Having read A Flicker in the Dark and loved it I was excited to be able to get this book. I think that it Stacy has surpassed with this novel. It is very dark and soul searching. Mason the baby of Isabel and Ben goes missing and everything about this turns Isabel to think about her childhood drama when her sister Margaret died All the way through the story I felt such pity for Isabel and kept trying to work out a different answer to what had happened to Mason but there were so many twist throughout that led me to so many other ideas. Even when the prison scene is portrayed Stacy has carefully worded it to lead the reader elsewhere.

I absolutely was blown away by this novel.
I loved it from start to finish, I loved how at first I wasn’t keen on the main character, Isabelle but was really rooting for her by the end, the story had an incredible but believable twist and the emotion and true to life feelings that all of the characters possessed were very, very engaging.
The scene, the style of writing, the pace and the the plot were brilliant, I couldn’t put this book down until I’d read the last page!

Isabelle Darke’s life falls apart when her toddler son, Mason is taken one night. She now suffers from insomnia and has dedicated to giving talks to keeps Mason’s disappearance in the press and desperate to find him. She encounters a true crime podcaster and finally agrees to talk to him about Mason. She reflects back to events in her childhood and now starts to doubt the memories of what happened to her sister.
Isabelle is prompted to revisit the night of Mason’s disappearance and watches some nursery room surveillance footage and discovers a series of sinister occurrences and the people ,in her life are not as they seems.
A gritty thriller with an unpredictable twist that will keep those pages turning.

I was really pleased to find an email in my inbox last month asking - since I had read A Flicker in the Dark last year - if I would be interested in an ARC of Stacy Willingham’s second novel All the Dangerous Things.

Obviously I jumped at the chance, as I thought that was an excellent debut - and it turned out that this author has followed it up with an even better sophomore book, in my opinion.

In All the Dangerous Things we follow a woman named Isabelle Drake, who is suffering in the aftermath of the disappearance of her little boy a year ago. Mason disappeared from his bedroom in the middle of the night and no one has seen head nor hide of him since. Meanwhile, Isabelle has developed insomnia to the point where she fears she is losing her grip on reality, and her husband has left her in an apparent attempt to prematurely move on from the tragedy, despite the lack of answers.

However, when a true crime podcaster approaches Isabelle and offers to help tell her story to create more publicity and potentially solve the case, we find out that the loss of Mason isn’t the only bad thing to have happened in her life. With Isabelle as the common denominator, can we really trust her version of events?

Like A Flicker in the Dark, All the Dangerous Things uses multiple timelines to skilfully drip-feed information to the reader, and these are again managed so well that I was never confused or bored with any point of the story.

I actually think, though, that this second book is even more enjoyable than the first because it has a darker and more Gothic tone that adds a real sense of melancholy to the plot - it makes you empathise more strongly with Isabelle even as you start to wonder what she’s not telling us.

There is also more of a sense of setting in this book, to the extent that the marshes almost become another character and add another layer of dread. I know the swamps were prominent in A Flicker in the Dark, but I think the marshes are painted even more effectively here and it made for a more immersive experience.

I won’t say much more because I don’t want to spoil any of the twists and turns in All the Dangerous Things, but I will say this is an excellent, clever thriller that’s well worth your time this winter and I’d definitely encourage you to give it a try.

Rating: 4.5 stars, rounded up.

Many thanks to HarperCollins and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have just finished All The Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham, and all I can say is WOW! This is an absolute belter of a book.
Usually when I am reading a book to review, I take notes, in this instance, I have none. I flew through the pages without pausing.

Izzy is experiencing every parent’s worst nightmare. Her precious son Mason disappeared without trace a year ago. The public have lost interest, the police have no leads. She lives each moment in desperation and hope. Motherhood has brought the inevitable guilt and self doubt, that so many of us will recognise.
Long held memories and feelings from childhood, colour her self view, and have a long reaching impact into adulthood.

This thriller is intricately plotted, and so well written. Resulting in a gripping and rewarding read, which I thoroughly enjoyed. The characters are interesting and flawed, in a very human way, making the reader question their motives.

I was absolutely convinced I knew the direction the story was taking, but I was wrong. I adore being outfoxed by an author’s brain. The ending was so satisfying.

