My Husband's Son

by Deborah O'Connor

"Readers will be left gasping. This was an ending I never saw coming."
- NetGalley Reader

A gripping psychological thriller with a devastating twist, perfect for fans of Apple Tree Yard, While My Eyes Were Closed and Between You and Me

You'd always recognise your own son. Wouldn't you?

Heidi and Jason aren't like other couples.

Six years ago, Heidi's daughter was murdered. A year later, Jason's son Barney disappeared. Their shared loss brought them together.

By chance, Heidi meets a boy she's certain is Barney.

But Jason is equally convinced it's not him.

Is Heidi mad? Or is Jason hiding something? And can their fragile marriage survive Heidi's newfound quest for the truth . . .

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Crime, Adult

339 pages, Paperback

First published June 16, 2016

About the author

Deborah O'Connor is a writer and TV producer. Born and bred in the North-East of England, she lives there with her husband and two children.

Reviews

[Chelsea Humphrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

All my reviews can be found at: https://thesuspenseisthrillingme.com

Date Read: 06/07/16
Pub Date: 06/14/16

5 STARS

You’d always recognise your own son. Wouldn’t you?

Heidi and Jason aren’t like other couples.

Six years ago, Heidi’s daughter was murdered. A year later, Jason’s son Barney disappeared. Their shared loss brought them together.

By chance, Heidi meets a boy she’s certain is Barney.

But Jason is equally convinced it’s not him.

Is Heidi mad? Or is Jason hiding something? And can their fragile marriage survive Heidi’s newfound quest for the truth . . .

Yes! Debut author alert! This one is “juicy and delicious” with a side of “keep me up all night reading because I don’t want to put it down”! When the author’s pr contacted me about reviewing the book and possibly doing a guest post on pub day, I knew I had a good bit on my plate but was intrigued all the same. I’m glad I went with my gut because I cannot imagine missing out on this gem of a story!

The novel opens with a scene of a small boy being kidnapped. We don’t know when, where, or really why its happening but we shortly find out who the boy is. Jumping forward into present day, the plot is set up with Jason and Heidi and their unique marriage. As the book blurb states, they have both lost children to horrible crimes, the only difference being that Heidi’s daughter Lauren* was murdered and Barney is still presumed missing. Many false sightings have worn Jason, Heidi, and Jason’s ex-wife Vicky (also Barney’s mother) down and caused tensions to run high. When Heidi is out one afternoon following work, she spots a boy in a beverage shop that appears to be the spitting image of Barney. Heidi is so convinced that this boy is Barney that she decides to investigate, without Jason’s blessing, as she feels bringing Barney home would be the best gift she could give Jason and secure their marriage indefinitely.

“Desperately trying to spot the red dash of Barney’s T-shirt in amongst the wet cars and motorbikes, she would be paying that his face would suddenly appear and that, within minutes, she would be scolding and cuddling him for giving her such a fright.”

Haven’t we all been there as parents? At some point, haven’t we (however briefly) lost sight of our kids and panicked so efficiently that when we found them we were torn between screaming and them and never letting them out of your warm embrace? I love how this story was based around such a subtle, yet terrifying premise. I won’t go into too much plot detail because SPOILERS, but I like how we are mostly in the dark from the beginning and we are slowly given information to piece together and solve the mystery as a whole. There are a good many surprises and twists, although I don’t want to dwell on those because then you will be reading solely for the twists and miss the whole excellence this book has to offer. I’m not going to compare this book to other thrillers because I felt this one stood firm on its own two feet; it doesn’t need to be supported by past novels that were successful.

“It was strange, when you thought about it. This new, almost slavish obsession we had
with DNA. Memories and experiences seemed to me to shape our identity so much
more than a series of cells and chromosomes.”

I truly loved how the blending of family and tragedy was a constant theme throughout this book. The first thing that truly gripped me when reading the blurb was how unique this plot premise seemed; how would it work if you placed two emotionally damaged souls in union together? Would they hold each other up, or would they slowly break each other down like a festering wound? I’ll let you decide what you think by the ending, and that is all I’ll say about the ending as I’m hoping everyone will keep it hush hush as to not spoil it for any readers! I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND this one to all psychological thriller/suspense lovers! This one kept me glued; I truly didn’t want to put it down. The pacing is very quick and is easily devoured in 1-2 days. Many thanks to Deb and Bonnier Zaffre Publishers for my copy; truly a great read that I believe will be very successful!

*just a quick note that I couldn’t seem to find the right place for in my review. I really admired the way that Lauren was sort of this ghostly, ambiguous character throughout the book. Early on, we don’t really know what happened to Lauren, but are slowly filled in as the story goes along. It was very brutal and disturbing, and this might be a trigger for some readers; overall though the book was not gratuitously violent or graphic.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

MY HUSBAND’S SON by Deborah O'Connor is a gripping debut psychological thriller about a woman who thinks she's found her husband's abducted son. And you will never believe the lengths this woman will go to prove she is right! She is obsessed with finding out the truth.

You'd always recognize your own son. Wouldn't you?

Heidi and Jason aren't like other couples.

Six years ago, Heidi's daughter was murdered. A year later, Jason's son Barney disappeared. Their shared loss brought them together.

By chance, Heidi meets a boy she's certain is Barney.

But Jason is equally convinced it's not him.

Is Heidi mad? Or is Jason hiding something? And can their fragile marriage survive Heidi's newfound quest for the truth…

Heidi and Jason had been brought together by personal tragedy. They had both lost their children.

