The Half Brother

by Christine Keighery

The bonds of sisterhood were unbreakable. Until him.
 
Hannah and Stef have always been there for each other. Growing up in a loving family, they’re stunned to discover their mother adopted out a child before their parents met.
 
When Alex walks into their lives, the sisters are seduced by his charm, wealth and social status. But as they rush to make up for lost time, it soon becomes apparent their new brother’s agenda is more complicated and sinister than the sisters could have imagined.
 
A novel about loyalty, secrets and the insidious effects of narcissism and gaslighting,  The Half Brother  asks, do we ever really know those we love the most?

Genres: Audiobook, Suspense, Thriller, Fiction

344 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 5, 2023

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hannah and Stef are not only sisters they are also best of friends and have a strong bond. But their relationship is about to be tested when their mother delivers the news about something that will change their lives forever.

Hannah and Stef are at first shocked by what their mother tells them, but when they begin asking questions are they ready for the answers that could divide a family that was once so close? The Half Brother by Aussie author Christine Keighery is a book I thoroughly enjoyed. Books that are based on and around family secrets are always intriguing and page-turners with suspense thrown into the mix all of which this had and more. I enjoyed this book and have no hesitation in recommending it.

[Lisa A · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would have been a much shorter story if someone had have just told Alex to fuck off

[Amanda - Mrs B's Book Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com

Ultimo Press presents the debut work of adult contemporary fiction from accomplished young adult and children’s fiction author Christine Keighery. The Half Brother is a theatric work of fiction that is taut, nervy and perplexing. It was great to introduced to a new author on the block in the suburban noir field.

Sisters Hannah and Stef have always had each other’s backs. As part of a loving and supportive family these sisters are shocked when their learn that they have a sibling, a brother who was adopted as a young child. When Alex comes into their lives, Hannah and Stef are soon taken by his handsome charms and high-profile personality. But after the initial excitement of connecting with their new brother wears off, Hannah and Stef realise that Alex has a hidden agenda for connecting with his family. What dark plans does Alex have for his family? Can we really trust our blood relations?

When I was contacted by Ultimo Press the publishers of The Half Brother to read and review Christine Keighery’s debut adult fiction release I was very intrigued. I absolutely love the domestic and suburban noir genre, so to see a new book pop up in this category of fiction was quite exciting. I’m really pleased I gave The Half Brother a big push up my review pile, it was a fascinating read.

Families are always great subject lines for fiction and one that is changed or impacted by the influx of a new member is always an intriguing narrative direction. In The Half Brother we hear from two sisters Hannah and Stef via Keighery’s narrative standpoint direction. It was good to hear from these women as the impact of Alex’s entrance into their lives bears down on them. Hannah and Stef are quite complex, but Alex is that step above, in terms of how his presence impacts this family unit. Initially, Alex seems almost too good to be true. This new brother is charming, handsome and wealthy, but as the story unfolds, our impression of Alex begins to alter. Questions of loyalty, jealousy, trust, suspicion and evil plans begin to direct the novel, allowing the story at large to take on quite the weather change.

Keighery ramps up the tension and suspense, ensuring that The Half Brother is not viewed as a laid-back breezy read. There are moments of darkness, twists, heavy moments and lots of chilly feelings as this story unfolds. With questions of nature versus nature, family values, adoption, reconnection, kinship bonds and sisterhood defining this story, Keighery has hatched a solid suburban family noir tale.

If you love a coiled family suspense tale, comb through the bookstores for this release, you won’t regret it!


*Thanks is extended to Ultimo Press for providing a free copy of this book for review purposes.

[Craig and Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Ultimo Press for sending us a copy to read and review.
An adult contemporary fiction newbie with a dose of domestic noir and a big helping of suburban drama.
Hannah and Stef are sisters and the best of friends.
Supporting each other when needed, they have a strong bond.
But their relationship is about to be tested.
Their mother hits them with a bombshell.
They have a half brother they knew nothing about.
Alex is wealthy, charismatic and smart and something is not right.
The sisters are taken in by his charm and money.
Things begin to change.
Signs of menace, nasty and ominous are apparent from Alex.
Are Hannah and Stef in danger?
Twisted family melodramas are high on my reading agenda and this one is very satisfying, interesting and engrossing.
I was pulled into the story from the first chapter and it kept me intrigued all the way through.
The pacing is good as the tale unfolds naturally, the plot is striking, the characters are readable and in part of the reading experience the atmospheric mansion is slightly mysterious and creepy.
The family dynamic vibes give off a sense of curious, you can’t help but wonder where it will all go.
Solid read and worth picking up.
A great new voice in the book world.

