Dear Flynn Berry: Please keep writing! I love your books! I believe that there is a special niche for writers like you: Smart fiction with the most beautifully crafted sentences that also make me hold my breath and tense my shoulders. "Trust Her" is no exception and I've just devoured in almost one sitting.

Seriously... as an avid reader of all kinds of fiction but.a lover of all kinds of thrillers I find that lately there are so many writers cranking out really formulaic stories with zero character development. And twists that are so over the top they are cringy. So when an author comes along that keeps you absolutely glued to the story AND develops characters that you find yourself completely attached to AND writes descriptive passages that you read and reread because they are achingly. beautiful... well that is something rare and worth reading!

"Trust Her" is a follow on to Berry's last book "The Northern Spy" and while you can read it as a stand alone I would recommend reading "The Norther Spy" first because it is a fantastic book and you will understand some of the relationships in "Trust Her" so much better.

It is a story about two sisters from Belfast who, after becoming entangled with the IRA turn to become informers and are forced to flee to Dublin to start over with new identities. "Trust Her" picks up three years after they have moved to Dublin and are focused on living normal lives and raising their families all the while looking over their shoulders and triple locking their doors and windows at night. They are found by the IRA and are forced to make devastating choices to ensure their own safety and that of their families. It is a story about love and survival and just how far we will go to protect those we love.

Many thanks to Flynn Berry, Netgally and Viking Press for this Advanced Copy in exchange for my honest review.

Well, first I have to say that I had no idea that this book was the sequel to Northern Spy, Berry's previous book.
I read Nothern Spy 2 or 3 years ago, loved it and when I saw that Flynn Berry had a new book coming up, I just requested it. I haven't even read the synopsis, so imagine my surprise when I noticed Trust Her was actually a sequel to Nothern Spy!
In this new book we keep following the sisters Tessa and Marian, a few years later. Their dynamic is a little different this time and the complications of one sister's past are more serious and life-threatening now.
Even though I did like to spend more time following the sisters' routines with their kids, you know..being a mom and trying to live a simple and honest life, I also felt like the author wasted a little time doing that instead of exploring more the potential of the politics and how high the stakes were this time. I mean, this is a short book, in my opinion, and there were so many topics to be adressed insuch a short book.
Also, maybe because I already know the characters, the setting and their environment, I guess this book didn't impress me as much as the previous one.
I did really enjoy this one and I definitely recommend it to readers who've read Northern Spy and enjoyed it.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for providing me with a free eARC of this novel.

Let me start off by saying that I had no idea this book was coming out. I read the first book when it originally was released and I found it so intriguing and really enjoyed reading it.

This book really blew me away for some reason. I could not put it down. I had forgotten some of the plot points in the original story but this book did help fill in some of the pieces that I couldn’t remember. I also liked how at the end some of the truth to the stories in the first book were revealed.

Also, I was kind of shocked at who Eammon turned out to be, but I did get a vibe that something about him didn’t add up after the ending of the original book.

One thing that I did find strange- why were Marian and Tessa’s new identities never revealed to the reader? I kept wondering if their new names were ever going to be told and was kind of disappointed that they weren’t for some reason. I suppose it makes sense though because the reader knows their true identities.

Either way, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it even if you hadn’t read the first, I feel like enough of the original story is told through this book that a reader would not be lost.

A well written book , full of believable family members. I was interested in the IRA/nationalist conflicts and the Troubles. This seems to be a well researched book.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Trust Her
by Flynn Berry
Pub Date: June 25, 2024
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Three years after they narrowly escaped the IRA's worst punishment for informing, Northern Irish sisters Tessa and Marian Daly have built a new life in Dublin with their young children. Though Tessa is haunted by the abrupt and violent end to her old life, she does her best to immerse herself in the joys of Finn's childhood and the rhythms of her new job at the Irish Observer.
Readers of mystery thrillers of all kinds will revel in this start-to-finish pressure cooker, including readers of procedural crime stories, such as those written by Michael Connelly. Even readers of certain non-fiction books, such as Schindler’s List, will likely be entranced by this story, which is clearly well-researched, for historical accuracy as well for details relevant to locale and culture.

This long-awaited sequel to “Northern Spy” did not disappoint. Tessa and her sister Marian are back but living a new life out of the IRA. Tessa is attacked by old IRA enemies who ask her to compromise her old MI-5 handler. The same tension present in Flynn Berry’s last book is still here. With twists and turns and some unexpected revelations, this book is a must-read for any Flynn Berry fan. Highly recommend!

Trust Her picks up where Northern Spy left off, featuring Irish sisters Tessa and Marian and their entanglement with the IRA. This story, although a very suspenseful book, adds a dimension of what a mother's love looks like, and the unique and special love between sisters.

Some time has elapsed since the end of Northern Spy, and the sisters are settled in Ireland with new identities and children. But their peaceful lives don't last long...

Flynn does a great job of keeping readers on the edge of their seats to find out how the sisters will get Tessa out of a sticky situation, especially when no choice is a good choice! This book was nice and twisty, with some I did NOT see coming! (Which is hard to do since I read so many suspense books!)

This was a fun book, and I definitely enjoyed it!

This is a sequel to NORTHERN SPY but stands alone just fine. Once again Berry delivers a fascinating exploration of women’s involvement in the IRA and the subsequent impact on families, neighborhoods, and entire communities, packed in a riveting spy story.

