This is a masterful blend of suspense, intrigue, and emotional depth. The storys strength lies in its well-crafted characters and the tension that builds with each chapter. Jude's determination to uncover the truth about Will's past is both compelling and relatable, making her a protagonist you cant help but root for.

The plot twists and turns in unexpected ways, and with short snappy chapters you cant help but keep reading. The small-town setting adds an extra layer of claustrophobia and tension, as secrets and rumors swirl around the characters. The alternating perspectives between Jude and other school mums provides a well-rounded view of the unfolding mystery whilst not causing confusion about who's thread you're following.

For me It's Always the Husband was a thrilling and emotionally charged read that kept me guessing and after the final pages I felt like I just needed another chapter because I wasnt ready to leave life in Lowbridge.

Great read - really kept me hooked as I rattled through it. Good characterisation and an intriguing plot.

I don't want to give anything away but at one point I kept shouting, 'Pull the plug out!' :D

Recommended.

This book has so much going on, I did get lost a bit along the way especially near the end. However, it was a great thriller and kept me gripped and hooked.

Excellent twisty storyline.
Keeps you guessing right to the end.
Thoroughly enjoyable.
Thanks for the opportunity to read and review

C L Taylor creates solid thrills with a band of dislike-able characters you can’t help but root for. It’s Always The Husband is a fun, twisty thriller for this summer.

I really enjoyed this book, read it in a day. The politics of the school run mum's clique, plus the mystery of a missing woman as explored via multiple viewpoints including a mum who has recently moved into the area (Jude).

I felt I connected with the characters and really wanted to know what happened next so I couldn't stop reading. A good read.

Excellent. Told from multiple viewpoints, this features the school run mama clique who doubt the innocence of school run Dad Will, whose wife died and then his subsequent girlfriend went missing presumed dead… Jude is a fairly new arrival to the school and her daughter is friends with Will’s daughter. They begin a tentative relationship, but is he innocent? Throw in a little blackmail and divorce and another death, and you have the makings of a fast paced and twisty thriller. And this is a genuinely good read with a nice little “Columbo” finale just when you think you’re done…!

I received a free ARC copy of this book via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

When newly-divorced Jude arrives in the small town of Lowbridge, she is keen to make friends with the parents she meets at the school gate. She is attracted to Will but there appears to be some mystery about the fate of his previous 2 wives.
This is a well-written book which captures the rumours and gossip of a small community. There are a lot of well-drawn characters and the twists and tension make this a thrilling read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Delicious…
What secrets, lies, scandal and betrayal lie within the seemingly content confines of the town of Lowbridge? Whilst the incessant chitter chatter of school mums drown out the underlying rot, rumbles of rumour begin - is it possible that a killer is hiding in plain sight? Pacy, tense and completely compelling this is a one sit rollercoaster of a read with an immersive and nicely crafted plot populated with a wholly credible and well drawn cast and a well imagined backdrop. Perfect storytelling, keenly observed, coupled with often unexpected twists and turns. Delicious.

I adore C L Taylor's writing style and she is brilliant at creating multi-faceted characters who you feel like you know really quickly. This book was no different and I found it very pleasant to read. The characters were excellent and I found the story reasonably engaging.

I don't think that the book had a strong enough concept to fill a full-length novel. There was a lot going on but nothing that I would categorise as thrilling. The book covered quite a few storylines without really going into depth in any of them, which was a shame.

I was all set to rate this a middle of the road 3 stars, but the last chapter bumped it up to 4, I did really enjoy that.

This was good and I did enjoy it a lot, I read through it really quickly. My only downside was there was A LOT going on - the main characters were easy to keep track of but there was so many side characters who I couldn’t always remember who they were or their importance. This was highlighted especially towards the end of the book.

All in all, a pacy, fun thriller which is super easy to read

I am always super happy to see a CL Taylor book land in my inbox.
It's Always the Husband is a school mum thriller with interesting twists and a well paced plot, I read it in a day.
The final few pages, ooft! Very unexpected.
4 stars.

Another great read from C. L. Taylor, this was gripping and thrilling, and kept me guessing right to the end. Lots of interesting characters and twists and turns.

This book was okay. Not my favourite of this author's books but mostly readable. Compared to the other books this one was too domestic thriller for me rather than the psychological thriller of the others.
The writing, as ever, is good. Characterisation, as always, is interesting. I'm just not a fan of novels that focus more on families and parenting.

Thanks to Netgalley et all. I really enjoyed the start of the book but felt the storyline & plot dipped during the final part of the book & became hard to believe. A good but just the ending was a bit unbelievable .

A new book from C.L. Taylor is always a “drop everything must read ASAP”.

I’ve been a huge fan ever since The Escape then The Fear, the two first psychological thrillers I ever read.

It’s Always The Husband is a school gates mums thriller with newly divorced Jude arriving in a small town and finding herself attracted to widower Will. Will, whose first wife died and whose second wife vanished, raising eyebrows and suspicions.

There’s a lot of characters, subplots, secrets, shocks and twists. C.L. Taylor’s writing is as great as ever, I’m just not the biggest fan of school gates thrillers. Like putting together a thousand piece jigsaw, without the box for reference, you only start to see the bigger picture nearer the end.

It’s very good, and I enjoyed reading it, but I do prefer a more direct approach.

Recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books UK

Just loved this, one of the best things i have read for a while.
A big cast of characters, many very unlikeable.
A missing woman, murder and mystery.
I changed my mind several times about who did what and the ending was a real wow moment.
The talented author C L Taylor has written a real cracker of a story.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

This is a brilliant thriller with several different mysteries going on which makes it difficult to guess what links and who did what. To.d from the perspective of 3 different mums there’s Jude who’s new to the area and who’s daughter is new to the school, Sorrell who used to be part of the clique but isn’t any more and queen bee Victoria. The main mystery is that of Robyn’s disappearance a while back and the cliques belief she was killed by her partner Will and they’re especially suspicious because his first wife died in an accident at home. It really does spiral from there with blackmail and murder added into the mix but for me it was the relationships between the different characters both in terms of the clique and romantic relationships that really made this such a solid read. There’s a lot of secrets that emerge as the story progresses, lots of surprises and I couldn’t have even started to guess the different perpetrators. This ends on a creepy note which I really loved.

The school gates clique, always an ordeal and at St Helena’s Primary it’s no different. Victoria Routledge, queen bee and demon of the PTA, rules the roost, with her trusty acolytes bobbing along in her wake. For newcomer Jude it’s her worst nightmare. All she wants is for her daughter Betsy to be happy after her last school experience. Keen to keep her distance from the ‘Mamas’, Jude chats along to single parent Will, and is more than happy when his daughter Milly befriends Betsy. When Jude realises that the clique have little or no time for Will, and she hears some cruel accusations, she is determined to find out what’s going on, even if it means gritting her teeth and getting into the inner circle.

What an absolute joy this book is! The horror of running the school gates gauntlet when you are an outsider is so perfectly illustrated, and the character of Victoria is spot on.

The start of the the book is character overload, but that adds to the feeling of the situation, and as each character establishes their place in the hierarchy all becomes clear.

An excellent plot with Taylor’s always exquisite writing, and the characterisation is perfect. And those last two chapters! 😱

I loved this book and thoroughly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books UK.

Mystery and Intrigue…likable characters…red herrings…secrets…I like this author. Difficult to guess the ending. Enjoy. Difficult to put this book down. Thanks Netgalley