The opening scene of the novel is one where a little boy is kidnapped. We move fast forward to a married couple Jason and Heidi, who met at a conference because they had both lost children. Jason, along with his then wife, Vicky had gone through so much after their son, Barney disappeared, that it had destroyed their marriage. Heidi’s daughter, Lauren was murdered.

So many false sightings and subsequent disappointments!

The story is narrated by Heidi, and she explains how on her way home from work she stopped at an off license and saw a boy that looked just like Barney. Heidi contacts Jason at work and brings him to the off license to see for himself…but he says the child is not Barney, and tells Heidi to drop it.

But Heidi is convinced that this child is Barney, and is determined to prove it. Heidi needs to find a link, no matter how small that links the off licence/or owner to Barney’s disappearance.

No more plot details because of possible Spoilers. You will just have to read the novel, to see what happens. Twisted ending that I did not expect.

Heidi’s quote: “Life is a series of trade-offs, of choices considered and choices made. I have made my choice.”

Thank you to Deborah O'Connor, Bonnier Publishing Twenty7 and Netgalley for providing a digital ARC for review.

[Sandysbookaday (taking a step back for a while) · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I didn't find this psychological thriller gripping, My Husband's Son by Deborah O'Connor did keep me interested.

When you lose someone through death, until you have fully come to grips with that loss, you see them everywhere. A stranger who resembles them, someone with a similar hair colour and cut, someone who walks like they do, has the same mannerisms, quirks.....

So image how much worse it would be if you didn't know that person was dead, if they were abducted and still missing. You would be forever looking.

Heidi's daughter is gone. Forever. Dead. She knows that, even if she hasn't quite come to terms with it. But when she meets Jason at a bereaved parents group, they fill a need in each other and quickly become a couple. Heidi knows she can't ever get Lauren back, but maybe she can find Barney for Jason.

Then, by chance, Heidi meets a boy she's certain is Barney.

But Jason is equally convinced it's not him.

Is Heidi mad? Or is Jason hiding something?

The ending is delicious - it was a 3.5 star read until I got to the end. The ending is definitely worth the extra 1/2 star!

Author, Deborah O'Connor, is great at depicting relationships, their ups and downs, rifts and renewals. I loved the way Jason and ex-wife Vicky shared custody of Barney's favourite toy - a fire engine and the petty squabbling that went with it.

This is an author who is going to bear watching in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bonnier Publishing Twenty7 for providing a digital ARC for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

[Rachel (not currently receiving notifications) Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Undoubtedly an intriguing premise, My Husband’s Son is centred around the marriage of Jason and Heidi Thursby, a couple united by their own personal experiences of losing a child and the ensuing fallout after Heidi’s chance sighting of a young boy that she suspects is Jason’s missing son, Barney. Poignantly written, with real sensitivity and a nuanced psychological element, the result is less “grip-lit thriller” and more a languidly paced character study as Heidi’s suspicions continue to weigh on her mind and she scratches the itch to investigate. Heidi’s own experience of loss forces her to act on her intuition, without the knowledge and contrary to the wishes of husband Jason, and it is this steadily evolving depiction of a marriage under the weight of unspoken secrets that is the principal focus of this story. Against the backdrop of Heidi’s obsessive quest and the pull of an increasingly menacing investigation, the unfolding ebb and flow of a marriage that hangs in the balance will hold readers attention and keep them turning the pages, even as Heidi places herself in jeopardy and makes some decisions that defy all logic. The pace of the novel is definitely not breakneck and I suspect that much of this is due to the need for the author to recount the meeting of the couple (at a victim support group for the parents of children who have gone missing), Heidi’s eventual move north and the specifics surrounding Barney’s disappearance. However, this measured pace suits O’Connor’s narrative and a thorough underpinning of the facts helps to add context and real colour to the plot.

Narrated from the perspective of thirty-nine-year old Heidi, the novel opens as she returns home from an out of town business meeting in Gateshead and makes an impromptu stop off for a bottle of wine at an off-license. Located in a slightly more down at heel neighbourhood to where she resides Heidi catches sight of a young boy standing in the back of the shop who she is sure is Jason’s missing son, Barney. Missing for five-years, with Heidi only ever having seen photos of the boy, all her instincts tell her that this is Barney and in a quest to put an end to Jason’s tormented state of unknowing she urgently summons him to the shop. However, on first sight Jason is equally as convinced that the boy is not his son, looking nothing like the age progression artists impressions along with his firm belief in the primal ability of a parent to recognise their own child. Jason is convinced that the bond he felt at Barney’s birth and the immediate sense of belonging they shared is lasting and he refuses to even countenance telling Family Liaison Officer and now good friend, DS Martin Gooder, about Heidi’s suspicions. Compelled to investigate and confused by Jason’s refusal to even enter into discussion, Heidi is disinclined to allow the matter to rest, all exacerbated by her own intentions to paper over an obviously fragile marriage however she cannot shake the niggling worry that there is something Jason is holding back. Does Jason know more about Barney’s disappearance that he is willing to disclose? Just as it starts to look like debut author, Deborah O’Connor is preparing to unleash the “can I trust my husband”/“is my wife mad” formula she changes tack and focuses solely on Heidi’s own determination to find out if the child is Barney.