Wow! I loved this! I couldn’t put it down and read during every free second I could spare. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Trust Her
By Flynn Berry

Release Date: June 25, 2024

Themes:
🤫 Secrets
🇮🇪 Irish
🪧 Political Unrest

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

"Trust Her" by Flynn Berry immerses readers in the picturesque landscapes of Ireland while exploring political themes and violence throughout its narrative.

The first half of the book was slow and very dialogue-heavy, but persistence paid off as the story gains momentum in its latter half. Berry adeptly weaves a tapestry of suspense, captivating audiences with multifaceted characters and unforeseen plot developments.

Overall, "Trust Her" offers a compelling blend of atmospheric setting, intricate characterizations, and gripping storytelling, all within a framework of political intrigue and Irish history.

Thank you to Penguin Random House and @netgalley for the #ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Wonderful follow up to Northern Spy, although the twisty ending turns some of that novel on its head , making me wish I had reread it before delving into this one. Flynn Berry does a wonderful job providing the sense of lace and time, as well as the anxiety and tension related to the events affecting these sisters turned British informers against the IRA.

It has been a bit of time since the Daly sisters escaped and made new identities. But the IRA is tenacious.

The women are settled in the Republic of Ireland, raising children and trying to move on.

When Tessa is kidnapped in order to get Mairan to turn her British handler, things get tense.

The suspense in this one was done so well. A very satisfying end.


NetGalley/ Penguin Group/ Viking June 25, 2024

"Marian pointed out that mam was not, in fact, a widow, and she said, 'There's no word for what I am.'"

I've been wanting to read one of Flynn Berry's novels since she came out with "Under the Harrow" and finally got my chance when I scored a digital copy of #trusther from #netgalley (thank you). I was not disappointed. I realized after the fact that it's a sequel to an earlier novel, "Northern Spy", which was a tad disappointing, because I would've liked to start at the beginning of Marian and Tessa's stories. Still, I was enthralled by this book, and the places Tessa and Marian find themselves. Tessa's love for Finn was palpable, and such a driving force for her. Loyal is at the heart of this book - loyalty to country, to kin, and to ourselves. And it's not always clear, or black and white. Highly, highly recommend.

I really enjoyed this book. The story was follows her first book Northern Spy, which would recommend reading first, but I think can even be read as a stand alone. The characters were well thought out. The plot was intriguing and the story was suspenseful. I don't know a lot about the political history of Ireland, but I did not have trouble following the story, the author did a great job.

Flynn Berry is back with another thriller set amid The Troubles. Trust Her picks up where Northern Spy left off, featuring Irish sisters Tessa and Marian and their entanglement with the IRA.

Some time has elapsed since the two escaped IRA militants determined to punish Marian's work as an informer. With new identities, the sisters are settled in the Republic of Ireland, raising their children and working.

But their peace is not destined to last. Militants find Tessa, kidnap her, and want her to turn Marian's handler with British security into an IRA informer.

Flynn deftly captures the sisters' panic at being caught in yet another trap where all the choices seem equally bad. I had to put the book down a few times to let my heart rate return to normal.

The twists are well executed – I didn't see them coming, but they made absolute sense.

I love it when you close a book and think, "That ending was perfect."


*I received an early review copy from NetGalley.

This book is the follow-up of NORTHERN SPY, which details two sisters, Tessa, and Marian, escaping Northern Ireland because they started informing for the IRA.

Three years later and both sisters are settled in Dublin, living ordinary lives. But when the past comes calling, they're thrust back into the conflict without any choice in the matter. Tessa must navigate her IRA contact, her MI5 handler, and make sure she tells no one what she's up to--her family's life depends on it.

I love Flynn Berry's books. They're always well written and keep me on the edge of my seat, and this one was no exception. I also learn a lot about Ireland and Northern Ireland in the process. The action sequences were captivating, but what I love most about Berry's writing is her portrayal of motherhood. Every time she writes it into her characters, it feels extremely relatable. I think this is what pushes her from "thriller writer" to "must-buy" writer for me.

I really liked this book. For a thriller, it kept me turning pages until the very end. Don’t miss out on this one.

This was a moving story about two sisters, living under assumed names being forced to work for the IRA. It was both an ordinary story of how life goes on and a tense thriller, one where the possibility of death , arrest seemed imminent. It was very well written. I didn't read the first book but now will go back and read that one. It would have been helpful to understand more about the conflict in Ireland to get the full impact

REALLY good. It is definitely a sequel to Northern Spy, but it’s been 3-4 years since I read that one and it worked as a standalone since I really didn’t remember much about NS (except that I loved it). The author has a way of really drawing you into the characters in a short span of pages and hooking you until the end.

Flynn Berry's new novel, Trust Her, continues the story of sisters Tessa and Marian Daly, three years after the events of Northern Spy. The sisters are now living in Dublin - Tessa with her son Finn, and Marian with her husband and baby daughter - having escaped the IRA and leaving their old lives in Northern Ireland behind. But time and distance doesn't mean they, or their loved ones, are safe from their pasts. Berry again excels at melding history and fiction, creating suspense and tension that simmers to an explosive boiling point. While not strictly necessary to read Northern Spy first, I do think having read it before enhanced my reading experience with Trust Her.