The Favour: The gripping new thriller from an author 'at the top of British psychological suspense writing' (Observer)

Product Information

For the past 2 years, I have become more selective and more critical. I’ve read so many awesome books and now I can't help but compare each new book I am reading with those perfect books. And when I do that, a book I would have given 4 stars five years ago now gets only 3 stars from me. I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and William Morrow and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

I'll start with the heroine. Vienna is a dream heroine for me. I'm conditioned to overlook a lot in a heroine because to be honest, most do not behave the way I wish they would. Because of this, I don't let most of what they do bother me and instead focus more on the hero. Now saying that, when a heroine comes along that demands respect and proves me wrong, I am in book heaven. Heart-thumping, head-scratching, nail-biting stuff: The Favour is classic Nicci French. I read it in one breathless sitting’ Erin Kelly The unfortunate reality is that many women and men suffer physical and mental abuse and can't find a way out of it. There are links for help at the end of her book. Staying is not an option. :( Overall, I LOVED The Favor. I was enthralled from the very beginning to the end. This was the perfect steamy contemporary romance I didn't even know I was needing. I hope SW writes more contemporary romances in the future. If you're in the mood for an alpha-male CEO AND P.A romance with a dash of OTT in-law drama, I highly recommend this one! Do yourself a favor and read this! Also make sure to read the Author’s Note, as Murphy includes resources and information pertaining to domestic violence for those who may personally need it or know someone who does.They don’t – ever – find themselves in the same train carriage or meet accidentally at the gym or in the coffee shop. And they don’t – ever – discuss their problems and find common ground. but honestly, even though the smut was hot and they were a bit cute i still felt like something was missing? mainly because Dane stayed cold till the very end and i barely saw any affection. i know he's supposed to be this cold and broody dude but he wasn't pushy enough for me. apparently, since they got married all he's ever done was ignore her most of the time. i just wanted more SPICE from him. i just want him to be more pushy- more flirty. when they really said he is cold, he is COLD. i just needed more scenes like the scene from Pride and Prejudice where Mr. Darcy held his hand to Elizabeth and then he had to clench his fists afterward because he felt something. THAT kind of tension- i needed more. the first time they have sex, it’s in the kitchen. okay, whatever. but out of nowhere. while cleaning up from dinner. absolutely zero foreplay. no mood or anything. That trust in each other was key to my engagement in the story both because it was as strong as it was and because it gave me the assurance that they were good for each other and that they'd make an outstanding team. Plus, they communicated, even when things looked dire and/or caused them to question their devotion.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur/St. Martin's Press, and Nora Murphy for an ARC of this book! Now available as of 5.31!!** Those are not direct quotes per se but these same questions are asked of Jude by EVERYONE in the book. The same questions and the same answers over and over again. 😵 p l o t 』↠ so this book is about Dane Davenport (H) asking Vienna (h) to be his fake wife for a year because he has to get married before the age of 38 to access his trust fund. so they get married, live together, people creating dramas and trying to break them up, both Dane and Vienna being stubborn af and not doing anything till like 60% of the book y'all know the drill.Wiping all emotion from my face, I lifted my head. “Not a thing. I’m just bowled over by the level of bling.” We're at the build-up to the wedding and NOTHING is happening besides week to week with them and his family trying to cause drama

I was thinking about giving four stars but I decided to give more because of powerful messages the author gave and I also advise you to read the author more which made me round up 4.5 stars to 5! A psychological domestic thriller delivered by a debut author with enough talent to convince me Nora Murphy is one to watch!!!! This is not just another book about wives being abused by controlling husbands and succumbing to their demise with alcohol. The writing is incredible and I wanted to finish it in one day! The description of the book doesn't give anything away other than the two women do not know each other.

Lastly, i didn’t appreciate that the author skimmed through the scenes when Dane was bonding with Vienna’s family and also their sexcapades once they got together bc as i've said, this felt slow burn for me and the sexual tension and chemistry were off the charts—So when authors skip through these things, i’d naturally get annoyed. All that wait and for what? Bc if you’re gonna do that, make sure your epilogue is going to be super wholesome and fulfilling like Zapata’s or i’m not having it. BRINGING DANGER CLOSE TO HOME . . . THE GRIPPING NEW THRILLER FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR NICCI FRENCH, shortlisted for the 2023 Ned Kelly Awards for Best International Crime Fiction​ again, there was just a lot of family drama that at times it kinda veers away from the romance which is a little annoying since, because of telling > showing and a bunch of inner monologue, i didn't feel any satisfaction towards the sexual tension and chemistry sometims. the romance felt like breadcrumbs or a side plot. Jude's life has gone to plan. She's a geriatric doctor, about to be married. Liam's life has not gone to plan, but then Liam never had a plan. Until now . . .

Sean French was born in May 1959 in Bristol, to a British father and Swedish mother. He too studied English Literature at Oxford University at the same time as Nicci, also graduating with a first class degree, but their paths didn't cross until 1990. In 1981 he won Vogue magazine's Writing Talent Contest, and from 1981 to 1986 he was their theatre critic. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society. This book definitely needed the hero’s point of view. We only have the heroine’s point of view and in this story, which is full of such depth, I needed to hear his voice, too.It’s no secret that the Nicci French duo are on my favourite writers’ list, so as soon as I heard they had a new book out I had to read it! I loved the premise of agreeing blindly to a “favour” a person you owe something to asks of you, without knowing any details, and then having to reap the unforeseen circumstances – this had so much potential to be tense and even a bit creepy (like one of their earlier novels SECRET SMILE). I could puff about and say it was 4½ stars that I'm rounding up, but let's just toss that out for a bag of chips. I enjoyed it thoroughly, never dreamed of putting it down, and just sank into the experience of the story. So it's five stars all the way, though I'll admit there are a lot of elements here that might very well disturb (or even destroy) the experience for others. If you've been following me for a while then you know I can't fault Suzanne Wright. She is my drug of choice and I love ODing on her. Too much? I can't tone it down, sorry not sorry. Like I've said before SW never lets me down and she can have my hard-earned money for every book she publishes. (insert take my money gif here).