Thank you Net Galley for the advanced copy of this audiobook. The narration of this story helps move it along. The added sound effects at times are odd. If you like Alice Feeney’s books this one will not disappoint and keep you engaged however, I did struggle with this one as characters didn’t get developed and the storyline is choppy. I really felt the ending was rushed and bread crumbs should have been dropped throughout the story. It comes out 1/14/25 and worth a pleasure read but don’t look for a dark thriller.

I listened to this advanced reader copy as an audiobook. The chapters are super short so it’s a great read if you tend to start and stop frequently.
The book was very drawn out that I found myself losing interest. There are two narrators that do help bring voices to the main character. The male narrator has a slight accent that is soothing/relaxing, but in a mystery/thriller I more connect when they can create drama and intrigue. I really enjoy reading thrillers, but I would not classify this book as a thriller. This book did not keep me engaged or guessing until the end. The final chapters finally picked up, but overall the book was very underwhelming.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Alice Feeny knows how to write a twisty-turny book that is suspenseful and entertaining! It will definitely appleal to her core fan base. The audiobook narrators did a great job, and I found them both pleasant. I appreciate the dual narration, but duet narration is my favorite! I would have preferred it here. I especially loved the added sound effects in this production like the water of the streams and the suspenseful music! It definitely added texture.

What I liked:
The pacing of the book is quick, the plot is intriguing, and the mystery is on brand. I was trying to guess the ending the whole way through! I started this book and was hooked from the very beginning. I was certainly engaged and entertained! The characters are relatable and their development is good.

What I didn’t like:
MYstery/Thriller readers want a chance to figure it out in the end. That’s the thrill of the thriller, the chase of the plot reveal. The unmasking of the bad guy. I love subtle foreshadowing and little crumbs embedded within the text that leaves me wondering and guessing at the big reveal. This book has that right up until the final chapters where, suddenly, everything you have been led to believe about the characters and the whole storyline is false. Plot twists and facts that the reader would not, could not, have been able to guess are dropped like bombs to the degree that I became frustrated. It was like they chopped the final chapters of a different book and glued them to the end here. There is a difference between a creative plot twist and gaslighting the reader. Readers want a book where they can have a chance at guessing it, not an ending that feels like a totally different story line altogether. Overall, this book was entertaining, clever, and a good story.
⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

Thank you, NetGalley, for the opportunity to review this ARC of Beautiful Ugly on Audio.

Alice Feeney's BEAUTIFUL UGLY is a brilliant novel, perfect for those who enjoy a pervasively creepy, ominous, psychological suspense story.

Author Grady Green is grappling with his wife's disappearance a year ago: on Abby's way home and on the phone with him, she sees a body lying on the road, gets out to help, and hasn't been spotted since. Her disappearance torments Grady, preventing him from sleeping or writing. Then, his agent offers him a unique and potentially life-changing opportunity to save his writing career: to live in a remote writing cabin on the isle of Amberley, previously inhabited by a much-loved and deceased author. But, despite the island's stunning beauty, something sinister is happening. After all, there is no phone or ferry service to the mainland, and Grady keeps seeing Abby everywhere.

With dual timelines and POVs, the characters gleamed with all their wacky, oddball behavior. Grady is the perfect unreliable narrator, as you lose all sense of whether he's seeing and hearing things or if they're real, which only increases as his insomnia and drinking affect his perception. The characters are interesting, and the book's atmosphere feels oppressive throughout. Numerous twists are leading up to the ultimate revelation of the truth.

The audiobook narrators, Richard Armitage and Tuppence Middleton, deserve special mention for their outstanding performance. The British and Scottish accents added an authentic touch to the characters, and their ability to convey depth and emotion made me feel as though I was right there with them. The sound effects, from the waves crashing to the crackle of walkie-talkies, added another layer of suspense, making the audiobook a truly immersive experience.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, NetGalley, and author Alice Feeney for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

Author Grady Green is having the most extreme day of his life. His book has made the NYT bestseller list. He had hoped his wife would be with him when he received the call, but she was driving home after picking up takeaway. He calls to share the news when she suddenly stops saying she found a woman laying across the road. He wants her to keep going, but she gets out of the car to help and then there is nothing. She vanishes.

