Well Carol Wyer has done it again. Created a novel that is packed with suspense, mystery and a constant sense of threat and foreboding. From the harrowing opening scenes in which we readers are given a very clear picture of what is to come, to the way on which she slow builds up a very complex and tangled tale of kidnapping and revenge, it is the kind of story that grabs you attention from the very beginning and, by the end, has the heart thumping at quite the pace.

While this is billed as a stand alone novel, the central protagonist, Stacey, is the kind of character I could see putting in a repeat appearance. As a journalist, even one whose whole life centres around Morecambe, there is a lot for her character to give, and although not necessarily known as a hotbed of crime, I’m sure that Morecambe could be nursing more than one of two dark and twisted secrets. Between her and her friends, Investigator Ashraf and former Police Officer, Penny, I can just see them battling for the sake of good all over again. Stacey was a brilliant character, one I enjoyed spending time with and despite some awkward moments where hers and Ashraf’s past came to the fore, they work really well together. Stacey is damaged, not your typical have a go hero, for reasons that become very apparent in the first few chapters, but she is also determined and not one to back down from a challenge. Just as well given what comes to pass.

This is a story of a kidnapping, that of Stacey’s step-daughter Lyra. Her ex-husband, Jack, begs Stacey for help in finding his daughter, and with the kidnappers demanding no police involvement and an eye-watering sum of money as a ransom, it really feels as though the pair might be out of their depth. Now there are many reasons why I didn’t quite trust Jack, and some of the decisions he makes are definite eyebrow raising moments. There is that sense of desperation in him, understandably given the circumstances, but Carol Wyer has done a great job in creating a kind of uncertainty around him, making me want, and by extension Stacey, to keep him at arms length.

This is a dual timeline story, the action moving seamlessly between Stacey’s future, and her past, which may well hold the key to what is happening and how to find Lyra. Her mind is like a locked room, and we join her as she tries to break down the door that is preventing her from accessing all important memories. The author keeps us all in suspense, holding back all important details until just the right moment to make the most impact, and the revelations from Stacey’s past, particularly surrounding her relationship with her father are both heartbreaking and jaw-dropping in equal measure. The pacing ebbs and flows, but there is always that underlying sense of urgency - the literal ticking clock that could be the difference between life and death for poor Lyra.

Another cracking, high stakes, high tension thriller from Carol Wyer that will keep you turning those pages quickly, right to the very last, gobsmacking revelation. Prepare yourselves for one heck of a a ride.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

I'm just going to come out and say that I didn't enjoy this one. I thought it was slowly paced and there wasn't enough emotional tension. I also knew what was going to happen well before it occurred in the book and waiting for it to pan out was frustrating. I found the main character, Stacey, to be far too trusting for someone that had been kidnapped and mutilated as a teenager. She blindly believes what people are telling her throughout the novel, even though she's supposed to be this incredible journalist who always gets the scoop. Not only that but the metaphor of a vintage movie theatre and film whenever she recovered a memory from her kidnapping was grating. It felt too hokey to be genuine.

Fascinating thriller with lots of possibilities of whodunnit! Although we suspect early on who it is, the rest unfolds like a runaway freight train!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this ARC!

I’d like to thank Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Behind Closed Doors’ by Carol Wyer in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Thirty years ago Stacey was sixteen when she was abducted and held for ransom and although her memories of the event are patchy she can still remember parts of what happened. So when Stacey’s ex-husband Jack turns up asking for her to use her experience as a crime reporter to help save his daughter Lyra she agrees as she’s always had a close relationship with her step-daughter. But Stacey is worried as Lyra’s kidnapping bears startling similarities to that of her own.

‘Behind Closed Doors’ is as action-packed standalone thriller by an author better known for her enjoyable Detective Natalie Ward series. The storyline is well thought-out, the plot involving, and there’s lots of tension and twists and turns with the odd red herring thrown in to confuse. I like the characters of Stacey and her past colleague/lover Ashraf, as well as Danni the police officer who she was rescued by thirty years ago. Carol Wyer really does know how to weave excitement and suspense into a novel and despite feeling that the middle of the story was slightly too long, the dramatic conclusion more than compensated for it.

