A great psychological thriller full of darkness and revenge kept me gripped

Thank you netgalley for a copy for an honest review

This was a brilliant read. As soon as I started reading this book I just knew I was going to love it. Highly recommended

Things were going really well and I was genuinely enjoying this story until, bam, suddenly I wasn’t. That might sound like a strange thing to say, but it’s exactly what happened. The plot suddenly jumped off in an unexpected direction, and it didn’t make any sense. Characters started acting in contrast to how the author had cast them in the first half of the book, and they started acting in ways that made no sense in terms of the relationships that had been shown to us. I mean the two woman, Ellen and Leila, being the ex-wife and the mistress, were supposed to hate each other, the one embarking on a revenge mission against the other, only to end up “friends” after one meeting and giving each other advice! What happened to a woman scorned? What happened to the revenge aspect? Also, as another example, a specific couple is shown as very happily together in the beginning of the story, totally in love, having regular sex, so much so that another character actually comments on how in love they are…and then suddenly, bam, out of left field the female partner decides that she’s not happy, they’re not good together and she’s leaving and moving away. What? Wait? Where? How did that happen? It made no sense, and it didn’t seem to follow any logical path. It was almost as if the author just needed that to happen to move the plot in a certain direction, and so wham, she made it happen. But it wasn’t what we had been shown in the beginning. And there are a few such examples, and I obviously won’t mention them all as I don’t want to spoil anything, but really, it was just odd. Characters who were destined to despise each other were suddenly apologetic and forgiving and wanting to be friends, and other characters who were mean and nasty, to the extent that there was even animal abuse, drug taking, bad attitudes displayed to others, were suddenly lovely and friendly and accommodating. And the ending also didn’t have me doing much but rolling my eyes. Nope, it didn’t work for me unfortunately. Plenty of great reviews for this one but unfortunately I won’t be one of them.

I really liked this book and would read more novels from this author

This was not so much as "thrilling" as drama. It's the classic ex-wife wanting revenge.

This story is told in two fold.
One by the betrayed.
The other, by the betrayer which makes for fantastic writing.

It's dark, its obsessive, it's compelling.

There's a secret that hangs in the air throughout this book that once revealed made me think twice about this particular female. It altered my perception and brought a lot of what I thought, into question.

As per, this author really knows how to work her audience "us readers" giving us enough tit bits we beg for more salivating.

My sincere thanks to Hodder & Stoughton for my copy.

I read this book in under a day as it really got under my skin. The use of two characters' voices was a great way of getting insight into these complex women. I didn't like Leila but at times had sympathy for her. I guessed the David/Francis aspect well before the reveal but this didn't mar my enjoyment merely gave me a proverbial pat on the back. The style of writing was easy to read and flowed well, building to a climax that left me with a pounding heart.

I didn't think a lot happened in this book, it wasn't as exciting as I'd hoped and I didn't enjoy the girl on girl hate.

What Goes Around by Julie Corbin
In the first scene of this gripping psychological thriller a woman has been murdered and is discovered by her son. The story is told from two women's perspectives and both women have sons, so the questions are, which woman will be the one to die and who will be the killer? This understates a clever and original plot with some unexpected twists and turns that create a menacing, yet compelling pace to the story.

We begin at the beginning with quite a mild and commonplace scenario: Ellen has been ousted by Leila, the "home wrecker and husband stealer", who is now living in Ellen's house. Ellen, buckled under her husband's betrayal, has developed OCD for which she is seeking group therapy.

Leila is a therapist, controlling and disliked by Ellen's son and daughter, (the uber-bitch), and her own son is scared of her. She has a brother who keeps turning up like a bad penny, wanting to revisit their terrifying past.

Ellen is unable to cope with group therapy and is given a list of private therapists to try, of which Leila is one. Gradually Ellen feels bolder having been given a little boost by a new man in her life. She realises that she's had a raw deal. She wants her home back and she wants to confront Leila to let her know the havoc she's wreaked. Although Ellen is only too aware of Leila, Leila doesn't know or care who Ellen is. This means that Ellen can pretend to seek therapy incognito from Leila until the moment is right to give her a piece of her mind. The thought of this makes her feel like she is finally taking back some control over her life.

The tension builds as we learn more about Leila's psychopathic personality. Her childhood holds a Pandora's box of terror and cruelty. In order to survive, her coping strategy is to cultivate a new persona for herself - the illusion of leading a perfect life, but the secrets she's buried can't stop cracks appearing faster than she can paper over them. Meanwhile Ellen's naive plan for revenge feels like she is about to be a lamb to the slaughter.

What Goes Around is at times intense and disturbing, but has an unpredictability that keeps you guessing right to the end. A superb read!

My thanks go to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Julie Corbin for giving me a copy of the ARC in return for an honest review.

Very good book and worth reading. Twists and turns in the story. At several points I felt like shouting at the characters to not do that and don't be daft. On the edge of my seat watching it all unfold. You get to see the lives of both the women who love a selfish man. The damage past has done and how sometimes the grass is not greener on the other side.