I read the book but skimmed a lot as found parts very lengthy and lost interest. Especially the chapters by Nick

The Betrayals was a great book which I enjoyed reading.
There are four sides to this story, Lisa, who stole Rosie's husband Nick , daughter Daisy, son Max and Nick himself. Whose story is the right version. I won't spoil it for everyone have a read for yourself.
My first book by Fiona Neill but certainly will not be my last.

This is the story of two families in turmoil. The story starts on the Norfolk coast and a holiday no-one will forget. Rosie and Lisa are lifelong friends sharing everything - and Lisa then has an affair with Rosie's husband Nick. Her own marriage to Barney is over mainly due to his drinking. The impact that this has on their children is catastrophic. Then Lisa is diagnosed with breast cancer and writes to Lisa. The story unfolds with detailed, tender and knowledgeable writing of all the illnesses involves and their impact on all. Betrayal comes in many forms and this book covers many of them. It has a completely unexpected ending which I hadn't seen coming.
This is a must read.

This is the first book by this author that I read, and I enjoyed it.

It is a story of two families, whose lives overlap, with each person's actions affecting the lives of the others. The story is written from the point of view of Rosie, her husband Nick (who leaves her for her best friend Lisa), and their two children Daisy and Max.
The characters, likeable or not, are very well written and even though some parts are quite dark and the issues tackled are serious (alcoholism, mental illness, cancer, infidelity), there is also humour. The parts written by Nick are quite funny and entertaining.
I found the end and a little anticlimactic, but overall I enjoyed the book very much and read over half of it in one setting. I would definitely recommend it.

I found this book quite addictive especially having known someone who is severely OCD the same as Daisy, one of the key characters the behaviour involved made sense. The story is told in the present but involving past memories and misconceptions of a fateful weekend in Norfolk. The book entails narrative from the point of view of one family involved and hinges on the perceptions of the four people within this group. The actions of a rather selfish, self centered father blows the family apart but each member already had the underlying problems which they only remember as starting from that time. There is a certain humour within the book mainly involving the father and a wonderful 'quack' health healer character who is so bizarre and colourful, but probably exists. The end, I liked as each person realised and came to terms with the past and were set to move on, except the apparently most balanced one to the rest of the family who then witnesses a conclusive finish. I certainly enjoyed reading this novel, it is well written and despite being from four viewpoints does not jump about and flows well. I shall be reading previous books by this author on the basis of this one as I like her style.

I found this book to just be 'okay' It wasn't one that had me hooked and for me it just left me feeling quite confused if I'm honest. That said, it was a relatively easy read, one suited for a poolside holiday maybe.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book as an arc.
I really enjoyed this book, it is a character driven examination of two dysfunctional families, whose lives overlap, with each person's actions and betrayals resonating down the years to affect the lives of the others. None of the characters are particularly likeable, but they are so well written, the reader feels as if they get to know them all well and can understand their motivations. The story is written from the point of view of Rosie, her husband Nick who leaves her for her friend Lisa, and their two children Daisy and Max. I found my perception of each character changing as the story progressed and the truth started to emerge. Some parts were quite dark, many issues are tackled here such as infidelity, alcoholism, cancer and mental illness. There is also humour in the book, the parts told from Nick's point of view I found quite funny at times.
I would certainly recommend this book.

As the title suggests this is about the betrayals, the emotional betrayals between 4 very close friends. We read it from each individual’s perspective, how they all viewed the same things and their parts in them. I also found that I didn’t really like many of the characters, they were too neurotic and self absorbed for my liking.
We meet two families who have been friends for what seems like forever, they shared holidays, high times and sad times till that fateful summer. We have Brendan married to Lisa with their children Ava and Rex and Nick married to Rosie with their children Daisy and Max.
The ultimate betrayal was of course Nick and Lisa’s affair that divides the two families, breaking fragile hearts, splintering friendships with long reaching consequences for them all. Lisa is now dying of cancer and has decided that traditional treatment is not for her, enter the hippy dippy Gregorio with his coffee enemas and green juices.
All four of the children now carry some burden or guilt from that summer, Daisy with OCD and rituals, Max blames himself for Daisy’s illness, Ava seems to be looking for a father figure and Rex and his almost Peter Pan attitude.
I’m afraid I haven’t enjoyed this as much as the other Fiona Neill books I’ve read.

Read for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley and Penguin

This is the first book I have read by Fiona Neill and I was impressed. It tells the story of two couples, their long friendship and the aftermath of an affair which ends in divorce and the ensuing schism between the families.

Rosie and Lisa have been friends since childhood and they are married respectively to Nick and Barney. The affair between Nick and Lisa breaks the friendship. The story is told from the perspectives of Rosie, Nick, their daughter Daisy and their son Max. Daisy is particularly affected by the break-up of her parent’s marriage and her OCD becomes very serious. She draws Max into the rituals she has to perform constantly to try and keep her mother and Max safe. The description of what it is like to suffer from OCD is very moving. Daisy has also suffered from bullying by Ava, Lisa and Barney’s daughter, and the effect of the crush she has on their son, Rex.

