Heralded as the “queen of the killer twist,” Alice Feeney reigns supreme with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS, a twisted, shocking thriller about what’s wrong with the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Wright, and a pointed reminder that a haunted marriage is just as terrifying as a haunted house.

Amelia and Adam Wright have celebrated several anniversaries together, always adhering to the traditional gifts as decided by Emily Post back in 1922. But lately their marriage has grown stale. Adam, who is diagnosed with prosopagnosia (also known as face blindness) has never been able to recognize his wife’s face, but it wasn’t until recently that she really felt unseen and ignored by him. A workaholic screenwriter, he catapulted to fame when he adapted a book by his favorite author, Henry Winter, a notorious recluse. But in recent years, Adam has struggled to find the same acclaim, and with his own screenplay, Rock Paper Scissors, collecting dust in his desk, he has grown cranky and short-tempered. Desperate to save their marriage, Amelia enrolls them in couples’ therapy and whisks Adam away to Scotland when she wins a vacation package at an office holiday party.

After a tumultuous eight-hour drive through a harsh storm, Amelia, Adam and their dog, Bob, arrive at Blackwater, a converted chapel tucked away in a wintery village. But the idyllic retreat they had in mind quickly falls away when they discover a few things: Blackwater is abandoned and decidedly creepy, the chapel doors are locked, making their welcoming quite cold and surprising, and they start to feel certain that one of them will not be coming home from this trip. After completing a walk around the building to look for an open door, Amelia and Adam return to find the chapel doors wide open. They agree to blame it on the wind, but already Feeney is setting the stage for something sinister.

Despite their surname, it is immediately apparent that something is very wrong in the Wrights’ marriage. Adam is mean and impatient with Amelia, who is caught in more than a few lies. But as the chapel gets creepier and creepier, complete with white faces in the windows, whispered names in the cellar and smiley faces traced into dusty surfaces, Adam and Amelia realize that they’re up against far more than their failed marriage. When Bob goes missing in the middle of the night and they recognize how utterly alone they are in Blackwater, their minds start to play tricks on them, even as they continue to lie, gaslight and snap at one another.

As Feeney reveals, their lies are interesting, but far more intriguing are the reasons they lie. Is their marriage just suffering from a low point, or have they changed fundamentally from the people they were when they first got together? And if they have changed, can they continue to love one another and keep the promises they made when they exchanged vows?

In alternating chapters, Amelia writes letters to Adam on each of their anniversaries, mulling over the year they’ve shared, the importance of the traditional gifts they’ve exchanged, and providing an unfiltered sort of state of the union on her happiness in their marriage. Here we see the highs and lows of Adam’s career, his strange interactions with Henry Winter, and the ways that their previously love-filled marriage has started to crumble.

In still other chapters, we watch the couple unravel through the eyes of Robin, an older woman living in a dilapidated cottage near the chapel. Though she has few interactions with them, she seems able to guess their every move, and at times it appears that she alone can really see what Adam and Amelia are plotting, even when they are hiding their thoughts from one another. Through Robin’s eyes, we are reminded that no matter how long you have known, loved or been married to someone, you can never really know a person inside and out --- and however good someone appears to be, we each have the capacity to become a villain at the drop of a hat. Feeney plays her reveals close to the vest here, but she never once lets up on the tension or chill factor, with the book reading both like a horror novel full of ghosts and witches and a thriller set between two unreliable narrators and their shaky hold on one another.

ROCK PAPER SCISSORS is, without a doubt, the most chilling novel I have read this year...if not ever. Never before have I had to read a domestic thriller with my flashlight at the ready, but Feeney writes with such precision and perfect pacing that her already shocking explorations into the human psyche become exponentially more horrifying. This is very much a writer’s thriller, and her mastery of her craft is on full display at every twist. As Robin explains, “Life is like a game where pawns can become queens, but not everyone knows how to play. Some people stay pawns their whole lives because they never learned to make the right moves.” If writing thrillers is anything like chess, this author has clearly never met a pawn she wasn’t willing to sacrifice, and her novels are all the better for it.

With her expert control over plotting, characterization and the shock of a dramatic reveal, Alice Feeney has proven once again why she is the master of domestic suspense with ROCK PAPER SCISSORS. If you’re a character in one of her books, watch out: “The scariest haunted houses are always the ones in which you are the ghost.”

A husband and wife win a weekend getaway. Adam and Amelia are hoping this weekend will help improve their marriage, but things do not go as planned.