Heidi is a difficult character to empathise with despite the tragic loss of her daughter and is prone to both impulsiveness and recklessness and I readily admit that her exploits result in some decision making which requires a fair amount of suspension of disbelief. With little consideration for the dangers involved or for her job which supports the couple, she misses numerous imperative business meetings, leads a rather menacing man on and more mystifying still, walks through a rough neighbourhood in the middle of the night and attempts to stand on a wheelie bin to peer into a window! Honestly, the woman has so many close shaves that the proverbial nine lives of a cat pale in comparison. Whilst the reader is less informed of what is going on in the mind of Jason, I was flummoxed by the marriage of the couple which lacks any sign of chemistry, perhaps because the reader never sees anything of them beyond the common ground of missing children. Some lead up evidence of domestic harmony in order to instil a little belief that the couple had a genuine connection would have undoubtedly kept me more invested in the outcome and it is hard to conclude that the relationship readers see is anything but entirely unhealthy.

The details on the death of Heidi’s daughter, Lauren, are slowly disclosed over the course of the novel, and it is not until the final stages that Deborah O’Connor hits readers with the brutal facts of her murder. I am sure that the intention of withholding this disclosure until further into the novel was to allow Heidi to be viewed in a more sympathetic light but after some of the injudicious and stupefyingly risky decisions she makes along the way, it merely made me feel pity for a woman who quite clearly, despite her assertion to the contrary, has not gained ‘closure’ over her own trauma. As the novel ventures further, Heidi’s incessant evidence gathering comes across almost as a replacement for the loss of her own daughter and her own inability to protect Lauren. At times it feels more like Heidi is deriving her own sustenance from the search for the truth and as much as she is keen to believe that she is doing everything with Jason’s interests in mind, I questioned her selflessness.

As Heidi gets closer to the boy who she believes is Barney entirely without Jason’s knowledge she is naively certain that a DNA test will conclusively resolve the nightmare, but as time goes on can it ever be so simple? As Jason clings to the idea of parenthood, Heidi is forced to consider what a definitive answer could mean for their marriage, particularly with ex-wife, Vicky, still waiting in the wings. A fascinating novel that forces readers to consider the struggle of living a life forever defined by the loss of a child and a marriage based on shared and ultimately tragic circumstances. In contrast to many readers I did not find the ending volte-face came out of the blue, with Deborah O’Connor paving the way and dropping hints almost one-hundred-pages prior to the denouement. My lingering questions surrounded Heidi’s overt desperation for her marriage to survive and her willingness to sacrifice her own personal hopes and dreams for a partnership with a lack of communication and a legacy of secrets and lies.

Given the numerous contentious issues raised by the novel and the moral dilemmas aired, My Husband’s Son is manna from heaven for a book group discussion, however, I envisage a fair amount of lamenting on Heidi’s short-sightedness and lack of regard for the consequences of her infuriating actions. Factoring in the murder of Lauren, her foolhardy endeavours and total lack of precaution will leave many questioning her sanity. Overall, an engaging and thought-provoking novel, but readers will need to keep calm as Heidi becomes very wearing on the patience!

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a debut novel this is an excellent thriller. Heidi and Jason are married and have both lost children. When Heidi is out one day she is convinced she see's Jason's missing son Barney. Heidi becomes obsessed with trying to find out if she is correct or not but cannot understand why Jason does not seem to share the same excitement and enthusiasm regarding this that she does. This is every parents nightmare, could this possibly be Jason's son and if so where has he been for all this time? Throughout the book we are fed more and more information and just when I thought I knew where the story was going it took a sharp turn. The book is very well paced and again I found myself turning the pages till the end. Highly recommended.

[Maxine (Booklover Catlady) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really fantastic read! I was sucked in and lost in this book from the word go. If you like your books to keep you guessing, plenty of action, lots of twists and some shock factor then you don't want to miss My Husband's Son. It's got all of the above then some more.



You know the plot because you have read the blurb. It's not a unique storyline (abducted missing child) but it is unique in it's approach, the background and the ending! Don't expect anything stock-standard from Deborah O'Connor with this fab read. Unimaginable - the loss of a child, not knowing if they are dead or alive for years on end, if not forever. No closure. It would be a nightmare. And it is.

When our protagonist in the book begins to dig deep and look where the police are not looking for her husband's son she opens up one hell of a can of worms for herself. A fascinating character - just when I thought I really had her summed up she would do something so out of character (or was it?) that I was stunned and shocked, not a one dimensional character by any means and one that will pull you in to engage in her thinking and her world.

It's very much a book about how far you are willing to go above and beyond, the risks taken and the consequences that follow. We know from the opening prologue eventually where it might head but it's so important to know the why and how on the way! It's a really thrilling and page-turning book that kept me totally immersed. I could not get enough.

I was trying to guess, piece things together, play detective but I did NOT expect the ending. In fact I wondered if the wrong ending had been printed in advance. THAT was a twist that nobody will see coming. Bloody brilliant. Not sure how I felt about it personally but kudos to the author for what a shocker it is.

A must-read psychological thriller that will appeal to a broad range of readers. If you have not got this on your list already then why not? Don't miss. 5 enjoyable novel loving stars from me.

Many thanks for my ARC copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest book review.

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[Magdalena aka A Bookaholic Swede · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started to read this book this summer, but it just didn't work for me. I think it was mostly Heidi that just didn't rub me the right way, and the stupid things she did. I know that she is a damaged individual. Losing one's daughter, and in that way is, without a doubt, one of the worst things that could happen to someone. But, her obsession makes her do really irrational things, and I found myself more and more annoyed with her and lost interest in the book.

But, I gave the book another chance a couple of days ago, just to see if it would work better for me. I still found Heidi's action questionable, but the story felt better, this time, and I even started to enjoy reading the book. I particularly started to like the story when the truth about what really happened when Barney disappeared was revealed, or rather the events leading to the truth being revealed. And, this book has one of the biggest WTF ending ever. I can't say I like the ending, but it sure was surprising and very daring.