Eight years later Lisa writes to Rosie begging her to come and see her has she has Stage 4 breast cancer. The letter is intercepted by Daisy but eventually finds its way to Rosie. The story continues with a series of flashbacks by the four narrators all of whom have a different recollection of the last summer the families spent together. Lisa has written that she has something she needs to tell Rosie before it is too late. Daisy, Nick and Max are all concerned that this has something to do with them and they have secrets they wish to keep.

The characters are well drawn and there is dark humour in some of the observations they make. Nick is portrayed very well as weak and unreliable but he gets some of the best lines. There are fine observations of modern life, alternative medicine, brief sexual relationships, and the concepts of forgiveness and reconciliation.

I can’t say that I warmed to any of the characters, apart from Daisy. They are self-centred and self-obsessed but that is the gist of the novel. The novel asks the question; could a perceived betrayal be based on a false or faulty memory?

I would recommend this book.

ARC received from NetGalley and publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you.

This is a stunning book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading.

Two families intertwined by a long-standing friendship and several betrayals. Shared family memories, children growing up together, an extra-marital affair, dealing with the end of a relationship, illness, alcoholism, friendship, a psychological disorder.

The intriguing story is told from four different perspectives, revealing characters and plot in an interesting way. The author deals with the subjects in this book very delicately and shows how what happened affected everyone differently. It felt really well researched and is about so much more than an affair that breaks two families apart. Each of the characters is very well and intricately written and I really warmed to them.

The story jumps in time with adds to keeping the tension high and wanting to find out how it all unravelled and how it affected the present. Even though a lot of extraordinary things happen, I enjoyed the way the author writes about them in an non-sensationalist way, making the characters realistic and come across as normal people who give into / deal with their flaws which makes it easy to connect with them.

It's definitely a page-turner that stays with you and I would recommend not to miss out on this book!

What happens when the lives of a closeknit group of friends and their children overlap again and again in almost unthinkable ways? The result is The Betrayals, the title of which should have warned me that this would not be a happy-go-lucky holiday read. I finished it slightly depressed by the plot, having found the layers of relationships hard to accept. I found its exploration of memory (including false) interesting, and it’s narration of OCD from the viewpoint of one of the children rather harrowing. Well written but not one to pick up if you want a light escape.

The book is a tangled web of people, their feelings of guilt and their relationships. The story is as old as time, husband leaves wife for her best friend. It's all about how this betrayal affects everyone, some a lot more profoundly than others. There is secret that's going to be revealed and I felt little underwhelmed with the reveal.

This is a stunning read. I've read many books labelled 'psychological' and 'thought-provoking' but any of them would be hard pushed to beat this one for pumping blood through your veins and putting your brain into overdrive.

Two couples, four children and a regular holiday on the Norfolk coast set up this novel. What happens next is all-absorbing. I'm not going to give anything away but this is a deeply moving book which will give you an understanding of certain situations and predicaments which you've glazed over through the years. This is the novel which will make you pause and really think about things.

I wasn't sure to begin with if this was my kind of read, but Fiona Neill's clever writing soon draws you in to the story and you need to know more. The characters, setting and situations are so believable - all of which contribute to this cracking read.

The blurb puts it out there as a tale with four points of view - but there are so many more! Who to believe? Well, in my case I think it's possible to believe all of them and none of them - at quite the same time. However, it has a satisfying ending and is a truly all-consuming read, and one I am so happy not to have missed!

I received an arc via NetGalley in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

There's a lot in this book and the 4 voices in this are strong - in diary form, they flick back and forth and the voices get inside your head. There are some really messed up people in the world aren't there! Some messed up opinions and misconceptions flying around as well. Gets inside your head but there was too much for me with the psychological issues and the problems such as the OCD and alcoholism. In BookTrail terms not strong on location but then you can get messed up people anywhere and everywhere I guess. Not my cup of tea but then there's a lot for a bookclub to chew over!

The characters were extremely well written - as well as clearly well researched.. Their characteristics were revealed in an Interesting way. The characters are relatable and have a realistic quality to them which sometimes novels can completely look over. A more minor point it was rather refreshing reading a book that was set in Britain.
The story was appealing from the off, and what drew me into the book was the different retellings of the events by each of the narrating characters. aspects
As other reviewers have commented, it deals with difficult topics ones which I didn't think would be tackled in such a book. Cancer, OCD, affairs, and alcoholism to name a few.
There is no doubt that betrayals are at the heart of this book, almost everything you believe is challenged.

Criticism whilst the book is very well written. I did at some points struggle expecting there to be some climatic event at the heart of the affair, if I had to describe a criticism in one word for this book it would be ‘anti-climatic’.

