She’s got your job... but she wants your life.

Precious You is told from the POV of our 2 main characters. Katherine Ross is in her forties, lives with her partner Iain and has a good job as Editor of Leadership Magazine. She’s coasting along but life has lost a little of its sparkle, especially since her recent depression. Leadership Magazine is being taken over by new owner Gemma, and her niece Lily is the other voice in this book. She is a younger, brighter version of Katherine, and from the moment they meet the ladies seem to be drawn to each other.

The book alternates between Katherine and Lily, and often we get to see the same events through each of their eyes. I soon realised that neither was the most reliable of narrators and each was hiding their secrets and motivations. They bring out the absolute worst in each other and their relationship becomes very destructive and damaging to those close to them.

The story speeds right up to a 100mph rollercoaster. As we neared the end I thought I spotted the reveal coming, but nothing was quite what it seemed! The final twists happen right in the last few pages and I raced through the last 20% desperate to know what was really going on.

Precious You is the first novel by Helen Monks Takhar and I will definitely be on the lookout for further books by her.

Thank you to Netgalley and HQ for sending me a copy of this book to review.

This book was fantastic!

At first, when I started reading it, I was unsure how about how much I would enjoy it. I found all of the characters to be wholly unlikeable and that makes it very difficult for me to engage with them fully.

However, as the story moved on, the writing just took hold of me, and the story grabbed me by the throat and would not let go.

I love a story which is told in the first person, and from different viewpoints, and I particularly enjoy it when you are not quite sure which character is the unreliable narrator.

The book is well-written, and each new chapter brings another breath-taking twist, and what an ending!

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a tense thriller.

I enjoyed the dual points of view, getting to know the two main female characters - even if I didn’t really like either of them. I found Katherine’s character was particularly annoying and unbelievable in that she had managed to climb her way up the corporate ladder, sometimes using those junior to her for their ability or sex, so she has been portrayed as a strong independent working woman, but when we meet her on her first day at work after a change of owner, she seems weak and unable to stand her ground. The new intern Lily, also the new boss’ niece, takes a lead role from day one and again I felt this was unrealistic as what 20 something year old would have the experience to do that and the other workers/interns seem not to mind!
However if you suspend the disbelief in the dynamics of a modern office, then you will enjoy this dark story. The tension ratchets up until towards the end you feel you just have to read into the night to find out how things will conclude. The time scale in the book is also a little unrealistic but it certainly keeps the pages turning. I could see Villanelle (Jodie Comer) playing Lily if this was turned into a film/tv drama as she seems to share the same lack of guilt.

love a good stalker novel and Helen Monks Takhar’s debut novel Precious You certainly fits the bill. I was gripped pretty much throughout, although it did get a bit far-fetched towards the end.

41 year old Katherine has worked at business magazine Leadership for 20 years and has reached the position of editor. The company is struggling and following a takeover Katherine finds she has to prove herself all over again to her new boss, Gemma. Her position isn’t helped by the fact that she has her boss’s niece Lily foisted on her as her new intern, and Lily soon becomes a thorn in Katherine’s side, sucking up to her one minute and undermining her the next.

A dark and vicious game of cat and mouse ensues and it becomes almost car crash reading as you find it difficult to watch (but can’t stop yourself) as Lily lays trap after trap for Katherine in a bid to demonstrate to the new regime that she’s over the hill and needs to be put out to pasture.

I believe the working title for the book was ‘My Precious Little Snowflake’ and the theme of ‘snowflake millennials’ runs through the book. Helen Monks Takhar has some interesting points to make about the generational issues which affect many workplaces. At first Lily appears merely jealous that Katherine had it so easy in her early career – free education, affordable housing and a booming magazine industry – but it soon becomes clear that Lily has an ulterior motive in targeting this particular woman. In turn, Katherine is irritated by Lily’s millennial credentials – her “triggers, safe spaces and sobriety” – until she realises that her intern is threatening more than just her career.

As mentioned above events do seem to hurtle along at quite an alarming pace as the book progresses and there are two twists at the end – the first I had an inkling about from quite early on but there was another cleverly written one which took me by surprise. I understand that the book has been optioned by entertainment company eOne and I can imagine it making a compelling movie or TV series (I’m picturing Suranne Jones or Vicky McLure as Katherine and Jodi Comer or Lily James as Lily).

