AJ McDine's books never disappoint me! I listened to this audiobook so quickly as I had to know what happened! I loved the twists and the fast pace. Lara is a photographer and when editing her photos sees someone from her past who disappeared after 3 members of her family were brutally murdered. Ten years after their deaths, strange things begin to happen and it's clear that there is more to the case than anyone expected.

10 years ago Lily was the soul survivor of a family slaughter. In true Gen Z style, she’s announces on TikTok her memories are returning - shockingly this begins a series of dangerous events

Coincidentally, her aunt Lara inadvertently snaps a photo of the number one suspect Jason and proceeds to investigate

What starts out as a fast paced story, quickly becomes a super slow, not-a-lot happens domestic thriller

I found the characters two-dimensional and struggled to connect with anyone. Events seemed to occur, but I found the investigation wanting and uneventful

When the reveal came, I was disappointed as it was recalled rather than discovered. However, the final twist was kinda twisty which I appreciated

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for access to this audiobook ARC in exchange for my honest review

I am always so relieved when an ARC exceeds my expectations, and I can honestly give it a huge 5 stars. A.J. McDine is a new, to me, author and even as I was listening to The Photo, I was searching her catalogue and have another of her books queued up.

The Photo is fast paced, chilling, full of fleshed out characters, and kept me listening through a night and a day. And, as a plus, I LOVE when I cannot guess the ending. McDine pulled me in from the first chilling chapter - and, I won't go into detail on the plot but it's a good one.

On audio, narrator Tamsin Kennard is always fabulous. She manages both sexes, ages, accents all with ease and never gets in the way of the story.

Just loved this one and cannot recommend it enough.

The Photo, by A.J. MC Dine is a gripping thriller, with some crazy twists and turns. I found myself up until five in the morning because I listened to the entire audio book in one sitting, because it is that good. The narrator did a fabulous job bringing all of the characters to life.

What a corker!
i have recently discovered this author and so glad i have! total superstar.

This book had me hooked right from the first word, it was fast paced and the narrator (one of my favourites may i add), kept the book flowing great.
i finished this book in 1 sitting!
Twisty and turny all the way through with an absolutely brilliant twist at the end!

Things aren't what they seem!

highly recommend
5 stars

The Photo by A J McDine
Narrated by Tamsin Kennard

4.5 stars ⭐️

Lara, is a former photo journalist who gave up her career to become a wedding photographer, after she suffered a personal tragedy which made her realize that stories like those she featured, added to the pain that the families of Victims were already suffering.

Ten years ago, her sister Isabelle, and her two twin nephews were killed, in what could only be assumed as a Murder-Suicide by Isabelle’s husband, Jason.

His body was never recovered.

His five year old daughter, Lily was left for dead by the murderer, but when the ambulance arrived, she was found to have a weak pulse. She is being raised by her grandmother and her Aunt Lara.

Lara would love to add “landscape photography” to her portfolio, and one day while going through photos she took on the beach, she spots a man in the background of one picture, which could only be her “brother in law”.

Lily, now fifteen, aspires to be an “influencer” so, without discussing it with her family, she posts a TIC TOC video, talking about the crime she lived through as a child and the new memories that have started to surface.

The timing could NOT be worse.

As disturbing things begin to happen, Lara begins to worry if Jason has returned to finish the job.

She teams up with both the DC from the case, Curtis Frampton and a former rival journalist, Johnny Nelson, in an attempt protect Lily, and locate her missing father.

This was a FAST PACED story which hooks you from the OPENING SCENE, told primarily from the first person POV of Lara, who is a smart, sympathetic protagonist.

AJ McDine’s prose is DELICIOUSLY descriptive, and it brings to life the characters, and their conversations as they go about their lives. I could easily envision what was happening as I listened to this story!

I enjoyed the narrator’s voice for the women, but all of the men sounded alike, so I really had to concentrate on who was with Lara when one of them was speaking with her.

ENTERTAINED from start to finish, and completely SURPRISED by the final twist- this is the kind of book which reminds me of why I love Goodreads so much.

This is the author’s seventh novel but US audiences were not familiar with this UK author until Bookouture brought her work to the US in April with her sixths novel, “The Baby”. It reached Amazon’s top 20 in the UK and the top 100 in the US.

