Mark Edwards has done it again. He's a master at his craft. He creates realistic, relatable characters and plot lines that drive you to turn page after page and still leave you reeling from surprising twists and unpredictable outcomes. The Lucky Ones is the latest in a line of books that are unsurpassed in their ability to draw the reader in and take you in the minds of the killers: their motivations, their lives, what drives them, The switching between the protagonists and the one stalking their every move is cinematic in his ability to inspire visualizations of the story as it happens. As the plot line reveals itself and you go back to see if there were any clues that would have driven you to this conclusion, the author is brilliant in the subtlety in which his killer has been there lurking all the while, leaving the reader clueless until the final pages. His protagonists are genuine and relatable, one line in particular struck me personally, (no spoiler here) the protagonist's mother is dying of cancer, and after a visit to see her he thinks that he didn't want her to die, but he didn't want her to be in pain anymore. "I was torn between two emotions, one of which I knew to be selfish." My father has terminal lung cancer which has metastasized to his brain and I was able to completely empathize with the character. Mark Edwards adept ability at including these details of the everyday lives of his characters without getting bogged down in repetitious detail is a hallmark of the best writers. I highly recommend this book. It was gripping, suspenseful, and completely unpredictable. A completely thrilling read.

This book was fantastic I loved it. I found myself reading late into the night because I couldn't put it down. The story was brilliant, I loved the characters and it was extremely well written.

I loved this book. A great five star read which I found very hard to put down. This author's novels get better and better with each new story. Good storyline which kept me reading to find out what was going to happen next. I liked the characters and enjoyed reading the story from the viewpoint of the different characters. Highly recommend.

In my opinion this book is more a crime thriller/police procedural which is my favourite type of read. It is fast paced, the characters are believable and likeable. I have read most of Mark's previous books and I can honestly say that I think this is one of his best. I really don't know how he comes up with such complex and unusual plots, brilliant

3.5 out of 5 stars!

The Lucky Ones has all the right elements for a serial killer themed psychological thriller, and they’re all executed really well. It’s got great suspense with the end being quite unexpected. Even if you have figured out a part of it, there’s a whole lot more to the conclusion that you will not see coming. It’s got the right amount of gore, disturbing descriptions, and suspicious characters. And it’s got a relentless pace with something interesting happening on almost every page.

What I liked most about the book was the depth with which it went into the antagonist’s point of view. Many novels tend to have more implied explanations of why people do the things they do. But Edwards leaves nothing to your guessing capabilities. He lays it all out clearly, and that gives the story this rounded feel that I have always enjoyed. At the same time, it gives you insight into some seriously twisted ideologies that act as motivation for the antagonist’s actions. In fact, Edwards even goes on to say that the inspiration for this book was a conversation he’d overheard at a café. And this leaves you wondering just what people of our the world may be capable of thinking and doing.

All the characters are well-defined and you get a very real view of their struggles. Although protagonists, Ben and Evans have their own demons. Their decisions and emotions aren’t clearly segregated into black and white. Much like with most people in real life, they fall in a gray area. This realistic take on his characters adds good value to the book and allows you to relate with it on a much stronger level.

There were two aspects, though, that I thought could have been done better. There should have been more detail about how Ben and Imogen felt about their own emotional lives individually before that aspect abruptly appears in the latter part of the book (I would’ve called this a spoiler but c’mon… like you hadn’t already expected this angle to be present!). The second is that there were some parts, although not exclusively evident, that seemed to be missing depth. This was more of a feeling than a line or paragraph that I could point out – but the result was that it made certain parts of the story, and hence the book, stay just below the ‘this is brilliant’ line.

In spite of those problems, I would highly recommend The Lucky Ones to:
- fans of thrillers, serial killer stories, crime fiction, and psychological thrillers
- people interested in trying out a new author – Mark Edwards does not disappoint
- people wanting to add a new author to their ‘I need to read all his books’ list

I’m definitely going to be reading more of Mark Edwards’ work. In fact, I’d had another of his books on my TBR pile for a while. Which is why I was even more excited when I got this book from NetGalley.

The Lucky Ones is expected to come out on June 15. Don’t miss this psychological thriller!

Ever since The Magpies, I have eagerly read all of Mark Edwards' novels and none of them disappoint! Another taught thriller with a tightly woven plot, I loved it!

The Lucky Ones is the second novel by Mark Edwards that I've read. I really enjoyed Follow You Home the story of a couple who are traumatised by their experiences on holiday in Eastern Europe.

The Lucky Ones is a different story completely. Although it keeps to the thriller element but this time it has more of a British Detective novel setting.


A serial killer is at loose in rural England, in the tiny village where Ben lives with his son Ollie. Two women and a man have been murdered right after they reached their happiest point in life. Detective Imogen Evans has moved from the City of London Police to a more rural setting after the death of a colleague. Now she's desperate to catch the killer and prove herself.


The novel is very gripping. I started it one morning and by the evening it was finished, despite being at work all day, I just couldn't put it down on the bus, on my lunch, in the bath and for the rest of the evening. The characters were easy to remember despite there being quite a few of them, all of them had endearing qualities (apart from the serial killer of course), and the killer was particularly well written. It was only in the last few pages that i started to suspect correctly who the killer was.


