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The Wrong One cover art

The Wrong One

Written by: Dervla McTiernan
Narrated by: Neil Hellegers,Michael Crouch
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Publisher's Summary

In this new novella from the number one internationally best-selling author of The Sisters and The Murder Rule, Dervla McTiernan, a mother and son fighting to prove her innocence are reunited with an estranged friend—a detective who may hold the key to her freedom—as they’re forced to put their differences aside to uncover the shocking truth behind the crime. 

When Clara Coleman is taken into custody, her teenage son, Sebastien, wastes no time before calling Simon Miller: an estranged family friend and detective in their old hometown of Hartford, Connecticut. Clara’s been arrested for the murder of Rachel Stapleton, a wealthy housewife and prominent figure in Lavender Valley, their well-to-do New Jersey suburb. But she swears she did not commit the crime. 

Simon knows that Clara is not capable of murder and will do anything he can to prove her innocence—he’s felt indebted to the Coleman family since her husband, Will, Simon’s best friend, passed away years before. He arrives in Lavender Valley and hits the ground running on the case. With time, details surrounding the crime as well as the Colemans’ family history are revealed, unravelling the complex web of cause and effect that will finally bring the truth to light. 

Please note: this audio contains strong language, distressing situations and descriptions of violence that some listeners may find upsetting. Discretion is advised. 

©2022 Dervla McTiernan (P)2022 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.

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What listeners say about The Wrong One

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story!

Really liked the story and how it just exploded in the end…
Many have commented negatively about the narration, I actually thought it fit that main character in a way… “I did this and this is what happened “ I didn’t mind it. For the new listeners, I’d go in with an open mind and clean slate, maybe I’m different. See, or rather, listen for yourself.

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1 person found this helpful

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I enjoyed the story, but disappointed in narration

I enjoyed the storyline of Dervla McTiernan's The Wrong One, but was disappointed this time with the narration. I thought the teenaged Sebastion was good, but the protagonist sounded like a typical old-school cop. The narration of the mother, Clara, didn’t know what h÷e was looking for. At least, I couldn't figure out what he was going for. It's too bad, because I thought the story was a good one.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Different

I love all of Dervla’s work. This one was slightly different than her previous pieces and at first I struggled to like it. However I think she’s a fantastic storyteller and a pro for plot twists. I know there are mixed reviews but I really enjoyed this book and thought it had an interesting and cool ending.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Disappointed

I had thoroughly enjoyed McTiernan’s series but was very disappointed with this “novela” . The reader did not compare to the one reading the series and the storyline was just too strange and then had a very weird ending.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

What was the author thinking of?

I was a new fan of this author, having read the entire Cormac Reilly series. I felt her writing was getting better with time and then she comes out with this story. The narrators were absolutely awful -especially Michael Crouch who narrated Sebastian. His female voice was laughable (in a bad way). I figured out who had "done it" early on and I could barely finish til the end, but I did. It was like the author had 1 day to hand in her work and had to come up with an ending.
Thank goodness this book was free! It just goes to show you that just because you liked an author's previous work, does not mean the next story will be as good. It makes me think twice about taking a chance on buying books on sale... Especially with Audible's policy to only allow you to return books paid with credits, rather than paid with 'cash'.
No, I don't recommend this book at all. Even with the book being free, it was still a waste of my time.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Narration left a lot to be desired.

Story wise, I enjoyed. It's definitely a twist from many plot lines.
Found the narrators a challenge. Having 2 different voices reading Clairs parts .. didn't help at all. 1 minute, she spoke with 1 accent , the next, she sounded like a whole different nationality.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Nothing about it worked for me….

I’m a big fan of Dervla McTiernan, but how I got through this book, I’ll never know. I guess I just kept waiting for it to get better. The worst thing about it was the narration. It was confusing, and it made both Sebastian & his mother sound like they had mental issues. If the narration had been better, I might have gotten through the book without wishing I’d never started it. I also didn’t find the story believable. I will try very hard not to read a book with these narrators again.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great listen!

