Mary Kubica

'Mary Kubica's Just the Nicest Couple is a masterfully written thriller about deception where we least expect it and the danger of a lie tumbling out of control. Taut and incredibly suspenseful, every moment is perfectly crafted to keep us wanting more. An engrossing, spine-tingling read!' - Ashley Audrain, New York Times bestselling author of The Push A husband's disappearance inextricably links two couples in this twisty thriller from New York Times bestselling author Mary Kubica Two couples, two close friends, one missing husband... Jake Hayes is missing. This much is certain. At first, his wife, Nina, thinks he is blowing off steam at a friend's house after their heated fight the night before. But then a day goes by. Two days. Five. And Jake is still nowhere to be found. Lily Scott, Nina's friend and coworker, thinks she may have been the last to see Jake before he went missing. After Lily confesses everything to her husband, Christian, the two decide that nobody can find out what happened leading up to Jake's disappearance, especially not Nina. But Nina is out there looking for her husband, and she won't stop until the truth is discovered. Queen of suspense Mary Kubica delivers a high-octane, edge-of-your-seat thriller filled with delicious lies and shocking betrayals, and shows how even the deepest secrets will always find a way to the surface.

Just the Nicest Couple

This was super entertaining! Only reason it was not 5/5 is because I guessed every plot twist 

Kate W

Easy read and enjoyable, nothing noteworthy though. 

Taylor Silveira 

It was alright. Kind of slow but fast enough to keep you reading. Not the biggest shock Ive experienced but was a fun book nonetheless.

Gloria

Just the Nicest Couple is the second book written by Mary Kubica I’ve read, with Local Girl Missing being the first. I picked up Just the Nicest Couple expecting an interesting read. However, the mixed reviews, with the majority being on the negative side, gave me pause. So, armed with a twinge of doubt, I took the plunge. The experience wasn’t so bad after all.

The story tells of two couples, two friends and a missing husband. Jake has gone missing. Initially, his wife, Nina, believed he was avoiding her after their fight the night before. However, after several days has passed and with no one hearing from him, she became worried. (I can’t believe it took her so long to realize something was wrong).

Nina’s coworker and friend believes she was the last person to see Jake before his mysterious disappearance. She confesses to her husband Chris, who then decides that they needed to cover up the fact that Lily was the last person to see Jake prior to him gone missing.

Lily was a liar and a cheat. Chris was blinded by love to the point of stupidity while Nina was just plain naïve and self absorbed. As for Jake, based on how the story described him, Nina was better off without him.

A word of warning: do not go into this book expecting a fast-paced edge of your seat thriller. This one leaned more on the side of a slow burn domestic thriller. Despite the slow pacing, the events piqued my curiosity. As a result found myself glued to the pages. I had to know the outcome. The story was predictable, but then it took a turn and brought me down a path I never saw coming.

Lies, deceit and betrayal drove the story. It shows how far down the rabbit hole one willingly goes to protect one’s secret.

Brittany Pressley and Gary Tiedemann, with their impressive narration, brought life to the story. Pressley, I’ve listened to before but this is my first time listening to Tiedemann. They both did a wonderful job in nailing the voices of the characters. Their tones were perfect. I thought their interpretation of the characters to be spot on.

Totally Addicted to Reading

Just the Nicest Couple is the second book written by Mary Kubica I’ve read, with Local Girl Missing being the first. I picked up Just the Nicest Couple expecting an interesting read. However, the mixed reviews, with the majority being on the negative side, gave me pause. So, armed with a twinge of doubt, I took the plunge. The experience wasn’t so bad after all.

The story tells of two couples, two friends and a missing husband. Jake has gone missing. Initially, his wife, Nina, believed he was avoiding her after their fight the night before. However, after several days has passed and with no one hearing from him, she became worried. (I can’t believe it took her so long to realize something was wrong).

Nina’s coworker and friend believes she was the last person to see Jake before his mysterious disappearance. She confesses to her husband Chris, who then decides that they needed to cover up the fact that Lily was the last person to see Jake prior to him gone missing.

Lily was a liar and a cheat. Chris was blinded by love to the point of stupidity while Nina was just plain naïve and self absorbed. As for Jake, based on how the story described him, Nina was better off without him.

