The Hypnotist's Love Story: From the bestselling author of Big Little Lies, now an award winning TV series

The plot described on the blurb immediately had me hooked and the book more than lived up to my expectations. I especially liked the insight into the inner workings of Ellen's mind who, on the surface, seems to be a floaty lentil-eating hippy full of empathy and goodness but who also harbours not so angelic thoughts and tendencies. This is what Moriarty does so well: she takes heroines and gives them depth and complexity. Similarly she does it for the villain of the piece too, Saskia the stalker, by making us sympathise with her motives, although I did feel slightly uncomfortable knowing that a male stalker who committed the same transgressions would probably not have received such a sympathetic treatment. There were pleasing sub-plots too which worked because of Moriarty's skilled characterisations. Even Ellen's mother (who we know we are supposed to dislike because she is a career-loving "tough feminist") becomes more human by the end. All in all a great read, evidenced by the fact that I lost a bit of weight because I couldn't bring myself to put it down to go and make the dinner.

I was in need of a light read to cheer me up and fortunately I had just the right type of book sat waiting for me on my bookshelf. I love Liane Moriarty’s writing style, plenty of wry observational humour to give an edge to what essential is a romantic tale, albeit one with a dark underbelly. Our hypnotist, or rather hypnotherapist, is Ellen a woman who has been fortunate enough to be left a beautiful house on the beach by her grandparents. She is in her thirties, a woman in charge of her own destiny, a woman who has decided to see whether internet dating can find ‘the one’ after a few failed relationships. She meets Patrick, widower and father to eight year old Jack and a man who is being stalked by an ex-girlfriend Saskia. Ellen is one of life’s good people, she believes in her job but is she really ready for this relationships, one with enough baggage to sink a battleship? I think this book would have quickly become quite boring had it not been for the fact that we hear from Saskia herself, a character I actually had a certain amount of sympathy for especially as Ellen was just a little bit too good to be true, certainly at the beginning of the book. Saskia does realise that what she is doing is a little on the odd side, she just isn’t quite sure how to give up following Patrick in her spare time… but what will she do when she realises the relationship with Ellen is getting serious? Well, I’m afraid if you want to know how this all pans out, you’ll just have to read the book. Although not my favourite of Liane Moriarty’s books, it was a thoroughly enjoyable read, with a good range of characters, including her speciality, the odd-balls that actually resemble people I’ve met in my life, the one that exists outside books. With a few sub-plots principally around Ellen’s clients, oh and not forgetting her caustic mother and her two kindly god-mothers there is far more meat to this romance, than well, just romance! Although this book is fairly long at getting on for 500 pages but the tale moves at quite a pace especially as the multiple strands keep the story lively and moving forward. I’d say this is perfect beach reading but it worked well for me on a cold and windy day wrapped up in a blanket while my mind was transported to a much warmer and sunnier Australia.

Thirty-five-year-old hypnotherapist Ellen lives in and works from an unusual and lovely beach house in Sydney, which she has been fortunate enough to inherit from her grandparents. She treats her clients in a glass room built on the side of the house with the sound of the sea as a backdrop to her relaxation sessions; her clients admire Ellen and her lovely home, but although Ellen may appear happy and fulfilled, there is something missing in her life. The 'something' is a man she can love and respect and who will love and respect her in return; if he happens to be tall, rugged and handsome, all the better. Enter Patrick, a widower with an eight-year-old son, who Ellen meets on an internet dating site. After a few dates Ellen is feeling optimistic; Patrick is attractive and attentive and he seems to find her very attractive and appealing too. There is just one problem: Patrick is being stalked by his ex-girlfriend, Saskia, who is absolutely obsessed with him and follows him everywhere, making his life a misery and making it difficult for him to form new attachments. Although many women might be worried, or even deterred by this news, Ellen finds the situation intriguing; she's interested in other people's motivations and she wants to find out as much as she can about Saskia. But unknown to Ellen, she has already become acquainted with Saskia, for Saskia has been posing as one of Ellen's new clients under an assumed name. Saskia is not only obsessed with Patrick now; she appears to be developing a rather unhealthy interest in Ellen too. Told in a third person narrative from Ellen's viewpoint, we discover how she falls in love with Patrick and of her hopes for their future life together; and in a first person narrative from Saskia's perspective, as she tells us how she met Patrick; how he swept her off her feet, telling her how he hoped they would always be together; how she fell deeply in love with him and also with his son; how she moved in and shared their lives and how Patrick suddenly decided that it was all over and broke her heart. I ordered this novel as part of a shared order with my sister and she kindly let me read it first, and I do have to admit that when I started reading I wasn't sure I was going to like the style of writing (very chatty, with lots of italicised words and exclamation marks) finding it a little gossipy and girly for my taste - however, before I knew it I was halfway through the book and keen to discover more. Is Saskia entirely to blame for her behaviour? How does Ellen cope with a relationship that started out so well but takes an unexpected turn? When Patrick asks Ellen to hypnotise him to help him relax, is she tempted to act unethically? And is Patrick all that he seems? Don't worry, I haven't included any spoilers here, there is plenty more for prospective readers to discover. This is a lightly entertaining novel that is best read with your 'literary head' off and your 'holiday head' on, sitting in the garden or lying in the sunshine accompanied by the sound of waves. 3 Stars.

