First book of 2025, and a great start to the year.

When Paddy dies from a deliberate shove in front of a train, it leaves his wife, Nina, and their daughter, Ash, devastated. In the midst of their grief, they unexpectedly connect with Nick, an old friend of Paddy’s.

Martha, the owner of a florist shop, is married to Al, who tends to disappear frequently, leaving her confused and on her own to manage her business and their child.

The lives of these three women will intersect in surprising ways.

To say any more about the plot would involve spoilers so I will just say the short chapters and alternating points of view in this domestic thriller makes this a page-tuner as the pieces of the puzzle falls into place. The ending was perfect!

The scary part? One only needs to read the news and watch documentaries to see that this can, and has, happened.

Don’t Let Him In is a standalone title written by Lisa Jewell.

Anticipated date of release is June 24, 2025.

*Bigamist MMC
*Vindictive jealousy
*Multiple POV with alternating timelines

Even though this story was slow moving throughout a few chapters, I found this title very intriguing! The MMC of this story was a complete narcissistic psychopath who preyed upon the generosity of almost every woman he ever came in contact with.

Lisa Jewell has become one of my favorite authors and this is another great read from her, highly recommended!

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read and review this title.

Format: NetGalley ebook
Genre: Mystery / Thriller
Overall score:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice level:🌶️
Characters: Ash, Martha, & Nina

I found it very dizzying at the beginning to try to keep track of everyone. I finally got it all down toward the middle. I did notice one discrepancy when Nala was sick, it said she'd wait 20 minutes to take her temperature again and then a few paragraphs later said it had only been 20 minutes since she said she'd wait 30. I also knew immediately that Nick was the one who arranged for Paddy's death. That all being said, I was very intrigued to see if more happened so I read this very quickly. I'm still sort of confused at what happened at the end - whatever the secret is that Ash didn't know and that Nina explained.

I got sucked into this book right away. The character development is great and the story line was well developed. I feel like the ending fell short but over all the book was amazing.

This book was the epitome of psychological fiction. Lisa Jewell is a literary genius and this book proves it. I am so happy that I am not single, looking for a man, because this book would send me hiding under the bed. It is impossible to delineate the events and the people clearly, as Jewell deftly weaves multiples perspectives and stories together. It becomes evident right away that you are in the hands of an expert. This is my 14th book from Lisa Jewell and I already can’t wait for her next! A thousand thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advanced copy. What a monstrous treat!

I've read all Lisa's books up to date and loved every one of them and this one I felt fell short. I found it difficult to follow, so many characters and jumping different points in the timeline. Sometimes I was reading a chapter with not a clue who I was reading about which took me out of the story.

I could see the last chapter of the book coming a mile off. Whilst I felt it was ok, I felt it was all kind of laid out for you, no suspense being built ect, no big plot reveal.

What I read in another review is quite right. Read the synopsis, then you've read the book.

This author NEVER disappoints and this book is one of her best I think! When Ash’s beloved father is killed she feels like her world is falling apart. Then her mother starts dating and man named Nick who Ash knows in her gut is not a good guy. The problem is that Ash isn’t exactly a reliable source of information and so no one will believe hat her gut says. As the story unfolds we get multiple points of view all of which are designed to keep the reader as in the dark as the characters. It was a fast paced read and I kept turning pages waiting for a reckoning.

I thought this book was good and it definitely kept me interested. I was a little disappointed in the end, though.

Great new thriller from Lisa Jewell. Twists and unexpected turns at every corner all the way until the end. A definite nail biter, page turner !

Nick is a silver haired fox as they say( deceivingly handsome for a man his age, charming and the best husband ever… for all the women in his life. As Nick cozies up to a recent widow whose husband he knew years ago, the woman’s daughter Ash starts to suspect he isn’t who he says he is… and she’s right.

I was excited to get this digital ARC, particularly after Lisa Jewell’s last book which absolutely floored me. While I enjoyed this read overall, I wasn’t wowed and just didn’t feel like the twists were as big as I’d expected. The story is told from multiple perspectives: Nick/Al, Ash and Martha. It uncovers the many many lies Nick has told throughout his life as a con-man/true sociopath. The easy manner in which these women trusted him and didn’t check into any of his stories or history actually infuriated me because it’s just insanely stupid. There are really smooth and manipulative people out there but I just can’t fathom how anyone overlooks so many red flags. As a whole the book felt a bit longer than maybe it needed to be. At 50% in I wasn’t prepared for the climax/twist to hit and then realized I had half a book left. I’m sure this book will floor many people but the reveals towards the end just weren’t surprising to me.

