I felt connected to the main character right off the bat and needed to know what happens next. I felt for all the characters as the book progressed. Written well and, unfortunately, truly believable.

I expected a taut, fast-moving story, but unfortunately An Inconvenient Woman is weighed down by a pallid, inactive central character, scenes of French instruction that lead nowhere, a couple of very minor characters who are thrown in for momentary suspense before disappearing, never to be seen again. The unbelievable coincidences pile up, drawing unlikely connections between characters who have never known each other before., The climax is well executed, but on the whole I was disappointed.

This was a great thriller! Two women, both seeking justice, hope to end the abuse and restore power to an individual. Claire believes her ex-husband was responsible for her daughter's death when she discovers he is going to be remarried and will have a new step-daughter the same age as hers was when she died. He hires Sloan, a "sin-eater" whose job is to rectify situations where there are threats or blackmail going on. So she poses as someone else in order to get close to Claire and get her to back off. But of course what she discovers is nothing at all like what she imagined and as the past begins to catch up to the present, secrets are revealed and revenge may be the only possibility. Very satisfying!

Claire is convinced her ex-husband killer her daughter. Soon Claire sees her ex-husband engaged and playing step-father. Acting out of desperation, Claire begins a quest to try and prevent crimes that was unable to stop before.

Sloan is a sin-eater. Her job is to clean inconvenient situations that are better handled outside of the law. That situation could be an ex-wife that stalks her husband, throws paint on the door, and happens to make vague, violent threats against his new family.

I was immediately intrigued by the premise of a “sin eater”. It was so different than anything I had ever really read about in another thriller or mystery. The stories of Sloan and Claire are woven together as you question who is telling the truth and when or will they ever intersect? While I loved the whole concept of a sin eater some parts of the book dragged on for me. I felt myself waiting for more and wondering when certain parts of the story would crystalize. However, the ending of the book was very unexpected and I did enjoy how it ended up coming together. I just wish we got there a bit faster. I would happily read another book about Sloan and her adventures in sin eating.

This was fine, entertaining and quick, but not something memorable. I was invested in the two main characters, but something about the book was a miss for me.

Our two protagonists' lives collide as the Sloane, a "sin eater" hired by the ex-husband of Claire, works to protect the ex-husband and his soon-to-be family in the weeks ahead of their wedding. I think that was my biggest hang-up of the book, the parallels between the two women and the circumstances by which they were connected to the death of an unidentified young girl found dead on the beach were too outlandish to be believed, even when suspending belief for the sake of reading.

Sloane's recently-deceased father turned out to be the corrupt police officer her mother was not believed all those years ago? He worked for the very brothel that became the center of the mystery that she just happened to be hired onto? And Claire's father tried to drown her, and that's exactly how her new husband killed her daughter? Claire just happened to mentor the girl who worked for the brothel?

Just all of these things together made it more cheap than it needed to be. I think if some of these elements were taken out I would've given it a higher score.

Wow, this was not what I was expecting and it was in a good way! Very well written, tense, shocks worth gasps, goosebump inducing chills, and lots of thrills! A very well written book that grabs from beginning and does not let go until the last page! Very serious themes, but worked in in a manner that’s done well! I absolutely recommend to my fellow thrill lovers, this has everything that you’re looking for and more! Clear schedules and prepare for thrills!

Claire and Sloan two woman as different as black and white. Sloan, a former police officer is disillusioned by the shadow her mother threw over her father. She made him out to be a dirty cop. Than committed suicide. Officially ending his chances of his achieving his dreams of becoming commissioner. Sloan left the department and now works for herself. She is what they call a sin eater, a fixer someone who cleans up after other people.
Claire is a sophisticated lady who teaches French to people. She meets them in designated places. She had a fifteen year old daughter who drowned in a boating accident. She has never forgotten or forgiven herself for not believing her daughter when she claimed her stepfather was molesting her.
This is what connects these two women.
The ex-husband is now marrying again. He is marrying a women who has a daughter. Claire is doing everything in her power to warn the woman away. The ex-husband needs someone to take care of Claire.
In an unforgettable psychological read these two strong women are pitted against each other. Who will win?

Both the cover and the blurb for this book caught my attention. Admittedly, I'm a *HUGE* fan of Ray Donovan, and finding a book with a female fixer sounded so intriguing. I quickly dove in.

