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Teresa Driscoll

Her Perfect Family Kindle Edition

by Teresa Driscoll (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

11,993 ratings

in British & Irish Literature

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A gripping psychological thriller from the bestselling author of I Am Watching You. The perfect family? Or the perfect lie?

It’s their daughter’s graduation and Rachel and Ed Hartley are expecting it to be one of their family’s happiest days. But when she stumbles and falls on stage during the ceremony, a beautiful moment turns to chaos: Gemma has been shot, and just like that, she’s fighting for her life.

PI Matthew Hill is one of the first on the scene. A cryptic message Gemma received earlier in the day suggests someone close to her was about to be exposed. But who? As Matthew starts to investigate, he finds more and more layers obscuring the truth. He even begins to suspect the Hartleys are hiding something big—from him and from each other.

While Gemma lies in hospital in a coma, her would-be killer is still out there. Can Matthew unravel the family’s secrets before the attacker strikes again?

Print length

330 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Thomas & Mercer
Publication date

November 1, 2021
File size

4275 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Intriguing. Different. I raced through it beyond my usual ‘lights-out’ time. You simply HAVE to read to the end to find out what happens.” —Jane Corry, Sunday Times bestselling author

“Her Perfect Family is a thrilling ride, a finely-crafted mystery that begins with a terrible act of violence, a mother’s worst nightmare. I was gripped from the first page…I loved it!” —Melanie Golding, bestselling author of Little Darlings

From the Publisher

I devoured Her Perfect Family in one sitting, unable to put the book down! If you love twisty and gripping thrillers, then bestselling author Teresa Driscoll’s brand-new psychological suspense novel will have you sitting up all night, desperate to find out what happens next.

Can you imagine watching your daughter get shot on what is supposed to be her proudest day? Gemma Hartley is graduating from university. Rachel and Ed Hartley are in attendance and prepared for a day full of hope and glittering futures. Until their perfect moment turns into a nightmare. With a detective on the scene and a heart-wrenching mystery to uncover, PI Matthew Hill realizes that even the most perfect of families have secrets to hide...

In this fast-paced thriller Teresa Driscoll takes you on a breathtaking ride as time ticks away with Gemma’s life hanging the balance. Can the killer be brought to justice before they strike again, or will this perfect day become the Hartleys’ perfect nightmare?

—Victoria Oundjian, Editor

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08N5YFL78
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Thomas & Mercer (November 1, 2021)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 1, 2021
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 4275 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 330 pages
Lending ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #58 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1 in British Literature
- #1 in British & Irish Literature
- #2 in Women's Psychological Fiction

Customer Reviews:
11,993 ratings

About the author

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Teresa Driscoll

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Teresa Driscoll is a former BBC TV news presenter whose psychological thrillers have sold more than two million copies across the world.

Her first thriller I Am Watching You hit Kindle Number 1 in the UK, USA and Australia and has sold more than a million copies in English alone.

Teresa writes women’s fiction as well as thrillers and her work has been optioned for film and sold for translation in more than 20 territories.

For decades Teresa was a journalist working across newspapers, magazines and television. Covering crime for so long, she was deeply moved by the haunting impact on the relatives, the friends and the witnesses and it is those ripples she explores now in her darker fiction.

Teresa lives in glorious Devon with her family and blogs regularly about her "writing life" at her website - www.teresadriscoll.com.

Customer reviews

5 star		47%
4 star		34%
3 star		14%
2 star		3%
1 star		2%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Not so great

Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2021

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I have to admit I found this one lacking. It's advertised as a thriller but it's more of a whodunnit (attempted) murder mystery. A young girl is shot during her graduation ceremony and it's up to ex-cop turned private investigator Matthew Hill to track down the culprit. Why a PI and not the police you ask? Good question. Right off the bat the police are portrayed as incompetent. It's hammered home repeatedly that this is the most high profile case the town has seen in decades, yet they assign a single Detective Inspector to the case? Then she decides it's a great idea to not bring in any other cops, but instead to hire a PI as a 'consultant' to handle things single handed. Makes no sense. To make things worse, Hill is just a dull character. He has zero charisma and is instantly forgettable. There's some hints of past traumatic events that made him leave the force which I would have loved to know more about, but in the end it really goes nowhere. The book mainly focuses on the family of the victim and all the drama that goes with them which got old really quickly for me.