A year later, he is still grieving and unable to work or think straight. He is losing everything. His agent offers a cabin that willed to her by another writer on a remote island in Scotland. With no other place to go, he accepts the offer, packing his few things and his dog and making his way to the ferry, To say this island is isolated is an understatement. There is no phone service, no regular ferry service, unreliable mail, and he was not allowed to bring his car on the island, No one will give a real answer to even the simplest of questions, To make his already tormented mind even worse, he sees a woman who looks just like his missing wife. What is happening here?

This story is told in two time lines and by dual POVs. It has the quirky feel of Twin Peaks and the questioned sanity of Gone Girl. Alice Feeney masterfully creates the sinister feel of the island and the intense peculiarity of it inhabitants. This is an original, tense and twisty tale that has the reader feeling the panic and desperation of Grady.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ALC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy of this audiobook.

Author Grady Green has just received exciting news and calls his wife on her drive home from work to share it with her. While on the phone, she comes across a person lying in the road, and stops and gets out of the car to help them, but she is never to be heard from again. After a year of grief and misery, Grady’s life is in shambles, and he needs to start writing again to be able to support himself. He heads to a remote Scottish island in the hopes of finding his muse, but instead finds a woman who is the spitting image of his missing wife.

This book was, in a word… INSANE! There were so many twists and turns, one of which actually made me gasp out loud, and I felt as though it was impossible to predict what would happen next. The remote Scottish island was the perfect setting for this dark and eerie tale which kept me at the edge of my seat in anticipation.

The characters were creepy, and I mean that in the best way. Each and every person was suspicious and seedy, and so incredibly untrustworthy that sometimes it would send shivers down my spine. I should have known I was in for quite a ride when Grady and his wife used “I hope you die in your sleep” as a way to tell each other I love you, but really I could never have imagined how crazy the journey would be.

I am someone who tends to flip back and forth between a print/electronic book and listen to an audiobook only when I’m on the move, so this is my first cover to cover exclusive audiobook read, and I was excited to try it. While listening to the book gave it the feeling of a movie, I did miss not being able to see the printed names of characters and places, and also having the opportunity to highlight my favorite quotes and phrases throughout. I definitely see myself purchasing the Kindle version when it is released. As far as the quality of this audiobook, I felt that both of the actors for this version of the book were excellent. Their voices, while strong and pleasant to listen to, also lended themselves well to the mysterious and sinister nature of the story. Additionally, scattered throughout were sound effects and musical interludes that really added to the experience.

This is only my second book by Alice Feeney, and I have enjoyed them both. If you are looking for a book that will have your heart pounding and your brain on overdrive, then this is the one for you.


**4.5 stars rounded down to 4

This book definitely lives up to the hype! It features an engaging audio experience that immerses you fully in the story. The narration captivated me and heightened the thrill of the experience. The narrator was exceptional, and the added sound effects—like water, footsteps, and phone calls—intensified the suspense. Throughout the book, I found myself questioning whether Grady was truly crazy, as I felt a bit disoriented myself. But baby the twist was something!! I didn't even expected it at all! Because WTF!! I highly recommend listening to this book; it was a thrilling ride from beginning to end!

Than you for this ARC! This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and it did not disappoint. I did not want to stop listening. Great domestic thriller, good twists, good audiobook narration.

Thank you to the author, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the advanced listeners copy of Beautiful Ugly! The audio experience was absolutely amazing! I loved the narrators and the sound mixing for this audiobook. It was a great book to listen to, and for that reason, I would recommend this book to thriller readers. The book itself was enjoyable, but also lacked in some areas for me. I had a hard time connecting to any of the characters, and the last 25% of the book seemed rushed and incomplete. I always look forward to the twists in Feeney's novels, but this one seemed a little underwhelming to me!

