A Good Place to Hide a Body

by Laura Marshall

'Can you come round?' Dad says tremulously.
'Of course. Are you OK? Is it Mum?'
'No!' He almost shouts it. 'Just come quickly. The garden...the...body... we need you, Penny.'
For women of Penny's generation, being on hand for elderly parents is just part of life. But for Penny, things have become a little more serious...

When she receives a frantic phone call from her parents one night, with express instructions NOT to call the police, Penny rushes over at once. But they haven't had a fall. They haven't forgotten their computer passwords. They've killed someone. And his body is lying in the garden, right next to the rose bushes.
Everyone is capable of murder. They just need to meet the right person.

Genres: Thriller, Crime, Mystery, Ebooks, Fiction, Contemporary, Humor

352 pages, Hardcover

First published July 4, 2024

About the author

Laura Marshall is the bestselling author of four psychological thrillers. Her debut novel, Friend Request, was a Kindle No.1 and Sunday Times bestseller, with over half a million copies sold in the UK. Laura's books have sold in twenty-four territories around the globe.

She grew up in Wiltshire, studied English at the University of Sussex and currently lives in Kent with her family.

For more information visit Laura's website www.lauramarshall.co.uk or find her at www.facebook.com/lauramarshallauthor or on Twitter @laurajm8.

Reviews

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5★s
A Good Place To Hide A Body is the fifth novel by best-selling British author, Laura Marshall. Penny Whitlock’s parents are finding it difficult to make ends meet and, while she would like to help out, at fifty, recently divorced, working from home as an accountant and trying to support her nineteen-year-old son as he attends Uni, she’s pretty much in the same boat.

Their once-beautiful Victorian is now dilapidated, but the cellar has a kitchenette and small bathroom, and with the help of handyman Bob, is made fit for a tenant. The letting agent brings around Cooper Brownlow, fifties, fit, attractive and rather charming. And is he flirting with Penny? Mandatory payments made, he moves in.

But Sissy and Heath soon have complaints: noise, visitors at all hours, and has the man been inside their house? Penny has seen the baggie of weed in his sock drawer, but feels it would be unreasonable to criticize a harmless indulgence. But things don’t improve, and Penny is a bit distracted by his attentions, and makes what is, in hindsight, a poor choice.

Also distracting her, a nineteen-year-old son who seems more interested in smoking weed than attending Uni, and an ex-husband who appears to think she can act as his therapist regards relationship problems with his new, much younger girlfriend.

When the complaints come from the tenant, though, Penny’s suspicions are aroused, and what she discovers in a clandestine visit to the basement annexe is disturbing. The agent’s sympathies lie with the tenant, who is expertly covering tracks and getting his version heard before the Whitlocks get a chance to speak. And the guy has a six-month lease. What now?

Much more can’t be said without spoilers, but there is a body, and it needs to be hidden if a prison term is to be avoided. It gets moved about a bit, Penny’s not sure if the young, smart Detective Constable is fooled by their story, and she learns that her parents are perhaps not as frail as she has believed up to now. Marshall gives the reader plenty of black humour in a tale that would translate well to the screen. Very entertaining.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton.

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixed feelings.

There was a bit, towards the end, that I quite liked. But I didn’t like the end per se, and Penny could be annoying. Having her as the narrator didn’t help.

I ended up liking Penny’s parents and maybe it would have been a better story with just the two of them. The rest of the characters felt a bit too stereotypical for my taste.

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very different kind of read from Laura Marshall than other books of hers that I have read. In saying that, I really did enjoy this dark but funny story. It will make you think twice about getting a lodger, no matter how much you might need the money.

Penny will do anything for her elderly parents. But getting rid of Cooper is harder than it seems. He is the tenant from hell, and manages to get away with it everytime. But one night, her parents find a permanent solution and Penny needs to help them clean it up.

Penny’s mother Sissy was hilarious! I loved how she used her age to her advantage. There are some dark themes here but overall this was a fun, quick read.

Thanks so much Hodder and Stoughton for my advanced reading copy. Publishes on July 4th, the perfect binge read.

[Lénia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ótimo livro para passar um fim de semana no sofá! Entretenimento puro!

Tradução e revisão excelentes. A tradução, então, merece todos os louvores!

[Sandra Melo · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

[Tracy Fenton · Rating 5 out of 5]

They say never judge a book by it's cover and I did.. I assumed this was a light hearted, funny book about an elderly couple who accidentally killed someone. Well I was completely wrong and will happily admit it.

A Good Place to Hide A Body is the 5th standalone book by Laura Marshall and is published in July 2024.

