I listened to the audiobook version of the story.

The story follows two timelines, Nick and his mother in the past, and Lulu, his wife and him in the present.

The story moved fast, but was somewhat predictable. Not as much of a thrilling aspect, as I would have liked.

dnf - narration was distracting - may change mind

the narration is a bit too animated and unnatural sounding in my opinion. It doesn't need to be like that in some passages that are tame and normal, instead the narration drags to become way too animated and purposeful and takes away from the story you want to be focusing on.

Great read. A little predictable but well crafted and well narrated. I enjoyed the characters and the little twists.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy of The Stepson.
Ok, where do I start?
First off, the back and forth timelines were very confusing. I usually do ok with those but I'm not sure what happened here.
The twist at the end?
There wasn't one. Nothing. And that in itself was a huge disappointment.
I would say this is more of a domestic drama (?) than a thriller.
It was just a story.
I had no problem understanding the narrators. I actually loved the narrators.
Will I recommend this to my friends? Most likely not, no.

This book was sent to me by Netgalley for review…thanks to the publisher for the audio version…I might have liked the written copy better…intrigue and mystery…secrets…red herrings…guessing and hints…characters who can’t be trusted totally…a book that is full of intrigue.

I kept waiting for a bomb to drop as I plowed through this intriguing psychological thriller but there were none to be found. I think that was my biggest letdown with this book. It needed a big twist at the end. The plot was a bit too one note. The description somewhat misleading. However, if one enjoys thrillers without twists or turns - basically what you see if what you get - then I think one will enjoy this book. I prefer more depth in my plots and characters. I will also mention that Lulu was too naive and clueless for me to relate to, which made her chapters less engaging.

The audio was terrific. Fabulous performance with a broad range of voices by the narrator.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

"He lost one family. Now he is ready for another." Meet NICK.

Scotland author Jane Renshaw's THE STEPSON is a WILD cat-and-mouse domestic suspense tale with unreliable narrators. Told from two periods and POVs: a grown stepson's (now a man) new wife and his former stepmother. Two different tales. Which one is lying?

(2019) Psychotherapist Lulu (Nick's wife) has a great job and is married to Nick. He is wealthy and handsome. Even though they did not date long, she feels lucky until she sees Nick being too overprotective and becomes concerned.

NICK had a tragic childhood. Was he a victim or the predator? His mother died due to an accidental fall, and Nick was the one who found her at age fourteen. His father, Duncan Clyde, remarries a woman named Maggie two years later. She also had a troubled childhood. Nick does not like her, especially when she gets pregnant, and now he has a little half-sister. Maggie also comes from a different class background and is strong.

(1997) Maggie (stepmother): Maggie thinks Nick is evil and manipulative. He uses her past against her and her insecurities. He puts up a good front around the dad, so the dad does not take Maggie's concerns about Nick's behavior seriously. (Duncan and Lulu are alike). Maggie thinks Nick is threatening. The dad says he is just being a teenager and blows it off. It is a constant game of cat-and-mouse between the two. Maggie has a different take on Nick, and it is not pretty.

Now, Lulu's marriage is strained by Nicks's paranoia. They had only met six months earlier when she was on tour. Nick is a day trader and seems to have it all, but his constant worrying about Lulu and questioning her about everything, even her clients- his behavior is annoying and disturbing.

Lulu believes it stems from his tragic childhood and feels like he must face the past to move on and deal with it. They live in London in a posh penthouse, and Nick is so thoughtful. However, he has two sides. His overprotectiveness is over the top and getting out of control.

Here is the strange part: In Nick's past, his entire family just disappeared one day while he was out for the day with a school friend. His dad, Duncan, his stepmom, Maggie, and two-month-old baby Isla (half-sister) were never seen again. Nick contends Maggie killed his family.

Nick was under investigation but was cleared due to his alibi. He was sent to boarding school and stayed with his relatives for a few weeks a year.

Since Lulu is a Psychotherapist, she wants to help. She wants him to go back to the scene of the crime. He fears that his new wife will be taken away. She persuades him to take a few weeks off, and they travel to his childhood home.

After they arrive, strange things occur. Another family member disappears. Does Lulu know her husband? Can she trust him? Is he more troubled than she is aware? Is he dangerous, and what is he hiding?

Did Nick kill his family? Did he have anything to do with his mother’s death? Did his stepmom orchestrate the whole scheme? Is Nick innocent? What happened to Nick’s aunt when she vanished. So many questions, lies, and secrets.

My Thoughts: I am reviewing the audiobook only. Honestly, the audiobook was like an over-the-top bad tennis match back and forth with highly dysfunctional characters. A bad train wreck. No likable characters here. Maggie sounds like an evil monster (is it justified or just how Nick sees her)? Nick is a psychopath. Lulu is naive, has her head in the sand, and does not even seem like a therapist if she cannot judge the man's mentality. She looks like a love-sick teen and ignores the dangerous behavior of her husband.

There is NO big twist that the book describes. I kept waiting for it but never happened. I did like the last line. I would describe this as more of domestic suspense and not a whodunit psychological thriller. I was not invested in the story and found myself fast-forwarding and skipping over the grinding parts (especially Maggie).