💭 ⓂⓎ ⓉⒽⓄⓊⒼⒽⓉⓈ
Lisa Jewell is the queen of making you hate at least one of her characters😝. By the end of the book, I was boiling and could not stand Nick! I literally wanted to chuck my Kindle across the room because he made me feel so disgusted and sick. But hey, he’s the perfect character for this story! This book had me in a chokehold from the beginning with its short chapters and all the juicy family secrets. I will admit there are quite a few characters, and it took me a little while to keep them all straight. While I predicted a couple of twists, there were plenty of surprises that kept me hooked. If you’re a Lisa Jewell fan, this one is a must read!

📚 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎:
🔪Domestic thriller
🤦🏼‍♂️Multiple identities
🎭Family drama
🔀Intertwined characters
🌪️Twists and turns
🤐Secrets and lies
📖Short chapters
↔️Dual timelines

⚠️ 𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Murder.

🚪𝕄𝕐 ℝ𝔸𝕋𝕀ℕ𝔾🚪
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

💕Q U O T E: “𝒮𝑜 𝑒𝒶𝓈𝒾𝓁𝓎 𝓅𝓁𝑒𝒶𝓈𝑒𝒹. 𝑀𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓌𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝒶𝓇𝑒. 𝐵𝑒𝒸𝒶𝓊𝓈𝑒 𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓈𝑜 𝓊𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓁𝓎 𝒹𝓇𝑒𝒶𝒹𝒻𝓊𝓁. 𝐼 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓊𝓃𝒹𝑒𝓇𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝓎 𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓇𝑒𝒶𝓁𝒾𝓈𝑒 𝒽𝑜𝓌 𝓁𝒾𝓉𝓉𝓁𝑒 𝑒𝒻𝒻𝑜𝓇𝓉 𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝓃𝓋𝑜𝓁𝓋𝑒𝒹 𝒾𝓃 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝓎 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒽𝑜𝓌 𝓂𝒶𝓃𝓎 𝒷𝑒𝓃𝑒𝒻𝒾𝓉𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓌𝑜𝓂𝑒𝓃 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝓎.”

🙏 Thank you NetGalley, Atria Books, and Lisa Jewell for this ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts. 💕

An interesting story, it took me a bit to get into it, probably due to the back and forth between the characters, but I certainly enjoyed it. A restaurant owner has passed away recently, and his wife, Nina, receives in the mail a package containing a zippo lighter that the sender, Nick said had belonged to her husband, Paddy. Nina responds with a thank you and the two begin corresponding then meeting in person, eventually Nick is a fixture in Nina's life, much to her daughter's dislike, she doesn't like Nick and starts trying to uncover where he came from. Meanwhile Martha who lives in a small town and runs a flower/gift shop, is married to Al, who is the father of her baby girl, she also has two teenage sons. Martha had her baby later in life, she was 45 when she gave birth and raising a baby and running a small business is proving difficult, even though Al has promised endlessly to help her, he disappears for long stretches of time leaving her alone to do everything, popping in almost periodically before taking off again. The story unfolds from the POV of Ash, Nina and the fellow, who we find out is living a lie, appearing to be something that he's not and he has no qualms about asking the woman that he convinces to let him stay with him for money, even when they are already at a financial breaking point. I did find the male MC to be one of the most detestable I have come across, mostly because his focus was on himself, he did not care about any of the people as long as he got what he wanted, and as long as he was happy, that was all that mattered to him. Overall a very good book and I would recommend. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Atria for the ARC.