This starts off really intriguing and disturbing as we see the atrocities that Stacy is enduring during being kidnapped.
When we jump forward 30 years, the story starts to fall relatively flat. What appears to be a copycat abducting of Stacey’s stepdaughter takes a very sinister turn. However, we take a prolonged journey through the book to get to that turn. The actions of the characters are very sleepy compared to the dire situation, and the decisions Stacey makes are frustrating. The main thing that annoyed me was why the mother wasn’t told. Yes, she was in the hospital, but her daughter was missing. It just made no sense and would have raised massive alarm bells for me, but it didn’t for Stacey.
Jack’s actions were too embellished. They needed to be more subtle; he was just too over the top, which again set alarm bells off.
The story plods through the middle to get to the big reveal, but by then, I’d lost a lot of interest in the book and found myself not really caring what Stacey would uncover about her abduction and what had happened to her stepdaughter.
Stacey was too weak a character for my liking. Way too passive. She had let her father get away with not protecting or saving her. She just accepts the situation and moves on. It was all bizarre behaviour.
So, I’m afraid I didn’t really enjoy this book. It started off well, and I thought I would be reading a blinder, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

A great and quick read is Behind Closed Doors by Carol Wyer from Amazon Publishing UK via Netgalley. It will be out on 6 December.

Thirty years ago Stacey was kidnapped and tortured. Now, her ex-husband arrived at her doorstep saying his daughter Lyra has been kidnapped. Is it happening all over again? Can Stacey help even though she blocked her memories of it? Will they manage without the police? Stacey needs to go back into her past to help her ex find Lyra before it's too late.

The plot itself was not difficult and I guessed it pretty quickly, but the way it has been written makes for an awesome story. The characters were great; especially Stacey with her troubled past. The way this is described with the hypnotherapy involved makes it all the more interesting. If you're into psychological thrillers, you should definitely check this one out.

Thirty years ago, Stacey was kidnapped. Her father never paid the ransom and Stacey lost her pinkie finger. She was rescued thanks to a tip-off to the police just in time.

Thirty years on and Stacey’s ex husband’s daughter, Lyra, has been kidnapped. He can’t go to the police and needs Stacey’s help.

Stacey has had amnesia since her kidnapping but she now starts to have flashbacks. Are they real or because of Lyra’s kidnapping?

This is a standalone by the author and I was engrossed from the moment I started reading the prologue, as well as feeling disturbed by it!

The author has been incredibly sneaky with this story and I was left gobsmacked by the turn of events. A tale full of lies and distrust that leave you wondering what will happen next. A superb whodunit full of twists to keep you guessing.

My thanks to Thomas and Mercer & NetGalley for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

What first drew me in was the cover because it reminded me of another book I really loved. This book is full of suspense and lots of uncomfortable suppressed memories that have to be brought up in order to solve the mystery. I really liked it. It was a total rollercoaster ride with an unexpected twist at the end which is always what you are looking forward to when reading a mystery/thriller. The author wrote it really well and kept me guessing and wanting to know what came next. I really had no complaints when reading this. I would love to check out other work from this author and I definitely recommend giving this one a read!

Thank you for this ARC that was generously provided by the publisher and author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

There is a lot of suspense and the characters are completely unlikable and I loved it! I figured the biggest part of it in the first couple of chapters but I still was completely engrossed in the story. The author throws several twists into the story. And I was still surprised by some things. Highly recommend this for psychological thriller fans.