I'm glad I gave the book another chance, the characters in this book are complicated and flawed, and so very human. I may not like Heidi very much, but I can understand some of her actions, and other, well I'm not sure I could live with some of them...

I want to thank Bonnier Publishing for providing me with a free copy through Netgalley for an honest review!

[Joanne Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Since I finished this book I have struggled to get rid of the images that it conjured up for me and it has left me with a somewhat unpleasant taste in my mouth...Yes it's definitely my kind of book! This is an interesting and well told debut with a rather unique twist on the missing child plotline. It made me remember the feeling I was left with when I first read Appletree Yard by Louise Doughty, that I had been a voyeur watching scenes unfolding before me that I couldn't tear my eyes away from or step in to change even though they made my skin crawl!

Jason and Heidi are a married couple who seem to have nothing much in common apart from the fact that both have lost a child. Heidi had a daughter Lauren who was abducted and as we read through the book, we are drip fed information about her murder. I found this an inventive tool to use as we gradually come to understand why Heidi is the way she is and her behaviour begins to makes more sense. The information we are given isn't graphic but for me that made it even more disturbing! When Heidi thinks she has seen Jason's missing son Barney, she finds it difficult to understand why Jason doesn't see it straight away. Her determination to investigate further, brings her into contact with Tommy. And this is where the author really "scraped her nails down the black board" and set my teeth on edge. The scenes where Tommy and Heidi were together became more disturbing as the book progressed in my view and I really couldn't understand what she was doing!

This book plays on every parents fears, that one day, through no fault of our own a child could be lost or taken from us. This has been an overused storyline recently but this has been one of the better ones for me. I love a book that makes me think about the dilemmas it has created and the ending as it approached, had me holding my breath waiting to see whether or not we would have some closure. The twists and turns certainly made me question everything and everyone throughout.

Highly recommended by me!

I received a copy of this book via netgalley in return for an unbiased review.

[Katheryn Thompson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Heidi and Jason are a married couple, united by the fact that Heidi's daughter Lauren was murdered six years ago, and Jason's son Barney disappeared a year later. The impact of these losses are effectively implied through factual details in the text, such as the weight loss of Heidi, who used to be a size eighteen, and the career change of Jason, from welding to teaching first-aid. Their fragile marriage is shaken when Heidi, by chance, sees a boy whom she is convinced is Barney, but whom Jason is equally convinced is not. Is Heidi seeing things that aren't there? Or if not, does Jason not recognise his own son? Or is he hiding something? Either way, Heidi cannot get the boy out of her mind and determines to get to the truth.

I found My Husband's Son a really difficult book to rate. The premise is an interesting one, and O'Connor handles Heidi's and Jason's unusual relationship very well. My main problems were my inability to sympathise with Heidi, whose actions were questionable to say the least, and the lack of a twist in the ending. Even fuelled by grief and desperation to find Barney, I did not find Heidi's actions plausible, trying to get to the truth in an extremely unorthodox way even to the detriment of her friendships, career, and marriage, not to mention her own personal safety and conscience. I found her hypocrisy especially hard to handle, as she rebukes Jason for keeping secrets from her, all the while keeping secrets of her own. As for the ending, I found that O'Connor kept me wanting to read, presenting a number of different clues and red-herrings, but that ultimately the ending was just as I had expected, with even the final 'twist', which I know others found entirely satisfying, becoming apparent to me some time before the end. And I found Heidi's actions to be at their most baffling and, dare I say it, despicable in the ending.

I know that I am in the minority in my opinion of My Husband's Son, so I urge you not to let my review put you off if you think that it sounds like your type of book. But I'm afraid that it just wasn't for me.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. The ending was not at all as I had expected. I will definitely read any further books by Deborah O'Connor.

[Kath Middleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heidi and Jason met at a support group for parents whose children had gone missing. Heidi had been a single mother and Jason’s marriage broke up when he and his wife lost Barney. After four years of marriage and much frustrating chasing of leads, Heidi thinks she’s seen Jason’s son close to their home, living above a shop. Jason goes to look, but insists it isn’t his boy. Heidi can’t let it go and carries on, against her husband’s wishes, investigating by herself.

I found this story a great page-turner and wanted to know how it would turn out for them all. I wanted to know what had happened to Heidi’s daughter, Lauren, and whether there was any truth in the idea that the boy might be Jason’s son. The downside, for me, was Heidi’s behaviour. To put it kindly, she made a lot of unwise decisions. To put it brutally, she frustrated the hell out of me and I wanted to shake her. It’s good to get a gut reaction from readers but not if it’s because they don’t believe anyone would be so stupid, so pig-headed and put herself in so much danger. I won’t say more because it really is a compulsive read. I just wish I could have been behind Heidi in her search, rather than constantly shouting ‘No! Don’t do that!’ at my Kindle app.

[Shawna Peryea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sit tight for a twisty tale of two people brought together by loss. Heidi's daughter was murdered and she thought no one understood her pain. That is, until she meets Jason. Jason's own marriage crumbled after his son goes missing. Realizing they have loss in common, Heidi and Jason do what normal couples do...and get married.

Fast forward and while out shopping, Heidi sees a boy she is determined is Jason's long lost son. Thus begins her maddening efforts to prove she is right. I at first had a hard time getting into the book because I thought I had it all pegged out, but I was so very wrong. The characters all had secrets, and all those secrets seemed to tie together...but how!?