[Mercedes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The perfectly timed pace of the plot that kept dropping intriguing tidbits of information made this book hard to put down. I polished it off in just two days.

It follows the story of sisters Hannah and Stef Fidler who have a close bond with each other and their parents. But then a man, Alex, turns up claiming to be the son given up for adoption by the Fidler mum in her teens. At first the family are happy to get to know their lost family member, but as they learn more about Alex’s past, they realise all is not well and the foundation of their once stable family is rocked.

This suburban thriller is a great weekend or holiday read. You know something bad is going down but you don’t know how it’s going to play out and I kept promising myself “one more chapter” until I was done. The twist at the end offers a nice, if unsettling, conclusion.

Make sure you have a clean slate ahead when you pick this book up as you won’t want to put it down.

[Suzie B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Making a move away from writing kids books, Christine has done well with her first adult novel. The book is well paced and draws you in as the suspense builds.

[Farrells Bookshop · Rating 4 out of 5]

Making a move away from writing kids books, Christine has done well with her first adult novel. The book is well paced and draws you in as the suspense builds.

Read by Suzie

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this however don’t read this book expecting it to be a real thriller it was more a family drama . It was still great

[Sandy · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 The story was great at gathering suspense but then lacked in any major bombshell shock to the reader. Absolutely atrocious ending.

[Justkeepreading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are sibling bonds really unbreakable. Well in my experience no not really. But this is explored in this book.

Hannah and Stef are really close. They are like best friends in sister form. They have grown up in a loving and encouraging family, where they feel like they know everything about each other. However this is all rocked when they discover that their mother actually adopted a child a boy way before their parents ever met. That noone knew anything about.

So when Alex walks into their lives all of their worlds are shook and rocked. Both sisters are absolutely besotted with the new arrival. They love his charm, and his wealth and his social status and his life. They want to spend as much time as humanly possible with him to make up for all of those lost years and to find out everything there is to know about him.

However they are about to find out that the new arrival isn't as clean cut and as amazing as they were lead to believe. They are about to find out that their long lost brother actually has a much more complicated and sinister agenda to hand.

Secrets are about to unfold and sinister events are about to happen. A very well written physiological thriller.

[Deborah (debbishdotcom) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Half Brother by Christine Keighery is a bit like a car crash. Not in the sense it's bad. More in the sense that you can see what's coming but are powerless to stop it. Keighery puts us in the head of sisters Hannah and Stef - dissimilar but close when we first meet them - and their half-brother Alex... who we learn from the outset has quite a dastardly agenda which means Keighery is able to create a sense of menace that oscillates throughout the novel.

Keighery is best known for her books for children and young adults, but she paces this thriller well. I enjoyed the sense of foreboding it created. I read so much crime fiction and thrillers that I was prepared for the worst but we're taken in a different direction here and - though it kinda frustrated me (#nospoilers) - it was clever of Keighery to do so.

3.5 stars

Read my review here: https://www.debbish.com/other-stuff/t...

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new half brother! How exciting! Steph and Hannah are thrilled to discover they have a new sibling….. a half brother their mother had adopted before their parents met. Alex has money, chairman status and wants to be part of his new found family but at what cost? What is his agenda? A chilling tense read all about coercive control with sinister undertones as Alex tries to assert his influence and power in order to avenge his past. An excellent read.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book.

[Rebecca Starks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC.
This is my first title by this author and will read more in the future.
Twists that you don't see coming, What a great roller-coaster ride of a thriller
I requested this book as i was drawn in by the cover and thought it looked interesting.
Thanks again for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Wendy Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it, l had a to read it twice as l gobbled it up too quickly the first time.

A warm family feel with an underlying sinister edge.

[Katrina Katz · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 - well crafted characters and storyline that kept me turning the pages. Would have loved to give it a 5 but I didn’t care for the ending! Looking forward to what comes out next from this author!

[Celia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was decent buuuut - I really didn't want the supremely evil character to just... get away with everything and corrupt the next generation? So dissatisfying.