Rock Paper Scissors is told from alternating points of view. Having viewpoints from both Adam and Amelia adds more to the story, plus letters written by Amelia on each of their anniversaries adds insight to their relationship. The novel starts slow, but it eventually picks up.

Rock Paper Scissors is an atmospheric and twisty domestic thriller. Fans of Alice Feeney’s other books are sure to enjoy this one too.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. I mean.... Alice Feeney is always a "Yes, please!" but this was just... wow! Absolutely one of her best books ever and a top read of 2021. I stayed up really late with this one and there are so many twists and tons of tension. I've been getting burnt out on domestic thrillers but this one was gripping.

Where do I start with a plot that I refuse to spoil? Um... well you can read the synopsis so as you know, I never repeat it in a review because who wants to waste calories like that. I'll just say that I love unreliable narrators but Adam takes the cake. A narcissistic workaholic (and successful screenwriter which I laughed at but accepted) who has some strange condition called Prosopagnosia which makes him incapable of distinguishing features on people's faces, including his own... I mean... Feeney did some intriguing research on that one and although at first I felt like it was the worst gimmik imaginable, I then found the device an interesting distraction. The idea that someone would be in an intimate relationship--a marriage--with a man with this condition was in itself an interesting component to his wife, Amelia's story. Sure he's charming and good-looking but what else is the motivation?

Through a series of unread anniversary letters and a trip to Scottland where the couple hope to mend a rocky marriage the story unfolds jumping back and forth between POVs to unravel the wittiest of Feeney's books. She outsmarted me and I loved it!

Thank you to Macmillan for sending me this one and I really loved every minute of it!!

Rock. Paper. Scissors.

It may have taken me forever and I may have been jonesing for a fantasy, but for once that does not reflect my feelings on this book because I LOVED IT.

Period.

I think #AliceFeeney is one of my favorite thriller authors. I loved His & Hers and I loved this one.

A twist was revealed at the end and I had to backtrack to make sure I read it right 😂 Maybe it’s cause I haven’t read a #thriller in a while, but man my mind was blown 😂

It’s a completely twisted psychological thriller. And I definitely think the husband is a little 👀

You’ll get that when you read it. Which means you should read it. Cause AHHHH-maxing things happen.

Plus I really want to visit Scotland now. But maybe not a deserted church. Or was it? 😏

This was an entertaining mystery with quite a few twists and turns I didn't see coming. Much better then her last book. Recommended!

Things have been wrong with Mr. and Mrs. Wright for a long time. When Adam and Amelia win a weekend away to Scotland, it might be just what their marriage needs. Self-confessed workaholic and screenwriter, Adam Wright, has lived with face blindness his whole life. He can’t recognize friends or family, or even his own wife. Every anniversary the couple exchange traditional gifts and each year Adam’s wife writes him a letter that she never lets him read. Until now. They both know this weekend will make or break their marriage, but they didn’t randomly win this trip. One of them is lying, and someone doesn’t want them to live happily ever after.

I’m always cautious going into a domestic thriller for fear that I’ll end up in a situation where I’m reading a worn out trope in the sub-genre. Thankfully, I know I can trust Alice Feeney to dish up a story that is twisty, entertaining, and downright impossible to put down. I absolutely adored ROCK PAPER SCISSORS from the very moment I picked it up! The first few chapters sucked me in and then led me down a windy path where I was guessing all sorts of possibilities. While I did guess part of the story, I didn’t guess the execution and was completely in love with the route that Feeney took. I don’t want to give a single thing away about this story. Walk in blind and reserve a few hours to binge this one!

Rock Paper Scissors, soon to be a Netflix original series, is my first Alice Feeney book and it did not disappoint. This story grabs you instantly with an intriguing plot point - Mr. Wright, the husband at the center of this novel, suffers from face blindness, which means that he cannot even recognize his own wife's face. As you might have guessed, this is a suspenseful set-up for some thrilling twists and turns as this novel goes forward.

Rock Paper Scissors follows Mr. and Mrs. Wright as they take an anniversary trip to an isolated location in Scotland. Mr. Wright and Mrs. Wright have grown distant over time, and their marriage isn't what it once was. However, this is the weekend that everything changes ... but will it be for better or worse?

Rock Paper Scissors is a book that you basically have to go into blind, so I cannot say much about the plot or characters without giving it all away. Feeney carefully lays down the pieces of this puzzle, but even the most astute of observers may not guess what lies ahead. The book does move slowly at times, and I found myself confused at multiple points; however, once the twists start to be revealed, everything comes together quite neatly and shockingly.