In the acknowledgements, the author thanks the readers for giving her a chance. I am so glad I gave you, and this book, a chance Stacy, I absolutely loved it, thank you. I’m off to buy A Flicker in the Dark next.

I predict this will be one of the books that everybody will be talking about in 2023, me especially. I think this will easily be one of my top reads of the year. Just in case you weren’t sure, it’s 5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me. I have definitely discovered a new favourite author.

This is the second of Stacey Willingham’s books I’ve read and it doesn’t disappoint! Isabelle’s baby son disappears from his crib, believed snatched, but one year on she is no closer to find out who took him. The books is full of plot twists and veers you towards different possible kidnappers-I literally had no clue who it was until the very end! Superb!

So Stacy Willingham is my very favourite author, after reading A Flicker in the Dark she firmly became my go to author, highly talented, keeps her reader engaged throughout her novels and an amazing storyteller. If I could give this 6 stars I really would.

In All the Dangerous Things every parents nightmare becomes the focus on this book. We meet Isabelle who's son has been missing exactly one year to the day. Her husband abruptly left after 6 months of their child being missing and Isabelle is obsessed, and rightly so as to find out what happened to her child, Mason.

Isabelle is given talks as to what happened to Mason and on the way home a podcaster Waylon sits next to her and gives her his card as he wants to help solve what happened to Mason.

Isabelle decides to take Waylon up on his offer and the two start to work together to solve the mystery. Obviously things are not straight forward. Isabelle has always struggled with her sleep ever since she was a young child and we learn about how she grew up and the tragedy that surrounded her younger sister and the blame she has been carrying ever since.

The chapters are told through Isabelle's point of view with flashbacks incorporated of her younger years.

This novel is amazing and I love it. Stacy Willingham weaves an intense thriller and it will keep you gripped from literally page one.

Thanks to Stacy Willingham, NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me a copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the copy of #AllTheDangerousThings by #StacyWillingham
Isabelle Drake woke up to every mothers nightmare. Someone has been into her home during the night and taken her son.
Now 12 months later there is still no sign of him. Everyone else is telling her to move on, but she can’t while there is any chance of finding him.
A tense thriller.

Wow wow wow! This book is amazing!

So hard to review without spoilers but there is so much packed into this book.

A mother’s worst nightmare, you wake one morning to find your son gone, a year on and there is still not a single clue to what has happened to him.

This is where Isabelle finds herself…she has lost everything and is desperate to get her son back.

Told in a dual time line, Isabelle has to face her past, look within herself and at those around her to uncover the truth.

So many twists your head will be spinning. So many times your heart will break. A must read.

What do you do when your baby goes missing from his cot?
After all the initial publicity dies down and the police investigation goes cold you continue to publicize the tale in your own right.
Your sleep deprived and exhausted, your marriage breaks down and then you meet someone.
They say they can help but is it as alturistic as it seems? Hidden motives or kindness?
A powerful tale that will leave you amazed.

I absolutely loved Stacy Willingham’s debut novel ‘A Flicker in the Dark’ so I was thrilled when I was given the opportunity to read an ARC of their new book. After finishing ‘All the Dangerous Things’, I’m relieved that this was just as good - possibly even somehow better.

There were a few twists that I thought I had figured out - however I was wrong! The story flowed well where the flickers between past and present weren’t off-putting and added to the plot well. The dialogue was also smooth and felt realistic.

The start of the novel especially was great at making me feel uneasy as if someone was always watching the main character Isabelle.

I felt this book did a great job at making me guess who done it, while also making good points about motherhood and identity. I highly recommend reading it.

“There’s something nocturnal that slithers out in the dark; something with a bloodlust that needs to be quenched”

Oh hey, we meet again... This time last year, I was posting my gushing review of A Flicker in The Dark & I’m at it again!
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Stacey Willingham is cemented in my mind as the queen of scapal sharp, painfully gorgeous prose & her thrillers always being something fresh to the table. I love it when tired tropes are subverted, whilst still giving a nod to the classic themes we know & love.

This may sound psychotic but - I LOVE a good missing child story 👀 All The Dangerous Things throws you right into the mind of a heartbroken, desperate, prepared to do ANYTHING parent & the commentary on motherhood (both in the present day & past chapters) is flawless in its no holds barred approach. The insomnia rep also added a whole other layer. Honestly my eyes feel sore & gritty just thinking about it 🤠
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I already can’t wait to read another book from this author. See you in a year!

