The Other Woman by Sandie Jones

THE OTHER WOMAN

by SANDIE JONES 

Prepare to meet The Other Woman: there’s nothing she won’t do to keep you away from her son ...

Emily thinks Adam’s perfect; the man she thought she’d never meet.

But lurking in the shadows is a rival; a woman who shares a deep bond with the man she loves.

Emily chose Adam, but she didn’t choose his mother Pammie. There’s nothing a mother wouldn’t do for her son, and now Emily is about to find out just how far Pammie will go to get what she wants: Emily gone forever.

Ooohhhh! A domestic thriller which takes the one person who can strike fear, frustration or irritation into anyone's life  - the mother in law! 

This irresistible blurb  - whether or not you have a mother in law and whatever that relationship may be - promises something a little different but with all the ingredients of a well paced, well judged domestic noir thriller. The title is playfully misleading and I liked that actually the woman threatening Emily is Adam's mother rather than another woman her own age. The relationship between a finance / wife / girlfriend and her prospective / actual mother in law is an eternally complex one and a fascinating starting point for a novel.

Jone's novel is fluent, fast paced, full of provocative characters and with a clever twist. It will have you fist bumping, shouting at the pages, nodding your head in empathy with the main character as well as leaving your legs full of pins and needles once you realise you have been sitting on the edge of your seat for the whole duration of the novel! 

I really liked Emily's character. I found her authentic, believable, easy to engage with and definitely someone I was invested in. I wanted to read to the end to hear her complete story. Equally I loved Pammie - in a love-to-hate-you way. I was so caught up in her games, behaviour, predicable bad behaviour and unkindness that I wanted to see her come to a sticky end as much as I wanted to see Emily stand up to her. They work so well together and the depiction of their relationship is so well orchestrated that the impact of the interaction between them is clever and compelling. And, as with all great thrillers, nothing is ever as straight forward as it seems - there is always room for a revelation and a twist to leave you reeling and questioning everything you thought you knew!

Pammie's behaviour becomes more and more outrageous as the novel unfolds. As with the best villains - or the best manipulators, there is that brilliant relationship between the main protagonist and the reader. We, as readers, are the only people that can help Emily to argue her case, to present her fears about Pammie to Adam, see what is really happening, but we are silenced, stuck on the other side of the page unable to help and left to watch the drama and tension escalate. We see how difficult it is for Emily and how deceptive Pammie is, all in the name of love.

There is a massive twist. You may well spot it before I did but as I have said before with other reviews, I just like to enjoy the story and look at the way the twist is formulated and then executed. It's clever and satisfying.

The exploration of themes such as obsession, love, marriage and the relationships between Emily, Pammie and Adam is engaging and well presented with authenticity. All readers will be able to identify with something within this book and even if not, will enjoy meeting these characters who will create strong, emotive responses from you whether you like it or not!

This is an addictive read, a fun read, a gripping read and a very well written read. It's a book to take on holiday, a book to read in one sitting, a book to relish and enjoy. I recommend!

The Other Woman is published by Pan on March 29th 2018.

My thanks to the publisher for an advance copy of the novel via NetGalley.