This book had me hooked! It made me feel so angry whilst reading that I struggled to go to sleep! A great book with twists that keep coming all the way to the end.
Would highly recommend!!
Thanks to Netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

Precious You is journalist Helen Monks Takhar’s debut novel, published by HarperCollins imprint HQ. This novel has been tipped as one of the hottest debuts of 2020, and the TV adaptation is already in the works.



SYNOPSIS


Katherine has been a lead editor at Leadership magazine for twenty years, the last year being the hardest after a bout of depression that kept her away from the office. But she’s back on top of her career and ready to meet her brand new boss – or so she wants everyone to think.



After twenty minutes of waiting for a bus, she decides she can’t afford to wait any longer and risk being late on her new bosses first day. However, she’s not alone at the bus stop; another young lady waiting has caught her attention. The fresh-faced girl vaguely reminds Katherine of herself at a younger age, and when the lady steps forward and asks to share her taxi, she can’t say no.



What Katherine doesn’t know is that girl, Lily, has been watching and waiting for her perfect moment to strike. Every word she says during the taxi ride is carefully executed, and it’s no coincidence that it’s her first day working at Leadership. But why has Lily set her sights on Katherine and how far will they both go to keep their pasts a secret?





PRECIOUS YOU REVIEW


Precious You by Helen Monks Takhar is a gripping psychological thriller packed full of twists and turns. As soon as you think you know where it’s going, expect the rug to be pulled out from beneath you. For every twist that left me asking ‘is it really going to go there?’, it did – and then some.



Helen captures the two contrasting voices of late-thirties Katherine and millennial Lily superbly, and I’m sure that the terminology used and the grudges they hold against each other will be familiar to many. Lily sees Katherine’s generation as having it all, while still being greedy and ungrateful as they take advantage of younger generations. In comparison, Katherine sees Lily and her age group as a bunch of ‘snowflakes’ with no sense of humour and self-entitled.



I love novels that focus on minimal characters and Precious You fits that category perfectly. Although you have a strong supporting cast, your main players are Katherine and Lily, allowing Helen the time to really delve into their personalities and create characters that become fully formed in your head.



Precious You is a tale of manipulation, secrets and generational divide that makes compulsive reading. I devoured the second half in one sitting, desperately wanting to know the motives of the two characters. For a moment, I thought one of the loose ends was going to be left ambiguous (and I would’ve been furious), but everything becomes clear in the last few pages. If you’re one of those monsters who read the final page of a book before reading the rest of it, don’t!



Helen Monks Takhar’s debut novel is an absolute thrill ride of a read. If you’re a fan of Killing Eve or enjoyed Gone Girl, get this on your reading list. After racing through Precious You, I can’t wait to watch the TV adaptation and read more from Helen.

This is a great psychological thriller with a brilliant ending.
Whilst I enjoyed all of the book, the last quarter of the book was when I truly became hooked and raced through the pages.
Katherine is wary of her new intern, Lily, and has every reason to be.
Lily is out to get Katherine and does everything in her power to ruin her life. The reason for this is not clear until the end of the book but what is clear is the need for revenge that Lily seeks.
There are alternating chapters told from Katherine and Lily’s point of view so we get an insight into each character’s mind.
This is a thought provoking psychological thriller that I can definitely recommend.
Thanks to HQ and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

I don’t believe in coincidences, I am not sure if I’ve always been so paranoid or is a secondary effect of reading so many books. But since the first meeting between Katherine and Lily I felt that something was not right. I didn’t like Lily at all, is she too pretentious, charming and self-obsessed? I really don’t know, but I didn’t expect anything good from her!
This is the story of Katherine and Lily, since the first moment they met till the end, they will share their thoughts and fears to the reader, be prepared for a haunted read. Because, there are always two sides on every story, Katherine and Lily’s story is much more complex than you ever thought.
I could feel the electricity between Katherine and Lily trespassing the pages throughout the book; because everyone will think that Lily is “perfect” and Katherine is a paranoid old woman who thinks that her life is threatened by the younger ones, but let’s face it, their electricity is almost touchable. It’s a fight of power and lies, who can make everyone believe their own truth, the reader has their own thoughts but the secondary characters have their part in the plot, don’t be surprised if you have a few unexpected twists on the story, in the end, this is a psychological thriller. To surprise the readers and don’t let them stop reading, wanting to know more and discover the truth behind too many lies and secrets.
I’ll admit that I was surprised by the ending; unexpected and disturbing, it made this an amazing read.
Ready for the Precious You?

