Did not enjoy this book. Was incredibly slow, dull and none of the characters were very likable. Any twists were very anti-climatic and it was a real pain to get through each page. Would not recommend.

Captivating from start to finish, simply brilliant!

My thanks to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for allowing me to read and review honestly.

Thoroughly enjoyable mystery, you can guess at the ending and think you have it right but some moving parts keep you wondering. Great mystery but also an insightful book onto friendship, love and family.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me with an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is not my usual genre, I’m more into romance stories and literary fiction however I wanted to take the opportunity to read something from outside my norm. And I am glad I did!! Thank you for  opening up my mind to something totally different.

Thank you net galley for this copy.
My first Hall book and I loved it. I may not have been sat poolside on a holiday but this is the perfect beach read. It has murder, mystery, female friendships, affairs, everything you need to get lost into a plot. I will definitely be reading more from Hall!

Great drama excellent twists wonderful characters and an escape from life for several hours. I loved this thriller a whodunit to capture you attention from start to finish. It's the story of 3 friends who met on the first day at uni and never looked back. Eleanor, Mary and Nancy. It's split into 3 parts one for each obe of the friends Eleanor goes first although it's Nancy that's gone killed but by who the lover, the husband or someone else? Well you have to read it to find out obviously but after the first page or so that's exactly what you will want to do it grabbed me and find i invested my time and attention to them all.. There are several others as you probably assumed and all felt real and totally credible characters you could meet at anyone in life not just in fiction or thrillers.
The story lines were easy to follow without wandering of to other zones there was enough to capture my imagination and didn't bed subplots distracting from the main story, the story had miss than enough to keep me hooked and focused. do
I feel that anything under 5 stars would be an injustice to Araminta and her great talent.

Oh dear. This is definitely not the type of book for me. So boring!! The storyline comprised of 3 female friends from university and what happens to them and their lives. We meet them when they are middle aged - 2 married and 1 with a career. They reflect one by one from their own perspective on how life has turned out and the mistakes they each have made.

One dies and then secrets emerged so agonisingly slowly. So slowly i actually worked out the twist at the end.Their husbands are horrible and in fact, I did not like or empathise with the three women either.

So I am sorry but I don't think I shall be reading any other books by this author.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for an advance copy for an impartial review.

Interesting tale of friendship, and murder. The characters were well fleshed out and believable,and the story was intriguing.Good book well worth a read.

This was a fascinating story depicting the perceived roles of women, with those that conform and those that do not. Also the roles of men and the impact on their wives' and families.. An interesting conclusion but was it an acceptable one. Great story for discussion.

As the title suggests, the book is about three women, who are all imperfect in their own way. Nancy, Eleanor and Mary meet at University and form a bond. They live different lives; Nancy is married to Robert who is quite controlling in their life, Eleanor travels the world on behalf of a charity, and Mary is mother to three children with a narcissistic husband, Howard. They keep in touch and remain best friends until their world is rocked. Nancy is murdered and the story unfolds from the point of view of each of the women, which I think is a really good touch.

Robert is a suspect for the murder but Eleanor doesn't believe he could do it. She has secretly loved him since university and begins a relationship with him after Nancy's death. Nancy also had a mystery lover, David, who she told Eleanor about. Could he have been the murderer?

Everything becomes unravelled as the book goes on and it is a good story. I found it a bit too descriptive in parts and lost a bit of interest which is why I have rated it 4 stars. Worth a read though to see who did it at the end!!

Eleanor is woken early in the morning by Richard, her friend Nancy’s husband, he is in a state saying that Nancy has failed to return home that evening. Eleanor hurries to their home hoping she can help, which is the beginning of this dark, mysterious thriller.
When Nancy is found to be murdered, the police start the investigation as to what has happened and who is involved. Richard is interviewed, along with Eleanor who spent the previous evening with her. Characters are well drawn, and I felt empathy for Eleanor, although there is always a sense that she is holding something back.
The story explores friendships between three women who met at university and have remained friends ever since, though leading diverse lifestyles. Relationships, betrayal and envy are main themes throughout the book.
There are no chapters in the book which keeps the story ongoing, and allows characters to develop and grow as the story unfolds. You are kept in suspense wondering who committed the crime, and several twists and turns keep you changing your mind. Mainly told from Eleanor’s perspective, sections from Nancy and Mary give a wider viewpoint about what happened on the fateful night that Nancy lost her life.
This was a book which was hard to put down until discovering what had happened to Eleanor. Although lacking in pace occasionally, I would recommend reading this engrossing story.

