Gripping and a real page turner. Will definitely look for this author in future.

A reasonable chic lit read, however a bit predictable. There were some unexpected twists along the way, and characters were mainly believable. I thought the characters were a little pigeon holed. Decent for a holiday read but not particularly memorable.

This is the first of Nicola’s work I have read and I can honestly say how much I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. The story had it all, Friendship, Secrets & Lies, and a not too heavy mystery. I loved getting to know each character in this well written book. It certainly had me hooked

This is an interesting novel about long term friendships between 4 woman and had me hooked from the beginning. Joni was the main character as the story progressed. I would recommend this book to other readers and will look out for more books by this Author.

This is the story of 4 school friends,now in their 30s.....they meet up to spend a few days together leaving partners at home with their children. They decide that each must write a letter to reveal a secret the others don't know about them. Instead of four letters, five letters are written and part of the story is to discover who wrote the fifth letter. The whole story is told by one of the friends to a Priest in a confessional box! This aspect of the book I couldn't grasp at all. The characters did not come alive for me and overall I found the story boring, predictable and at times silly.

An easy to get into book which continues as an easy read as the story develops. The main character tells the majority of the story in a confessional box, but don't let that put you off. I started to read on a plane and was grateful for its non-complicated plot. I guessed who'd written the fifth letter early on, not sure how but as the book went on I questioned my choice, but I needn't have. Good for those times when you want a simple and easy read.

I was enchanted by this book and intrigued throughout the story to discover the writer of the 5th letter! It's a book I would recommend as I couldn't put it down. I shall definitely be reading it again and looking for further stories from this author

I really enjoyed this book. The way it was written in confessional style I thought was unnecessary, but quirky and paid off in the end! The relationships between the four women who had been friends since school days were not at all what they seemed. It kept me turning the pages to find out more and I read it really quickly. It was also very easy to get into. I did find the rationale/reasoning behind the writing of the actual 'fifth letter' by the mystery women to be a bit bizarre when revealed. It still didn't retract from my enjoyment.

I was intrigued by the concept of this novel - four friends decide to each write a letter revealing what they are really up to in their lives. They write the letters on a PC and print them, out so everyone has their anonymity protected. However the narrator of the novel finds another letter - the author of which had presumably decided against being read out and had tried to destroy the letter before anyone could read it.

The book begins in a confessional - the narrator Joni is not a current church goer but has decided she needs to confess. It began as an amusing aid to the story, but once the story began to be told I forgot Joni was in the confessional - in fact I was just wondering if the Priest had by now a large queue forming as I had been reading for quite some time. It turned out she had been in the confessional for 1.5 hours and there was luckily no queue - and so she began to relate the tale again. I don't feel there was a need for the confessional - she could have just been telling it to the reader, as every time the Priest made a comment, I had forgotten he was listening to all this and it took me a moment to realise whose voice it was.

I thought the characters were a little under developed and it would have been nice to have some more background before they all began to appear and relate to one another. Of course I suppose that would have kept the Priest well into the night at the confessional! I began to get confused among the four women as to who was who, let alone who their husbands were.

Once the letters began to be read the book got going a little more and there were some consequences as a result of the letters. There was then the extra twist as only Joni the narrator had read the fifth letter and she begins to piece together who wrote it. Queue the Priest again - really he must have been on overtime by now.

One of the scenes towards the end of the book I thought was quite hard hitting in the writing and took me aback. But apart from that and one of the scenes recalled from the letters, the writing was a little pedestrian I felt.

For me there was a bit of a twee outcome between two of the characters at the end of the book. I won't spoil it and say who they were, but I do think this added nothing to the novel, but just made me cringe somewhat.

I'm giving this book 3 out of 5 stars. My thanks go to Netgalley for an advance copy of the book to review.

I really enjoyed this book. I requested it after reading the description and I was not dissapointed. I can usually work these plots out but with this one I was never entirely convinced who had wrote the fifth letter until it was revealed. Definitely want to read more from this author

The Fifth Letter

A thoroughly gripping and entertaining read. I really enjoyed this novel, it sucked me into the story, I couldn't put it down!

The story focuses on a group of friends who have been friends since their school days. They go on a girl's break and following a fair amount of drinking, things start to get dark...

This is one of those stories that stayed on my mind constantly until I was able to finish it. The twists and turns, secrets and lies will not fail to grip you. A great read! 4*

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book, with thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.

I enjoyed this fast-paced, well told story. There are lots of twists and turns.
The narrative is quite different but I like the way that Joni (the narrator) flows, it's a fast speaking, easy to read style.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for something not too heavy but with a bit of mystery.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for a fair review.

