Beautiful Ugly

A Novel

By: Alice Feeney

Narrated by: Richard Armitage, Tuppence Middleton

This program is read by actor Richard Armitage, best known for his role in The Hobbit film trilogy, and actress Tuppence Middleton, best known for her role in Downton Abbey.

Beautiful Ugly features sound design and special effects to enhance your listening enjoyment. Listen out for the sounds of the ocean surrounding the island and the tick tock of the metronome!

"...Armitage...shine[s] with impeccable pacing, building tension that adds to the suspense"—AudioFile on His & Hers

“Her best book yet.”—Harlan Coben

The million-copy bestselling Queen of Twists Alice Feeney returns with a gripping and deliciously dark thriller about marriage. . .

. . . and revenge.

Author Grady Green is having the worst best day of his life.

Grady calls his wife to share some exciting news as she is driving home. He hears Abby slam on the brakes, get out of the car, then nothing. When he eventually finds her car by the cliff edge the headlights are on, the driver door is open, her phone is still there. . . but his wife has disappeared.

A year later, Grady is still overcome with grief and desperate to know what happened to Abby. He can’t sleep, and he can’t write, so he travels to a tiny Scottish island to try to get his life back on track. Then he sees the impossible: a woman who looks exactly like his missing wife.

Wives think their husbands will change but they don’t.

Husbands think their wives won’t change but they do.

“Magnetic and jaw-dropping.”—Mary Kubica, bestselling author

"Unforgettable."—Chris Whitaker, bestselling author

A Macmillan Audio production from Flatiron Books.

©2025 Alice Feeney (P)2025 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“I was consumed by this book. It’s her best ever, a work of genius.”—Lisa Jewell, #1 bestselling author

“Alice Feeney is one of my favorite thriller writers and this is her best book yet. Highly addictive and beautifully written. Read Beautiful Ugly right now and thank me later.”—Harlan Coben, #1 bestselling author

“Alice Feeney is back with another magnetic and jaw-dropping thriller. With a dreamlike quality and atmosphere that is off the charts, Beautiful Ugly takes readers into a world that is charming on the surface, but with danger, hatred and revenge lurking just beneath. Both witty and terrifying; I couldn't put it down!”—Mary Kubica, bestselling author

Kind of Fun

The story was fun, but so very far fetched. I find books scarier if they could actually happen .

of all the books my last favorite

it feels almost sacrilegious to leave a not glowing review for Alice, but the story was just so all over the place and confusing and not a good way. I knew that no matter how it ended it wasn't going to measure up. I think just the story didn't lend itself to a reader's ear. I didn't hate it but it certainly wasn't my favorite of the bunch

This plot of this book was too far fetched.

This book felt off all the way to the end. I kept waiting for connections for some of the stories that never came, even at the end. Some of the dialogue was very repetitive. It was disappointing.

performance good, story started great ended horrible

i loved the first 80% of the book and then once the conclusion started it just kept getting worse and worse. the very end was terrible and I wished I hadn't read the last chapter.

Wow

Not in the million years did I see that coming!! absolutely recommend. Alice did it again !

Great Start.. disappointing finiah

What started as a great Gothic thriller, ended in silliness and convenience. When I got to the destination, it made me not enjoy the ride.

Frustratingly slow with a decent twist

I found about 86% of the book to be painfully dull. It would occasionally hook you just enough to keep you reading, only to fizzle out into nothing, then drop a breadcrumb to reel you back in. The cycle was frustrating. Grady’s character was insufferably stupid—his constant “this time I really saw my wife” moments (for the 15th time!) were exhausting. If I had to hear it one more time, I might’ve had to DNF the book because it became nearly unbearable. I came close to quitting several times, but somehow pushed through. That said, one of the twists at the end was surprisingly good and gave me a new perspective on everything that happened. It made me reflect on the story a bit more, but overall, the book was just okay. Not sure I’d recommend it.

Excellent performance and fantastic story

That was quite the story! I definitely didn’t see the ending coming, and was confused but engaged the whole story. A couple aspects were a little far fetched (won’t spoil anything), but overall I really enjoyed it. Chilling!

such a clever, twisty turny plot! i loved it from the moment I started listening.

From the get-go, i felt that unique thrill you get when you start a story and know it's something fresh and inventive. this plot was so exciting from the on-start that I couldn't help worrying that it would be hard for the story to live up to it's potential. it ended up being a really good book but I did find it disappointing. i wished it hadn't been yet another plot defined by gender inequity. i am so sick of female victoms, despicable men and the inevitable evil that spawns between the sexes. its depressing, frustrating, and only perpetuates the injuries so many of us already carry. We need to start evolving our protagonists/ characters beyond their gender based vulnerabilities and find more creative motivations for our villians! i recommend this book! but Im disappointed with how the overall plot played out.

You Have No Idea

Loved the narrator’s calm voice. You think you know what is going on, but you have no idea. It’s a dark and twisty story. Great listen, do it!