The Favour: The gripping new thriller from an author 'at the top of British psychological suspense writing' (Observer)

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That said, THE FAVOUR unfortunately turned out to be one of my least favourite books by the author team, partly because believing the main character’s actions and motivations stretched my ability to suspend disbelief way past its limits. It's implied that Jude is an incredibly intelligent woman though you'd never guess that by reading this book.

The Favour by Nicci French - Debbish Book review: The Favour by Nicci French - Debbish

The main character acts out an existential crisis: Jude's engagement collapses, she's left her home, she's been put on stress leave from her job, and a dark secret from her past re-emerges. I always seem to have an unpopular opinion, but this time it's because I seemed to enjoy the book more than the other reviewers. As always, Nicci French has written a page turner but this story did not work for me on a psychological or emotional level.When Jude's first love Liam who she has not seen in years, shows up at her work asking for a favour she agrees, even if it means having to lie to her fiancé. I enjoyed the whole story, got lost in who was doing what with who, believed every red herring for at least a moment and was suitably shocked at the eventual finale. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society. The central part of the book is a long and almost surreal funeral and wake, which feels like a recurring nightmare for Jude: she's constantly trying to find her handbag and leave, constantly being drawn back to another confrontation - the whole piece almost like a fluffier version of Sartre! Now she’s tangled up in his life, the last person to have seen him, and maybe the only one who can uncover the truth about what went wrong—even if she destroys her own life in the process.

A Perfectly Plotted Thriller: Read Our Review of The Favour

They are a colourful and unconventional bunch but perhaps not quite as unconventional as they believe themselves to be. Liam vraagt haar om een bijzondere gunst: zou ze hem in het weekend willen ontmoeten in een cottage in Norfolk?The main character Dr Jude Winter puts herself into situations that most and at least one of her intellect would not do so. When Jude’s motivation is revealed, it makes sense that she might have felt compelled to do the initial favor, but it was unbelievable to me that she would keep going down a path where she is likely to end up behind bars or even dead.

The Favor – HarperCollins The Favor – HarperCollins

She doesn’t help matters by becoming involved with those Liam left behind and though the warning signs are evident, Jude keeps charging in anyway. Nicci still works as a journalist for the Observer, covering high-profile trials including those of Fred and Rose West, and Ian Huntley and Maxine Carr. When Liam unexpectedly turns up in Jude’s life after ten years of no contact, asking her for a favour, she just can’t say no. Accused murderer Tabitha Hardy, the protagonist of this ambitious standalone from the pseudonymous French (the Frieda Klein series), starts with two strikes against her.However she goes along with it but things don't go as planned and all of a sudden she finds herself part of a police investigation for Liam's death. When Liam is murdered, Jude finds herself in a tangled web that seems to pull more tightly around her at every turn. Then we're introduced to Liam's housemates, an eccentric cast of characters, and Jude is mesmerized by these lunatics. Het ging een hele andere richting op dan dat ik had gehoopt en ook vond ik sommige keuzes een beetje vergezocht en raar. Part of this favor has her lying to her fiancé so she can travel for hours to a cottage to await Liam's arrival and this is when and where he'll explain more.

The Favour by Nicci French | Waterstones

As soon as Jude made contact with the Liam’s houseguests, the atmosphere turned slightly sinister and took on an air of “groundhog day”, with tensions escalating. Leila later tells Jude that she’s already performed the favour, in the form of providing Liam with an alibi, using his car, his credit card, taking his phone to Norfolk.I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and William Morrow and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased. You may ask yourself why TF would Jude do such a suspicious favour, but you'll learn that Jude is just a shell of a person.