Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Wow! I did NOT see that ending coming! I am in awe of who the actual murderer was. This was a crazy book! The plot was very interesting and I really enjoyed all of the twists and turns in this book. This was a great and thrilling read!

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀:
This book was phenomenal! The author is new to me, but I will definitely be reading more of her work.
People are saying the beginning was slow, but I don't feel that way. AJ set the scene for the story, and after that, it took off and never stopped.

AJ's prose is beautifully descriptive, bringing the characters and the background scenes to life. I love it when I can envision myself inside a novel.

There is a lot to unpack in this thriller, such as a young girl living with survivors - guilt, abandonment, and grief, and I feel AJ wrote it with sensitivity.

The story is jam-packed with intrigue, intensity, and a mystery to solve with some great twists.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by @tamsinkennard, who did an outstanding with her multitude of voices.

If you're looking for a fast-paced thriller that hooks you from the first page, this is the book for you.

Thank you to netgalley, Bookature Audio, and the author for my copy. My review was voluntary.

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This was such a fun listen. I was instantly hooked, and wanted to know what was going to happen. I was able to figure some of the twists out, but not all of them. I would recommend this audiobook if you’re looking for fast paced thriller, with many twists and turns.

The Photo was such an amazing read (audio)! I love how there are continuous and different problems & perspectives between Lilly’s and Laura’s throughout. This book was written phenomenally and had me saying and doing “just one more chapter”! I am looking forward to reading and listening to more books by this author!

Thanks you to A.J. McDine & NetGalley for allowing me to listen to this Audio.

The Photo by A J McDine is a fast-paced and entertaining thriller. I thought it was very well-written and it is not predictable. I did not guess what the twist was. I enjoyed the audio narration. This thriller made me want to read more books by this author. A very solid thriller and I highly recommend it!

I consumed The Photo by A.J. McDine through the audiobook version. I will preface this by saying I do not always do well with audiobooks. My mind tends to wander and I cannot pay attention especially if the author is scatterbrained but with The Photo I was able to focus 100%. I never had to rewind to feel as if I needed to "flip back" to earlier in the book. I'm sure this was contributed to a combination of the narrator and the structured writing of McDine. As for the story...I really really enjoyed it. It was the right amount of suspense and a perfect twist at the end. This was my first book by this author and I'm certain I will be picking up other books by her too. If you're looking for an easy to follow entertaining suspense novel, then this book is for you!

An intriguing and involving plotline makes this a great story, that can be as easily listened to in one binge-sitting as it can in bite-sized chunks.

This is a fast paced mystery. I binged it in one sitting lol. Literally could not stop listening.

You know how most mysteries are somewhat predictable? Not this one.... there were so many twists and turns. Every time I thought I knew what was going happen next I was wrong. There were twists all the way up to the last chapter.

Imagine one photo leading you into a crazy rollercoaster on its path to find your sister and nephews murderer.

Thanks you A.J. McDine, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for my audio copy of this book.

I listened to this as an audiobook and it was mesmerizing. I like how it shocks you in the beginning and hooks you so you can't wait to see what happens next. The length made it perfect to binge in an afternoon and I couldn't get enough of the fun accent by the narrator.

Lily is the sole survivor of a brutal murder and she always claimed she didn't remember anything about that night. Now, fragments are coming back to her and she wants to find the truth. The ten year anniversary of the event is coming up and she decides to break her silence and talk about that night.

Laura wants to protect her family. She is working with a friend to put the pieces together. This kept you guessing until the end which I enjoy as I thought I knew who did it but I was wrong.

If you like a fast pace, who done it mystery/thriller then you should check this one out. This was a new author for me and loved it!

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to the ARC of The Photo!

A. J. McDine had me hooked from the very beginning and had me guessing all the way to the very twisty ending! I definitely did not see that coming!

Following a cast of characters, this book starts on the 10th anniversary of a horrific murder/possible suicide of a woman and two of her three children. The husband is the main suspect who happens to disappear after it happens only to turn up again.

This was my first AJ McDine book but it won’t be my last!

Jason killed his wife, Isabelle, and their two boys then disappeared in an apparent murder/suicide. However, Lara, Isabelle's sister, has a picture of him from a photo shoot she was just on. Could he be alive? What happened 10 years prior that rocked her entire family?

This book was suspenseful from the moment Lara saw that picture. There are so many twists that you will continue guessing who is behind this horrific crime throughout the entire book. The final chapter will SHOCK you and will leave you wanting more!

