Hearing a distress call from the Atlantic waters where her husband and children are out on their sailboat, Lucy is of course concerned since a storm is approaching. The setting of this novel is well written, you feel that you are actually there. Worth reading.

This book had a decent plot and some terrific mind-boggling twists that engaged many readers. I regret the writing style did not appeal to me personally. I kept reading due to a heightened interest in what happened, but its uneven pace made it a struggle for me to continue. I was bothered by its excessive wordiness and redundancy. Each time I came to a phrase or description I admired, there was a feeling of discomfort when it was repeated constantly throughout the book.

Lucy and Daniel have been together for nine years and are the proud and devoted parents of two unbelievably perfect children, Billie and Finn. The family is regarded as a picture of domestic bliss. The family has a beautiful home situated on the cliffs overlooking the cold Atlantic Ocean. The location is a North Devon fishing village during the winter months. The atmosphere is bleak and harsh, with a treacherous storm of epic proportions approaching. Daniel had built up a marine business, and Lucy opened a bar business and cafe near the waterfront.

Daniel leaves home after breakfast to go to work, and the two children leave home for their daily routines. Finn is a bright, imaginative 7-year-old boy, and their teenage daughter Billie is an intelligent environmental activist who loves the sea and its animals and plans to volunteer with Sea Shephard.

We read of the dangers small ships face with the tumultuous winds, high waves and churning freezing water once the storm lands. The descriptions of the boats enduring the storm were intense and bone-chilling. So were the later depictions of the villagers and their rain-drenched clothing. I felt the building of atmosphere was somewhat excessive. The result was cautioning me to avoid boats and even a visit to a fishing village.

Their boat, The Lazy Susan, has been found by the coastguard, empty and drifting in the sea. Daniel had made a call that there was trouble aboard. Lucy's first thought was that her husband had gone to work, and the yacht must have been stolen. Lucy's ideal life begins to be shattered, and an aura of melancholy begins. Daniel is not at his workplace, and she discovers he picked up Finn at school with the pretense of a dentist appointment. She receives a static interrupted phone call that ends with Finn shouting, "Daddy...no!" Knowing that Daniel had been on the boat with their son, she desperately tries to reach Billie by phone, but it seems to her horror that their teenage daughter is also missing
Her reaction is denial, sorrow, and rage. She now learns that Daniel's business was in trouble caused by the betrayal by his long-time friend and business partner. Was Daniel suicidal to the extent of killing their children? She tells herself that he may have taken them on the boat to protect them from some troublesome situation on land, but why not tell her? Lucy believes that Daniel would do anything to keep the family safe. She rallies the villagers to search for Daniel and the children, often lashing out at people in uncontrolled rages and damaging objects. She has no hesitation in putting her most devoted friends in danger. This unlikeable characteristic will hold her in good stead when there is a bloody, frightening action scene later.

She believes that as their mother, she knows the children are still alive despite the lack of protective equipment and have been washed up alive on shore. The villagers join in a frantic search, but many are whispering that Daniel may have killed himself and the children.

Everything takes a shocking twist when Daniel is found alive, suffering from hypothermia and injuries. Entering amidst the chaos and scandal is DI Abraham Rose. He is seriously ill with a lung disease, lonely and friendless, and keeps going by reciting Old Testament passages. Abraham considers himself to be following God's Law as an avenging angel. He is a sad, doomed, fascinating character. When Daniel has recovered enough to talk, he wants some hostile messages delivered to Lucy. Why? He reluctantly confesses that he killed both children. He is headed to prison.

There is a theme running through the book that tragedy is cleansing, and through catharsis will emerge a better person. How does this apply to the story? Lucy seems to be still very much in love with her husband and visits him in prison. Abraham strongly believes that there is something amiss in the reactions of both Daniel and Lucy. Neither one is to be trusted. What are they concealing or lying about? Can the answers be found in recent wills drawn up by the family? Was the motive financial, and is Lucy involved in the plot?

Be prepared for a trajectory-altering mind-boggling twist revealing what actually happened aboard the boat. When the truth comes out, it is even more horrendous than could be imagined. The children are still missing, and Lucy is determined to have a friend take her out to look for them. There will be more deaths, heartbreak, and injuries before the story reaches a stunning action-filled conclusion.

There was much to praise in this book. The story is powerful, but it is difficult to connect with the unreliable protagonists. Those who enjoy psychological thrillers will adore some of the unexpected twists. I felt the story was too long for maximum effect, overly wordy and repetitious, but great storytelling was there. I am now curious to read Sam Lloyd's previous book.
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Canada for the opportunity to read this thriller.

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, Sam Lloyd, and Penguin Random House Canada for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

Happy to finds new authors to enjoy, I turned to this piece by Sam Lloyd, as the dust jacket blurb caught my attention. Lloyd tells a gripping tale that is sure to make the reader take notice. While living in a seaside town, Lucy soon discovers that her family yachts is missing, as is her husband. When the boat is located, it’s empty and there’s no sign of her husband either. Thus begins a series of events that not only forces Lucy to take notice, but also leaves a chill running down her spine. How quickly things can change, changing a bucolic town to a place of worry. Lloyd weaves quite the tale and forces the reader to take note throughout this mysterious story.

