Jude may be a geriatric doctor, so we know she must be rather clever, but she knows absolutely nothing of the world. She lives through her work and her bland fiancée Nat. How stupid can you be to go to a cabin in the woods without telling your loved one? Jude’s intention to go home to Nat and say nothing is scuppered when someone leaks her role in this strange crime to the press. Her fiancé is even less convinced than DI Fox, and suddenly, that one decision turns her life upside down. And if Jude thinks that’s the worst that can happen, she’s got another think coming… In the early eighties she taught English Literature in Sheffield, London and Los Angeles, but moved into publishing in 1985 with the launch of Women's Review, a magazine for women on art, literature and female issues. BRINGING DANGER CLOSE TO HOME . . . THE GRIPPING NEW THRILLER FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR NICCI FRENCH!**

The Favour | Nicci French | 9781398509580 | NetGalley The Favour | Nicci French | 9781398509580 | NetGalley

Accused murderer Tabitha Hardy, the protagonist of this ambitious standalone from the pseudonymous French (the Frieda Klein series), starts with two strikes against her. First, the London copy editor Continue reading » Then, out of the blue, after an absence of eleven years, her first serious boyfriend, Liam Birch turns up to meet her with a strange request. He wants her to drive up to a remote cottage on the Norfolk coast, using his car and paying with his credit card, and then wait for him to arrive by train the following evening. For some reason we are not initially aware of, Jude agrees to this suspicious proposition. I consumed The Favour in two sittings, fascinated by the ambivalence of many of the characters, Liam's housemates in particular. They are a colourful and unconventional bunch but perhaps not quite as unconventional as they believe themselves to be.In 1995 Nicci and Sean began work on their first joint novel and adopted the pseudonym of Nicci French. The Memory Game was published to great acclaim in 1997 followed by The Safe House (1998), Killing Me Softly (1999), Beneath the Skin (2000), The Red Room (2001), Land of the Living (2002), Secret Smile (2003), Catch Me When I Fall (2005), Losing You (2006) and Until It's Over (2008). Their latest novel together is What To Do When Someone Dies (2009). The life lesson Jude learned is sad. We've all been there. We wear rose-tinted nostalgia glasses and then realize the prince is actually an ogre. The Favour is the sixteenth stand-alone novel by British writing duo, Nicci French. It’s over eleven years since Jude Winter has seen Liam Birch, but what they shared when they were eighteen has never left her. Life moved on for both: Jude qualified as a doctor and is about to marry Nat; Liam tells her he has a young son, Alfie. But Liam has a favour to ask, nothing big, no worries if you can’t, tell you what it is when we meet in Norfolk. I don't expect this to be a very popular read because it's marketed as a thriller, when it isn't. Like Good Husbands by Cate Ray, readers may be disappointed by the "false advertisement" of sorts. I enjoy a character-driven story, so having to 'adapt" to the content wasn't a negative for me. An enjoyable yet melancholy, poignant tale.

The Favour | Book by Nicci French | Official Publisher Page The Favour | Book by Nicci French | Official Publisher Page

The Favour by Nicci French will be published in Australia by Simon & Schuster in early February 2023. Life is going pretty well for Dr. Jude Winter. She has a rewarding job in the geriatric division of a London hospital and is looking forward to her wedding to fiancé Matt in two weeks time. In 1987 Nicci had a son, Edgar, followed by a daughter, Anna, in 1988, but a year later her marriage to Colin Hughes broke down. Turns out shortly before his murder he chose Jude as the executor of his will which has everyone baffled including Jude herself. He also left her his favorite bowl. Yup, a bowl, and his girlfriend is not too pleased about this because she loves that bowl. 🥣 = 😡 When Jude's first love Liam who she has not seen in years, shows up at her work asking for a favour she agrees, even if it means having to lie to her fiancé.That said, THE FAVOUR unfortunately turned out to be one of my least favourite books by the author team, partly because believing the main character’s actions and motivations stretched my ability to suspend disbelief way past its limits. Maybe it would have worked better for me had Jude not been a doctor. How did this indecisive, insecure and naïve person ever get through medical school? Medicine is a science, it’s about trouble shooting and problem solving, and it involves logical thought processes. But here is Jude, bumbling her way from one disaster into the next and making one terrible decision after another. I think the only way I could have believed Jude’s actions would have been either a) if there was an implicit threat to Jude if she didn’t agree to the “favour”; or b) if Jude was a totally different personality type (i.e. an arty / spiritual person believing in karma or a person undergoing a deep personal crisis such as substance addiction / bereavement etc). Dr. Jude Winter hasn’t seen her high school boyfriend in over a decade, since that one heady summer night when a car crash changed everything. She’s never forgotten her first love, and when he suddenly reappears after all these years asking for a favor, she finds herself not only saying yes but also lying about it to her fiancé. When Liam is murdered, Jude finds herself in a tangled web that seems to pull more tightly around her at every turn. I can understand why many people won't like this. The plot was basically non-existent, and the thrills were more like a small side of ketchup to the main dish—which was a character-driven story. You may ask yourself why TF would Jude do such a suspicious favour, but you'll learn that Jude is just a shell of a person. She followed the path lain out for her entire life. She doesn't have a strong identity. Then she enters Liam's adult world, his weird ass house that reminds me of a circus, with unsavoury, sexually aggressive, lost people, and develops her first singular opinion.

The Favor by Nicci French | Goodreads

As Jude gets herself more and more enmeshed in what was Liam’s bohemian life, do her choices stretch the bounds of credibility? Most decidedly. But, a bit like a train crash, it’s hard to look away. Jude agrees. She goes along with his plan without asking too many questions, and without telling her fiancé. She follows Liam’s instructions, and waits. And then the police turn up, telling her that Liam has been found dead, in London. Why does Jude have his car, his bag, his wallet, his mobile phone, in a cottage in Norfolk? Jude’s explanation doesn’t really satisfy DI Leila Fox.Het moment dat Jude op hem staat te wachten in Norfolk en Liam niet op komt dagen vond ik best spannend. Is er misschien iets met hem gebeurd of heeft hij zijn trein gemist? Complete and utter balderdash! A highly intelligent Doctor taking such a stupid risk just weeks before her wedding - forget it. This was my first Nicci French novel and unfortunately it was not a success. Future readers, if you are okay with preposterous and illogical plots then you'll have a better time than I did. 2 stars!