This book really is character driven. You ache for the characters...and then you hate the characters. Books that make every character have flaws makes the reader keep guessing who is really the person behind the crime. Who took Barney all those years ago? Was it Jason he is becoming increasingly irritable and is adamant that the boy is not his son? It it Vicky, Jason's ex wife whose story of the day never seemed to add up? Is it one of the slew of other characters in couples life? Or is Heidi just going mad?

Read to find out! The ending will make you think and...wow no words. Great read! Thanks to NetGalley, Deborah O'Connor and the publisher for the opportunity to read this brilliant novel.

[Alex ☣ Deranged KittyCat ☣ · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

I'm definitely not a fan of this book. The reason it gets an extra 0.5 besides the 1 star is that I can't say I hate My Husband's Son. Otherwise, I didn't feel anything while reading it. I didn't root for any of the characters as I couldn't find any of them likable.

There's an awkard woman with an obsession and a tormented man who doesn't really seem to know what he wants. They are a couple because they both lost their children. Both were kidnapped, but while the woman's daughter had been murdered, the man's son had never been found. Their grief is what brought them together.

Back to present, the woman sees a boy she's sure is her husband's long lost son. She brings the man to see the boy, he does, and is convinced that the boy is not his. But she continues to obsess about it... And nothing much really happens throughout the book.

The ending is a bit of a twist, but that's all. *shrugs*

*Copy provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Carol Peace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heidi is married to Jason have both lost children. Heidi's daughter went missing some time ago with devastating results and Jason's son is still missing. Heidi catches a glimpse of a little boy who she is convinced is Jason's son and even though he says it isn't Barney she will just not let it go. She becomes obsessed with proving this little boy is the missing Barney and puts herself in escalating danger whilst doing so. Jason has his own secrets though and makes Heidi sure she isn't being told the facts.I didn't warm to Heidi at all but I couldn't put the book down as I just had to see what happened next. I was surprised at the end and had to read the ending twice so that I could be sure of what I had just read. I would say this is one of the best debut books I have ever read and would like to thank NetGalley for my kindle copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Lavender · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book opens with the kidnapping of a small boy. Somebody sees him and just takes him by the hand and leads him away. Then we meet Heidi and Jason. They both have in common that they lost their children. Heidi’s daughter was taken and murdered; Jason’s Son Barney is still missing. Jason is still hoping that they will find Barney even after 5 years. One day she walks by accident into a shop and there she sees a boy. Immediately she is certain that this boy is Barney although she never met him. She brings Jason who encountered a lot of false sighting of Barney over the years, to go with her to this shop. But Jason is adamant that this boy is not Barney. He is sure he would recognize his son as soon as he sees him, even after this long time. Heidi can’t accept that because she is absolutely sure that she found Barney. She becomes obsessed to find evidence for that.

So far the story sounded promising. But at this point it became annoying for me. Heidi is so absolutely stupid and she does all this stupid things, brings herself in danger and risking her job. At the same time there is not much story development. We just see Heidi doing stupid things. Driving by every impulse to this shop and starting a strange thing with a neighbor. Jason clings to the search for his son, it is his purpose in life. But also he seems to keep a secret. Obviously there is something that happened on the day of the kidnapping he is not telling. With hindsight I can really not understand why he and his wife kept this secret while their son was missing. Absolutely stupid and selfish. But Heidi is the worst. She is so stupid. She stumbles around with her high heels and brings herself in one humiliating situation after the other. I also don’t know, why she reacted to this boy like she did when she never met Barney. There are also some weird sex- or nearly-sex-scenes which were completely unnecessary for the story.

The idea for the plot is not bad. A woman who does everything to find her husband’s lost son and overcome her own trauma. A man fluctuation between hope and resignation clinging to the search of his son and not realizing that even if he finds Barney nothing will be like it was before. In his memory Barney never grew older or changed. But it did not work in the story. The book was never really gripping. It was all very constructed and unbelievable. I just kept reading because I wanted to know how it ended. There was a little bit of a surprise, somehow consequent but also unbelievable as well.

I am sorry to say that I did not like the book. I could not connect to the characters; in fact I was annoyed by them. I was bored most of the time and flipped the last pages.

I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

There has been quite a bit of hype around this novel and lots of my blogger friends have been raving about it so obviously I had to have a read for myself.

I have to say I found Heidi and Jason’s relationship quite an odd one. I could understand that with both having lost a child, even though through to different circumstances, that they had a connection and could understand what the other one was going through. They are both so wrapped up in finding Jason’s missing son that I couldn’t see where their relationship was going to end up.

I don’t know if it’s because Heidi’s daughter is dead, but she seems fixated on finding Barney. I suppose she hopes that at least one of them can have a happy ending and they could be a proper family at last. Jason is struggling with Heidi’s fixation on Barney. He is just as desperate to get his son back, even though he does seem research of his own into what could have happened, he finds it hard to deal with Heidi’s constant badgering for him to come and see yet another lad who she thinks might be his son. There is only so much disappointment I think that one person can endure.

When Heidi comes across a boy in a newspaper shop she is adamant it is him. her fascination with him starts taking its toll on her marriage as well as her work life. It seems to take over so that she can’t think of anything else.

My Husband’s Son is without a doubt a page turner. It flows really well and I was just as intrigued as Heidi was as to whether this little boy was Barney. It certainly makes for an enjoyable read which I flew through. look forward to reading more by the author.

