This book has got some great reviews but I couldn't' get into it. Not for me, sorry

I didn't dislike the book and I'm really grateful to have been able to read it but it wasn't for me. I really liked the premise but was constantly waiting for the story to get going.
I am amazed at how the author managed to write from the perspective of such an obsessive man and that character did successfully get under my skin.
I enjoyed it but I think the story could have had a little more pace and maybe another dimension.

It took me a while to get in to this but when I was hooked I couldn’t stop. The court scenes really ramped up the pace.

Was Mike reading too much in to things? Or was V playing one big game?

As I got to the end I felt like I was still waiting for the big twist, I would have loved a chapter from V’s perspective to answer my questions - my main one being if she really wanted to distance herself from Mike then why didn't she take off her necklace?!

3.5 Stars.

Thanks to NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Our Kind of Cruelty just didn't work out for me. Maybe I've been reading too many of the same regurgitated stories lately, but I am sorry to say that this will be an unpopular review.

Our Kind of Cruelty takes place in London and parts of New York, where Mike Hayes tells us about his love for Verity Metcalf. Verity and Mike were young loves—immature and impulsive, the dynamic duo played this controversial made-up game called Crave. Without giving too much away, this game was a manipulative and cruel game that they played on unsuspecting men. Flash-forward, Mike and Verity are at a standstill. Mike is offered the dream job he's always wanted in New York, while Verity has her sights set on staying in London and working with computers. The two try and work on their relationship long-distance, but betrayal and lies amount to be too much. Now Verity is engaged to Angus and has found the love she's always wanted. Mike is devastated, angry, and ready to bring Verity back into his life. Mike is willing to stop at nothing to prove his love for Verity.

As mentioned before, this book was just not for me. I have seen lots of reviews lately for Our Kind of Cruelty and they are all over the place, which is good! It means that this story will invoke many different reactions and promote conversations. I felt like the arc of this story was too heavily focused on Mike and his inner thoughts, rather than what was happening around him. Sometimes that can work, other times it can fall flat. It's difficult when it comes to psychological thrillers because you are really caught up in the psyche of the narrator, but it also limits you on what is being presented in the story. I felt that the narration style in this story was very limiting. My friend Chelsea, who also reviewed this story, called it an inner monologue and she is so spot-on with that critique. I felt like Mike was reading from an editorial diary, rather than promoting a storyline. It just became too repetitive and uninspired for me.

At around 80% of the novel, I was very (happily) surprised at how the story provided conversational topics so intelligently. One thing that really provoked me (in a good way) was the treatment of society's viewpoints on the sexuality of women. At first, I was so pissed off with the narrative on this subject, but that's what the story was supposed to do. I loved that we are given a chance to actually feel emotion based on real life topics that are currently a commonplace discussion piece.

Final thoughts: Not for me, but maybe for you. Read a couple more reviews by some of your friends and then make your decision. Whether you love it, like it, or ambivalent towards it, Our Kind of Cruelty is a quick read that will get you thinking.

Thanks Netgalley for my advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Obsession, sex, lies, betrayal.... and Mike, especially loveeeee reading about guys like Mike. Oooohhhh I really want to say so, so much about this book but it's one of those books you just HAVE to read for yourself. It's one of those books you'll think about long after reading, it's psychological thriller thinking at it's best. This love story because it is a love story, what kind, you'll just have to come to that conclusion for yourself was intriguing and cleverly put together, I really loved it.

When I started reading this book I was pretty unsure. But it only took me a short while to want to carry on reading it. The characters became very real to me. Mike's obsession was very frightening. All the way I kept imagining what his next move would be. I felt sorry for Verity, who was the object of his obsession. By the end of the book my perception of her changed. Most of the books I read, i read and enjoy and then go on to the next one. Many time I start reading a book to discover I have read it before. That will never happen with this book, this story will stay with me forever.

I would like to thank Random House UK Cornerstone and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘Our Kind of Cruelty’ written by Araminta Hall in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
‘The Crave’ is a sexual game that Mike and Verity play and only they know about. When Mike returns from working in America things have changed as Mike has slept with Carly and Verity is engaged to Angus. But Mike is obsessed with Verity and believes that in the end they’ll be together, even if someone has to die.
‘Our Kind Of Cruelty’ is a disturbingly chilling psychological thriller that I was unable to put down. It has a tense and addictive plot of desire, compulsive passion and fanatical sexuality. It’s a powerful novel that’s kept me gripped to the shocking end.

⭐️⭐️ sorry people this one was not for me.

I found the writing to be stuttered, basic and disjointed. I could not gel with any of the characters and found myself plodding through this wondering when it would ‘kick in’

This must be a marmite book however because there are so many 4 and 5 star reviews.

Maybe it’s me.

This story centres around Mike. At the beginning of the book we find him in a prison cell. He decides to write down his side of the story and we get to find out what led to him being arrested. This story is about love, sex and obsession. I am reluctant to reveal anymore because it would be very easy to spoil the story.

I really enjoyed this book. It was a little bit different to most of the other psychological thrillers that I have read before. I would like to point out I was a little put off this book by the title. I was worried that it might be a bit too graphic in its content but it was absolutely fine.

Mike loves his ex-girlfriend Verity - and he’s very certain that she still loves him, even though she has not only left him but is now getting married to someone else.

But that’s all just a more elaborate, extreme version of their private game - isn’t it? A sexual game they called the Crave, in which they would go out separately-but-together, Verity would wait for a man to make a move on her, and at a prearranged signal Mike would step in to send him on his way. Apparently, this would give them both a thrill. A bit strange, but basically fairly harmless.

Mike’s confident that whatever Verity says, her marriage to the eligible Angus is all a part of the game - a new version of the Crave. He just needs to understand the rules and figure out what Verity expects him to do next.