I also quite enjoyed how Feeney told Mr. and Mrs. Wright backstory through the use of traditional anniversary gifts and letters from Mrs. Wright to her husband. These vignettes provided a refreshing reprieve from the story happening back in Scotland and gave clues to how this couple came to be.

The plot devices used by Feeney in Rock Paper Scissors feel reminiscent of Aimee Molloy's Goodnight Beautiful, so if you enjoyed that story, check this one out! It will also be savored by anyone who loves a good twist.

Adam and Amelia Wright are celebrating their wedding anniversary. If they ever needed to celebrate, it's this year. They have been slowly drifting apart until they are like two people stranded on separate ice floes that are moving further away from each other day by day. Adam is a scriptwriter, rewriting other people's works for the movies. He has had ambitions to write his own novels but can't really find the time with all the work he takes on. He also has the condition of face blindness where he can't recognize anyone by their face, even his wife. Amelia works at a dog rescue where she can share the love she can't give a child as they haven't been able to have children.

When Amelia gets an email saying that she has won a weekend away in a giveaway, they decide this is the perfect opportunity to get away and rediscover each other. The location is a remote repurposed church up in the Scottish highlands. They are glad to get away but when they arrive they start to wonder. The church is fairly dilapidated and it is very remote with no other houses or towns around. Inside it is dusty and cold and there is little sign they are expected. They eventually find a note saying there are frozen meals and a cellar full of wine and they decide to make do. However, they aren't prepared for the power to go out while they are down in the cellar, making it difficult to find their way back upstairs. Worse, they seem to be catching glimpses of someone outside and their dog barks periodically as if he is aware of a stranger as well. What is the story?

Alice Feeney has written a taut tale of love gone astray, betrayals both professionally and personally and a quest for revenge that has taken years to plan. The secrets are revealed in turn, each one totally reframing the story and what the reader believes about the couple. Alice Feeney is an author and journalist with books that are optioned for tv series. She knows exactly how much to reveal and when to raise the tension and surprise the reader at every turn. This book is recommended for thriller readers.

Alice Feeney has been called the “queen of the twist,” and she doesn't let us down. Every time you think you know the twist, she spins you another 180° and sends you back to square one.

The novel is written with alternating chapters from Adam's and Amelia's perspectives, with anniversary letters interspersed throughout-- chronicling a happy start and spiraling downward. When Mr. and Mrs. Wright win a weekend getaway at a converted chapel in the Scottish Highlands for their 10th anniversary it seems like great luck, right? Not so fast. We learn quickly that Adam and Amelia winning the trip wasn't based on luck at all. And as strange things start happening, it's evident that someone doesn't want the Wrights to live happily ever after.

The creep factor is high, and I loved trying to figure out who was behind the electricity outages, lack of cell reception, and other spooky happenings.

***Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
Full of twists and unreliable narrators, this book pulled me in and didn't let go. Secrets are at the heart of this book and you are never sure who to root for or who to sympathize with. Final twist ending had me spooked!

QUICK TAKE: Feeney always writes truly bonkers thrillers, and RPS is no different. If you can buy into the plot (man suffering from facial recognition issues goes on anniversary trip with his estranged wife...mysterious hijinks ensue), then you're in for some fun. I actually liked the anniversary gift narrative device Feeney uses here, and while you definitely need to suspend a little disbelief here, ultimately this was a satisfying read.

Like many bookworms, I have had a harder time concentrating on my reader during the last few months, and books that sound like I will love them end up just being okay...

So when I dove into Rock Paper Scissors I didn't go in with super high expectations, and it ended up not only blowing me away but also getting me out of a totally reading funk.

I can't remember the last a book in the thriller genre really got my attention but also kept me guessing until the very end. It's dark and twisty and just felt like nothing I had read before, which was just the kind of book I didn't know I needed.

The atmosphere, a snowed in converted B&B in the middle of nowhere, was just perfect! The unreliable narrators and flashbacks kept the twists coming, and it was just so well written. Rock Paper Scissors ended up being one of my favorite domestic thrillers of 2021 and I can't stop telling everyone about it!

I highly recommend adding this your winter 2021 reading list (it would be the perfect book to read on a snowy weekend!) and I can't wait to see what author Alice Feeney comes up with next.

{Thank you to Flatiron Books for my gifted NetGalley copy.}

I saw other reviews that mentioned twists but wow! This story builds the suspense around a couple who escaped to a Scottish chapel for a weekend getaway. But the getaway becomes more frightening than relaxing when disturbing things start happening.