This was an ARC provided by Bookotour audio so thanks to them for the opportunity to review.

This book is centred around the murder of a woman and her young twins. The only survivor of the attack is 5 year old Lily who is taken in by her gran and a close part of the family is her Aunt who was a news reporter turned wedding photographer. The 10 year anniversary looms and what will come? Will they finally capture the man suspected all along of the murder, the woman’s husband and father of the children or will things start to unravel to bring to light the real story?

Firstly for the audio, I really enjoyed the narrator and thought she did a great job at telling the story. There were male and female voices but the narrator kept the accents consistent without it being cringy like it sometimes can. I would listen to more by this narrator definitely.

For the story this is definitely a psychological thriller in that it’s a slower burn with tidbits of information peppered throughout. I had a theory around 50% in of where the story was going and it turned out to be right. Therefore it’s not wildly out of the scope of finding out but this may be due to the fact I have read a lot of psychological thrillers.

There is a big twist at the end which made sense and if you hadn’t figured it out, would be a revelation.

Overall as a first read from this author I would give it a 3.5. It kept me entertained, I wasn’t bored, there were enough characters to keep it interesting without being too much to remember or think about.

If you’re looking for an easy listen, this is definitely a good option.

My first clue should have been how overhyped the book was in its listing: "The Photo
A totally addictive and heart-pounding psychological thriller with a breathtaking twist". I am so over the ridiculous marketing word salad that keeps getting appended to every single new book title. Most, like this one, simply don't deserve it.

I can't remember the last time I read a book with a main character who grated as much as Lara did in The Photo. Seriously, she was a disaster of cluelessness and outraged confidence that would rival any conspiracy theorist on social media. There were significant happenings she simply "let go" or would forget about that would send up huge red flags for any sensible person. Then there were hills she was ready to die on with absolutely no reason to believe what she did. So many times, especially toward the end, I really wanted to tell her to JUST SHUT UP.

Unlikeable Lara aside, the story was an okay domestic suspense, but there was no thrill to it. It started out promising, but then it got ridiculous and annoying. If I could have read the book the first 75 pages seemed to be ramping up to, it would have been easily a 4-star book. Instead, the pace slowed considerably and the last 50ish pages were simply painful. I didn't even want to finish it, but alas I did.

There were two twists, one so obvious I rolled my eyes (at no one, in bed) and then another so unnecessary and excessive I can't figure out why it even made it into the book. It was all very shruggable.

It grabbed my attention from the first chapter. Not having read anything by McDine previously, I did have any expectations but I really liked how The Photo was written- descriptive passages and multiple, well identified, POVs. I was totally blindsided by the many twists.
The audiobook’s narration by Tamsin Kennard is clear and well paced. The voice portrayals are consistent and well suited. Enjoyed the suspense! I look forward to finding more books by this author.
Thank You to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen to and enjoy this ARC.

🎧Audio Book Review🎧

The Photo
AJ McDine

🌟🌟🌟🌟

This was my first read by this author, but is definitely going to be one of many.

Photographer Lara spots someone from her past in the background of a photo she's taken whilst editing.
Ten years ago her sister and nephews were murdered. The main suspect, the husband, disappeared leaving an almost dead daughter Lily behind - but has he returned to finish the job?

In terms of plot, this seemed like a pretty straight forward one. I had a theory and everything fell into place beautifully.
This didn't deter me wanting to read nor spoil my enjoyment of the book and the events that were taking place.

We follow this over a past and present timeline and as the story progresses, we learn more about the night of the murder and the other characters involved helping us also piece together the events happening now in the present.
This was really well done and I was still confident about the theory I'd worked out.
However, the plot gradually becomes more and more complex and more and more characters shift into being suspects and I spent a good while trying to make new theories.

I loved the shift in dynamics between all the characters. I can't say too much here, but there was a lot going on and I feel like I changed my opinion of most of them throughout the book.

This kept me gripped from start to finish and even when I thought it was all explained.....there was more to come.
There were so many twists right to the very end!

A great read which was well written and I can't wait to read more like this!


💕Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my ARC copy - this is my honest review 💕

I loved this book. One of my favorites I’ve read this year. I dislike the cover of the book which is a big thing for me when deciding on what books to read. I’m so glad I read it. Twists were great. Not knowing who the villains were and questioning everything made this so much fun. It’s dark and sad but still very enjoyable. It was a perfect thriller to me. I will be following this Author now and waiting for more books from them!