An interesting and perceptive look at stalking and the perils of serial monogamy by Liane Moriarty. Ellen the hypnotherapist has such a perfect life that it seems insane to complicate it by getting into a relationship with a widower with a small son - and a stalker! Saskia isn't some typical demented stalker obsessed with a man she hardly knows, we find out that she actually had a relationship with Ellen's new love interest for several years, after his wife died and was like a mother to his son. What drives an intelligent successful career woman to behave in such a way? At one point Ellen reflects that due to the casual nature of modern relationships it's actually surprising that more people don't behave like that and I have to agree. Saskia wasn't wrong for Patrick just a victim of bad timing. This isn't a generic romance where the heroine is portrayed as virtually faultless we do see a 'warts and all' view of Ellen, through an affectionately critical third person narration whereas all Saskia's narration is in the first person. It's not a thriller either though some of Saskia's behaviour does cross boundaries of civilised behaviour - there are some mildly suspenseful moments but it's not 'Fatal Attraction'! I was pretty much enthralled by this novel all the way through -though I could have lived without some of the subplots - I was most interested in the relationship between Ellen/Patrick/Saskia and Jack. The only criticism I would make is that for me it dragged on a little too long to a point at which I started to lose interest - I would have preferred a more abrupt ending followed by an epilogue updating on the character's lives, say a year on. Other than that I found it an intelligent, insightful and heartwarming read and would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone.

This was an engaging read for me, for the most part. It is definitely not a psychological thriller and there are some parts that are most frustrating - why would a person being stalked not inform the police, for example. I fully expected there to be something deep and meaningful behind this, but there was not. Hippyish Ellen has a lovely life with no financial issues and then a man comes into her life with a dead ex-wife and an ex lover who is still stalking him and his child. Saskia does not seem to pose a threat, even in one of the final scenes where there is some violence, but she is never talked about, certainly not in the way that I would want to talk about her should I be in that situation. I almost got the impression that Ellen was feeling an affinity for Saskia and that she was beginning to like her. There was also a query for me underlying the portrayal of Saskia and Ellen - earlier on I had the impression that Saskia was dowdy and a bit frumpy and then she sudeenly changed to being smart and very beautiful. Ellen came across as being a bit of a wimp, to be honest. The sub plot of the ex wife is not fully explored with loose threads such as naked pictures and parents and cemetary visits. Ellen's mum, for example, and all her friends and the context of Ellen's conception seemed extraneous to the main plot and did not impact on Ellen, apart from finding out that mum was a complete fraud and not the person she pretended to be at all. All the presenting problems of the different clients were interesting but I was not sure why they were included - to tell us more about Ellen's character perhaps. Ellen used her skills for her own purposes at times - which I thought was perfectly understandable and in her shoes I would have done the same. The novel had a good theme and was interesting - I wanted to finish it, but it was too frustrating in places for me to say it was truely creepy or gripping; and I think it could have been because the idea was excellent.

An in-depth look at people's behaviour. The book is about love lost, clung to and obsessed over and then a revelation of how behaviour can be misconstrued leading to incorrect reactions. Ellen is the hypnotist who, despite much scepticism, believes in her profession. She knows what is acceptable as ethical behaviour, but occasionally is tempted to bend the rules - and this sometimes leads to problems. Patrick is a widower who often refers to his dead wife and we think he found her to be perfect. It is only later that we discover how she monopolized their son leaving him feeling excluded. Saskia had truly loved Patrick and his son, Jack, and she finds it impossible to get over the fact that Patrick dismissed her from their lives so abruptly. She stalks Patrick, Jack and then Ellen. Ellen is attracted to Patrick instantly, but part of him is hidden and she doubts his love for her and whether hers is as strong for Patrick as Saskia's must be. In addition, Ellen has never known her father, but he suddenly appears in her life. At first she feels nothing for him, but she gradually sees that there are benefits to having a father in her life. Eventually matters come to a head when Saskia breaks in to Ellen's house during the night and Patrick loses his temper. Saskia and Jack are both injured and a restraining order is taken out on Saskia and she is ordered to attend psychology sessions. She is made from see what effect her behaviour has had on those she loved. Ellen has her own child by Patrick and understands that there are many different types of love. This was a complex plot with several crazy characters, and I was kept from knowing how all would be resolved until the end. A very clever book.