This is one that is hard to provide a good summary or review without spoilers but I would recommend it for fans of thrillers and suspense.

Rock Paper Scissors is a moody thriller where no one is who you think they are. A husband and wife drive to a remote Scotland church (turned AirBnB) for a weekend away. A snowstorm sets the seen for an isolating and creepy tale. We know the pair are having marital issues, and we know there is a neighbor who is lurking nearby. From there, the plot swings wildly into a direction I did not see coming.

Without giving anything away, we have unreliable narrators, multiple perspectives, and a haunting setting (reminiscent of The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley). While the pages turned quickly, I found that the reveals were not as satisfying due to the many red herrings and elaborate switch-a-roos. Overall, this is a fine read, but not one of the best in the suspense/ psychological thriller genre.

Wow, this book had a twist I DID NOT see coming! I ate this book up- it was atmospheric, moody, well-written.... I didn't want to put it down. I'm writing this a little late, but I've personally already sold several copies. Just an all around great book.

This is my second book by Alice Feeney and I love the way she uses multiple perspectives to only tell the pieces of the story she wants at her chosen time. The twists are always amazing even if I see a twit coming I don’t grasp the full scope. I’m not 100% certain I loved the ending ( I mean I loved pieces of it, but I don’t think some people deserve happy endings). Adam and Amelia having taken a holiday to try to save their dying marriage. Luckily Amelia won a weekend getaway in a renovated church, but from the moment they get there nothing seems to be going right. Also included are letters written from the early days of their relationship and that of a woman living at the cottage right before the church. The middle lagged a little, but overall I felt like this was a gripping thriller and a good first start to my October reads.

Overall I enjoyed Rock Paper Scissors. I thought the face blindness for Adam was a very clever element and I was guessing right up until the end. I also appreciated how the author cleverly used the different anniversary materials to nod to the game of Rock Paper Scissors as well and thought it wrapped up nicely in the end. I will say that I found the dialogue in Robin’s anniversary letters to be cheesy. No one writes dialogue in a letter so that felt strange to me and awkward. Overall though, a really clever mystery thriller and one that will keep you questioning everything even through the final chapter.

Alice Feeney is officially the Queen of thrillers. She just moved in to top spot on my favourite thriller author list. Her books are just wild and never, ever predictable. Just.. go read her books. All of them. Except one but that's besides the point and still full of mind-fuckery.

Rock Paper Scissors is told in 3 POV's. This book is a case of unreliable narrators that WORKS, which is so rare for me. I really don't want to give much away with this review, but my mind just absolutely spun the whole read. The buildup to the mind-fuck creates so much anticipation and so many questions that you just need to keep reading to find out what the hell is going on. I didn't predict a single thing that happened in this book. I said WTF out loud more than a few times. And of course there was Bob, who really was my favourite character in this book. Seriously just go read it, that simple.

Alice Feeney has done it again, she has blown my mind with her twists. Her book was such a fast and fun read and I love the way she wrote it. I loved the alternating chapters between three characters and I really loved the anniversary notes laced in. Feeney does a great job of making you think you are reading one story and then completely flipping the script. The setting was also perfect, very atmospheric and isolated which added to the creepiness and the suspense. I loved the ending as well. This is just a really fast paced and easy to binge read with plenty of twists and entertainment. Easily a five star read for me.

4.5/5

WHEW!! What did I just read people? His & Hers by Alice Feeney was basically my top audiobook read back in 2020, so I was ecstatic for her newest novel Rock Paper Scissors. My friend (@_thatswhatsheread on IG) and I did a buddy read of the audiobook and we both had a really hard time putting it down. And just like His & Hers was fantastic on audio, so was every minute of Rock Paper Scissors. The narrators are Richard Armitage & Stephanie Racine, and I can't even get past how great they both were. Plus, this book is so atmospheric that there is a definite mood to the entire book/audio. If you love audiobooks as much as I do, I would highly recommend giving it a go for Rock Paper Scissors. The twists just come off even harder that way, and I think I was even more shocked than I would have been reading it.

There were some points in the book where it felt like it slowed down a bit, but don't worry because it is all leading up to that crazy impossible, final reveal. Feeney is the best at leaving me completely shocked, and I can tell you these twists came completely out of left field for me. Some readers will probably figure it out, but that sure as hell wasn't me and I loved it. The synopsis for Rock Paper Scissors is insanely short and doesn't really tell you what the book is about for good reason. If you are a fan of the author, I know you will read this anyway, but if you haven't read a book by her yet and love insane twists then you need to check this out.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.