I really liked the narration. The story line was great and kept me guessing until the end.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

I don’t want to spoil anything so generic review:

Loved this. Absolutely loved. So good.

Yes the narration was lacking and awkward but the story makes up for it. Brilliant.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Your call based on mixed aspects

The narration left a lot to be desired. Simon sounded like he was stating facts, not narrating. When he did Clara…intolerable. The story was good right up to the end… not a fan. Since narration is a large part of an audio book, I only stuck it out because I always enjoy this author. It was spell binding if you could get past the narration…. right up to the end which definitely was a twist.

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  • Mary Loo
  • 2022-04-01

Wow!

I’ve started this review almost 10 times now, but I’m having trouble finding the right words to describe this story! It was fun to listen to, but not funny. Rather, it is very suspenseful and had several tight twisty-turny moves that really surprised me. Just long enough to tell the story well, but only a few hours long, this novella should be on everyone’s reading list! I read my first Dervla McTiernan book just a bit over a week ago, and now I’m reading everything by her that I can find. She does an excellent job with developing characters, and her writing is so clear, it flows so well, that following the story effortless and massively entertaining. My new favorite author.

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15 people found this helpful

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  • Elizabeth Jones
  • 2022-04-01

Huge Plot Holes

Part way through, I gave up and skipped to the end quarter. ???? Really sad exploration of the unreliable narrator. Legally ridiculous. Could not suspend my disbelief long enough to care. Female character is a cypher. However, maybe that's just the POV. The ghost story stuff reminded me of Stephen King at his most arbitrary, insisting on sticking the otherworldly very awkwardly into a very worldly story.
The narration seemed adequate. what was lacking was a believable or compelling narrative. Not worth the time.

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11 people found this helpful

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  • Jamie Calzini
  • 2022-04-07

Terrible

I usually love this author, but not this time. Unbelievable story and ending. The cadence of the narration was so weird, made it hard to listen to. Glad it was included!

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9 people found this helpful

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  • Susan Nash
  • 2022-04-01

Surprising, loved it!

All I can say is Wow! Ms. McTiernan does not disappoint that's for sure. totally unexpected!

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9 people found this helpful

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  • Junebreeze
  • 2022-04-01

Subtle clues

Dervish McTiernan hit a home run with a slow ball!
This short story was woven with skill with gaps so small U may miss a clue. Beware listener.

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6 people found this helpful

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  • nancyvan
  • 2022-04-01

Intriguing

This book Kept me on the edge of my seat. I Love the unexpected plot twists

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5 people found this helpful

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  • Amazon Customer
  • 2022-04-01

suprizing small novella

A well written short story with nice twists and turns that kept it interesting.

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5 people found this helpful

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  • Chantal Noordeloos
  • 2022-04-26

I feel a little cheated

There will be spoilers in this review, so don’t read on if you haven’t read it yet, or if you don’t want to read spoilers.
I think I would have enjoyed this book if it wasn’t written from the killer’s perspective, pretending to investigate the whole thing. We were in his damn head, and not once did we get a suspicion that it was him? It felt as if the guy in the end was a completely different character. That just makes me feel cheated. A good ‘whodunnit’ has a fair amount of ‘hiding the gun’ and this just let me down. The whole haunted house part also felt incredibly forced. The writer had a great idea, but in the end the story was just very disappointing.

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4 people found this helpful

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  • Lisa Reed
  • 2022-04-13

A Good One

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. Short and direct. Yet, still took the time to build a good climactic plot.
I will be loading more from this author.

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4 people found this helpful

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  • Amazon Customer
  • 2022-04-09

Very enjoyable and suspenseful story!

I really enjoyed listening to this story. The narration of the characters had me paying close attention for any signs of deception. The story was thrilling and had me in suspense to the very end. Well done!

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3 people found this helpful