Lucinda Berry, you did it again. Another heart-thumping novel that blew me away.

Jules life shatters when she crashes her car into a lake and her son dies. There is one survivor, another boy called Isaac. Jules has nothing to live for, until Isaac starts visiting her in the hospital. But then Isaac disappears and his family are convinced it’s all Jules fault.

In the beginning I found Jules to be a character I didn’t believe in. But, when I read on, I suddenly understood her strange behavior towards her psychiatrist and was gobsmacked by how brilliant the author was in first making me think a certain way about her, and then changing my perception of her. I was also annoyed by Isaac’s mother in the beginning, but even her behavior made sense when I learnt more about her.

The plot was original and interesting. I loved how you needed to know what happened next, at the same time as you didn’t want the book to end. The twists at the end were brilliant, and I liked that Berry wrote about the effects of bullying and how grief can wreck your life. She’s a master at describing characters inner lives succinctly. She shows her knowledge when she manages to get inside the head of people with mental health issues.

I also wanted to add that the plot was well thought-through, and the ending was surprising for sure! The parts where Jules talked with her psychologist were also excellent.

Five solid stars from me!


Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and netgally for the arc!

While driving her son and his teammate home one night, Jules crashes into a frozen lake. During the struggle to free herself and save her son, she realizes too late that she saved the wrong boy. Months later with her mental stability on the decline, she finds herself in the middle of an investigation when the boy she saved in the accident is now missing.

This was not what I had expected at all and I loved it. This has to be one of this author's darkest novels yet and I must say, reader beware. I'm luckily one of those not easily bothered by books but I definitely am happy this isn't being released until January due to certain recent events in the world. I would hate to see this not get it's due credit because of the material in it. Told in perspectives of both mothers, you feel the fears that every mother has and the devastating consequences when those fears become reality. This was so well written, I couldn't recommend this enough.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC.

Thank you Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this before publication. IYKYK, my reviews are always honest.

Writing: 2/5 | Plot: 2/5 | Ending: 2/5

THE PLOT

The title sums it up. Jules literally goes off the deep end by crashing her car in the icy river. Then she mentally goes off the deep end and begins grooming the other survivor of the crash, a 15-year-old boy named Isaac. And when Isaac goes missing, his parents wonder if it was because of a serial killer snatching boys off da skreets or because of Jules going off the deep end.

MY OPINION

First things first, this was MUCH better than Under Her Care. This was closer to Lucinda Berry's previous bangers—Appetite for Innocence and Saving Noah. However, similar to UHC, I found myself wishing Jules to get in the car with Amber (Isaac's mom) and drive into the river again. They are both insufferable.

So then I was thinking to myself, why the fuck do I dislike her last two books so much? And thanks to jet lag, I woke up at 4am and realized it's because she doesn't write good adult characters. Berry is a child psychologist, so when she writes from the POV of a child, she absolutely nails it. She captures the child's mind perfectly.

But when she writes an adult POV, she doesn't change her approach. The adult characters have the same traits as the children, so they come off delusional, immature, and annoying af. The amount of times a grown adult "giggled" in this story should be illegal. I never want to read that word again. Also proclaiming "I knew I was right!!!" when the lead detective confirms your suspicions about Jules potentially being involved with your sons kidnapping is possibly the most immature reaction you could have.

SPOILER WARNING SO SCROLL FURIOUSLY TO THE BOTTOM IF YOU HAVEN'T READ IT



And like UHC, I found the choice of POVs useless given how the story panned out. What was the point of Jules other than to provide shock value. She had absolutely nothing to do with the "final act." Nothing. It seemed like she was there to demonstrate different symptoms of severe trauma as part of a training manual or something. Every time the psychologist (mad unprofessional btw) mentioned a "symptom" like hyper-sexuality, suddenly Jules would take on those traits. It was like a weird game of "Simon says"—Dr. Stephens says.

Given that the conclusion was about how Isaac used video games to spread and encourage violence which then bubbled over into real life (btw there were no clues that would be the ending whatsoever, it was just tossed on in there), one of the POVs should've been his. I didn't need to read about Amber saying: JULES DID THIS SHIT every single chapter. She provided no value to the story either. The worried mother shtick got real old real fast.

Lastly, like UHC, which I believe should've been about munchausen disorder instead of autism, I think the focus of this book was off. Considering how it ended, it should've focused on how bullying pushed Isaac to find comfort in an online world where he could be the bullier, and then drove him to commit awful violent crimes IRL. The whole video game thing wasn't even mentioned until 80% of the book was done, but yet it was crucial to Isaac's final act. I don't get it? Anyways.

