‘The Life She Wants’ by J.M. Hewitt is the first book I have read by this author. I have checked her other books out and I need to add them to my tottering pile of TBR books I have.
We meet Paula, she is worried about her marriage to Tommy. She feels it is teetering on the edge of a precipice with no return. He is avoiding conversations about having children and seems to be distancing himself. Tommy suggests a cruise for them both. Paula is overjoyed. Her husband is trying and cares still. He even promises they will talk about children. Paula is in her element, and then they meet Anna. Paula begins to experience negative things, such as getting trapped in the sauna, her hair is ruined at the salon and her money goes missing from her cabin. These things only began when Anna arrived, didn’t they? What does she actually want? How far will Paula go to protect her marriage?
A psychological thriller that the author has used the setting to its full advantage. The fact that Paula is on a ship means she had no escape. Never mind Paula I was feeling all claustrophobic as everything began to happen. This increased the tense and uneasy atmosphere of the story.
Told by Paula, Anna and an unknown perspective from the past in alternating chapters which means we get to know these characters. I was so intrigued with who the unknown perspective was from and spent some time working that issue out. The author cleverly brings the past and present together in a twist that gave the story an edge. Not a proper fast-paced book but more of a slower pace that speeds up as the story unfolds. This is a book that kept me turning the pages as I needed to find out how everything turned out in the end.
A really enjoyable story for fans of psychological thrillers.
Thanks to Rache’s Random Resources and Canelo for my place on the tour and the copy of the book.
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