Member Reviews

Alice and her husband struggle to make ends meet. She meets Kat, a very rich Art Gallery owner who comes from a family with wealth. When Kat and Alice become friends there are lots of lavish lunches and expensive wine. Nothing is too extravagant for Kat. Kat's husband, Howard, is a drunk and having an affair before he becomes a murder victim. Did he fall from the second storey balcony? Or was he pushed from it? Why has Kat stopped talking to Alice? Why does Kat's family want Alice to stay away from her? And Why are the police asking Alice what she was doing the night of Howard's murder?

This book was very good. Plenty of detail and interest in the characters and plot to keep you reading. I enjoyed reading it and trying to guess what happened. I will not go into details as I don't want to give anything away, but I will say this, not is all what it seems. This book has a wicked twist that I did not see coming, will you?

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the Publisher and Author.

Was this review helpful?

4 Stars - Alice is a married woman with two children, has an ordinary life and like other couples, she and her husband have their ups and downs. Kat comes from money. Alice and Kat met each other in an airport and after that they became best friends. Kat’s life isn’t what others think, her husband wasn’t a likable person. Even Alice and her husband had a hard time to warm up to him, they and Kat just tolerated him. Alice and Kat are best friends so Alice knows everything about Kat’s life mostly about her husband; that he’s an alcoholic, abusive and a cheater. But these are things that nobody knows, just Alice. One night Kat’s husband found dead in their own home! The question is who is responsible? Why the police all of a sudden announced it as an unusual death when it was just a drunk mistake!? Why Alice can’t get in touch with her best fiend!? Is Kat ignoring her and why?

Such a great story, I really liked it! This story tricked me! I was so sure I know what’s happening but it surprised me and showed me how I was wrong! The writing was perfect. I didn’t get bored even for a second. Considering I was sure about my guess, the writing made me turned pages quickly! That ending was really unpredictable and interesting!

Told in Alice's POV, 1st person, alternating between the present and the past. It’s a standalone novel. Overall, I really enjoyed it and hope you like it as well!

Thanks to Margot Hunt, Netgalley and HQ Digital for the advanced digital copy in exchange an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

Sound the klaxon! Call off the search! We’ve found 2018’s thriller of the year! This was a page turning, suspense filled, rollercoaster ride of emotion.

The novel tracks two unlikely friends, an inherently wealthy woman and her friend Alice. One is everything glamorous and lives within an abundance of wealth. The other is surrounded by debt and school fees but together their class differences pale as they form a close knit friendship. Their friendship sees them weather a number of stormy seas together surrounding finances, husbands and family ties. Until a death pulls them apart and we see what it is like when money is used to wield power, control and manipulation.

It’s a gripping novel with quite frankly unbelievable twists that had me howling in shock yet unable to put the book down. I need a large glass of wine after that! Totally recommend! Stop reading reviews and pick up the book - it’s so very, very good!

Thank you Netgalley and HQ Digital for the advance copy of Best Friends Forever.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed this book and I was desperate to know what really happened in the end.
Alice meets Kat on a flight and soon become best friends. They don’t have much in common but Alice really likes Kat and feel they have a connection.
When Kat’s husband Howard is found dead, Alice is unable to reach Kat and wonders what on earth is going on.
Alice is asked lots of questions by the Police and events soon spiral out of control for Alice and her family.
I didn’t guess the ending at all and love it when a book takes me by surprise.
This is a gripping, twisty thriller and I highly recommend it.
Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Digital for sending me a copy to read and review.

Was this review helpful?

Thanks to net galley, HQDigital and Margot Hunt for the opportunity to review this book in return for my honest review.

This is a really good suspense novel about adult friendships and relationships and questions the trust elements of both.

I found it a really easy read with some good twists.

A solid 3 stars.

Was this review helpful?

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publishers/author via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

When Alice befriends the glamorous, wealthy Kat, she feels like she’s finally found that best friend that she never seemed to have when she was younger. Three years later, Alice finds herself being questioned over the death of Kat’s husband and suddenly starts to question how much she really knows about her best friend.

This is a domestic suspense thriller (I think?) so it doesn’t seem like a lot happens, or at least there’s not a load of pulse-racing action in it. However, I think the story flowed really nicely and, for me, read at a really quick pace.

I loved the set-up to the story. Straightaway in the first chapter we are seeing the reality of Alice’s home life as a stay-at-home mother. She’s getting the kids ready for school, making breakfast and trying to keep everything together. I feel like it’s a scene literally everyone can relate to - whether you’re a slightly stressed-out mother yourself, or if you were once the kid running around in your underwear because you couldn’t find your uniform. I definitely warmed up to Alice really quickly, while Kat was definitely kept firmly at a distance. It probably didn’t help that I kept picturing Kat as Revenge’s Victoria Grayson, where Alice was more of a Debra Messing-type character.

The ending was really wow oh wow for me, and I was left in a little bit of shock but I was so impressed.

Was this review helpful?

This is a page-turning suspense novel about the deep relationships women can form.