[Evelyn Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

My Husband's Son by Deborah O'Connor is the best novel I have read this year. In fact it was so good I literally could not put it down, and finished it in one sitting.
Everything about it is worthy. from the narrative written in first person, the plot and the ending.
It tells the story of a couple brought together under separate tragic events that happens to their children. While the wife's daughter is abducted and murdered, the husband's son is still missing and so begins the tale of the father, the child's mother and the police liaison officer still trying to find him five years after he was taken.
When the narrator sees a child who reminds her of the boy she first asks her husband to verify that it is Barney, the boy who went missing, his son. He dismisses it as another futile, wrong sighting, but his wife decides to continue investigating the child, which leads her into some dangerous encounters before, eventually to a surprising end,

I have to thank Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book.

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hauntingly realistic, disturbing, and intriguing!

This story takes us on a journey of both the physical and mental extent to which a parent will go when their worst nightmare has come true and their child is missing. And it exposes the fragility of relationships based on loss and heartbreak, and the devastation that can be caused by secrets and lies.

The writing is exceptional. The characters are determined, relentless, consumed, and damaged. And the plot is dark, captivating, and full of multiple twists that will take you on an emotional roller-coaster ride, through moral and ethical dilemmas, until the very end.

This is a truly gripping, psychological thriller that I guarantee you won't be able to put down.

Thank you to NetGalley, especially Bonnier Publishing - Twenty7, for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

This review can also be found at www.whatsbetterthanbooks.com

[ReadAlongWithSue recovering from a stroke★⋆. ࿐࿔ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am as thrilled as punch with this book, do you want to know why? Well, its because the ending is not predictable and for once that is absolutely awesome because life is just not like that, we all don't get happy endings, woooo loved it.

Heidi and Jason met under circumstances that were not normal. Heidi's daughter had been murdered.
Jason's son Barney had gone missing.
Both grieving.
One without hope of their child's return and one always hoping.


Heidi comes across a lad that she has a 'feeling' is Barney and that unfolds a huge host of problems.
Because Jason says its not his son, he would know if its his son.
Heidi won't let it rest.

This is a brilliant book that you wonder where its going to lead especially when other characters are introduced along the way.

For me, this was a GREAT read which I would highly recommend.

My thanks to Bonnier Publishing via Net Galley for my copy.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a very strange story. Sometimes the plot of a book can sound mesmerising and yet the writing somehow fails to deliver: a perfect shame in what could have been a very good mystery thriller.

The book begins quite promisingly, although I found the lead character Heidi to appear flakey, I overlooked this and began to inwardly solve the mystery of what has happened to her husbands son. Meanwhile struggling with her grief of her own lost daughter, Heidi risks her job and relationships and becomes increasingly obsessed with the presence of a young boy she spies in a newsagents.

Unfortunately, the storyline soon begins to dwindle and I began to lose interest. By the last third of the book I was frustrated at the lack of progress in the story and felt it was going nowhere fast.

This book proves that, just sometimes, the hype overshadows the deliverance.

[Louise Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heidi and Jason are not like most couples. They were brought together by tragic circumstances.

Six years ago Heidi's daughter had been murdered and then a year later Jason's son Barney disappeared.

By chance Heidi is convinced she has found Barney but Jason is convinced it's not him.

Is Heidi mad? Or is Jason hiding something. Heidi is sure that it is Barney she saw and decides to investigate without her husbands blessing. After all, you would recognise your son when you seen him.

Brilliant novel again from a debut author. I could not put the one down.

I would like to thank Net Galley, Bonnier Publishing Twenty7 and the author Deborah O'Connor for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Zoë · Rating 3 out of 5]

My Husbands Son was a good book. The plot is interesting, and its fast paced nature kept me hooked all the way through. I've given it 3 stars stars because I don't actually LIKE any of the characters in this book; Heidi is strange, Jason is an ass face, Tommy is very creepy, Vicky had no brains...just no depth. I would still recommend reading this one though, because the story line is quite captivating. Until the ending, where I just wanted to hit my head against a wall.

[Nicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG.....That final twist was jaw dropping

Jason and Heidi are a married couple with a unique connection,they both had children who were kidnapped at a young age.Heidi knows what happened to her daughter Lauren but Jason's son Barney has never been found.One day while she is buying a bottle of wine at an off licence in a unsavoury and run down part of town Heidi sees a young boy who she is absolutely certain is Barney but when she gets Jason to come and have a look he is equally as certain that the boy is not his son and makes Heidi swear that she will not tell anyone including the police about the boy.Despite his insistence that she drop the matter Heidi starts on an all out quest to try and prove to Jason that the boy is his son.

The book opens with a gripping prologue that pulls you into the story,a story that keeps you guessing right to the final jaw dropping twist.The story is voiced only by Heidi as she goes to all kinds of questionable lengths to find out the truth,putting herself into dangerous situations without a thought about her own life whilst at the same time fighting with her own doubts that perhaps she might actually be wrong especially when Jason won't believe her and dismisses everything that she tells him.Throughout the book I found it hard to understand some of Heidi`s actions and why it was so important for her to prove that she was right especially considering Jason's behaviour throughout the story.Did she feel that she had let her daughter down and that proving that the boy was Barney would somehow make her feel less quilty?,did she think that if she was right and the boy came to live with them that her marriage would suddenly be all sunshine and roses?.I struggled to understand why they got married in the first place and I certainly couldn't understand why she stayed with Jason or put up with his behaviour .

The story keeps you guessing,is intriguing, very well written and packed with a mixed bag of characters who all have their secrets and various reasons for keeping what they know too themselves.There's danger,lies,twists and the ending is literally jaw dropping.It's been a good year so far for debut novels and I would put this one in my top ten reads of the year.I will be very interested to see what Deborah O`Connor comes up with for her second book because the twist in this one is going to be very hard to beat.