I loved this book, I often don't read Thriller Books But I saw lots of interest about this book on Twitter and Decided to request this book from Netgalley, I am so glad I requested this Book as its Amazing.

This Book tells the story of Kathleen who's 41 and a magazine editor who's just returned to work after a break due to Mental health issues, Lilly has just started at the company who's young and also the owner of the company neice.

This Book I would recommend to everyone its got lots of twist and turns and if you loved Killing Eve the TV Series you love this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and HQ Arc for this book in exchange for this review.

"It all began when I met you, Lily. Beautiful, dangerous, precious you."

Obsession. Secrets. Revenge.

Precious You puts the psycho in psychological thriller. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the summer and I’ve been eagerly waiting to read it since hearing about it last year; it was worth the wait. Bold, unsettling, tense and fast-paced, this was like a rollercoaster ride I didn’t want to get off and had me holding on for dear life from the first page until the last.

Katherine has worked for Lifestyle for twenty years and has managed to survive the recent takeover. On her way to meet the new owner of the magazine she meets Lily, a young, ambitious journalist who also happens to be a new intern at Lifestyle. The battlelines are instantly drawn in the duo's toxic rivalry and what follows is a story of two women who will go to drastic lengths to not only keep their secrets, but get what they want.

"I never fully realised how much danger a person is in when the individual they trust least is themselves. After you, Lily, I'll never ignore my first instincts again."

What a book! This is an outstanding debut novel. The writing is sharp, suspenseful and dripping with malice. Like Katherine, I was trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together to figure out exactly why Lily wanted to tear her life apart but other than one wild theory that came out of leftfield, I had nothing. I won’t tell you what it was or if I was wrong, but I will say this was cleverly written, full of an array of twists and turns, and kept me on my toes right until the end.

"I didn't mean to hurt anyone. I was hurt first. That's where it started. I've been made this way and it isn't all my fault anyway. I can't help it if other people are weaker than me. But they don't see it like that."

The story is told from both Katherine and Lily’s points of view, with Katherine telling the story in past tense to Lily and extracts from Lily’s diary offering her perspective. I liked this difference in the narrative as it gave a clear distinction between the two voices. Though I thought I’d relate to Katherine with us being the same age, Despite the fact I didn’t really like either woman, I loved reading both of them. Lily in particular was fascinating to me. She was the anti-heroine and enjoying her felt like enjoying Villanelle’s character in Killing Eve, her dark, chilling psychopathy leaping from the page. It was addictive and I needed to know more. What would she do next? Just how would she take everything from Katherine? And why? The author has created two memorable women who made for enthralling and entertaining reading. The one thing that was a little strange to me, was both characters’ obsession with their ages and generational differences. For me this distracted a little from the rest of the plot as I didn’t understand their hostility based solely on these things.

So if you love deliciously dark and menacing thrillers full of psycho characters that you love to hate, then this is the book for you.

This book felt jarring against me the reader and me the person. I enjoyed aspects of the book, the ideas it threw up regarding gender, and generational divide though slightly more manical. Both Katherine and Lily annoyed me. As people I would avoid them like the plague. Both seem to have deep set issues and their judgement they have of others doesn't sit with me. I didn't feel this was believable in the slightest. The millennial and generation Xer conforming to their extreme negatives. In reality both just seem to be horrible people who use stereotypes to feel better about themselves.
Being a millennial, that's marrying a generation X and best friends with a boomer this book isn't reflective of me or many around me. I loved the writing though I felt this was aimed at someone less well read. The plot didn't seem to give the reader a sense of thinking for themselves. I felt spoon fed where I would have liked to figure things out for myself.
Overall this book wasn't for me. There seemed to be no plausible link to real life. Maybe the book publishing world is more cut throat than I thought.

Katherine is forty something journalist and her life hasn't been quite on track lately.
Meet Lily her new interm who is bright and fresh to the industry she is like a breath of fresh air in the office.
Little did Katherine know that Lily doesn't just want her job but her entire life aswell.

Wow - what an experience this book was. I haven’t read a book this fucked-up (in the best possible way) since I read Anonymous Girl and The Silent Patient. Just wow. 

Okay, now that I have gathered my thoughts, let’s begin this review properly. 

Precious You is a very exciting book, looking from a psychological aspect. We witness the battle between a “Snowflake” and a Generation-X. The battle of two women; one trying to conquer the world, the other one trying to stay relevant. 

