We know from the beginning that the narrator, Lucas, has had his wealthy wife murdered so that he will inherit a stack of money. He has done everything very carefully and covered his tracks all the way. And although his actions have been despicable the reader begins to sympathize with him, and cheer him on. The ending is worth waiting for: dramatic and surprising. ( )

“Good things come to those who wait was a total pile of crap. Good things come to those who make them happen...and then wait for the payoff. Mine was on its way.”

Lucas Forester married his wealthy wife, Michelle, for her money with the sole purpose of divorcing her and claiming a hefty chunk of her assets for himself. However, her father’s insistence on a prenup forces him to change his initial plans. Lucas is a conman and from the moment he met Michelle in an Art Gallery in London, he knew what he wanted. He now intends to have his wife killed and claim all of her assets for himself. He is smart and calculating and does not mind biding his time (in this case, a few years) playing the perfect devoted husband before setting things in motion. His meticulous planning down to the last detail includes hiring a hitman through the Dark Web to kidnap and murder Michelle without leaving any trace of evidence leading back to him and plans to manipulate the perceptions of those around him is impressive! While he waits out the days after the kidnapping, playing the role of a concerned husband desperately waiting for news of his missing wife, he also spends time looking out for his addict brother-in-law (or is he?) and his terminally ill mother-in-law. However, when he finds mysterious messages and grainy pictures of his wife in envelopes left in places in his home and at work, he realizes someone knows what he did. What follows is a cat-and-mouse game, with Lucas trying to figure out who and what he is up against.

What makes this book even more interesting is that the entire story is narrated from the POV of the despicable male protagonist, Lucas in the first person. The author does a great job of giving the reader a vivid look into what’s going on in Lucas's head- at times his purely diabolical thoughts and manipulations, his darkly witty reflections and as the story progresses, his confusion and inability to comprehend the failure of his seemingly flawless plan. I spent more time listening to the audiobook than reading this novel and that definitely made a difference in how I rated this book. I don’t think I would have enjoyed the book this much if it hadn’t been for the brilliant narration by Alex Wyndham whose ability to perfectly convey Lucas’s thoughts and reactions to what is happening around him made for a superbly entertaining read.

Smartly crafted, laced with dark humor, and with a villain you (almost) start feeling sorry for before you remind yourself how evil he really is, Never Coming Home by Hannah Mary McKinnon is a wickedly entertaining read. Though it was not difficult to figure out a part of the final reveal, the author does not fail to add quite a few surprises along the way. ( )

Dark and devious!

Lucas is one man I hated, but he was only the beginning to the ugly.

( )

Lucas Forester is the kind of main character that you've just got to love to hate—he's devious, morally bankrupt, and SO outrageously arrogant, but his laugh-out-loud snarky narration had me glued to the pages of this story! Hannah Mary McKinnon has created a tension-filled tale of domestic suspense that doesn't let up till the very last satisfying scene. Can't wait for THE REVENGE LIST! ( )

Never Coming Home is one of those stories where you think you’ve figured it out early on. If you read enough mysteries and psychological thrillers you figure out some of the logic and see some of the patterns. But this is also one of those stories where it doesn’t matter at all if you’ve figured it out because working through it is just so much fun. And don’t worry. You really won’t figure it all out. You are in for some stunning surprises.

Lucas seems awful but kind of compellingly awful. Since we only have his take on Michelle and her family, murder might have been a little extreme but she does seem like a pain. And that father of hers . . . . Her dying mother is the only one Lucas will be sorry to see gone. And of course none of this is really personal. He just has needs and a plan to satisfy them.

At the start of the story Lucas seems so in control, so methodical, so clever. But as time goes on and we learn more of his backstory we see “in control” might be overstating it. And as little, teeny, tiny problems arise his mental state gets a little shakier. You have to hand it to him, though. He hangs in there, comes up with alternate plans, is confident his brilliant plan will come to fruition – and that he fully deserves it to.

Hannah Mary McKinnon is a remarkable author. The words flow, the characters are compelling, the plot speeds along and you try to speed your reading along to keep with it, reveling in each twist and turn. Highly recommend. ( )