Kat and Alice are recent friends. They've only known each other for 3 years, yet they are closer than any sistesr could be. They say opposites attract and that is very true in this case. Kat is wealthy, very wealthy. She has one daughter in college and she's married to a man she doesn't love. Alice is not rich .. actually she and her husband are having financial difficulties which is putting a heavy strain on their marriage. They have 2 kids in private school.

The fun times that the women have enjoyed come to an end when Kat's husband is found dead. Since he had been drinking heavily before falling off the balcony, it is assumed to be an accident. But then the police come knocking on Alice's door.

The story is told by Alice and as her friendship begins with Kat, she has questions, and sometimes Kat makes her feel a little uncomfortable .. but usually a bottle or two of wine shared make those feelings go away. They share their stories ... but one of them is a master manipulator, and most likely a sociopath.

This well-written psychological thriller kept me enthralled through the entire book. Can you spot a manipulator? Is there more to the story than is being told? There are some surprising twists and an ending that left me totally shocked.

Many thanks to the author / HQ Digital / Netgalley / Edelweiss / MIRA for this most riveting book. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Was this review helpful?

Really enjoyed the book. Storyline fast paced to keep reader intrigued. Enough twists to keep the reader guessing throughout

Was this review helpful?

Another psychological thriller! I love books that look at female friendships, the relationship between Kat and Alice is the focal point of this book. I’m reluctant to say anything more about the book as it would spoil the plot, but would recommend it for fans of the genre.

(I received a copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review)

Was this review helpful?

Kat and Alice are chalk and cheese. A chance meeting in an airport, a swapping of numbers and a few alcohol fuelled lunches have made them best friends. But when Kat's husband falls to his death from their balcony at home, Alice is desperate to support her friend and is confused when she doesn't take or return her texts and calls. Then Alice is brought in for questioning due to her closeness to the couple. With no clues from Kat as to what is going on, Alice finds herself a bit closer to the investigation than she wants to be. Then she gets warned off by Kat's very wealthy and influential family and, at this point, she gets really scared.
Most of the book is told in flashback. We see how Kat and Alice meet, how their relationship begins and, most importantly, how it develops. We witness long lunches and a few trips away. We hear about incidents and conversations, past events injected with perfect precision into the present day narrative to add colour and clarity to the story as a whole.
Characterisation is good. There aren't many main characters in this book so those who do appear have to be strong and well described and, on the whole, they are. What was fascinating to me was peeling back the layers of Alice and Kat's relationship. Each excerpt from the past uncovering a new facet of what made them tick, both individually and together, until at the end, the whole thing was exposed.
The psychological aspect of this book was a bit obvious to me from the start and there was somewhat a lack of really credible alternatives presented along the way to tempt me away from my initial thoughts. This meant that the ending did feel a little flat to me. Now, this could just be the fact that I read an awful lot of this genre, but at the end of the day, the book didn't challenge me as much as I really needed. But this is the only criticism I have. There is a fine line between too many potential truths and not enough. Most authors stray across the line of having too many, but here I think definitely not enough. Just my perception. Others may disagree and that's OK.
All in all a good debut in this genre by an author who I believe is already well know for other genres. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Was this review helpful?

Best Friends Forever was a very interesting read, set in America and encapsulating two different aspects of American life: everyday versus wealthy living. Written in the first person, the narration is interesting and engaging.
This book is a suspenseful thriller and has had me gripped particularly for the second half. The first half was an enjoyable read which set the scenes and the realistic characters, however the second half gained pace and urgency and I couldn’t put it down. No spoilers but I was glad of the twists and turns, thought I’d got it worked out and then wham!

Was this review helpful?

Best Friends Forever is a highly entertaining, gripping, interesting and sometimes chilling psychological thriller.

Alice is a housewife and mother of two. She used to be a college professor and taught math and logic but had to quit her job after moving to Florida. The story starts with a bang when one morning the police is standing at her door and wants to question her about the suspicious death of her best friend’s husband. Alice met Kat while waiting for a delayed flight three years ago. The two women immediately bonded and got soon very close. While Alice and her husband struggle always with money problems, Kat comes from a very wealthy family. Kat always tell Alice how much she suffers from her husband. He is not nice, an alcoholic and probably unfaithful. Then he suddenly is dead, falling drunk from a balcony. But the police is not sure if this was really an accident.

The author has a flawless writing style and I was hooked from page one. It looks like the two women are made to be BFF and we learn how they met and bonded over the years. The story is told from Alice’ point of view, so we only have her to rely on.

I will not tell anything more about the story. I guessed the twist quite early but I only learned that I was –almost- right on the last few pages. The story is gettin intense and you can sense that there is something odd going on. There are some hints on the way so you can guess what maybe really happened. But guessing the end did not ruin it for me like it most of the times does. Sometimes I am disappointed when I was right with my thoughts. But this time I enjoyed getting there because I doubted my guess until the final pages. And it was so much more chilling than I expected.

