This started out feeling like a chick lit book an very quickly morphed into a thriller. The tension was allowed to simmer along, sometimes boiling before it dialled down again and then finishing with an almighty bang. The story took a few twists and turns along the way but they were necessary for the story. In all, a good book and well worth a read.

After a difficult time during her teens and twenties, Amy Whey seems to have got her life together and made a new start in Pensacola Florida. Married to divorced professor Davis Whey, she gets on well with his teenage daughter Maddy, has a young baby boy and is looking forward to returning to work as a scuba diving teacher. She is friendly with many of their neighbours and hosts a regular book club run by her best friend Charlotte. Then into her quiet, orderly life, storms Angelica Roux, an charismatic new arrival in the neighbourhood, who walks into book club and hijacks the conversation, encourages them all to get drunk and spill their darkest secrets. Roux likes nothing better than to play games and seems to know a lot about secrets in Amy's past that she has never told anyone.

This is a very engaging and original read with two intriguing characters pitted against each other. While Roux is used to winning at the games she plays, using her brash confidence and sharp wit to outsmart others, she hadn't counted on Amy being less compliant than expected, even turning the tables to play Roux at her own game. These two soon become locked in a battle of wits and wills as Amy fights to hold onto everything she has built up. The plot builds slowly initially but hurtles towards the end as Roux becomes more and more desperate to win. Original and compelling, this is one of those books that's really hard to put down once you become invested in the characters, because you just need to know how it will end.

I had read mixed reviews about this book before I requested it.
It took quite a while for the story to get going, I nearly put it down, so glad I didn't.
Amy Whey holds a dark secret from her teenage years.
Amy is happily married to Davis, they have a baby called Oliver, and she is stepmother to 15-year-old Maddy. Amy's best friend, Charlotte, lives on the same street.
Amy's comfortable life is disrupted when Roux and her 17-year-old son Luca move into the street.
Once a month, Amy lets Charlotte host her neighbourhood book club at her home as it has more space.
Roux shows up at one of the meetings and soon makes herself at home, while there, she encourages members to over drink, as the alcohol begins to flow the atmosphere changes,
Roux instigates an adult version of the game Never Have I Ever, while the game is in play Roux hints to Amy that she knows she has a secret.
If Amy doesn't play by her rules, Roux will ruin her life. Amy has so much to lose, but, she isn't the only one keeping secrets.
I enjoyed this book, but I wish the beginning was in pace with the rest of the book.
I want to thank Netgalley and Bloomsbury Publishing PLC (UK & ANZ), Raven Books and the Author Joshilyn Jackson for a pre-publication copy to review.

What happens in the past should state in the past right? If there’s a debt to society paid, all should be right in the universe. Not in Roux’s world. Not a chance… she believes the universe owes her and it’s Amy’s turn to settle part of that debt.

What ensued from Amy meeting Roux to the rather unexpected end is a twisty turny game of chicken. Amy is very protective of the life she’s built and she’ll do anything to stop it being destroyed especially by someone she’s known less than a week. I’ve got to admit, I was there with Amy, who the hell is this woman waltzing her way in to the hallowed sanctuary of a community book club and instantly starts ruffling feathers. Roux is definitely someone who needed to be watched like a hawk!

This psychological thriller kept me glued to my kindle, reading up to the last minute before I had to start work and then late into the night. I wanted Amy to no be beaten by this mysterious woman but there was a niggle in my mind that nothing never turns out as you expect when it comes to pysch-thrillers…. And that ending…BOOM I didn’t realise I was holding my breath as the story climaxed! Loved it!

** spoiler alert ** 2.5 stars

I nearly gave up on this book several times... mainly due to the two main characters and their I teraction.
I couldn't face another "who even are you bitch?" type exchange.
Every time I was getting to the next chapter,something BIG hooked me back.
So,I got to the end... I read more exchanges,and saw more reveals some of which I didn't see coming.
So,in a nutshell,enjoyed the plot,just not the characters.