Possibly this book would be better as a reading copy versus an audiobook. I basing this review on my personal listening experience. A lot of drama (too much for me), not that engaging, and the narrator's voices were grinding and annoying. I usually enjoy Joshua Manning; however, in this case, assume it was due to the characters and the storyline. Narrated by Mhairi Morrison, Katherine Littrell, and Joshua Manning

I have been trying out audiobooks to expand my UK author coverage, which I have found through NetGalley and have enjoyed. I will pick up another book by the author as have heard great things.

Thank you to #DreamscapeMedia and #NetGalley for an ALC to listen, review, and enjoy for an honest review.

Blog Review Posted @
www.JudithDCollins.com
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
My Rating: 3 Stars
Pub Date: Aug 9, 2022

In “The stepson “Lulu meets Nick it’s Love at first sight but the more she gets to know him the stranger things become he is very overprotective even catching someone “stalking“ her, but when the stalker warns Lulu to be where of Nick She blows them off and thinks he doesn’t know what he’s talking about when they move back to Nick‘s child hood home so he can find closure she sees even more warning signs and people that have known him his whole life tell her to beware of him. Andy his “childhood best friend“ even told her he may be a murderer, but Nick is warned Heard that he has asked burgers. Knowing this she thinks he must now be having delusions after all he doesn’t see reality the way others do but is he the one delusional or is she? This book goes from current day to 1997 when the family first went MIA and OMG what a book it is. I love a good thriller it’s like a great present on Christmas day and it certainly was Christmas with the stepson when they say it was a totally gripping thriller in the case of this book it’s true. They had a dual female narrators and were fantastic they both had great character distinction and Josh Manning was no slouch himself. I received this book from netGally and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review but all opinions are definitely my own

Who is more crazy Mags, Lu or Nick?! Told from different points of views and years apart. Fast paced and had me hooked to finish wanting to know what happened next even amidst my frustration from the ‘airhead’. The killer isn’t a surprise but ohh my the ending 🫢

Great book! I listened to the audio book when I was out walking, then just around the house to hear the next chapter. Each chapter flipped between Maggie and Lulu, the stepmom and the wife of Nick. I did not like Lulu for much of the book....for being such a smart woman, she was easily led when it came to Nick. Overall, I very much enjoyed the book and would read another by this author.

Thank you Jane Renshaw and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

The back and forth timeline was really hard to grasp and became confusing for me. I don't think it helped that the narrator was very hard to understand. I had to DNF this one.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for providing a free audio b copy of this title in exchange for my review.

This book is told from two points of view, in two different time periods, set in the UK. This audio was narrated by Mhairi Morrison; Katherine Littrell; Joshua Manning, and it was my first book by this author.
I wanted to like this book, and I did try. I've been trying to read books - or listen to books - for the type of book they are, how they are marketed, rather than my tastes. However, even from that view, I did not like this book.
This book was marketed as a psychological thriller, and I found nothing thrilling, psychological or engaging about this book. I did not like any of the characters, the prolog basically spells out who the murderer is, and only finished the book so I could write this review, and because I was desperately hoping for a twist at the end. There was no twist.

Lulu is a therapist and one of the most clueless characters I think I've ever read. I have a really hard time believing she attended college and qualified as a therapist with her dreamy, clueless attitude.

Maggie is just annoying. And the narrator for her portion of the book has an amazing Scottish (?) accent, but it made it so much harder to understand what was being said. Maggie uses the word "wee" more often than any other and it got to be too much.

The different dialects, slang and descriptions made this audiobook rather difficult to understand. I felt like I wasn't actually hearing an English language, and actually had to stop and look up a few of the terms and phrases just to see if I was understanding it properly. That's not the biggest problem with the book, but it added another level of frustration.

Had this not been an ARC, I would have given up on the book before the half way mark. But I wanted to give it a fair shot for the review. I kept hoping for a twist. Just really disappointing.

I'm sorry, but I have to rate this 1 star for "did not like it". I would not recommend it to anyone I know.

My thanks to Net Galley and Dreamscape Media for allowing me to review this audio.

Story told in 2 timelines. Present day happily married Lulu and her husband Nick, then the past of teen Nick and the disappearance of his whole family that causes him heavy anxiety currently affecting his marriage. Lulu tries to help him revisit his trauma and discovers more than she bargained for.

Liked the book but dialect of one of the narrators a bit distracting trying to figure out what they're talking about and didn't like the jumping back and forth but not bad book.

Thank you Netgalley for this audio edition of The Stepson by Jane Renshaw.

Lulu feels like she has won the lottery with her handsome and charming husband Nick. He's everything she could have ever asked for, and he has overcome so much. As a child his stepmother murdered his dad and half sister. He now only has Lulu and they are madly in love.

But there are definitely cracks in Nick's façade, how could there not be? He's becoming increasingly possessive and monitors her every move. And despite how hard Lulu tries, there are just things about his past that aren't quite adding up. But Lulu is a therapist, and maybe she can help Nick get to the bottom of his childhood trauma.

