I found myself really seesaw-ing about this book. At times I was invested in completion and at others I had to force myself to continue. Saying too much about plot would spoil it for readers but I suspect it may be a bit of a 'marmite' read. There are some really interesting ideas within it but the format won't appeal to everyone.

Bit slow going for me I’m afraid - I bailed about quarter of the way through. I got the impression the story was building up to something, but it didn’t hook me. Thanks for the opportunity to read!

Something about this book really didn’t connect for me, despite being hugely enthusiastic about the storyline. I was expecting a page-turning, thought-provoking tale a la Chandler Baker, but the execution fell a little flat. The opening gambit told from Cole’s POV was slow and at times, the voice was painfully inauthentic. As the story picked up pace, I could see why this may have been the case, but it never really recovered from there. The format was all over the place, I cared very little about the missing girls (because frankly I hated them and their attitude from the get go) and the ending was unsatisfying. Sad to give this 3 stars, but there were some thrilling moments that saved it from a lower rating.

𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗢𝗙 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗚𝗢𝗢𝗗 𝗚𝗨𝗬𝗦
—𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗮 𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹 | 𝟰🌟

“𝘖𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘥𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘉𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘏𝘶𝘭𝘬 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴𝘯’𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘷𝘪𝘰𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘔𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺’𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦–𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘯.”

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
✨Feminist literature
✨Activism
✨Thought provoking fiction
✨Questionable characters

𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗳 𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆:
Reeling from a broken down marriage, Cole escapes into the countryside where he meets Leonora, artist and fellow recluse, where an instant spark follows their initial meeting. However, when two female activists who are campaigning for coverage and conversation about violence against women go missing near both Cole and Leonora’s cottages, the following media frenzy begins to shake the foundations of their budding relationship.

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:
My word, this was endlessly fascinating. I was borderline obsessed with Cole’s point of view in the first half of this book. He has this intriguing, rational, and yet slightly off narrative that seems perfectly logical yet invasive and creepy at the same time. His narrative alone is an amazing feat of the authors.

And yet in this thought provoking feminist literature, the storyline is also a front runner of things to love about this novel. The exploration of coercive control, pornography, BDSM, mental health and misogyny is timely, clever, and the arc of the story is almost poetic in a hair raising sort of way.

My only flaw is that it was quite hard for me to differentiate as to which POV was whose, so I felt I had to keep going back and rereading to reorientate myself.

Otherwise, this is an eye opening triumph of how not to have a healthy relationship. Manipulation is the core behaviour of each of the flawed characters, and I consider myself to be successfully manipulated by this book. I will be thinking of this one for a long time to come.

𝗞𝗮𝘆𝗹𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵 | 𝗪𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗵 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿𝘆

Really enjoyed this engaging read, a really interesting twist in a book that fuelled a lot of emotion. A recommended read for sure!

Cole's marriage to Mel has broken down. With a pending divorce he's now left the marital home and moved to the coast where he works as a ranger, looking after wildlife and the surrounding countryside. He still dwells on all he has lost, the most important being Mel's reluctance to undergo any more IVF with their three remaining embryos - something which had been at the heart of their break up. He wanted more than anything to become a father, but it appears Mel is no longer on board with the idea and wants the embryos destroyed. To hear Cole detailing his woes, it is easy to feel sorry for him. He certainly paints Mel as hard hearted, even domineering.

And then the viewpoint changes and Mel takes over the narrative. Suddenly we see a completely different and more unpleasant side to Cole's character.

Striking up a friendship with artist Leonora who lives in a nearby clifftop cottage, Cole begins to settle into his new life. When he meets two young women walking the coastline for charity, what begins as a friendly warning about being too near to the cliff edge, ends with them becoming abusive towards him. This escalates into a row which one of them films. When they disappear and a police search becomes national news, fingers point at Cole. Worse still, this unwanted notoriety causes the emergence of someone from his past with their own accusations.

It was difficult to like anyone in this story. Although at first Cole had my sympathy, he did come over as a weak, keen to please character. Ironically, he sees himself as the good guy of the title; the perfect husband. Through his eyes we see Mel, who runs her own successful PR company, as a cold-hearted bully. That’s until you hear her version of their relationship, which paints an entirely different picture.

Leonora is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Whatever her excuse to justify her actions, all I saw was someone who used others simply to make money and revive her career.

