My Book Reviews for March 2026 (Part Two)
My Book Reviews for March 2026 (Part Two)
My Book Reviews for March 2026 (Part Two) comprise a speculative psychological thriller, two crime thrillers, two psychological thrillers and a non-fiction title about World War One nurses.
The Other You by Carys Green
Just when I think everything has been done with domestic psychological suspense along comes this curveball. It contains thriller tropes like the meddlesome mother-in-law in The Girlfriend and the dubious nanny in The Hand That Rocks the Cradle but served with a rich helping of The Stepford Wives speculative fiction.
Elena, mum to newborn Olive, is struggling with exhaustion. Her interfering mother-in-law, Caroline, advises her son, Stu, to obtain a More You clone to help his wife. Caroline has invested in a company that clones people – such as pop stars – to help with workload.
Between them, Stu and Caroline persuade Elena to get herself cloned so that two Elenas can share the burden of motherhood and housework. They argue it will be less disruptive for Olive than having a nanny. But when the clone arrives, she’s Elena’s double in every way, and Elena grows suspicious of the clone’s intentions.
I thought I had the measure of where the story was going until it twisted off somewhere I wasn’t expecting and notched up another level of suspense. The writing is invisibly good, i.e. it flows at pace without unnecessary literary clever-clogginess.
Readers of John Marrs’s Dark Future books will delight in this, as will psychological thriller readers looking for something a little different. It would be ideal for Netflix too.
This is an independent review of an early copy. With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity.
It’s Not What You Think by Clare Mackintosh
Nadeeka is on her way home after a phone call with her boyfriend Jamie. She is convinced he is at home with another woman rather than in the office as he claims. But when she turns into her street, there's crime scene tape around her house and a policeman stands sentry at the front door.
Jamie is dead.
What Nadeeka doesn't yet know is that this will be the least shocking event of her coming week.
The writing is invisibly good, the themes dark and important, and Nadeeka and the lead detective make well rounded and engaging viewpoint characters. Although the twists floored me (and made me smile), I spotted the culprits early on and smiled again when I was right.
This pacy police thriller builds to a well delivered and time-ticking conclusion.
This is an independent review of an early copy. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity.
On a Tube line construction project close to the Houses of Parliament, a seventeenth century plague pit is unearthed, where victims of disease were buried in a mass grave. Civil servant Cassandra Fortune, who was on a site visit when the gruesome find was made, is assigned to liaise with police. Her previous role, before she was sidelined in disgrace, was leading an investigative team at General Communications Headquarters. And why the police involvement? One of the bodies in the pit is only a few days old and did not die of natural causes. As Cassandra and Detective Inspector Andrew Rowlands form an uneasy alliance, more victims of a modern-day serial killer are discovered in plague pits in central London. Evidence suggests the crimes may strike at the heart of the British Establishment. As the investigation progresses, Cassandra’s safety is threatened. Someone high up in the government hierarchy doesn’t want her getting to the truth.
As well as being a terrific plot that moved at excellent pace, this was a wonderful piece of world building. I was in through the eyes of the protagonist to see not only the underground caves and tunnels below the London streets but also the hallowed corridors of power in Whitehall.
A first-rate murder mystery and political thriller. I look forward to reading books 2 and 3 in the trilogy.
Anzac Girls: An Extraordinary Story of World War One Nurses Melbourne by Peter Rees
Using the diaries and letters of Australian and New Zealand nurses at Gallipoli and on the Western Front, the book describes the medical treatment of badly wounded soldiers, the positioning of troopships, warships and hospital ships, land battles and field hospitals. We also hear individual stories of bravery and, sometimes, romance.
I was particularly interested in the Gallipoli section as my husband’s grandmother was an Australian nurse on the hospital ship Gascon at Gallipoli. The accounts in this book tally with what she recorded in her diary, except in one respect: the book said General Bridges died in Alexandria, whereas my husband’s grandmother’s diary recorded that he died on board the Gascon off the Gallipoli peninsula. This was a minor discrepancy that didn’t spoil my enjoyment of this fascinating book.