- The story is a psychological crime thriller. As is mentioned, Stacy is disturbed by the kidnap of her teen step-daughter, Lyra. Is it the same person(s) who kidnapped her thirty years ago? Is it a copy cat criminal? Or a new criminal who happens to have a similar modus operandi? Read on to know.
- The other characters include Jack, her ex-husband and Lyra's father, Ashraf the private detective, Freya the mother of Lyra and Henry, Stacey's father.
- The story is an interesting family crime where close relations have strong motives and dark secrets to pit against each other. It offers you a lot to think about who and why. You'll keep guessing based on the hints so in that way, the book is exciting. I finished it in one go.
- Fully recommended for people who enjoy slow suspense and crime among a close-knit family. Also, this one doesn't have police or court procedural. It has been a while since I read a good crime investigation without the police or court.
- The reason I reduced a star is because I had strong suspicion on someone and it turned out to be the same person. The author dropped some real big hints. Or it could be because I read scores of books in the crime genre till now.
- Everything except the point I mentioned above is appreciable. The narration, the language and vocabulary, all of it is perfect.
- Lastly, the characters. I am a fan of the lead characters and am impressed with the grey ones.
- I received a review copy and I am posting my review voluntarily.

This book has so many twists and turns than a labyrinth. No sooner has one suspect been cleared than half a dozen more turn up. Some of the characters are pretty twisted too. The reasons behind Stacey's abduction were pretty horrific but the reason for Lyra's is truly evil. This is a book to be read in one sitting so don't take it to bed if you have an early start the next day. Carol Wyer is well known for her police procedurals but she has proved here that her more psychological one offs are just as good.

Stacey O’Hara was kidnapped when she was just thirteen-years-old. She was taken to a bleak place and treated cruelly; she was frightened, her mind played tricks on her, sat there waiting to be sent back home. Her father refused to pay the ransom and so her kidnappers cut off her pinkie finger and sent it to Judge Henry O’Hara, but he was still determined not to pay the money and so it remained, and it was not paid. Then one day an anonymous phone call was made to the local police station and Stacy was duly rescued. She was acutely traumatised and gradually the atrocities she suffered became deeply buried, as a way of protecting herself. She could never truly lose track of what had happened during the time with her blackmailers because her physical injuries were there every time she looked in a mirror and saw her deformed ear and her severed finger. That evidence would never go away. Her incarcerator was never brought to justice and Stacey always wondered why her rich father did not protect her and pay her ransom. Didn’t he love her?
Thirty years later her ex-husband Jack was at her house frantically rattling on her front door. As soon as she saw Jack she knew something was terribly wrong. He was emotional and upset so she asked him to explain the emergency. He told her that Lyra, her beloved thirteen-years-old step daughter, had been abducted and the kidnappers had set a ransom of half a million pounds. They also told him he must not involve the police. He begged her to use her skills as an investigative journalist to help him find his daughter. She has unscrupulous contacts who may know something. He eventually confessed he couldn’t pay the ransom because he simply hadn’t got enough money. Stacey’s blood ran cold. The similarity of Lyra’s kidnapping and hers was all too obvious. She would do anything to save Lyra from what she, herself went through: the nightmares, the demons of the past, the uncertainty and maybe even the physical pain. No, she couldn’t even think about that without shuddering. What she could do though, first of all, is go to her therapist to see if she could help to unlock her memories and find forgotten clues from her own experience. She can search for properties that are unused and could be hiding places for Lyra’s captors. So begins her investigations, but as she knows only too well, the clock is ticking and the kidnappers are after their pound of flesh. She loves Lyra to the moon and back. She must do her very best.
I was intrigued about and invested in this novel from the first moment I started to read it. It is a standalone thriller with plenty of suspense and some really exciting twists as well as red herrings and curious alleyways. I enjoyed reading it and found it a compelling story. This author is well known for her series of thrilling crimes starring tough and driven females i.e. Detective Natalie Ward, Detective Inspector Kate Young, and Detective Inspector Robyn Carter. I believe the fourth series is in the early days too. I’m a great fan of this author and this story has really pulled out all of the stops. The storytelling is wonderful and the storyboard overflowing with activity, interesting happenings, and some devious clues! This story brought with it a cast of fantastic characters. Stacey was my favourite character because she was so selfless, brave, determined and loving. I disliked her father Henry and her ex-husband Jack. Henry was truly horrible all over. I couldn’t believe he left his young daughter to be treated as she was, and Jack was manipulative, narcissistic, jealous and abusive. The story closely examined the consequences of damaging secrets and lies. It was emotional, poignant and thought provoking. When the last twist in the story was revealed I was so shocked. I was certainly impressed because I did not see that happening.
I was so excited when I saw this new novel and requested it for review. I quickly received a complimentary copy from publisher by Thomas & Mercer, through my membership of NetGalley. Thank you for my copy sent in return for an honest review. It’s a 4.5* review from me, and a recommendation that this is a harrowing but readable crime story that will keep you turning the pages.

