“She’ll get them in the end.
She always does.

Rita Marsh has two lives.

By day she cares for the elderly, and by night she hunts down men who prey on young girls. But now a suspect is dead, and the police are on her tail.

When an old school friend shows up with her own dark story to tell, Rita can’t help herself being drawn to danger – and her two worlds start to collide.

How far will she go for justice? And how much further for revenge?”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of Her Two Lives by Nilesha Chauvet. Her Two Lives was published by Faber & Faber on 27th March 2025 and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio and digital formats. I chose to read a free ARC of Her Two Lives but that has in no way influenced my review. My grateful thanks to Phoebe at Faber Books for sending me a proof copy.

Rita Marsh is a vigilante. She hunts down predators, men who have a penchant for young girls. By day she runs a care home for the elderly. It’s not something she would choose to do but her parents started the business, and they’re not here to run it anymore. Rita’s passion for punishing men, for exposing their sick predilections, is what gets the blood pumping. The police, who have to deal with her exposés, aren’t so sure. After all, evidence is key. These things have to be handled correctly otherwise the case crumbles. When Rita’s friend from school, Leila, unexpectedly comes back into her life, Rita is delighted. But Leila has a story of her own, a confession. The rumours were indeed true. Whilst at school Leila was having an affair with a teacher. A man who should have known better. That man, now a renowned author, is being investigated by the police after a complaint from another young woman that he instigated an inappropriate relationship with her. Rita is furious. Her love for Leila and her desire for revenge far outweigh logical thought. How far will Rita Marsh go to ensure a known abuser is never a threat to young girls again…?

Her Two Lives (previously published as The Revenge of Rita Marsh) is an intriguing revenge thriller with plenty of twists and bucketloads of well-written suspense. I thought I knew what to expect from this one, but the book delivered a lot more and went in a direction I didn’t see coming. The story opens with Rita (aka Raven) and her small team of vigilantes apprehending a man in London. The man was due to meet a fictitious twelve-year-old called Holly, played online by Rita herself. Intentions were very clear. Rita contacted the police and told them what and where the approach was going to happen. It was filmed and against the police’s advice, uploaded to Facebook. Shortly after, the accused committed suicide. All of sudden, ‘Raven Justice’, whose supporters were always vocal and proud, begin to turn. Blame is laid at Rita’s door. From here, her life begins to spiral dangerously out of control…

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Her Two Lives starts with a bang which pulls the reader into the story. From here, the pace slows a little whilst Rita and Leila reconnect. Rita’s entire focus, her entire world shifts to Leila once the two are reunited. However, their friendship is very one-sided and made for some uncomfortable reading. Rita is smitten with Leila (and has been for years). But Leila barely tolerates Rita. When Leila confirms her relationship with their ex-teacher, Rita is consumed with rage and loathing towards Mr Stellans. He needs to be punished for what he did to Leila and all of the other young girls he had relationships with. Leila, however, is out to rekindle her relationship with the teacher and sees nothing wrong with what they did when she was younger. They were in love! Rita’s need to be accepted by her ‘friend’ sees a bad situation escalate tenfold. It was interesting to see how Rita dealt with the situation. How completely oblivious she was and what her worrying thought processes were. Things then go from bad to much, much worse. It’s not an easy read due to the emotional subject matter. But I was intrigued about how things would end for this traumatised, unstable woman. I very much enjoyed the well-written suspense. I couldn’t see how Rita was going to dig herself out of the metaphorical hole she found herself in and that kept me turning the pages late into the night when I probably should have been asleep! The characters are wholly unlikeable. Actually no, I liked Javid and having seen a couple of reviews, I think a number of other readers liked Javid too. He brought a little bit of light to what is a dark, intense read. All in all, Her Two Lives is an intriguing, interesting and edgy novel. The ending was absolute perfection and with hindsight, it couldn’t have ended a different way. Overall, I enjoyed this well-written debut and will keep an eye out for what Chauvet publishes next.

I chose to read and review a free ARC of Her Two Lives. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Her Two Lives by Nilesha Chauvet was published in the UK by Faber & Faber on 27th March 2025 and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio and digital formats (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Nilesha writes zeitgeist psychological suspense, crime, and thriller. She is also the Managing Director of GOOD which advises commercial brands on Purpose, and helps charities raise millions of pounds for good causes.

A graduate of Faber Academy, Nilesha has also studied novels and short story writing at Curtis Brown Creative and City Lit. She read Philosophy & Theology at Oxford and was ordained an Interfaith Minister.

Nilesha is currently writing her second novel, several shades darker than she had originally intended. She lives in London with her husband, two children, and a black cat named Archie. She is represented by Nelle Andrew at Rachel Mills Literary.