THE HOLIDAY is a is a gripping psychological thriller by international bestseller author, John Nicholl. After having read all his novels, which include The Dr. David Galbraith series, The DI Gravel series and his standalone psychological thrillers…this novel is another winner! The author has written books, each dealing with different issues, drawing on his experience as police officer and child protection social worker.

His Standalone Novels Include:
The Cop (2019) aka The Girl in Red
The Student (2019) aka The Girl in White
Mr Nice (2020)
The Sisters (2020) aka The Sisterhood
The Victim (2021) aka Killing Evil
The Cellar (2022)
The Bride (2023)
The Holiday (2024)

This is my review of The Holiday.

Suzie Reynolds observes as a beautiful woman, in her late twenties, boards the plane on an economy flight. Suzie felt inferior to this attractive sexy woman, as she took the seat next to the couple on the other side of the aisle. Suzie’s husband, George couldn’t stop staring.

George had many flaws…but Suzie and George were taking a week holiday in the Canary Islands, to celebrate their second-year wedding anniversary…but so much had changed in two years. He had hurt her by his infidelity and gambling issues.

George, who worked at a local gym, complained that Suzie was difficult to live with, but she had money, and that was his reason to continue with the relationship. Suzie kept her money separate, and would not agree to a joint account until George had paid off his debt.

Suzie worked at a bank and came from a religious family-Catholic. She believed that marriage was sacred and did not believe in divorce. She felt this holiday would make things right and allow their marriage to heal, and hoped to try for another baby, after her many miscarriages.

But this holiday turned out to be a nightmare…where nobody is safe…

This was a well written psychological thriller with unlikeable well-developed characters and an intriguing plot. Slightly predictable ending but nevertheless a highly interesting read.

Many thanks to the author, Boldwood Books and Netgalley for my digital copy.

I've just finished this book (after starting it today) and I must admit to guessing how it would end, but not to Suzie. The character of George reminded me of my ex so I found him completely obnoxious and was on team Suzie, hating the way he acted towards her. The plot keeps you guessing and, though sometimes seeming slow, is fast enough that I read it in one sitting

Wow! My first John Nicholl novel but definitely not my last! This hooked me early on and did not let up until the very end. The characters were fantastic and kept me flipping pages long into the night. I have whiplash from trying to decide who to trust! Super great creep factor! Really enjoyed it.
Thank you NetGalley, John Nicholl and Boldwood Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I found that I really didn’t like the characters in this book but I think for me that’s what made it more enjoyable! I found Suzie irritating and I kept wanting her to stop burying her head in the sand, and I thought that George was so selfish and full of himself. Suzie and George are on their way to Tenerife to try to recover their broken relationship when Suzie realises that her womaniser of a husband can’t take his eyes off the beautiful woman sitting near them. . Although whilst reading it you feel it’s all a bit too predictable, you just know that everything is not how it seems. There’s absolutely no way of knowing how it’s all going to end. A great twisty read that has a dark side. Thank you to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for the ARC

I actually did finish this book but it was hard work . Nothing particularly happened on the holiday and I thought things would really heat up when they got back but it was still a bit slow . It didn’t have any surprises as I’d guessed who was behind it . Wasn’t really exciting enough for me , sorry

Do you know that annoying couple that always fighting in public places? And you secretly want to ease-drop?

Well, that's Suzie and George in this book. The characters are predictable but they are very entertaining. You know what's going to happen but these two unserious people are arguing the entire time. I love this book for the same reason I like to watch The White Lotus hotel. Thanks for the advance review copy.

I was immediately drawn into the characters.There were so many twists and turns I hated having to put the book down.An author I will be following.#netgalley #boldwoodbooks.

Suzie and George are such annoying characters, constantly bickering and thinking the worst of one another. George is only interested in Suzie's money but she takes advice from her father constantly and won't pay his debts or share with him.
I enjoyed the book after the first few pages though. The bickering made it difficult for me to get into it but it was worth the initial slog.
I did find it a bit predictable but still enjoyable.
Thanks John for another great read

As I board the plane, all I can feel is hope and excitement. One whole week away. Just me and the man I promised to be with forever. Time to repair what has been broken. Maybe even try for another baby, and pray that this time it doesn't end heartbreakingly. I just need not to think about what George has done. He's my husband. And this is the holiday where we make things right. But then I realise that he can't take his eyes off the beautiful woman who's just boarded the plane in front of me.

George is married to Suzie. Suzie loves George, but George doesn't love Suzie. George isn't a nice character, he loves himself, and thinks that all the women love him. In fact, all of the characters are dreadful. Suzie isn't perfect either. She treats George more like her child than her husband. She had won money on premium bonds, and as George is a gambling addict and has debts, she won't let him have any of her win.