As a thirty something clinging on to friends with different lifestyles this book appealed to me instantly. It did not let me down, thoroughly enjoyed the girls individual stories and the fifth letter theme running throughout...I didn't guess the author! Will look forward to reading more by this author

When it’s your time to join a new school as a Year 7 student it can be very frightening and intimidating, but Joni had an idea, an off the wall method of choosing friends; each girl must share the same initial consonant beginning their surname (C in this instance) and be clustered together chronologically by birth date. This method yields just four girls in her year and Joni, only semi-confident - sets about initiating friendships. The three other girls are okay with joining the friendship circle, after all they are all new too, and with that they begin year 7. There’s Joni of course, Trina, Deb and Eden. Throughout their school days they love and support each other and their little friendship group survives and thrives through marriages and motherhood as they continue to meet up for ladies nights and even take short breaks together, Joni still the organiser of the group and as yet the only girl not to have become a parent.
During one of their ‘holidays with a difference’, they play a game which yields devastating and unexpected results. They agree to each compose a letter anonymously, divulging a secret they have kept from their friends or even an event they have not yet shared. The game is designed to bring them closer together, as they were as schoolgirls. The letters will be read out randomly at pre-decided events or occasions. As each letter is read out loud the author’s secret will be shared and discussed, always honestly and supportively. This idea is okay, except one of the girls decides that she cannot share her original letter – it is too personal, too honest and is sure to rock the boat, so she composes a second letter, confessing a much less controversial secret. She disposes of the first letter, but not totally and safely and the letter is discovered by another member of the group and put into the original pile of letters, making five letters instead of four. The cat will soon be let out of the bag and the cat’s fur will be well and truly ruffled, causing shock, horror, dismay and much more.
'The Fifth Letter' by Nicola Moriarty is a light read with lots of mystery, suspense, thrills and spills, twists and turns and more than a few blind alleys. It is very readable and well paced, but none of the characters really reached out to me. Some of them had deeply buried secrets, some told completely fabricated ‘truths’, they all served their own agendas and several of them were dishonest and downright sneaky, certainly not behaving like the close friends that they pretended they were. What I did like is the original idea for the novel, which was unique and different. I mean, just how well do you really know your friends? Not at all well in the case of this novel it turns out, with lots of wrong guesses as to who had written which letter, leading to even more angst and confusion. The revelation included in the fifth letter was certain to cause rifts in the friendship, uncertainty and more predictably may even serve to tear the group apart, because once divulged it is destined to run amok throughout the friends.
I would like to thank NetGalley and publisher Penguin for my copy of the novel sent out in return for an honest review. If you like contemporary fiction, an easy, amusing read and can suspend your disbelief in the five revelations contained within the letters and go with what the results are, then this is the novel for you. But I found it totally unbelievable and therefore my rating is 3*.

Four old school friends spend a few days away together, they decide to each write a letter anonymously telling a secret they have that will in turn be read out. We follow each story and discover that one friend has changed her mind at the last minute and rewritten her letter destroying her original draft. Unbeknown to her the letter survived and is discovered by one of the others who tries to unravel who the writer is.
I feel this book was directed at young readers. I found it rather odd they wrote the letters in the first place so did not engage with the story. Part of the story is told as one of the characters goes to confession, I did not find this to be believable - far too much time was spent in the confessional. Overall I felt that the characters hadn't grown up and their behaviour exhibited that. It was easy to read but did find myself getting annoyed with the characters.

A book worthy of its lovely cover. An easy page turner. Four friends, secrets, tension and some big reveals. I read quickly and enjoyed. Some good twists and turns with a satisfactory ending. Thanks to NetGalley for review copy.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading The Fifth Letter. I've read a few of Nicola Moriarty's books in the past and this one certainly did not disappoint!
The book tells the story of Joni, Trina, Deb and Eden and their friendship as it's developed over the years since High School. In a nutshell, the women gather for one of their yearly holidays and decide to write anonymous letters which reveal secrets not known to the others. One letter has been thrown onto the fire and is full of hatred and obsession. It is then up to the finder to figure out who wrote it.
This is a tale of friendship, love, discovery and betrayal.
It is told from different perspectives and jumps to the past and back again seamlessly and is easy to follow. Very well written and I highly recommend.

This book is a real page turner that keeps you guessing from the first page to the last. I found that I could really identify with each main character and the situations they got into were totally believable. Everything I love in a book

OK intense chick lit warning. As many similar books we have a group of friends who have been friends for ages. As it happens often, they have drifted apart after three of them had kids. Now they go away together trying to rekindle their friendship.

The story has several twists that keeps it interesting and overall not a bad attempt at all. But you really need to like the genre, otherwise you will struggle. I found the dialogue a bit unnatural at times and I couldn't bond with any of the characters.

Nicola Moriarty is the sister of the better known Liane and it shows as the style is quite similar. I think that Liane's books have improved from her earlier attempts so I guess Nicola might follow a similar path. Overall not a bad attempt but not a book that has changed or impacted my life in any way. One to read during a long lazy weekend.

My first Nicola Moriarty book and a good one too.
A light hearted read with moments of anguish, Deb, Joni, Trina and Eden have been friends since school, they've shared their lives through marriage and children and nothing has stopped them from being close. However, people change and so too do friendships, secrets you never thought you'd tell crawl out of the woodwork and where are your friends then?
A very good and enjoyable read