MORAL OF THE STORY:
THINGS AREN'T ALWAYS AS THEY SEEM.
SOME FRIENDSHIPS ARE BETTER LEFT IN THE PAST.

Ok! Where do I even begin? This book was such a wild ride. The who's, what's and why's never stop and after awhile you begin to question your own sanity. Just when you think you have the slightest inkling of what is happening, Louise Jensen throws you into another direction. Spinning what you "thought" you know completely upside down!

This is my first book by Louise Jensen but it will NOT be my last! I have already ordered my copy of The Sister and cannot wait to dive into it. I was completely entranced by The Surrogate. It held me tightly in its grasp from the very beginning and still has yet to let me go even though I have turned the last page. Louise Jensen has proven to me, with just this book, that she is a mastermind at psychological thrillers. She penned such a suspenseful thrill ride that had me flying through the pages at a fervent pace.

The Surrogate is delivered in Kat's perspective but also has 'Now and Then' segments that hop back and forth between Kat and Nick. Louise Jensen crafted this aspect beautifully. Not once do you ever get confused or need to backtrack. Each character also stands so strongly. The Main cast appears to be Kat and Nick yet all of the secondary characters play a major role in this novel. Each one has a vital part in the strength of this story and the entire package of the novel.

The Surrogate will have you questioning every relationship and motive and the sincerity of people. Should you rekindle that friendship or leave the past behind you?

I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of The Surrogate and cannot wait to dive into Jensen's previous and future work. She is a real gem in the literary world and will have you on the edge of your seat in nail-biting suspense!

Though this book wasnt my cup of tea, i gave it 4 stars because it was well written. It definitely kept me guessing all the way through. The pacing increased to a frantic finish even I could not/would not have imagined. Ms Jensen managed to make the story itself strong enough to make up for the fact that she never made me care about the characters. They seemed rather two dimensional. If you like your psychological thrillers with a touch of the psychopath - The Surrogate just might be for you.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture and Louise Jensen for the opportunity to read and review this book. Also to my Goodreads friend, Sandy, for the recommendation!

This is a great psychological thrill ride that will keep you guessing until the very end. The book opens with the murder of two people - trust me, you won't figure out who those two people are until you close the book!

Kat and her husband, Nick, are desperate to become parents. They have tried international adoptions which only led to heartbreak. An opportunity to have a surrogate presents itself but also opens up ties to the past that were best hidden.

Saying any more about the plot of this book may lead to spoilers and you definitely want to read this book to discover all its secrets yourself!

Great book - first I've read of this author and I'm anxious to go back and read her other works.

The difficulties faced by parents unable to have their own children are numerous, and sometimes end in disappointment and heart break. Some become desperate and will do whatever it takes to find a baby—adoption or otherwise. Authored by bestselling U.K. novelist Louise Jensen, “The Surrogate” is an enthralling psychological drama about a couple and the surrogate mother that seemingly wanted to help them have a baby of their own, and heal the traumatic events linked to their past.

The adoption of their baby girl Mia from a Chinese orphanage looked promising for happily married Nick and Kat, unable to have a child of their own. Kat had prepared the nursery, awaiting Mia’s arrival, when she got the news from their solicitor Richard, the adoption had fallen through. Kat was devastated. While having lunch in a busy diner, Kat spotted and re-connected with her former best friend Lisa, after a period of estrangement that had lasted nearly a decade.

Lisa, a nurse at Saint Thomas, was happy to see Kat and seemed overly eager to resume their friendship, immediately forgiving past hurts. The issues that broke up their friendship were complex with sinister implications. Lisa claimed to have had previous experience as a surrogate mother, and showed Kat a photo of a baby girl. Was her story genuine? Kat and Nick were willing to overlook obvious red flags. Richard would handle all the legal aspects; events that weren’t exactly right could be fixed. Lisa was their last chance at parenthood; the couple was willing to take chances, pay Lisa’s non-stop requests for more money, and do whatever possible to have an infant of their own. The past surrounding Kat, Nick and Lisa would surface, despite their tremendous efforts to conceal several dark murky truths.

There were numerous unpredictable twists in the storyline that kept readers a constant state of suspense. The psychological intrigue increased as Kat found her mental stability compromised and she had no choice but to put her remaining shreds of faith and trust in Lisa. The revelations surrounding some of the secondary characters were unrealistic, yet this doesn’t stop readers from being wowed by the thrilling storyline of this exciting new novel.
**With thanks to bookouture via NetGalley for the direct e-copy for the purpose of review.

EXCERPT: 'Is it really a coincidence she is here or has she purposely tracked me down? And if so, why?

'Revenge' whispers the voice inside my head.'

THE BLURB: ‘You know that feeling? When you want something so badly, you almost feel you’d kill for it?’

Be careful what you wish for…

Kat and her husband Nick have tried everything to become parents, and are on the point of giving up. Then a chance encounter with Kat’s childhood friend Lisa gives Kat and Nick one last chance to achieve their dream.

But Kat and Lisa’s history hides dark secrets.

And there is more to Lisa than meets the eye.

As dangerous cracks start to appear in Kat’s perfect picture of happily-ever-after, she realises that she must face her fear of the past to save her family…

MY THOUGHTS: Twisted, twisty and oh so nerve wracking! I almost tore my fingernails out of their beds reading The Surrogate by Louise Jensen, and I do not bite my nails!

Full marks to Louise Jensen. She has demonstrated that she is mistress of her art. I thought I knew where she was going with this. She reinforced my beliefs. But she took me for a ride - up the wrong road. More than that, I am not going to say. I don't want to give anything away. I don't want to spoil any surprises. And they come thick and fast.

I am going to liken reading this book to riding a roller coaster in one of those spinning teacups with no seat belts. Thrilling, scary. Yes, you may have to suspend belief occasionally, but believe me, by then, you won't care.

Thank you to Bookouture via Netgalley for providing a digital copy of The Surrogate for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. Please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the 'about' page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com for an explanation of my rating system.

Holy guacamole! This book is completely mental and I mean that in the best way possible!

All Kat wants is to be a mum but it just doesn't seem to be happening for her. After two attempts to adopt a child fall through, a chance encounter with her old childhood friend Lisa may just make her dream come true. But there are a lot of dark secrets in their history.

Prepare yourself for a ridiculous rollercoaster ride full of tension and suspense. There are so many twists and turns, I thought I'd end up with whiplash! This is one of those stories where I ended up not trusting anyone. With a cast of flawed and troubled characters, my sympathies shifted back and forth. I couldn't decide where my loyalties were and almost ended up despising just about every single one of them.

The story starts out at the scene of what looks like a double murder and throughout, you just can't help yourself trying to guess who the victims are. Every time I thought I had it figured out, Louise Jensen deftly put a stop to my ideas and led me in a completely, and usually wrong, direction. I absolutely love it when an author is able to keep me guessing until the very end. Speaking of endings, what? Let me say that again : WHAT?!

The Surrogate is the absolute perfect book to read in one sitting, which I would have done but contrary to popular belief I do actually sleep sometimes. But it was hard to put this one down as it really is an utterly unputdownable and mind-blowing page-turner! Absolutely brilliant psychological thriller and I can't wait to read more by Louise Jensen!

Wowza!!! This is my third book by this author and loving her! I devoured this book within a day!

Very well-written and suspenseful, I was hooked! I flew through the pages to find out what the hell was going on! Talk about a roller coaster of a ride! Is Lisa out for revenge against Kat and why?! What could Kat have possibly done that was so bad? The ending was a bit far fetched BUT what a ride to get there! Louise Jensen, I will eagerly be anticipating your next book! Very fast and enjoyable read!

Thank you so much to Bookouture and NetGalley for allowing me an advanced copy of this book! 4.5 stars!

This book reads like you know exactly what is going on, Kat and her husband can't have a baby so they are going to adopt one, except the adoptions keep falling through at the last moment. Enter Kat's best friend from the past whom Kat is sure hates her because of something that happened when they were young. Surprisingly, Lisa wants to be her surrogate, but is Lisa doing this out of the goodness of her heart or is there something sinister going on? Good psychological thriller with a shocking ending!

This book had a lot of potential, but fell flat in some parts. It stretched credulity to the point of being unbelievable in multiple points. I liked the premise and setup of the book, but it failed to completely live up to its potential. On the positive side, it was a page turner and kept me in suspense and reading and unable to put it down. This is a good book to curl up with on a dark, rainy afternoon and while the day away with, but it's not deep or earth shattering. The writing was a bit breathless and elementary and could've used some editing - however, the plot was very interesting.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book to review.

A gripping riveting read around Kat whose old friend offers to be a surrogate for her and things all start to unravel. Very hard to put down !!!