I was chosen for an ARC on NetGalley for this book and I’m so glad I was. Thank you to Bookouture Audio and AJ McDine for selecting me.

A.J. McDine is the real deal, a really talented writer of psychological thrillers. It doesn’t surprise me to learn that she is a former journalist and police press officer herself, as her books bring a level of detail and authenticity that speak to firsthand knowledge of how criminal investigations might unfold in real life. This is the second book I’ve had the opportunity to listen to from this author via NetGalley, and I was so engrossed that I finished in just a day.

In The Photo, Lara, a former journalist herself who is biding time as a wedding photographer until she can sustain herself as a landscape photographer, is editing a photo of just such a landscape and sees a familiar face. She is certain it is her brother-in-law Jason, who she hasn’t seen in 10 years — when he was presumed to have killed himself after killing her sister and two nephews. Her niece Lily was the only survivor of this horrific crime, but didn’t remember much at age 5. Now 15, things are starting to come back to her, and she decides to create a TikTok account to tell her story to a true crime audience.

Suddenly things start to go very wrong in their little remaining family. Who has it out for Lara, her mother and her niece? It’s obviously Jason, with plenty to lose if he’s caught and arrested, right? But not so fast. The book presents several characters who may be innocent but may be perpetrators — and when the final twist came, I wasn’t rolling my eyes like I have with some thriller writers, where it feels like throwing in one more thing just for the sake of it. It felt authentic and believable and just left me wanting more.

The Photo publishes July 11 and, after these two books, this writer is going to be on my automatic read list going forward. I need to dig into her back catalog a bit as well. Thank you so much #NetGalley #Bookouture and #AJMcDine for the excellent advance listen!

Loved this Audio book I listened to it in a couple of days
Lots of twists and turns just what I like in a book
Give it a listen or read

Audiobook Title: The Photo
Author: A.J. McDine
Genre: Domestic Thriller
Format: 🎧
Audiobook Narrator: Tamsin Kennard
Publisher: Bookouture Audio
Pub Date: July 11, 2024
Star Rating: 4 Stars
Pages: 339


Story starts with Lara a photographer who take a photo and it appears Jason her brother-in-law in the background. Only he killed himself ten-year-ago after murdering Isabelle his wife (Lara’s sister) as well as little Jack and Milo, their two-year-old twins who were killed in their beds; and five-year-old, Lily, was severely injured.

Now ten years later Lily is a teenager and has a true crime pod cast and has updated it as she too believes she saw her father.

Lara wants authorities to deal with find Jason and not reporters and other social media crime fighters. She is upset with Lilly for doing the pod cast.

I love a good audiobook and I do like narrator Tamsin Kennard as her performance of the characters is always spot on!
I did get frustrated with shouting at Lara to think before she goes into her profanity rants – true, I have a low threshold for obscenities. Although I didn’t like Lilly’s language I do know that most teens have ‘no filter’.

Story kept me curious. It really was a quick read as I was carrying my tablet from room-to-room as I couldn’t stop listening to this story.
I read a lot of psychological thriller so was sure I had it somewhat figured out.
Nope!! The ending was a surprise!

This is only my second A.J. McDine story, The other was " The Baby".
A.J. lives in Kent, UK and is married to A.J. Willis; also a psychological thriller author has two sons and three rescue cats.
She worked as a journalist and police press officer until she realized writing fiction was much more fun. Now she is the author of six dark, domestic thrillers. Her goal is to keep readers guessing till the very last page.
She writes dark, domestic thrillers about ordinary people in extraordinary situations. When she’s not writing, playing tennis or attempting to run a 5k, she can usually be found people-watching in her favorite café.

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for granting me this early audio Galley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 11, 2024.

Wow, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me experience this audiobook early! "Good book" doesn't even begin to cover it. This was a rollercoaster ride of mystery and chills!

The story starts with a seemingly quiet neighborhood rocked by a horrific family tragedy ten years ago. But as the layers peel back, it becomes clear there's so much more to the story than anyone realized. The author absolutely floored me with their ability to keep me guessing – I was constantly on the edge of my seat wondering what shocking secret would be revealed next.

And let's talk about that ending! Completely unexpected, but in the best way possible. It left me reeling, but in a way that just makes you want to rewind and listen all over again. The narration was phenomenal too, really bringing the characters and story to life.

This audiobook is more than just good – it's a must-listen for anyone who loves a good mystery with a killer twist!