"The Loving Husband" by Christobel Kent had a great plot and at times, the novel was a real "page turner". However, the story bounced around too much. Hard to follow at times. Hence, the 3 star rating. Another issue for me, was some of the graphic scenes. Which I found a bit too much. ( )

Good mystery. Did not guess all the complications of the book. It dragged a bit I. The middle. ( )

I had high hopes for Christobel Kent's The Loving Husband after seeing it on social media, but sadly it didn't really deliver for me. I felt quite indifferent about the whole story and unfortunately as soon as I turned the last page it became a forgotten story for me. That's not to say it's all bad, as there is enough of a hook to keep a bit of interest and it's a reasonable enough story but the characters are so flat and unemotional that I wasn't bothered what happened to them.

It is clear from the start that Fran and Nathan Hall have a bit of a strange marriage. It would appear that Nathan has only shown affection to Fran twice, resulting in their two beautiful children. Fran remembers Nathan coming to bed one night and apparently completely out of character snuggles into her and one thing leads to another. A few hours later Fran wakes up to find the bed empty and she finds Nathan dead in a ditch outside. The police investigate and predict Nathan's time of death prior to the time that Fran said he came to bed...so who was in the bed with her and how the devil didn't she know it wasn't her husband? Fran becomes the prime suspect in Nathan's murder and she doesn't help herself by keeping things from the police. As the events surrounding Nathan's death and the story of his marriage unfolds, it becomes clear that all is not as it seems.

All in all, it was a reasonable story with a satisfactory outcome but nothing really to write home about. I think I have read so many great psychological books lately that the bar has been raised quite high and therefore many books will fail to deliver. Although I'm sure some people will love this book, it left me feeling flat, apathetic and disappointed.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion. ( )

4.5 stars.

The Loving Husband by Christobel Kent is a suspenseful murder mystery set in a rural village in Great Britain.

Fran Hall lives with her husband Nathan and their two young children, four year old Emme and 3 month old Ben on a rundown farm close to where Nathan grew up. Since their move from London, Fran has become increasingly isolated as Nathan controls just about every aspect of their life. Awakening to discover Nathan missing from their bed, she makes a horrifying discovery when she finds his lifeless body in a ditch on their property. The investigators assigned to her case, DS Doug Gerard and DC Ed Carswell, are convinced Fran knows more than she is telling but does this mean she is a killer?

Fran was never overly thrilled with the move from London, but it seems like the best way to put her mistakes behind her. The farmhouse is isolated and somewhat dilapidated, but she is trying to make the best of the situation for her family's sake. While Nathan has a thriving business that takes him away from home quite frequently and an active social life, Fran's days revolve around her children and keeping the peace with her husband. It is not until Nathan is murdered that the inconsistencies in his life become more apparent and Fran is somewhat surprised to discover she does not much at all about the man she has shared her life with more than five years.

While DS Gerard and DS Carswell are initially solicitous when dealing with Fran, it does not take long for her to realize they are not on her side. She is not exactly forthcoming with all of the details of the night Nathan was murdered but under the circumstances, her hesitance is understandable. The only person involved in the investigation that she feels comfortable with is Family Liaison Officer DC Ali Compton. However, Fran is unsure she can completely trust Ali so she continues to maintain her silence about some of the events that occurred the night of Nathan's murder.

Fran is horribly confused about the information that is uncovered during the investigation . As she reflects back on her relationship with Nathan, she begins to realize how isolated she has become. She also starts to recognize how much of herself she has given up over the years in order to keep Nathan happy. Fran is dismayed by her inability to answer basic questions about her husband's business dealings or who he socializes with in his downtime. With every new clue that emerges, she cannot help but wonder about Nathan's motivation for marrying her but the reason for his actions eludes Fran.

The Loving Husband is a suspense-laden domestic mystery that moves at a moderately fast pace. Christobel Kent cleverly keeps the killer's identity and motive for the crime a closely guarded secret with brilliantly plotted twists and turns and a few well-paced red herrings. The novel comes to quite a stunning conclusion that is virtually impossible to predict. An absolutely riveting mystery that fans of the genre do not want to miss. ( )

I'm reviewing The Loving Husband by Christobel Kent. Here are my thoughts:

^^ Fran and her husband Nathan have recently upped sticks to rural Cambridgeshire with their two young children. But Fran's life is turned upside down when she discovers Nathan outside. Not only is he dead, but he's been murdered.

^^ Under suspicion herself, Fran decides to find out what her husband was up to and along the way she uncovers far more than she expected. Is the detective right? Is she as guilty as he thinks? After all, everyone knows when a spouse is murdered it's nearly always their
other half that did it, right?

^^ This is another one of those books which took me by surprise, because it had so much more to it than expected. Honestly, I'm sure the standard of these "domestic" type psychological thrillers is getting higher.

^^ There was a moment in this story where I realised what was happening and my blood literally ran cold -- it was so good. I love it when a book affects me like that. It really made my heart race and my reading pace speed up! Every good book should do this.

^^ Incidentally, this is close to where I live and I recognise a few place names, so I could really picture where I thought this could be set adding to the suspense and intrigue of my read.

Overall: I enjoyed this immensely and really like this author's writing style. Since she is fairly local I am doubly keen to read more of her work and maybe bump into her at a book signing -- in a non-stalkerish way, of course. ( )