Mark Edwards takes the reader on a wild goose chase where there's literally nobody we can trust. Everyone is a potential suspect and it is so cleverly written that it makes sense for the killer to know everything without giving away who they are. Interesting back stories are also provided for the killer but again there's even a twist to that plot too. I won't say too much more as not to ruin the story or give spoilers but I'll be recommending this to anyone who loves a good crime thriller!

The Lucky Ones are those who die happy. They are the chosen to die in the euphoria that comes with overdosing so one slips into a beautiful dreamy sleep. From which of course you never awake. But your happy.
That's the plan of a young man who grew up with a great deal of unpleasantness and unhappiness. How he chose his victims
and manipulates their lives to achieve happiness is amazing. The novel is at once a engaging with a slight edge of creepyness. The victims of course don't want to die but that doesn't deter the villain from carrying on.
An unusual story very well done providing insight to both intended victim and the maniac. Well written and very suspenseful. Highly recommended if you want an unusual serial killer story

Another storming read from Mark Edwards. Set in Ironbridge in the most beautiful of surroundings there's a serial killer on the loose. I loved the story, the characters and it was a real surprise to find out who the killer was.
Ithe could be the start of a series as I'm sure I'm not the only one who wonders how things carry on for the flame haired detective.

Mark Edwards
The Lucky Ones

A brilliant and complex story, which kept me guessing all the way through.

I was a “lucky One” and would like to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it started off quickly -straight into the story, keeping me turning the pages and trying to guess the outcome right from the start.
The characters are likable which always helps me when reading a story; I find you need to care enough about them to hold interest in what is going to happen.
There is enough Crime procedural and thriller mixed together to make a great story from different perspectives.

It is easy to read but yet a complex and clever story, certainly grabbing my interest early on and holding it until the end.

Another great read from Mark Edwards.

Another good read from Mark Edwards where an average person finds themself in a far from average situation.
As always well written and fast paced with relatable, likeable characters.

First of all I'd like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review. I was really excited when I got the copy because Mark Edwards is one of my favorite authors but...unfortunately this title did not work that much for me.

It is, as usual for Edwards' novels, greatly written, with impressive care for details and excellent characters and dialogue. However, the plot itself could no convince me at all. From the very beginning I tried as hard as possible to really trust the story and delve into it, to put my suspension of disbelief on ultra high and immerse but I simply couldn't. Some details did not add up in my view (I wouldn't call them "holes" just not convincing) and the whole motivation/execution felt too convoluted. Also, I saw the plot twist way ahead of time, but this is not usually a problem for me; having been reading mostly mysteries all my reader's life it's really hard for a book to surprise me by now.

On the bright side I really loved DI Imogen and also Emma. Their duo is refreshing and worked so well together I hope we'll see more from them in other books.

All in all I still recommend the book as even a not so great Mark Edwards is still a novel worth reading but if it's your first time with the author I'd say to start with the brilliant Follow you Home.

Mark Edwards gives good psychological thriller. Its been true since he started writing them but each book has been better than the last and The Lucky Ones was really excellent, with that genuine addictive quality and a clever, fast moving, considered plot that keeps things nicely unpredictable.

The Lucky Ones is kind of a hybrid serial killer/psychological thriller, as ever the author has created some memorable characters – then thrown them into untenable situations and messed with their happy place (in this case literally) It is gripping stuff, as bodies pile up and nobody can get a handle on anything – in the meantime we follow along with Ben and son Ollie as they both come to terms with a marital split, but suddenly find themselves caught up in something much worse.

I loved the setting here – so beautifully tranquil which made the odd dead body suddenly lying around all the more real – I also thought the police procedural elements were beautifully layered into the wider plot so it all read perfectly, as the story twists and turns towards its ultimate solution you’ll be hanging off every page.

Look to be honest I’m a bit numbed to this genre now reading so widely in it as I do, but whilst there are occasional good ones and many more enjoyable ones and the very very odd incredible one, I know that with this author I’m in safe hands. I never do anything less than bang through them, completely engaged, immersed into whatever story is being told, the characters never fail to stay with me and I’m never quite sure what I’m going to get. Quality writing, quality storytelling, imaginative plotting and a damn fine read, that I know but as for the rest, well its a mystery.

Whilst I think that “The Magpies” will remain definitively my favourite novel from Mark Edwards (is that somewhat of a challenge? Absolutely!) The Lucky Ones is without doubt one of the best. So yes. Highly Recommended.

There’s a serial killer on the loose, one who leaves his victims posed as if their deaths were the happiest moments of their lives. Detective Imogen Evans is stumped. Meanwhile, young Ollie is thrilled when the bullies who have been terrorizing him suddenly disappear. His dad, Ben has found work and life finally seems to be working out for the single dad and his son. Someone else is glad to see Ollie happy, but they want to make him even happier, to give him the happiest, and last, day of his life. Mark Edwards is good at building subtle suspense and then throwing in a doozy of a surprise or two in his mysteries. Another memorable read