Keep You Safe has a great plot, with a hint of mystery and a promise of an intriguing twist. The first chapter alone had me on the edge of my seat, anticipating what would come next. However, as the story unfolded, the twist was predictable. And while the ending did tie up loose ends neatly, it also left me wanting more depth and complexity in the resolution.

The audio narration was superb, and it was a good read overall.

Thanks, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for my free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

I've just finished reading my third novel by this author and to be honest, it didn't quite live up to my expectations. The story follows a mother who has been wrongly accused and is now desperately trying to get her son back. However, her ex-husband is not making it easy for her. I was hoping for an edge-of-the-seat thriller, with unexpected twists and turns, like the author's previous works. But, the storyline was predictable and the ending was too easy to guess. Don't get me wrong, it's an okay read, just not as thrilling as I had hoped.

However, I highly recommend checking out Love You Gone and The Bigamist.

***Thank you to NetGalley, Rona Halsall, and Bookouture Audio for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

Thank you NetGalley for this audiobook. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the third person point of view. The story jumps from third person then to present day and then first person anonymous narrator. It was a bit confusing for me. I also found the main character super idiotic and was getting frustrated with her. I would not recommend this book to anyone.

This book didn't play out in any way that I expected it to, and as such the listening experience was far more enjoyable. Well worth it.

I really enjoyed this although it wasn’t quite what I expected. Liked the characters & the ending though & would recommend.

In a nutshell - Natalie has been imprisoned for a crime she didn’t commit. Due too her incarceration, she hasn’t seen her son for three years. Her husband and family have turned against her.

While some parts of the book might warrant suspension of belief and some very poor choices, its a highly emotive story and one where I felt for Natalie, our protagonist. Stories of wrongful convictions always pull at my heart strings.

Told in past and present timelines, we are able to gain both backstory and current stories. The audio was narrated well, building suspension to a shocking conclusion. Another winner and a firm, new auto buy author.

Book Title: Keep You Safe
Author: Rona Halsall
Narrator: Sarah Durham
Publisher: Bookouture Audio
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Audiobook Pub Date: January 10, 2024
My Rating: 3.4 Stars
Pages: 342


Story is told by Natalie Wilson
Then- was four years ago and
Present Day is now with Natalie trying to find her son Harry.
However there is a third POV that is unknown and keeps us in suspense.

Natalie Wilson is a new mom and although she adores baby Harry, she is having difficulties coping with the strains of new motherhood. She is experiencing lapses of memory; cannot remember things such as making a large donation to a charity that she never had an interest additionally has been making expensive purchases. Her husband Tom encourages her to return to work in his management business; however soon she is approached by the police on suspicion of embezzling funds from a client's account. She doesn't understand the suspicion as it is something she doesn’t remembering doing nor would she ever do anything like that.

She is found guilty and sent to prison for three and a half years. While in prison all she can think about is getting out and seeing her little boy again.

There is no doubt I felt sorry for Natalie; I knew her stay in prison wasn’t going to be an enjoyable read.
I read a lot of thrillers and have become somewhat good at figuring things out. Didn’t have it exactly nor details but YES! That ending was a bit of a surprise but I was suspicious of that third POV.
Story did slow down with the details. I know many readers LOVE details but I am yelling – Hurry up!!!
Anyone who is familiar with my reviews knows I am not a fan of nasty f-bombs but that me! –
I am sure most readers don’t notice profanity.

My First author, Rona Halsall was "The Bigamist" which was GREAT!
Although this wasn’t as great – it was good!

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for granting me this audiobook.
Audiobook Publishing Date scheduled for January 10, 2024.

After being framed and sent to prison for a crime she didn’t commit, Natalie has a lot of time to plot her revenge and not importantly, get her son back. When she finally figures out what is happening and who is responsible, will it be too late? A dark, twisted psychological thriller that is well crafted. That said, I didn’t find there to be a lot of surprises. Great narration added to the experience.

Natalie has just spent three years in prison and the first thing she wants to do when getting out is find her son Harry who is for now. She was innocent of the crime or at least that’s what she claims. Despite being told to stay in the halfway house they put her in after her unexpected release she feels the need to find her son Harry more than the need to follow the law but before that happened she will find out how she wound up in prison and all those she should’ve never trusted to begin with. I thought this was a pretty good book and I have read reviews where they say they knew what was going to happen but I definitely did not or at least for the most part I didn’t even when I did it was only because the narrative lead me there. I usually love Rona wholesalls books and I found this one pretty interesting but not as good as her usual. I realize this is an early book of hers and despite only finding it OK it will not turn me off from her books because she has written some of my favorites. I want to thank Bookoucher audio and NetGalley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

eh. Initially I was intrigued by Natalie's situation and looked forward to finding out if her husband set her up and how she was hooked on oxy without knowingly taking it. I was also curious if she would successfully get her son back and through which means (legal or kidnapping).

