This is such a good book! It takes place in London with Emma as the main character, with quite a cast of characters. Emma’s neurological condition is handled realistically and sympathetically. This is the best mystery I’ve read in a while - a debut! - and I look forward to reading more by this talented writer!

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Not bad but not great! I really wanted to like this one more, as it had a lot going for it with an original and intriguing storyline from the blurb. There were parts of the book that I enjoyed more than others though! One thing I liked was that the chapters were addictive and the book had a whole range of characters who you couldn’t trust! The FMC Emma has an obsession with birds - (think Dawn’s obsession with turtles from The Coworker by Freida 😂). I didn’t find this aspect too annoying though, and there were some parts or similarities to the main story, which I liked.

Things definitely take a dark turn in part 2, and I loved the POV changes here - I honestly didn’t see them coming! Unfortunately this is where the pace became a little sluggish and dragged a little for me. However, parts 3 and 4 soon picked it up again, making me want to keep reading.

In terms of the Epilogue, I was hoping for a twist or some kind of conclusion to the story, but to me it felt like it ended quite abruptly and had me swearing with rage, because I couldn’t believe the book had finished, not wrapping anything up 😂🙄

I was planning to give this one a 3 stars, however for a debut authors book it wasn’t that bad, hence the half a star added! Other people may enjoy this one more than I did, so do check it out if you’re after something different.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC copy.

Well what a book!

As someone with Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis, both invisible illnesses that I’m stuck with forever, I could absolutely put myself in Emma’s shoes. Perhaps not so much the plotting to kill parts but definitely the fatigue, pain and the fact that people don’t believe you. (I’ve had those looks as I park in a disabled bay, the ones that say you look fine to me.) I found Emma’s family particularly awful and there were times I got so angry at her stepdad. What a piece of work.

The storyline was so good, twisty and ridiculously addictive that I seriously struggled to put it down, not just because my hands were stiff from reading too long 😂

I’ve read books with people with long term illnesses before but this one really did capture it, possibly because, upon reading the authors note, he has lots of experience with invisible illnesses living with one himself.

I absolutely loved reading this book and hope there’s more from the author in the future.

Could be a tough read for those suffering will invisible illnesses. Being someone who has multiple issues, I was drawn to this thriller with a difference. Alot of us do have a bit of a chip on our shoulder due to lack of help and suppose we receive, reading Emma's story hit hard. At the beginning I felt myself having the look-down-my-attitude to her (which I am very ashamed of) as that is what we deal with on a daily basis. I couldn't quite believe I was judging a girl who walks in similar shoes to me. I self reflected on how then others are viewing me and it wasn't healthy. At around 15% through I wanted to give up as it was bringing me down sadly.
I am very glad I persisted as the thriller aspect came into effect but also shows how vulnerable people can be such targets when shown kindness by those who may not have their interests in heart.
Emma lives in such an unhappy home, feeling pushed out by evil stepfather, lack of support of her mother and mixed treatment from her step sister, they deny her "imaginary" illness yet still won't let her look after her own 11yr old daughter which would be truely heartbreaking.
The thriller aspect of this book was gripping and I'm glad persisted, Emma's strength grew for a love she believed and will do absolutely anything to get herself out of her current home life, literally everything! Despite her life taking a further twist, I loved her strength into making steps for herself and her daughter. I felt proud of what she achieved, while some of us who just continue crying under the duvet.
I loved the outcome and she gave me some inspiration which is a huge life lesson of me looking down my nose at her.
Please read this, really realise that everything Emma suffers with is true and worse than u can imagine. I just worry the beginning does encourage the readers to look down on us "invisables". Please continue, it's a great thriller and we are equal people too.
Finally, I understood all of the bird references but think it was a little too much.
Thank you #NetGalley for a thought provoking read.
A strong 4 stars. I would advise all readers to read the section at the back regarding the author, hopefully it will open a few more minds

An impressive complex book that managed to be entertaining despite the dark plot and characters.

This is a book about deception, family, friendship, relationships, revenge and trust. The characters were all unusually interesting in themselves. Full credit to the author on their creativity.

I thought the author showed an interesting capability in getting the reader to invest support in a character then turn it gradually around to be the opposite - before finally re-engaging the reader with that same character. Quite a skill.

The ending was quite unusual and left you wondering! A nice touch!

I’ve never changed my allegiance so much within a drama. Betrayal, gaslighting and murderous intent; this book has it all.