The story explores the feelings of 3 women who have been friends for ever. There is some clever observation of the women's behaviour, both past and present and consideration given to their feelings about their lives and about each other. This varies depending o n the subject of each section and the timeline and is carefully drawn.
There is a lot of self absorbed unhappiness with their lives which I felt was inclined to take over.
As the story develops and the truth is revealed the heart searching becomes more focussed. Disappointingly, the final twist was what I was expecting so lost the dramatic reveal.

"I'd like to put all our sorrows and guilt into your box, where they can live with the love and not feel like the most important thing. For the first time in my life I don't mind the mess of that. I don't feel like I have to make it right. I don't mind being imperfect."

Imperfect women is much more than a simple murder mystery. This is a story of friendship and a bond between women that is shattered by the men surrounding them. Ellie, Nancy and Mary are a trio of wonderful, strong but ultimately flawed women which makes them incredibly relatable and real.

The story focuses around these three women who met in college and, despite all taking different routes in life, their bond is still as strong as when they first met. At the beginning of the book, we discover that Nancy has died. How did her death come about? What lead up to her final moments? And how will her death affect those left behind?

Although the mystery behind Nancy’s death is intriguing, it’s the personal discoveries of each woman that I found most gripping. How each through the course of the book re-evaluates those around them, their relationships and also their own sense of self. Araminta Hall manages to communicate beautifully the depth of feeling in the bonds that women can make.

A gripping page turner that I couldn’t put down.

Having read the synopsis I was looking forward to making this my weekend reading, thinking it was along the lines of a murder mystery. Yes, the book does begin with the death (and assumed murder) of one of the main protagonists Nancy but this is so much more than your average whodunnit type thriller. For that reason alone I believe the author deserves credit for this refreshing slant, steering clear of all the usual methods employed for engaging the readers interest. The main focus isn’t on who killed Nancy, although that is slowly revealed over the course of the novel. With barely any reference to a police investigation, the author has chosen instead to focus on the three women involved ;Eleanor, Nancy and Mary, (friendships that were established in their university years), their imperfections as individuals and the part they may have played in the death of their friend.

Told from each woman’s point of view, we are treated to a dissection of their relationships between each other including Robert, Nancy’s husband and Howard, Mary’s husband who are part of this social circle. How these relationships overlap is integral to the storyline. We know Nancy was having an affair prior to her death but what we don’t know is who she was having an affair with and whether that person is guilty of murder. On the other hand in the very beginning we know that only Eleanor was privy to the fact her friend was cheating on her husband. Everything else is gradually revealed through the eyes of these women, with a pace that was slow and at times laborious. I didn’t find it an easy read at all as other reviews have suggested but that’s only my opinion!

I think the title of the book is great. None of us are perfect but even with our imperfections we can still be likeable and lovable to others. However these three imperfect woman are not in the least likeable and although it’s far from necessary to like characters to engage with and enjoy a storyline, I’m struggling to say anything nice about them. I appreciate the author has deliberately created flawed characters but I ended up feeling almost indifferent towards their outcomes because I disliked them so much! They are all portrayed as selfish ,self indulgent and disloyal but on the plus side the men fare no better. I felt there was a great deal of introspection on the part of all three women, which I suppose is necessary to give Eleanor Nancy and Mary depth as characters but at times their self reflections grated on me. Could I feel any sympathy or empathy towards individuals who were living lives far removed from their hopes and dreams imagined in their university days? I believe the answer is yes I could but only to a small extent. Eleanor as a oversees charity relief worker is an example of a woman whom society doesn’t deem whole having never produced offspring whilst Mary has become a household drudge, a slave to her three children thanks to the attitude of her narcissistic husband Howard. Nancy meanwhile as the beauty, the goddess amongst the three lives her life by being centre stage and is perhaps the most selfish of the three. The only female character I liked was Irene, the elderly Polish lady living downstairs from Eleanor whose wisdom is invaluable but sadly ignored.