Unfortunately the story started to drag and lose my interest. I was also promised a big twist I wouldn't see coming and the twist was so predictable and typical of the genre. I also loathe when a character turns maniacal and makes a long winded confession. This is bad writing and I hope it will stop.

The narrator did a great job.

Rona Halsall’s quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller writers. This is a very moving story with a a hell of a heroine - a woman dealing with incarceration not knowing who she can trust with her son. As a mother, I was with her every step of the way. The twists in the latter part of the book were a heck of a ride.

A reissue of an older book, definitely worth picking up!

I enjoyed this listen, it was a well thought out story - yes some plot lines were a bit unbelievable but it worked as part of the story. I escaped into the listen which for me is the most important part and I wanted to keep continuing which I did, so much so that I finished it in one day - I just needed to find out how it panned out. I didn't mind the time jumps for me they worked.

From reading the reviews this appears to be a re-release but for me this is my second listen to this author, she appears to get better and better and she hones her craft. But this one is good.

The narration suits the story and I really enjoyed listening to it.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

I’m unsure why this title is back up for rerelease in January next year, but oh my goodness I’m so fake it is or it’d have passed me a haze.

Fast paced, gripping, thrilling, suspenseful storytelling narrated beautifully. I empathised with Natalie our newly released from prison protagonist, I enjoyed the split time line, even though I sussed the ending I was half wrong so that’s a win! Huge 4 stars 🌟 and onto the next one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture audio for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook in return for an honest review.

I love the author’s books. They are quick reads that suck you in and make you want more. I was sure I knew what was going on in this one. Positive. And nope I was wrong.
It’s part of the genre I call a popcorn thriller. It plays out in my head as I read it. Just like a movie. Like if a book sucked you in like a Hallmark movie but as a thriller instead of a romance.

I did enjoy this one. The story was easy to get into and the narration was entertaining. My only gripe is that the story was too long. I found myself losing interest around halfway purely because of this.

Keep You Safe is an intriguing novel about the strength of a mother.

A young mom, wrongly accused and sentenced to prison, does everything she can to return to her son. He becomes her motivation for everything. Once she is released, she has to come face to face with the person she believes set her up - her husband. Little does she know that his story has evolved while she’s been locked away.

The beginning of this book really grabbed my attention but there was a part about 20% of the way through that I felt was repetitive. But the last 50% of the book left my jaw hanging to the floor.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this advanced audio in return for my honest opinion.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pub date: 10 Jan 2024

Keep You Safe by Rona Halsall was good. Good, not great. Enjoyed, but wouldn't read again. Listening to the audiobook was more difficult than having a paper or ebook to flip back and forth because this was another past/present/time hopping narrative which requires great skill on the narrator part, as well as intensive listening on the "readers" part. To me, books should not be that difficult. I wish I had read this one at my own pace rather than have listened to the audio arc.

The story features a wrongly imprisoned Mom, and her former spouse who has disappeared with her child while she was in prison. Upon release....got to find the kid. A lot of layers, the expected twist at the end, and I will, of course, read the next Halsall book. She can write.

This is such a fun thriller! As a mom I love reading thrillers involving moms - especially when they seem a little unhinged and you have to keep guessing whether they’re in the right or wrong for a while.

This has:
- scary prison friendships
- an evil ex-husband
- a mama bear
- Brits being bad
- unreliable narrators
- old friends who maybe aren’t such good friends…
- gaslighting
- twisty twists
- all the drama

[ The killer’s motivation could have used more clarification, but it was still a gripping read.

I had so much fun reading this and would definitely read more from this narrator!

Thanks, NetGalley and Bookouture, for the gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

'Keep You Safe' by Rona Halsall is another great book by this author! She is such a skillful and talented writer. The narration by Sarah Durham was fantastic as well - she was able to recreate multiple accents which definitely added to the overall enjoyment of the book.

I did guess the baddie in this book but to be honest, I was suspecting EVERYONE! It was a great book with lots of twists and turns and it kept me guessing through the end. I would love to read more books by this author! I highly recommend it.

Thank you Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for providing me with an early copy of this audiobook.

I have really enjoyed this authors books, but I cannot get into this one at all. Thank you for the opportunity. Will try her again.