Beautiful Ugly

This psychological thriller about an author who is struggling to write his next novel and deal with the mysterious disappearance of his wife started out with a strong, sinister vibe.

It's a locked room ... er, locked island? ... story that was greatly enhanced by the wonderful narration by Richard Armitage and Tuppence Middleton. The addition of auditory embellishments of background noises and music helped to set the eerie mood of the story and setting when author Grady is offered a cabin on a remote island where he believes strange things begin to happen. He questions the intentions of the island residents and whether  he has seen glimpses of his missing wife on the island.

This is a slow burn story that leans heavily on the unreliable narrator - a popular and successful trope. We also get chapters about the days leading up to Grady's wife's disappearance and I liked getting both POVs. 

I'm not a fan of the slow burn story and this book took quite a while to gain traction with the action not picking up until the last quarter. At this point, the story dives into the deep end of unbelievable that will require readers to suspend disbelief with some of the far-fetched twists that are finally revealed. 

An eerie, atmospheric read with lots of red herrings (some of which hit their targets and others not so much), I think this book will appeal to Feeney fans!

Disclaimer: My thanks to Macmillan Audio for the advanced digital audiobook which was provided in exchange for my honest review.

My Rating: 4 stars

Author: Alice Feeney

Genre: Suspense

Type and Source: eAudio from publisher via NetGalley

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

First Published: January 14, 2025

Narrator: Richard Armitage

Run Time: 9 hours 19 minutes

Read: December 5 - 9, 2024

Book Description from GoodReads: The million-copy bestselling Queen of Twists Alice Feeney returns with a gripping and deliciously dark thriller about marriage ... and revenge.

Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life.

Grady calls his wife to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes, get out of the car, then nothing. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge the headlights are on, the driver door is open, her phone is still there. . . but his wife has disappeared.

A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can’t sleep, and he can’t write, so he travels to a tiny Scottish island to try to get his life back on track. Then he sees the impossible – a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife.

Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t.
Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do.