This book started well, but with an entire cast of unlikeable characters, I found it difficult to warm to any of them!

A fast-paced and twisty read, this was an entertaining story that, although I had worked out the twist, was enjoyable nonetheless.

Thanks to Quercus books and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book.

I'm a great fan of this author's Frankie Sheehan series, so was looking forward to reading this new stand alone thriller.

It's a fun, complex, twisty, domestic mystery thriller, full of ambiguous characters all with their own secrets and lies.

Trust no one, believe nothing, question everything.

I'm not a huge fan of domestic thriller but I'm a huge fan of Olivia Kerson and I think she delivered a winner: darkly humorous, twisty, and gripping.
It made me think it's better not talk about money issues with people you don't know very well and insurance fraud can be tricky.
The posh setting and the characters are well described and I hated them all, loving the stories.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

The End of Us by Olivia Kiernan is a twisty psychological thriller that builds to an tense and unexpected climax.

Local GP Dr Myles Butler and his psychologist wife Lana live in an oversized house in an exclusive gated community near Wimbledon when a new couple moves into a vacant house. As they get to know each other, some information is shared which sets in motion a series of events that Myles could never have anticipated.

At the local practice, Myles has a great relationship with his patients, the practice receptionist and the practice owner Nathan, but a recently hired doctor is keen to make a good impression with Nathan which results in Myles feeling under pressure.

I thought The End of Us was maybe a little slow to begin with but it picked up nicely with a great plot and I could not wait to discover the ending.

Myles and Lana Butler: the local GP and his beautiful wife. The impression of a successful life must be maintained at all costs. The truth of the situation is that Lana's father has financially supported them in their move to Belvedere Court, alongside a mortgage which was always only just within reach. Then an investment suggested by their bank manager goes spectacularly wrong, leaving Myles in danger of losing the house and everything they own. His panic about Lana discovering their precarious position leads him to make some decidedly dodgy decisions - but none of these is a shadow of the proposition made to him at a dinner party with new neighbours Gabriel and Holly Wright.
A few weeks later, Gabe manages to secure admission for them all to a gala dinner - the perfect chance for Myles to network professionally in the hope of establishing some new contacts and potentially new opportunities. Lana never makes it home after the event, and from there on in life will never be the same for Myles - the pace picks up and quickly spirals out of his control. He is well and truly out of his depth. Can he manage to get both his work and personal life back under control or will the authorities in both cases get to the answers before him? Many of the characters are decidedly shady, and it really is a race against time which will determine the outcome for Myles.
This is an excellent storyline which will have you trying to work things out even when you don't have the book in your hand - whether it would be as easy to emulate a person's disappearance as easily as the book suggests, I'm not convinced but it does make for a cracking read!

3.5 stars.
Although it was quite easy to finish this book - I never had the feeling to quit - I found the premise of this book to be a little over the top for me and had my eyes rolling quite a few times.
We meet Myles and Lana Butler who have overstretched themselves financially to live on a new development in Wimbledon, in a house that is way too big for the two of them. They are only just making the mortgage repayments until one day they aren't. Myles not being a financial wizard and investing badly. But he keeps all this from Lana. Cue secrets and lies.
And then, one day, they have new neighbours - Gabriel and Holly Wright move in next door and the two couples strike up a good relationship. Sharing meals and getting to know each other.
Things tick along until the day Lana finds out their true financial position and it all comes out into the open and they share their fears with the Wrights. Who, coincidentally might have the solution... Life-Insurance fraud... Cue dysfunctional behaviour.
And so begins a bonkers, over the top, but well plotted, story that skirted plausibility and then obliterated it! My opinion only, so I will leave you to make up your own mind without spoilers.
I did guess quite a bit early which probably didn't help my overall enjoyment as I was denied a few "aha" moments which probably could have saved things.
But, on the flip side, it was deliciously bonkers and over the top and did keep me entertained. And it also did end well, to my satisfaction. Just the journey was a bit hit or miss.
Which is all a bit of a shame cos I absolutely LOVE this author's Frankie Sheehan series of books - which I will heartedly recommend. Definitely looking out for the next one of these.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

You might want to skip this one if you have trust issues. Just sayin’.

Myles and Lana are living the good life. Until Myles loses a lot of money in an investment gone horrendously wrong. They stand to lose everything, but neither one is bound to let that happen. After all, they deserve this life. Nothing less will do in the slightest. But surely there’s a line you don’t cross?

One evening while talking to their neighbours, Gabe and Holly Wright, the solution of Life Insurance fraud comes up. As it does. There are the beginnings of a plan, which the Wrights make sound incredibly easy, and obviously they will gladly help for a cut of the money. But nobody is serious, right? They’re not actually going to do this? Myles doesn’t think so. Until one evening, Lana doesn’t come home.

The story is told by Myles. I can’t say I particularly liked him, to be honest. For the most part, he seemed awfully entitled. It also becomes clear quite early on that he has no scruples whatsoever, doing whatever he feels is necessary to keep a handle on this nice life he and Lana have created. Despite finding himself in a situation he didn’t ask for, and dealing with things he wasn’t at all prepared for, I found it nearly impossible to muster up a smidgen of sympathy for him. In my mind, greed and overreaching is what put them in this situation in the first place.

In fact, none of the characters were all that likeable. Lana came across as rather toxic and manipulative to me, and I could never really get a solid grasp on Gabe and Holly. There’s an awful lot of backstabbing going on. Betrayal and deceit seem to lurk around every corner and nobody can be trusted. I didn’t think it was too hard to figure out at least some of what had occurred, but the bigger picture remained somewhat of a mystery to me until the reveal. And I still have a few questions, to be fair.

