My thanks to the publisher HQ and Netgalley for an opportunity to offer my free unbiased review. I don't do spoilers or repeating details about the tale - for this read the blurb or other reviews. My interests lie in the author's technique and prose style.
I have not read any of B A Paris's previous books but I have heard of them and that was the reason I chose to request this book. The author writes in a clear straight forward prose that is attractive and makes page turning easy. I imagine the earlier works' successes are based on this style. However, this book is not for me - it just felt too contrived and the interplay between chapters did not encourage me to complete the read. I have nominated it for 4 stars because when telling the tale in a straight manner the story trapped me. The fragmentation and the somewhat unbelievable plot line put me off. I know its me not the author but I can only tell it as I find it.

If you like a mystery which keeps you on your toes then this is a good read for you. I won't give it away by saying too much. Very cleverly written. My one difficulty was that I did not find myself liking any characters particularly but that is a personal matter. A good read for a long journey or when you need something to keep your attention.

Sadly this far fetched tale left me cold. I couldn't feel any sympathy for the main characters and the twisting sinuous plot leaves one dizzy Sorry, disappointed.

Whoah, this is a roller coaster of a story. A true psychological thriller. So many head turning moments with twists throwing you all directions. Unreliable narrators and so many secrets. I loved this and devoured over the weekend.

thank you netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this one

a very strange one this one...though i did begin to suspect in the end where layla actually was before the end...have to say i didnt like the main guy at all.....so wasnt to bothered what was going to end up to him in the end...

a very unpleasant man and how he kept his friends is beyond me, because i think in real life people would just dump him..regardless of how wealthy he actually was, so i didnt find this one very realistic

Thank you to the publishers and Net Galley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.
I was eagerly looking forward to reading "Bring Me Back" having read and loved "Behind Closed Doors" and "The Breakdown." Exactly as the previous books, this book had me hooked from the start, with plenty of intrigue, twists and turns and a couple of red herrings along the way,
I didn't warm to the main character, Finn at all, and I couldn't help but think that I would run away from him and never want to be found! Therefore I didn't ever feel any empathy for him throughout the book.
About halfway through the story, I did predict the outcome which spoiled it a little for me, although there was an extra little twist that I didn't forsee at all.
I'm not sure this book had as many thrills and chills as I was hoping for, but the writing style was easy to follow, the story was absorbing from beginning to end, and I very much enjoyed it.

I literally couldn’t put this book down... had to read it in one go, full of twists and turns and an really satisfying ending - not too easy to see coming, not too improbable! Can’t wait to read the next outing from this author

I have read B A Paris’s other thrillers so was excited to see that there was a new one. Bring Me Back has an original plot line and is just as twisty as the other novels. It certainly kept me guessing. At times I wasn’t sure whether I liked Finn, whose girlfriend Layla had disappeared twelve years earlier, but this didn’t really matter because what was most enjoyable about this novel was feeling the sand shift under my feet and not knowing exactly what was happening. I don’t want to say too much and give anything away, but if you’re looking for an absorbing read full of suspense, this is it!

I really enjoyed the first part of this book but I sort of guessed what the twist was from about halfway. I did doubt myself at times and I was hoping I was wrong but wasn’t surprised when I realised I had it right.
Therein lies my problem, I just found it too unbelievable. I can’t say any more without giving away spoilers.
It’s a quick and easy read, so if you want some holiday reading this fits the bill.

A great book that keeps you thinking all the way through. I did think I knew what had happened before the end however then I kept changing mind. It kept me engrossed. Well written and even better than ‘behind closed doors’. A real page turner can definitely recommend.

This was a brilliant book! I couldn't read fast enough.! I was completely hooked! It tells the story of Finn and how his girlfriend disappeared 12 years ago when they were on a trip. There are some aspects of the story that Finn didn't reveal to the police. Then Finn starts getting emails claiming that Layla is alive. Also somebody starts leaving little Russian dolls which is what Layla used to carry with her. I thought the story was very well done and i wasn't expecting the end. I wont give anything away but i definitely recommend this book. Its a thrilling read.

A couple of years after Layla vanishes on a trip to France, Finn begins a relationship with her older sister Ellen, and is about to marry her, when someone contacts him claiming to be Layla and proceeds to torment him with unreasonable demands and by threatening to reveal his secrets.
This is a hugely enjoyable, tense psychological thriller. Filled with suspense and misdirection, the ending took me completely by surprise.

When I was about two thirds through Bring Me Back, whilst musing what was so enthralling about it, I came to the conclusion that it was the plausibility of the various story elements. I have stopped many times in France at the motorway picnic areas, sometimes at night and know what scary places they can be. None so bad, seemingly, as the 'Aire de mystère', where Layla vanished all those years ago. I was really looking forward to the final unravelling of the mystery but what I was presented with was a massive disappointment. I shan't be a plot spoiler except to explain my disappointment in a cryptic way......collar and cuffs! I have given it a four star rating because the major part of the plot was very good and truly suckered me in. It would have got five stars had the ending lived up to the bulk of the book.