This is another fantastic read. There are twists and red herrings along the way. It's descriptively written. I kind of knew where this story was going, but I still loved it.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks and the author #JohnNicholl for my ARC of #TheHoliday in exchange for an honest review.

A quick read by an author new to me. Whilst the premise wasn’t new, the characters were interesting and quite unlikeable!’

Having read and thoroughly enjoyed all John’s books, I was keen to get my hands on this new standalone tale, and it did not disappoint! From the off, there is an uncomfortable tension and disquiet that runs throughout the book. I found both Suzie and George to be utterly dislikeable characters, both unhappy in their marriage but neither willing to walk away – one for religious reasons and the other, purely, and simply for monetary reasons…

We then meet the glamourous and mysterious Amelia, although she initially seems less repugnant than Suzie and George, she is not a likeable addition. I really must take my hat off to John for managing to create a trio of magnificently dreadful characters – I expect this was not easy. The book is well written, and the story flows seamlessly, giving us chapters from both Suzie and George that really let you get to know them, their personalities, and their reasoning. I did guess where the tale was heading - this didn’t spoil anything, and the ending was excellent. All in all, another superb read from this talented and brave author, very highly recommended.

George and Suzie are headed to Tenerife on what should be a wonderful vacation--Suzie's just won the lottery, and they're practically newlyweds. But tensions are running high--Suzie accuses George of being unfaithful and George is angry that Suzie won't share her winnings. Perhaps this won't be a blissful getaway after all.

Although I've read and enjoyed other John Nicholl books, this one did not work for me, and I wasn't able to finish it. The characters were unrelenting awful, and I just didn't enjoy reading about them or care what happened to them. From other reviews, it sounds like the story is a good one, if you're able to get past the character issue.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Netgalley and Boldwood books for this arc. Suzie and George go away on holiday thinking they can save their marriage. It is a disaster. I didn't like Suzie's character as she is unable to make a decision without consulting with her father and getting the blessing from him and church. It brought up being Catholic, faith, confession...and many other things I don't like being brought up in my books. If it has a religious theme to the book it should be spelled out which it wasn't in this one.

George was a cheater and a user and Suzie wasn't a strong woman to stand on her own. George treated her poorly and she stuck by her man because of marriage vows. This just didn't sit well well with me and I didn't enjoy this book. Now, if Amelia and Suzie would have joined forces and taken him out then I could have cheered and enjoyed it.

Suzie see's her holiday to Tenerife as a way to rebuild her relationship with husband George, she believes her good, strong Catholic faith will help her.
George has other idea's his love of drink, gambling and other women have gotten him into trouble and he has no interest in Suzie only her money.
The holiday changes everyting but not in a way anyone could imagine.
Throughly enjoyed reading this book which was well written with a lot of twists and turns. The characters are each in there own way irritating terrible people but all that add to the tension that builds to the unexpected ending.

I loved everything about this book. This was a quick read.. I couldn’t put it down as I couldn’t wait to see what happens. I wasn’t at all disappointed, along with a fantastic ending. This is what I call a page turner, with its exciting twists and turns all the way through. The characters were great, the story was suspenseful and the style of writing was perfect. As I live right by where it’s set in Wales and being a fluent Welsh speaker myself this made it ever so special for me.
I have read many books by this author and I have enjoyed them all. I’m looking forward for when the next book comes out.
I would highly recommend this book and this author to anyone who likes reading psychological thrillers.
Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a honest review.

Suzie is hoping her holiday with husband, George, will fix the problems they’ve been having. However, things get off to a bad start on the plane when it seems George can’t take his eyes off another woman. This sets of a dire series of events.

My biggest problem here was that the characters were so unlikeable. I’m sure Nicholl did this on purpose to make them unsympathetic but it was to a point I didn’t really enjoy their narration at all. I especially don’t like the way he wrote Suzie.

This book was instantly full of excitement for me and the twists and turns helped to keep that excitement throughout.

I wanted to enjoy this novel as the plot sounded gripping and the cover was fab but the one-dimensional characters were tired caricatures and it ruined the book for me. The tired saintly wife, the oafish, drunken lying husband, a controlling misogynist father and a deranged femme fatale. It made what could've been a complex thriller eye-rollingly boring.

A great book from the beginning until the ending, I was hooked as usual and it was a twisty read.

I didn't particularly like any of the characters, perhaps Amelia but I felt like banging all their heads together. The one I liked most was the Detective, he didn't really appear until nearly the end but I hope we hear more from him in the future. As I have read all books from this author I could definitely see the likeness to a Detective from previous books.

Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book and thanks to Netgalley and Boldwood Books for this ARC which I have no hesitation in recommending.

The tale of a toxic relationship where a couple head to Tenerife in an attempt to get their marriage back on track. This novel is quite fast paced and has some twists thrown in for good measure. It’s well written and had me hooked to the end. Thank you to NetGalley, Boldwood Books and the author for the chance to review.