Both Katherine and Lily were very realistic characters. Both with opposing opinions on the world. And both with two completely different goals. Both fighting over power in every possible field that they share in common. But what I love the most is that I was able to understand both points of view. I found myself feeling for both of them, even though sometimes I couldn’t in my right mind understand their choices and their actions. 

But they both spoke to me.

Each in their different way, for a different thing. And this is something I haven’t encountered in a long time. To be able to connect with both the victim and the villain. Despite us not knowing which is which until the very end of the book.

The other aspect I loved was the cat and mouse game they were playing. I haven’t seen a book so upsetting and twisted in a very long time. And I really loved it. Some things those women did are properly twisted. Really fucked-up. But I enjoyed reading it. It took me to another world, another reality where dark and twisted was the new normal.  

It was interesting to witness such a vivid battle between two generations. The fear of new young people invading people’s space. The fight to get to the top, because of the people that have been at your workplace longer and have more knowledge. The wicked ways of how HR handled their issues. How your interns and your team can quickly turn on you if you stop delivering. It was interesting to read how the magazine worked as a company. I think the author did a great job at describing how one reality works.

I definitely recommend it - it is fast paced and very dark and twisty. If you love psychological thrillers, this one will be the right book for you!

This up to the minute thriller follows the fortunes of two women working on a contemporary magazine. Katherine Ross is the new editor, recently working again after a bout of depression and ready to make her mark in her new workplace, However, she will come up against Lily, the magazine’s intern. Lily is young, beautiful and wants to set the agenda in a role where she needs to make her mark. Both women are determined, ruthless and sure of what they want.
There were plus points to this book and other aspects I didn’t enjoy so much. The years the author has spent working in the magazine environment really does show; the setting felt authentic and current. A complex rivalry develops between the two women that highlights a generational difference in how they approach work and the world. Katherine is part of Generation X and brings to the table her years of experience. Lily on the other hand, is part of the ‘woke’ generation and brings her youth, fresh outlook and understanding of social media. However, these are just the stereotypical and superficial aspects of the characters. In their dual narratives we can start to see their thought patterns, their flaws and their strengths. Slowly we start to realise that psychologically, these women are not so different. A complicated rivalry develops between the two and there is something addictive about their interplay and a need to know who comes out on top.
However, I found both women very difficult to identify with or to admire. I could see why the rivalry develops, but I was disappointed that Katherine was threatened by the younger woman. Despite this being fiction, I was annoyed that she didn’t take control and use Lily’s strengths to benefit herself and the magazine. I was almost disappointed In places, that she wasn’t more clever in dealing with Lily. My reading of the novel was impacted by how superficial some of their situations were and how self-absorbed the women were. The author covered a lot of interesting and important issues around feminism, women in the workplace and their aspirations. I liked that the author touched on sexuality, self-confidence and ageing; for women, youth has more currency and power. It made me think about how we value older women and their experience, both at work and in society. It was these issues, rather than the characters and the thriller aspect, that kept me going till the end.

Thanks to Net Galley and HQ for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
A thriller that keeps your attention to The End
A clever plot, Lily, a young intern at a magazine steals the life of Katherine, who is in her early forties and is the editor!
It’s a dark storyline with some twists, turns and lots of drama, full of lies, jealousy, cheating and betrayal. The tension between the two woman is intense, I didn’t particularly like either of them, they both have their own agenda. They tell the story in alternating short sharp chapters, which makes it a fast paced read. Which of the two woman will come out on top in this battle of wills - I would definitely recommend reading this sharp edgy thriller to find out.

Katherine Ross is a 41 year old Magazine Editor, she has been working at Leadership for just over 20 years, and she loves it.

She has recently returned back after a spell away after some mental health issues, but she is chomping-at-the-bit to get back to work again.

Unfortunately, new management have taken over the magazine, so she has lot of new people to impress, and she supposes that she'll be working with the new intake of Interns, and they'll all be GenX 'Snowflakes' as usual!

After a strange coincidence with actually getting to work on her first day back, Katherine meets Lily the new Intern, Lily is 23, gorgeous, and as it happens, really good at the job.

Lily also happens to be the niece of the new boss!

Told from the POV of Lily and Katherine, this books starts to twist and turn in directions that I didn't see coming.