An easy 5 stars for Stacy Willingham’s second book. I thoroughly enjoyed it, it was paced well and not predictable! Definitely though Waylon was more sinister 😅 Thanks to Net Galley for the advanced copy.

I loved the debut novel by Stacy Willingham, A flicker in the dark, and this second book did not disappoint!

I loved the ambiguity of the characters, all hiding something, big or small, but in each case enough to make you suspect they could be involved in Mason's disappearance. The dual timeline worked very well, and I really enjoyed how Isabelle's sleep deprivation made all recollections and experiences appear dream-like, leaving you in doubt about what actually happened and what was just imagined.

The twists and turns were brilliant and I could not have anticipated the ending. A real page turner, and a definite 5-star read that I recommend to all thriller lovers.

Thank you Netgallery and Harper Collins UK for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow Stacey Willingham has done it again. I loved her debut novel “A Flicker In The Dark” and I loved this one too. This author knows how to write a thriller

The twists were amazing! This book is extra smart, engaging, well developed, unputdownable! The author writes such eerie descriptions and writes characters that you are not sure you can trust. So that has you doubting everyone and guessing everyone’s motives which is the perfect way to write a thriller.

In this book you feel like you are uncovering two mysteries at once with Masons disappearance and Isabelle’s past. Just when I thought I had things figured out the book would take another turn. I did guess what happened in Isabelle’s past, however I enjoyed how that unraveled. I had no idea about Masons disappearance. The twists kept unravelling.

This story also highlighted the less shiny side of motherhood and how much women have to deal with throughout our lives. I also highly recommend reading the authors note at the end! It pulled everything together and made you see a totally different side to the story.

As I really hate reviews which try to tell you half the story and what they think of every character involved this will be a short and to the point review.

Did I enjoy reading this? - yes

Did it meander at times - yes

Did that prevent the story coming across - No

Was I happy with the ending - uyes.

So overall worth reading, not the best ever but certainly not a waste of time.

I was really excited when I was invited to read this book because I had been quite impressed with Stacy Willingham’s debut novel ‘A Flicker in the Dark’. Unfortunately, this book did not live up to my expectations. The story was good and held a bit of suspense but I thought the book rambled a lot. There were paragraphs and paragraphs about what the main character thinks, which could have been done away with. It could have done with a bit more editing to keep the story tighter. The book did not keep me interested and I finished it just for the sake of finishing the book, although the story did pick up towards the end. The one thing I did like was how the story was divided between the ‘Then’ - when the character was a young girl, ‘Now’ - which is the current time, and a middle phase when the character was a young lady falling in love with the man she marries. It was interesting to read about all the phases of the characters life.
Thank you HarperCollins UK for an advanced copy of this ebook and giving me a chance to review this book!

I was CRAVING a good thriller that keeps me on the edge of my seat lately. I've barely read any thrillers at all these last few months, so when I read all the positive reviews of Willingham's most recent novel, "All the Dangerous Things", I was super excited for it. And it definitely delivered on a lot of my expectations: It's a quick read because it's very much a pageturner, and I devoured it in a single reading session, safe and comfy in my bed.

Once again, we meet an unreliable narrator, once again it's a woman. Nothing groundbreaking about that, obviously. But I loved the angle Willingham chose, focusing on our protagonist's sleepwalking issues, making us wonder what a sleepwalking person is capable of. Isabelle has been sleepwalking since her childhood, and it understandably caused deep-lying insecurities about herself. Especially because something terrible happened back then, and she faults her sleepwalking self for that.
And now, something terrible has happened again: Her son Mason was kidnapped a year ago, and still noone knows what happened to him. Since his disappearance, Isabelle has gone from one extreme to the other: She's severely sleep-deprived, which is causing issues, too.

I very much enjoyed her unreliability, and it was what made the book for me. It actually made me read up on sleepwalking afterwards. Other than that, though, this is a pretty standard thriller. There are some twists and turns, some more predictable than the others, and I didn't enjoy the last big twist and was actually hoping for it not to happen throughout the late parts of the book. But it's still an exciting mystery, slower paced and more character driven than many of its siblings. I wasn't blown away by it, but it's a good thriller with a really intriguing premise.