Spectacular! Absolutely diabolical character and story, like a train wreck you can’t look away from. I loved this story and Lisa Jewell will forever be an auto-read author. Definitely recommend- 4.75 stars

Don't Let Him In by Lisa Jewell was a wild ride. This was based on what’s happening all over the world and it had me good and mad at times. It’s skillfully laid out and leads you down a road of one man’s path of lies and deception. I don’t think he could tell the truth if he wanted to. I could not put it down and found it suspenseful and like always I enjoyed the way she wrote it.
Thanks Atria Books via NetGalley.
4.5⭐️

This story is told in multiple POVs and multiple timelines, weaving together a complex story where things intermingle. One POV is Nina and her daughter Ash are grieving the sudden death of her husband Paddy Swann. They receive a package from a man named Nick, who returns an old lighter that he said belonged to Paddy years ago. Nick and Nina begin a relationship shortly after Paddy has been buried.

Martha, another POV, is a florist in a small town. Her husband Al travels constantly for work and she feels like she’s raising their daughter and two older children from a previous marriage by herself. She begins to contemplate where Al goes while on these work trips. The story goes from there and we have to wonder if Al and Nick are who they say they are.

This was a twisty and complicated plot. With the multiple POVs and timelines, it does get a little confusing and hard to follow. I’m sure that was on purpose which makes it hard to predict what’s coming. It was a bit slow and I was able to predict the but v twist but I highly recommend this if you’ve enjoyed reading any of Lisa Jewell’s books in the past. This is a great representation of what she’s capable of writing.

Thank you NetGalley and Alta Books for an early DRC of this book. The opinion in this review is my own.

This had my mind on a SWIVEL the entire time 🤯

You really have to pay attention because there are several character storylines to follow. You’ll understand how they connect further into the story but WOW, don’t sleep on this one

Special Thanks: to NetGalley and Atria Books for providing this digital advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

I truly mean it when I say, no one does thriller like Lisa Jewell.

Ash Swann has just lost her father, Paddy. After moving back in with her parents, after what professionals dubbed a mental breakdown, twenty six year old Ash is back in her family home, working in a consignment boutique and trying to get back on her feet. Managing her grief is easier said than done, and she can't stop thinking about the tragic event that took her father's life. When an unexpected letter arrives in the post, accompanied by a lighter that once belonged to her father, Nick Ratcliffe claims to be an old friend of her restaurateur father. Before Ash knows it, Nick has infiltrated her life, and is courting her grieving and lonely mother, Nina. But there are discrepancies in Nick's story and he is really too good to be true. Ash doesn't trust this man who claims to have known her father, and so she embarks on a journey to uncover the truth.

Across town, Martha is a small business owner with a doting husband and three children. Her husband Al has always been the picture of perfection until recently. His disappearing acts are becoming more frequent and although her business is flourishing, Martha can't help but wonder why her business seems to be losing money. She can't ignore the feeling in her gut that tells her that Al is hiding something, and so she trusts her intuition and begins to uncover the web of lies that her husband has carefully spun.

An absolutely gnarly ride filled with lies, deception, and murder. Don't Let Him In is a gripping thrill ride, from beginning to end.

4 Stars!!!

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I was sucked into this book right from the start and finished it in one day. We follow multiple views from different women in different years, and the man who ties them all together, even if they don't know that. Without giving much away, this book was one hell of a wild ride, Lisa Jewell at her best.

Lisa Jewell is always good for a twisty read - she’s an automatic author for me. Don’t Let Him In was just as great as I expected it to be. I couldn’t wait to read the next chapter to see where the story was going to go. What a crazy ride it was! The multiple points of view / periods of time were really interesting features. The way the book unfolded was quite satisfying.

Holy crap that was one hell of a book!!!

You can trust my judgement on this one.. I am VERY hit and miss with Lisa Jewell books, so when I say that this one blew me away you know I really mean it!

The story follows a male con artist who leaves a path of destruction in his wake in the form of many wives, abandoned children and thousands of pounds in debt.

The chapters alternate between different time periods and women (which admittedly was confusing at first trying to piece together exactly who was who) but eventually you get the flow of things and the story begins to align.

You also get his first hand perspective which is a fun addition to the book, an entry into his inner thoughts, his truly terrible mind as he literally terrorizes people over and over again.

I will say I had some difficulty reading this book purely for the fact that his character angered me SOO much with his unparalleled audacity that occasionally I had to take breaks because I was so frustrated with his nonsense 😂😂

The ending was entirely satisfying and it is worth the rollercoaster of emotions you will feel whilst reading.

Thank you to the author and Atria Books for the EARC!

Publish date: June 24th 2025