The New Couple is a psychological thriller with a stunning twist.
The story centres around Richard and Stephanie Hamlin, who move into a perfect house in a affluent cul-de-sac with their baby daughter, Poppy. They are depicted as the perfect couple, but it is clear from the off that they are nothing of the sort. The couple’s behaviour becomes more and more suspicious. The big question is…what dark secrets do they hide?
I didn’t expect the secrets to be anywhere as dark as they were. I didn’t see the twist. I kept turning the pages because I wanted to unravel the truth.
As a thriller writer, what did I learn?
The the twists worked because of the expert use of numerous unreliable narratives. I gained inspiration from the excellent POV’s. All of the characters acted suspiciously at some point…it left me wondering who was hiding what?
The pacing was excellent. Often thrillers have a pacy beginning and a hold-your-breathe ending, but they have dip in the middle. The New Couple continued to gain momentum until the dramatic climax.
As a thriller writer, what would I have done differently?
This is subjective, but I would have avoided some of the repetition when the story was retold from a different perspective. I struggled to get inside the head of Liam, and I would have liked an extra layer to his character.