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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Family Holiday by Shalini Boland
A true page-turning thriller that keeps you guessing up until the very last page. In The Family Holiday we meet Niall and Beth, a couple from the UK who agree to a house swap with Amber and Renzo who reside on the Amalfi Coast of Italy. Beth believes that this holiday could be a turning point in her marriage, and bring her whole family closer together after several years of coasting by living the domestic lifestyle. Amber and Renzo are looking for the quiet comfort of the country. We find quickly that Amber has some ulterior motives for wanting to go on the holiday, some that are certainly not as cookie cutter as Beth's motives.
This book was truly a fantastic read, with amazing characterization by Boland. I enjoyed very much getting to know the characters of the book, and Boland does a great job of creating them in a way that you feel like you've known them your whole life. We feel tension in relationships when we need to and it creates a book that doesn't allow you to put it down because you're wanting to figure out the puzzle and see what happens next!
I highly recommend The Family Holiday, and will be looking into more books by this author. If they're half as good as this one, I know I'm in luck!
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for allowing me to have an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.
A true page-turning thriller that keeps you guessing up until the very last page. In The Family Holiday we meet Niall and Beth, a couple from the UK who agree to a house swap with Amber and Renzo who reside on the Amalfi Coast of Italy. Beth believes that this holiday could be a turning point in her marriage, and bring her whole family closer together after several years of coasting by living the domestic lifestyle. Amber and Renzo are looking for the quiet comfort of the country. We find quickly that Amber has some ulterior motives for wanting to go on the holiday, some that are certainly not as cookie cutter as Beth's motives.
This book was truly a fantastic read, with amazing characterization by Boland. I enjoyed very much getting to know the characters of the book, and Boland does a great job of creating them in a way that you feel like you've known them your whole life. We feel tension in relationships when we need to and it creates a book that doesn't allow you to put it down because you're wanting to figure out the puzzle and see what happens next!
I highly recommend The Family Holiday, and will be looking into more books by this author. If they're half as good as this one, I know I'm in luck!
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for allowing me to have an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
medium-paced
Another outstanding psychological thriller by Shalini Boland.
I’m always excited when I see that Shalini Boland has a new book out. In THE FAMILY HOLIDAY, two families decide to do a house swap for a holiday. One family lives in an English cottage, the other in an Italian villa. Amber is annoyed by one of Beth’s nosy neighbors snooping around and knocking on Beth’s door every other minute while Amber and her family are trying to enjoy their relaxing vacation in their house swap. Beth is married to Niall, a popular fantasy writer who has grown distant from her and their children and quite frankly acts like a jerk, ignoring Beth and the kids and pushing all the parenting duties onto her so he can have private time. Beth finds something in Amber’s house that leads her to believe there could be a connection between Amber and Niall. Niall denies it. Creepy things begin happening to the family in Italy. I was on the edge of my seat reading. Then, (and this is all included in the blurb, so not a spoiler), Niall turns up dead. Shalini Boland always has deliciously dark characters and twists that surprise me and this was no exception. I loved the way the surprises kept coming all the way to the last page!
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary ARC copy of this book from Bookouture and NetGalley for review purposes.
I’m always excited when I see that Shalini Boland has a new book out. In THE FAMILY HOLIDAY, two families decide to do a house swap for a holiday. One family lives in an English cottage, the other in an Italian villa. Amber is annoyed by one of Beth’s nosy neighbors snooping around and knocking on Beth’s door every other minute while Amber and her family are trying to enjoy their relaxing vacation in their house swap. Beth is married to Niall, a popular fantasy writer who has grown distant from her and their children and quite frankly acts like a jerk, ignoring Beth and the kids and pushing all the parenting duties onto her so he can have private time. Beth finds something in Amber’s house that leads her to believe there could be a connection between Amber and Niall. Niall denies it. Creepy things begin happening to the family in Italy. I was on the edge of my seat reading. Then, (and this is all included in the blurb, so not a spoiler), Niall turns up dead. Shalini Boland always has deliciously dark characters and twists that surprise me and this was no exception. I loved the way the surprises kept coming all the way to the last page!
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary ARC copy of this book from Bookouture and NetGalley for review purposes.
A house swap mystery gone wrong with a few twists here and there but wasn’t anything remarkable. Wasn’t terrible by any means and fast paced.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced