Alice Feeney round up

A little bit of background📃

Alice Feeney is a British writer and former BBC journalist. She has written seven psychological thrillers to date, some of which have been optioned for screen adaptations, including Rock paper scissors, currently being made into a television series by the producer of The Crown.

Feeney always manages to surprise me. I tend to go along for the ride when reading thriller novels, stopping myself from trying too hard to figure out what is going on. Feeney is the master of the twist, manipulating the reader into thinking things that are later revealed to be wrong. There's no point in trying to figure it all out as you are bound to be wrong. Feeney usually pulls this off by employing unreliable narrators to guide the story.

I find Feeney’s writing distinctive and engaging and her characterisations on point. The Big Reveals are creative and overwrought at times, but they feel in keeping with the overall vibe of the books. There's a tonne of suspension of disbelief and you do get a sense of the rug having been pulled out from under you. That said, Feeney really is OUT THERE when it comes to plotting. Sometimes it works, others times not so much.

Feeney’s books are quite dark, so be prepared to be discomforted when you read them. The books are definite page-turners, and I usually devour them quickly. Her books always provoke a reaction in me, even when I haven't loved them. It is hard to review Feeney’s books without giving too much away, but see my thoughts below. The books are reviewed in order of my reading journey.

Beautiful ugly | Published January 2025 | Read April 2025

The story📖

Beautiful ugly sets the scene for the reader by emphasising just how much author Grady Green loves his journalist wife, Abby. It's a shock for him, then, when Abby disappears one night after stopping her car suddenly on the way home to come to the aid of a stranger. One year later, Grady is consumed by grief and is unable to write (or sleep). He's falling apart, so his agent sends him to a small Scottish island, to the isolated cabin of another her clients, a much loved and now deceased author. Grady's agent hopes he can get his writing mojo back by channelling the vibes of the cabin's former owner. There is still no word from Abby nor any evidence to explain her disappearance.

My thoughts on the book💭

I spent most of Beautiful ugly engrossed in the story and Grady's journey. The book has lots of classic thriller ingredients: a creepy remote island, a bunch of eccentric inhabitants, the ongoing mystery of Abby's disappearance, and Grady's sightings on the island of a woman he thinks is his wife. The portentous, eerie atmosphere of the island alone is enough to grab the reader's attention, as is the question over Abby's fate. Feeney is known for writing stories where all is not as it seems - and completely pulling the rug out from under the reader - so I waited patiently for something momentous to happen.

The trouble is that once the truth comes to light, it doesn't make a lot of sense. It feels like - as another reviewer has commented - that the story exists only for the twist. Unusually for Feeney, there is no substance to the story without said twist. Sure, the twists in her other books have often been slightly bonkers, but they have made sense within the context of the story. Cleverly-written stories in this genre should be just that, and the reveals and twists add to that cleverness. The story shouldn't be a bit rubbish just for the sake of a twisty twist.

Feeney has written nasty characters before, but I still cared about them. No one in Beautiful ugly is particularly relatable or sympathetic. Buying into Grady as a character was a struggle as the story progressed. Also, Feeney is also known for using unreliable narrators, but this time, the plot device is nonsensical in the way that Feeney uses it. (To say anything else would be to spoil.)

Again, I don't want to give too much away, but another thing that doesn't work for me in the book is the misandrist agenda. Feeney may have been going for a feminist girl power vibe, but it falls short on that account. The latter part of the book made me feel uncomfortable, and I don't understand why Feeney chose to take the book down that path from a promising premise.

In sum📝

I've given the book a 3-star rating, but that's really 2 stars rated up for Columbo the black Labrador, my favourite character in the book. I'm also sticking with the 3 stars for the setting and the book's foundations and promise, not for the way the whole thing derails. Feeney had a great idea, she just failed to deliver on it. I'll still read Feeney's next novel, but Beautiful ugly is now my least favourite of her books to date.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Good bad girl | Published August 2023 | Read January 2024

The story📖

The premise of the book is “sometimes bad things happen to good people, so good people have to do bad things." This theme is strong throughout the story. It underlines the connection between the snatching of a baby from a stroller in a supermarket 20 years ago and the present-day care home setting where a resident has been murdered.

Edith is 88 years old and living in the care home against her will. She befriends a young care worker, Patience, and begins to plan her escape, convinced there is something sinister afoot. Added into the mix is Clio, Edith’s daughter, estranged from her mother and from her brother. There's also Frankie, desperately trying to find her daughter who ran away from home 12 months earlier.

