Don't let him in

Review by Booklist Review

Meet Nick Radcliffe: tall, handsome, successful--everything Nina needs, a year after her husband's unexpected death. She's been struggling, alongside her daughter Ash. But Nick has secrets, apparently. We learn this before Nina begins to suspect: the author gives the reader a broader perspective, letting us see Nick when he's not with Nina . . . when he's not the man he's pretending to be. Meanwhile, a florist and mother is dealing with her own list of revelations about the man she married and thought she could trust. Jewell is on a hot streak, with one brilliant thriller after another: The Night She Disappeared (2021), The Family Remains (2022), None of this is True (2023), even her Marvel Crime novel Breaking the Dark (2024). Her fans will be lining up to read this new novel (libraries should stock multiple copies), but it's also a perfect introduction for new readers to the author's brand of storytelling. As tantalizingly labyrinthine as her stories are, it's the way she anchors them in a recognizably real world, and populates them with abundantly human characters, that makes them so successful. In a genre full of top-flight authors, she ranks very near the absolute top.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Jewell has become a multi-time best-seller with her sensational thrillers.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

A dangerous con man meets his match in this nasty thriller from bestseller Jewell (Breaking the Dark). For the past 30 years, Nick Radcliffe has assumed an array of identities to seduce, marry, and occasionally murder women of independent means across London. Now in his mid-50s, Nick has sunk his hooks into the recently widowed Nina Swann, who's inherited a successful restaurant chain. The only problem? Nina's daughter, Ash, doesn't trust Nick as far as she can throw him. Nick tries to dial up the charm in hopes that, by swindling Nina, he can secure a fortune for the one woman he truly loves: his current wife, Martha. Ash, however, is prepared to bring Nick's long con toppling down--even if it means finding his old victims herself. Jewell effortlessly toggles back and forth in time, illuminating the awful scope of Nick's deceptions while setting up a wicked and satisfying cat and mouse game between him and Ash. Readers who like their psychological suspense on the dark side will be delighted with the results. Agent: Jonny Geller, Curtis Brown UK. (June)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

Following her father's sudden death, Aisling Swann is secretly horrified when her mother begins to date again--and she quickly becomes suspicious of this new flame. Four years ago: A mysterious male narrator reflects upon his relationship with his wife--along with a few pointed comments about how she is aging. It quickly becomes apparent that this self-proclaimed "very pleasant" man is not who he seems; he already has a girlfriend on the side, and he's playing both women with sob stories about his job and his traumatic past while taking money from them. Even as they get more and more frustrated with his lack of communication during ever-lengthening absences, he still gives them what they want: "a top-notch husband." In the present day, Ash Swann; her brother, Arlo; and their mother, Nina, mourn the loss of her charismatic father, Paddy, a successful chef with a chain of lucrative restaurants. Nina receives a sympathy note from a man who claims to have worked closely with Paddy in the industry, which leads to a robust online flirtation that moves into the real world about a year after her husband's death. Ash is living at home, mired in grief as well as her own mental health struggles, and she's none too happy to see her mom dating--but particularly this handsome, egregiously suave Nick Radcliffe. Ash begins to notice some inconsistencies with his stories and his past, so she enlists Paddy's ex-girlfriend Jane to help her investigate. Meanwhile, Ash's story continues to intercut that of the mysterious man who is now married to his former girlfriend--and still up to his old tricks. Jewell's cutting between past and present certainly allows revelations to ooze out at a slow, controlled pace; even as the reader makes obvious connections, the full picture remains obscure. Jewell has written some incredibly engaging and strong female characters, Nina, Ash, and Jane foremost among them. What would it have been like to split the narrative between them instead of giving so much voice--and thus narrative power--to the male antagonist? Jewell is absolutely a genius at building suspense, but the "man behaving badly" plot is getting tired. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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Chapter One: November ONE NOVEMBER The house is spectacular. A huge white stucco villa on three floors plus attic rooms, and a direct view of the sea visible through tall windows that frame the vista at the back and the front. I imagine that a wall must have been taken down at some point to offer up that level of open-plan space in a Victorian house. Steel beams put in. Expensive stuff. Just to give the owners more light and space. I feel an uncharacteristic twitch of jealousy. It's not like me to envy others. I rarely, in fact, give a thought to them. But this is a different case altogether. I turn off the van's engine and sit, just for a moment, readying myself. Through the window, on the other side of the house, I see the shadows of movement and as I pull on a baseball cap and open the driver's door, I hear the muted murmur of chatter. There are four cars parked outside and clearly the day is still going strong. I go to the side of the van and pull open the door. There it is, my last delivery of the day: an extra-large bouquet of white hydrangeas and roses, no expense spared, in a pink bag. On the envelope is the inscription "Nina Swann & Family." I walk toward the front door, peering in subtly as I pass the kitchen window. A small group sits around the table, a mix of younger and older people. They all have wine, are dressed somberly. There is music playing, candles are flickering. I see art and photography and graphics on the walls; I see a designer kitchen in midnight blue and pink, with flashes of brass and copper, big globe light bulbs hanging at irregular intervals from golden chains, plants on shelves. Through a door at the back of the kitchen, I see huge velvet sofas, a mixing desk, a Gorillaz poster. It's the home of a Gen X man who has made good decisions, made a success of his life, piled his building blocks one on top of the other with precision and care. But also, the home of a man who made one really bad mistake that his wife and his family are going to pay for, over and over again. I keep moving past the window and then I put my finger to the doorbell. Excerpted from Don't Let Him In: A Novel by Lisa Jewell All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

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