Told in alternating POVs, Sloan is an ex-cop and Hollywood fixer--a self-titled "sin eater"--who uses her intelligence and wits to solve problems--and in this case, she's hired by Simon to protect him from his ex-wife, Claire. Claire is a depressed woman, unstable and obsessed with the death of her teenage daughter, convinced her ex-husband Simon is ultimately responsible for her demise. Unable to move past this, she fears for Simon's new fiancees daughter and is determined to stop him before the unthinkable can happen again.

For starters, I really enjoyed this book. Claire was a wonderful unreliable narrator, full of the perfect amount of self-doubt and shady actions to keep us guessing at how much we can trust her (in terms of both her account of what happened with Simon and in her present situation). She's timid and paranoid, believing she's being followed, threatened, and pursued by Simon and his wealth of connections. Sloan is equally fascinating, and while she didn't end up being a Ray Donovan, she was certainly a Lena--a tough woman dealing with her own personal demons who is morally ambiguous with a heart of gold.

There were a few areas I found questionable: one being Claire's job as a French tutor. This threw me a bit at first because of how prevalent apps like Duolingo have become for learning a language. I found myself questioning how all these people would hire her, but as I read more, I could see the need her clients had: face to face connection, loneliness, control--all of these made sense, so it ended up being one of my favorite character traits about Claire. I minored in French, spent some time in Paris in my 20s, and loved the inclusion of the vocabulary and translation lessons. Plus de francais, s'il vous plait.

My only other issue was that, at times, Claire and Sloan's voices were almost indiscernible. They both think in flowery language, full of rich imagery and metaphors. They are both excellent at not only reading people but discerning what other people's actions mean in terms of their desires and motivations. While their histories were different, their thought processes and dialogue were a little too similar.

An Inconvenient Woman is a story about overcoming grief and believing women, and Buelens' storytelling is effortless.

Overall, An Inconvenient Woman is a gritty, tragic, un-put-downable read that will leave you questioning the truth until the very last page. I would recommend this title to anyone interested in thrillers with an international twist, fans of Ray Donovan, or anyone looking for two strong female protagonists with competing interests.

Thank you to Penzler (Scarlet) and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for honest review consideration.

The woman who wouldn't go away - the inconvenient woman. Claire's daughter has died after telling Claire that her stepfather is giving her inappropriate attention. Simon, her stepfather, hires Sloane to manage Claire and keep her away from his fiance and her daughter. When Sloane pretends to be Claire's ally the world turns upside down and the impossible happens. An excellent read for lovers of suspense. I highly recommend it.
#indigoemployee#netgalley#the inconvenient woman

I enjoyed the premise of this book but not the execution. I was immediately confused and felt that the main character was extremely unlikable right from the beginning which made it tough for me to finish. It was a great ending but the journey getting there...not so much.

I am so glad that I was one of the fortunate readers selected to read an ARC of this book. This story is very compelling and a difficult book to put down because just when you think you have something figured out, it steers off into a different direction. You will find yourself, along with the protagonist, questioning the legitimacy of the threats and of the sanity of the characters in the book specifically Claire. Her point of view is a blend of obsessiveness with a swirl of intrusive thoughts. She seems completely unhinged and unreliable storyteller. This book is such a deep heart-rending depiction of PTSD and victimization.

The story is told from the perspective of two protagonists, Clare, who's accused her ex-husband of molesting their now deceased daughter, and Sloan, a sin eater. Interesting occupation you say? I thought so. As a sin eater, Sloan is able to use her skills that she's acquired as a law officer to help make problems go away for those that are teetering on the edge of the law. When Claire's ex husband hires Sloan to quiet allegations and accusations that could ruin his life, both women are drawn into a deeply intense journey of discovery.

I would like to thank Stéphanie Buelens, Penzler Publishers and Netgalley for the opportunity to let me read this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Claire Fontaine is 44, her teenage daughter Melody died five years ago in an unexplainable manner, resulting in divorce from Simon Miller, who she charges with the reason and holds forth the guilt of her death. Simon is incredibly wealthy and well connected and proves to be impossible to blame for the death; subsequently, he has moved on with his life and is now engaged to Charlotte, another woman with a daughter, Emma who is the same age and look like Claire’s daughter was when she had become involved with him. Claire is convinced that Simon is going to harm Emma and is hell-bent on trying to scare Simon off or warn Charlotte.