Unfortunately for me, the story combines two writing techniques I hate - multiple POVs and flashbacks. Every chapter is written from a different POV, and a lot of these are set before the ongoing events. It's impossible to get a good story flow going with this style - something exciting happens, I'm anxious to know more, then I'm suddenly thrown back into the past with a different character. Not a good way to keep me engaged in the story.

To be fair, there's a few positives here - no profanity, no major editing issues, and a killer I couldn't predict. Sadly the writing style, bland characters, and family drama drown the good qualities out. Can't recommend.

235 people found this helpful

Helpful

A solid British psychological thriller

Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2021

This book has 69 main chapters, and a total of about 319 pages, not including the Notes. Driscoll is a British author and former BBC television anchor, and this book uses British spelling and cultural references; such as the British police rank of Detective Investigator (DI) for example.

This story is told from multiple perspectives, as chapters switch between the the points of view of the daughter Gemma, her mother Rachel, her father Ed, and PI Matthew Hill. All of the chapters are written in the third person except for the mother Rachel, whose chapters are written in the first person. This difference makes the book feel like it is centered on the mother and daughter, and the connection that they share. There are also some chapters that jump back to a different time period, like Gemma's writings from before she was shot.

Gemma is shot during her graduation in the first chapter, and she remains in a coma as the other characters need to unravel the mystery of who the attempted murderer is, and what their motivation might be. Along the way we learn about some secrets that certain family members have kept from others, and the mystery deepens as characters start to wonder if these old secrets are connected to the current attack on Gemma. There are some red herrings, and suspicious actions from multiple characters, before the mystery is solved. The story is wrapped up with a fairly satisfying, if somewhat unlikely seeming explanation. The lose ends are tied up, and the motivations are explained.

Overall I liked this book. The author does a good job of gradually revealing the plot as the story is told from different perspectives, and the first person perspective of Rachel really connects the reader to that character. The pacing was good, as there was constantly enough action or plot twists to keep me interested in what was going to happen next. The ultimate resolution and explanation seemed to me to be a bit unrealistic, but at least it was unexpected. So I wouldn't say that this is perfect, but generally a pretty solid psychological thriller.

111 people found this helpful

Helpful

William de Rham

A good and entertaining mystery

Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2021

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A graduation ceremony is underway in the chapel of a British university. With her proud parents in the audience, Gemma walks to receive her diploma. A shot rings out. Gemma falls to the floor, blood pouring from her wound.

Who shot her? And Why? Why would anyone shoot a young university student? And why in such a public setting?

These are the questions that keep us turning the pages of this well-written mystery told from multiple characters’ points of view. Each character has a connection to the victim, be it personal or professional. Each character has their own particular challenge to face, whether it be a past secret or a present adversary. All the characters are likable and interesting. Each offers a possible solution to the mystery, which is what keeps us guessing and enjoying.

Theresa Driscoll is a British author. Her book is written in British voices using British vernacular. I had absolutely no trouble understanding any of it and thought the vernacular added to, rather than detracted from, the novel’s enjoyability. In addition, the writing is taut and crisp and well maintains tension throughout the story.

All in all a very solid entertainment.

88 people found this helpful

Helpful

Louise

A page turner you can't put down

Reviewed in the United States on October 1, 2021

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I enjoyed getting to know the characters but never imagined the ending. Nice to read a story that everyone doesn't end up happy happily ever after.

39 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

The Cookster

Suspenseful mystery thriller.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 1, 2021

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Rating: 3.8/5

This fast-paced thriller is the first novel I have read by Teresa Driscoll, but I have a strong feeling that it won't be the last. There is no slow burn to this novel as in the opening pages the reader witnesses a shocking shooting amid the pomp and ceremony of a university graduation in the local cathedral. Pandemonium ensues and we are launched into an oftentimes breathtaking mystery thriller that seldom lets up until the final page.

The action predominantly takes place in the present time, but the author also makes use of regular flashbacks to earlier points in the lives of the key protagonists. The narrative is also delivered from the individual viewpoints of each of these key players. This can be a great literary mechanic when it is executed well and Teresa Driscoll makes a very effective job of giving each character a distinct and authentic voice.