Katherine is well aware of Lily's manipulation tactics, but cannot seem to stay away from her, and Lily finds this fascinating, in fact she will do anything she can to infiltrate Katherine's life, and all Katherine can do, is watch while her life tumbles down around her!

I sat on my sofa and read this book in one day, I was so intrigued, I needed to see where it was going, and I was stunned so many times, it was a complete 'Knicker-Twister'

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC! This was a rollercoaster ride of a psychological thriller for me and I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed it. There’s a clever commentary on generational gaps as well as the interpersonal difficulties women face in their relationships to one another. I thought the tensions between Katherine and Lily were executed flawlessly, with each pit and downfall leaving me wondering how much more downhill Katherine’s life could go. There was almost never a lull in the story for me and apart from being a little too cheesy in its emphasis of the generational gap (snowflake, trigger, etc.) I thought it was well written, well plotted, and easy to read.

Precious You bu Helen Monks Takhar.

This revenge driven thriller was one that hooked me with the synopsis. Katherine, a 41 year old magazine editor who is clinging onto her career with her fingernails meets Lily, a young intern, niece of the magazine owner, and almost a mirror image of what Katherine used to be. What ensues is a cat and mouse game between the two which builds mounting pressure throughout the book.

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The story is told from both Katherine and Lily's perspective, but at times it was confusing as it flipped from diary entries to direct dialogue to each other. Each main character were pretty unlikeable, with Katherine's generalisation of young people, thinly veiled racist humour and sense of injustice that her life isnt how she wanted it and Lily just generally being rather mental!
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This book had me gripped, and I finished the second half of the book in one go as I didnt want to put it down. It almost felt like you were watching the live final of your favourite reality show, but the two finalist were the snakes and horrible people that didnt deserve to win, so although you didnt like either of them, you couldn't take your eyes off it!
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Overall, the story has what you want if you are a fan of strong female leads, suspense, revenge and some twists and turns along the way. I had a few moments when my jaw dropped or I was shouting "Noooooo!" at my Kindle! The book discusses themes of workplace dynamics, generational differences and I found myself identifying with some aspects, but overall, I felt that as I had a strong aversion to both main characters, I couldn't root for either of them.

Wow, this was a humdinger of a thriller! Darkly twisted, it tells the story of two women. Katherine is 41 and feeling invisible. Having struggled with a long period of depression, she is just returning to work as a magazine editor, and everything is changing, leaving her feeling adrift. This feeling is exacerbated when her boss's niece, Lily, starts work as an intern. Lily is 23 and stunning, and Katherine feels immediately inadequate.

Katherine has a fascination with Lily, but also senses that something is not quite right. As Lily infiltrates her way into Katherine's life, it is clear that she has a very sinister agenda. Katherine loses her job, her home and her husband but still doesn't understand why she has been targeted. Why has Lily set out to destroy her whole world? We believe it is because Lily is a sick individual, with a disturbed past that proves she is manipulative and our sympathy is fully with Katherine.

But perhaps it is not quite as clear cut as that. What has Lily discovered about Katherine's own past?

A wickedly dark story about revenge, the increasing generational gap between women, and how they treat one another.

Well, this was a journey! I wasn't sure what to expect when i started this, i feel like not alot was given away and i really didn't know what i was getting into.



Katherine is an editor at a magazine, having had time off whilst she struggled with her mental health, but she is determined to get back to her fighting best. Their is a new owner who has taken over and Katherine feels like she needs to prove herself more than ever. On the first day though, the bus doesnt turn up and then some young girl hops into the taxi with Katherine. Lily is the niece of the new owner and is soon worming her way into Katherines life. What follows is an obsessive power struggle between the women as we watch them battle to come out on top.



I really enjoyed this, it was gripping and cryptic and unique. Lily had a goal all along but we don't know why, we see Katherines behaviour change as she tries to grapple with her life changing around her and proving she still has it. The characters were so well written, Katherine was both bold and strong but at times unlikable yet in the next sentence i was feeling sorry for her. Lily was both a character that could light up the world around her but shroud it in the darkness the next. She wasnt trustworthy but had a way of making you spill all your secrets.





It was a reading experience like non other, interspersed with clips of blog posts and told from different perspectives as we tried to figure out the narrative kept it really interesting. I found the pacing steady and enough that you savoured it but not too quick that you missed important information. A really different but great read, its left me feeling unsettled, drained and ready for a break. I love it when a book gives you this sort of feels.