Book Review: The Mistress by Valerie Keogh

I’m pleased to be welcoming Valerie Keogh to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, The Mistress.

She wants what you have…

Hannah Parker is a woman who always gets what she wants.

When her current husband discovers she has been lying to him – again – she knows it’s time to move on and find someone who can give her the life she desires… The life she knows she deserves…

But who will be the lucky man?

When her eye catches a glimpse of an old flame in a photograph, she’s sure it’s a sign. Mark Shepherd has always been in her thoughts – they’d been happy once, he’d adored her, but she’d made a mistake and let him get away. She won’t make the same mistake again….

Hannah is older now and wiser. She knows what men want and she knows how to keep them happy.

So what if Mark is happily married with a family of his own?

All good things must come to an end…

*****

Hannah is used to getting what she wants or what she thinks she wants. So what if men fall over themselves to buy her things, to give her money? 

When her marriage comes to an end, Hannah looks back to a time in her life where she was close to happy. She will do whatever she can to be with the man responsible for that happiness, no matter what it costs him. 

Susan has been happily married to Mark for years. Although she’s suffering from empty nest syndrome, she thought that she could at least depend on her husband… or can she? 

I am such a big fan of Valerie Keogh and so was super excited to be invited onto the blog tour for her latest novel, The Mistress. 

The author doesn’t waste any time in throwing the reader into the action and the mind games that follow. 

I was so conflicted when it came to Hannah. At one point, it was hard to have sympathy for her because of her actions but then that feeling is turned on its head as you get to know snippets about her past. This back and forth feeling was present throughout the whole book. This meant that, for me, she was a compelling character that, despite her behaviour, gets her hooks into you. You can’t help but get invested in her story. 

Susan is a little easier to like and feel empathy for throughout. What happens in her life blindsides her. I found the dynamics between Susan and Hannah interesting. 

Mark of course is not blameless in this scenario. I won’t say much more about that in fear of giving too much away.

Like with previous novels, the discord, secrecy and fear is threaded incredibly well through the plot. So well in fact, that I couldn’t put this book down. I needed to know what happened and wow, I did not see that end coming. 

This novel is about betrayal, secrets and lies – ones we keep and tell ourselves and ones we withhold or choose to tell others. 

It’s about knowing your own worth and how past trauma, if not dealt with, can shake your whole life and can come and bite you in the bum when you least expect it. 

Another great rollercoaster of a psychological thriller from Valerie Keogh. If you’re looking for a dynamic, nail biting, fast paced book, give this one a go. 

About Valerie Keogh –

Valerie Keogh lives in Wiltshire with her husband and a huge black cat, Fatty Arbuckle.

She grew up reading Agatha Christie and initially wrote crime novels – she now writes psychological thrillers.

The Little Lies was shortlisted for the Crime Fiction Lovers Award 2021.

Say hello to Valerie on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and BookBub. Click here to sign up to her newsletter. 

The Mistress was released by Boldwood Books on 25th March 2024. Click here to buy on Amazon UK and Waterstones. 

by

Laura

I’m Laura. I started Novel Kicks in 2009. I wanted a place to post my writing as well as give other writers like me the opportunity to do the same. There is also a monthly book club, a writing room which features writing prompts, book reviews, competitions, author interviews and guest posts.

I grew up by the sea (my favourite place in the world) and I currently live in Hampshire. I am married to Chris, have a cat named Buddy and I would love to be a writer. I’m trying to write the novel I’ve talked so much about writing if only I could stop pressing delete. I’ve loved writing since creative writing classes in primary school. I have always wanted to see my teacher Miss Sayers again and thank her for the encouragement. When not trying to write the novel or writing snippets of stories on anything I can get my hands on, I love reading, dancing like a loon and singing to myself very badly. My current obsession is Once Upon a Time and I would be happy to live with magic in the enchanted forest surrounded by all those wonderful stories provided that world also included Harry Potter. I love reading chick lit. contemporary fiction and novels with mystery.