Jane Renshaw – The Stepson

Another fabulous Inkubator Books psychological thriller by Jane Renshaw. An author I am already aware of again and have read other books from her. I was expecting quite a good read as I began this book, and Jane Renshaw didn’t let me down at all. Here is the blurb:

He lost one family. Now he’s ready for another.

Psychotherapist Lulu is sure she’s the luckiest woman alive. She has a wonderful job and is married to the love of her life, Nick – who also happens to be ridiculously handsome and fabulously wealthy.

But now a shadow has fallen on her perfect life.

She can see that Nick is struggling with demons from his past. When he was sixteen his entire family disappeared without a trace and Nick has always insisted that his stepmother – whom he hated – was to blame, that she did something terrible to his beloved father and baby sister. And that trauma has left him feeling that anyone he loves is in danger, might vanish in a heartbeat.

So now he is obsessed with Lulu’s safety. He needs to know where she is 24/7, insists she carries a can of pepper spray, is constantly watching for any potential threats.

Lulu can see that this extreme anxiety is wearing Nick down. And as a therapist, she knows the only way to heal a trauma is to confront it. So she persuades him to return to the country house from which his family vanished.

But soon after they arrive in this sleepy rural community, another person disappears.

As Lulu is forced to question everything she knows about Nick and his missing family, dark secrets emerge from the past. The certainties of her old life fade away and are replaced by a horror she could never have imagined in her wildest nightmares.

The Stepson – the stunning psychological thriller perfect for fans of Teresa Driscoll, K L Slater, Daniel Hurst.

As the blurb states, this book is perfect for fans of certain authors and I can second that. The plotline of this book is intriguing, and Jane Renshaw has made it even more so with her way of writing.

The story is told from two points of view: the first is in 1997 from Nick’s stepmother, Maggie and the present day from Nicks wife, Lulu.  In the present Nick and his new wife Lulu go back to Nicks childhood home. Lulu feels he needs to, in order to move forward from the terrible events from his childhood. When they get there it turns into something as far removed from what Lulu imagined it would be. As the story unfolds we learn more about what made Nicks life how he is today.

Another fast-paced story with characters that are all so well-rounded that you can really get to know them. Jane Renshaw has done a brilliant job creating Nick. He is disturbed and weird, and as we follow the story, he gets worse. Lulu is such a nice character. We see her realise she may have rushed into marrying Nick, and she feels she needs to make sure she hasn’t. Maggie was my favourite one. A woman who is determined to get what she wants. She is strong and has a past that isn’t straight up.

I loved the ending, and it was one I didn’t guess, so that was great for me as well. The twists and turns of this story really had me glued to this book. The fact it was such a fast pace really has you hooked. Jane Renshaws storytelling is so vivid that you are immersed and nothing else matters apart from what happens next.

Thanks to ZooLoo’s Book Tours and Inkubator Books for the copy of the book.

Buy Links

Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stepson-psychological-thriller-twist-coming-ebook/dp/B09MTWLKQY/

Amazon US

https://www.amazon.com/Stepson-psychological-thriller-twist-coming-ebook/dp/B09MTWLKQY

Author Bio

As a child, Jane spent a lot of time in elaborate Lego worlds populated by tiny plastic animals and people. Crime levels were high, especially after the Dragon brothers set themselves up as vets and started murdering the animals in their ‘care’. (They got away with it by propping the victims up with Plasticine and pretending they were still alive…)
As an adult, she is still playing in imaginary worlds and putting her characters through hell – but now she can call it ‘writing’ and convince herself that she is doing something sensible. In real life, she has a PhD in genetics and copy-edits scientific and medical journals.
Jane writes psychological thrillers. The Stepson will be her fourth novel published with Inkubator Books.

Follow her at:

Website

https://www.janerenshaw.co.uk/