My thoughts on the book💭

Edith, Patience, Clio and Frankie share the spotlight in Good bad girl, each of them good people doing bad things as bad things were done to them. Each character is well fleshed out and I loved all four women. They are all battling their own demons, nursing secrets and lies, and I found each one intriguing. Feeney manages to cleverly weave parts of their personalities into the story so the reader bonds with them. Frankie, for example, is a prison librarian, opting for the safety of books to shield her from the world. She uses numbers to keep her calm, counting everything in her life because she’s been unable to count on others.

In sum📝

Good bad girl is the least over the top of Feeney’s novels and I became absorbed in the story and how it unfolds. The book is an intricately woven, multilayered tale, not quite as dark as some of Feeney’s other books. As the story progresses, the dots are joined and the connections between the women’s stories are revealed, past and present. The book is very character-driven and less of a thriller, but it kept me guessing as the unreliable narrators threw me off the scent. Just hang in there and see how it all plays out while enjoying Feeney’s consummate storytelling. 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Rock paper scissors | Published August 2021 | Read December 2023

The story📖

Rock paper scissors revolves around the rocky marriage between Adam and Amelia Wright. Amelia wins a weekend away in rural Scotland, and she and Adam head to the remote cottage to attempt to repair their marriage.

Amelia works in a dog rescue shelter and Adam is a screenwriter who suffers from face blindness. He cannot recognise friends or family, even his wife. Every anniversary the couple has exchanged traditional gifts. The novel includes the anniversary letters explaining these gifts, although Adam never gets to read the letters.

There are multiple points of view in the novel and like Feeney’s other books, the narrators are unreliable. The anniversary letters reveal the ugly truth of a marriage. The tension in the Scottish cottage builds as a snowstorm rolls in and it appears as if someone wishes the couple harm.

My thoughts on the book💭

I have given Rock paper scissors five stars. It's atmospheric and cleverly constructed around the anniversary letter. I loved the twist and did not see it coming until quite near the end. There is a secondary twist, too, that I also did not see coming. I knew something was up but could not quite work out what it was. Clever!

Adam was a total jerk, but I liked the writer angle of the story, and loved Bob the dog. The novel is a great example of Feeney’s storytelling abilities. In true Feeney fashion, the action in the dying pages of the novel is a bit over the top. I forgive Feeney for this, though, as the book is tense and cleverly-constructed.

In sum📝

Feeney again managed to completely throw me off balance with this one! I had NO IDEA what was going on even though I knew something out of the box was going to be revealed at some stage.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Daisy Darker | Published August 2022 | Read December 2023

The story📖

This one is a wild ride! The novel is set on a tiny tidal island off the coast of Cornwall, where the Darker family is assembling for their eccentric grandmother’s 80th birthday party in her crumbling gothic home. A storm is brewing and eventually the family is cut off from the rest of the world until the tide goes back out. Once midnight approaches, the family members are bumped off one by one and Darker secrets are revealed.

There are two timelines in the novel, the present family gathering, and Daisy’s childhood, both narrated by Daisy. She is born with a heart condition that results in her heart stopping and restarting multiple times. Daisy spends much of her childhood on the sidelines so she is something of an outsider in her family, although she is clearly her grandmother’s favourite. There is family dysfunction galore, both in the present and the past.

My thoughts on the book💭

The setting is deliciously moody, and the plot reminiscent of an Agatha Christie novel. It is a dark and claustrophobic tale but I could not put the book down. There is nothing else I can say about the story that would keep my review spoiler-free. Suffice to say, the Big Reveal blew me away. I kind of wish I had guessed it, so the journey had a different meaning to me. I would like to read the book again, knowing what I know now, and look for clues. I did not warm to any of the characters other than Daisy and her grandmother, and teenage Trixie, Daisy’s niece. That said, not warming to them kind of helped with getting on board the bonkers ending. I loved it, but it was still absurd.

