Beth is delighted when her daughter returns home but she brings her new husband Luke. And Luke used to be married to Beth...
The Son-In-Law is a psychological thriller and family drama set in Wales.
OK so to clarify the family situation. Beth is 50 and her daughter is in her early 20s. Beth's first husband and Cerys' dad died a decade ago. Beth was briefly married to Luke who is her age but the marriage colapsed after he repeatedly cheated on her. Luke and Cerys never met as she was travelling abroad but I really struggled to believe that neither of them had ever seen photos of each other. Now Cerys and Luke are married and expecting a baby.
Although it isn't incest, there is a decided 'ick' factor involved for me imagining this scenario. Luke is someone who I instantly loved to hate and the way he moved from mother to daughter was a bit gross. Besides this complicated threeway relationship, the opening chapter hints at other secrets that will be revealed.
The book is written from the alternating first person perspectives of both Beth and Cerys. Both women's voices were clearly defined and it was easy to get into their heads to understand their thoughts and feelings. They are both determined and strong women which makes it even more surprising that either of them would have looked twice at Luke!
The situation is tense from the start and being thrown together on the remote Welsh farm isn't enjoyable for any of the trio. Luke seems to thrive on pushing the boundaries at every turn while Beth and Cerys want to appease each other but still get their own way. I was gripped by the plot and characters and found myself reading faster and faster to see how events would play out.
The Son-In-Law is a tense and gripping psychological thriller.

I love this author, so even though the premise of this book was weird, I decided to give it a chance anyway. I typically can suspend belief when it comes to books, but this was too outlandish to even imagine. It took me months to finish this book. I did want to know what would happen at the end, hence me finishing it. It was very hard to connect to these characters or the storyline. I felt as though the characters didn't have much depth, and it took until about halfway through for me to even remotely know what the ending was going to be.

Thank you NetGalley and Joffe Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

What do you do when your ex husband marries your daughter?
I found this book to be a bit overly dramatic but also really good at the same time.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Son in Law by Jane E. James in exchange for my honest review and opinion. OMG this book is something else! Crazy story line but drew me in from page one and kept me hooked until the very ending. Loved it!

I wasn’t sure this would play out well. But I was wrong. So many oooof I never saw THAT coming moments. You’ll love some characters, misjudge others and despise most of them…… a must in all good books!

The story line intrigued me, a daughter marrying her mother's ex-husband!!! It was definitely unhinged, enjoyed thoroughly!

This book was different from anything I've ever read. The storyline was very unique and interesting. It started with a girl who married her moms ex husband. Like honestly I've never seen that done!! The characters draw you in and just makes you want to know where it will go wrong. The end had so many twists to the story I didn't want it to end.

I went to read this book and it was just a glossary of words for U.S. readers. I am going to read it on Kindle Unlimited and once I've finished I'll update my review.

A daughter marrying her mother’s ex husband!?!? Yes I need to know what is going on!! Definitely drawn in. The book kept me extremely entertained, even if some things were unbelievable. I really enjoyed. Thank you for that arc

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. The description of this book was crazy and I had to read it. The story started out strong but then started to fall flat. Overall an okay read

Hooked from the start. There are so many secrets in this book and each one comes out with great pace. Very enjoyable read.

The book was okey . I was interested at first, however I quickly lost interest in the book , I was not able continue to read . However I think it might be a light read.

This book was just ok. I definitely wouldn't call it a thriller. I called everything pretty early on and I'm not good at predicting things in books so that says a lot. Everything leading up to the twist was really boring. I was super invested at first but it just felt long and dragged out most of the way through which led to quite a bit of skimming.

I don't think I would recommend to this anyone. If wasn't really worth reading it in the end.

Thanks to Joffe and Netgalley for an ARC!

This was ok. I knew from. The very beginning that Beth made Owen kill himself. And I also knew they took the baby as well that and that the other lady didn't run away but was killed.

A daughter marries her mothers ex-husband...
Lots of twists told from 2 POV
Good thriller set at a good pace

Phenomenal read! Had me guessing until the end! Jane E James is a very talented author and can’t wait to read more!

I thought the beginning was great but then it was just rambling on and on. There were a great amount of twists but nothing really led an important piece of the plot. I feel like someone turned in their draft and it was used.

Not a bad book…interesting dynamic with daughter marrying her mothers ex husband. It continues on with some unreal naivety on the daughters part, then a lot of twists that I didn’t anticipate. Told demo 2 points of view, I thought there was too much of them self assessing during the chapters and found myself skimming a lot near the end.

"The Son-In-Law" immerses readers in a dark and surprising psychological thriller, unveiling the hidden depths of human nature.

Cerys's marriage to Luke, her mother Beth's ex-husband, sets the stage for a tumultuous family dynamic. Living in close quarters with Beth, tensions rise as long-buried secrets and true identities come to the forefront.

As the intricate web of the story unfolds, it raises numerous questions and delivers unexpected, often shocking revelations. While some secrets are unraveled along the way, the ultimate revelation leaves readers gasping in disbelief.

With a compelling narrative that keeps readers on edge, "The Son-In-Law" delves into the complexities of human behavior and the chilling surprises that lurk beneath the surface.

Actually 2,5 stars.

This is the first time I read something by Jane E. James and I think I will read some more of her since this one was an okey read.

At first I had a problem with the relationship between S-I-L and M-I-L but after a while I ignore it because it felt like I would DNF it.

Despite the twists during the story it went a bit too slow for me to finish it which was sad since I had high hopes for it.