Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book which was released on 15/10/20.

What a thriller!

Matt and Amy are due to be married in two weeks when Matt disappears. He is not answering his phone or any texts and Amy is distraught. After a day of worrying she reports him missing to the police.

To her horror, another woman reports her boyfriend missing at the same time. It is the same man.

When Amy is arrested for his murder, her daughter, who has always disliked and not trusted Matt, begins digging into his unknown past via Facebook to try to prove her mother is innocent. 

Years old secrets are uncovered which Amy has tried hard to hide forever. What happened on the day her teenage sister died 23 years ago and what does it have to do with her fiancé going missing presumed murdered?

Great plot had me reading way past my bedtime to finish it!

I *adore* a grippingly good thriller  — especially when it involves one of the characters living a double life, and I have to try and piece together what's really happening. And The Vow definitely fit the bill. 

Amy is due to get married in two weeks. But then a stranger stops her in the street, warning her that she’s in danger — and that night, her fiancé Matt doesn’t come home. 

After she reports him missing, she finds out about his mistress, Fiona…because she’s also reported him missing. She refuses to believe Fiona’s lover can be her Matt – but photos prove otherwise, and it soon becomes clear that Matt has been leading a double life.

But as the police start to dig into what’s really going on, two conflicting — but believable — stories emerge from two women who have, allegedly, never met. 

The story its told from the points of view of Amy, Fiona and Jess, Amy’s daughter. It also alternates between the present day and 1996, as Amy’s secrets start to come to light. 

This was the kind of thriller that had me hooked from the very first page — I just couldn’t put it down. Jam-packed with twists and turns that make it impossible to guess what is going to happen next, it’s definitely become one of my new favourites.

When Amy’s fiancé goes missing a few weeks before their wedding day she is distressed, but when another woman steps forward to also declare their partner missing it reveals a whole other story about her relationship…

The Vow is one of those twisty thrillers that really takes you on a journey whilst you read it. Debbie Howells keeps the pace high and the writing engaging whilst pulling off a complex plot full of intrigue and surprise that keeps it’s card close to its chest. My one criticism would be that if you take a step back from the book and try to explain the plot to someone that it does seem a little far-fetched and has a few unrealistic holes. However, this doesn’t matter when you are reading it – you are swept along by the plot fully and whole heartedly invested in the story.

The narrative is told from three main perspectives, Amy; whose fiancé has gone missing, Jess; her daughter and Fiona; the mistress. The contrast between Amy and Jess’ perspectives is really interesting – with Amy painting a picture of domestic bliss from the outset, it is only when you get Jess’ point of view on the relationship that you realise that Amy is an unreliable narrator to a certain extent. This unreliable edge to the narration and Amy holding a lot of secrets from both other characters and the reader it really keeps us off-balance and you aren’t sure who to trust throughout the book. Fiona’s perspective only gets introduced in part two of the book and keeps the story fresh and interesting as the new character is introduced. 

There are also short chapters interspersed by a mystery narrator about an event which (at the outset at least) doesn’t seem to have much baring on the story. Sometimes this works well in thrillers (chapters from the murderer’s perspective for example) but because the names of the characters in these sections are completely different and the story isn’t relatable I found myself skipping though them. It was only later when the link was revealed I regretted skimming them and wished I’d paid more attention!

Overall The Vow is a twisty thriller that keeps it’s readers fully engaged in it’s complex plot. Thank you to NetGalley & Avon Books UK for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars!
Amy’s fiance, Matt, goes missing two days before their wedding. Amy quickly comes under suspicion when the police begin to think that Matt has been killed after a bouquet arrives on Amy’s doorstep covered in blood. The police uncover that Matt was having an affair and Amy is shocked. Amy is soon arrested for Matt’s murder but maintains that she’s innocent as her daughter, Jess, tries to prove that Matt was manipulative and up to something. When it is revealed that Matt’s mistress is someone from Amy’s past, Amy becomes even more entangled in the mess that Matt has left behind.

I just didn’t really like any of these characters. Amy was extremely annoying to me and Fiona was whiny. Jess seemed to be the only one that was connected in reality. The plot was all over the place and the subplot just didn’t do it for me. There wasn’t enough suspense although there were some red herrings thrown in. The ending was mediocre and I wish I knew more about how things ended for Fiona. I dragged myself through - it took me over a week to read! Normally I can read a thriller in 2-3 days. I just couldn’t connect with the story.

A bingeable thriller. A great read when you’re inbetween books. The pace was just right and I had to keep guessing until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an opportunity to read and review The Vow.

I really enjoyed this story ,  The author did a great job of weaving together the various points of view and keeping the reader guessing. Although at some point I did start to figure out what was going on, it was still fun reading how  the mystery would unravel .

This was my first time reading this author, but I would certainly be keeping an eye out for any more books by her,

4 ⭐️

This psychological thriller starts with a couple of strange twists.

A few weeks before her apparent dream wedding, a stranger stops Amy in one of the streets in Brighton, and warns her she’s in danger. Then that night, Matt, her fiancé, doesn’t come home.

What follows is a book filled with lies and a sad, past family story. However, the initial story involving Amy and her search for Matt paints her as soppy and desperate which nearly made me give it all up.

Luckily, I carried on reading and enjoyed the alchemist, herbalist world that Amy lived in, plus a story line that was well written and ended well. Amy's daughter, Jess, seems to have a career as a detective in the future as she helps solve some of the riddles.