This was spooky and fantastic! Author Grady Green is at rock bottom after the traumatic disappearance of this wife. When his publisher suggests he utilize a cabin on a remote Scottish island that was the location of a popular author writing a bunch of bestsellers, he decides to give it a try. But of course, nothing is as it seems.
Alice Feeney is the queen of 'wtf is going on'. I said 'wait, what???' no less than 5 times and had to listen to some of the last chapters a few times to wrap my head around everything. This was a slower paced mystery, but I felt that added to the scary and tense atmosphere. It definitely didn't make me want to go to any remote islands anytime soon.
The narration is excellent and I highly recommend enjoying Beautiful Ugly that way. Richard Armitage is soo good!
Thank you Macmillan Audio for the copy through NetGalley!

Thank you Macmillan Audio, Alice Feeney, and NetGalley for the audio copy of Beautiful Ugly.

I didn’t know what to think when I started this one but I was hooked from the start. I thought I had an idea where it was going and then those twists made my jaw hit the floor. Great book!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing an audio ARC for review.

I don’t know how to feel about this one. The plot requires a huge suspension of disbelief from the reader. Almost none of the characters, other than Columbo, are likeable. As the relationship between Abby and Grady is revealed, it becomes less and less clear what these two enjoyed about each other. They seem incapable of communication. The chapters from Abby’s perspective destabilize Grady as a reliable historian, but also, I dislike Abby’s character and motivations. Getting mad at your husband for being consistent and clear about not wanting children and then weaponizing his trauma when you don’t get your way is an ugly and cruel thing to do. There’s a lot about Grady that I don’t agree with either, but the ending of the book feels insane. I think the author was hoping to create a plot similar to Midsommar, but by focusing on Grady as the primary protagonist, he was inadvertently more sympathetic than Abby. To be clear, they are both selfish people with a penchant for abject cruelty, but the ending still did not feel justified. I found myself very confused by the ending as well. It was startling, but once the shock wore off, I don’t understand the logistics of why the ending played out this way; it directly contradicts earlier plot points.

Admittedly, I also don’t understand Alice Feeney’s motivations behind this plot either. I understand that the island is meant to be a utopia for the women on it, and the island is a close-knit community of battered women that support each other. However, the emotions around pushing out men entirely from the community came across as deeply unhinged. The book started to make social commentary, but I don’t think this was handled well. Instead of saying anything new or pushing any boundaries, this utopia came across as a cult. I found myself wondering if she was trying to make a feminist message and did it badly, or if she was creating a strawman community of misandrists as a critique against the feminist movement. I still don’t know what exactly the author was trying to accomplish, and I don’t think the lack of clarity in the writing is on purpose.

What I did enjoy was the horror and mystery elements. There are points where Grady is questioning his sanity as life on the island descends into chaos, and these moments are genuinely eerie. The sound design in the audiobook is also immaculate and contributes to the scariness of the story tremendously. I also feel the narrators were excellent.

I did enjoy listening to this book, and I think that is largely due to the skill of the narration and audio editing teams. If you are looking for a book that holds up beyond surface-level scrutiny, I would not recommend this.

I am so torn about this book. It did a bunch of things that seemed so make me roll my eyes at the improbability of it all and the writing of those improbable situations was a little too superficial for me. With all the love in my heart, it read very BookTok. But the storyline was something I had not ever read. So brava for original content, meh for delivery. A three star or four star? A clicked both a million times. 3.5 stars

I would like to very formally thank Ms. Alice Feeney for giving me my first read of 2025 and my first FIVE STAR rating! You mark my words, this will be one of my top reads of the year... and I finished it on January 7th.

