Favorite Quotes:

Her job was to help people regain remedial skills, and very few clients were thrilled to have that opportunity.

She’d suspected Johnny of cheating plenty of times, but as far as she knew, it had only happened once. Just once… As for that one time? Well, she’d forgiven him. Or she thought she had. It turned out that frantically gluing the broken pieces of a marriage back together didn’t make for the tightest hold.

Her daughter didn’t notice or didn’t care, and that was a blessing. Children were naturally selfish. Their selfishness protected them from noticing the rough currents of life that pulled in all directions. But they noticed the rapids. They knew when they were being sucked under.

There were crimes anyone might commit, like jaywalking or smuggling a really cool rock home from a national park. Then there were certain crimes you could assign to people you knew well. Trish, for instance, might steal a campaign sign from a bigoted school board candidate and throw it in the trash if no one was looking.

“Mom, though … I swear to God, Veronica, I think she imagined that Fatima and I would have twice as many grandkids because we have two wombs.” “It’s the clear benefit of having a lesbian daughter, Trish. Extra incubation space.”

My Review:

I’m a bit conflicted on how to rate and feel about this one. The characters were not at all likable or trustworthy as they were actually quite selfish and contemptible, yet my curiosity was tipped and I wanted to know how their story would shake out. The intriguing storylines and subplots were slowly exposed with steadily rising levels of angst and uncertainty over a variety of stressors. Suspected serial spousal infidelities, as well as her own current cheating, were but one of many concerns the highly anxious and deeply resentful main character of Veronica was constantly obsessing over. Her husband’s heroics of finding a lost child brought immediate media attention as well as police scrutiny to her home, resulting in additional complications and spirals of anxiety, and for good reason. The writing and storylines were taut with tension, tragedy, unexpected twists and turns, and an occasional greatly appreciated glimpse of wit.

I had heard great things about the author's previous book, Jane Doe, which was on my TBR, so I was incredibly excited to be contacted for the opportunity to read and review this new book.

From the very beginning, a disarming tone is set up that suggests not everything is what it seems. From the details and outcome of the kidnapping to the Bradley's relationship and marriage, happiness is futile. In much the same vein as books like THE LAST MRS. PARRISH and GONE GIRL, these characters are unlikeable and unreliable. They don't trust each other and we can't trust them.

"She loved having secrets. She loved that no one in her life knew everything about her. She was a puzzle, and only she had all the pieces."

This certainly made for an interesting dynamic in the journey as we followed Veronica to the shocking truth! Although I knew there was going to be a twist, it was truly hard to pin down until it ultimately happened.

"She wasn't above suspicion so much as below notice, and these days that was just fine with her."

The tension is fantastically built as Veronica slowly tries to figure out what is going on; however, the pacing tended to slow down considerably as she spent a lot of time dwelling on how the various men in her life regarded women. This isn't to say that those reflections aren't important as each moment is incredibly thought-provoking. Compelling conversations regarding mother-daughter relationships could certainly be discussed from the interactions that occur or the memories that are referenced within the story; however, Veronica never vocalizes these thoughts to anyone. Rather than being honest and opening herself up to that vulnerability, these generational problems continue, and unfortunately, Sydney, Veronica's daughter, will become its latest victim.

"But she'd set aside her own hurt for her children. That was what mothers did."

The author's writing style while measured is quite captivating and voyeuristic, luring you into the gritty realities these characters have created for themselves. You don't want to watch, but you can't turn away. There are a few graphic sex scenes, but nothing is overly gratuitous or descriptive. As Veronica's worries mount and Johnny's decisions come home to roost, the story weaves together the selfishness of two self-described selfless individuals.

As the betrayals build up, the pages will fly! And ultimately, these convoluted and conflicted relationships unravel into an unforgettable and grisly conclusion that shouldn't be missed!

Secrets, secrets, secrets! Johnny is hailed as a hero when he finds Tanner, a toddler who went missing. The public attention is not, however, without its problems, especially for Johhny and his wife Veronica. Veronica is more sympathetic than you might imagine and she's the person you'll follow. No spoilers because there is a twist here that elevated this. Thanks to net galley for the ARC. A quick read perfect for travel.

Last year one of my favorite and most memorable reads was Jane Doe so of course False Step was high up on my list of most anticipated reads for this year. I loved how original and unique that one was and I adored Jane as a character even though I probably shouldn’t have loved a sociopath as much as I did. I’m so sad to say that this one just didn’t work for me at all.

While initially I was very interested to see where this one was going by about a quarter of the way in I had worked out exactly what was going to happen. I also hated every single character besides the young daughter, Sydney. Veronica was endlessly annoying to me and the whole cast was hypocritical and so exhausting. I’m not gonna sit here and endlessly bash the book because I still really enjoy Stone as an author and will gladly be reading Problem Child as I’m a fan of her writing style. This was just predictable and cliches and just not the right book for me. If you haven’t read JD though I highly recommend that one and if you’re not a seasoned thriller reader this one may work better for you than it did for me.

A fabulous dark and twisty thriller. I absolutely love This authors writing. The story was amazing with lots of twists and very dark moments in the beautiful string of Colorado. Fantastic x xx

If you are looking for a good thriller this is the book for you. The storyline moved quickly, the plot was easy to follow, and the author did a great job of not giving it away too early.

From the very beginning, I knew there was more to the story of Johnny and Veronica. There were hints and I kept guessing. I never wanted the story to go the way it does but I couldn’t stop reading until I found out what was going to happen.