I think the author uses the women as vehicles for discussion around what it means to be female in a patriarchal society. The idea that women ‘carry guilt and responsibility like a second skin’ weighing them down will resonate with female readers as too will the dilemma of never truly knowing someone else but never knowing ourselves either, that sometimes we can surprised by our own actions as well as those of others.The sentiment behind Irene’s proclamation that being the recipient of love carries its own responsibilities is another example of some thought provoking narrative but on the whole I found these a bit on the pretentious and self indulgent side.

In terms of the murder mystery element I was pleasantly caught off guard halfway through the novel, with a revelation that I didn’t anticipate. The ending is more obvious but I found the final scene with Howard really shocking but not entirely plausible.
Overall I felt this was a novel I should have enjoyed more than I did. I don’t think it’s necessarily the writing style that’s to blame but my inability to relate to the characters meant this novel just wasn’t the right one for me. Other readers may of course form very different opinions to the ones I’ve expressed here. My actual rating is 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
My thanks as always to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read.

This was a good, solid read and I enjoyed it. Showing the reality behind the facades of the three main characters reminds you that everyone is going through something and struggling at times. There were a couple of twists, but they weren't that surprising.

This book is told in three different perspectives of the three women who met many years earlier at university. All these years later 1 has died. Another is single and has a successful career and the last has 3 children and is married to a serial adulterous man. Nobody knows what has happened to their friend and how she died but as each friend tells their end of the story eventually the truth is revealed.
I did find this book difficult to read and get into for some reason but I did have to keep going as I needed to know what happened at the end. I think my biggest issue is that it did not have proper chapters so was difficult to put down and pick up again at a sensible point.

Brilliant book couldn't put it down. I was constantly guessing who did it. The descriptions of the characters were so powerful and created a real dislike for some of the characters in the book. I was sad when this book ended.

The book starts with Eleanor’s story and finding out about the murder of her friend Nancy. I must admit that Eleanor’s story was my least favourite as I didn’t think much happened but it detailed the guilt she felt over her friend and her neighbour really well. It’s definitely something we all would feel, constantly second guessing ourselves and asking ‘what if’ I’d done things differently.

The book really got going when we got to Nancy’s part of the story as we start to find out what happened leading up to the murder. Nancy had many secrets she kept from her friends. I related a lot to Nancy too, as she was a stay at home mum wanting to go back to work. There was a great argument she had with her husband as he didn’t think looking after kids was ‘work’ and I’ve had that argument myself many times before!

Finally Mary’s chapter wrapped everything up along with revealing even more secrets. Again I really enjoyed her chapter too as lot’s happened and I loved finding out about how she met her husband.

I wouldn’t say it was a thriller as there wasn’t much focus on finding out who murdered Nancy. I also guessed some of the twists pretty early on but instead I really enjoyed how the book was about three women and how their lives may look perfect to their friends and family looking in but no one truly knows what actually goes on behind closed doors and the secrets we keep. It looked at how women are meant to have a perfect family but at the end of the day everyone is imperfect and that’s OK.

This is a good domestic thriller which is perfect as a summer beach read (not that I’ve been near a beach this year!)

This is a story of three women who have been friends since their first day of university. We meet them when as they approach their fifties and each of them is coming to the realisation that their lives are not what they had dreamed of or expected. This is a well paced novel and you will be turning the pages even though you may guess the ‘twist’ early on. I have read other reviews that say these women are very unlikable characters and while they are all flawed to varying degrees I did care about them and enjoyed the multi narrative structure.

I found this book quite without depth. Not for me. It didn’t draw me in or keep my attention. I felt quite let down by this book and to be honest didn’t finish it. I need to have my attention held. The characters were one dimensional and overall not likeable. If I can’t identify with a character then unfortunately I lose interest.