Yes, I liked the ending. Some super twists that had me gasping but everything before that was just okay.
Good premise. Great writing. But I didn't really like any of the characters. Just didn't connect to them.
A decent thriller read with lots of psychopathic nuggets of information to make my brain happy.

I felt like I was getting whiplash when it came to this book with all of the twists and turns. I was all for it!! It is a slow burn and I don’t mind it but this book overdid it, I went from enjoying the build-up to now wanting it to end, but then also loving the rest of it almost 80% into the book. But the inner true crime lover in me was low-key wishing I can watch this one on an actual screen, I know I am not the only one.

Thank you Netgalley and the Publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

3.5 stars
This is a good psychological thriller, but is a slow burner.
Ellie is a psychologist who works with prisoners and there's one in particular who features heavily in this book, Lucas.
Ellie's sister Grace has been missing for five years and both her and her Mum have been affected by this.
DS Sarah Knight contacts Ellie out of the blue, and tells her that a woman has been murdered and she had a necklace belonging to Grace.
DS Knight tells Ellie that they think this means Grace is dead, but they haven't found her body.
Ellie works with the Police and tries to get information from Lucas as he indicates he knows about the recent murders, and Grace.
This is a good read but not one of my favourites from Alice Hunter.
Thanks to Avon Books for the opportunity to read this book.

Dr. Eleanor Spence is a respected forensic psychologist working in a prison with serial killers. She finds herself drawn into an active murder investigation with links to her missing sister. When convicted serial killer Lucas Haynes suggests the killers identity hides in her past she needs to quickly try and uncover the truth.

I have read the majority of Alice Hunter’s books and also enjoy stories focused on psychopaths and serial killers, especially from a forensic psychologist perspective fascinating, so I was excited to read this. The story is told in a few different voices which I liked. I also enjoyed the mixed media and conversations which were with Lucas, finding that this added an extra layer of intrigue. Unfortunately though, I found I didn’t fully connect with Ellie as a main character, as she didn’t feel that likeable and sometimes came across as annoying.

Even though I really enjoyed the premise of this, I found most of the story a slow burn, which meant that I didn’t find it that gripping or suspenseful. Saying that, there were some good twists and an interesting ending. Even though this wasn’t the fastest paced book it ended up being a solid thriller and I look forward to seeing what she writes next. 3.5 stars rounded down. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

A very clever psychological thriller, great characters, two strong female characters lead the story, Dr Eleanor Spencer, known as Ellie, is a forensic psychologist working in a prison, and DS Sarah Knight, a detective working on the murder cases,
Ellie’s sister disappeared 5 years ago, the police are no closer to finding her, Ellie fears her sister is dead. The police feel the murders of several women recently may be linked to Grave’s disappearance, they have asked Ellie for her help from inside the prison, she is drawn into the investigation, she knows she is putting herself and her career at risk, as she digs into the mind of a serial killer.
There is murder, mystery and suspense with a few good twists which keep the reader guessing. A little unbelievable in places, but overall an enjoyable read.
Many thanks to Net Galley & Avon Books UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review. This is my first book by author,

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for the eARC.

A fun popcorn thriller. I liked this book, I predicted some twists but not all. Would recommend to others.

Great slow burn as we follow Dr Eleanor Spencer who keeps her missing sister secret as she interviews serial killers and psychopaths at her day job at the local prison. When women again begin turning up dead with ritual links to former murders committed by one of her current patients, it’s a race against time to figure it out.

This book introduced lots of suspects and asked lots of questions, leading to genuine surprise at the end when everything was revealed. Not always easy to do.

My thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Perfect Psychopath’ written by Alice Hunter in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Dr Eleanor ‘Ellie’ Spencer is a forensic psychologist and delivers sessions to offenders in HMP Westgate. Her sister Grace has been missing for five years and although her body has never been found DS Sarah Knight believes she’s dead. She asks for Ellie’s help in the investigation when a woman is found wearing Grace’s necklace.

‘The Perfect Psychopath’ is a psychological thriller with a dark and menacing plot. The story is told in alternate chapters by the main female characters Dr Eleanor Spencer and DS Sarah Knight, with an occasional input from the killer. This is a slow burn that I initially found difficult to keep involved in and although it became more enthralling towards the end I didn’t enjoy it as much as ‘Bad Apple’ and ‘The Serial Killer’ series. It’s worth reading for the twists and turns, the increasing tension, and the final unexpected twist that I didn’t see coming.

