A dark and atmospheric thriller that explores the complexities of morality and friendship, with a gripping narrative and an unforgettable conclusion.

Atmospheric you can literally feel how tense the atmosphere is and it's chilling. I didn't connect with the characters and the plot was interesting though it does get a little repetitive.

An unsettling and claustrophobic thriller where nothing is quite what it seems. Modern Gothic at its best

I like this one and yes it was twisty it just didn't hit me like other mysteries have done, for me it's a solid 3 star read and I have recommended it to friends.

Beware the woman is a foreboding yet overpowering title as I couldn't get it out of my head whilst reading. For most of the book I'm thinking beware which woman?? Jacy the new bride, Mrs Brandt the ominous matriarch of Jed's family home, Molly the ex girl friend? As you know I go in blind so hadn't read the synopsis but the title alone made me expect a very different book from what I got. Disquiet is prevalent as soon as Jacy arrives at her in law's house, the opinionated father in law, the mysterious Mrs Brandt lurking round every corner and the metaphorical ghost of Jed's mother who he never knew. Unfortunately the uneasiness dissipates as the story unfolds and the characters almost become caricatures. It is highlighted over and over again that Jacy is dismissed and not listened to which began to grate as she does very little to remedy the situation. This fictional story does have real life truth in it's foundations but I feel any real messages are lost along the way. It straddles between gothic horror and family drama and because it didn't fully commit to either that's why I didn't love it.

This is a strong contender for my favorite Megan Abbott book to date. A tantalizing thriller, verging on horror, it’s a spine-tingling, discombobulating, slow-burn of a read, reminiscent — to me at least — of Cat Ward’s Last House on Needless Street.

The setting alone — an old, remote cabin in the wooded wilderness of northern Michigan — is creepo central. Throw in a sinister, retired doctor, his enigmatic housekeeper, and a roaming mountain lion, and the scene is set for one spooky ride.

Newlyweds Jacy and Jed are visiting Jed’s father, the charismatic Dr Ash, who is charm personified, delighted to meet his daughter-in-law and excited about becoming a grandfather.

But Jacy is uneasy from the get-go. There’s no wifi in the house, mobile reception is patchy, and Dr Ash is just a bit too touchy-feely for comfort. Then, Jacy starts bleeding and gets rushed to the nearest health center. And it’s here that things start to go off the rails.

What follows, as Dr Ash’s actions become more and more controlling, forcing Jacy and Jed further and further apart, builds a suffocating sense of dread; a heart-in-the-mouth feeling of impending doom that intensifies with every chapter.

Unlike the majority of thriller authors, Abbott’s writing is heavily descriptive; so lusciously visual that her words conjure tangible images and feelings. Telling the story in Jacy’s voice is a master stroke; her increasing sense of disorientation, isolation and fear magnified by the panicky, half-formed thoughts of her internal monologue.

When the dam finally bursts, in an electrifying twist, it’s to release a barrage of horrifying truths that had me galloping through the last few chapters like the bookies’ favorite at Aintree.

I can see this being a bit too slow and perhaps too “literary” for some readers, but I’m a slave to Abbott’s craft and can only applaud her flair.

This had my heart racing and I’ll not deny it scared me from the start. But it’s that lovely slow burn that makes this a good read. It’ll keep you guessing. I like this writer’s previous books but just noticed one I’ve missed so off to order it 😍

Jacy marries in haste and when her husband suggests they visit his father who lives ‘in the middle of nowhere’ they undertake the long journey across several states even though she is pregnant.
A cross between Rebecca and Rosemary’s Baby this book will send shivers through anyone who has been pregnant, as this sorrow stringy features concern for Jacy’s wellbeing and the life of their unborn child.
Gripping thriller
Thanks to #NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book ahead of publication in exchange for an honest review

I originally said I wouldn’t give feedback on this title as it disappeared from my NetGalley Shelf but yesterday it appeared again telling me it was expiring in 5 days. I am glad I didn’t let it slide and decided to read it as I have enjoyed other novels of Megan’s.
Jed and Jacy are heading to Jed’s childhood home in an isolated part of Michigans Upper Peninsula, for the holidays. Jacy, newly pregnant is looking forward to meeting her father in law, Jed’s mother having died in childbirth. On arrival Jacy also meets Mrs Brandt, the caretaker of the place and so sinister it seems…..cue Daphne Du Mauriers Rebecca.
As the days pass strange things seem to be happening. First it seems Jacy is having weird dreams but these seem to spill over into her waking moments. The reader starts to doubt if Jacy is a reliable narrator herself.
Details that were told to her she has no recollection of yet everyone around her seems at odds with who they are portrayed to be. When Jacy decides she needs to leave, her father in law steps up his efforts to keep her there. Cut off from the outside world with no phone coverage and several miles off the grid Jacy starts to feel increasingly unsafe and her husband has become strange and distant.
It’s a good read, easy to read in one sitting and did not end how I thought it would!