The story is narrated by Penny. She's in her 50's, divorced, has a teenage son Zach and her elderly parents, Sissy and Heath are requiring more of her time as they struggle with getting older, physical limitations and the financial implications of maintaining their large family home.

Unable to help them financially herself, they decide to rent out the self-contained annex in the basement and that's where handsome, charming and single Cooper turns up. He seems too good to be true and could he be the answer to their money worries? Err, NO.. he is literally the beginning of the problems and soon Penny and her parents find themselves terrorised by the very person they hoped could help.

I don't want to go into much detail because you need to read this for yourself. Yes, there is some humour and light moments and yes it's a really enjoyable book which I read in one sitting, but the underlying feeling throughout this book is of dread and tension. The horrific actions and behaviour of the tenant simmered in pure evil and my heart broke for both Sissy and Heath.

I did mention the humour and light moments above and have to say Sissy deserves an award just for being "absolutely fabulous".

This is a wonderful book about being a parent and having parents and the complicated dynamics of family life. I absolutely loved it and have no hesitation in recommending A Good Place to Hide A Body.

★★★★★

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Penny Whitlock is a mother and a daughter trying to keep all the balls in the air whilst balancing a job with the needs of her 19 year old son and also elderly parents who rely on her more and more. When her parents are struggling to pay the bills she suggests they rent out their basement annexe for extra cash, however none of them could have had any idea of what the consequences would be. What follows is a story with dark humour but ultimately a disturbing one of awful behaviour from people that you take on trust.

The book begins with a body in the garden – the reader doesn’t know who it is and I won’t spoil the moment. Suffice to say that Penny is not a natural criminal mastermind and struggles with the aftermath and responsibility. As well as supporting her parents, her husband has left her for a younger woman but still tries to use her as an agony aunt, she is struggling financially, her son appears to be suffering from the effects of addiction and, when someone pays her a little attention, to have something nice happen and to not be invisible for just a moment is too tempting to pass by.

There are characters here who will raise red flags and for much of the book I had this feeling of unease wondering what would come next. Besides Penny, her parents Sissy and Heath were probably my favourite characters, particularly Sissy with her Greenham Common background and no nonsense attitude. Penny’s dilemmas and struggles were clear to see, some of her decisions were not the wisest but made on the spur of the moment leading to a comedic element.

I very much enjoyed this well paced story where the unexpected was always around the corner. It was entertaining but also had its dark and disturbing side. It just goes to show that you never really know what people are capable of and what secrets they are keeping.

[daniela weber · Rating 3 out of 5]

a tragedy of errors full
of captivating characters
making odd mistakes - but
it considerably lost steam
after the first chapters. :x

[Sonia Cristina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este livro é muito bom, adorei.
Desde o início, foi uma leitura que fluiu muito bem e as páginas voaram.

[Inês | Livros e Papel · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5 ⭐️

[Inês Lucas (Só Mais Uma Página) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Os pais de Penny estão idosos e têm dificuldades em manter uma casa tão grande. Quando decidem arranjar um inquilino para habitar o anexo estão longe de imaginar a desgraça que se vai seguir... é que o homem que eles deixaram entrar nas suas vidas é um louco sádico que lhes vai infernizar o juízo. Mas os pais de Penny não estão para ficar sem a sua paz por causa de um badameco e decidem tomar as suas próprias medidas 🔪
Doses de comédia e de tensão igualmente altas, um livro divertido e surpreendente com um casal de idosos que nos vai aquecer o coração e ao mesmo tempo ter medo deles!
Perfeito para quem quer thrillers com uma vibe cozy e divertida.

[Margarida Sequeira · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 estrelas.

Achei o livro muito previsível, se fosse mais subtil ganhava muito mais com isso. Por outro lado, acho que os temas podiam ser um pouco mais originais e a narrativa torna-se linear e um pouco ilógica e até absurda!
Não houve investimento nos recursos literários nem na história.
Situações e soluções muito forçadas e irrealistas como uma máscara protectora, aludindo à época da Pandemia e que subitamente aparece na mala da protagonista , salvando-a de uma situação de constrangimento,escondendo a cara de um morto , fingindo ser a mãe da protagonista que está doente.
Ou situações de : matámos e agora é o acto mais natural do mundo , vamos lá continuar a viver como se nada fosse.
Não existe profundidade na narrativa e o que é dito já o leitor estava a prever.
Partia-se de uma ideia boa mas na escrita essa ideia não se concretizou bem. Mas esta é só a minha opinião!
Temas pouco originais e mais que batidos!

