A year on since his life fell apart, author Grady Green is still struggling. His wife has still never been found, he is now homeless and he is unable to write. In a last ditch attempt to save his career, he takes agent Kitty's advice to go to a remote island in the hope that the seclusion will kick start his creativity. But this island is anything but a peaceful, secluded retreat with lots of odd things going on and strange characters that live there, soon Grady is regretting his decision, but can he escape?

This was a creepy, twisty read with a very odd cast of characters! The unsettling atmosphere on the island was done really well and I recommend if you are in the mood for an atmospheric thriller.

A tense mystery which keeps you guessing throughout. I really enjoyed this one and couldn’t put it down. I did feel some bits dragged on a bit but there was still the underlying mystery.

Another twisty thriller from Alice Feeney.

The story follows Grady Green, an author, whose wife disappears the same night he achieves his greatest ambition. A year later Grady has lost everything - he cannot write, his wife is gone, his career has stalled and he's homeless. His agent, Kitty, comes to his rescue in the form of a cabin on a tiny island off the Scottish coast.

With the hope that with stability and peace will spur him on to write Grady jumps at the offer. But of course the island is not what it seems and neither are the inhabitants. And why does he keep seeing a woman who looks like his wife?

There were a few parts of this book that were a little too fantastical for me but they are few and far between and, on the whole, I enjoyed this twisty read. The characters are interesting and the atmosphere of the book feels oppressive throughout.

Recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the advance review copy.

What an amazing read! The story is so atmospheric it actually gave me goosebumps and so many twists, it left me dizzy!
It was dark and scary at times and the islanders felt unfriendly and threatening. The depth of this unfriendliness and threat is shocking when all reasons are finally revealed. The very end left me shuddering. This book is one you have to read if you like something a bit darker.

When Grady's wife, Abby, goes missing, he is beside himself with grief and is no longer able to write. When his agent proposes a writing retreat, on a remote Scottish island, he is glad to accept yet life on Amberley is not as idyllic as he thought it would be. When he starts to get newspaper clippings pushed through his door, he begins to question whether his neighbours have something to hide or if his own demons are haunting him
I found myself sneaking back to read more of this book as it was such a compelling read. The dual narration by Grady and Abby really moved the story along and the story was full of dark and twisted turns that I really wasn't expecting. It certainly left me looking over my shoulder. A fantastic read. Thank you!

I loved this book It's one of those books that I got into straight away. The plotline is fantastic and i didnt want the book to end, it kept me up reading into the early hours of the morning. I really enjoyed getting to know all the characters, A definite 5 star book ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Very atmospheric psychological thriller. Spooky and unsettling at times with a few twists and turns along the way. Recommended.

This book should come with a warning - you won't be able to put it down! Abby disappears on her way home. Her husband Grady finds her car abandoned but there is no sign of Abby and in an effort to get his career in track he moves to an isolated island to continue his writing while dealing with his grief. Standard stuff you would think but Grady is sure he keeps seeing his wife and bizarre things happen around him on the journey to and on arrival at the island. Is Abby still alive or is he delusional? Only time and a dramatic ending will tell.

This is an insanely good book!!! I recommend this book to anyone who likes Stephen King-style scary atmospheres. It only gets more powerful as the pages go by and I devoured it in a few days. I could never guess the twists as the writing was so clever. Really brilliant!!!! Thanks a lot to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this amazing book "Beautiful Ugly".

5★

Thank you NetGalley for the e-arc of this book.

I have to say that I truly enjoyed this a lot. So much more than I actually expected. The whole time I was thinking of giving it around 4 stars but I really loved the ending. And I feel like everyone got what they deserved. So that bumped it up a lot for me.

I also enjoyed the writing a lot. It’s very well written, fast paced, easy to read and I can’t wait to pick up more books by this author. This was my first one but I’m definitely picking up more soon.

I don’t know what to say about the plot without giving too much away, but it was really intriguing to follow and I constantly wanted to know more!

The atmosphere was very eerie and I loved the whole island vibe as well. Very creepy, just how I like it.

Overall I’d recommend this book if you want some fast-paced fun thriller. Perfect for the colder months if you’re a mood reader too.

I've read a few Alice Feeney books and really enjoyed them, so was really keen to see the latest but Beautiful Ugly missed the mark a bit for me. Yes, if was still a good read and I was keen to find out what happened and as usual there are lots of twists along the way. - I think the problem was was the characters.

I really didn't feel the love for Grady Green, the main character for the book, and the more I read, the more I disliked him and found myself hoping he would come to an abrupt ending early on.. He spots someone who looks like his wife who disappeared a year ago, but could it be his insomnia playing up or too much drinking? the characters on the island were very odd to say the least and it was a bit too unrealistic.

However don't let this put you off and I'd always try anything that this author has written.