Many thanks to Bonnier publishing for an ARC of this book via Netgalley

[♛ may · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t want to say that I’m necessarily disappointed in this book, but I was really just hoping for … more.



My Husband’s Son is about Heidi and Jason. The loss of their children, is what brought them together as a couple - Heidi’s daughter was murdered six years before and Jason’s son had disappeared five years prior. Now married and still on the lookout for Jason’s son, Heidi coincidently walks into a store and is positive she has found the missing boy, Barney. Jason, on the other hand, isn’t convinced and adamant that he of all people would recognize his own son. But there’s more to the story and Heidi is willing to find out.

So basically, this story is a thriller that interestingly explores the terrible events through a psychological manner. The ending offers a captivating twist that has the reader reeling back to question their definition of morality.

As fascinating as this book was, I have to admit, there were many weaknesses.

Heidi, the main character, is extremely dense. This woman makes terrible choices on a daily basis without even mulling over the repercussions for her daft actions. She continuously corners herself in tricking situations and never stops to think for a moment.



I found the plot to be drawn out but I won’t get into that since that would require me to get into spoilers.

Now the marriage. Jason and Heidi have this really strange marriage and I totally understand that they both have difficult pasts and whatnot, but seriously, they should go to counseling sessions or something.

I was expecting the plot twist to be sudden, dizzying, and intense, in actuality, it was more thought-provoking than anything else (probably because the story ends pretty abruptly)

All in all, a decent read, but with the buildup, I was definitely anticipating a stronger ending.

But life is a series of trade-offs, of choices considered and choices made.


3 stars!!

[Lisa - OwlBeSatReading 🦉📚 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I REALLY liked this story. It had every type of element to make for a gripping psychological thriller that made me keep turning the pages.

Every character was superbly written, however, I didn't like any of them very much! With plenty of twists and turns, the questions remained unanswered right until the end. There were a few hints as to where it might be going, but it didn't give anything away at all.

There were many cringworthy moments, particularly the relationship between the main protagonist Heidi and the slimy Tommy, who was utterly hateful and sickening.

Overall this story was unique in its telling, I've read LOTS in the Psycho -Thrill genre and this oozed mystery.

I must admit, the conclusion confused me somewhat, it left me with unanswered questions which I think the author did on purpose. Reason for this? My personal opinion is that it left the entire situation that Heidi and Jason were left with open to such debate on a personal level for the individual reader because the overall subject matter is a very sensitive issue and further questions were the key plan by the author. Not too sure if that statement is exactly right for what I'm trying to get at, but it's the closest I think I'm gonna get!

I rate this 3 stars out of 5 purely because the ending wasn't tied up as neatly as I'd of liked.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Uhm... Not sure what to make out of it.
The book started a bit slow, but gradually the story picked up and found myself totally engrossed into it.
I thought it was quite well written, the author found the right pace to unravel the story. It was coming in chunks making it too obvious, yet it was not too hidden making it too unbelievable.
Yet the last quarter of the novel just ruined it for me.
Too much too unrealistic. And the ending of it... Really? What kind of person does that to the other, to the person who they claim they love??...
So overall it was OK, I enjoyed it but I can't say that I loved it. The end was more disappointing than anything.

[Tracy Fenton · Rating 4 out of 5]

My Husband's Son by Deborah O'connor
A tense psychological thriller about a woman who thinks she's found her Husband's abducted son.  With secrets and obsession and guilt and desperation this book is not an easy read but it is a gripping page turner. 4.5 stars

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

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com
Deborah O’Connor’s debut psychological thriller, My Husband’s Son, covers fairly familiar territory, the missing person’s case of a young boy, who may still be alive. O’Connor pulls apart this case and cleverly intertwines the story of a mother who tragically lost her daughter to a murderer, who is married to the father of the missing boy in this novel. It all sounds a little confusing and sombre, but this is one mesmerising crime thriller novel.

Heidi and Jason are a couple united by a tragic history. Heidi lost her daughter six years ago when she was tragically killed by a depraved murderer. A year on from this terrible crime, Jason’s young son Barney disappears without a trace. It is unclear as to whether Barney is still alive, or he has met foul play. Heidi and Jason connect at a support network conference for parents of children like themselves, victims of crimes against children. Heidi and Jason’s lives are shaken up yet again when Heidi believes she has seen a boy that looks exactly like Jason’s son, Barney. Jason is not convinced whatsoever, he is sick to death of the false hopes and the dead-end leads he has followed since Barney went disappeared. Heidi is determined to prove this boy really is Barney to Jason and her actions have dangerous consequences. But the question looms, is Jason withholding something important pertaining to Barney’s disappearance and why won’t believe his wife’s claims?

There is plenty of tragedy throughout My Husband’s Son and O’Connor introduces us to the awful experiences that have touched couple Heidi and Jason early on in the book. The exact circumstances of Heidi’s daughter’s death is not divulged until well into the book’s proceedings and for me this aspect was the prime motivator in reading this novel. Likewise, O’Connor lets the reader know from the very beginning that Barney was a young boy when he was taken from his father and mother five years ago. The exact circumstances of that fateful day is carefully teased out carefully by O’Connor in her ensuing narrative. As there are two crimes in this novel, sadly involving two innocent children, so it also feels like you get a double narrative with My Husband’s Son.