I hope Lucinda goes back to writing children's POVs and leaves the adults as side characters. That's why Appetite for Innocence goes so hard. I remember when I read Saving Noah I wanted to fight the mom so bad, but the storyline and flashbacks were so interesting, I could blow past it. But when I'm forced to endure TWO painfully immature "adult" POVs, I just can't do it. It's tough to enjoy a book when you can't identify who the protagonist is.

PROS AND CONS:

Pros: better than under her care, the content was more interesting

Cons: wanted to fight both of the adults, did not give a single fuck if Isaac turned up dead or alive, the ending was so random.

I do not have adequate words for how much I love books by Lucinda Berry! This one did not disappoint! She has a way of spinning a story and keep you wanting more. No one is who you think they are in this thriller. I would give it more than 5 stars if I could!

Wow! This book was so good! It had unexpected twists and turns and kept me reading. A mother loses her son in a tragic accident leaving her and a neighbor boy survivors of the accident. The story continues on about how each of them handle the grief they have with mental health issues mixed in along with some current relevance to bullying in today’s schools,
. I highly recommend this book and I am anxious to read more from this author!

This is mystery and intrigue…this is not a feel good book…the characters are so not likable with no redeeming qualities. The book was sent to me by. Netgalley for review. This is a disturbing story. A woman loses her son and the. Takes advantage of his friend. There are several red herrings, but the ending is pretty much predictable. The story moves slowly.

I’ve been big fan of Lucinda Berry ever since reading her book The Perfect Child. In Off the Deep End she once again throws a lot of complicated plot at the reader. You may think you know what’s going on as you read along, but be prepared for some fun twists and turns.

Thank you Netgally for this ARC.
I highly recommend this book and thoroughly enjoyed reading.

Jules has a life changing decision to make after an accident which affects everyones lives.

This book was an amazing read, very heart felt and lots of twists that werent predictable. You can understand all POVs and why they reacted the way they did.

Lucinda Berry has not dissappointed with this book.

An absolute gem of a novel that takes you on an incredible journey. A brilliantly written story with twists and turns and an breathe taking finale. Two families deeply affected by a fatal car accident. struggle with the repercussions - the physical loss of a son for one family and the 'mental' loss of a son for the other. I have no hesitation in giving this wonderful and thought-provoking novel five (5) stars.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this book before it is released.

What. A. Ride. Lucinda Berry’s books are always a great read because she often puts you in impossible situations. In this book, a mother lose her son in a terrible accident but his friend lives. What happens after that is some of the wildest things I’ve ever read. I always wonder how much of this is actually true based on Berry’s experience. Like do people really go through these emotions and actions? I will say that there was a lot to unpack in this book. There was so much going on and something’s deserved more attention than the others. Overall I enjoyed the story. 3.5 stars

Lucinda Berry always delivers a pulse pounding, twisty thriller and this was no exception! I flew through this one and the suspense started from the get-go. Definitely recommend- I'd say this is one of my new favorites from her.

Thankyou Netgalley for Arc and to @lucindaberryauthor for writing something so amazing

Absolutely brilliant another 5 star read from lucinda berry she never let's me down.

When Jule saves her sons friend isaac from drowning instead of her own son gabe it breaks her. So when Isaac goes missing 10 months later they suspect Jules is hiding something....

literally could not put this book down. fantastic twists and every time I thought I'd worked out what happened I was thrown another curve ball. totally unpredictable

I loved the characters and having the multiple pov was great although I would of liked a Isaac pov.

highly recommend that everyone goes and preorders this book and buys all of lucinda berrys other books. amazing author who always keep you on your toes

Jules is a therapist who’s decided to be a stay at home mom, and she’s never regretted the decision. Then one day a terrible car accident sends Jules, her son and another teen boy into a frozen lake. With only seconds to spare, Jules is able to save one boy, but it’s not her son. She finds herself on a terrifying downward spiral, becoming unstable and even violent. The she finds out that Julian, the boy she saved, has disappeared and she becomes the prime suspect. Police believe she harbors intense rage over saving the “wrong child” and think she may have taken steps to remedy her mistake. But Jules didn’t take Isaac and she knows the only chance she has of saving herself is to find out who did. arry can always be relied on to provide a good solid mystery with a few red herrings thrown in for extra suspense

Jules Hart life shatters when she crashes her car into an icy lake and her son and another teenage boy plunge into the water with her but Jules can only manage to save one the wrong one reeling from the death of her son Jules spirals into a violent and unstable mental state and ten months after the accident she’s still trying to reckon with the fact that she rescued Isaac Greer another woman’s child when Isaac suddenly vanishes Jules finds herself at the centre of a massive police investigation while she harbours her own dangerous secrets Jules is adamant that she didn’t take Isaac
Another gripping psychological thriller from Lucinda Berry absolutely recommend I couldn’t put it down
Thank You NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer
I just reviewed Off the Deep End by Lucinda Berry. #OfftheDeepEnd #NetGalley