A big thanks to Pan Macmillan for the advance review copy. all opinions are my own

Beautiful Ugly, Alice Feeney

Synopsis: This story follows Grady, an author who lost his wife to a disappearance a year prior. He travels to a remote Scottish island to try get his writing mojo back, when he sees the impossible - someone that resembles his missing wife.

🌲🌳

I loved His and Hers by Alice Feeney so was super excited to receive the ARC of her new novel, especially when it is set in Scotland!

Firstly, the writing is fantastic. The descriptions of the scenery is so atmospheric. The amazing redwoods were alluring and I wished to have a peaceful cabin like that with views on the ocean.

However, I do think this book missed the mark slightly. The start of the book was very gripping, however it plateaus once the main character gets to the island.

I didn't find the twists to be groundbreaking and I wasn't a fan of the ending. It just felt too ridiculous and unbelievable for me.

Despite all this, I still read it within a couple of days as I wanted to know what happened. Not as good as His and Hers, but still a good book.

Rating: 3.5⭐️

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the copy in return for my honest review.

ARC review - 4,5 ⭐️

“Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t. Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do.”

A year ago, Abby disappeared on the way home.
Now, her husband, author Grady Green, is still overcome with grief and cannot write anymore.
He travels to a small Scottish island to try and get his life back on track. But he starts seeing someone looking like his wife and and soon finds out that things are not as they seem.

I liked the book a lot and read it in two days.
We get the story through multiple perspectives and timelines. You get the information slowly until you see the whole puzzle picture at the end.

The island is beautiful, but the people are strange and Grady is isolated as there are no phones and there’s no ferry back. The weather helps set a dark atmosphere and his insomnia and grief make him paranoid.
There are many twists, unreliable narrators and a lot of suspense. I did not predict the ending.
Overall this is a great psychological thriller.

I received a digital copy of the book from Pan Macmillan and Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was originally hugely excited and attracted to this book, but it did end up being rather a disappointment. The beginning is gripping then it suddenly plateaus to nothing but mundanity. The last 30% is great with twists and turns until the inevitable predictable outcomes. I am left wondering what was that all about! And what was the book others read that they raved about?!
The story is about Abby who is an investigative journalist who uncovers the truth in controversial articles and often lives on the edge, taking threats in her stride. Abby has a husband Grady Green who has just become a best selling author, he wants to celebrate with his wife when she is delayed coming home and calls to find out how far away she is, there is an incident, then she disappears, he becomes grief stricken and finds his life a struggle until his agent suggests a writing retreat on a remote Scottish island. This maybe the break he is looking for, whilst still being haunted by his wife and her memories.
The book is told predominantly from Grady’s perspective and from the pre-incident view of Abbey.
Yes this is gripping in places, atmospheric and disturbing, but for me totally unbelievable and over thought out. This might be a savoury spread book, it’s either for you or not.
Many thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan for the early read.

Beautiful Ugly is a haunting tale that seamlessly weaves grief, mystery and the complexities of relationships into a tightly knit psychological thriller. The premise is instantly gripping: a missing wife, a husband drowning in despair, and a tiny Scottish island shrouded in secrets. Feeney once again demonstrates her ability to craft stories that balance emotional depth with jaw-dropping suspense.
The book opens with an unsettling scene. Grady Green, an author, is on the brink of personal triumph when his wife, Abby, vanishes under mysterious circumstances. The imagery of her abandoned car by the cliff edge, headlights on and door open, sets a chilling tone that lingers throughout the narrative. A year later, Grady’s grief and guilt propel him to the desolate beauty of a Scottish island, where he encounters a woman who looks just like Abby. Is she a ghost, a figment of his imagination, or someone hiding the truth?
The story excels at exploring the frailty of human emotions. Grady is a compelling protagonist: a man unravelling, caught between longing for closure and an obsession with the past. His inner turmoil is intense, and the remote setting amplifies his isolation, creating an atmosphere both claustrophobic and eerie. The island itself plays a huge part in the story, its rugged landscape and weather mirroring Grady’s chaotic state of mind. (Can someone please tell me where this island is, I would love to visit!)
What makes Beautiful Ugly a great read is the author's sharp insights into marriage dynamics. The line, “Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t. Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do,” echoes throughout the story, challenging readers to consider how well we truly know our partners. This theme is intricately tied to the unfolding mystery, with Abby’s disappearance forcing Grady—and the reader—to question everything about their relationship.
The plot twists are classic Feeney: unexpected, clever, and deeply satisfying. While the pacing is deliberate, the layers of the story peel back expertly, revealing secrets that make you question every character’s motives. The writing blends moments of quiet introspection with sharp, suspenseful beats. If there’s one critique, it’s that the resolution may stretch believability for some readers. However, the emotional payoff and the depth of the characters more than compensate for any minor quibbles.
Beautiful Ugly is a dark, atmospheric thriller that explores the fragility of love and the destructive power of secrets. Alice Feeney delivers a story that is both heart-wrenching and edge-of-your-seat gripping. Fans of her previous works and lovers of psychological suspense won’t be disappointed. Prepare for an emotional rollercoaster and a tale that will linger long after you turn the final page.

Despite Alice Feeney being a hit or miss author for me, every time she has a new release it is an event for me and I always want to read it. So when I saw she had Beautiful Ugly coming out and it was a domestic thriller with a Scottish Island setting I was very excited.
And I am so glad to say that I REALLY enjoyed this!
Right from the start it is packed full of atmosphere and I found the whole thing to be be quite unsettling (in a great way!)
I liked all of the characters and I was fully invested throughout in their story.
The cut off setting of a small Scottish Island did really add to the the plot and the claustrophobia of small island life really came across well for me.
All of the characters Grady comes across there seemed totally bizarre and creepy and I loved it!
However they did all feel like real people and I was fascinated by them.
This definitely felt more like a mystery/suspense than a thriller to me but that didn't put me off in the slightest.
One very slight issue I had was that by the halfway point there didn't seem to be much plot progression and not a lot was happening. I was feeling it was mainly vibes/atmosphere and not a lot of plot. But it soon picked up again and after that it didn't lose my attention.
As an added bonus some of the reveals surprised me and that is always a great thing!
After finishing this I have to say that Alice Feeney will continue to be an auto buy author for me.
This is one of my favourites by this author and I highly recommend it if you are looking for a creepy, atmospheric, suspenseful mystery.

I have been seeing a lot of buzz online about Beautiful Ugly, and with that beautiful cover with the split front and an intriguing blurb, I was excited to pick it up as one of my first reads for 2025.

When author Grady’s wife disappears without a trace, he is left bereft and unable to write. When his publishing agent offers him a trip away to a writing cabin on a very remote Scottish island with a population of 25 people, he jumps at the chance. But is everything on the island as it seems?

Beautiful Ugly is a book which keeps a lot of its cards close to its chest at all times. It works hard to keep the reader gripped but also off balance until right at the final moment. I only guessed part of the twist right before it was revealed, and I did not see the rest of it coming at all! I loved how the island was portrayed - the bad weather, the creepy cabin with the appearing notes, the odd inhabitants all came together to make for an atmospheric read.

Grady is an odd main character, you get a little feel of the unreliable narrator at times - because he is an alcoholic and has trouble sleeping, he often sees things which cannot be true. You do genuinely empathise with him though and you want him to find out what is going on. I also loved his faithful sidekick Columbo the dog, who is present throughout.

The ending is something that I think will truly divide people – it’s certainly a big twist and it makes an impact, but I think it does so at a cost of the narrative and plot development. I was left with a lot of unanswered questions, and it creates quite a lot of plot holes. The last chunk of the book also relied a little too heavily on ‘tell not show’ - where everything is explained via a one-person monologue which I personally don’t like as a narrative technique. This pulled the read down from 5 stars to 4 stars for me, sadly.

Overall, Beautiful Ugly is a gripping read but that ending will certainly divide readers – although it’s a brilliant twist, it sacrifices the plot in its attempt to be shocking. Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a superb read which kept me engrossed all the way through. There were many twists and turns which kept me trying to work out what was going to happen next and I kept being surprised . I felt sorry for Grady as life was certainly not going his way with his wife leaving him and him keep thinking that he is seeing her. Kitty, his publisher tries to help me to get back into the way of writing again by sending him t a very creepy weird island off the Scottih mainland. The story was very atmospheric throughout and the ending was nothing less than unthinkable , surprising and fantastic.
A real page turner of a book.

I like this author and so I was excited to read this and really expected to love it. Although it kept me hooked to the end, I did find it a little disappointing. The main character was so hard to like. The ending was confusing - I think a little explanation was needed. So all in all, a very original story, with twists and turns, but not quite what I was expecting.

I loved Rock, Paper, Scissors so I was really looking forward to reading this one - and it didn't disappoint. There was the same air of the supernatural about the plot as writer Grady Green struggles to come to terms with the disappearance of his wife over a year ago, and his subsequent failure to write anything at all. Then his agent Kitty sends him to rest and recuperate at a remote island with just 25 inhabitants - none of whom are quite what they seem.
There's such an air of mystery, danger and tension right from the start of this book that I just could not put it down. It's a proper page turner with surprises around every corner and a host of characters all catching your interest and attention.
My one small criticism is that through most of the book, there in no character I can really sympathise with, at least until all becomes clear.
But at least there is a gorgeous black labrador to love.
An excellent thriller noir which I'd recommend to all lovers of the genre.