#BewareTheWoman. #NetGalley

An atmospheric and claustrophobic novel where a pregnant New York woman stays with her in-laws for the first time.

Read it if: you’re a fan of slow building tension.

Don’t read it if: you need a neat ending.

I expected this to be a horror story of being trapped with unbearable in-laws, but it’s so much more than that. It’s an account of female solidarity, control and gaslighting. When newlyweds Jacy and Jed decide to visit Jed’s ex-GP father at his remote woodland cottage, Jacy is in the early stages of pregnancy. She feel comfortable with her father-in-law, not only because of his medical background, but his warmth and playfulness. However Jed becomes more and more distant, the housekeeper Mrs Brandt’s behaviour remains cold and mysterious, and no one wants to talk about Jed’s dead mother. The household becomes obsessed with Jacy’s pregnancy and her apparent lack of care, and she feels ever more isolated.

I really enjoyed this book and it’s slightly erratic narration from Jacy. It’s a constant guessing game as to whether Jacy’s fears are valid or not and the whole remote setting is extremely creepy. The ending is very abrupt and I was sad to not learn more about how the story develops.

With thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown Book group for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This a creepy and atmospheric book from the start.

The story of Captain Murderer at the start has you gripped so much that I had to read to find out who it resembled.

Dr Ash is creepy and charming from the moment he Is introduced and finding out his big secret at the end made it worth the read.

Jed and Jacy were likable characters who had their faults but I found it made the story abit more real.

The big twist at the end I wasn't expecting so I was surprised.

Highly recommended.

This is classed as a psychologic story and it does not disappoint. Jacy and Jed meet and marry very quickly after meeting. Jacy is a teacher of little ones and Jed has his own business making neon signs. Jacy becomes pregnant and they decide to visit Jed’s father who he has not seen for a long time, or so Jacy thought. They drive and the drive takes hours and they arrive exhausted and were warmly welcomed. Jacy feels calm at the house in the beginning but things become strange over a small period of time. Jacy finds that Jed is becoming more and more distant the more time he spends his father. Mrs Brandt, the caretaker of sorts, is keeping her eye on Jacy and Jacy finds this weird but eventually finds out why. Jed’s dad, Dr Ash, changes his stance on Jacy as he feels she is not looking after herself and he becomes increasingly protective in a most difficult way. As the story unfolds Dr Ash becomes more and more strange and the only thing he is thinking about is the grandchild which is on it’s way more so that Jacy herself feels like a vessel. Life becomes very difficult for Jacy and she gets no support from Jed as she kept asking to go home but he would talk to his father who flatly refused this request. Eventually Jacy makes a decision and the real problems begins and becomes quite interesting. Worth a read but I would have liked the story to continue further as I felt I need a little more depth to the ending

Jacy is our main character, a young woman recently married, pregnant, and about to meet her father-in-law. Unfortunately he lives in a remote home, some way from civilisation and, conveniently, cut off from the outside digital world. So the scene is set for our vulnerable female character to be alienated from potential help.
The initial meeting goes well. Over a matter of days we learn that Doctor Ash has some quite unusual ideas about pregnancy and women in general. Jacy’s husband, Jed, is spineless and does nothing but wander off to the local bar to drink with his childhood sweetheart. With the mysterious housekeeper it’s clear from the outset that this is a very weird scenario.
Though the way the male characters treated Jacy irritated me no end, I was increasingly frustrated with her passivity. It made little sense given what we’re told about her. However, I was enjoying the increasing tension and thought this was going to be a read I’d rave about (with some people). Then came the ending.
Abrupt, with little to prepare us, and no attempt to explain it. Incredibly frustrating.
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this prior to publication.

Similar theme to Rosemary’s Baby.

This is a claustrophobic, eerie, slow burn that excels at atmosphere.

Jacy is a fine narrator but I found myself a bit frustrated by her.

A interesting new take.