A word of warning: do not go into this book expecting a fast-paced edge of your seat thriller. This one leaned more on the side of a slow burn domestic thriller. Despite the slow pacing, the events piqued my curiosity. As a result found myself glued to the pages. I had to know the outcome. The story was predictable, but then it took a turn and brought me down a path I never saw coming.

Lies, deceit and betrayal drove the story. It shows how far down the rabbit hole one willingly goes to protect one’s secret.

Brittany Pressley and Gary Tiedemann, with their impressive narration, brought life to the story. Pressley, I’ve listened to before but this is my first time listening to Tiedemann. They both did a wonderful job in nailing the voices of the characters. Their tones were perfect. I thought their interpretation of the characters to be spot on.


Is it any wonder that Mary Kubica is one of my favorite thriller authors of all time?!  Holy moly my head is still spinning after finishing this book.  The plot twists, the characters, the gasp-worthy turn of events, this book was amazing.  I keep thinking that her newest book is my favorite of hers and then she surpasses everything and writes something like this and my mind is blown and I have a new favorite all over again.

This story follows two points of view, Christian and Nina.  Christian thinks he is the luckiest guy in the world, married to the love of his life Lily who is pregnant with their first child.  Lily is a high school teacher alongside her friend Nina who is married to Jake.  Nina and Jake don't have the best marriage and everyone is shocked when Jake goes missing.  Lily thinks she might have been the last person to see Jake and after confessing everything to Christian, they decide to keep everything a secret and not let anyone know what happened before Jake disappeared.  But Nina isn't going to stop searching for her husband and what she will uncover will shock everyone.

This was one of those books that I was thinking about even when I wasn't reading it and couldn't wait to get back into the story.  It's not everyday a thriller hooks me as much as this one did, I can't count the amount of times I was shocked by something.  I had my suspicions about certain things going on in the story and Mary Kubica set the story up perfect for me to draw these conclusions, that were definitely wrong.  Absolutely amazing read and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Many thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Park Row for the gifted copy for my honest review

Megan Leprich

Is it any wonder that Mary Kubica is one of my favorite thriller authors of all time?!  Holy moly my head is still spinning after finishing this book.  The plot twists, the characters, the gasp-worthy turn of events, this book was amazing.  I keep thinking that her newest book is my favorite of hers and then she surpasses everything and writes something like this and my mind is blown and I have a new favorite all over again.

This story follows two points of view, Christian and Nina.  Christian thinks he is the luckiest guy in the world, married to the love of his life Lily who is pregnant with their first child.  Lily is a high school teacher alongside her friend Nina who is married to Jake.  Nina and Jake don't have the best marriage and everyone is shocked when Jake goes missing.  Lily thinks she might have been the last person to see Jake and after confessing everything to Christian, they decide to keep everything a secret and not let anyone know what happened before Jake disappeared.  But Nina isn't going to stop searching for her husband and what she will uncover will shock everyone.

This was one of those books that I was thinking about even when I wasn't reading it and couldn't wait to get back into the story.  It's not everyday a thriller hooks me as much as this one did, I can't count the amount of times I was shocked by something.  I had my suspicions about certain things going on in the story and Mary Kubica set the story up perfect for me to draw these conclusions, that were definitely wrong.  Absolutely amazing read and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Many thanks to Harlequin Trade Publishing, Park Row for the gifted copy for my honest review.

Nina and Lily are friends who teach at the same high school. They enjoy time together, even having dinner with their husbands, Jake and Christian, occasionally. They're just the nicest couples.

Then one day Nina's husband, Jake, goes missing. And Lily is the last person to have seen him. Why?

Mary Kubica is a master of domestic suspense and creepy atmosphere. This didn't disappoint.

Cheri McElroy

Nina and Lily are friends who teach at the same high school. They enjoy time together, even having dinner with their husbands, Jake and Christian, occasionally. They're just the nicest couples.

Then one day Nina's husband, Jake, goes missing. And Lily is the last person to have seen him. Why?

Mary Kubica is a master of domestic suspense and creepy atmosphere. This didn't disappoint.