The relationship between Johnny and Veronica was not good. They were not happily married. They should not have stayed married yet I did understand why they didn’t separate. Neither character was very likable. Johnny just seemed shady while Veronica was a pity party at every turn. Nothing was right or good with the two of them and unfortunately, they had a child to take care of.

I did like this book, I loved the storyline. The characters were a bit of a drag but I’d still recommend picking up a copy of this book. It was quick and easy to read. The writing style was easy to follow. The story moved along quickly.

No one is more surprised than Veronica when her husband Johnny becomes a hero. The financially strapped personal trainer is hailed as a hero by the press when he finds a missing child. Tanner has been found miles from his wealthy parents home and now Veronica and Johnny are thrust into the media spotlight after Johnny finds the child. But Veronica worries that all the attention will bring up secrets that she and her family have kept buried for years. Can you ever really trust the person you sleep next to every night?

I love a good mystery, and Victoria Helen Stone’s False Step sounded like a wonderful read. I was ready to be hooked on the mystery and pulled in deep, ready to double guess everything. As it was, I enjoyed False Step, but it wasn’t quite what I’d expected of it.

False Step was a bit too domestic thriller for me. It focused more upon the drama of the family than on the mystery, which isn’t quite my thing. I know a lot of people enjoy these kinds of mysteries and thrillers, but I much prefer the detective stories. Nevertheless, despite the fact it wasn’t quite my type of read, I was curious as to how things would play out.

I confess, I did work out who the bad guy was extremely early in the book. It was a case of watching to see how everything would come together, not a case of finding out who was behind things. With the crime being interwoven with the family drama, I was certainly eager to see how everything would finally play out in the end. It certainly kept me reading for that reason.

There is no doubt everything ties together well, with plenty of links occurring, it was just a bit too easy to guess for me. I favourite complicated mysteries with lots of twists and turns, whereas this was a much lighter read. If light mysteries are your thing, I’m sure you’ll have a lot of fun with this one.

I'm sorry, but no.

This 280 page book could be condensed to a 25 page story, and you wouldn't miss a thing. Tedium abounds.

None of the characters have a single redeeming quality. Veronica stays in an unhappy marriage, her behavior spiraling from unscrupulous to unforgivable, all to "protect" her daughter from... divorce? Seriously, no. Johnny is a caricature of a stereotype, who does appalling things for personal gain, plays the roll of victim when caught, and then Veronica accepts his rationale. I wanted them both to die.

Nothing about the plot is surprising, aside from the characters being too dumb to see what was happening.

And that sums up my feelings on this one.

Nice bit of fun. A page turner and suspenseful
MurderInCommon review here:

https://murderincommon.com/2019/06/23/victoria-helen-stone-false-step/

I requested this book because I really enjoyed the audiobook of “Jane Doe” by Victoria Helen Stone. This one, however, didn’t work as well for me.
I’m always looking for a thriller to take me down some twists and turns and ultimately surprise me with the resolution. I am not good at guessing endings but I anticipated this one when I was not even halfway through. The dialogue felt clunky and a little amateurish.
It did hold my attention and there were spots at that got my heart racing sufficiently, so it wasn’t a bust. Just not my favorite and I think the author’s previous work was a bit better.

An advance copy of this book was given to me by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my unbiased review.

Veronica has maintained the appearance of a happy family life but really she’s tired of the charade. She can’t reveal the truth because of the pain it would cause her daughter – the same pain she herself felt growing up in a home that lacked the security of loving parents. Veronica also has a secret she knows would devastate her daughter if discovered. When her husband becomes an instant celebrity after rescuing a lost child Veronica starts to notice things that just don’t seem right. Soon her life is running out of her control and she doesn’t know who to trust. Questionable decisions by Veronica lead her to a dramatic denouement that confirmed my early suspicions of what happened. I was a little disappointed by that because I like being shocked or surprised by the “who done it” in a suspense novel. I might be in the minority in that regard. False Step is a very quick read making it a perfect beach book or a while away the afternoon on the front porch read.

Intense and chilling, False Step wickedly rewards thriller fans with a compulsive read that’ll leave readers wondering how well they know their loved ones. I was riveted!

WoW! This book has everything I want in a thriller. It's unputdownable. Be prepared to be glued to this story! I won't give anything away so just read it!!

Fast paced and lots of twists. One of the best I've read. I would purchase anything this Author writes. She's that great!! All the stars.

I love the cover of this book! My goodness!

I had raving reviews about this author with her previous book Jane Doe. I passed on reading it since I had a feeling it wouldn't live up to my expectations. But, decided to give False Step a try! :)

Where do I start with this one? Well.. I have to say definitely to watch your step in this marriage.

The story revolves around Johnny and his wife Veronica. There is a missing boy Tanner Holcomb who has frightened the entire town of in Denver. By a miracle, Veronica's husband Johnny was hiking one morning and discovered the little boy Tanner unharmed on his hike.

Although, NOTHING is what it appears to be behind the disappearance of Tanner. Johnny is enjoying the spotlight and being the "hero" for finding this little boy. Veronica on the other hand is feeling anxious with all the spotlight and is afraid that her secrets behind their marriage will come out.

Well let me tell you.... Veronica's fears come to light with the amount of secrets.lies. and deception that are spilled to the core.

This was a solid 3 star for me... I wasn't that impressed in all honesty.

I saw the story play out in my mind and unfortunately I saw it coming a mile away. I have seen this plot before and it wasn't anything new for me.

I was rolling my eyes a bit towards the end and just wanted to finish the story in all honesty.

Stone definitely has talent behind her writing.... but was lacking a unique plot with twists....which is very hard for authors to do with thrillers lately.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

Publication date: 7/1/19
Published to Goodreads: 4/2/19