Emma and Felix are two halves of a whole – both as husband and wife and as the duo behind the bestselling pen name, Morgan Savage. With eight bloody thrillers under their belt, they are faced with writers’ block as they attempt their ninth novel.

In search of inspiration, they swap the bustle of New York City for a secluded retreat in the south of France, settling into a remote cliffside house.

Emma decides they will switch their usual plotting for pantsing and they take turns writing chapters on the fly. However, it isn’t long before the cracks in their marriage begin to show. With each twist of the story, it becomes harder to tell where fiction ends and reality begins – and how much of their unraveling is bleeding onto the page.

If you loved Alice Feeney’s Beautiful Ugly, then you’ll want to read this! I had fun donning my detective cap and trying to unpick this one.

Thank you to Quercus Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

This was a book chock full of twists. Wasnt sure if I was going to like it but I was pleasantly suprised. It kept me guessing and I loved the ending. That is what made the book for me.

This was an immediate request when it popped up on NetGalley, and I went in totally blind and devoured it in one sitting. [book:Her Last Summer|128716236] was one of the best thrillers I’ve had the pleasure of reading so I will always want to read what Emily Freud writes. [book:The Cliffhanger|214055497] did not disappoint!

I think I used the phrase “this thriller is thriller-ing” in my initial review of HLS but it applies as much today as it did then. I read my fair share of thrillers and often I can spot the twists a mile off, and while I clocked a few The Cliffhanger kept me engaged and surprised right until I hit the Acknowledgments so bravo Emily, you’re an auto read writer for me - you write it, I’ll read it no questions asked!

Thank you so much to Quercus, Emily Freud and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this before it’s released on 8th May 2025! It’s going to be a thriller of the summer, I just know it!

Tgis one is one of those that is such a slow burn that makes you lose interest pretty quickly. I didn't find the characters likeable and the language put me off quite a bit. The premise is quite interesting though, shame this wasn't for me.

you are kept guessing and hooked throughout this book. the tension build on many fronts. the tension is in their own relationship. its in their pages. and in you as the readers mind. it builds and builds and this underlying feeling of unease feels like such a thrill.
in this book we have a couple who write books together under one pen name. but things arent going to plan both on their pages or in their lives. well, the words in their books arent actually that far from the tension in their own lives!
so retreating to France they go to try and ger there next book done. but they cant escape themselves and they cant escape what going on between the two of them.
my "good or baddie" switched in this book. and then as things started to be unveiled and unraveled i grew even more confused and intrigued. i didnt see most of the plot points coming and i love that. the book is like a ladder of building tension throughout and then suddenly they come almost like your falling down said ladder tumbling over the next bit as they shock and hit you from all angles. fab.
this is an original plot and nicely done. another brilliant book by Emily. Emily does her books blooming well! im excited and cannot wait every time i hear she has a new one. i implore you to go and read her others. you wont regret it and your reading self will only love you for doing so. she really is awesome.

Wow! Just finished this book and what a page turner. A novel writing couple are finding difficulty in writing their next book and so go to a place in France hoping, with no distractions, they will come up with ideas. This seems to cause problems in their relationship and various events start to unfurl.
I really enjoyed and complexities of the characters and the many twists in the storyline.

I really enjoyed this book - it's uncomplicated, in a good way!

Distinct, well-drawn characters in a vivid setting. Two people trapped in a toxic relationship but forced to spend the summer in the rustic French countryside to finish the book they are writing.

It's a great set-up, and the book is a slow-burn of building paranoia and resentment.

Freud cleverly drops in lots of literary references - some of which are sneaky red herrings - and the book is a lot of fun for anyone who is familiar with thriller tropes.

The book is interspersed with chapters from the book that the couple are writing. I did enjoy this conceit, but the book itself is (perhaps deliberately) quite cliched - it serves a purpose though, and makes a nice change from the first person POV.

I did find the ending a little convoluted. I would have been happier with a simpler solution to the mystery. The book packs a lot of its twists into the last few chapters.

Overall, I didn't quite love this one as much as Her Last Summer, but it's a cracking summer read that I would recommend to fans of Gone Girl and Yellowface.

This took me a while to get into as it is a very slow burner but once I was into it I enjoyed it and I think the slow burning actually worked well. It kept me guessing all the way through and every guess I made was wrong

Mind blown! This is a slow burn read, with an underlying tension all the way through, that built like a pressure cooker, until it couldn't take anymore and it literally blew the top off!

Felix and Emma are famous authors under their joint pen name Morgan Savage. But their outward success simply hides the turmoil within their relationship.

I thought Emma was controlling and didn't like her very much, but as I discovered what she had to put up with, with Felix's affairs and heavy drinking, I understood why she had become so hardened and unemotional. The story is very cleverly played out within the couple's own relationship, but also through their writing, as they share alternate chapters for their new bestseller, that seem to mirror events in their own lives and through which they make pointed digs at each other.

Just as I was starting to wonder where it was going to go, the twists started to hit and from that point, I couldn't stop reading! I felt like I was on a rollercoaster as I reaped the rewards of every detail from the build up, coming together in some super explosive final chapters!

4 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Emily Freud and Quercus for an ARC in return for an honest review.

An Unstoppable Force..?..
Writers Felix and Emma seemingly have it all. New York based, the husband and wife team have a series of bestselling novels. They appear to be an unstoppable force in the literary world - that is, until they weren’t. Perhaps a Summer spent under the sun in the South of France will help? It seems to be an answer, until something happens that will further change the course of their lives. A slow burn suspense with a cast of deftly drawn characters and a well woven, menacing plot making good use of storytelling and style.

Authors Felix and Emma Larson are a married couple who write together under the pen name Morgan Savage. Their books are well known and making the couple plenty of money. Book nine however has been a little more difficult so to help with the writers block they head off to a beautiful house in France for the summer in the hopes that they can jump back into the shoes of Morgan Savage.
But, with a missing ex employee and the gorgeous young French woman, Juliette, catching the eye of Felix, things start to take a turn of the darker kind.

This book for me started off quite slowly. I feel like it took some time to get going, setting things up for a twist. I found it really clever how the author wrote a book within a book. A great way to help the story along with its twists. As for the characters, I’m not sure I really liked any of them although towards the end I did feel a bit sorry for Felix. I will admit I did guess part of the twist but not all of it. I think after reading so many books I look for twists everywhere so good to get caught out occasionally.

So good! So many twists. Maybe TOO many twists? It did take me a while to get into but then I was away. A book within a book and characters within characters, it’s complex, intelligently plotted and fiendishly disarming. Would make a delicious each read!

A pacey and riveting read, this dark tale of deception and intrigue will keep you turning the pages. The characters are beautifully developed and uttery loathsome and the plot unfolds beautifully. The tension mounts well throughout the book with plenty of misdirection to keep you guessing. An excellent read in a beautiful setting.

With both their marriage and writing career on the rocks, husband and wife novelist duo Felix and Emma Larson escape to France for the summer to repair both.

Bogged down by Felix’s drinking and affairs and Emma’s controlling nature, things aren’t better in France. Although their 9th novel is finally under way, controversy back home catches up with them. Then Emma disappears in the middle of the night.

This was too much of a slow burn for me and had few likeable characters. The ending is clever but not something the reader could have figured out. Generally would have benefitted from more of a breadcrumb trail.

Rating: 3.5 stars
Publication Date: 8 May 2025

A diabolical and tense psychological thriller, The Cliffhanger follows Emma and Felix, a husband-and-wife writing team (publishing under the pen name Morgan Savage), as they retreat to a villa in the south of France to fix both their next book – and their fractured relationship.

From the opening pages, something is clearly off. Intrigue and uncertainty dominate the first few chapters as the power dynamics between Emma and Felix are slowly revealed. There’s an undercurrent of resentment, control, and emotional manipulation that keeps the reader uneasy. While it’s a slow burn, the second half delivers the twists and suspense thriller fans will be hoping for.

Reminiscent of Gone Girl, this novel plays with the blurred lines between fiction and reality, writing and truth. It’s unsettling in the best way. A great choice for holiday reading – though maybe skip it if you’re staying in a remote French villa with your partner…

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

The relationship between a husband and wife writing duo spirals as the line between fiction and reality blurs in this twisty and dark thriller from Emma Freud.

Freud builds a strong sense of tension as the story builds with a slow, suspenseful and discomforting air. I found myself constantly second guessing if the dynamic between Felix and Emma was just unhealthy, or truly insidious. The premise of a story within a story was cleverly executed, and kept me on the hook to the very end. The isolated French manor on the edge of a cliff is a wonderfully atmospheric setting for this twisty thriller.

Just like the dark thrillers they pen, Emma and Felix’s story is full of red herrings, and shock reveals. The ending was satisfyingly unexpected, and has me looking forward to picking up more of Freud’s work.

Thank you Quercus Books for an advance copy of this book. Opinions expressed are my own.

I enjoyed the concept of this book and seeing the writing process develop as part of the plot was really fascinating. The different perspectives made for an interesting opportunity to think about who was the most reliable narrator and this helped progress the plot as the book advanced. A little uneven in pace, but other than that a strong mystery.

Hard to review, for the majority of the book I felt it torturously slow. I found Emma and Felix frustratating, and I really only felt committed once the villain was revealed.

I think had the pace been slightly faster this would have been possible to be the perfect beach read.

Many thanks to netgalley, the author and the publisher for approving my request to read this book.

Dark, atmospheric, intriguing and with twists that I didn't see coming I loved this book! The plot is really fast paced and left me furiously turning the pages-the ending is superb. If you enjoyed Gone Girl then this ones for you.

Highly recommended-5 stars from me!

Intrigue and uncertainty dominate in the first few chapters of this read. Emma and Felix are husband and wife, writing partners under the pen name Morgan Savage and they’ve retreated to a villa in France to get their next book done. There’s something going on between them, but it’s unclear what, a darkness lingers. There’s an animosity and a power dynamic between them which makes the reader uneasy. It’s a slow burn but the action and twists come through in the second half.

I had my suspicions about a certain character but overall really didn’t see the second half of this coming! This left me with a few questions. The ending was unexpected and I enjoyed the reveal of a villain. The tense and heavy atmosphere was very well done but some readers might not appreciate the slow pace in the first half.

I really enjoyed reading Felix and Emma’s chapters, it was very cool to see a book within a book. The chapters also had a lot of parallels to their reality.

Thank you so much to @netgalley and @quercusbooks for the gifted arc in exchange for my honest review.