Published 13th January 2026 by Headline.
From the cover of the book:
Two women. One dead husband. And only one alibi...Camille Bayliss suspects her husband Ben hides a dark secret. But as he tracks her every move, she cannot prove it.
Aubrey Price believes lawyer Ben Bayliss knows the truth about the night that wrecked her life a decade ago. But she needs a way in.
When Camille and Aubrey meet, they hatch a plan.
For twelve hours, Aubrey will take Camille's place. Ben will track the wrong woman, Camille can spy on Ben, and both women will get their answers.
Except the next morning, Ben is found murdered.
Two women need an airtight alibi, but only one of them has it. And one false step is all it takes for everything to come undone...
***********
Camille Bayliss wants out of her marriage to high profile lawyer, Ben. She suspects he is keeping a secret from her, and plans to use this to her advantage, but how can she discover it when he keeps tabs on her every move?
Aubrey Price was left an orphan by a car accident that killed her parents when she was sixteen. Now, the man who was convicted of the crime has contacted her to say he has evidence that can prove he is innocent. She believes Ben Bayliss is somehow involved in keeping the truth hidden, but getting close to him may prove difficult.
When Camille inserts herself in Aubrey's life, they find they have a common interest. Aubrey agrees to impersonate Camille to give her the freedom to spy on Ben, but during the hours they swap places someone kills Ben. It dawns on Aubrey that in giving Camille an alibi she now does not have one of her own. One false step might just bring everything crashing down...
In an absolute masterclass of storytelling, Ashley Elston weaves her magic through scenes that happen BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER the alibi, from the perspectives of three central characters - Camille, Aubrey, and Ben's lawyer partner Hank. Added snippets from Ben himself take the story back ten years to the accident that killed Aubrey's parents, and the consequences of a cover-up engineered by Camille's powerful (and decidedly dodgy) father.
Gradually, the secrets and lies are revealed as Elston deftly drops her reveals - especially when it comes to the deal Camille and Aubrey make with each other, and their reasons for wanting the truth from Ben, which make things extra dangerous when a murder case ensues. What you think you know changes dramatically over the course of the novel, as red herrings abound, and there are so many suspects who have skin in the 'getting rid of Ben' game. I genuinely did not know how this would end until the final delicious twist, which I thoroughly enjoyed. So clever!
First Lie Wins was a hard act to follow, but the way Elston choreographs the threads of her second grown-up novel is an absolute triumph. There are so many lovely things about what she does here - playing Camille and Aubrey off against each other works beautifully, and the threads draw together so skilfully via Hank's determined sleuthing. There are really interesting facets of birth and found family explored throughout when it comes to Camille and Aubrey too - I promise you will come to love the little band of friends that do their all to help Aubrey out of her predicament.
I absolutely consumed this book from cover to cover - it is so darned good! It also made me think a lot about the nature of alibis...
"It's not just the anatomy of an alibi - having someone vouch that you were somewhere else when the crime was committed - but it's the psychology of it; that that someone is believable."
Intriguing!
If you are a fan of Megan Miranda and you have not discovered Ashley Elston yet, then I highly recommend you get yourself a copy of First Lie Wins and Anatomy of an Alibi - they are both crackers, and Elston hits exactly the same satisfying spot. I cannot wait for book three!
Anatomy of an Alibi is available to buy now in hardcover, ebook and audio formats.
Thank you to Headline for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest review, and to Random Things Tours for inviting me to be part of this blog tour.
About the author:
She is the author of several young adult novels, including The Rules for Disappearing (a finalist in the Best Young Adult Novel category of the International Thriller Awards) and 10 Blind Dates.
Her work has been translated into 23 languages.
Ashley lives in Shreveport, Louisiana with her family.
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