I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in World War One nursing.
Saving April by Sarah A. Denzil
I was thrilled and pleasantly surprised when my new subscription to the newsletter of thriller writer Sarah A. Denzil allowed me to download for free her bestselling novel, Saving April.
This is what the blurb has to say:
An obsessive, unhinged neighbour? Or a woman desperately trying to save a child?
A family broken by lies.
A woman traumatized by a dark past.
A child caught in the crossfire.
Who will save April?
Hannah Abbott is afraid of the world. Plagued by anxiety, she lives an isolated, uneventful life in suburban Yorkshire. She rarely leaves her house, and her only friend is Edith, her elderly neighbour. But when the Mason family moves in across the street, Hannah's quiet life is changed forever.
The Masons pull Hannah into their tangled web of secrets. She must decide what to believe and who to trust as she attempts to rescue their teenage daughter, April, from harm.
Hannah knows only one thing for certain: she can't be afraid anymore.
The novel was published back in 2016 when psychological suspense still hadn’t explored all the twists and swerves we’ve come to expect from the genre. With this novel, Sarah A. Denzil proved herself to be a market leader. She created a rounded, intriguing central character in Hannah, the agoraphobic curtain-twitcher, and she rolled a few turns I didn’t see coming.
This psychological thriller is a classic and well worth reading.
Just Between Us by Barbara Copperthwaite
Alexis invites her five oldest friends – Polly, Selin, Annie, Nic and Catherine – to Spain to celebrate her fortieth birthday. But there’s a storm gathering not only outside the villa but between the women, each of whom may have something to hide.
In a timeline that weaves between day one and day six of the holiday, we see murky pasts, malicious behaviour and murder. The opening chapter sets off the drama: Polly wakes up in the wine cellar beside Alexis’s lifeless body and the others think she’s a killer.
Twisty suspense in a sultry Spanish setting. Psychological thriller readers will delight in this tale of dark secrets, broken friendships and untimely death.
Taken from the blurb:
Six friends. One storm. A secret to die for…
We arrived at the beautiful, sprawling Spanish villa ready to celebrate – over twenty years of friendship, and of course, Alexis’s big birthday. It’s paradise. Alexis has pulled out all the stops, and like always, I know we’re meant to be grateful…
But the tensions begin on the very first night.
The workaholic slipping off to take mysterious calls.
The people pleaser afraid to speak out.
The quiet observer snidely analysing every move we make.
The former life of the party knocking back wine to forget it all.
Even I, the peacekeeper, have secrets…
And of course, Alexis, the Queen Bee – furious that, as a summer storm descends, her perfect trip isn’t working out like she planned… Her fury makes it feel like she’s hiding something. Like her schemes are unravelling…
I thought our secrets finally emerging might be the biggest threat on this trip. But on the last night, I wake up on the cold floor of the locked wine cellar, a knife clutched in my hand and Alexis’s body unmoving beside me.
I want to scream, to cry, to run, but with the floodwater rising, we’re trapped. My friends all think I killed her. But I know I didn’t, which means someone else here did…
This is an independent review of an early copy. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity.
My News
Her Rising Star – Book 3 in the Gloucestershire Crime Series
I’m delighted to reveal the cover, created by Jayne Mapp for my publisher Hobeck Books, for Her Rising Star, the third book in the Gloucestershire Crime Series. It will be published 26 May. Please click here to see the cover and read the blurb.
My new newsletter provides writing tips for emerging writers. The first post gives a snapshot of what I got up to last year and explodes the myth of the thousand-words-a-day word count; the second discusses the value of writing buddies; and the third is about the different edits a manuscript goes through. Last month I wrote about direct speech – speech tags and punctuation. My next newsletter will be out at the end of March. Subscribe for free: Dr Rachel Sargeant | Substack