The Only Suspect by Louise Candlish Book Review

Are you a fan of psychological thrillers that challenge your mind and leave you wanting more? If so, then the latest psychological fiction novel with a complex but clever storyline is sure to be an exciting read for you! With its unexpected twists, captivating characters, and suspenseful plot line – it’s no wonder why this book has been receiving such amazing reviews from readers who love the genre. Dive into this thought-provoking work today and explore its mysterious themes as the story unravels before your very eyes.

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Released Today!

Synopsis

There’s the obvious story. And then there’s the truth.
 
Alex lives a comfortable life with his wife Beth in the leafy suburb of Silver Vale. Fine, so he’s not the most extrovert guy on the street, he prefers to keep himself to himself, but he’s a good husband and an easy-going neighbour.
 
That’s until Beth announces the creation of a nature trail on a local site that’s been disused for decades and suddenly Alex is a changed man. Now he’s always watching. Questioning. Struggling to hide his dread . . .
 
As the landscapers get to work, a secret threatens to surface from years ago, back in Alex’s twenties when he got entangled with a seductive young woman called Marina, who threw both their lives into turmoil.
 
And who sparked a police hunt for a murder suspect that was never quite what it seemed.
 
It still isn’t.

About The Author

Hello and welcome! I am the bestselling author of 16 novels – a fact I can’t quite believe myself – and my books are published all over the world. My brand-new thriller THE ONLY SUSPECT is out in February 2023 and available to pre-order now. A Daily Mail pick for 2023, it’s being described as my best book yet – fingers crossed that’s true!

OUR HOUSE is the one you may be most familiar with as it’s on our screens as a major four-part ITV drama starring Martin Compston, Tuppence Middleton and Rupert Penry-Jones. This is the novel that turned my career around – right when I was about to give up. It won the 2019 British Book Awards Book of the Year – Crime & Thriller and was shortlisted for the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award, the Capital Crime Amazon Publishing Best Crime Novel of the Year Award​, and the Audible Sounds of Crime Award. It was also longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award and the Specsavers National Book Awards.

I couldn’t have asked for more, really, and feel so proud that readers are continuing to discover it and recommend it far and wide.

THE HEIGHTS is my latest paperback – it’s a twisty revenge thriller whose narrator, Ellen, has a strange fear of heights known as ‘high place phenomenon’. You could say she’s my most Hitchcock-inspired character yet… I can’t wait for you to read it and and tell me if you’re Team Ellen or not 😉 The book is in development for a TV series, so watch this space…

Also out now is THE OTHER PASSENGER (I call it ‘commuter noir’), one of the biggest sellers of the Covid-19 lockdown (a dubious honour) and my first ever Richard & Judy Book Club pick. It was longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award 2021, which makes me very happy.

A bit about me: I live in a South London neighbourhood not unlike the one in my books, with my husband, teenage daughter, and a fox-red Labrador called Bertie who is the apple of my eye. Books, TV and long walks are my passions – oh, and drinking wine in the sun with family and friends. My favourite authors include Tom Wolfe, Patricia Highsmith, Barbara Vine and Agatha Christie.

My Review

I haven’t read much of Louise Candlish’s work so far but am keen to read more since I read her book, Our House and watched the TV adaptation.

The dual timelines are expertly woven together as we follow two characters living in two different times. In 1995, we join Rick who is living the single life in Camden. He’s content with his work and socializing with his friends—until he meets Marina. She works in the same office building and her beauty is ethereal. From there on out their lives are changed irrevocably—but not necessarily for the better. As time progresses, we begin to understand why they were brought together, even if they don’t know themselves yet.

Back in the current time, we follow Alex and Beth who lived the suburban dream in Silver Vale, where Alex was a perfect husband . . . until he heard about plans for an old disused site to be converted into a nature trail. Suddenly his peaceful life took on new levels of anxiety as secrets from years ago resurfaced. With work underway, tensions rise, and Alex’s comfortable lifestyle came under threat.

The author has done a terrific job at creating a sense of place and time throughout The Only Suspect. Even though it begins slowly as readers get to know the characters, it builds up quite quickly as our protagonists encounter more twists and turns than expected. I was really impressed by one particular twist that I just didn’t see coming! As things progress further into chaos, my heart raced along with Rick’s until I finally reached the thrilling conclusion.

While I didn’t warm to the characters and found them quite unlikeable, certainly none that I would like to be friends with. Louise Candlish does a brilliant job of showing how the characters found themselves suddenly entangled in extreme situations in this complicated and elaborate story.

If you’re looking for an unforgettable read with complex, meandering, storylines and thrilling twists, look no further than The Only Suspect by Louise Candlish. With an edgy feel from beginning to end, this page-turner will keep you glued until its final page! Get ready to experience some madness and mayhem as Rick’s world changes forever when he meets Marina—you won’t be disappointed!  For anyone looking for a great book to get lost in during these uncertain times.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an Advanced Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

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