O’Connor’s main characters are intriguing and we are never quite sure throughout the entire novel if they can be trusted. I immediately felt a pang of sorrow for Heidi, I couldn’t imagine how awful it would be to lose a child under the circumstances in which she lost her daughter. She is definitely a determined woman that’s for sure, with an inquisitive nature that gets her into trouble. I wasn’t too sure how I felt about the decisions Heidi made in the novel and her actions seemed to go way off kilter as the book progressed. She almost seemed to be completely possessed by the need to prove the young boy she sighted was in fact Barney.

Jason, the other lead character in this novel, is again a man that I felt immediate empathy for very early on in the novel. The loss of his son, the lack of firm answers and all the false hopes he has received in the years Barney has been missing seemed to hit him hard. I almost didn’t bat an eyelid when he refused to believe or investigate Heidi’s claims of seeing a boy that resembled Barney. However, as the book travelled on, I grew less and less sure of Jason and feelings of mistrust began to surround this character. When Jason’s first wife and Barney’s mother comes into the story I questioned her role in Barney’s disappearance. O’Connor certainly worked to ensure that we as the reader felt sceptic of the characters and the circumstances presented in the novel. When I reached the conclusion of the novel I was quite surprised to say the least at the final turn of events. It really seemed to get under my skin!

Overall, I felt My Husband’s Son was a very solid debut from a first time novelist. It was well paced, had an intriguing narrative, served up plenty of plot diversions and featured a cast of damaged individuals, who the reader is never sure if they can trust. I’m looking forward to seeing what Deborah O’Connor issues us with next. I’m sure it will be another thrill ride.

[Cleopatra Pullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes I just want to be swept away by a story but what does it for me isn’t a great romance, no my getaway is fraught with angst and secrets, a quest for the truth and a bit of action. Deborah O’Connor must have known this when she wrote My Husband’s Son!

We first meet Heidi when returning from a sales pitch she walks into an off-licence for a bottle of wine! So far so typical but in the back of the shop is a young boy who she thinks is the spitting image of her husband’s missing son, Barney.

Heidi has also lost a daughter, although the details of her daughter’s murder are left fairly sketchy throughout the book. Jason’s loss is different, he firmly believes his son is still alive and he still deals with the double-edged sword which is the press interest in the story. His study, holds the age progression pictures that have been generated to keep the public aware that Barney is still missing. Jason and Heidi got together after his marriage to Barney’s mother Vicky withered in the year after losing Barney.

I like a book with secrets and this book is dripping in them, and most are not where or what you expect at all but what the reader has to decide is the boy Barney or is Heidi just seeing what she wants to see? And all the while as the story of the disappearance is poured over while Heidi’s obvious distress at the loss of her daughter and her longing for another child is ever present. This is a relentless tale and one that I got completely caught up in. Quite often when plots are fairly unrealistic either in the events or the character’s actions, I get pulled out of the story which ruins the experience for me but even though Heidi’s actions seemed at best a little disordered, I was able to buy it. Perhaps because of the circumstances she found herself in.

Unusually, and I only realised this when I was reading My Husband’s Son, there is a fair amount of sex in this novel – not overly salacious in detail but enough to take me by surprise because I realised that the books I read rarely have sex-scenes in them at all, rest assured though this is all linked with the main story-line!

With Heidi trying to get Jason to believe she’s found his son and forced to take devious routes to get to the truth it is unsurprising that she finds herself in a spot of bother more than once. That does mean of course that there is plenty of action as well as a general feeling of unease that pervades once you realise that everything is not quite what it first appeared to be!

What My Husband’s Son is, is a perfectly paced piece of psychological suspense. A book that drives on unremittingly dragging the reader along in its wake. I found myself reassessing what I thought was going to happen as another piece of information was slipped into a scene and that continued without the dreaded dip up until the end.

I’d like to say a huge thank you to the publishers Twenty7 Books for another excellent debut novel, and for allowing me to read a copy of My Husband’s Son before the eBook publication date of 16 June 2016.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m joining in again with Throwback Thursday which was created by my good friend Renee at It’s Book Talk. She started this weekly feature as a way to highlight old favorites and read books that have already been published. I have so many older books on my TBR that get ignored in favor of review copies and I figure participating in Throwback Thursday will help me to read at a least one older title a week!

I think the psychological thriller label has been thrown around quite a bit as of late and it’s not always quite accurate. I know I’ve been disappointed a few times when I read a book billed as a psych thriller and it’s actually just a mystery/thriller with the psychological aspect missing. My Husband’s Son is the definition of a psychological thriller with every single element needed to make this a gripping page turner.

The entire story is told from Heidi’s point of view and why I wouldn’t go as far as to say she’s a completely unlikable character, I will admit she frustrated me. I did however feel genuine empathy for her, her young daughter was murdered and as a parent myself I cannot even begin to fathom how you live with that. The details of Lauren’s murder are revealed very slowly and methodically which made me uneasy as I wondered if there was more to that portion of the story than meets the eye. Adding to my apprehension was Heidi’s erratic behavior, she is totally convinced that she saw Jason’s son who has been missing for five years and she is adamant about proving it. As she begins to make rash decisions and altogether bad choices I questioned her motivations and stability again and again. Is she reliable or is she a delusional, grieving mother? I’ll never tell…

This was a perfectly paced read that had me totally addicted the entire time. It put a fresh spin on the whole missing child storyline which is always so appreciated. There were many secrets along the way and there was a killer twist in the end, it was so chilling and nothing I ever would’ve predicted. If you’re a psychological thriller fan and somehow missed this one when it was released last year give it a shot!

All of my reviews can be found on www.novelgossip.com