Three positive reviews on the same day from GR friends, put THIS book and author on MY radar, and I decided that I just HAD TO READ IT NEXT!

Since this was an AUDIOBOOK listen, please excuse any Misspelling of character names as I wasn’t able to see the names in print.

McDine was a journalist and police press officer until she started writing Fiction. She lives in Kent in the UK with her husband, fellow thriller writer A J Wills, their two sons and three rescue cats.

Expected publication date: July 11, 2024.
Highly recommended!

Thank You to Bookouture for the gifted Audiobook provided through the NetGalley Shelf. These are my candid opinions.

A brilliant fast paced book with a chilling twist at the end

Can't recommend this book enough. Thank you NetGalley for the chance to listen to this audio book but for also introducing me to an amazingly talented author!

I enjoyed the story and was invested to see how it all planned out! I didn’t guess the twist at the end and it took me by surprise. The main character was abit annoying and I wanted to shake her a lot of the time but nether the less was a well paced story with great narration.

I usually listen on 1.5/1.75 speed and the narrator’s voice was amazing. As someone who hates 3 POV, I surprisingly didn’t mind jumping from 1 POV to the 3rd. The problem I have with this book was that I didn’t connect with characters as much as I thought I would. It is fast paced and a bit predictable but I still had fun. The story was enjoyable and I think this book is the perfect for someone who wants to get more into this genre.

Thank you NetGalley and author for gifting me audiobook arc.

3.5 stars (for the twist), rounded up to 4.*

This is the second audiobook I've read by AJ McDine. The first, The Baby, kind of blew my mind. So when I saw this one on NetGalley I quickly requested it. Solid narration, and good thriller writing.

The Photo tells the story of Lara, a young photographer who captures a photo early in the morning while walking along the sea. When she looks at the photos later that evening she spies what she is certain is her 10-year-long missing brother-in-law standing on a balcony looking directly at her camera. He went missing the night her sister and her 2-year-old twins were brutallly murdered in their home.

She embarks upon a journey to get the local detective to reopen the case, while protecting her mother and niece from what she believes is the danger of his return.

The teenaged niece and her obsession with social media is so truly written, and I also thought her anxiety wasn't overplayed. The bad guys were less one-dimensional that I see in a lot of these books, and the twist was pretty amazing.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the audio ARC in exchange for this honest review.

The Photo by A J McDine and narrated by Tamsin Kennard is the second book from this author I have listened to and if you have not yet read or listened to "The Baby" you must as it is just as brilliant as The Photo!

A family is unalived, a mother (Isabelle) and her twin sons (Jack & Milo), the daughter (Lily) survives and is on life support, the husband (Jason) has disappeared. A clear suspect? Isabelle's sister Lara and their Mother have cared for Lily ever since that terrible night, of which Lily rememebers nothing, but as the tenth anniversary of the murder slips by, strange events begin to occur, not least a face in the background of a photo, a face that Lara knows well, A face that disappeared ten years ago.

AJ McDine is immensely talented at creating a writhing, twisting narrative, with threads easy to follow, and then thwack, right out of left field, another twist that will send you reeling!

Relatable characters, plausible plots and all with a distinct understanding of human nature, McDine is going to be a firm favourite for a long time to come

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture Audio, AJ McDine and the very talented Tamsin Kennard for this brilliant ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

ARC REVIEW
Pub date: July 11th 2024
🌶️Spice rating: There is no spice in this book!
My rating: 4.5🌟
Format: 🎧

From the moment I picked up this book I was super invested and I wanted to know how things would unfold. There’s crime solving, secrets and mystery and all of those are things I love in a story! It felt fast paced and I didn’t even realize I was 68% through. This was a super easy read and I 100% recommend this book. It was a ride!

Thank you to the publisher for allowing me to listen to this audiobook, it’s much appreciated.

This is the second A J McDine book I have listened to this month.
As an avid audiobook listener, she’s a new author to me and I’m really enjoying her work.
I will definitely listen to more from her.
This book held my attention and it kept me hooked from the first chapter to the last!
The story unfolded at a steady pace, fast enough to hold your interest but slow enough to keep you guessing.
The author describes the characters well and the relationships between them.
There’s plenty of twists and turns along the way and the ending was very good! I didn’t see it coming! Highly recommended!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture audio for this ARC audio book. This is my first A J McDine book and it didn't disappoint. I was instantly intrigued from the first chapter. I didn't see both of the twists coming!