I was eager to dive into “The Perfect Psychopath”. The premise immediately grabbed my attention: a respected psychologist, Dr. Eleanor Spencer, caught in a web of serial murders that seem connected to her own past, especially her sister’s mysterious disappearance. The idea of a killer knowing more than he should, and Ellie turning to a notorious inmate to get inside the mind of a monster, sounded like a recipe for a gripping psychological thriller.
Overall, I found the book to be a slow burn, taking its time to develop the characters and the plot. While that didn’t bother me too much, I did feel at times I struggled to connect deeply with the characters. Ellie, the main protagonist, is a well-respected forensic psychologist working in prison, and her internal struggles are compelling, but I felt some of her motivations and reactions could have been explored more fully to give her greater depth.
The storyline kept me turning pages, especially as the bodies started piling up and the connections to Ellie’s sister’s disappearance became more apparent. The dual perspectives—Ellie’s investigations and DS Sarah Knight’s detective work—added layers to the narrative and helped maintain a good pace. I especially appreciated the prison setting, which felt authentic and well-drawn, adding a gritty realism to the suspense.
That said, I did find some elements a bit of a stretch. For example, Ellie’s sudden lapses in memory or her seeming forgetfulness about key details related to the case felt a little too convenient and not sufficiently explained. It was a bit frustrating because it detracted from the plausibility and left some plot points feeling unresolved.
The characters, in general, lacked a bit of depth for my taste. None of them really came alive in a way that made me feel fully invested, which slightly diminished the overall tension. Additionally, while there were some good twists that kept me guessing until the end, I felt the story could have been more intense and emotionally charged, something I typically look for in a psychological thriller.
Despite these minor critiques, I enjoyed the premise and the suspenseful build-up. Hunter’s writing style is engaging, and I appreciated the exploration of the dark minds behind these crimes. It’s not my favourite of her books, but I still found it a worthwhile read, especially if you enjoy a slower-paced, character-driven mystery with some clever twists.

Maybe more mystery than thriller….I found it took me a while to get into and was a slow burner but did have a good final part of the book and on the whole was readable

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of The Perfect Psychopath in exchange for a review.

THE PERFECT PSYCHOPATH HIDES IN PLAIN SIGHT

This book had me gripped, and asking so many questions from the start. Who? Why? How? How are all of these puzzle pieces connected? I found it so interesting to get the story from both Ellie, and Sarah's POV, especially with Ellie delving into the minds of killers through her job.

I could not have predicted who the killer was, and was genuinely shocked by the revelation as it seemingly came out of nowhere but made sense once you knew his real identity. I enjoyed the way we were drip-fed information throughout, so you never really knew if you had the whole story as facts were revealed.

However for me, the final 'twist' did not make much sense, and makes Ellie very much seem like an unreliable narrator. Although throughout there are clearly a lot of memories she has repressed, and I feel like this should have been addressed further in some way. It also makes me question why her husband did not say anything sooner when he knew what happened?

Overall, I did really enjoy the book, I just wish the ending was different!

This is the fourth book that I have read from this author and each one is brilliant. Dr Eleanor Spencer is a brilliant psychologist and she enjoys to try and work out what makes a serial killer. Lucas is in for life and when murdered woman start to turn up a detective from her past asks her to try and see if she can get him to help them. What she doesn't expect is just how much she and people around her will soon wish she hadn't agreed..
Fast paced throughout and enough to keep you guessing.

This was a great read filled with lots of secrets and suspense. It starts off at a steady pace but definitely cranks up along the way.
The story unfolds from POVs from Ellie and Sarah as well as the killers, newspaper extracts add to the tension and you're left wondering who to root for.
The ending did catch me off guard, and I loved it.
A recommended thriller read, perfect as a holiday read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon Books for the Arc.

‘The Perfect Psychopath’ by Alice Hunter tells the story of prison psychologist Dr Eleanor Spencer, who turns to one of her patients - serial killer Lucas Hayne - for insights into solving the mystery of disappearing young women, somehow connected to her long-missing sister.