The central mystery relates to the identity of the person who carried out the shooting at the cathedral. There is plenty of well-handled misdirection, though seasoned readers of the genre may well work out the doer of the deed well before the end of the novel. Not that it really matters if you do, because there is not only much to admire about the way the story is drafted, but there are also plenty of subthemes that make this a worthwhile and enjoyable read. Yes, it is first and foremost an exciting suspense thriller with a dark premise, but it is also quite emotional at times and raises issues which may well prompt some inner reflection.

A good read and easy to recommend.

14 people found this helpful

Tambok

Another Treat for Teresa Driscoll Fans

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 1, 2021

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Her Perfect Family by Teresa Driscoll will please her hordes of existing fans and no doubt make her plenty of new ones.

Rachel and Ed Hartley are attending their daughter Gemma's graduation ceremony when she falls to the ground at the crucial moment. Despite the event taking place in a crowded Cathedral it turns out that Gemma has been shot and there's pandemonium as the crowd panic.
Luckily Private Investigator Matthew Hill ,a former policeman, is passing and uses his skills to clear the exits and secure the safety of those left inside as the shooter is still on the loose.
Hill's former colleague, D.L. Melanie Sanders is put in charge of the case and gets him employed by the police to help out.

With Gemma in a coma the race is on to discover who shot her and why with things being made more complicated by the secrets the whole family have been keeping from each other.
The story is told from several viewpoints and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep things interesting. I did guess the "perp" quite early on but then I spend far too much of my time reading thrillers and am an old hand at playing "guess the villain".

I've read most of Teresa Driscoll's books, her books are a fairly light read that require a pinch of salt now again but are always entertaining....not least this one.

If you've not read any of Teresa's books yet and you're a fan of Val McDermid ,Belinda Bauer, Nikki French, Denise Mina and similar authors give this one a try,and I suspect you'll become a fan.

13 people found this helpful

Sarah Brown

Lies, lies, lies

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 2, 2021

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This was a great, thrilling read that had me hooked from the beginning. With tense scenes at Gemma's graduation, what follows is a story that has the police trying to find the suspect. However, it also turns out that Gemma's family is far from perfect, with a web of hidden deceits under the surface.

Driscoll has structured this narrative so that it shifts to different characters: Gemma, the parents and Matthew. This made for an interesting story because you get so many varied perspectives. In addition, some of the narrative is before the accident, giving readers a greater understanding of Gemma's past, along with her parents too.

It's certainly a tragedy, watching Gemma's parents remain by the daughter's bedside, waiting for her to wake up from a coma. At the same time, I was fascinated by all the secrets that are gradually revealed; no one in the family is exempt from deception. The way we learn about Gemma's past is through essay titles that disguise her confessions, like a diary, and I found these most interesting. These snapshots provide subtle clues about the present circumstances and I loved being able to piece it all together.

I knew this was going to be a great read from the beginning and, even though I guessed how some of the story would conclude, I enjoyed the buzz as the plot reached its climax. It is a race against time as police fear the attacker will strike again, versus the faint hope that Gemma may wake up from her coma. Driscoll cleverly reflects the adrenalin of the action onto the readers of the book and I really got caught up in the exciting chase for answers.

This was another thrilling read from Driscoll that had me on the edge of my seat. I could not put the book down and the short chapters meant that I flew through this faster than I expected. I have read a book by this author before and was not disappointed. Reading this newest release makes me even more determined to check out Driscoll's other books in the future.

6 people found this helpful

Kaffmatt

Not gripping or thrilling- rather unrealistic

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 3, 2021

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Rather underwhelming really. I feel like I’ve been reading the book for ages. Too many unrealistic situations and police procedures which are, at best, flimsy. To imagine that only a Detective Inspector would be in charge of a shooting case, assisted by a private investigator- ex police or not- is not tenable.
The majority of the characters are lacklustre and unremarkable; the storyline, itself, included too many convenient ‘red herrings’ which led to an annoying perpetrator- which actually made me cross because it was absurd, considering the background information given in the finale.
Obviously other readers have highly praised the book but I can’t- it’s too weak.

7 people found this helpful

Bookaholic

Unputdownable, up there with her best

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 1, 2021

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I have loved all Teresa Driscoll's thrillers and this was no exception. Clear your diary, bolt the doors, and get comfortable... but not too comfortable....!

7 people found this helpful