Well the was certainly unique! In short it wasn't for me but that's no reflection on the book. It's a slow burn woth a lot of description and not always a lot of actual things happening. There's certainly a tension filled atmosphere and I got handmaid's tale/ Rosemary's baby type vibes. Its that kind of dark gothic, dramatic book which just isn't my preference. For those who do like that genre, I'd highly recommend and I'm sure you'll enjoy it

This is the third Megan Abbott book I have read and I think there is a common theme throughout ,and that is a sense of foreboding. This novel is so creepy and suffocating in parts and yet it is so compelling to read. The story is told from Jacy’s point of view and from the start we sense that all is not well. She is newly married and expecting a baby. She and her husband go to see her father in law who is a doctor in remote area in the mountains . Gradually she suspects not is all it seems. We as readers are unsure whether it is her mind or true. There is a sense of unease as the novel progresses. I thought that there were similarities with Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, the housekeeper certainly reminds me of Mrs Danvers. It is a novel that has feminist themes and encounters misogyny in parts. The one criticism that I have is the ending, I personally would have liked an epilogue, I found the ending abrupt. However it is a thrilling read which I enjoyed throughly.

A slow-paced, gothic piece that gradually shifts gears to become a breathless, psychological thriller. Artist Jed and art teacher Jacy married after a whirlwind romance, now she’s pregnant and they’re finally visiting his childhood home where his father Dr Ash still lives along with his housekeeper, the stern-faced Mrs Brandt. But once there Jed’s personality seems bizarrely different, obsessed with the memory of his mother who apparently died in childbirth, and soon Jacy has reason to wonder if she might be heading towards a similar fate. Megan Abbott’s novel is laced with familiar tropes, not unexpectedly since tales of brides who begin to wonder if their husbands aren’t quite what they seemed are a well-established subgenre. Abbott plays on this by deliberately including hints and echoes of earlier narratives revolving around suspicious husbands and isolated houses from <i>Rebecca</i> to Ira Levin’s <i>Stepford Wives</i> and <i>Rosemary’s Baby</i> although Abbott’s scenario isn’t ultimately as arresting as these. I also found her style off-putting at times, it tilted too much towards overwrought for me, the plot’s a bit overblown too, but Abbott’s ability to create an atmosphere of sustained tension and dread compensated for the less-appealing elements - by the time I reached the half-way point I was utterly gripped. Like Levin’s, Abbott’s work also features an underlying political message. Here connecting to the rise of a particularly controlling brand of toxic masculinity and the threat this poses for women, particularly vulnerable ones - her narrative’s an effective sideways commentary on the arrogant male attitudes towards women’s bodily autonomy that’ve contributed to the appalling restriction of women’s reproductive rights in present-day America.

Rating: 3 to 3.5

Beware the Woman as a book, for me at least felt like the offspring of Rebecca crossed with The Handsmaid's Tale and smidge of the fable Bluebeard (particularly feminist retellings e.g. Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber). The story begins with a road trip where an expecting Jacy and her husband, Jed go and visit his father Doctor Ash and his housekeeper Mrs Brandt, in a remote and rural woodland cabin.

It's a slow burning thriller, and at times you are made to question how reliable Jacy, the narrator of this tale is, is she being gaslight and coercively controlled or is she simply unwell and subsequently 'paranoid', like her husband and father-in-law seem to be suggesting? And what exactly happened to Jed's mother, given how cagey Mrs Brandt is? By the end of the book, secrets are revealed one by one and one of the book's biggest morals leaves the viewer with questions on marriage (with Jacy's mothers forewarning of '...we all marry strangers') and more importantly around women's bodily autonomy, how people can horrifyingly change when you land up pregnant...

Thank you NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group (UK) for the ARC.

The plot is as deep and dark as it gets, multi-layered with 'who knew what when?' as the strands come together and the finer details get filled in. This is an absolutely compelling, gripping book full of mystery and suspense. Only a few authors can write deeply involving psychological drama of the very highest quality.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

I wasn’t a fan of The Turnout and I am SO PLEASED I gave this author another chance.

A pregnant woman and her husband are visiting her father at a remote-ish location. She has a pregnancy scare but soon feels super smothered by all the attention….

It was great. I felt super unsettled. There’s a lot about a woman’s ownership/autonomy of her body, and how pregnancy makes other people feel entitled to it. Loved it. Except… really? It’s just gonna end like THAT? Really?