[Mahayla Bailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was looking for a thriller book thinking this would be it, but there sss no thrill whatsoever it was very basic pg story, interesting enough and a very easy quick read though

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aussie author Christine Keighery’s The Half Brother (2023) is her debut adult psychological thriller, set in suburbia Melbourne. Hannah and Steph are sisters who are close despite their differences growing up in the middle-class suburb of Burwood. Steph is a single mother with two children who still resides in the same suburb in which the sisters were raised. Hannah is a university lecturer and childless by choice in a nonexclusive relationship. They are called to a meeting with their parents, where their mother reveals a shocking secret that has caused her angst throughout their childhood. The discovery of the sisters having an older sibling is not only a major shock but causes fractures in the close family bonds. The psychologically amiable tale has a menacing undertone that makes it a suspenseful domestic noir with a four stars read rating. Unfortunately, the somewhat benign ending made for a disappointing climax. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without inducement.

[Tay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 🌟

Despite their differences, the sisterly bond between Stef and Hannah has always been strong and unbreakable in their loving family, but the family strength is put to the test when their mother reveals she adopted out the baby she had before meeting their father.
Everything changes when Alex, their elder half brother, walks into their lives with the hope of making up for lost time, only for the family to fall prey to his twisted mind games.
-
A bit different to my usual reads but when I found this at a thrift store a few months back, I was intrigued.
Finished it in 24 hours because I just had to see how this would play out and geez, Alex is one manipulative bastard 😅
Moral of the story, if a long lost, ridiculously rich and charming brother pops up in your life, run awayyyyy 🤣

[Sue Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Half-Brother by Christine Keighery.
The bonds of sisterhood were unbreakable. Until him. Hannah and Stef have always been there for each other. Growing up in a loving family, they’re stunned to discover their mother adopted out a child before their parents met. When Alex walks into their lives, the sisters are seduced by his charm, wealth and social status. But as they rush to make up for lost time, it soon becomes apparent their new brother’s agenda is more complicated and sinister than the sisters could have imagined.
An OK read. Slow but readable. I did like Hannah and Stef. I didn't trust Alex. 3*.

[Sue Wallace · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Half-Brother by Christine Keighery.
The bonds of sisterhood were unbreakable. Until him. Hannah and Stef have always been there for each other. Growing up in a loving family, they’re stunned to discover their mother adopted out a child before their parents met. When Alex walks into their lives, the sisters are seduced by his charm, wealth and social status. But as they rush to make up for lost time, it soon becomes apparent their new brother’s agenda is more complicated and sinister than the sisters could have imagined.
An OK read. Slow but readable. I did like Hannah and Stef. I didn't trust Alex. 3*.

[Kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kept me up late reading this one. Interesting characters with complex interwoven relationships. Family dynamics are thrown into disarray at the surfacing of a half brother given up at birth. As everyone grapples to understand what happened then, and what happens now we see cracks and fractures develop through the family.

[Janette Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

An unsettling story that left me feeling disquieted, partly due to the devious ‘half brother’. It was well-written with well-depicted characters, I just found it hard to like the ever-increasing cruelty of Alex towards the family. The culmination of Alex’s plotting was not satisfactorily dealt with, leaving it up in the air, it ended too soon.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to like this book but I really didn’t like how it ended. I’m autistic as heck, but I’m not sure I believe neurotypical people would let themselves be walked over like the Fidler women were at Hughesdale. It was unbelievable for an otherwise grounded story. I didn’t like the ending either. Heath was such a good character prior to latching on to Alex. I don’t know if I’d recommend.

[Risha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this book overall but it was intriguing enough to finish. I can see why some reviewers enjoyed it. I felt it was well written and the character development was fabulous, especially for the sisters. I can’t pinpoint why I didn’t like it. Maybe I couldn’t relate to it overall. I’d be keen to try the author again.

[Em Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I already knew that this author is a genius when it comes to creating characters (Whisper is a case in point) but The Half Brother shows her expertise in creating creepy, twisty, 'sleep with the lights on' plots as well. I can't wait to read what she produces next.

[Cate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Props to the writer for not taking the narrative high road on this. The story and ending are more disturbing, challenging than a more ‘popular’ finish. The tied up, neat ending doesn’t really come. And I’m ok with that.

[Melthurggmail.com · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping psychological thriller with an unexpected and kind of shocking sting in the tail. Great character development, particularly the rendering of the two sisters. Will there be a sequel?

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Cassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ahhh, the familiar setting of twisted families. Not bad