Sloan Wilson is a former LAPD cop, who has left the force because she felt she could no longer support its corporate behaviour, warned by her father, himself a retired cop that she was on the edge of becoming a bad cop – an unforgivable state of affairs. Her father died a month ago, and in Sloan’s history, her mother smeared his good name by claiming him a dirty cop and then committing suicide when Sloan was only seven years old. She now she has become what is known in the business as a sin eater; she makes bad situations disappear without the legalities of being accountable to the law getting involved. She is hired by Simon Miller to keep Claire at bay, that he is in fear of her causing trouble because she is, in his opinion, deranged. And there doesn’t seem to be a limit on what he is open to her doing to stop Claire’s accusations, perhaps even to silence her permanently.

Sloan has seen the evidence as given by Simon. She has done the research and knows that Claire is in a bad state emotionally. As a hired gun she will do whatever it takes to stop Claire and protect Simon and hence Charlotte and Emma. But there are good and bad aspects to every person, and Simon isn’t as he claims to be and Claire has every reason to be paranoid and possibly make the accusations she does. But with so much suspicion on both sides, what is Sloan to do?

This is a thriller that holds its cards close to its chest until the very end, and the twist is unexpected and in a word, wonderful. The apparent madness that Claire struggles with displayed with every nuance on full display and the power of Simon is never on display more with his aspersions towards Claire. One cannot help but feel sympathy for Charlotte who is caught in the middle of Claire and Simon’s antics and can feel her confusion leaping off the page. The style and pacing of the story keep the reader on the edge of their seat with its compelling narrative.

It is a psychological thriller in which the reader is never fully sure of the truth or the outcome. A twist in the tail that is both satisfying and inspired. A wonderful and gripping novel.

An Inconvenient Woman by Stephanie Buelens is a great read - one on my favorite reads over the past year! The plot is fast paced, the characters engaging and it is a great psychological thriller. Lots of unexpected turns and a compelling story line that leaves one at the edge of their seat right through the very last line. I am already looking forward to her next novel. Her debut thriller is a tour de force and the beginning of what will be a game changing literary career!

Claire scarred by the loss of her daughter but also by deeds of her father. Sloan working cases as a "sin-eater" because she left the LAPD, tired of not being able to beat the criminals at their game. Tired of cleaning up the crimes, Looking up to her father, who she idolized as the perfect officer. Claire is determined to stop the one who took her daughter and Sloan is helping him stop Claire but it all changes when the Inconvenient Woman was right and thankfully Claire's warning to "believe your daughter" is headed! An intricately woven story that is face-paced - you won't want to put it down!

Sloan a modern sin eater; takes care of things for clients. Clare still grieving and obsessing over the death of her daughter,blames her ex husband Simon. Well connected Simon has engaged Sloan to investigate and subdue Clare for Simon, who is slated to marry again. The problem is Clare is convinced that what happened to Melody will happed to his new step daughter. Sloan the ex cop knows all the ways to persuade and if that doesn’t work she’s ready with plan B. A young girls death triggers emotions in Clare that culminates in Sloan revisiting the doubts that brought her to quit the force in the first place. Surprisingly it is her training that saves her and Clare in the end.

AN INCONVENIENT WOMAN
BY STEPHANIE BUELENS

Claire Fontaine has lived a very troubled past. When she was a young girl her father tried to drown her, or so she believes. Her father is elderly now and I could feel the tension crackling off my kindle as she tries to care for him in his old age. She had five happy year's married to Max and they had a daughter. She believes her second husband Simon, who is now her ex-husband is responsible for her only child's death--a teenager daughter. Claire teaches French by the hour to clients who pay her $50.00 dollars per hour. Her mother is dead but was Parisian French. Claire lives alone and she seems really frightened of Simon having her followed and she is always double locking her doors and windows.

Now Simon has a new fiance that has a daughter the same age as her daughter was when she died named Emma. Claire fears that history is going to repeat itself and she thinks Emma's life is in jeopardy. Claire tries to warn Emma's mother but she thinks Claire is delusional and dangerous and she gets angry and threatens Claire that if she comes near her again she will call the police. Claire does exhibit some stalker like behavior such as parking outside Emma's school. She has gone to Simon's house and got herself arrested by painting a pejorative word on Simon's car and door and then threw the can of paint at the police when they arrived.

