In 1995 Nicci and Sean began work on their first joint novel and adopted the pseudonym of Nicci French. The Memory Game was published to great acclaim in 1997 followed by The Safe House (1998), Killing Me Softly (1999), Beneath the Skin (2000), The Red Room (2001), Land of the Living (2002), Secret Smile (2003), Catch Me When I Fall (2005), Losing You (2006) and Until It's Over (2008). Their latest novel together is What To Do When Someone Dies (2009). MY THOUGHTS: Our first love - that person always occupies a special place in our hearts. If my first love turned up and asked me to do him a favour, would I? I don't honestly know, but then it's over 50 years since I last saw him. If he had turned up after eleven years I may well have done it. I consumed The Favour in two sittings, fascinated by the ambivalence of many of the characters, Liam's housemates in particular. They are a colourful and unconventional bunch but perhaps not quite as unconventional as they believe themselves to be. Then we're introduced to Liam's housemates, an eccentric cast of characters, and Jude is mesmerized by these lunatics. Like, what? She finds them all so mysterious and intri The detective in charge was a hot mess too. She spoke and acted like no other detective ever and I'm a little surprised she carries a badge at all.

The Favour by Nicci French | Goodreads The Favour by Nicci French | Goodreads

I always seem to have an unpopular opinion, but this time it's because I seemed to enjoy the book more than the other reviewers. Jude agrees. She goes along with his plan without asking too many questions, and without telling her fiancé. She follows Liam’s instructions, and waits. And then the police turn up, telling her that Liam has been found dead, in London. Why does Jude have his car, his bag, his wallet, his mobile phone, in a cottage in Norfolk? Jude’s explanation doesn’t really satisfy DI Leila Fox. The police put forward several theories, none of which satisfy Jude, and make even more accusations. But it is the final theory that is the most chilling and absolutely feasible.The Favour by Nicci French will be published in Australia by Simon & Schuster in early February 2023. Family drama and office politics take center stage in this tense standalone from the pseudonymous French, the husband-and-wife writing team of Nicci Gerrard and Sean French (the Frieda Klein series). Continue reading »

The Favour | Book by Nicci French | Official Publisher Page The Favour | Book by Nicci French | Official Publisher Page

Sean French was born in May 1959 in Bristol, to a British father and Swedish mother. He too studied English Literature at Oxford University at the same time as Nicci, also graduating with a first class degree, but their paths didn't cross until 1990. In 1981 he won Vogue magazine's Writing Talent Contest, and from 1981 to 1986 he was their theatre critic. During that time he also worked at the Sunday Times as deputy literary editor and television critic, and was the film critic for Marie Claire and deputy editor of New Society. It’s no secret that the Nicci French duo are on my favourite writers’ list, so as soon as I heard they had a new book out I had to read it! I loved the premise of agreeing blindly to a “favour” a person you owe something to asks of you, without knowing any details, and then having to reap the unforeseen circumstances – this had so much potential to be tense and even a bit creepy (like one of their earlier novels SECRET SMILE).When the police show up at the station instead of Liam, Jude realizes that she knows nothing about the man he’s become. Now she’s tangled up in his life, the last person to have seen him, and maybe the only one who can uncover the truth about what went wrong—even if she destroys her own life in the process. This one was a little ridiculous. The main character is a doctor, but she makes one stupid decision after another, making it very difficult to like or understand her. Also, her actions were so absurd that the book lost any credibility early on. A host of side characters were also very unbelievable. If you like a storyline to be tied up neatly at the end, then this may not suit. Me? I loved it and still can't stop thinking about it.

The Favour by Nicci French Better Reading Preview: The Favour by Nicci French

She doesn’t help matters by becoming involved with those Liam left behind and though the warning signs are evident, Jude keeps charging in anyway. The life lesson Jude learned is sad. We've all been there. We wear rose-tinted nostalgia glasses and then realize the prince is actually an ogre. That said, THE FAVOUR unfortunately turned out to be one of my least favourite books by the author team, partly because believing the main character’s actions and motivations stretched my ability to suspend disbelief way past its limits. Maybe it would have worked better for me had Jude not been a doctor. How did this indecisive, insecure and naïve person ever get through medical school? Medicine is a science, it’s about trouble shooting and problem solving, and it involves logical thought processes. But here is Jude, bumbling her way from one disaster into the next and making one terrible decision after another. I think the only way I could have believed Jude’s actions would have been either a) if there was an implicit threat to Jude if she didn’t agree to the “favour”; or b) if Jude was a totally different personality type (i.e. an arty / spiritual person believing in karma or a person undergoing a deep personal crisis such as substance addiction / bereavement etc).I received a gifted copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review as part of the readalong hosted by Tandem Collective UK. I found the writing propulsive and exciting in the beginning, but I was not invested enough in the characters and in Liam’s world in the middle. I felt that Jude keeps making wrong decisions and cannot seem to help herself but instead get caught deeper into Liam’s world risking her life, her fiancé, and her career. Heart-thumping, head-scratching, nail-biting stuff: The Favour is classic Nicci French. I read it in one breathless sitting' Erin Kelly

The Favor by Nicci French | Goodreads

Jude's life has gone to plan. She's a geriatric doctor, about to be married. Liam's life has not gone to plan, but then Liam never had a plan. Until now . . .Turns out shortly before his murder he chose Jude as the executor of his will which has everyone baffled including Jude herself. He also left her his favorite bowl. Yup, a bowl, and his girlfriend is not too pleased about this because she loves that bowl. 🥣 = 😡 Jude’s intention to go home to Nat and say nothing is scuppered when someone leaks her role in this strange crime to the press. Her fiancé is even less convinced than DI Fox, and suddenly, that one decision turns her life upside down. And if Jude thinks that’s the worst that can happen, she’s got another think coming…