This book is too slow of a burn and I had to keep putting it down because I just kept losing interest.

This is the kind of book I like to use in my classes. A story, mystery of family secrets that my students will get sucked into and then lots of issues to discuss, some morality issues and issues of abuse and power. It doesn't wind up neatly so leaves questions to keep students thinking

what is the truth This is a multi-layered psychological mystery. It is told in various perspectives of the different people involved and two timelines. It packs a lot of punch and asks a lot of hard questions, what is truth, what do we do to protect those we love and who are we willing to abandon., how does guilt shape our lives. No one is quite what they seem in the beginning of the book and it left me with lots to think about. I appreciate that about the book and also that it was very original. A good solid 4.5 rounded up

I normally go for fast paced thrillers because I have a hard time paying attention. This book was a bit slower but it was so gripping, so I didn’t have any issues paying attention. I loved all the family secrets and drama that’s in this book. The authors writing style really worked for me and I enjoyed it.

I was hooked from the very beginning! This is such a page turner. I’m not much of a slow burn girly , I prefer fast paced thrillers AND THIS DELIVERED!!!! Will definitely read more by this author. Thank you for the opportunity

Delivered! Thought I had it all figured out, but I was wrong again and again. Packed with secrets and drama it had me hooked like a nosy neighbor. Great summer thriller.

Thank you For the opportunity to preview Bad Blood. Although the lead character is a lawyer I think this is not only a legal thriller but much more.
This is a family drama and a bit of romantic background.
All in all this is a good book and more dramatic family drama.
3 stars

I want to thank NetGalley and Zando Books for the ARC of Bad Blood by Rachel Hornsley

Bad Blood is a fast, easy to follow psychological mystery. From the very beginning of the book, you are given a peek at the surface of the family drama and mystery surrounding Justine. Justine is a hardworking Lawyer in London. She is married, has a house and lives an idyllic life. One she worked so hard to create. At work, she is given her first big break, defending a man who is on trial for a double murder. The only problem is that this man is Justine’s ex-boyfriend. From this point, the story takes you on many twists and turns until the very end.

Sarah Hornsley creates a great story with many characters whose stories blend seamlessly. The many twists and turns keep you guessing until the very end. I can honestly say I was a little shocked at the end of the story. This book is similar to It Should Have Been You by Andrea Mara, and First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston.

This is my first read by Sarah Hornsley. It will not be my last. With that being said this is a great book that I read in one sitting! Hard for me to do. It is a fast paced thriller that held my attention to the very end. Highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and Zando Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC.

Sarah Hornsley has released her debut novel, Bad Blood, where Justine Hart is a barrister, and excited to be assigned a case that will put her in the spotlight; it’s a double murder case, and there is plenty of evidence against the suspect. However, once she starts to gather the evidence, she discovers that the suspect is her first love, Jake Reynolds, who left her 18 years ago and changed his name. She goes back to her hometown for the first time in those 18 years, tries to locate her brother, Max, who always protected her, and who she had kept in contact with, but only saw her mother who had sent her away after her father’s death. She knows her mother is keeping secrets, and that Jake’s disappearance, Max’s disappearance, her father’s death, and her mother’s secrecy are connected, but is trying to find out why. As the family secrets begin to emerge, suspense builds, and readers will find themselves on the edge.

Hornsley does an excellent job of telling the story, especially for her debut novel. There are a few places that are a bit hard to follow, but that’s partly because of the twists and turns that are unexpected. She also does a good job of developing her characters. Justine, the protagonist, is likeable, and is a woman who has had a difficult past. As the story progresses, more information comes out and things begin to be clear. The dénouement is definitely interesting and a surprise.

Anyone who chooses to listen to this novel as an audio book, will find that the narrator is excellent and with her British accent, makes readers feels they are actually in the UK.

All told, this is a unique kind of suspense novel and is quite enjoyable.

Y’all. This book ate me up and left nothing but vibes and goosebumps.

Bad Blood throws criminal lawyer Justine Stone into her first big murder case—only to realize the man on trial is her ex, Jake, who ghosted her years ago and is now accused of a brutal double homicide. Awkward doesn’t even begin to cover it.

To get answers, Justine heads back to her sleepy hometown—a place that reeks of sweet tea, old trauma, and secrets buried six feet deep. And when her brother goes missing? All bets are off.

This one’s got everything: courtroom drama, slow-burning suspense, a tangled past, and an ending that slaps. Hornsley serves up atmosphere so thick you can taste the tension. It’s moody, twisty, and unputdownable.

If you love complex families, morally murky love interests, and thrillers that keep you guessing—Bad Blood is calling your name.

Thank you to Zando for providing this advance copy via NetGalley for my honest, voluntary review.
#BadBlood #NetGalley

Well, this “Bad Blood” certainly ran deep. This well paced thriller held my attention, as I was anxious to see how the story unfolded, & determine who was guilty and who was not. It is evident from the very beginning that there is much more going on beneath the surface than the readers think.

Justine is a successful lawyer, on the brink of a wonderful career. Anxious to begin her first murder trial, she is taken aback when she opens a folder to review the case and realizes it is the face of her first love, with a new identity. When she returns to her hometown to investigate this case, her world is turned upside down as family secrets, deeply rooted traumas, and lies are revealed leaving her in a mental whirlwind.

Overall, a solid read that I would recommend for fans of family/domestic thrillers, with mind churning twists! Thank you Zando and NetGalley for this advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.

Publication 🗓️ : 07.01.25

DNF at 40%

I enjoyed this book, but I couldn't get through it. I was expecting it to be more of a court thriller, but was confused as to where the storyline was going. It was well written, but overall I felt it wasn't getting anywhere, and I didn't really see continuation of it.