Simon hires former LAPD whose job is now called a "sin eater." A sin eater is somebody that is a fixer or cleans up other people's messes. Her name is Sloane Wilson. Sloane befriend's Clair under the disguise as a journalist who is interested in a woman Claire is mentoring. Sloane works for Simon and her intention when she comes clean with Claire is to get Claire on a hidden recording device that Claire wants to kill Simon.

I felt sorry for Claire throughout this novel for her very real fear and she seemed quite isolated because even Claire's best friend Ava thinks Claire is exaggerating. This was a taut and very suspenseful psychological thriller. This was addictive reading and I finished it in a few hours. For a debut novel this was well executed with stunning characterization. Highly recommended to those who want to read a fresh new take in what is clearly a very talented Author.

Publication Date: September 1, 2020

Thank you to Net Galley, Stephanie Buelens and Penzler Publishing for generously providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to W. W. Norton & Company I received and Advance Reading Copy of An Inconvenient Woman by Stéphanie Buelens. This is her debut novel and the first book from Scarlet. Fans of Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and Harlan Coben will love the twists and turns of An Inconvenient Woman.

Claire Fontaine receives an call from her ex-husband, Simon Miller. Simon is getting remarried and will gain a young stepdaughter as well but Claire will do everything to stop that from happening. Claire feels guilt for not protecting her own daughter and now has to live with those consequences. Claire is at her wit’s end because no one believes her.

To protect Charlotte and her daughter, Emma, Simon hires Sloan Wilson, a “sin eater” to stop Claire. Simon is convinced Claire is having a breakdown and shares this with Sloan who is good at “persuading” people.

Claire and Sloan narrate the story and each has her own baggage from the past that colors their present. One of them has an accurate view of the past and her father while the other one has lived her whole life with the wrong perception of reality. The question becomes who is right and who is deluded? How far will she be driven to prove she’s right?

Enjoy this psychological suspense debut from Stéphanie Buelens, it is a page turner. Best of all is the twists and turns make sense and are plausible which is not always true with psychological suspense novels.

Wow, this book does not disappoint. Readers are introduced to a compelling, unputdownable mystery with an unexpected conclusion. Think Shirley Jackson in present day. Readers, as well as protagonists, will question the legitimacy of threats and the sanity of characters. Specifically, Claire's POV is such a spinning and obsessive swirl of intrusive thoughts it seems completely unreliable. Yet, it is such a real depiction of PTSD, grief, and victimization.

Told from the prospective of two protagonists, this novel tells the story of Claire, who has accused her ex-husband of molesting her now deceased daughter, and Sloan, a sin-eater. Intriguing occupation? I thought so. As a sin-eater, Sloan uses skills acquired as a cop to help make problems go away for those balancing on the edge of the law. When Claire's ex-husband hires Sloan to quiet accusations that could ruin his life, both women are drawn into an intense journey of discovery.

Can't wait to read from this publisher and author!

Claire is outraged and concerned when her ex-husband plans to marry a woman with a daughter the same age as her own daughter was when she married Simon. She blames Simon for her daughter's death and fears for the daughter of the woman Simon plans to marry.

Claire's anger and behavior after her daughter's death has led to her being labeled as unhinged, but she can't let that stop her from trying to stop Simon.

from description: "Sloane Wilson left the LAPD to work as a “sin eater,” a contractor for hire who specializes in cleaning up inconvenient situations—situations which, for whatever reason, are better handled outside the law."

When Simon hires Sloane to make his problem go away, she takes a personal dislike to Claire from Simon's description. She determines to befriend Claire, however, and through plans A, B, or C make Simon's problem disappear.

Although a little put off by the erroneous interpretation of the term "sin eater," I became involved with the way the novel played out and the secrets that came to light.

Historically, a sin eater was hired to take food and drink when someone died, symbolically taking on the deceased's sins. In the novel, Sloane interprets being a sin eater as a fixer who is paid to clean up a client's mess--I see the connection, but it is so opposed to the traditional idea, which is the idea of sacrificially taking on the sins of a deceased to ease their way into heaven. A fixer makes problems go away for convenience.

Read in April. Blog review scheduled for Aug. 18.

NetGalley/ Penzler Productions
Mystery. Sept. 1, 2020. Print length: 288 pages.

In this novel we follow two women. One is named Claire and the other is Sloane. The way the novel is structured is done well and everything is well paced. I found myself so invested in this novel and wanting to find out what happens to these two women and the storyline we are following. The twists and reveals were well done and the characterization was done well. I was hooked from the very beginning!