Fast becoming one of my favourite authors, another fantastic book that kept me hooked the whole way through, couldn't put it down!

The Good Samaritan plunges headfirst into a theme of depression and suicide. I need to admit straight off that I think the concept, in general, is a great one. We have an antagonist, Laura, who spends her day/evenings volunteering at a “help-line” service with the goal of pushing depressed callers off the edge as it were. So not really a good Samaritan at all .... Oh I see what the author did there.

So through Laura's perspective, we get oriented in her typical day. We are force fed how arrogant and smart she is and gulp down her pity about her weight and low self-image.

I thought to myself about a ¼ of the way through this book why I haven’t heard much on gender appropriation in modern literature (men writing women badly .... or the other way around). With so much cultural appropriating going on you'd think the internet would have headlined the gender type by now. I mean come on, you out there, if you're going to spend the money on a degree in gender studies you better use it for something.

Well, after we read through most of the female stereotypes in existence, either through acts of Laura or her costars at the help-line office we know a few things.

One: Laura is a little crazy.

Two: She is pretty self-conscious of her body and looks down on all her other female co-workers.

And three: She kills people by convincing them to commit suicide.

We also know that the first part of the book was either written in haste or not proofed with the reader in mind at all. The scenes are structurally sloppy, and I found myself backtracking to figure out who was speaking. Information about the character seems created on a whim like how we are introduced to Laura’s two daughters and husband, then several chapters later, her son (the most important person in her life, her “anchor” as she describes). You think such a person would have come up sooner.

She also has two more anchors in her life. I’m no sailor, but one will usually do the trick.

Her main requirement for victims is for them to contact her several times so she knows they are serious about suicide. She mentions that the switchboard is automatic and random so if they manage to get her back on the line, they must really mean it. She also mentions there are something like 300 people taking calls at any given time around the world for this company. So these victims have a 1 in 300 chance (or something, without bothering to do the math and not considering the fact that these people have lives and aren't always going to call when she is even working—whatever) to get her back on the line, and just by luck they do .... daily. This is stupid. My god.

It gets better actually. I want to be careful not to ruin this for anyone, but I'll just bull ahead anyway.

The story changes to another character's perspective, and this is when it gets good—turning into a cat and mouse thriller. Ryan, the husband of one of her victims, is out for revenge. Clues from his dead wife point him to Laura, and the tables start to turn.

There is a great scene where Ryan is talking to his palliative care grandfather and gets the validation he needs to take an “eye for an eye,” and I truly loved it. Ryan’s brother, whom he is very close too does not approve and causes a rift between them, and we see Ryan develop slowly into what you think will surely be someone more evil and crazy than Laura.

Then we learn Laura is actually clinically crazy, and her husband left her, taking the kids quite a while ago and is even living with someone else. Normally, you would think this creates the motive and reason behind her actions, but instead, it just feels cheap and meaningless. Turns out, to my surprise, that the poor writing at the start was the author's way of foreshadowing her as a loon. Wouldn’t be my first method of choice but alright. When relying on unreliable narrators, writer's need to have a great deal of skill and creativity that I feel was just not there. Sorry.

So as my hopes rise, they drop. Fast as if they were coerced with words to jump off a cliff.

The story takes a twist, and the next writing "technique" seen fit to utilize is completely changing the personalities of the characters that were built earlier. It’s cheap really, instead of the story following the characters created we see characters who change to meet the requirements of the story. There were some decent characters I enjoyed, and it infuriates me when out of the blue they become complete dimwits. Instead of reacting like the normal human beings they are, we are expected to relate to them acting contrary to how the author wrote them in the first place (or how anyone would act, even people suffering from mental disorder which I can't even get into here).

What's worse, we are expected to believe the author was being clever (using unreliable narrators) to add depth to the plot. Unfortunately, the reality is that the writing is merely unapologetically opportunistic and lazy.

He's sure to hide it as a “twist,” but I assure you the only twisting going on is a spiral going down the toilet.

Rated 1 star out of 100 have a nice day.

Imagine you reach the end of the line, well in this case literally, because here we have a charity which goes by the same name. The idea is to help if someone feels suicidal, and you would expect, they talk you out of whatever step you are planning to take to end your own life.

This is where author John Marrs offers an interesting dark twist, what if they are actually encouraging you to do so?

This dark, disturbing and unputdownable thriller is told from two different points of view. There's the husband, Ryan, of a pregnant wife who took her own life after contacting the charity and then there's the helpline operator, Laura, who is generally angry and frustrated with her own life and believes the best thing she can do, is to encourage others to commit suicide.