As far as the two walkers, Mollie and Phoebe, were concerned, I completely understood their passion for the stand against the abuse of women. However, like Leonora, all they were interested in was advancing their cause in the most insidious and spiteful of ways.

Although, I didn’t particularly like any of the characters or what they did, the story was cleverly written and thought provoking. So it's a worthy four stars from me..

I would like to thank Pan Macmillan, the author and Netgalley for an ARC of One of the Good Guys in exchange for an honest review.

Cole thought that he was the ideal husband and is heartbroken when his wife Mel leaves him. He starts a new life on the coast and immediately connects with Lennie. When two young women go missing while protesting violence against women, Cole and Lennie find themselves at the heart of the investigation.

I loved this story.

It really resonated with me and I think a lot of people will feel the same way. It highlights the very real danger that women face in everyday situations and how not everyone understands it. It serves as a stark reminder that there is still so much to be done.

The characters came to life on the page. I enjoyed how the book was told from different perspectives, giving a real insight into each person's feelings and gradually revealing the truth of the story . I found it to be so clever and well-written.

Everyone needs to read this brilliant book, I can't recommend it enough.

Thank you NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This book was magnificent! I absolutely loved it.
There is no point regurgitating the plot, I will just say it is a masterpiece in examining human relationships and utterly perceptive in highlighting narcissistic character traits.
I would urge everyone to read this!

I absolutely adored Araminta Hall’s previous book Our Kind of Cruelty (see my review here) and when I started to see Gillian Flynn recommending One of the Good Guys all over social media, my FOMO kicked it. So, when Anne Cater of Random Things Tours offered me a spot on the blogtour I jumped at the chance.

One of The Good Guys is the story of Cole. He’s recently separated from his wife of 7 years, Mel. She is the love of his life but the marriage has broken down irretrievably. He’s hurting emotionally and decides to move away to a remote location and try to rebuild his life. Starting a job as a wildlife ranger Cole meets Leonora, a reclusive artist who lives in a cottage on the cliffs and they strike up an immediate friendship.

When two young female activists disappear in close proximity to Cole and Leonora’s houses, they both become the focus of police and media scrutiny. With extracts from social media posts and news articles the reader is able to follow the thoughts of the public during the frantic hunt for the two missing girls.

During the first part of the book, when Cole is narrating his story, it’s difficult to feel anything but sorry for him, although at times when he recounts his marriage and what Mel put him through, there are some warning signs that perhaps his recollections may be slighted one-sided.

When the reader finally meets Mel, and she begins to tell her side of the story, I was well and truly gob-smacked. The pace of the story completely changes and as more secrets are revealed, the tension starts mounting and I absolutely couldn’t put this book down.

One of the Good Guys is a very clever story, told with several points of view, several versions of the same story, his side, her side and then the truth.

Absolutely blown away by this book. A really good look at the Nice Guy trope and a commentary on male privilege and violence against women and girls. I think the structure worked really well, seeing the first part of the book through the eyes of the male antagonist who can't see himself as anything other than one of the good guys. The second half is from the POVs of various women in his life and mixed multi media. A very powerful read with a strong message.

Anyone who has read a previous book by this author knows to expect the unexpected and so I took the first part of the book when we met Cole with a pinch of salt and guessed the creeping unease of his character was leading us to a much more complex individual….as it did,quite a shock as the reality of Cole became apparent…..but then nothing is as it seems in this book
It’s a powerful,thought provoking read,much use of media in the book ( which works well ) and almost a ‘discussion in the making’ at least once in every paragraph re some mens attitudes to women and the unseen fear women experience on a daily basis and how when women try to react and look for justice this is often thwarted,I can only imagine the lively debate this book would bring to any book club discussion
The writing is clever and engaging whilst remaining story tellable and you cannot help but be drawn into this book and what is happening,a challenging un cosy and un light book but engages you and your thoughts and for that it is more than a worthwhile read

What can I say? Wow. This book packs a hell of a punch. It’s been a long time since I’ve read anything so powerful. I want everyone to read this book. It’s an education and a journey and I can’t wait to see how the world reacts to it. It is designed to spark discussion and thought, and I’m so interested in hearing how different people respond to it.

A must-read.