If you are an audiobook person, or have maybe wanted to dabble in audiobooks, but don’t know where to start... THIS IS THE ONE.

Just a few of the things I absolutely LOVED about Beautiful Ugly:
• Dual POV with sound effects to let you know when the timeline/narrator is changing
• Fully immersive sound, when the MCs hear church bells, you hear church bells
• Impeccably voiced by actual film and TV actors, Richard Armitage and Tuppence Middleton
• Extremely atmospheric, mostly set on a tiny Scottish isle
• Locked room vibes without an actual locked room
• Absolutely WILD plot twists, my jaw was on the floor; I even had to take notes so I can remember all of the unhinged things I want to say at book club next week (my favorite note, in all caps, italic, and red font: “WAIT WHAT???”)

This is a book I wish I could forget complete so I could listen to it again. If this is on your TBR, bump it up to the top... and if it’s not, add it now! This was a highly anticipated release for me and it FULLY exceeded my expectations.

A huge thank you to Macmillan Audio + NetGalley for gifting me this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Dear Beautiful Ugly,
For my last finished book of the year, you were a really good thriller! You had my jaw dropping more than once while I was listening to you! I wasn't sure what I could believe, what was hallucinations and what was real. You kept me thinking and I have already suggested you to at least two people. Part locked room mystery and part missing person mystery, I kept thinking about you even when I wasn't listening to you.

I absolutely devoured this book. I was taken with the mystery. I was shocked at the twist and yet it all made perfect sense..

I highly recommend this novel. I think it may well be Alice Feeney's best book yet. I'm a fan.

I cant wait for what comes next.

“Beautiful Ugly” surprised me a couple of times with unexpected twists! The plot was somewhat far fetched - I can’t imagine agreeing to go to a remote island with no access to phones or internet as an author. The characters were kind of fun and I’m digging the idea of a “no men allowed” community. 😂 I’d call this a 3.5 star book, but Goodreads won’t let me do 1/2s. As an audiobook, this was an quick, good listen. I always like dual narrators and both narrators had lovely voices to listen to.

***I received this audiobook through NetGalley for an honest review.

(Rounded up from 2.5)

Popcorn read, but not in the dynamic quality "popcorn" of Demi Moore's recent Golden Globe speech. While any book by Alice Feeney isn't going to be rated lowest of the low, this one is my least favorite I've read of hers--some others have required suspended disbelief but were still an enjoyable ride. This one was less a ride and more of a trudge for me. There are multiple narrators for the audiobook and more production involved than "standard" books. I appreciated the production (sea sounds, walkie-talkie cracklings) as they added some eeriness to the storyline, but the narrators were not top-notch, IMO, and dragged down the already bogged storyline for me. Honestly, this book felt less Feeney-quality and more TikTok Booktok fare. I'll still look forward to more Rock, Paper, Scissors and Daisy Darker level Feeney books in the future, but sadly this plot(hole) title just wasn't it for me*. I do appreciate the reach-out to give the audiobook a try as I did have this one on my TBR upon its publication!

My thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to preview this title in exchange for my honest opinion.

*I see that I'm not in the majority on this opinion, and I'm okay with that. :)

Alice, girl, you crazy!!! This book is not quite as ridiculous as Daisy Darker, but it's still asking the reader to suspend a ton of disbelief. I found the writing less cringe than Good Bad Girl and His & Hers, although I think some credit for this goes to the audiobook narrators (and it was NOT necessary for Alice to actually incorporate her chapter titles into the dialogue of each chapter). Unfortunately I've gotten familiar enough with Alice's tricky ways that I guessed the primary twist almost immediately, though as with all her books there are plenty of extra twists to go around. Overall very atomospheric and suspenseful and I thought the pacing was solid. 2.5 rounded up because I really couldn't put this down.

Wow wow wow. This book!! Twisty, red herrings, unreliable narrator, good ending. Perfect thriller! Loved it! I listened on audio and loved the narrator as well. So good!