I read a lot of twisted psychological thriller the last years. And a lot of them disappointed me to some point. I thought I read too much of them. But this book proofs that there are still books out there which are able to grip me. Best Friends Forever was so well written, so entertaining and easy to read. I loved every minute reading it.

Was this review helpful?

Alice is a suburban housewife with a husband who is kind, understanding, and budget-challenged. With two young children, Alice is absolutely thrilled when she makes a new friend in the tony neighborhood of Jupiter Beach, Florida. Kat is a wealthy heiress who runs an art gallery and who is happy to share her bounty with Alice. They go on a mini-vacation together, share secrets with each other and depend on each other for just about everything. But all is not as it appears, as the reader finds out when Kat’s husband Howard dies from an accidental fall from the balcony of his house. Just what do these ladies want from this friendship, and who will be disappointed? This book was a real eye-opener about relationships and how much you really know about your friends.

Was this review helpful?

Fantastic thriller. One that could happen to us all. How well do any of us know our neighbours? It was well written, great style. Lots of twists and turns never knowing which was things were going to go. Really enjoyed it

Was this review helpful?

Both Kat and Alice were so remarkably written, you cannot help but love them both, even when Kat goes dark, you're still rooting for her. And in the same breath you're shaking your head at Alice for being a doormat to Kat.

This is more than just a story of being wealthy, and having your own set of laws, this book kind of shows what wealth, and the power to get away with anything, and everything does to a person. The kind of power where they truly believe they are doing no wrong, they are entitled to what they want. It's a fascinating topic to read about. The rich and the powerful, and everyone else below them. Then mix in a sociopath and watch the magic happen!

Was this review helpful?

What an amazing debut from Margot Hunt! Best Friends Forever immediately opens with a bang and I was completely captivated within minutes. The novel is extremely well written and constantly leaves the reader guessing who should be trusted. I absolutely loved the twists and thrills in this novel and totally did not guess the ending, even though there were times I thought I would be able to.

I loved the characters in this novel. Hunt did a fantastic job creating Alice and Kat, and I could picture them perfectly in my mind. Alice appeared to be meek and mild while Kat was the rich and glamorous friend who always got what she wanted. I thoroughly enjoyed diving into their relationship and it was truly interesting to see how they reacted to one another. I also loved the back and forth between present day and the past. The transitions were always very smooth and left me on the edge of my seat.

Best Friends Forever is an incredibly impressive debut novel from Hunt and I look forward to reading more from her in the future. This novel was full of thrills and surprises, and I would highly recommend it to readers who enjoy psychological thrillers. I was pleasantly surprised with how much a enjoyed this novel and I am very thankful to NetGalley and Mira for sending it in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

An excellent debut with well-developed characters and clever plotting. This is is destined to be one of the more talked-about thrillers of 2018.

Was this review helpful?

5* Puzzling Stars

This well written mystery thriller will engage you from the first page until the last word is read. The story is told from Alice’s point of view and alternates between the past and the present, how she first met Kat and how their friendship developed to the present time as best friends.

The story flowed well and was full of mystery, betrayal, secrets and lies. The characters were also very realistic and interesting.

As you get to the last 10% of the book you will be asking yourself, “How far will you go to protect your best friend?”

I thoroughly enjoyed this page turning puzzling read and that ending was not what I was expecting!

Thanks to HQ Digital and Netgalley for allowing me to read and review this ARC.

Was this review helpful?

Unfortunately I decided not to read this book, I mistakenly thought it was based in the UK and don't have a good grasp of US law and procedure

Was this review helpful?

I began this novel feeling mildly dismayed; the opening chapters are bogged down by poorly executed description and some clunkily phrased sentences, reminiscent of 'middle of the road' student narrative. However, as the story progressed I began to believe in the relationship between affluent art gallery owner Kat and her mathematically inclined new ‘best friend’ Alice. The latter is rather worn down by the routines of domestic life, her young children and her husband’s economic profligacy, and her wealthy friend provides her with plenty of treats, economic backing and some escape from a humdrum existence through lengthy wine-fuelled lunches. However, slowly Alice begins to realise that there is a catch to all of this. Whilst Kat needs support over a loveless marriage that she refuses to end, she is also is selfish and very demanding.

When Kat’s alcoholic husband is found dead one morning whilst his wife is away in London, slowly but surely Alice becomes implicated in his death, so much so that, at one point, she is arrested and charged with his murder. Out on bail, she begins to piece together why she is a suspect and why her best friend no longer wants anything to do with her. So far, a reasonably entertaining read. However, the last few chapters in which we are given the big reveal really do let this novel down. It is not difficult to work out what has happened but it is completely impossible to believe the situation, and the linked events which have taken place years earlier, because the character at the centre of them has shown precious little moral ambiguity towards anything throughout the novel. To say more would be to give away the plot. Together with the lesser problem of cardboard cut-out ‘alternative mother’, indulgent father, ‘aggressive policewoman’ depictions, this makes ‘Best Friends Forever’ a very unsatisfactory read.

Was this review helpful?