Lucy is living the life that she always wanted on the Devon Coast, with a family that she loves and all the dreams she’s ever hoped to acquire.All comes crashing down and changes in the blink of an eye one day, forcing Lucy to rethink everything she thought that she knew.

A hard knock at the door changes it forever, when Lucy’s alerted that the family yacht has been recovered out in the water. There’s no trace of her husband, which sends Lucy into a fit of panic. However, it all comes into perspective soon thereafter and Lucy is forced to wonder whether her husband may have orchestrated something as part of a larger plan, one that she was not privy to at any point.

When the rescue mission begins, Lucy has high hopes that it will come to provide answers quickly and everything will prove to be a major mistake. However, a horrible storm blows in and Lucy discovers something that changes her mind in an instant. Still, she has hopes that it is all a bad dream, one from which she can wake soon and hit the rest button, once at for all. However, there is that lingering feeling in the back of her mind that emerges, leaving Lucy to ponder if she might be the one being played in all this. A chilling tale that proves Sam Lloyd has what it takes to develop a great thriller for readers to enjoy.

I’ve had a mix of success and disappointment when it comes to new writers over the past while. Even as some praise the work of a writer, I feel as though I might have missed the mark and am left to scratch my head. While I did enjoy Sam Lloyd’s piece, I am left feeling as though everyone else got something that I could not find, at least based on the reviews I have seen. Lloyd knows how to tell a story and keeps the reader in the middle, but it was not as impactful as I would have liked.

Lucy remains a wonderful protagonist, at the centre of the entire piece. Her early revelations of having the ‘perfect life’ left her vulnerable throughout the piece, something Lloyd uses to his advantage in the writing process. There is a grittiness to her, especially as the story unfolds, leaving Lucy one who refuses to stand down or deny what’s going on. She needs answers and will stop at nothing to get them, even as she is deceived with every step she takes. It is surely Lloyd’s superior abilities that puts all this on display for the reader to synthesise.

Thrillers are sometimes the hardest novel for me to enjoy, as I need a hook from the early stages to pull me into the middle. Many authors prefer the slow reveal, which may work for some, but I am overly fickle when it comes to narrative development. Lloyd does well to set the scene in this book, offering the reader something they can enjoy, while also keeping it innocent for the early pages of the book. A handful of well-developed characters keep the reader learning on a constant basis and forces the reader to attach early on. The plot was sound and kept me wanting to know more, even if things did not go in the direction I had hoped most of the time. I am curious to see how Sam Lloyd writes its other parameters and so I think that it might bode well to give the other novel out there a chance to see how it stands up to this one. All in good time.

Kudos, Mr. Lloyd, for a decent piece of writing. I am happy so many found it so impactful and wonder if I am the anomaly here.

In a word.... TENSE! Yes, this is a psychological thriller, but it is more than that. It is a breakneck action thriller as well.

There was a lot of pain described in this novel, both physical and emotional. It was visceral, and can almost be felt by the reader.

The suspense is meted out drip by drip, all the time building. You think you know the characters, but don't be mislead, they might surprise you. The author cleverly lets you become fond of the character Lucy Locke, then he makes you doubt her, then he makes you love her again, then you question whether you should... What is going on?

D.I. Abraham Rose was a fantastic character. One which, in other circumstances, I would like to get to know better. I loved his budding relationship with the elderly woman, Bibi Carter. A woman who could provide friendship and much needed emotional support to help assuage his loneliness.

The ending of this fast-paced thriller contained violence and heart-stopping suspense - so be warned. The epilogue mitigated the tension and offered some much needed closure.

I believe this suspense-fueled thriller will be on my 'Best Reads of 2022' list. Highly, highly, recommended.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

Lucy is told that her family's yacht has been found drifting at see just before an anticipated once in a century storm. Her husband Daniel and son are missing. Lucy can't believe Daniel would have endangered him in that way. Then it seems Daniel might have done far worse things.

In some ways this was an intriguing read, but it was a little slow and repetitious. There was also a significant focus on the weather and sailing and sailing in bad weather, which was technical and uninteresting. The detective, Abraham, was an unusual character, although he was dealt with briskly on the last page, so I guess we won't see him again. There were sections which were much more adventure/thriller than mystery, and sadly I found the denouement a bit over dramatic/unlikely and yet underwhelming - I had been anticipating something a little cleverer.

A very dramatic mystery that keeps you turning the pages. A story of a family Daniel, Lucy, her daughter Billie and their son Fin. Two other notable characters are Jake, an ex boyfriend and a rather loveable Abraham, a detective who doesn’t give up. The Cornish coastline.

It starts with a massive search for Daniel who is believed to have taken his step daughter and son out in his sea faring boat on a day when a massive storm has been forecast. Nobody can understand his motives. The yacht is found empty…so where is Daniel and his children? The story is well developed as are the characters and the suspense increases throughout the plot. A great read if you like intense thrillers. I enjoyed it!