One Bad Thing by M.K. Hill

 I had the pleasure of taking part in the blog tour for M.K. Hill's novel Woman in the Woods last year. That book was brilliantly twisty and it made me want to read more by the same author.

So it will come as no surprise that I was eager to read his latest novel, One Bad Thing. 

Hannah Godley is an agony aunt on a London radio show Queen of Hearts. She's warm and empathetic; a good listener. Her catchphrase is: Be kind, always. But when a stranger phones in to tell a tragic story about her brother who killed himself after he was the victim of a terrible prank by two people, Hannah goes cold. Because she remembers Diane's brother well. In fact, all these years later, he still haunts her dreams. All because of that one bad thing she did when she was young...

Is Diane just a sad, lonely woman looking for a friend, or does she know what Hannah did, and is looking for revenge? Because as Diane insinuates herself into her life and family, Hannah is going to discover that you can never truly escape that One Bad Thing you did – sooner or later, you're going to have to pay the price... 

The main protagonist is Hannah Godley. A celebrity agony aunt, who did something in her past that she highly regrets. And when she gets a call to her show Queen of Hearts, it all comes stumbling back to her. 

Hannah is thrust back into the past when she thinks she remembers this mystery caller's brother, a man that all these years later still manages to haunt her dreams. What isn't clear is whether this phone call is a coincidence or does this woman, Diane know Hannah’s troubled connection to her brother, who we know has committed suicide. 

Could this caller be looking for  some sort of revenge?

Now what I found refreshing was the fact that as the reader I already knew that Hannah had done something bad, we know she's guilty of something, what we don't have the answer to is exactly what the bad thing is that Hannah did. 

This is what kept the first half of the book moving at a good pace for me, there was a certain air of mystery, the need to find out just what this regrettable deed was.

What does become apparent early on, is that Hannah is going to pay!

As I mentioned at the beginning, I've read other books by this author and I really enjoy his writing style. The use of celebrities adds a different dynamic to the tales. With a great (small) cast of characters, I found myself suspecting so many of them. It's quite chilling to think that you can't trust those closest to you.

I can't tell you how many times I changed my mind as to who the real guilty party was.

There is a high feeling of anxiety and fear throughout the whole of this novel, it was truly palpable the further into it you get. Everything was timed to perfection.

One Bad Thing is an exciting, fast-paced thriller.

And the ending, well... you'll never see it coming!

Go ahead and join the rest of the blog tour for more reviews and thoughts on this astounding novel.