Blood Orange

By: Harriet Tyce

Narrated by: Julie Teal

Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's Summary

A young lawyer's outwardly perfect life spirals out of control as she takes on her first murder case in this dark and twisty debut thriller for fans of Paula Hawkins, A.J. Finn, or Shari Lapena.

Alison has it all. A doting husband, adorable daughter, and a career on the rise - she's just been given her first murder case to defend. But all is never as it seems... 

Just one more night. Then I'll end it.

Alison drinks too much. She's neglecting her family. And she's having an affair with a colleague whose taste for pushing boundaries may be more than she can handle.

I did it. I killed him. I should be locked up. 

Alison's client doesn't deny that she stabbed her husband - she wants to plead guilty. And yet something about her story is deeply amiss. Saving this woman may be the first step to Alison saving herself.

I'm watching you. I know what you're doing.

But someone knows Alison's secrets. Someone who wants to make her pay for what she's done, and who won't stop until she's lost everything....

©2019 Harriet Tyce (P)2019 Hachette Audio

Critic Reviews

"A promising debut... A page-turner that drives to a shocking and satisfying ending."—Publisher's Weekly

"Intriguing....A surefire bestseller!"—Iris Johansen, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Shattered Mirror

"This debut novel by a former barrister displays the pacing skills and smooth prose of a seasoned author, as suspense builds to a stunning climax. Keep your eyes on Tyce."—Booklist

Page Turner

Loved it! The writer pulls you into the world of the female barrister using vivid details. There were times I loved the main character, other times I couldn't stand her. We are able to witness the full character development in exciting ways. The audio performance was simply lovely, she wonderfully expressed each character. Highly recommend this in audio or book form.

excellent

Never slowed down. Narrator flawlessly put the story as real. wanted it to keep going.

Not one likeable character.

I know I am in the minority here but I just don’t get it. I was determined to finish based on all the great reviews but ended up speeding the narration to help me along.

There was not one likable person in this book. The story seemed to drag, the criminal case was just okay. Imagine having an affair with someone who treats you worse than your husband? I just never connected with this book.

The last couple of chapters were everything. Not wonderful but..

liked it.

Slow starting but once I got invested iit became more interesting. Alison was a hard character to sympathize with, I found that she made many stupid decisions for an educated women.

Typical anti-heroine with weak secondary storyline

I like anti-heroines and this self-destructive lawyer and mother is fairly well constructed. She is having an affair with a lawyer who is senior to her while her marriage and family life with her daughter continues to suffer under the weight of her drinking problem. As she works through this, we also follow her first major case, a murder, but that storyline is entirely predictable. What happens with our main character is not so predictable, but it’s also not compelling because there’s not a suspenseful build to the denouement, it’s just sort of dropped onto you in the last 20 minutes. It falls flat and makes for an unsatisfying read that I can’t recommend to others.

Binge able listening

This is a book you won’t be able to put down. It’s a good thriller and it’s refreshingly unique. One downside is the extremely unlikeable main character with seemingly little redeemable qualities. It’s always frustrating when a particularly nasty and selfish person is made to be some sort of heroine or pushing for you to root for someone so stupid who gets away with hurting people without repercussions. I wish the author would have made Alison at least a little bit like able. Nevertheless it is a pretty good book and worth a listen!

Keeps your interest from start to finish!

I loved the narrator! I felt like I was a part of the London scene. You feel all of the characters in this book!!

Truely unpleasant people

The characters in this story are really ugly people, in the sense that they are abusive, alcoholic, and/or manipulative. This story is especially hard on men, although the main female character, Alison, is pretty awful, too. In spite of these unpleasant characters, the book is suspenseful, in the way that watching a car crash is compelling. Credit to the great narrator who kept all the dysfunction semi-palatable.

The weak wife, the jerk husband, the whiny kid

OMG. I listened to an hour before I gave up. Everyone is unlikable in this story. I have zero sympathy for the main character who drinks too much, screws around with someone who doesn’t respect her, is married to a man who doesn’t respect her. How am I supposed to like this person and care about what happens to her?

Great Psychological Thriller, Extremely Different

I had read several good reviews about Blood Orange and I decided to purchase it and read it while in quarantine. I was addicted right away. This story has so many wonderful twists and turns.

The characters are really unlikable, but that's what made me want to listen even more. We have a successful workaholic and alcoholic mother who is trying to keep her job, her boozing, her family and the man she is having an affair with balanced. Of course this becomes a huge conundrum. We have her husband, who takes care of their young daughter and decides he's tired of his wife's irresponsible ways and wants a divorce.

Things sort of spiral out of control and in the end, we find out a few surprises that weren't at all expected.

The narrator's voice for 'Blood Orange' seems like it's too old for the main character, but aside from that, this book is an excellent psychological thriller that had me salivating for more.

Brava!

-Wendi