Sarah Hornsley’s Bad Blood is a gripping psychological thriller that unearths the long-buried secrets of a small town—and the personal demons that refuse to stay silent. Blending courtroom drama with emotionally charged family dynamics and a slow-burning mystery, Hornsley delivers a compulsively readable debut that’s equal parts legal thriller and haunting homecoming.

At the center of the novel is Justine Stone, a criminal lawyer finally handed the reins to her first major murder trial. But what should be a career-defining moment quickly spirals into personal chaos when the accused turns out to be Jake Reynolds—her vanished first love. With Jake now on trial for a gruesome double homicide, Justine is forced to revisit a past she’s worked hard to escape, in a town that holds more than just bittersweet memories.

Hornlsey’s strength lies in her character work. Justine is a smart, capable protagonist whose emotional complexity makes her instantly compelling. Her return home is not just a physical journey, but an emotional excavation—unearthing memories of her father’s tragic death, the suffocating expectations of her small-town upbringing, and the unresolved ache of her teenage love. As her brother Max goes missing, the story tightens its grip, drawing the reader into a layered mystery where nothing is quite as it seems.

The narrative moves deftly between past and present, weaving a web of suspicion, grief, and betrayal. Hornsley excels at maintaining suspense without sacrificing emotional depth. The courtroom scenes pulse with tension, but it’s the psychological unraveling—Justine’s doubts, memories, and slow realizations—that truly drive the novel forward.

Thematically, Bad Blood explores the idea that the past is never really past. Whether it’s familial trauma, romantic heartbreak, or unspoken guilt, Hornsley reminds us that what we bury will

Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of Bad Blood.
I was very interested to see where the plot would go with this title, it is an extremely descriptive book. I enjoyed it all the way through and the twist at the end surprised me!

Bad Blood is my first book by Sarah Hornsley. I really enjoyed it a lot. It held my interest and I didn’t want to put it down. I will definitely recommend this book to others.
Thank you NetGalley and Zando Publishing for this eARC.

Justine, a criminal barrister, heads back to her hometown after she finds out that her teenage boyfriend is on trial for murder. The book has a unique writing style where it is told in a dual timeframe, one in the present and one 18 years in the past.

Sarah Hornsley does an wonderful job of keeping the reader guessing throughout this thriller. There are twists that I never saw coming. The dual timeframe was done wonderfully and let the reader get just a taste of what happened in the past and leave us wanting more. I really liked seeing everything from all the different characters perspective.

There were some twists that I thought were going to go places, but ended as soon as they began, which was a little disappointing.
But this was a small criticism compared to how much I liked the book. Overall a great read that I could not put down.

Justine's world implodes when she realizes that the defendant in her big criminal trial is Jake, her one time love. This moves back and forth over 18 years to tell a twisty story of a dysfunctional family, secrets, lies, and murder. Justine is a good character who is looking for a truth she really doesn't want but must have. It's nicely paced and kept me guessing. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A good read for thriller fans.

I’ve been trying to read this book for TWO. WHOLE. MONTHS.

That’s right. A book that should’ve taken me a weekend max became my literary hostage situation.

Opening you get to know Justine who is a criminal barrister and I was like, “Ooh law thriller! I was just watching suits this is up my alley”. But it wasn’t.

The thing is nothing happens up until 58% (which is when I decided to DNF). “My dad did something bad years ago and so I’m going to push away my husband because he can’t know about it and I’ll have an affair with my murdered brother’s best friend instead of getting comfort from my husband” is this books motto.

It’s not giving me anything to want to read on. Seriously nothing is interesting and I couldn’t care less what happens.

The worst part? It shoved me into a reading slump for two months. TWO.

So yeah. It’s a DNF from me. 1 star.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc of this book.

Read in 2 hours and 37 minutes.

After reading this book, I’m starting a theory that this masterpiece in human suffering *cannot* be the author’s debut book.

It’s simply too heavy with grief and suspicion, perfectly summarising the secrets that are resurrected when you’re forced to confront your demons, for a first time writer.

The fraught tightrope that a family has to navigate around their abuser; not only tiptoeing on eggshells, but frantically piecing them back together when they inevitably crack.

Justine- named after the justice system that she now works in- is a thriving lawyer with a doting husband and has kept her past firmly contained in her old village; even her husband doesn’t know the truth.

When she’s appointed as the lead on a major case, she’s elated…until her ex is revealed as the killer in a double homicide.
Jake was everything to her, even after he vanished following that fateful night- he’s not a murderer, she knows that.
So why has he changed his name and why does the evidence match?

Fearing that her grip on her carefully constructed present is unravelling, she heads back to her old home to uncover the truth.

Once she opens that can of worms, the guts keep spilling out, and Justine can’t hide anymore.

Is this worth losing everything she’s worked for?

Justine’s long deceased but abusive father still looms large in her life, not just as the town’s celebrated hero or shady businessman, but in the cruel whisper in her head, in the nightmares that she hurtles out of, and the rotting secrets that she clings to.
The generational trauma is described well, emphasising on how the aftershocks are still tremors years later, and how draining the fight to escape your past is.
I found the Stone family to be wounded animals, tensely circling the elephant in the room, whilst desperately trying to shield each other from the sight.
Beware that it contains domestic violence and these scenes are realistic but there are hopeful moments too.
Justine has a lot of troubling decisions to make but she’s learning from her estranged friends and family that love doesn’t need to be seen to exist, which is the backbone of this plot.

The story is a mix of a courtroom mystery with a bigger portion of healing and mental health swirled in; the two are dependent on each other and it’s a heady mix.