When a handsome young doctor befriends an unwell woman, she is just grateful for the friendship. As the friendship develops and he reveals his unhappy marriage, ideas of how they could get rid of his controlling wife start to form.

Sick To Death is a belter of a debut for this author!!
Emma is living a tough life at the moment, living in a three bed house with her mum, her stepfather, her stepsister and her daughter. Emma has an illness so at times is unable to look after her daughter, she needs to rest a lot but she doesn’t even have her own bedroom. Her stepfather is constantly nagging for her to get a job but she’s not well enough to work. After a hospital appointment she meets a young, good looking caring doctor who happens to live round the corner from her. She meets him whilst out walking and a relationship starts. Is this Emma’s happy ever after?
This was a book that took me by surprise, I didn’t expect it to be so good! Its like nothing I’ve read before, yes some of it is a little far fetched but in a good way. The characters were all quite normal and were well, rounded, they were all very different and easy to remember. The book is told from several poeoples POV which worked really well. There was a good pace to the book and things happened that I never expected to happen.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Avon Books UK for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

I really feel that representation in books is very important- so whilst I do not suffer from chronic pain it really highlighted to me the ways that it can affect people. This book was quite slow paced, and I really found the main character quite unlikeable.. I didn’t really understand the relationship between Emma and Celeste either - I just don’t believe someone could be that forgiving/understanding in the situation they found themselves in? I think the most interesting character was Bobby. I did enjoy this book, there were some good twists and turns and I would be interested to read more from this author.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Emma is sick. She can't work because of her condition so is stuck in her family's tiny council house. She's sick of everyone telling her to get over it. She's sick of being the other woman. Her boyfriend Adam is amazing, it's his wife, Celeste, who's the problem. Emma now has a target.

My first book by this author and it was good, Although slow at times, particularly at the start as the author introduces the characters and their backgrounds, the plot development is convincing and I thought the story and twists were clever. I appreciated the way the author dealt with Emma's condition, drawing from his personal experience, but still showing her as tough and determined, rather than someone to feel sorry for.

An interesting take on the thriller genre.

The blurb:
Meet Emma. Emma is sick.
She can’t work because of a neurological condition, so is stuck in her family’s tiny council house.
Emma is sick of being told to ‘get over it’.
Her stepfather, her doctors, strangers – everyone has an opinion.
Emma is sick of being the other woman.
Her boyfriend Adam is perfect: he’s got a great job and an amazing home. His wife Celeste is the problem.
Emma is sick of being underestimated.
All she needed was a target. And now she has Celeste…

My thoughts:
What a read! I was drawn in straight away. The first 40-50% of the story is told through Emma’s pov.

Emma is sick, and throughout the story we see her daily struggles as well as her good days. She is manipulated by those around her and her vulnerability shows.

I enjoyed how the author introduced the characters and thought Emma was obsessive at times… the way she would fixate and research people… her strong interest in birds and how she compared people to different birds was interesting.

I liked that the second half of the book was told through multiple pov as the twists start to take shape and the story unfolded more.

A brilliant debut, I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books for the advance digital copy. Opinions expressed here are my own.

I have read a lot of books in this genre but I don't think I have read any quite like this. I loved it and couldn't put it down it was completely gripping

Emma has chronic pain, but when she meets married Doctor Adam, she finds something new to focus on. All that needs to happen is her stepfather and his wife need to disappear – how hard can it be?

I was really excited to read this book - a main character with chronic pain that people don’t necessarily believe is interesting. However, I sadly found that I lacked empathy for Emma as a character. She seemed to jump from zero to one hundred very quickly and made some very odd choices and decisions. I also found that I didn’t feel much for any of the other characters either which made it hard to keep engaged.

It is a very twisty thriller, and some of the twists and turns I did not see coming. It did drag in places though, with the pace dropping and narrative becoming repetitive in between twists. There are also a lot of references to birds, which Emma fixates on whilst being in her room so much, but this felt weirdly jarring in places as well. I’m not sure whether those who are attracted to the idea of a main character with chronic pain will be happy with the representation here.

Overall, Sick to Death is a twisty thriller but it’s lack of compelling characters made it a struggle to keep engaging with it. Thank you to NetGalley & Avon Books for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Happy to say that this book does NOT go where you think it will.

You'll start out thinking it's 'that old plot' again. It is...until it isn't.

Our characters are very warped. Even the ones you like are kind of wrong and you wonder why you even like them.

The books fast and is one of those great little beach reads that you'll just race through.

