The Perfect Nurse by Daniel Hurst

A private nurse uncovers the secrets of an older married couple she's hired to care for

Author

Diego Dunne
January 31, 2025

Hey, it’s Diego.

I finished reading The Perfect Nurse by Daniel Hurst this week.

And I’m here to tell you all about it.

Let me give you my spoiler-free unbiased review.

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The Perfect Nurse by Daniel Hurst Review

The Perfect Nurse drops you into the life of Darcy, a nurse caring for Scarlett, the wife of a wealthy man recovering from a brain injury. When Darcy starts noticing oddities in their relationship, suspicion turns into a spiral of twists and chilling discoveries.

Trigger Warnings: paranoia, stalking, potencial harm to patient, mental health issues

This book is a Domestic Thriller. Its story primarily unfolds in a luxurious home in Chicago, where wealth and secrets collide.

Domestic thrillers: a subset of psychological thrillers that happen in a “domestic” location. This can be a family home or small town but can also be a hospital, prison, etc.

Hurst’s writing is easy to follow, which makes it great for readers looking for a quick and engaging read. However, it felt awkward and overly simplistic at times. It felt like I was reading a debut novel from a new author, filled with clichés, weird sentence structure, and thesaurus-like synonyms. Unfortunately, the prologue is the worst offender, so you’ll have to persevere through it to get to the good stuff. The chapters are short, though, keeping the pace lively.

Darcy’s first-person perspective was pretty good. We are not told much of her backstory, so we try to piece together the puzzle of her life as we try to figure out what the deal is with Scarlett and her husband.

The first half builds suspense and unease, which builds momentum. Unfortunately, the middle of the book grinds to a halt and we get a boring middle before things pick up again towards the end of the story.

There’s no romance or spicy content here—it’s all about the suspense. While the book includes mild violence, nothing is described in graphic detail. I can confirm there is no swearing.

Expect plenty of thrills, with an unsettling, creepy undertone. Themes of paranoia and suspicion are front and center, keeping you on edge.

So, what about the ending? (No spoilers obviously)

I love my stories to wrap up nicely, with a neat little bow at the end. I like to read a cathartic scene where everything our characters have been through finally pays off physically and emotionally.

Then a denouement in another chapter (or chapters) following the characters decompress where things are resolved and I’m left delighted at how well things played out at the end, every plot thread resolved.

For an entry that spawned a trilogy, the ending wraps things up rather well, making the book stand on its own. You wouldn’t need to read the two sequels if you didn’t want to. There is also a nice denouement, where we get to unpack the ending with the characters.

Overall, The Perfect Nurse is a quick, entertaining read. If you enjoy thrillers with a creepy atmosphere and don’t mind some amateurish writing, you’ll likely enjoy this one.

Similar Books to The Perfect Nurse

  • The Doctor’s Wife by Daniel Hurst

  • The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

That’s all for this week.

See you next time.

— Diego Dunne

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