This is the first book I've read by this author, and what a belter it is. The story gets its hooks into you right from the start and never lets go.

The chapters are told alternately from the viewpoints of main character, Finn, and Layla, the missing girlfriend. There are subtle clues throughout the book, enough that I worked out what was going on, but the execution was pitch perfect, and the ending also hit the right note. It kept my attention throughout and I read it in just over 24 hours. One of the best books I've read so far this year.

Thank you to Netgalley and publishers, HQ, for the opportunity to review an ARC.

This is a 3.5 star read for me. Very quick, fantastic unreliable narrator and the Russian dolls in the story created a great creepy menace. I couldn't really warm to Finn, the narrator, though, but I was still up reading this at 1.30 in the morning. Nicely gripping and I was very pleased with myself for spotting the red herrings and what was actually going on well before the end.

A dark psychological mystery that I simply could not put down. It pulled me in so completely that I was feeling all kinds of anxiety along with the characters as the story developed. The painful guesses, loss of trust, not being sure what's real and what's created by filling in the gaps.

A brilliant page-turner with an ending that left me yearning for more.

I loved B. A. Paris' 'Behind Closed Doors' and so was very excited for this book! I requested it as soon as I saw it on Netgalley. Can I also add that I tweeted about my excitement and B A Paris replied! Which left me a little starstuck and thinking 'wow, she's so normal' etc.

Anyway!!

This book is about Finn, who lost his girlfriend a while ago and is now engaged to her sister. You can smell the happy ending. Obviously not.

I love a book with twists and turns, and I also love, since Girl on the Train era, books where we doubt the main character.

Massively recommend this. It will be one of THE books of 2018.

This started really well and ,despite some aggravating factors e.g. the mini dolls. the story was super, but I was really disappointed in the twist at the end and at the conclusion - I felt perhaps it was a slight let down but, nevertheless, I enjoyed the read.

I was excited to get approved for BA Paris' latest book. I loved her first book, 'Behind Closed Doors' and was a little disappointed with 'The Breakdown.' Guilt is creeping in as I start my review of 'Bring Me Back,' because although I liked it, I didn't love it. I really wanted to rate this higher. Alas, to the synopsis . . .
The story idea is brilliant. Layla goes missing in a service station in France, leaving Finn as the main suspect. At the start of the book, we see his Police statement but pretty quickly we realise he has lied to the police and begin to wonder what really happened, particularly as we learn that Finn has a history of violence.
With the help of his friend Harry, Finn has quelled the suspicion about him being involved in Leyla's disappearance and has continued on with his life. He's now having a relationship with Ellen, Layla's sister and although he cares for her, we know that his depth of love for Ellen is very different to the love he had for Layla. The setting is lovely, a beautiful remote village and the descriptions of Ellen and Finn's life is idyllic. There are some good characters. I particularly liked Ruby who works at the Jackdaw pub and of course the gorgeous Peggy — the red setter who reminds Finn on Layla — such a great metaphor. The other characters felt under developed and wooden.
Russian dolls begin appearing and we learn that these have a link to Layla and Ellen's past. It reminded me a little of the premise behind 'The Doll's House,' by Phoebe Morgan, which I enjoyed last year, so this premise wasn't a new concept for me. Also, I got a little tired of the dolls being mentioned and although I understand why they were used so much, it lost impact after being continuously used as a plot device.
The book did keep me guessing in terms of 'whodunnit', and without spoilers, there were a couple of people I suspected. I did not guess the ending, which is good, but felt I had to strongly suspend all disbelief to swallow the ending or the twist the book has.
BA Paris is such a good writer but this book felt rushed and a little amateur at times. I had quite a few eye rolling moments and the first person narrative from Layla, I found a little, "Hahahah I'm going to get you!" Finn for me, didn't feel believable and I know how hard it is to write as a man, but he felt shallow and unidimensional although I do understand his character was meant to be portrayed as such. The good news is, it kept me reading but I did skip quite a lot of the last part of the book — probably 50 pages or so — just to see how it ended.
Overall, if you are new to the psychological noir/thriller market, this is a nice easy read with a few surprises along the way. It would be ideal for a beach read or to switch off for a few hours.
Unfortunately, It didn't wow me and for that reason, I am giving it 3 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advanced copy.

I really enjoyed this story - in fact, I read it in a day! Finn's girlfriend Layla vanished from a service area in France in the middle of the night. There has been no sign of her since. In the meantime, he has fallen in love and is about to marry Layla's sister Ellen. Then, suddenly, there has been a sighting of Layla. How would Finn feel if she were to reappear? Would he still want to marry Ellen? This is a real page turner with a twist you won't see coming! Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.
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