Okay, I'm going to grasp at straws for a second. Lulu drove me crazy, and I would never blame anyone for ending up in an abusive relationship, but for Lulu to so blindly be swayed by any light wind Nick sent her way made me nuts. Also, her behavior as a counselor was ridiculous. Breaking down during sessions, taking phone calls, introducing clients to her husband, going to client's houses. Uuuugh, girl, you need your own therapy badly.

Having said that, this was fine as far as these split timeline thrillers go. I felt like the actions of the characters were all really lacking in nuance and abrupt, but again, I would never blame anyone for acting in survival mode, especially when children are threatened. The ending was hella satisfying.

Lulu is a happily married psychotherapist, but lately, her husband is increasingly affected by his past. When he was a teenager, his whole family disappeared and Nick has always claimed his stepmother did something to his father and little sister. He’s terrified he might lose Lulu next and has to know where she is every minute of the day. That behavior is wearing both Lulu and Nock down; her solution? To return to the home where his family vanished. Lulu believes that facing his past will bring Nick, the closure he so badly needs, but shortly after they arrive another person disappears. Is Nick the victim here or is there more to her husband than she ever knew?

ALC Review - Expected release 08/09/2022*

*I’m not sure if this is just the audio release date or if it was picked up by a separate publisher because it looks like it was originally released by Inkubator Books (December 8, 2021).


I really enjoyed this story, despite it’s rather unmarketable title (seriously don’t just start typing it into search engines without adding the authors name)

It leans into two of my favorite things: Unreliable Narrators and multiple time periods.

The story centers around what i guess you could call two generations of a family;
Modern day you have Lulu and Nick, semi-newlyweds, that are looking to work through Nick’s childhood trauma of being abandoned by his family. Although he suspects their true story could be a lot darker than suggested.

Rewind to the late 90s with Nick’s family told from the POV of his stepmother, that paints a very different picture of the man modern Nick has become… the issue is she has a troubled past and she even has a hard time knowing after the fact if she was wrong about Nick’s intentions.

The cover does claim this has an unexpected twist, but for me it felt more like the reader was in on the story and we just got to see how it played out. There were some surprises along the way but i never felt shocked. There was a short period of time where i definitely thought (view spoiler) i’m not sure if that would have been better or worse for the story but certainly would have made for an (unwelcome) twist.

I think the ending was satisfying and will leave readers happy with the story.

The narration is performed by Mhairi Morrison; Katherine Littrell; and Joshua Manning, while they performed the story well and i have no major issues with it, I would have like for Maggie and Lulu’s characters to be a little more distinctive from each other.

Big thanks to Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for providing me with a chance to get in on this book early. I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Maggie says, Hi

The audiobook is performed by Mhairi Morrison, Katherine Littrell and Joshua Manning. It took me about 10-15% to finally get into the audiobook. The narrators accent was a bit distracting for me. But once I got passed that, and figured it out - the story was very good. The story is told on multiple POVs and different timelines. Maggie marries and has a stepson named Nick. Later in life Nick marries Lulu. The story follows them and slowly the story unfolds into a mystery and psychological issues. Secrets and betrayal run deep in this story. The ending was unexpected and it was quite a twist that I absolutely love!!
There’s so much more that I want to say but I don’t want to give it away! But it’s a good story and once I was hooked I couldn’t stop listening!!

Special thanks to Dreamscape Media and Netgalley for the ALC.

Reading Between the Wines book review #60/135 for 2022:
Rating: 3.5 🍷 🍷 🍷 1/2
Book 🎧: The Stepson
Author: Jane Renshaw
Genre: Mystery & Thrillers
Audio version RELEASES on August 9, 2022!!! Original release Dec, 2021.

Sipping thoughts: Imagine coming home and your father, little baby sister and stepmother have completely vanished. Nick was a teenager who came home and never saw his family again. Lulu, Nick’s wife, decided as a therapist she wanted to help Nick address the anxiety left by the disappearance of his family. This was a wild ride where you just may not know who is telling the truth. And the very ending was so good!

Cheers and thank you to @NetGalley and @DreamscapeMedia for an advance copy of @TheStepson.

#TheStepson #JaneRenshaw #DreamscapeMedia #NetGalley #advancedreadercopy #ARC #Kindle #Booksofinstagram #readersofinstagram #bookstagram #nicoles_bookcellar #bookworm #bookdragon #booknerd #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookaholic #bookreview #bookreviewer #IHaveNoShelfControl #ReadingBetweenTheWines #fiction #thriller #suspense #mystery #MysteryAndThrillers

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to listen and review The Stepson. I know this was released a while ago as a book and the audiobook is new.
I found the beginning to be a bit confusing with the back and forth but after a while it all started making sense.
I honestly enjoyed this audiobook. Quite a few surprises along the way. The ending was the best part! I did NOT expect that at all!

This book didn’t really captivate me or keep me interested. The accents on the audio were really throwing me off too. There is also a lot of repetition. I enjoyed the overall premise of the book and the blurb but it just fell flat for me.