I must start by saying that I had heard mixed things about this book before I started reading it. But I tried my best to go into with an open mind.
I can understand some of the misgivings that some had with Never Have I Ever.
It does take quite a while for the story to really get going. Up until around the half way point it is quite slow.
But I am glad that I persevered.
From about the half way point, the twists and turns really begin and the ending wasn't what I expected it to be in the slightest.
I could have gone without the rather unique names of characters in this, as some of them such as Lavonda and Panda made it difficult to truly take them seriously. And at points it feels overly descriptive, for the sake of it. But I would definitely be interested in reading more from this author in the future.
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Really sorry, but I just couldn't get into the style if writing at all...I'm sure there are many who will, but it just seemed pedestrian to me. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read an advanced copy.

I really didn't like it. Too boring and predictable. Yet another author that focuses on descriptive words too much and not enough on the darn story.

I'd heard mixed things about this one so I tried to read it with an open mind! It was pretty good, kept me entertained and I was surprised by some parts

It took me a good few chapters to get into this book but bear with it as it was a fabulous read with a really interesting storyline. Likeable, or not, believable characters who you really do 'root' for and a storyline that you need to keep following as you just need to know what happens. This book totally drew me in and I was so glad I stuck with it. Will look out for more by this author. Well worth a read!

Strong characters, dark story, secrets and manipulation woven through a well-written book. This one keeps you reading because you want to know what happens next.

Pick it up when you have a chance, you won’t regret it!

This was an interesting book, but unfortunately it felt as though it dragged on a bit much. It started out slow and picked up towards the middle, however it went back to being slow again.

I wasn't the biggest fan of this book but I'd like to read more from the author.

☆☆☆☆
This was a good read, The plot was good and unique, The story was a little slow in couple places but worth pushing past. It is definitely worth reading.

Amy Whey loves her ordinary life; she is a diving instructor, she has a loving husband, a teenage stepdaughter and a new baby. But she also has secrets, secrets she never shared with anyone, not even her husband. So when Angelica Roux, a new neighbour, turns up on her doorstep, threatening to expose her secrets if she doesn't buy her silence, her life is suddenly turned upside down.

The story follows Amy's first-person narration and is interspersed with flashbacks from her past.
This was a crazy story, full of twists that are bound to leave you open-mouthed on more than one occasion, but I'm torn about the rating. It was quite slow to start, and for a long while, I was considering giving it 3 stars. However, it picked up about halfway through, and at this point, I was so hooked that I couldn't put it down. The twisty, unexpected ending more than made up for the slow start.
What I wasn't a big fan of was the highly unusual names; Lavonda, Angelica, Panda...
I have been wondering how to rate this book all day, as in order to receive a rating above 3, a book needs to grip me from the beginning and not let go until the end. In this case, it took some time for the story to draw me in, but in the end, I decided on 4 stars because the other half of the book more than compensated for the slow beginning.
It was my first book from Joshilyn Jackson but it won't be my last.

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and Netgalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for a unbiased review of these works.

an intresting concept that just felt a bit dragged by the end, great characters but just lacking in some areas

We’ve all played it before. This was an interesting read. Whilst it wasn’t for me, I did find myself enjoying it at times, I didn’t find the characters particularly likeable.

This was just so disappointing.
I found it to be far fetched and the characters were too gullible and unrealistic.
Not for me.

An absolutely solid 4 star read!
Not only was this book full of twists and turns which shocked and surprised, it was full of very well-drawn, fascinating characters. The book began as one thing and transformed into something completely different!
The writing was so descriptive I could imagine I was scuba-diving with the characters.
An original,, sometimes uncomfortable read which will definitely have me looking out for more books by this author. I will be recommending this book to everyone!
Many thanks to Netgalley/Joshilyn Jackson/Bloomsbury Publishing for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Incredibly well.plotted and controlled,.impressive development of chaatcwter. Throughly enjoyed and gladly recommended

It starts as a game at a book group one night. Never Have I Ever... done something I shouldn't. A game that we have all possibly played at some point in our lives, I know I have.

We meet Amy Whey, a character I didn’t quite like but didn’t dislike either is the main protagonist of the book. Amy has done something she shouldn't and Roux, the neighbourhood newcomer knows exactly what it is that Amy did.

I quite liked the character of Roux throughout the book, she torments Amy promising to leave and take secrets with her if Amy plays the game by her rules. As they try to out wit one another, the tensions between the two characters turns into quite the game of cat and mouse but surely there can only be one winner?

A psychological thriller written quite differently to what I am used to reading, one side definitely has you wanting them to win! Which side would you be on?