Ryan's wife didn't die on her own, no, she went hand in hand with a stranger. Who was this man? What did he mean to Laura?
Ryan has questions, but is Laura the right one to answer them?

The Good Samaritan had me miss my stop and I had to wait for another train to take me back to my destination, I was that hooked.
What makes the thriller stand out is that you are emotionally on a rollercoaster ride, at least that's how I felt.
Sometimes I found Ryan frustrating and at others, when you think you know all about Laura, there's more horror to come.
I found The Good Samaritan actually more thirilling than Marrs's bestseller The One.

The topic of this book is quite dark. The story centres around Laura who works for a call line called The End of the Line which deals with people who are contemplating suicide. In the course of their work the staff have to support the callers in whatever way they can, Laura takes this to the extreme!!
I found the first part of the book quite slow to start but once we were introduced to Ryan the story sped along! Laura is a narcissistic dangerous woman who is very delusional but she is compelling. Her back story is fascinating!!
Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review #TheGoodSamaritan #NetGalley

Thanks as always to NetGalley and the publishers for a pre release copy of this novel.

Laura is a volunteer at "End Of The Line", an alternative (and possibly fictitious) to Samaritans, where people go to just talk about their problems and not have anybody judge them. We could all do with someone like that at some point in our lives right? One of the conditions at End Of The Line is that if someone is contemplating suicide, the volunteers don't try to talk the caller out of it. Laura, however, actively encourages it. But, with the bodies piling up, all of which have chosen to end their own lives with Laura's help, she finally meets her match.

This novel had so, so much potential to keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. And, for the most part, that's just what it does. However, the novel's secrets are revealed fairly early on and, from there, it's just a question of how it's going to end for all parties involved. Sadly, for me at least, the ending is a massive anti climax. This is solely the reason I've rated it 3 stars and not 4, as it's a very well written story and the characters are mostly believable. This novel promised so much but, ultimately, failed to deliver.

This truly kept me on my toes!! I've been frustrated with psychological thrillers recently because the actions that people take are so out of character. But Laura is SO crazy (for want of a better word) that I wasn't prepared for anything, nothing she does surprises me. I almost expect it of her. Kept reading this one well after I should have gone to bed, and gasped out loud more than once!

So many delicious twists! For such an action packed plot, this book was still very realistic and I found the characters very relatable which made this book a great read. Parts really tugged on my heart strings. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for other books by John Marrs.

The Good Samaritan is a roller coaster of a thriller! It’s off to that slow build with Laura ‘s perspective. When the chapter’s flip to Ryan’s perspective the twist and turns just keep coming & the book becomes so hard to put down. I’d recommend this for lovers of a slow building thriller.

EXCERPT: I listened with blissful satisfaction right until her final breath. That's the one sound that matters to me above all others. . . that one precious moment when someone breathes their last, then slips away. People in pain, like Chantelle, place themselves in my hands because I understand them better than anyone else in the world. I know more about what they need than their brothers, sisters, parents, spouses, best friends or children. I understand them because I know what's best for them. If they place their trust in me, I'll reward them by going to the ends of the earth to help them. I'll alleviate their suffering. I'll bring all that is bad in their lives to an end. I will save them from themselves. That is what I am: a saviour of lost souls.

ABOUT THIS BOOK: She’s a friendly voice on the phone. But can you trust her?

The people who call End of the Line need hope. They need reassurance that life is worth living. But some are unlucky enough to get through to Laura. Laura doesn’t want them to hope. She wants them to die.

Laura hasn’t had it easy: she’s survived sickness and a difficult marriage only to find herself heading for forty, unsettled and angry. She doesn’t love talking to people worse off than she is. She craves it.

But now someone’s on to her—Ryan, whose world falls apart when his pregnant wife ends her life, hand in hand with a stranger. Who was this man, and why did they choose to die together?

The sinister truth is within Ryan’s grasp, but he has no idea of the desperate lengths Laura will go to…

Because the best thing about being a Good Samaritan is that you can get away with murder.

MY THOUGHTS: The Good Samaritan by John Marrs should have been a chilling read, sinister, but it was all a bit flat. The premise oozes potential, the plot is brilliant, something that hasn't been done before, but it just never quite all came together for me. I never became invested in the characters. It took me until I was halfway through the book before I had an OMG! moment and my interest sparked. But it was fleeting.

I have been trying to determine just why this book was almost a failure for me. I had gotten to the point where I was skimming and starting to wonder if I might abandon this read when I got to that first OMG! moment. Then there were a few of these moments in quick succession. Yes! I thought. It's a slow burner that has finally taken off. I was excited. Briefly. By the time I was 70% through, my spark was extinguished.