Honestly I was expecting more from this. When I got to the end I got a “oh that’s it” kinda vibe but I wasn’t SHOCKED. I love this author and I think I was a little too excited for how good this one might be. I did enjoy listening to the story and I flew through it but the ending was a little bit lacking for me. There are two major twists at the end and one of them did shock me but it just didn’t seem like enough. Overall an enjoyable read but doesn’t have that wow factor. Or maybe I just need to chill out on the thrillers for a bit. 

Kerry Kalinoski

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Recommended For...: thriller, mystery, suspense, whodunit

Age Relevance: 16+ (alcohol consumption, pregnancy, miscarriage, murder, gore, cursing, rape, illness, religion, violence)

Explanation of Above: There is only one mention of rape but nothing stated to be true and nothing specifically wrote about it. There are scenes with alcohol consumption. There are scenes and mentions of pregnancy and miscarriage. There is a murder, some blood gore shown, and violence with weapons and physical strength. There is cursing in this book. There are showings and mentions of illnesses, specifically Alzheimer’s and cancer being the more prevalent in the novel. The Christian religion is mentioned in the book a bit.

Synopsis: Two couples, two close friends, one missing husband…

Jake Hayes is missing. This much is certain. At first, his wife, Nina, thinks he is blowing off steam at a friend’s house after their heated fight the night before. But then a day goes by. Two days. Five. And Jake is still nowhere to be found.

Lily Scott, Nina’s friend and coworker, thinks she may have been the last to see Jake before he went missing. After Lily confesses everything to her husband, Christian, the two decide that nobody can find out what happened leading up to Jake’s disappearance, especially not Nina. But Nina is out there looking for her husband, and she won’t stop until the truth is discovered.

Review: The book was very surprising to me. I don’t normally have a loss of words by the end of a thriller, but this one took my breath away. I loved the book and how twisty the story was. The book executed the multi POV perfectly and I loved all of the characters in the book. The book also had some excellent commentary on memory recollection and showed how hard it is to get away with a crime nowadays with the multitude of devices we have at our beck and call. The book also has a surprise twist at the end, so let me know if you guessed it or not!

The only issue I had with the book is that I wished the world building was a bit better.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

 

Book: Just the Nicest Couple

 

Author: Mary Kubica

 

Book Series: Standalone

 

Rating: 5/5

 

Recommended For...: thriller, mystery, suspense, whodunit

 

Publication Date: January 10, 2023

 

Genre: Mystery Thriller

 

Age Relevance: 16+ (alcohol consumption, pregnancy, miscarriage, murder, gore, cursing, rape, illness, religion, violence)

 

Explanation of Above: There is only one mention of rape but nothing stated to be true and nothing specifically wrote about it. There are scenes with alcohol consumption. There are scenes and mentions of pregnancy and miscarriage. There is a murder, some blood gore shown, and violence with weapons and physical strength. There is cursing in this book. There are showings and mentions of illnesses, specifically Alzheimer’s and cancer being the more prevalent in the novel. The Christian religion is mentioned in the book a bit.

 

Publisher: Park Row

 

Pages: 320

 

Synopsis: Two couples, two close friends, one missing husband…

 

Jake Hayes is missing. This much is certain. At first, his wife, Nina, thinks he is blowing off steam at a friend’s house after their heated fight the night before. But then a day goes by. Two days. Five. And Jake is still nowhere to be found.

 

Lily Scott, Nina’s friend and coworker, thinks she may have been the last to see Jake before he went missing. After Lily confesses everything to her husband, Christian, the two decide that nobody can find out what happened leading up to Jake’s disappearance, especially not Nina. But Nina is out there looking for her husband, and she won’t stop until the truth is discovered.

 

Review: The book was very surprising to me. I don’t normally have a loss of words by the end of a thriller, but this one took my breath away. I loved the book and how twisty the story was. The book executed the multi POV perfectly and I loved all of the characters in the book. The book also had some excellent commentary on memory recollection and showed how hard it is to get away with a crime nowadays with the multitude of devices we have at our beck and call. The book also has a surprise twist at the end, so let me know if you guessed it or not!

 

The only issue I had with the book is that I wished the world building was a bit better.

 

Verdict: It was great! Loved it!

Just the Nicest Couple

Reviews