This story is narrated by Mike, once a bitterly neglected child taken into care at the age of ten, who has grown into a very successful adult with a highly paid job in the City and a beautiful house (in which he fully expects Verity soon to be living with him). Because he knows her better than anybody, and he knows that however often she says she doesn’t want to be with him, she doesn’t really mean it. Her signals and coded messages prove that. Mike and Verity are different from other people, their love is more important than anything else and it’s worth any sacrifice.

It often feels like Mike’s running only on obsession and barely suppressed violence. And inevitably, it’s going to erupt at some point.

Our Kind of Cruelty is a fascinating read, as we inhabit the mind of Mike, who’s frequently terrifying, but not a bad person; he is motivated entirely by love. He’s flawed - but so is his beloved Verity, his idealised woman. And he’s deeply vulnerable.

As the story progresses it becomes a courtroom drama and a trial by media; suddenly, other people are privy to the details of Mike and Verity’s relationship - and standing in judgement. And not only on Mike. (I loved, if that’s the right word, the feature from what was obviously the Daily Mail, with its unhealthy obsessions with how much people earn, what their houses are worth, and the numerous ways in which women fail to live up to arbitrary standards.)

How complicit is Verity in what has happened? Where does guilt lie - and how is that decided?

Really putting the psychological into psychological thriller, this was a brilliant read which is highly recommended.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

This is a tale of totally obsessive love. It is dark, psychological, unsettling and I was unable to put it down. Mike has emerged from foster care to build a successful life for himself as a banker. At university he met the enigmatic Verity, who he refers to a V throughout the novel. They have an interesting relationship which crumbles when he admits to a one night stand in New York.

Mike cannot accept that their relationship is over and much of the narrative concerns him trying to interpret V's messages of rejection as coded positives of their special connection. Even after V marries someone else he deludes himself that this is still part of The Crave: the way is which they define their lives.

After the death of V's husband we read an account of the trial of Mike and Verity. This is very well crafted and we see how evidence can be twisted particularly when a woman is involved. We are left asking if women are more harshly judged than men?

There are some fundamental messages in this novel about abandoned children, the need for approval and the treatment of women. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from NetGalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.

Wow, our kind of cruelty really is a dark, twisted thriller, filled with lies, lust, obsession and passion.
Although I didn’t find the main character very likeable it worked, let’s face it you can’t like everyone and when you have such a manipulative character you don’t want them to be liked. This story grabbed my attention and held it for the entire book. Well done for giving me another sleepless night.

This was a difficult read . How much was fact or fiction in the main characters mind,was he twisting things to fit his own ideals or was she just as guilty?

A delightful read! When I was first reading this book, I felt I already knew the plot and how it was going to end but I was in for quite a surprise. The main character, Mike has an unhealthy love obsession with his ex-partner, Verity, but as the story unfolds you are taken down a journey where it may not be Mike who is the one with the obsession. Verity's character is a beautiful, confident, sex goddess but you're not sure if her love for Mike was genuine or purely games and control.

A brilliant book for those interested in psychological thrillers and mind games. "Our kind of cruelty" will definitely keep you second guessing who is telling the truth up until the very end.

A compelling story of obsessive love which engages you from the start..The deeply disturbing storyline will draw you in and keep you hooked to the end.
Mike and Verity are deeply in love, They don’t have to communicate to know what the other is thinking. Mike has made a mistake though and V is going to make him pay - she is getting married to Angus. It’s all part of the elaborate sexual game they play “The Crave” so Mike knows everything will work out for them in the end.. As his obsession increases Mike takes a disastrous course of action for them both. The book highlights the way men’s and women’s actions are both perceived and treated differently and how one person can interrupt another persons actions in a completely different way - I was addicted.

Lots of publisher blurbs tout a book as being a psychological thriller but it's usually just buzz. This book fits that description and MORE!

Mike Hayes had a hardscrabble life growing up. His mother was a neglectful alcoholic who consorted with abusive men. He was placed in protective care at the age of ten. He meets a gorgeous woman named Verity who changes his life in college. Verity helps him understand social conventions and changes him. They date for many years, and Mike is deeply in love with her. Some events happen and they end up breaking up. This book chronicles what happens in the aftermath. Without giving too much away, Mike is obsessed with getting Verity back. He proceeds in his life with every intention of reconciling. Verity's perspective on these attempts to reconcile is very different! (Stalking, assault)

Since the book is told from Mike's perspective. It really shows what is going on in his mind and that is where the psychological thriller comes in. Disturbing and terrifying.

A crime is committed in the second half of the book and the courtroom portions are fascinating as we are exposed to the opinions and stories that contradict or explain some of the things Mike tells us. The ending is chilling!

The roles of different characters in this book could be interpreted several ways and it would lead to some interesting book club discussions.

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for giving me the chance to read and honestly review the best thriller I've read this year!

Thanks to the publisher for my ARC of Our Kind of Cruelty. Sadly I just couldn’t get on with this one. I didn’t like the main characters, if I’m honest, so I couldn’t get invested in the outcome of the book. I can see how this one will be a biggie for fans of Gillian Flynn et al, but it just wasn’t for me!

What a disturbing read. What a disturbing mind to be thrown in to. Mike is an unlikeable character who keeps you on your toes the whole time.

What a brilliant, absolutely unputdownable book! Even though I don't normally like psychological thrillers at all, this had me hooked from page one and kept me enthralled to the sinister end. This is definitely not for fainthearted ladies, much too close to some real-life relationship outcomes...

Mike had a troubled childhood which he thinks he has escaped and recovered from but his relationship with Verity proves him wrong. A gripping psychological thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat wondering what Mike is going to do before the end of the book.