As I said, the premise oozes potential and the plot is great. It was the execution that lacked that 'certain something' for me. It's not a bad book. It's okay. But nothing more. Which is a pity.

Thank you to Thomas and Mercer via Netgalley for providing a digital copy of The Good Samaritan by John Marrs for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system.

This review and others are also published on my blog sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

When I open a book by John Marrs I know that I am in for a good read- I didn't realise it would be this good this time!

End of the Line provides a service for those who feel life is getting too much for them. There is a person at the end of the phone who is unbiased, non judgemental and impartial- or are they?

Laura is a dedicated fundraiser for the service. She takes her shifts on the phones, she listens- & she talks. She has her own agenda- she wants them to die, preferably when she is listening.

Ryan thinks all is right with his world. He loves his wife Charlotte and is eagerly awaiting the arrival of their first baby- they already know it is a boy. When Charlotte jumps to her death hand in hand with a stranger his world is shaken to the core. When he finds out about Laura & End of the Line he is determined to bring her down but he doesn't realise what a dangerous adversary he is up against.

Told from various points of view we see the minds of the characters. There are many occasions you find yourself whispering, "This is going to end badly!"

Totally engaging, this is a book that doesn't let up for a moment. It deserves more than 5 stars! John Marrs best yet! Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

This book is so dark and devious I had to follow it up with a much lighter read when I finished. It's not really graphic, so don't worry about that - it just takes you deep inside some twisted brains, and just when you think you know what's going to happen next, you're dead wrong.

Laura is a survivor, she beat cancer. Laura is a devoted wife and mother to her three children. Laura bakes lovely treats to share with her co-workers. Laura likes to encourage people to kill themselves.

Abusing her position as a call-taker for End of the Line, a hotline for people who desperately need someone to talk to, Laura hasn't just encouraged one or two people to die. Her numbers have been steadily growing. End of the Line is supposed to be judgment-free, and they don't contact authorities if they think someone is in danger of taking their own life. However, they certainly aren't supposed to encourage it... snip at someone's thread of hope until it severs completely. But that's Laura's thing. It's what she does. She doesn't count on the husband of one of her projects looking deeper into the suicide of his pregnant wife and getting increasingly suspicious. His wife died holding the hand of another man as he ended his life at the same time, and he is determined to know how it came to that. Ryan is willing to do damn near anything to figure it out, and it can't be long before he starts to find answers.

I think the whole story was really engaging, and the characters will stay with me for awhile. The last few chapters started going a little off the rails for me, which kept it from being five stars. The very ending, however? Whoa. This one really got to me - I caught myself cringing a few times. It might be difficult for some to read. Overall, I was super absorbed in this one and so glad I picked it up.

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Thomas & Mercer, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

"She wants them to die"

I think I have officially found the worst character in any book I have ever read and I loved every minute! Laura is a truly hateable character. She is devious, cunning, dark and smart. I hate her. She even works for a "suicide hotline". Too bad she's in it for the wrong reasons.

There's an amazing cat and mouse feel to this dark, twisted story of a deeply disturbed housewife and the man she wronged. I loved it!

#netgalley #thegoodsamaritan

Contemplating ending your life? Call "The End of the Line" hotline. They are there to listen, to be supportive, to be understanding, to be nonjudgmental. They have sympathetic volunteers whose jobs are not to talk you out of suicide, but to listen, to let you know you have options. But what happens when the kind, sympathetic, caring person on the other end has ulterior motives?

Laura loves the work she does at "The end of the line". This is where she shines. She is made for this. Oh, how she loves what she does! She doesn't feel fulfilled at home but at work she has found her purpose, her calling if you will.

Ryan is devastated. His pregnant wife has committed suicide with a stranger. Who was this man? Did his wife know him? Was she having an affair? He will do anything to get the answers he so desperately wants. He wants to know the truth but at what cost?

We get both Laura and Ryan's narratives in this book. Both have their own agendas, and both are little devious. This book had a couple of twists and turns along the way which kept things interesting. This is a dark book which deals with heavy subject matter. Suicide is not an easy subject and may be a trigger for some. What I enjoyed the most was one revelation which lets the reader know that not everything is as it seems. This provided for a nice "aha" moment for me.

I enjoyed this dark twisted book from the beginning but felt it really picked up steam around the halfway mark when one character realized the truth. From there is just got better. This is seriously one messed up book! Again, this book will not be for everyone. Those readers who enjoy twisted dark books with twist and turns, this book may be for you!

