Published By: Hodder & Stoughton
Pages: 304
Released On: 14/05/2026
To have and to hold, to lie and to kill…
Meet James and Daisy Dixon. They get along perfectly well – especially when on separate sides of their huge manor house, where Daisy can plot her husband’s murder in peace.
However, after accidentally killing a man on their way home from a lavish party, they’re forced to work together to bury the evidence. All is going surprisingly smoothly, until the day the rain washes up more than it’s supposed to… and suddenly, the Dixons are suspects.
As husband and wife battle it out to be the not-guilty party, Daisy starts working on a plot of her own… after all, it wouldn’t be the first time, would it?
All’s fair in love and war . . . especially in this marriage.
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I loved Jennifer’s debut novel, Julie Tudor is Not a Psychopath, and was thrilled to be sent this early copy.
I normally write notes down when I’m reading an ARC so that it’s easier when it comes to writing up my review. But I was so absorbed by this book that I made notes at the start, and then forgot to do so until I’d finished, I was so addicted to it.
James Dixon is a terrible character and whilst I won’t spoil as to whether his wife succeeded in her plan, I was completely on her side. He was rude and slimy and up himself.
Whereas Daisy was…I felt she was hiding something. She was very interesting. Quite meek at first, a bit of a doormat at times, but I felt there was something beneath that layer. I loved her. She was manic and frightened and panicky and whilst James felt like the character villain, Daisy felt so real like we could imagine ourselves in her very expensive shoes. She holds the whole book together. She’s an unreliable narrator and I just thought she was great.
There are a lot of other characters and they’re all so unlikeable, like really unlikeable, that I couldn’t help but love them too.
I found it funnier than I probably should have, considering it was about murder, but it’s got such a morbid wit about it.
I felt the pacing was spot on. Not too slow to be dull but it didn’t speed through it that you lost the little nuances. Having said that, it was quick to read but never feels overwhelming.
The ending was suitably disgusting and I loved it. It’s very OTT, with every trope going, but that wasn’t a bad thing for me. I loved how dramatic and extreme it was, that’s what got me, and kept me, hooked.
I read it in an afternoon, I just couldn’t put it down.
Jennifer definitely doesn’t have to worry about the “second book” syndrome. This is just as fabulous as her debut and I can’t wait for more.
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