The Narrator Tasmin did a great job, she was very captivating and spoke well.

The only thing I can critique is that it jumped from first person (the FMC) to third person between the three POV. I would have preferred it to stay as first person for all characters.

I look forward to reading other books from A J McDine.

The photo

I received an Advanced Readers Audio from NetGalley and I could not stop listening I had to find out how Jason was able to allude from the cops for ten years. This was my first AJ McDine book and am eager to read more.

After a massacre of a mother and twins in Tidehaven England, the sister of the murdered woman’s sister, snaps a photo during a wedding, almost ten years since the murder, of the husband aka killer Jason.

Lily the only serving child of Lara and Jason is starting to remember things from that horrible night. She was five years old and was in a medically induced coma after her injuries from that fateful night. At fifteen years old now she starts making Crime Scene TikTok videos with the memories.

The press conference proves to be helpful and this is where I wasn’t ready for the TWISTS!

I will definitely pick up more AJ McDine books after this read!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐+⭐
The Photo by A J McDine an audiobook narrated by Tamsin Kennard was an insane psychological thriller that will make you guess every single step!
The narrator - hands down, good one! Tamsin made you feel the story in my bones! Perfect reading, perfect emotions!

You know I was shocked by A J McDin's "The Baby" but once again she showed that she can shock you in the way you expect the least!

It's a heartbreaking story that will shatter your world and is well-developed in all directions!

Lara's sister and her twin boys were murdered, leaving her niece, Lily, in a coma. She survived. Decades later Lara, a wedding photographer, is compromised and her job is suffering. She is positive her brother-in-law Jason, accused of stabbing his wife and three children and then disappearing is back!

The twisted web and end twist... just blow my mind! And Tamsin Kennard did a fantastic job with narration! It's so easy to follow characters and feel the story in your bones!

Thank you, ...NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this copy!

So addictive! From the very first chapter I didn't want to stop reading. This is my second book from this author, and I've been blown away both times. I figured out the bad guy pretty early, but was still so engrossed in the story. I enjoyed the chapters that followed Lilly, it put things into a different perspective for me. Absolutely an incredible read!

High quality quick read audio was a binge read. It had me hooked from the burb to the omg ending. I loved the narration and the way the story arc of various characters was dripped inyo the narrative as inner monologues. I felt the usage of tick tock and references to ring doorbells and cctv gave in a modern grounding in a atory rhat you could have listen to on any postcard or watched in any film. I was fully invested in the characters due to skillful writing and narration
I found the police officer harder to like and loved the red herrings throughtout. Always the way issuses such as inner conflict and guilt survivor were dealt with. It's often overlooked that of you are told a family member fid a very bad thing you can suddenly stop loving them it was a simple plot eith a cracking ending told in a brilliant way. Highly recommended this t star listen to anyone after a fully engaging mystery. Thank you netgallery and publisher and author and narrator.

Ten years ago a terrible crime was committed and Jason, the main suspect remains at large … that is if he didn’t commit suicide after killing his wife and young sons. As the ten year anniversary of the travesty nears, Lily, the only survivor, now fifteen, starts to have flashbacks. Are they true or are they just vivid dreams, after all she was only five at the time? When her Aunt Laura, an avid photographer, catches an impromptu photo with a man that looks identical to Jason, their world is about to be overturned. Why is he back? Are they in danger? What happened that night and who can they trust? This was an audio for me and I couldn’t stop listening until the final words were spoken. McDine’s characters are realistic and the story is compelling. With the red herrings along the way, you might think you know what really happened that night, but I’m guessing you’ll be surprised by the ending. Voiced perfectly by Tamsin Kennard, this was a riveting listen. Thank you to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley for an ALC of this book.

My final thoughts: Well, then. 😬

This was a wild little ride. Quick and packed with action. I enjoyed but wanted to kick many of the characters for being stubborn idiots. That being said, this one keeps you invested. I particularly loved the short chapters that jumped from character to character. Check this one out.

Loved the narrator for this one.