Phew! I had to sit back and digest this book once I had read it. It was very well written and got me hooked from the start. Kat is desperate for a baby but is unable to conceive. She is desperate and is willing to adopt but sadly two adoptions fall through. Her husband Nick will do whatever Kat wants but he doesn't seem as desperate. Suddenly Kat's friend Lisa who she hasn't seen for years turns up in her life and offers Kat just what she needs. BUT can Kat trust her? There is history that is explored through the book and you start to doubt if this will work. An excellent book that explores desperation and hope. Psychology between friends and how friendships can turn into a nightmare! Loved it!

This book was interesting, my sympathy changed from character to character with each passing chapter. Plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing throughout this story

I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVED THIS BOOK!! It had crazy twist and turns and the ending was incredible and terrifying at the same time. I didn't think I was going to like it but it was one of the best books I've read this year!

Yet again another stonker of a novel by this author! She writes supremely well with tight,fast paced plots guaranteed to keep the pages turning and have you thinking about it long after the end.

Brilliant. Don’t know what is going on. Then you think you do and you’re surprised and actually take a sharp intake of breath . Loved it

This is the first book I have read by this author and definitely won’t be the last. When reading a thriller I find myself second guessing where the story plot is going. How wrong I was with this one. I could not put this book down with so many twists and turns and a dramatic ending. Excellent writing and a story not to be forgotten.

Kat and Lisa had once been good friends but a fight broke them apart. But when they run into one another today, Lisa is very friendly. Something in their past has left Kat very ashamed.

Kat is married to Nick. They have been unable to have children of their own and two adoptions have failed at the last minute. Now, Kat is thinking about going the surrogacy route. However, Nick is not keen on this.

Seeing Lisa and catching up on their lives, Kat learns that Lisa is a nurse and has been a surrogate before. When she asks Lisa if she will be a surrogate for them, she happily agrees. So, a contract is put together and monies agreed upon. The pregnancy happens right away and all of them are thrilled.

When Kat was younger, she enjoyed acting. She was doing a play of West Side Story, with her boyfriend, Jake, who is also Lisa’s brother. Kat and Jake were in love but Jake died in a car accident which also injured Kat. She is still devastated by it.

But there is something in the past relationship of Kat and Lisa which makes for some very dark secrets. Kat has never even confided in her husband Nick about her past which troubles her even today. But Nick also has his own secrets that he keeps to himself.

The story goes from the present to the past and back again revealing little pieces of the puzzle at a time for the reader to put together. It certainly is written to keep the reader’s interest and sitting on the edge of their chair with the lights on. I found this to be a good book and hope others enjoy it as much as I did.

Copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book started well & I was enjoying it. That is until about half way through when I suddenly realised that I just didn't want to put it down. The book went from a good read to a real attention grabber. This did require a late night to finish it off!

Nick and Kat seem to have everything but are unable to have children. After two adoptions from abroad fall through they wonder if they can face trying again. That is until an old friend of Kat's turns up. Lisa has been a surrogate previously and the idea grows in Kat's mind that this is a route they could go down. Things aren't quite that simple.

This had all the makings of a good book right from the beginning. The plot structure was good and the characters three dimensional. Kat was just the right amount of suspicious concerning her old friend Lisa and there were some odd whisperings and strange texts which added a hint of suspense. However, as the book progressed it changed up a gear. There were several possible explanations of various events, not all of which were innocent. Which one was the correct one? I didn't see them all coming but they all worked very well within the structure of the book. The ending was excellent & everything was explained - not irritating loose ends.

This was quite simply one of those books that was a captivating read. The characters were three dimensional and likeable although not perfect. The plot was sound and well constructed and the level of suspense gradually built throughout the book quite effortlessly. I would certainly be keen to read more books by this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Netgalley

I loved this book and read it in one sitting. The premise was simple Nick and Kate are a happily married couple who are desperate to add to their family. Kate then bumps into a friend, Lisa, from her home town who she hasn’t seen in years due to something that happened causing Kate to run away.
They rekindle their friendship and before you know it Lisa is offering to be their surrogate.
The book is written both in the present and the past so you discover what happened in the past to cause Kate to run.
You also discover that Nick also has something he is hiding.
Every time I thought in knew where this story was going the writer threw in another clue that changed everything.
I could not put this down and will definately be reading this author again. Simply mindblowing!

When Kat's friend Lisa offers to help Kat and Nick accomplish the one thing that is evading them; pregnancy. However, Kat and Lisa have secrets and Lisa isn't quite who she appears to be.