MY HUSBAND’S LIES
CAROLINE ENGLAND
17 May 2018
Do we really know our friends?
Known since school as ‘The A Team,’ Nick, Dan, Jen and Will have been best friends for years. They’re just ordinary guys, aren’t they? Then why does Nick and Lisa’s wedding hurl their lives into chaos?
Who is standing on the window ledge, threatening to jump? What deeply hidden family secret is exposed? Why does a sexual advance snowball? And which of them is telling lies?
As their net of secrets tighten, the A team soon realise that none of them are being as honest with themselves – or with each other – as they think they are…
Will their friendship survive?
Tense, disturbing and clever, My Husband’s Lies is the second domestic noir from Caroline England, perfect for fans of Lucy Clarke and Erin Kelly.
‘I was gripped immediately - perfect for fans of Into the Water by Paula Hawkins’
KATERINA DIAMOND, author of THE TEACHER
Caroline England is a former divorce lawyer based in Manchester. My Husband’s Lies is her second novel following 2017’s Beneath the Skin.
EXTRACT
Jen picks up the ‘St Mark’s’ place card and studies it for a while. Though the music is blaring and people are milling and chatting near their table, she can’t hear anything except the clatter of her heart. It has been racing since looking up to see Penny’s pallid face at the window, and even self-medicating with champagne hasn’t helped. They’ve been joined by Dan from the top table and though usually calm, he’s agitated too, repeating himself like a record stuck in a groove. He’s been brilliant all day, hurtling with Will to deal with Penny, then taking on the role as the only best man at the meal with aplomb, but it’s as though the trauma has only recently set and is playing on a loop.
He’s shaking his dark head. ‘At a wedding of all places. I can’t believe Penny did that,’ he says again. Frowning, he turns to Geri. ‘She was humming when we got there, but after getting her to safety, she behaved as though everything was normal. Saying she had to dress and brush her hair, check her face in the mirror. Bizarre. Did she say anything to you in the church?’
‘No, I’ve already said, Dan, she seemed normal. Well, quiet, but she’s generally pretty quiet, isn’t she?’ Tapping a painted fingernail on her lips, Geri frowns. ‘God, it was only a few hours ago and it’s already hard to remember.’ Closing her eyes, she starts to describe Penny’s movements, but Jen drifts, the batter of her heart still loud in her ears. She tunes in again when Geri mentions Will’s name. ‘She was there when Will was fooling with your girls. It was funny to see them swallowed up by his wedding tails, then racing away. Poor Holly being lugged back under his arm like a sack of potatoes did make me laugh.’ For a moment she looks startled.
He’s shaking his dark head. ‘At a wedding of all places. I can’t believe Penny did that,’ he says again. Frowning, he turns to Geri. ‘She was humming when we got there, but after getting her to safety, she behaved as though everything was normal. Saying she had to dress and brush her hair, check her face in the mirror. Bizarre. Did she say anything to you in the church?’
‘No, I’ve already said, Dan, she seemed normal. Well, quiet, but she’s generally pretty quiet, isn’t she?’ Tapping a painted fingernail on her lips, Geri frowns. ‘God, it was only a few hours ago and it’s already hard to remember.’ Closing her eyes, she starts to describe Penny’s movements, but Jen drifts, the batter of her heart still loud in her ears. She tunes in again when Geri mentions Will’s name. ‘She was there when Will was fooling with your girls. It was funny to see them swallowed up by his wedding tails, then racing away. Poor Holly being lugged back under his arm like a sack of potatoes did make me laugh.’ For a moment she looks startled.
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