[Katie Booth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book up from the library as I was very intrigued by the title and the front cover! The general premise of the book sounds good, however, that was about as good as it got and even then the blurb does not tally to the actual story!
This was decent towards the end, but I struggled to get into it and did consider DNFing this about 50 pages in! 😓 I don't regret continuing with this book but I also would not recommend it! It was a little farfetched and irritating to read, it only picked up in the last 70 pages or so, and I did read it quickly, giving it the rating I believe it deserved.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leitura fluida com uma história interessante.
Quee fariam se os vossos pais vos ligassem a dizer que estava um corpo no jardim?! 🫣
Gostei bastante da mãe da Penny que afinal não é aquela “velhota” frágil e sensível, alias este casal é tudo menos fragil!

Já tinha lido um livro desta autora e gostei. Este livro também foi bastante bom e recomendo. E lembrei se nem sempre aquilo que parece é.

[Xana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Estava com muita expectativa, mas este livro não funcionou para mim.
Ainda assim li até ao fim.
Aquela personagem é super irritante. A autora tantas vezes falou em feminismo e misoginia e depois apresenta uma personagem daquelas.. 🙄
E tudo corre demasiado mal... não foi livro pra min

[Pixel de Prosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Esta foi uma leitura super viciante e cativante. Conquistou-me imenso o facto de haver vários plot twists ao logo da narrativa e não apenas aquele grande choque no final do livro

[Carla Jesus · Rating 4 out of 5]

não sei bem porque mas gostei ...

[Bruna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Charlotte Maidment · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately the most boring thriller I’ve ever read. Nothing else to say really.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everybody who loves their parents can relate to Laura Marshall‘s latest novel, A Good Place to Hide a Body. The story centers on Penny, whose elderly parents, facing financial difficulties, decide to rent out their basement annex to a charming middle-aged man. Penny is instantly smitten, but little does she know that he is a ruthless criminal.
From the outset, Marshall instills a sense of foreboding and yet it is still shocking how easily the situation escalates. This psychological thriller is absolutely unputdownable, blending suspense with great humor that had me laughing out loud. I was particularly charmed by Penny’s parents, whom the author describes lovingly. The family dynamic is further enriched by Penny's ex-husband and her troubled son.
Marshall masterfully weaves numerous twists and turns into the narrative, keeping readers on the edge of their seats until the very end. And the moral of the story is…Never underestimate pensioners!

Thanks to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton and Laura Marshall for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Ler aos poucos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pelo título, já se percebe que este é um livro divertido e original.

A história gira em torno de um vizinho maldoso e de um casal de velhinhos adoráveis que se vêem com um problema inesperado nas mãos: têm um corpo para esconder…

Enquanto enfrenta uma crise de meia-idade e lida com os problemas do filho na universidade, Penny, a filha do casal tenta apoiar os pais de todas as formas possíveis. No processo, aprende a vê-los com outros olhos , já os considerava velhos e ultrapassados, mas descobre que ainda têm muito para ensinar e viver.


É um livro leve e descontraído, com momentos verdadeiramente hilariantes. Os pais da Penny são inesquecíveis, adorei-os!

A história leva-nos a refletir sobre a forma como olhamos para os mais idosos, os preconceitos que temos e como, muitas vezes, subestimamos as suas capacidades.

Se procuram uma leitura divertida e viciante, este é o livro certo.

Boas leituras!
MJ♥︎

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit what first drew me in wasn't the cover, it was the title and the blurb. This sounded like it was going to be such a fun read and that was exactly what I got!
I was invested in this right from the start and my interest didn't lessen the more I read.
This felt like such an easy read, mainly because of the writing style and the pacing. Both of which I really enjoyed.
You could really feel the tension and atmosphere build and build right up to the end.
Unfortunately I wasn't a big fan of our main character Penny as I found her to be so naïve and because of that irritating. She really didn't come across like she was in her fifties. At times I wanted to reach into the book and giver her a shake.
However I did like the parents Sissy and Heath. They were the real stars of this book and I loved reading about them.
I also feel like this book could have benefitted from chapters from Cooper's POV. As there weren't any, I felt like I didn't really know anything about him or his motives and because of this his character seemed to lack any depth.
There also weren't any surprises for me plot wise. It all seemed pretty obvious from the start how it was all going to play out so nothing was very shocking for me.
That being said I did have such a fun time reading this. The whole thing felt so entertaining and if you like a domestic thriller this should be right up your street.

Thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for the ARC I received in exchange for an honest review

[Quinty · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐️ niet echt mijn ding maar opzich wel een goed boek.

