I understand some books have to be messy but this was just a Mess. The first 4 chapters just kept pissing me off because of internalised misogyny and just general dislike for everyone. Then I said to myself, this is a new beginning and it went well for a while.

The story is about Jewelann, who has a controlling husband, a weird kid who's friend went missing when he was 6, and an ex lover from high-school (?!), who decides to ruin her life. And, of course, no friends and a shopping addiction. She's a grey characters - does dumb things but is overall a good person with strong values.

Then, in the last 50 pages, Hardy just decides to throw every possible plot twist at the reader and expect it all to seem plausible and realistic. Throught the whole book, I couldn't quite decide if it was meant to be realistic or a a little made up, but still a thriller. I never got the answer but the ending(s) just ruined it all for me. You want me to believe ALL OF THIS happened to the same people?

I read this so quickly, always the sign of a good page turner. I really enjoyed the main character in this book - a character who starts as just being a slightly vengeful house wife with nothing to hide, Until things start to turn a bit dark and suspicions are aroused. The book really kept you guessing right until the last page and I loved seeing the characters develop as the story went on. I HATED the husband, Ken, the whole way through, Mina successfully made him a totally unlikeable character who is frankly just cruel to those around him.

Will definitely be recommending this and will definitely want to read more from Mina!

I have a huge like for the unlikable character. I don't believe that every character needs to be flawless and faultless in every book and I think this book really took that on.

If you love a good domestic suspense, this is one of the books that will take you from highs to lows and wondering what the heck is happening in the best way! There are quite a few content warnings so make sure you look for those when you start! Dang though when Christian showed up at renting Carriage House from Jewelann and her husband... my head exploded!!! Get ready for a wild ride!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

A quick engaging beach-read, perfect for summer. While at times very unrealistic, it was entertaining and kept me turning the pages. 3 stars.

Blame the booze, her shaky marriage, her troubled son, or a thousand other things. Jewelann Jordan has one thing on her mind when she attends her class reunion, and that's making sure her old crush Christian Campbell sees exactly what he lost all those years ago. A late night, a hotel room, a rekindled flame that burns even hotter than it did back then. What could go wrong?

Everything.

The night with Christian isn't the first secret Jewelann has kept from her husband Ken, so one more shouldn't be much harder--except that Christian shows up without warning, seemingly determined to do his best to mess up Jewelann's life in any way he can. Worse than that, he seems to have his sights set on charming her son, Eli, and befriending her husband. Revenge isn't so sweet when it bites you back, but Jewelann is determined to keep Christian from ruining everything she's worked so hard to keep safe, including her son.

Fighting to keep it all from spiraling out of control, Jewelann discovers Christian is not the man he claims to be. When darker secrets emerge, even closer to home, Jewelann takes the chance to turn the tables on him. The more Jewelann digs for the truth, the uglier--and the deadlier--it gets.

Quick read. I enjoyed this book. Suspense and kept me turning the pages! Highly recommend. Page turner for sure.

I really wasn’t sure what direction this book was going when I first started it. I knew it was listed as a mystery/suspense but it didn’t seem to be headed that way. And then…there it was!

Jewelann lives in an unhappy marriage, with a husband who is gone more than he is home. When someone from her past comes back into her life making things even more complicated for her and her son.

It’s hard to sum this book up into a review without giving away to much information other than saying, if you like to be surprised, this is the book for you!

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this book!

Instantly disliked the lead so it is too hard to care what happens to her. Cover and storyline hooked me but unfortunately it didn’t live up to my expectations.

This was fine! I just felt like there was too much going on and it still managed to drag in some parts. It was kind of chaotic but I still found it easy to read and was surprised by one of the twists. Give it a chance if the plot interests you :)

I struggled with this book in the beginning, as I found the characters hard to empathize with and understand (especially Jewelann and her husband) and the pacing felt like it dragged. I kept putting it down after each chapter. But toward the halfway mark it picked up and got more interesting. The ending happened kind of fast, but I do like how it was resolved. No spoilers, here, so I won't go into detail. I enjoyed the writing style and the way the author described thing.

I liked it enough that I would read another Mina Hardy book.

3.5 stars rounded down.

This is my first book by Mina Hardy. We have Jewelann Jordan, a married woman with one son, who attends her class reunion with the sole intention of making her former love, Christian Cambell suffer. So she baits him, they go to a hotel room, and without spoiling anything she gets her revenge. And this isn't the first secret she has kept from her husband.

Unfortunately things don't end there as soon Christian shows up in her life and befriends her husband and son. And of course more sinister things are in play as nothing is as it seems and there are ulterior motives galore. We soon see that maybe Christian has the upper hand here and his own motives for them to meet again.