I've been a fan of Carol Wyer for a while now and knew Behind Closed Doors would not disappoint! Stacey was kidnapped and tortured over 30 years ago and, quite by accident, she was spared from a worse fate by the kidnappers, who were never apprehended. Now her stepdaughter Lyra has been kidnapped and Stacey is sure that the same person is behind it. But is she reading too much into the situation, seeing links that aren't really connected? Or could it be someone entirely different, someone who has a grudge against Lyra or her father?
Very well written and full of suspense, this book kept me glued to the pages! Highly recommend!

Behind Closed Doors is an intense thriller. It’s a bit predictable but still held many surprises. There are a lot of hints about who is involved but then in the end things twisted and I loved it. The pace is great, and I wanted to keep reading well past my bedtime.

Carol Wyer is a new to me author with a backlist I will be checking out.

Disappointed with this book. Loved the robin/Natalie series of books. Wasn't so keen on the Kate series so had high hopes that this standalone would be back on par. The outcome was obvious from the start, it was quite boring and a little repetitive. Not for me unfortunately.

I have been an avid fan of Carol's work for a few years and I loved her Natalie Ward series. So I jumped at the chance to read her latest work. The main character Stacy was kidnapped 30 years ago and has never been able to recall exactly what she endured. Now she she must try to relive this event as her ex stepdaughter is in the same position she was 30 years ago. This book was good, don't get me wrong, there are some shocks and a few surprises, but for me it was too long and in places slow. Not one of her best books. I will not stop reading this very talented and favourite authors just because this book did not live upto MY Expectations.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I kept picking this up and putting it back down for months because I was struggling with it so bad. Finally I pushed myself through and it was just so hard for me. It was a little unbelievable and I just couldn't take the flashbacks seriously.

I'm so sorry to the author who worked so hard on this, it just clearly wasn't for me.

Behind Closed Doors is another page turner by Carol Wyer who never fails to entertain with twists and turns and always an ending I never see coming.

Behind Closed doors is no exception.

Stacey's ex-husband Jack (most unlikeable man) asks for her help in the kidnapping of his daughter.

This takes Stacey back in time with memories that she has blocked as she too was a victim of kidnapping.

Her dad did not pay the ransom. Hard to fathom

The pages turn quickly as you race to see what happened to Stacey and can she find her step daughter in time.

Can't wait to see what adventure Carol Wyer will take us on next.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for a gripping read that keeps you reading.

Behind Closed Doors by Carol Wyer
I give this book 4.25 stars

Two kidnappings, thirty years apart. Can Stacey face her own dark past in order to save her stepdaughter?
Can she make sense of the terrible secrets she unearths in time to save Lyra? And if she does, is she ready to face her own tormentor?

This is a standalone by this author.
A well written plot and tense story line this book really deserves the title…….page turner!
Told between Stacey’s flashbacks to her own kidnapping which slowly come back to her and present day with her frantically trying to find her stepdaughter.There was the perfect amount of suspense and twists throughout to keep me turning the pages and 2nd guessing all the way to the end.
With thanks to Netgalley,Carol Wyer and Amazon Publishing for my chance to read and review this book.

I really enjoyed this book but it left me feeling frustrated throughout because I couldn’t work out who was behind everything, I kept trying to guess. My suspicions became clear at the end, although not for the reason I thought. The flashbacks to Stacey’s kidnappings felt so intense and left me with goosebumps, it was all described very well- to the point I could feel myself there with Stacey.