This was not my cup of tea unfortunately. The story is interesting, and usually I can get past not great writing if I'm desperate to know what happened, but this just read as very cliche and unimaginative. I was genuinely surprised this was written by a woman as all the overblown sexy descriptions of the women read as male fantasy.

My thanks to Headline for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘Framed’ by S L McInnis in exchange for an honest review.

‘Framed’ is a combination of domestic noir and police procedural set in LA. The chapters move between five characters’ perspectives.

Beth is a music teacher and is married to indie film producer, Jay. Their life in LA isn’t without challenges: Beth recently suffered a miscarriage and Jay is finding it hard to raise funding for his latest project. Then Cassie, Beth’s best friend from college, turns up unexpectedly. Cassie always was a wild child and shows no sign of having changed.
What neither of them knows is that Cassie is on the run from a failed drug deal and both the police and a violent felon are seeking her.

At the start I struggled some with the jumping between characters’ stories, even though the chapter headings contained their names and the day. I ended up having to return to the beginning a few times before I started feeling a sense of engagement with the story. In addition, I didn’t really care for the main characters. Only Detective Goode really held my attention and his role was quite minimal.

Overall, I found this an okay read with the type of twists expected from this kind of novel but I wasn’t overly wowed by it.

A dark twisty tale full of lies and deceit!

This story is told in five different POVs. Beth, Jay, Cassie, Rick and Goode.

Beth and Jay are married, a music teacher and a film producer they have the life many could only dream of. With a beautiful home and trying for a baby everything on the outside seems perfect. Looks can be deceptive though and things aren’t quite as they seem.

Cassie is a fly by the seat of her pants type girl, with a shady past and a dodgy boyfriend Rick you just know from the start that she is trouble with a capital T!

The link between the above is that Cassie and Beth were best friends back in their college days. Two very different girls but connected by their love of music. Beth a pianist and Cassie a singer.

It’s been many years since the girls saw each other and Beth would rather it stayed that way. So, when Cassie calls Beth out of the blue wanting to meet, Beth feels a little uneasy about seeing her old friend again. Cassie doesn’t let on that she’s on the run, just that she’s passing through town and wanted to catch up. As it’ll only be a few days Beth lets Cassie stay in her spare room, unaware she’s on the run from something big. This is where the drama begins.

Goode is a detective and he’s determined to solve some of the crimes in this book!

I really enjoyed this LA based novel. With a plot full of crime, action, suspense and much more I think this will suit any fan of a good psychological thriller. The twists were awesome and come the end I thought what a fab film this book would make.

My only critic would be that I got a bit confused at the beginning as the chapters skipped between each character telling their different stories. It also skipped backwards and forwards in time a bit, so it is key to read the title of the chapter as it tells you the name of the character as well as the day it is referring too. Once I knew who was who and got used to each characters backstory I found it addictive to read and hard to put down!

This book is a debut for S L McInnis and all I can say is what a way to start!

Thank you to S L McInnis, Headline & NetGalley for my ARC.

A dark and deceitfully good book. Very well written and I loved the LA setting. Brilliant and dark and difficult to put down x

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy. At first I was really interested in what cassie was getting herself into. Then i started hating Cassie halfway. Then you start seeing a darker side to other characters, and soon you don't know who is the good guy and who is the bad guy!! I wouldn't say the suspense was incredible, but there were enough surprise turns with characters to keep you guessing.

This had me hooked from the start what an amazing read. Full of twists you don’t see coming & amazing characters. Would highly recommend & look forward to reading more by this author.

Thanks netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give you an honest opinion on what I thought.
On reading the story about Beth and Jay I never thought it would turn into such a good thriller.
Jay was owing money to everyone, he sated to make a film and needed lots of cash.
Beth found out how much money he owed, and was not happy.
Then an old college friend turned up,and wanted to stay with them for a few days.
Cassie brought trouble wherever she went and Beth knew that.
That is when this book turned into a excellent thriller that I could not put down and never guessed the ending.

Highly recommend this one. Lots of twists and turns. Keeping you on the edge of your seat. Great plot. Great to read. Hooked from the word go.

#Framed #NetGalley
An edge of your seat suspense thriller. A must read.
Music teacher Beth and film producer Jay seem to have the perfect life together in LA.
When Cassie - Beth's old best friend and college wild child - turns up unexpectedly, everything changes.
Who is she really? Why she came in their lives?
Narration of the book is smooth.
Characters of the book are creepy and lovable.
Thanks to NetGalley and Headline for giving me an advanced copy of this awesome suspense thriller.

This was a rollercoaster of a tale.

This had me hooked from the outset. Plenty of twists and turns that I had no idea what the outcome was going to be.

Personally I felt the ending was a little weak however I thoroughly enjoyed this book & already look forward to the next adventures by SL McInnis.