I remain unconvinced about the book title though.  Vows were only briefly mentioned.

Thanks to Net Galley and Avon Books UK for the chance to read and review.

This book was perfect!! Matt and Amy are set to get married in two weeks, their life seems perfect. Until it isn't when Matt disappears. 

This bool is written from Amy's point of view, while enters start to unfold, it takes Amy back to her younger years. 

This is my first time reading a book by this author and I believe she is going to produce us some more amazing reads.

This book was definitely a whirlwind from the start. Filled with unreliable narration from all sides, although we have saving grace from the one young person in the book, ha! This was definitely exciting, although it felt like it dragged a bit, especially towards the end, but still good all the same

After struggling to read the last few weeks I picked this up and it gripped me from the start. Lots of twists and turns in it and when I thought about half way through that I had it all figured out I was wrong! Great writing and I can't wait to read more from this author
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers and the author for the privilege to read this book for my honest review

Amy is set marry Matt in two weeks, however, her life is turned upside when Matt mysteriously goes missing. Amy finds out Matt has been hiding a devastating secret, but he's not the only one. Things escalate as Amy gets blamed but will she be able to prove her innocence before it's too late?

I enjoyed this overall and there was one or two twists I didn't see coming. However, my only complaint with this is that it was slightly repetitive. I felt like we went over the same details every time Amy spoke to a new person.

That being said this is really fast paced and definitely a good thriller for those just getting into the genre.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon books for providing me a copy to review.

he vow was a book of three parts. The first part was interesting,the middle was not engaging enough for me and the last part was a bit of both. At first I liked Amy, but didn’t like Fiona then after a bit I didn’t like either of them. There was four different points of view, Amy, Fiona, and Jess who is Amy’s daughter. And then it goes back to the past, I liked all narratives apart from the past one. I found this to be confusing. I liked a twist at the end but expected more. 

Thanks goes to net galley and the publishers for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was hooked right from the start! Two women who are interconnected by their past are sharing their love with the same man. They don't know that they are both being gaslighted by him. This was a suspenseful read with lots of twists and I really enjoyed the ending. The writer had a great theme with this book and the characters really developed once they started to suspect things. Overall a solid read!

I was hooked! Amy is engaged to matt, but 2 weeks before their wedding he goes missing. Then Amy learns he has been having an affair. The woman he was having the affair with, Fiona, also reports him missing. 
The 2 womens versions of events dont add up and the police are pushing for answers. What secrets are these women hiding from the past and what does that have to do with matt?

Great read, I did kinda figure out what had happened but I kept reading as I still enjoyed the book. 

Thanks to netgalley for a copy of this ARC in exchange for my honest review. I would definitely recommend this book.

A dark, twisty, fast-paced read, with an unreliable narrator - who doesn't love one of those?

I hooked, I just had to keep reading to find out what really happened. Every time I thought I'd sussed it out, I was proved wrong. 

Practically perfect - I just missed out on 5⭐ because I thought it was a bit too far from reality towards the end. 

I'll definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for Howell's next release.

A huge thanks to Avon & NetGalley for gifting me a copy in return for an open & honest review.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

A really good start and had me gripped. I also liked the fact that it was based in Steyning as I know the village. It took me a while but I did work out the twist before it was revealed but it didn’t spoil the story as I often do this.  It lost a little along the way for me and I found myself losing concentration but overall not a bad read just not anything that stood out. Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for letting me read and review this book.

🎃BOOK REVIEW🎃⭐️⭐️⭐️
#thevow by #debbiehowells @avon_books @netgalley 

I found this book a struggle if I’m being honest. The first thing was that I didn’t gel with the main character Amy; I didn’t find her likeable or feel sympathetic to her story and this grated on me throughout the book. 

I also found the storyline was very dragged out with so much dancing around the subject when what you really needed was movement in the plot, clues and discoveries. 

I think after reading the end, there was a decent story here and although not unique, it kept me guessing till the end and the author did a pretty good job of keeping you wondering and moving suspicions around. Just somewhere somehow it didn’t flow and work together. 
 
I had no passion to pick the book back up again when I’d put it down. I think if perhaps if a police aspect had been added making the plot a bit more exciting perhaps this would have made the difference. It just felt a bit flat. 

Saying this, it was easy to read, a thriller with a complete story and satisfactory ending and for some that will be enough but I like a little more! 

➡️for synopsis 

Although a little behind as this book has been published, thank you to #netgalley #avonbooks and author #debbiehowells for allowing me to read this one early! 

-Emily

I had high hopes for this thriller/crime novel. It started off seeming good but, halfway through I found my concentration waining, it was predictable and I found the characters very lame. I started to get very irritated with them and I didn’t like the way the book kept jumping from one character to another. It’s a shame as I get a lot of pleasure out of reading but, this one didn’t do it for me.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

This book gripped me from the start, I thought it was really well written and the characters were likable. Just kept you guessing throughout. 

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Amy's fiance Matt is missing two weeks before their wedding. After reporting him missing, she finds out he has a mistress, Fiona, who also reported him missing. Both women have secrets they aren't telling the cops but what actually happened to Matt?

I was drawn to the book initially by the fabulous cover and the blurb made it look like an interesting read. It was very suspenseful and the characters were well written and there was a connection to the past that I kept guessing at and was wrong several times.

Although there some scenes that I think sounded unconvincing and far-fetched, this is still an enjoyable read for me.