I found this book quite engrossing and difficult to put down. I enjoyed its multimedia formatting and the variety of viewpoints. The book definitely raised important thinking and talking points

I really enjoyed this book. Cole has just moved down to the south coast after splitting up with his wife. He can't understand what went wrong - he was supportive, kind, didn't drink, but she doesn't want to be with him anymore. Then he meets Lennie, a reclusive artist and believes he may have found love again. However, when 2 young women go missing nearby whilst on a walk to highlight crimes against women, things start to go wrong and it seems as though Cole is a suspect. This is a really interesting story and raises all kinds of issues and opinions regarding women's safety. Ultimately, both Cole and Lennie are hiding secrets.
Thanks to Netgalley for a preview copy.
Copied to Goodreads.

So glad I read this book! As soon as the book started you get a feeling of uneasiness and can tell how the story will unfold but it was so gripping and kept me interested till the very end. Covers some really heavy topics but dealt with in an interesting way that really makes you think and reflect. I really liked the use of social media posts/podcast transcripts to further highlight how society can perceive violence against women.

I haven’t heard of this author before but really enjoyed the writing style and wouldn’t hesitate picking up further books from her

Thank you to netgalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Absolutely stunning! This thought provoking and poignant book is easily in my top 20 reads out of more than 300 this year!

Molly and Phoebe, two young women raising money for a charity campaigning to end violence against women are taking part in "Walk for Women". They have received as much abuse as they have support, on social media, and the book portrays social media in a frightening accurate way, using facebook, twitter, WhatsApp, podcasts and blogs. When Molly and Phoebe pass the clifftop area where Cole is seeking solace by the sea, the two women are antagonistic and obnoxious towards him, and overnight, they go missing, prompting a huge police investigation and manhunt, with Cole at the heart of the investigation.

Cole and Lennie are two very different people, both of whom have sought solace by the sea. Coles thinks he’s a good man, but in the context of this book, he’s still a man and the gender divide is undeniable, regardless of how much people can choose to pretend otherwise. He is drawn to Lennie, sensing her vulnerability and loneliness.

The first part of the book is about Cole and his heartbreak over his failed marriage to Mel; We then hear Mel's story, from seven years previously up to the present day. This gives us a highly different perspective on the events described by Cole and it's shocking! As Mel's friend Siobhan says, "he is a privileged straight white man, which means the world was designed in his image".

The walk through art exhibition at the end was one of the most gripping things I've ever read - I held my breath right through, it was so well done and I can't actually find the words to describe how powerful it was, so just read it!

This incredible book pushes every moral boundary in existence. The characters and the detailed plot were all very well thought out and written, and whilst the characters were all morally flawed, I could relate to them all in some way.

No matter how much we push against societal expectations of what it is to be a woman, the fact remains that women can feel and be vulnerable in the presence of men.

Absolutely 5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Araminta Hall and Pan Macmillan for an ARC in return for an honest review.

This was an interesting read, the format and style were really great I loved the mix of normal writing and different forms of media and the writing was super easy to read. I basically flew through this in one sitting. The story itself was a bit simple, you could predict the entire plot from the first ten pages but it was still entertaining enough to keep me going. It definitely wasn't very unique or creative though and I also don't think any of the plot twists were very clever.

I also thought the message the book tried to convey was a bit too much, it was undeniable that the author had one opinion they wanted the reader to share and I think a little more subtlety would have helped. I think the reader could have figured out the rest for themselves. However, I would still pick up other books by this author in the future since I enjoyed the writing style and maybe a different topic will be more enjoyable.

Cole moves to the countryside for a fresh start after his marriage break up. It is there that he meets another new resident, Leonora. Soon they are both involved in a police investigation. Just how well do they know each other?

This was a very interesting book, focused on the relationships between genders, feminism and how men can perceive issues faced my women. It raises thought provoking questions and debates; which could work in a book club discussion. The narrative was clever and intriguing, with a few twists and turns thrown in. I also enjoyed the mixed media sections and think that added an extra layer to the overall story. Although this was a well written novel, I found it dragged slightly and although I understand the message the author is trying to get across, I did find it all a bit too heavy focused and too generally much. This is my first book by this author but I will definitely be checking out more of her books having finished this one. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this copy in return for an honest review.

An exciting thriller read with twists that keep you guessing till the end! Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC!

Enjoyed this and good begining ,good seeing all sides
I did guess all of it ,but I read a lot and have experience in the subject matter
Well done and enjoyed how we we see the side of those that are controlling and their delusions they belive themselves
Dark in parts and u feel for the women involved and the desperate measures we take to be heard or and to get a result of accountability and society saying screaming this is wrong and women should feel safe all times