While the premise of the novel was interesting, I didn’t find the book as gripping as I had hoped, and failed to become invested enough in the characters to really get immersed in the story. I can only give it 2.5 stars, even though I’m glad I persevered to the final revelations. I’ve seen many reviewers raving about this author and hope others enjoy this one more than I did.

I received a Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher Avon Books UK via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Enjoyed!!!! I’ve read this author before so I just knew once I picked this one up I would like this one too. She writes twisted books that will blow your mind. I would also like to say she writes under the name Sam Carrington too. Not many people know that and are missing out. Now let’s talk about this one. I do have to warn you it is a little slow at first but once you get going you will not be able to put this one down. One of the reasons is the characters. All of them had qualities that made them very interesting which lead you to want to know more about them. The next reason is the plot. What could be better than using the mind of a serial killer to solve a cold case. I couldn’t have been more intrigued. It made this book in my opinion. Now I want to talk ending. I was completely surprised. I definitely needed a few minutes to catch my breath and really think about what I just read. I can’t wait to read from this author.

I have always enjoyed this authors books but this one just didn't quite have the fizz that I enjoy.

I really liked how the book had several different writing styles such as paper articles, snippets from the past as well as the story being told from 2 viewpoints, the detective and the forensic psychologist. whilst all of the characters were all very cleverly interwoven, this wasn't a story where I felt I could work out the ending in advance as there just weren't the clues along the way to do this. Having said that I certainly did not predict the final little twist.

Overall, it's an enjoyable read.

This book just didn’t grab me the way I like to be grabbed. I felt it was slow and I didn’t feel invested in it until at least two thirds of the way through, then just as I got interested enough to want to know what happened, everything was wrapped up in a few chapters. For me, if you need an epilogue to explain what happened, the book hasn’t quite worked.

All that having been said, I would never have guessed who the killer turned out to be but there are still many questions that remain unanswered. How did the killer get the necklace? Why did the protagonist not remember so much of the important parts of her childhood, or was that just convenient?

Just not for me I’m afraid. Two stars given because I did want to find out who did what.

Dr Eleanor Spencer, or Ellie as she's known to her friends and family, is a forensic psychologist working in a Cat B prison, one of the inmates she's working closely with at the moment is Lucas Hayne, a serial killer that is serving life with no chance of parole. Her younger sister Grace disappeared five years ago and, with the police no closer to finding her, Ellie is losing hope that she's still alive, then a series of murders happen, all with the same MO as Lucas and he appears to know more about them than the police do, she is drawn into the investigation by the leading officer, DS Sarah Knight and, determined to help the police and hopefully uncover if there's a link to Grace, she begins to dig deeper into the mind of the serial killer.

The Perfect Psychopath is the latest thriller by Hunter, told in a steady pace from the perspectives of Ellie and Sarah in the main, with the odd chapter from an unknown person who you are led to believe is the perpetrator and then delving into the past with conversations between Ellie and Grace, this is a tale of mystery and intrigue with some great twists that you won't see coming and a plot that will keep you second guessing until it all comes together in a very satisfactory ending. Hunter is great at weaving a story shrouded in mystery with undesirable characters and her work in rehabilitation is evident in this, and her previous novels. Another great read by this author who also writes thrillers as Sam Carrington which are well worth checking out too!

I'd like to thank Avon Books and NetGalley for inviting me to read this, I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

I enjoyed the multiple POVs from Ellie, Sarah and the Killer's viewpoints, however for me I feel the links between the three fell short of being the powerful reveals it felt they were intended to be. The ending also fell short for me, and I was left with a bit of a "huh?" type feeling come the end.
Despite this, I did fly through the book as I wanted to know how it all ended - it just didn't have the gasping reveal moments I was hoping for.

There were plenty of red herrings thrown in to send you in different directions, and I didn't find myself predicting who the serial killer would be. I would have liked more on Ellie's backstory and understanding why perhaps so much of her early life she appeared to have completely forgotten. This felt to be more of a convenient characteristic written that allowed for reveals to happen, but without explanation or resolution to understand it. I'm left with more questions about plot points than answers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for allowing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Usually I love Alice Hunter and her clever, twisty thrillers, but The Perfect Psychopath just didn't hit the mark for me. The prison setting was interesting and the plot was solid, but the ending felt rushed and was a bit of a letdown. The twist at the end also wasn't really surprising. Not my favourite!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review