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer/Amazon Publishing (UK) and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a brilliantly f*cked up book! The story is so twisty that it keeps you rapidly turning the pages. Laura is a completely messed up character and an unreliable narrator which makes you doubt everything she's telling you. Finding out the truth kept me going.

I was a bit unsure of this one to begin with. I was definitely sure by the end! I raced through this book as fast as I could, I couldn’t wait to get to the next page!! It was jaw-dropping. I loved every line!

Another fantastic read from this author. Gripping, dark, twisted. Clear your diary and read it in one go!

What an unpleasant person Laura is, but she makes this book worth every one of its five stars. John Marrs best book yet

There’s twisted hope alive throughout the story and that’s what makes it gritty and fantastic. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys slow building domestic thrillers. There’s a great balance of character development, shock, and grit to propel the story from beginning to end. The unique combination of twisted characters, complicated back stories, and revenge all build a fantastic thrill ride of a read. I’ll be thinking about this book for a while.

This thriller is a roller coaster. The beginning starts a bit slow, much like waiting in line to board the ride. Laura’s situation comes to light. Just when you understand Laura things switch to Ryan. Once it’s clear how the stories intersect the lengthy background is very useful and helped me navigate the plot twists and sly details.

Neither character is very likable but the shocking plot twists had me rooting for both of them to come out on top. The alternating points of view is a great structure for telling this story. In each chapter I liked seeing both sides of the same story and that helped sway me from rooting for Laura to rooting for Ryan and then I’d be spun around when a new detail popped up and turned everything around.

What really make this story a real winner for me was the end. Just when it seems like the dust has settled and the drama is over the last two chapters bring things right back up again.

Wow. Just wow! This book was so intense, dark, disturbing and uncomfortable to read at times. Yet I could not put it down; I was hooked from page one. The book is told from the point of view of two people (mostly). Laura- a mother, wife and volunteer at End of the Line (a suicide hotline). And then Ryan whose wife recently committed suicide. Laura both fascinated and horrified me! The lengths she would go to get her way. There were so many twists and turns that kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what the heck was going to happen next. His book was well written, characters were developed well and I’m glad it was written in dual POV. I have not read a book that has been so disturbing and fascinating at the same time since Gone Girl. Wow. Thanks to NetGalley, John Marrs and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

My second read of John Marrs and my second 5 star review. There’s something about his writing and storytelling that I just love, even though this is a completely different subject matter than the first one I read - The One.

Laura works for a volunteer suicide help line called End Of The Line. They take calls from people who are depressed, troubled and a lot of the time suicidal. Laura is not your average Good Samaritan though. She will listen and she will empathize with you completely and offer you her sympathetic ear, but if Laura thinks you are the right candidate she will encourage you to go through with your suicidal thoughts. She will help you plan it. She will advise you how to do it. She will convince you it is your only solution and she is there to help you end your suffering. The only thing she wants is a call from you when you do it so she can hear your last breath.

Approaching 40 and in a troubled marriage with 3 children Laura had a troubled childhood and upbringing and apparent serious ill health recently. She wants to help people end their suffering and leave this world. She is the ultimate chameleon. A big fundraiser for End Of The Line and a soothing and helpful voice to a lot despite talking plenty of people into taking their own life. But now someone is on to her. Someone has discovered who she is and they want revenge. Laura though is one resilient woman and will not be threatened lightly and will do anything and everything to protect herself and her secrets. She is determined to get her family back together at any cost and continue with her work.

Well wow, what a read. Totally exilerating. Laura our central character is absolutely bonkers. I mean over the top bonkers but you just love spending time with her as large parts of the book are spent in her narrative. She just becomes more and more creepy as the book goes on.

The story is fantastic. A quite unnerving subject matter it is brilliantly told as it unfolds into a game of cat and mouse and the absolutely mental world of Laura is slowly revealed. The tension throughout is really palpable and there are so many chapters where you really don’t know where the story will go, plenty of surprises.

I loved my first read by John Marrs - The One and I love this one just as much, despite being a completely different book. I just love this authors writing style and storytelling. Even the little things like the title chapters in this pleased me. They were titled “Laura - two months after “insert name here” death”. A simple but very effective way of easily displaying the passing of time without the usual adding of dates, which I always find a little confusing and have to check back in a book to see how much time has passed. The chapter title in one little sentence perfectly places me in an instant in the right time frame without me even having to think about it.

I could go on and on about what I love about this book but would probably get into spoiler territory so I will just say that I would highly recommend this to any fan of thrillers or indeed just good storytelling. It’s a riveting read from the first page and in Laura, we genuinely have one of the most creepy, unhinged and bonkers central characters that I can ever remember reading.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Thomas & Mercer and John Marrs for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.