Great read and easy to follow story line. Look forward to reading more from this author

A book that had me gripped, so full of twists, even though I wanted to slap Joe for his own good! Fantastic ending which I definitely didn't see coming, great debut.

Review:

When I read the description, I expected an honest-to-god straightforward plotline of threats and mind games. What I did not expect was this well-crafted intriguing plot comprising of twists and turns that will not stop me from finishing it at one go. The author has thought about everything; each subplot has multiple of nuances that might appear straightforward but ends up in a door that was far from expected. The characters are intriguing to say the least, and are equally involved in the plot as the reader which made for an extremely enlightening read. Though the tone of narration is in first tone, the harrowing experience of the lead character has been beautifully showcased in segmenting the chapters into a timeline of days. The cover image and the title lives upto the plot and helps in highlighting the whole storyline.

My opinion: Loved every single thing about the book, and I really didn't expect to feel that way considering the mediocrity of the description.

My rating: 5 out of 5

I'm utterly shocked to discover that this is a debut novel and equally shocked to see a few negative reviews floating around! What's wrong with you?! I finished this within one day.

A brilliantly constructed plot, clever twists, a fab cover and great character development of Joe - even though I wanted to smack some common sense into him at times!

The only slight criticism I have is that the Police procedural stuff was a bit sketchy although it didn't matter quite so much as (thankfully) the focus isn't on the police investigation in this book.

I would like to thank Bonnier Zaffre for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Actually 4.5 stars.
One decision and its repercussions. That's what happens to Joe when he sees his wife's car and decides to follow her to surprise her with his son in tow. But things don't run smoothly as he sees her arguing with their friend Ben. As she leaves, he approaches Ben and has somewhat of an altercation with him. Ben is knocked down and when Joe goes to check on him, his son has an asthma attack and so his priorities change and he has to leave the scene to attend to him. Later he goes back but Ben has gone and no one in the hotel where the incident happened is any the wiser about anything.
But then strange things start to happen. Ben lost his phone in the altercation and soon someone is posting on his social media, as things start to escalate for Joe, suspension from work being just the start, it becomes obvious that he is part of a bigger game, one he has yet to understand. Can he save himself before the worst happens?
I read an awful lot of this type of book. I agree with some people that the market is nigh on saturated with them. This one, however, is a very good example. It is gripping, exciting, tense and has great, if sometimes unlikable, characters and and ending that even me as a seasoned reader of this genre didn't see coming.
One of the things that really sets a book aside as a good book for me is how emotionally invested I get in the characters. In this book, I really liked Joe and, as such, cared about what happened to him. I really felt for him as his life started to crumble around him. I was even shouting at the other characters to leave him alone, trust him, look at previous behaviour, don't get swayed by what you see, but all to no avail. On the flip side however he was a bit gullible, I mean how many second chances can you really give someone?! Hey, that's life... not all black and white. But, his path was set and he was guided very skillfully down it both by the author and the other characters' manipulations.
Oh and the manipulations in this book are good. Served up with a side of secrets and lies, the author weaves a veritable tale of intrigue that I as a reader was powerless to do anything but follow avidly.
Yes there were a few belief suspended times in this book but unlike some books I have read, all were integral to the plot and, on the whole, forgivable rather than just added sloppily for effect. I was quite content to accept a few niggles I had whilst reading for the good of the whole overall experience that the book gave me. When I finished, I was completely satisfied and that's what's important to me.
All in all another cracking opening offering which definitely marks 2016 as year of the debut for me. Looking forward to whatever the author serves up next time.

My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.