However, the criticism only minority takes away from the enjoyment of the book which is why I felt that the book should be awarded 4 stars. After all, the characters were superbly written and the storylines intriguing.

The first thought that strikes me as I consider my thoughts about this book is the understanding the author has of psychological disorders. She has clearly spent a lot of time reading up on OCD and the effects the condition has on sufferers and those close to them. This is not a light read but in saying that I did not feel overwhelmed by its content. Each character gets to have their say in turn and I felt it was very well written. My feelings towards each character evolved as each person related events from their point of view. This book shows how there is always more than one version of 'The Truth' depending on how you look at the situation. The title is very well chosen as betrayal takes many forms over the course of the book. Overall, a very well researched and excellently written novel, but for me personally a bit too intense which is why I award it a 4 out of 5 rating.

I enjoyed this, although 'enjoy' is probably not the best way to describe a rather interesting experience. It is a dysfunctional family drama. By dysfunctional I mean husband leaves with his wife's best friend whose husband is an alcoholic, their daughter has serious OCD and other things that I can't say without spoiling the book. I mean there is a lot of food for thought in this book, especially for a book club.

I thought that the family has the right balance of dysfunction without being too unrealistic, I have met families like that! It is not for everyone, if you look for thrills or romance, I am afraid you will be disappointed, this is mainly raw stuff. Yes, you want to know what happens next and you also want to know what really happened in the past but there is no sense of closure, which is well what happens in real life most of the time.
Whatever you might think of this book, it is well written and the characters are quite real albeit essentially very flawed. You are not going to find a hero or heroine in this novel, but you will find lots of real people. But if you like complex family dramas, get this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for an ARC of this novel.

The Betrayals is a novel written from four different points of view. Rosie Foss is an oncologist, forty something and divorced from Nick. Nick lives with Lisa who was once Rosie’s best friend. Nick and Rosie’s children, Max and Daisy were badly affected by the divorce and eight years on are still bitter. The narrative is from Rosie, Nick, Max and Daisy’s points of view and goes between the past and the present.

In the present we begin with Daisy opening a letter from Lisa to her mother. In it Lisa tells Rosie she has cancer and needs to tell her something. Daisy thinks she knows what it is and hides the letter as she doesn’t want Rosie to know. Immediately it becomes clear that Daisy has compulsive behaviour. This makes her voice very easy to recognise as it is filled with the little tics she uses to keep her anxiety at bay: her obsession with the number three, the repetitions of certain phrases, the tapping that wards off anxiety. From Max we learn that Daisy was very ill with OCD after their father left and that she worried greatly that their mother needed protection and that only her repetitive and obsessive behaviour would do this. Slowly, it becomes apparent to the rest of the family that Daisy’s illness is taking hold once more.

This is a novel about memory and perception, about how people see the past differently because of their perceptions and (sometimes) false beliefs. It is brilliantly done; scenes are replayed from different points of view, not too much but just enough so we can tell we are getting different sides of the story. Added to this is the fact that Nick is an expert on memory so we get informed about the nature of memory throughout his narrative as he explains how memory works. Each of the narrators is unreliable, sometimes deliberately so, sometimes because their perception of what has happened is wrong.

I loved this novel. The characters were true to life although not always sympathetic. I didn’t really like any of them except Daisy and Rosie but that didn’t matter because as in real life, one can’t like everyone.

I hadn’t heard of Fiona Neill before reading this and so I googled her as soon as I’d finished the novel. I was delighted to see she’s written several novels so that’s me sorted for the next couple of weeks. But I was bemused to see her writing described in some places as midway between chick lit and literary fiction. I have nothing against chick lit, it’s fine but this is something more serious and lasting. The way it deals with current issues in everyday life - how damaging bullying on social media can be, how internet dating has become a way of life for some people, substituting sex for a real relationship and how the consequences of this can be devastating – all of this is very relevant. The author also has a go at the sham treatments offered by self styled experts for serious, life threatening illnesses such as cancer and the sections on this were sometimes very funny. But above all, the sympathetic and realist treatment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder is excellent and shows how debilitating this illness can be. Highly recommended.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher. I honestly don't know what to say about this book. It was good but it wasn't brilliant.

This book tells the story of two families and the ongoing internal and external relationships that each family member experience. The novel also includes one of the characters, Daisy, suffering from
OCD,and the effect it has on the lives of family and friends.
Basically Daisy's parents Rosie and Nick split up due to Nick's affair with Rosie's best friend Lisa, and how this affects the dynamics of both families, in past and current times.
The author has written the extracts featuring Daisy very well, and seems to have researched OCD very thoroughly. She describes Daisy's feelings and repetitive routines, whilst undergoing a relapse with her condition, in a very detailed way which helps to underline the intensity that OCD sufferers must feel.
I did struggle with the book initially, but for the last third I found the characters became better developed and engaged me more.
I would be happy to read more from this author.
Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin/Random House for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.