‘The End of Us‘ is a slow-burning, character-driven psychological thriller that shows how far people are willing to go to protect themselves, to survive. It’s a twisty and addictive tale full of intrigue and deception, which definitely takes “a cunning plan” to a whole new level. At its heart, there’s a moral dilemma that will make you wonder what you would do. I thoroughly enjoyed this suspenseful stand-alone by Olivia Kiernan and I very much look forward to whatever’s next.

Thank you for this arc. I was really couripus about what happened. I wanted to knoew and you cam not ger enough of the twisting story. Maybe the characters are not really your friends but they keep you gripped to the story.

This is a great psychological thriller that definitely kept me guessing.
As the blurb says, Myles and Lana are having financial difficulties but when their new neighbours suggest life insurance fraud, Myles doesn’t take them seriously.
Following a night out Lana goes home early and the next morning Myles is told she’s dead.
I can’t say much more as you need to see how the story unravels for yourself and there’s definitely a few surprises.
This is a slightly far fetched story but shows the lengths some people will go to to try and solve their problems.
If you like a fast paced story with lots of twists and turns, then this is one for you to read.
Thanks to Quercus Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

The start of this book was awesome. So many unlikeable characters that sometimes I think they influenced my rating. I found it hard to connect to them. I liked her writing style and the pace but sometimes the characters were too much for me.

Myles and Lana are a happy couple and they are living their best of lives. Or so it seems. Then Myles has a secret. One of his investments gone wrong and his job as a doctor is not paying as good as it used to be. So he managed to get them deep into depth and they are about to lose their house in an exclusive gated area. When Lana finally finds out she is furious. While they are thinking about what to do new neighbors arrive and it turns out Lana knows the husband, Gabe, from school. Soon they see each other for dinners. Over food and wine Myles and Lana tell them about their money problems. But Gabe has an unusual idea how to solve their problems. And nobody has do die, actually.

Here we have a story full of unlikeable characters. Myles, Lana, Gabe and his wife Holly are all unpleasant people. At first you can feel for Myles who cowardly hesitates to inform his wife that he lost all their savings and that they are way behind their mortgage repayments. You can see that he is afraid to lose everything including Lana. But as the story goes on he stumbles deeper and deeper into a tangled net of lies and fraud and even murder. It seems that his dark side has awaken and taken over his personality. The story is full of unexpected developments and dark twists. This was my first book from the author and I enjoyed it.

From the very first page of this book, I was stunned, mesmerised. Written with a ferocious passion that'll knock the wind out of you!
I’m so sad it's over. I could have read another sixty chapters . . . A fantastic read!

The End of Us is a phenomenal thriller from start to finish. Filled to the brim with twists and a captivating plot, this one is sure to keep readers hooked. The characters are well-developed. The story is incredibly fast-paced. This is one not to be missed! Highly recommended! Be sure to check out The End of Us asap.

Having very much enjoyed the Frankie Sheehan series of police procedurals, I was very much looking forward to this standalone by Olivia Kiernan, and it doesn't disappoint. The basic premise is fascinating, the principal characters gruesome and the twists and turns breathtaking. The novel is engaging from the start and the outcome hugely satisfying. Excellent!

A fun twisty domestic thriller. A slow burn story that slowly ramps up to a thrilling end. This is the first novel I've read by Olivia Kiernan and I'll definitely be going back for more.

I thought The Murder Box was her best yet, however I stand corrected as The End Of Us is (somehow) even better! I am so impressed with the plot, the cliffhanger, the pace and characters, I would give this a 10/10. Excellent.

A masterly thriller/domestic-noir which will show how far a seemingly “good” man will go to protect his position.

It was a bit of a slow-burner but soon ramped up the pace as back stories and motivation for the events were revealed; in particular the closing pages were breathtaking to the extent that initially I thought that there were more pages to follow. I do like a story that ends leaving the reader a tad unsure ….

Highly recommended and I’d like to thank both NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Appearances can be deceptive. Myles and Lana are a perfect couple. Beautiful house, loving relationship, excellent careers, not a care in the world. When new neighbours Holly and Gabe move in, friendship soon develops and confidences shared. Myles thought he could handle his secret without involving Lana, but she was too clever for him. Luckily Gabe and Holly could help, in their own special way!

I really enjoyed this book. Fast paced and edgy, a good thriller. The development of the Myles character was very good, who would have thought!

The characters were all pretty grim, with the possible exception of Daniel who got the pity vote.

There are lots of books of this genre, domestic plots, dodgy neighbours, houses with secrets, etc., some good others not so, but this is a good one. Story did get a bit muddy around the cabin plot line, but apart from that it was very good. And the last sentence of the book!!!

My first book by this author, but I shall definitely look for more. Do you think we have heard the last from Myles?

A dark, twisty thriller, I thoroughly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley.

3 and 1/2 stars
I enjoyed this. It is very gripping and fast paced, you can’t help but keep turning the pages quickly. There was not one likeable character but I suppose this was meant to be, I could feel no sympathy for Myles and Lana whatsoever and felt everyone really got what they deserved. Found myself guessing what was to come quite often but still an enjoyable, thrilling read. First book by this author and I will be seeking out her other work. Thank you to Netgalley and te publisher for this early copy.

The End of Us tells the story of Myles and Lana Butler, who move into an exclusive gated community in Wimbledon. It is the kind of place where neighbours take it in turn to host dinners and everyone knows everyone elses business. Myles is struggling financially and is close to losing their home; the couple discuss this with their neighbours and laugh about the possibility of committing insurance fraud. Then Lana disappears...

At first, I thought this was like every other story about a gated community, however it soon became clear that there was more to it. The premise was a new one to me and I enjoyed it way more than I thought I would. There were lies and deception and you're never quite sure who to trust; I loved it!

None of the characters were particularly likeable and their morals are pretty non-existent, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them.

My thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for sending me this ARC in return for an honest review.