[Ana Moreira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gostei mas ia com as expetativas erradas

[Maria João Vaz · Rating 2 out of 5]

História muito fraquinha, nem sei se isto pode ser chamado de thriller visto que é mesmo muito fraquinho a nível de mistério, etc.
Parece uma história para adolescentes, trata temas como dependência e crime com a maior superficialidade (e impunidade). As personagens são de construção vaga e se é suposto achar-se graça à avozinha corajosa e que se faz de tolinha para enganar a polícia, não convence.
Muito irrealista e fraco.
Fui até ao fim à espera que melhorasse. Até aos 30 por cento estava a gostar, do meio para a frente downfall completo.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

fairly decent plot but I feel like it kept getting more and more complicated that near the end I just wanted it to finish

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

None of the characters in this book were likeable and most were more than irritating. But, the funny parts of this story meant I was flip-flopping between not enjoying the book at all, and then laughing out loud. It was odd.

[Eva · Rating 4 out of 5]

As reviews go, this is going to be a pretty vague one. I don't want to give anything away about the identity of the body in the garden, how they came to be there, or who did them harm. It's all revealed quite early on so you don't have to wait too long to find out.

At first, it's more important to understand how things got to this point. It all begins very innocently. Penny's elderly parents are struggling with paying the bills. They refuse to downsize. All their memories are in this house, and they can't even begin to think of leaving their pride and joy behind. Their garden, where they spend so much time, turning it into something nearly prize-worthy. Penny could move into the basement, but there would be no space for her teenage son. So the only other option that remains, is to find a tenant. That is how the story begins.

At some point, as you've already read, Penny will receive a phone call from her parents because there is a dead body in their garden. Now, the story takes another turn altogether. Penny and her parents are out of their depth here. There is very little time to think things through, but they are adamant they will not be calling the police. But what IS a good place to hide a body?

Penny and her parents are ordinary people, who suddenly find themselves knee-deep in extraordinary circumstances. It's impossible not to think about what you would do, if you were in their shoes. Just like it's remarkably easy to sit back and judge them on their bad judgements, and the sometimes awful choices and decisions they make. I thought Penny, in particular, was awfully naive.

The tension seems to kick up a notch on pretty much every single page, and slowly but surely, Penny's life starts to unravel. But 'A Good Place to Hide a Body' isn't merely about hiding a body and hoping nobody ever discovers what you did. It's also about not ever really knowing someone, and what they're capable of. It's about how children so often forget their parents had, and still have, a life that doesn't involve them. It's about how people seem to become invisible after a certain age.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It has somewhat of a dark humour thing going on, which I always appreciate, and I'm pretty sure I chuckled at some inappropriate moments but that's just me. Maybe the story is a tad far-fetched, but that didn't bother me at all. It's full of suspense, deliciously twisty and I dare say there is one utterly fabulous character I will not forget in a hurry. Pacy, well-plotted, and hugely entertaining. Do yourself a favour, though, and go in blind.

[Nicinha || Nicinha_book’s]

Um livro muito calmo, que vamos andando pela mão da autora, tranquilos a entrar na casa dos pais de Penny, que para além da preocupação com os pais, o filho Zach está também a passar uma fase complicada.
A juntar a tudo, aparece Cooper, um inquilino indesejável!!!

Como tantas pessoas da geração de Penny, estar à disposição dos pais idosos faz parte da vida, mas neste caso as coisas tornaram-se um pouco mais sérias...

Os pais arrendam a cave a fim de auferirem mais algum rendimento. Mas rapidamente o inquilino se revela algo que não é.
Numa noite, Penny, recebe um telefonema agitado dos pais, com instruções claras para não chamar a polícia. Ela vai acudi-los de imediato, antevendo alguma desgraça.
Mas eles mataram alguém e o corpo está no jardim, mesmo ao lado das roseiras.

Se esperam um livro com muita adrenalina não é… mas o final e o contra final são de nos deixar de queixo caído! Se vos posso contar mais? Não!!!
Mas uma coisa certinha é: quando achares que já percebeste tudo, não percebeste nada!!

[Daniela · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️
Não consegui sentir qualquer tipo de conexão com este thriller. Acho que começou bastante bem, mas ali pelo meio foi tudo muito confuso para as personagens, muito dramático, muito previsível.
Gostei da parte da mãe dela e da forma como depois ela se tornou a personagem que mais surpreendeu (pelo menos para mim não estava à espera de toda aquela adrenalina da parte dela e depois percebemos que foi ela que matou o Cooper e não o marido).
Mas de resto, as personagens não foram nada de especial. A história também não foi nada de especial.
No entanto, é um livro muito fácil de ler, tem capítulos pequenos. Se querem um thriller que vos enerve, com uma personagem que morre muito irritante este é ideal para vocês.