When Ellen meets Patrick she thinks she could easily fall in love with him, even when he tells her about Saskia, the woman he broke up with three years ago, who has stalked him and his family ever since. I had an idea about what to expect from this book, and it was nothing like that idea. I am reading my third book by her now, I started with Big Little Lies, then The Hypnotist's Love Story, now I'm reading The Husband's Secret (and I have Three Wishes and What Alice Forgot waiting for me when I finish this one) and what I've noticed is the blurbs on the books make them sound a bit more light and fluffy than they really are. Moriarty takes difficult subjects and writes them well, with a slightly different angle to the straightforward story I was expecting. I enjoyed Big Little Lies, but I thought The Hypnotist's Love Story was better. I would recommend it as a thought provoking book, capable of being both funny and sad, and obviously I will be reading more by her very soon.

Liane Moriarty really does have that addictive, “just one more chapter” style across all her books. Even when you think you know where the story’s going, she always manages to twist it in a satisfying way. In this book, I especially loved Ellen and how she remained a kind and decent person, without any desire to destroy Patrick’s stalker as many people might. Instead, she showed empathy and compassion which I found really uplifting. I also found the ending really satisfying. Despite all the complexities at the start of their relationship, it was lovely to see Ellen get her happy ever after. I also liked that Saskia’s life seemed to turn a corner in a more positive direction & it felt reassuring to know she would be okay. I’ll admit I’m a bit of a softie when it comes to happy endings and this one definitely didn’t disappoint.

最高におもしろかったです。この作家の本はどれもとても良くできています。途中で止められません。

Com um vocabulário fácil de seguir, o livro foi bem legal de ler. A hipnotizadora é fofa, zen, está sempre vendo o positivo nas situações e nas pessoas. O namorado tem uma história conturbada, com uma perseguidora (stalker) implacável, que o segue em todos os lugares que ele vai. De início a nossa simpatia vai para a hipnotizadora e o novo namorado. No entanto, à medida em que a voz da stalker começa a aparecer (ela também passa a narrar sua vida e ações), eu fiquei completamente envolvida na sua história, achando-a mais rica, mais real e interessante do que a dos outros personagens. Você já vê que o livro é bom por não fazer a dicotomia bom-mau, e sim por dar profundidade a todos os protagonistas. Gostei muito!!

Ellen, a hypnotherapist, is kind, gentle and open to all possibilities. She is a lovely protagonist. She has inherited her grandparents' beautiful beach front house where she has her office. Her clients are quirky but engaging with a variety of problems. Just after the story opens she is internet dating and meets a man named Patrick who she is really attracted to and is hoping he will be the one. Before they can get too involved; however, Patrick tells her he has a stalker, an ex-girlfriend, who he can't get rid of. Ellen is not afraid but intrigued; she believes it makes her life more interesting to have someone observing it. Other interesting characters in the story are Ellen's mother, Anne, who is a doctor and very practical and can't believe her daughter has chosen hypnotism as a profession. Further Anne's mother, along with her two godmothers, raised Ellen, without the help of a man, of which they are very proud. Her two godmothers are interesting as well. Plus there's Patrick's son, Jack, from a previous relationship. Patrick is a widower. Then there is Ellen's best friend, Julia, who has been Ellen's best friend since childhood. Julia is quite a character all on her own. In fact, Moriarty could write a book about Julia if she chose. The interesting thing about the book, besides how will Patrick and Ellen's relationship end up, is that the stalker, Saskia, gets to tell her side of the story as well. Although at times I got irritated at Saskia for not being able to move on, I never hated her or feared her. In fact, Moriarty writes Saskia's point of view as sympathetic and by the end of the novel I really liked Saskia. None of the characters in this book were portrayed as evil nor were they demonized, which for me made for an interesting and exciting read. This was another great novel by Liane Moriarty and I highly recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of romance, intrigue, and mystery.

There is not a weak novel in the many I have read. Complex and believable characters, flawed and lovable, beautiful storytelling

Brilliant observation on relationships with an intriguing, sometimes humorous and deep reflection on human nature. Beautifully written and entertaining, every page is a jewel.