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syren1532's review against another edition
4.0
This story is told in four parts and from the POV of Vicki Goldman, a divorcee aromatherapist who suffers with epilepsy, Scarlett a young girls recently talked into care when her mother is put in prison and Helen a young girls starting out on a career as a photographer. Vicki’s ex-husband, David, has gone missing and she’s the police’s prime suspect - they think she’s killed him. Then his current wife is murdered just after Vicki visited her and she’s arrested and charged. At first I struggled to keep up with each POV but the fourth part of the book pulls all the strings of the story together. Another great book by Jane Corry.
Thanks to Penguin Random House for the ARC of this book.
Thanks to Penguin Random House for the ARC of this book.
fizreads's review against another edition
5.0
Find this review and others on my blog: https://fizwrites.wixsite.com/website/post/the-dead-ex-review
‘He cheated. He lied. He died’. What a great catchphrase. I’m joking but Jane Corry does not fail to impress she has quickly become my go-to favourite mystery/crime/thriller author because her novels are so cleverly crafted with such page-turners that you will be reading any opportunity you have you will also be thinking about it regularly too.
I love a good thriller and this is my third of Corry’s books I have picked up and I loved it, devoured it even. I love when thrillers use medical conditions in menacing ways (that sounds so wrong) but its also because you learn and are educated so much about that condition in this book the main character Vicki has epilepsy which causes her to forget stuff for the plot it is great but also it is such a great insight into how people live with it, how hard it is but also the signs people can spot if the person is in an epileptic fit and what to do. I am still not over Louise Jensen’s ‘The Date’ which explores the medical condition of prosopagnosia and so many other books.
I love how this tackles such heavy topics as well and I think because Jane herself worked in prison the prison scenes are so vivid and authentic that it makes the book that much better. It is psychological, it is deep and twisted and I was completely enthralled from the first page. This was a real page-turner. It has two p.o.v’s one from Vicki who is now an aromatherapist and Scarlet whose story we follow from childhood to the present day. Both of their stories were gripping and when Helen came into the mix it just kept me on my toes hooked until the very end, I loved every minute of this fast pace book. If your looking for a page-turner look no further.
This was my third book of Jane Corry's, safe to say she is now in the category of my go-to for any type of mystery/thriller type of book. Highly addictive, so clever. 4.5 rounded up.
‘He cheated. He lied. He died’. What a great catchphrase. I’m joking but Jane Corry does not fail to impress she has quickly become my go-to favourite mystery/crime/thriller author because her novels are so cleverly crafted with such page-turners that you will be reading any opportunity you have you will also be thinking about it regularly too.
I love a good thriller and this is my third of Corry’s books I have picked up and I loved it, devoured it even. I love when thrillers use medical conditions in menacing ways (that sounds so wrong) but its also because you learn and are educated so much about that condition in this book the main character Vicki has epilepsy which causes her to forget stuff for the plot it is great but also it is such a great insight into how people live with it, how hard it is but also the signs people can spot if the person is in an epileptic fit and what to do. I am still not over Louise Jensen’s ‘The Date’ which explores the medical condition of prosopagnosia and so many other books.
I love how this tackles such heavy topics as well and I think because Jane herself worked in prison the prison scenes are so vivid and authentic that it makes the book that much better. It is psychological, it is deep and twisted and I was completely enthralled from the first page. This was a real page-turner. It has two p.o.v’s one from Vicki who is now an aromatherapist and Scarlet whose story we follow from childhood to the present day. Both of their stories were gripping and when Helen came into the mix it just kept me on my toes hooked until the very end, I loved every minute of this fast pace book. If your looking for a page-turner look no further.
This was my third book of Jane Corry's, safe to say she is now in the category of my go-to for any type of mystery/thriller type of book. Highly addictive, so clever. 4.5 rounded up.
daaaaraaaa's review
3.0
3.5/5
While it is slow going at the start, it's definitely worth sticking to. It's just perfect towards the end when we see everyone's paths come together to figure out the mystery
While it is slow going at the start, it's definitely worth sticking to. It's just perfect towards the end when we see everyone's paths come together to figure out the mystery
katebmeyer's review
3.0
Predictable
It was okay. I felt it was rather predictable in the end but still a decent read. It is very well written and a page turner for sure.
It was okay. I felt it was rather predictable in the end but still a decent read. It is very well written and a page turner for sure.
the_planetarywanderer's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
missbb2015's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
lisa_butler79's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
My first read by this author and I wasn't disappointed. I selected this for a story with X in the title challenge .
A fast paced mystery from the point of view of different women who know David who has disappeared presumed dead.
The main character Vicki suffers from epilepsy which led too her divorce but despite this she has opened her own aromatherapy business and recovering from her divorce when she is informed by the police that her ex-husband has gone missing, and she is the prime suspect to his disappearance.
We have the back story of Scarlet who is a child who has a difficult and hard life in Foster care after her mother is sent too prison for drug dealing, as a young child Scarlet suffers badly from not being with her mom, she struggles to understand the separation and she is just an innocent young girl who has been tainted by the horrors she has experienced.
Helen is a photography student who has become close to David before his disappearance but has a hidden agenda.
Then there is Tanya, David’s current wife, who is the one who reported him missing.
These women are so far removed from one another, moving in totally different circles, living entirely different lifestyles. So how are they connected and what, if anything, do they know about David’s disappearance?
The story grips you from the beginning and the point of view from all involved makes the story more interesting. The short chapters also make it an easy read and a page Turner.
I did guess one of the twists early on in the story but it didn't deter me from it as the author had a good way of writing where I even thought I may have got it wrong. There are multiple twists in this book that make you think its going one way then it doesn't, there is even one on the very last page! Just when you think you know which direction the book is going on, Corry throws another curveball into the mix and completely changes the course of the novel. All the characters come together in the most astonishing way, and we finally discover the truth about what happened to David. I really enjoyed the ending and felt that it tied all the pieces together brilliantly.
hainyh's review
2.0
First off, the title in itself, ‘The Dead Ex’, is misleading. There is no dead ex. I understand this was probably used as a title to add intrigue and complement the psychological thriller element of the story, but it’s inaccurate.
The plot itself was so convoluted and confusing, with so many characters jumping in and out, timelines moving backwards and forwards, that each chapter takes a little while to work out what on earth is going on. The middle part of the book is pretty dull, and as this is quite a long book this really did drag. I was determined to find out what the end result / climax was (although not much of a climax if I’m completely honest), but I can’t say that I enjoyed the process of getting there. This book required so much concentration that if you put it down for more than a day or two, you’d be utterly confused!
The plot itself was so convoluted and confusing, with so many characters jumping in and out, timelines moving backwards and forwards, that each chapter takes a little while to work out what on earth is going on. The middle part of the book is pretty dull, and as this is quite a long book this really did drag. I was determined to find out what the end result / climax was (although not much of a climax if I’m completely honest), but I can’t say that I enjoyed the process of getting there. This book required so much concentration that if you put it down for more than a day or two, you’d be utterly confused!