Good read!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this!

The writing style isn’t the type that I love but it is one that I know most people will enjoy! I’d definitely say to give it a go but I didn’t love it

I found this a strange book . Firstly I couldn’t get into it , then it started to get more interesting 30% in . I like the writing style and the unusual storyline of the struggling with illness main character but I’m still not sure if I enjoyed it or not . I’m sort of 50/50 with this book . I would recommend it as I think it may appeal to a lot of people but sorry it wasn’t for me

The first thing I loved about this book was how much the author wanted to represent characters who have limiting medical needs in a real and representative way while also writing a great story. They go into this more in their author's note at the end, which is well worth reading. Besides that, this is a fresh take on a thriller. While it does contain certain tropes - as every thriller must, really, to be considered a thriller - I was surprised by some turns of events in the narrative. There's definitely a comparison to be made to GONE GIRL here, and I think it's a fair one (considering lots of books make this comparison but seemingly only so they can mention the name) - although I won't say what the similarity is. The characters were well-drawn and their motivations were always really clear. I never quite felt I could put my finger on who they truly were, but in this story I think that's a good thing. My only caveat would be to say that I think the first act of the story drags ever so slightly, but there's a fair amount of scene-setting to be done so that may be why.

Good God yes this was everything a psychological thriller should be! Took me on an unexpected wild ride from the first page, I LOVE an unreliable narrator, this was gripping, fraught with tension and had me richocheting from page to page in disbelief, unable to look away!

This is a promising debut from a new author.

Emma has a “hidden disability”, which doctors have been unsuccessful in treating and as such, she now lives back home with her mum, step dad, step sister and her young daughter, Ava. When Emma meets, and starts seeing, an A&E doctor, she is hopeful that her life is going to change for the better, except that he’s married!

The plot was good, but I found the pace too slow and there was too much made of Emma’s illness, which became repetitive and boring. There was a lot of reference to birds, which had potential to be a clever addition to the book, but I didn’t feel it worked in this instance.

What I thought was brilliant, was Emma’s obsession with the doctor’s wife, Celeste, and the dynamic between them when they came face to face. The twist at the end was brilliant and I hadn’t seen that coming!

3 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Chris Bridges and Avon for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you Avon Books and NetGalley for an early copy of Sick to Death. The cover drew me in. Very sloooooooooooow part one, almost gave up but so glad I didn’t. I was sick to death lol about all the information about birds. Part two was WOW, where did this come from? Soooooooo good from then on, nothing like I have read before. Stick with it, it’s all worth it!!!!

Book Review: Sick to Death by Chris Bridges

If you're a fan of psychological thrillers that will leave you breathless and second-guessing everything, Sick to Death by Chris Bridges is a must-read. From the first page, the novel takes you on an unpredictable ride with its morally complex protagonist, Emma, whose personal struggles and dark motivations slowly unravel in the most gripping of ways.

Emma, a young woman dealing with a neurological condition, is trapped in a small, stagnant life in her family's council house. Despite the heavy toll her illness takes on her, Emma’s biggest frustration seems to be her peripheral role in the lives of others — especially when it comes to her relationship with Adam, a man she loves but who is married to Celeste. As Emma’s resentment toward Celeste grows, so does her resolve to exact a disturbing kind of revenge. What makes Emma so captivating and chilling is her ability to blend vulnerability with a sharp, calculated sense of agency that keeps the reader on edge.

The narrative is dark and clever, with a pacing that feels relentless in the best way. Every twist is unexpected, pushing the boundaries of psychological suspense. Emma's journey is one of gradual self-destruction and moral ambiguity, and the constant tug-of-war between sympathy for her plight and horror at her actions is what makes this story so compelling. The twists are truly jaw-dropping, with the final revelation leaving readers questioning everything they thought they knew about Emma and her motivations.

Chris Bridges writes with a skillful mix of dry humor and searing authenticity, creating a character who is both chilling and tragically human. Emma's character is one you won’t forget easily, and the book constantly forces you to ask yourself: who can you really trust in this twisted tale of love, betrayal, and desperation?

With comparisons to Gone Girl and The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, Sick to Death is the kind of novel that keeps you glued to the page and then leaves you gasping for air at the final twist. If you're looking for a novel that takes all your expectations and turns them on their head, this debut thriller is the one for you.

Rating: 5/5 A stunning and unpredictable psychological thriller that pulls no punches. A thrilling debut that will keep you up long into the night.