My oh my, what a thrill-ride of a read this was. It’s been a long time since I read one of Sue Watson’s books. Only a couple of pages into ‘The Sister-in-Law’, all of the reasons as to why I’ve always been such a huge fan of Watson’s work came flooding back to me. I loved this book. From first page to last, back to front, this was INCREDIBLY ADDICTIVE, SINISTER, CREEPY, DARK, COMPELLING, and DEEPLY, DEEPLY DEADLY.
In ‘The Sister-in-Law’ by Sue Watson, readers are whisked away to a stunning white-washed, charming villa on the Amalfi coast to spend two weeks alongside the Taylor family. Clare, who is a nurse, over-worked and desperate to fix her marriage with the eldest of the Taylor’s sons, Dan, is incredibly excited to be spending two weeks of uninterrupted time with her family beneath the Greek sun. The in-laws are there too, Joy and Bob, so it’s a real family get-together, a yearly tradition for the family, and a chance for Joy and Bob to spend some quality time with the grandchildren as well.
Once everyone is settled, there’s only one person left to arrive. The youngest of the Taylor sons, Jamie. A globetrotter and single, Jamie rarely stays in one place for long. He has nothing to tie him down and is adored immeasurably by his mother, not forgetting his nieces and nephews. Joy absolutely dotes on him, and when he finally arrives, she is over the moon to see him. Except, Jamie isn’t alone as everyone had expected him to be. The slim, stunning blonde that stands beside Jamie is introduced to the family as Ella. And she’s not just a friend or girlfriend that Jamie happened to meet whilst on his travels. Oh no. Jamie has married Ella, and now, she’s a Taylor, too.
Ella’s arrival in the beautiful and serene villa changes everything, and I absolutely loved watching as this strange change of circumstances took over the Taylor family. I also loved how the chilling atmosphere was so at odds with the gorgeous surroundings. It worked really well. Obviously unaware that Jamie had even met anyone special, never-mind married them, Joy is taken aback by this turn of events, and it quickly becomes clear that she’s not the only one. Ella’s unexpected arrival is like a tidal wave crashing down on Clare’s much-anticipated break with her family, and it isn’t long before the plot of this novel begins to take a strange and disturbing turn towards something much darker, and much more dangerous.
I was hooked. Hooked, I tell you. As soon as Ella arrived, Watson had me captivated as the plot progressed and with each new chapter, new tensions and shockwaves hit. It was riveting. I didn’t want to look away for a single second for fear of postponing some new and shocking revelation within the white-washed villa walls. Watson absolutely nailed the suspense in this story. There was so much mystery behind Ella, and Clare just couldn’t figure the woman out. It’s only when Ella begins picking at her, downright insulting Clare to her face, that she realises that something’s not quite right, and she sets out to discover who Ella truly is. In some of the scenes, I had to applaud Clare for her ability to not snap. She’s a much more patient woman than I could ever be in that situation, and as Ella only continued to become more and more brave with the comments she made, the sly remarks and threats when no one else could hear, the tension continued to climb and climb and I honestly didn’t know how much more I could take. It was highly-entertaining, but also so, so fascinating, watching as these two women, complete opposites of each other, came together under the same roof and circled each other. I just couldn’t understand what Ella’s issue was, but I was dying to find out.
Alongside the simmering suspense between Clare and Ella, there were also the issues regarding Clare and Dan’s marriage, and hints towards something else that had happened in Clare’s past. I really loved the detail Sue went into whenever Clare reminisced about her and Dan’s past together. This is one of the reasons I adore Sue’s writing so much. She manages to describe things so beautifully in only a few sentences, and this goes for everything within this story. The character’s personalities, their appearances, descriptions of the villa and the food that they prepare and eat. Watson’s turn of phrase is just so delicious and moreish, addictive and powerful, and I don’t think I’ll ever get my fill of it.
This book was absolutely fantastic. I loved every single page and found myself utterly devoted to Clare’s story and how it would all come to an end. I powered through the pages, desperate to reach the final conclusion, mind absolutely blown to smithereens from all that had happened in just two weeks. It was exciting, sharp, exquisitely-paced and superbly written. A thriller with all of those much-desired qualities, a cast of brilliantly-crafted characters and so much tension, I felt like I was going to burst at the seams. This was a pressure-cooker of a story, ready to blow at any given minute.
‘The Sister-in-Law’ by Sue Watson is being given a five out of five rating from me. With thanks to the publisher for the advance reading copy of this book, that of which has no reflection on my giving a fair and honest review.
THE WIFE: Clare is ready for a break. It’s been a tough year and now she wants to put her feet up. Arriving at the Italian villa for their summer holiday, she decides it’s high-time her husband and his family did some of the work. After all, her husband owes her. THE HUSBAND: Even though Dan had his head turned by someone else, he’s realised the error of his ways. He’s here now, and he says it’s for keeps… Clare can trust him, can’t she? At least he’ll have his brother there, to keep him in line… THE BROTHER: Jamie is the prodigal child, back in the family fold again after years of travelling abroad. But when he gets to the villa, he’s not alone. He’s brought a wife, someone none of them have met before. THE SISTER-IN-LAW: Ella is everything Clare isn’t. Glamorous. Young. Influential. But she knows a secret about Clare. Something that has the power to break the whole family apart. And there’s someone who will do whatever it takes to make sure that this deep secret never comes to the surface.
You can purchase your copy of ‘The Sister-in-Law’ by Sue Watson here.
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