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He Started It

The gripping Sunday Times Top 10 bestselling psychological thriller

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He Started It

By: Samantha Downing
Narrated by: Karissa Vacker
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

The gripping new psychological thriller from the No. 1 bestselling author of My Lovely Wife.

Beth, Eddie and Portia are siblings.
Beth is devious, calculated and ruthlessly manipulative.
Eddie is controlling and will do anything to get what he wants.
Portia, the youngest, is much smarter than she's given credit for.
But they all have one thing in common:
An incident that happened when they were children, that has now forced them back together.

But that was just the beginning . . .

And it can only end with murder.

Because no-one is more dangerous than the ones who know you best . . .

© Samantha Downing 2020 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

 Crime Thrillers Genre Fiction Mystery Psychological Suspense Thriller & Suspense Fiction Thriller

Critic Reviews

My Lovely Wife was one of my top books of 2019. He Started It is even better! Following a dysfunctional-to put it mildly-bunch of siblings on a bizarre and deadly road trip with their grandfather's ashes, He Started It is deliciously twisted, laced with Downing's trademark black humor and packed with one grisly twist after another. I loved it. All hail the new Queen of the psycho thriller!!
I absolutely loved it: whip-smart, lean, deliciously dark and addictive. One of the best thrillers I've read in a long time (Ali Land)
Once you start reading He Started It you won't want to stop. Dark, twisted, original, and so addictive it should come with a warning (Alice Feeney)
A thrill ride through the darkest parts of the American landscape - funny, scary and twisted until the explosive final page (Michele Campbell)
Samantha Downing shows how to pack a punch in her latest phenomenal thriller, He Started It. A twisty, sneaking tale of greed, lies and betrayal, with each character as conniving as the next and an ending that will make your heart stop. This one needs to be on the top of everyone's to-read list! (Mary Kubica)
Clever and very twisty: the razor sharp dialogue slices through to the dark heart of sibling rivalry. There are delicious echoes of Succession to savour (Jane Shemilt)
Samantha Downing is an absolute genius at creating twisted characters you're desperate to follow. He Started It is superbly structured, deliciously dark, and kept me guessing, heart pounding, through every single razor-sharp sentence. A psychological thriller like none other, this addictive read is impossible to put down.
A wicked-fun read with razor-sharp wit and a killer twist, He Started It is compelling, captivating, and deliciously dark. Samantha Downing writes with a wry, sparse elegance that steadily entangles you until you're utterly addicted.
Downing ups her game in this deliciously twisted tale of family deception. He Started It has layers upon layers of clever, shocking twists that begin in the first chapter and never let up. Breathless pacing and terse, impeccable writing create a phenomenal reading experience. I am obsessed!
He Started It is a diabolical drive into a dysfunctional family's past. The story is chillingly twisted, perfectly paced. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down.
All stars
Most relevant
This book was very slow moving. The road trip went forever. I hated the ending and felt the author wasn’t sure how to end the story. Not my favourite book.

Slow moving

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I loved this book, But, not from the get go. I thought the first chapter was so so, but it wasn't until the second and third chapter
that you realise something is a foot.
I am not going to spoil this book for anyone. All I can say is, stick with it and you will be happy you did.
Great book, Narrater is perfect for this story.
Thank you Samantha Downing, I enjoyed this book immensely
10 out of 10

SO MANY TWISTS, keeps you guessing

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I love this book, it had me guessing all the way through the story. I could not put it down. I really enjoyed the narrative by Karissa she was amazing.

Great Book

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Whole lot of twists and turns that didn’t really lead anywhere. Surprised I finished it.. FOMO I guess

Anticlimactic

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I had this one on preorder since reading My Lovely Wife (a total 10/10). While the writing and character voices are just as good as her last novel, the story itself was weighed down completely by the ending.
The novel is less thriller and more family musings from an unreliable protagonist. I found it dull and while the brief moments of suspense or surprise interested me while reading, upon reflection, my response was notable only because it was the only responses this book seemed to be drawing from me.

The story is dry and in many parts, unbelievable. It feels as if the author is trying to draw blood when pushing for moments of suspense. Many of the scenarios that are written to evoke interest or mystery, are completely smoke and mirrors. Often the suspense will carry out until a chapter or two later, where it is revealed that the eerie circumstances do, in fact, have a realistic explanation. The stark contrast between this novel and Downing's last is that My Lovely Wife, though unbelievable in storyline, is so addictively delicious that the reader does not stop to question it. He Started It however, gives the reader an overload of time to think about the facts, because firstly, the storyline is relatively boring, and secondly, the protagonist herself is constantly asking questions, inspiring the reader to do the same.

The ending of this book is infuriating. I trusted the author because of her hit debut novel. I was rooting for her, desperately hoping that all of this tedious leadup was simply to create a platform for the starburst ending! Five minutes out from the end, and no conclusion. The hope wavers slightly. And then with crushing, unamused frustration, the reader realizes, that this is all there is.

The ending is among the very worst endings I have read in this genre. And I have read some bad ones. It seems lazy and rushed. The conclusion is possible to pull off, but not for this kind of genre, and certainly not after this kind of story. I felt I had wasted my time. My guess is that after the overall positive reviews of her first book, this second one was then pushed out to keep momentum. While the bones of good writing are there, the whole storyline should have been shot down from the start. It isn't good and it doesn't lend well to the genre.

Overall, it was just a mediocre 9.5 hours that should have really been a prologue leading into the actual story. Really disappointing and not worth the time. If you're looking for a psychological thriller, don't pick this up.

So Disappointing!

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