In sum📝

I would give the book five stars but I have rated it down for the bonkers ending, even though it is super clever. Daisy Darker is a book I will keep thinking about for a long time to come.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

His and hers | Published July 2020 | Read April 2021

The story📖

His and hers is based around the idea that there are two sides to every story and then there’s the truth. The ‘his and hers’ of the novel are Detective Jack Harper, investigating the murder of a woman in a small English village, Blackdown, and Anna Andrews, a London newsreader sent to cover the case. Jack and Anna used to be married and both are dealing with their own past and present problems. Both points of view are presented in the novel, as well as a third narrator, the murderer. Jack and Anna have connections to the victim. She is a childhood friend of Anna’s, and Jack has a one-night stand with her on the night she is killed. There are more murders as the story progresses and it looks like Anna may be in danger.

My thoughts on the book💭

There are a lot of red herrings in this one and loads of misdirection to keep the reader guessing. The book's central theme of truth is nicely played out in the creepy small English town, and there's no doubt the book is a page-turner. It is quite an unsettling novel. I did not guess the Big Reveal and I liked that I was surprised. That said, the surprise was a little off-kilter for me as I do not understand why Feeney chose that character as the killer. The logistical side of the murders is completely implausible as well.

In sum📝

I was still engrossed in the journey of the story, with all its twists and turns, even though the ending is absurd. I had some trouble giving the book a rating. Feeney does her usual masterful job of keeping the reader off balance and wondering which unreliable narrator to believe, but the ending didn't quite work for me.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

I know who you are | Published April 2019 | Read August 2020

The story📖

Aimee Sinclair is the main character, and we know early on that her husband has gone missing after a fight, strangely leaving his possessions behind. The novel takes the reader on a journey to find out what happened to him, why he left his stuff behind, and what role Aimee might have played in his disappearance. Aimee is a successful actor and used to playing a role, so the reader spends a lot of time trying to decide whether Aimee Did a Bad Thing while being dragged through recollections of her traumatic childhood.

My thoughts on the book💭

I'll always show up for Feeney's storytelling. She is occupies a place in the unique group of thriller writers to can construct complex stories that keep the reader unbalanced. I easily devoured I know who you are and it had me gripped until the end.

I know who you are is my least favourite of Feeney's novels. It has been a while since I read it. I recall not guessing the ending, but it is the ending that is something of a double-edged sword. Not guessing it means kudos to Feeney for the cleverness. That said, the ending itself is disappointing because Feeney went…well…there. (I can't say what the "there" is as it will spoil the ending. You will know what I mean if you read the book.)

You know how when you read a thriller ending, you say to yourself “what in the actual f**k?” because you are so blown away by the twist you did not see coming? You give the author a silent high five for their creativity, right? I know who you are gave me that same reaction, but not in a good way.

In sum📝

Again, Feeney uses the literary device of an unreliable narrator, so the reader is not sure what to believe. It is a gripping tale, full of the usual Feeney twists and turns. The ending is disturbing, to say the least, and that ruins the whole thing.

Rating: ⭐⭐

Sometimes I lie | Published March 2017 | Read September 2020

The story📖

Here’s the synopsis:

My name is Amber Reynolds. There are three things you should know about me:

1. I’m in a coma.

2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore.

3. Sometimes I lie.

Amber wakes up in a hospital. She can’t move. She can’t speak. She can’t open her eyes. She can hear everyone around her, but they have no idea. Amber doesn’t remember what happened, but she has a suspicion her husband had something to do with it. Alternating between her paralysed present, the week before her accident, and a series of childhood diaries from twenty years ago, this brilliant psychological thriller Is something really a lie if you believe it's the truth?

My brain exploded when I read this one. The novel starts off with Amber in hospital and the reader is led to believe that her husband is somehow involved in what happened to her. Amber is most definitely an unreliable narrator, and the reader must put the truth together from Amber’s narration, or at least what Amber serves up to the reader as the truth.

My thoughts on the book💭

I must give Feeney’s first novel five stars simply for the construction of such an intricately-woven and layered story. I was addicted to the reading experience from the outset, taking in every crazy twist and turn until I was left shocked at the end. I still am not entirely sure of the truth, and that tells me Feeney created a clever, diabolical story. Do you have to suspend disbelief? Of course! Just dive in and do not read any spoilers, as the best part is trying to figure things out yourself. If you don't like books with neatly tied-up endings, Sometimes I lie may drive you crazy! I still cannot figure it out!

In sum📝

Sometimes I lie ties with Good bad girl and Rock, paper scissors as my favourite Feeney novel. That is mostly because it has left a lasting impression on me, and I still have no idea about the ending. It's not bonkers, like some of Feeney's other books, it's just that the unreliable narrator approach makes you question what you've read. Clever!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