My first takeaway was the book was very well written. Mina Hardy is clearly a talented writer and knows how to write a domestic thriller. My other takeaway is that there isn't much to work with here....... We do have a great twist that takes the book up a notch but other then that this is pretty much cut and paste stuff here. I do like the ending but honestly it's predictable and we have a degree of middle of the book sludge here.

But it's still a great beach read. I can't give it 4 stars but still a entertaining three stars. If the synopsis grabs your attention definitely go for it. It's just not a memorable book.

Advance Copy given free for a honest review. Publish date of 12/26/2022

A quick read, full of twists and turns I never saw coming but the ending also was so abrupt. The characters in this book are OK. The main character Jewelanne I found quite annoying and narcissistic. Christian, also was annoying. One minute he was charming then in the blink of an eye turns evil and cruel. Overall, a quick read that kept me entertained until the end.

The book baffled me slightly- there were so many facets to the narrative that I was never entirely sure what I was meant to focus on, or what would transpire to be important. Ultimately, the narrative was engaging, with enough twists for the label 'thriller' to be appropriate. Unfortunately, I never understood or empathised with the protagonist enough to be invested in them.

I loved this author's previous book, AFTER ALL I'VE DONE so I was really excited to read this one.

Unfortunately, I did not find much that I liked about this book. I hated all the characters. The first few chapters were great then I lost interest. . Nothing really happens until close to the end and the twist was not believable at all.


Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my e-ARC.

Jewellann Jordan is stuck in a bad marriage with a young son who’s troubled. She decides to attend her high school reunion, and to make herself feel better, gain the attraction of Christian Campbell. He’s the one she used to love in high school, and he left her high and dry.

Christian can’t help but notice Jewellann and how great she looks now. She decides to get a bit of revenge, but things don’t go as planned. Suddenly Christian is everywhere, and he seems intent on ruining her life. If only she left well enough alone.

This is an entertaining and well written suspense story that was easy to fly through. I was never bored, but I have to say I didn’t find the ending to be that realistic or surprising. It was a bit too much in a story where everything was pretty logical up until that point. Still, not a bad one to fly through if you’re looking for a quick, engaging beach read.

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 12/6/22.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of We Knew All Along.

I've read books by the author under her real name but none under her pen name.

This was an odd narrative; it felt like the author was going for domestic drama but realized the premise wasn't strong enough then threw in a couple of red herrings to confuse the reader.

I wasn't so much confused as much as I was stupefied by the 'twists' and reveals.

You're going to need to be able to seriously suspend disbelief when you're reading this.

Jewelann Jordan is a one-dimensional character; a housewife bound to a childhood home and a man she's no longer in love with but needs due to his job and financial security.

A former addict and struggling with a shopping addiction, she meets a former boyfriend at a class reunion, who eventually insinuates himself into her life, and the life of her troubled son.

When Jewelann and her husband's marital discord worsens, she begins to consider a life without him. But, at what cost?

There's a lot going on, and yet there's no urgency or suspense.

Jewelann is a typical main character in these genre novels; she's clueless about her husband, she worries he's cheating but has no idea who or what he really is; she has no life, no job, no ambition and no friends other than protecting her only child.

The men in the novel are scum, minus the son, tropes of stereotypes; demeaning, narcissistic, selfish and arrogant, and lacking depth of character.

I guessed nearly all of the twists, and the final one is hard to swallow.

Did I believe it?

It didn't matter because I was near the end and I was glad I made it to the finish line.

This thriller was excellent from start to finish and I couldn’t fault the twisty storyline that lasted right until the very end!

What did I just read?! Literally at no point in this book did I know what was going to happen next or where it was even going. After a pretty slow first half, the last bit was super fast paced with lots of big reveals.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the early copy!

"I am bright. I am sparkling. I am poised. I am vibrant. I am a vision. I am a mirage."

I'm immediately hooked. By this woman. By her motives. By her suspicious attitude and how it does not at all line up with the life she now has. With the past she's trying to avoid. And then head-over-heels invested once I meet her husband and then her ex boyfriend. Yikes! This woman has a knack for attracting predators--but what kind? Her husband is a cheater, sure, but what else is he up to? And this ex has quite the ego, the audacity, to make his intentions quite clear from the her. But how Dar will he go?

This book had such potential to be so great but it really fell flat. Literally nothing happened until the 85% mark and then a few big twists concluded the story. Most were predictable. Very disappointing.

I could not have guessed what would go down in this book if I tried. I was captured into the story from the first chapter wanting to know more about JewelAnn and Christian’s past but then I’d get hooked on learning about her personal hang ups then the nuances of her marriage and relationship with her son. Around and around it went. I truly enjoyed the entire book. Definitely one to get excited for!

Thank you to Crooked Lane Books for the E-ARC copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review!