Should Have Known Better

By: A J McDine

Narrated by: Emma Powell

Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

The perfect boyfriend...or the perfect liar? Should Have Known Better is the tense new psychological thriller by A J McDine.

It’s the moment single-mum Kate has been dreading. With her only daughter, Chloe, about to leave home, she’s terrified by the prospect of an empty nest. That is until she meets charming lawyer Adam. He could be the perfect catch - if it wasn’t for his clingy son. 

Because Ben has a crush on Chloe. A crush that is fast becoming an obsession. Flattered by the attention, Chloe is happy to string him along - for now at least. But Kate can see the danger signs, even if her daughter can't. And when Chloe’s life begins spiralling out of control, Kate must make a choice - trust her instincts or lose her daughter forever....

©2020 A J McDine (P)2021 W F Howes

Critic reviews

"What an exceptional thriller!" (Gabi Rosetti)

Predictable but still worth a listen

Although it’s easy to predict what is going on the writing is good and the characters are interesting enough to continue to listen. The big conclusion itself is fairly transparent but it’s always good when the bad guy gets his. The very end makes the book.

Narration was really good!!

Sort of predictable but not

The story was great. It was suspenseful. I felt I knew who it was but the story was filled with red herrings. Overall, a good read.

Um yes, you should have

This one got harder and harder to listen to... especially since I have a teenage daughter. Pretty dark and disturbing. No one ever thought it could have been him?! The narration was good, story was good for the first half, but overall, just eh.

DIDN'T WANT TO TAKE MY HEADPHONES OFF!

I absolutely LOVED this book. As soon as I put my headphones on, I didn’t want to take them off. I found myself thinking about the characters while I was supposed to be working and it got to the point where I was grabbing my headphones at every opportunity, even in the few moments it takes to make a cuppa.

I love thrillers because I like hunting for clues and trying to figure out who the perpetrator is, and while I still enjoy thrillers I figure out, I’m always a little disappointed when it’s obvious from the outset. With SHKB, I was convinced it was going to be one of those, I was sure I could see what was coming. But as the story unravelled, I became more and more uncertain until, in the end, I had no idea which way it was going to go.

For me, that’s the sign of a very well-written and well-executed thriller: when you’re left guessing right to the end, drawn deeply into the lives of the characters so you think about them and root for them even when you're not listening, and you're on the edge of your seat to reach the exciting conclusion.

I read a lot of thrillers, this is the second I’ve read by AJ, and she’s up there with the best. I’ll definitely be buying more of her books.

Utter drivel

Thought I’d found a new author.
But this story is thin, boring and irritating.
Got a refund