https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/48744144
What a page turner! Keep Your Friends Close was a breathless thriller. Darcy, Luke, Tina and Gillian all attended high school together. Gillian mysteriously vanished her senior year, never to be heard from again for 20 years. This book examines how the choices you make as a teenager may come back to bite you. Darcy and Luke, the “it” couple in school, have been together ever since-with a successful business, beautiful home and a baby on the way. Someone is green with envy, and wants to exact revenge. Three alternative narrators keep you guessing. This one will leave you uneasy in the best way.

I received Keep Your Friends Close as an ARC from NetGalley.
#netgalley #keepyourfriendsclose

Darcy and Luke seem to have it all - in love since prep school, a successful business and a baby on the way. When a schoolmate reenters their life and inserts herself into their life, Darcy suspects something isn't quite right. Although I saw the twist early in the book, it didn't diminish the unraveling for me.

Darcy and Luke Hogan were high school sweethearts, got married & are now owners of Darcy’s Dishes, a vegan meal business. Things are a bit stressful as they are expecting the birth of their first, the company’s financial issues, and a blast from the past that wrecks havoc. Darcy is having a difficult pregnancy which keeps her home, while Luke a doting husband runs the business. Tina, a classmate from St. Peter’s, was an outcast but was befriended by Darcy. This begins her obsession with Darcy! Now out of the blue, an unemployed Tina seeks Darcy demanding a job but to no avail she then disguises as Gillian Buckley, the investor’s daughter. “Gillian” moves next door to the Hogan’s and becomes chummy with Rose & Polly, friends of Darcy’s. Turns out she is crazy! This was a slow burn with multiple POVs and a lot of turns which didn’t quite gel or seem realistic, sadly I did not feel a connection with any of the characters. Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Publishing UK for a gifted copy. This is my honest review.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

This a wonderfully twisted story of friendship, family, deception and revenge. The timeline alternates from June 2019 in Ireland and September 1998. This provides background and history which describes the development of the characters. Darcy Hogan is 7 months pregnant who finally agrees to be interviewed on Good Morning Ireland after receiving Businesswoman of the Year. The talk show host Lindsay St Clare is a an ambitious reporter who is delighted to have Darcy appear even if it’s to advertise her latest cookbook Darcy’s Dishes. The interview abruptly goes awry when a caller begins to ask inappropriate personal questions on air.

Darcy suffers with hyperemesis gravidarum during this pregnancy resulting in her being hospitalized and unable to manage the helm of her company. As her business begins to fail they make attempts to secure funding from outside investors. They feel relief when Andrew Buckley, a local hotel owner, expresses an interest in providing them the capital they desperately need. Just as their dreams seem to slip away when he is murdered, his long “lost” daughter Gillian Buckley appears and agrees to make good on her father’s financial arrangement.

Her husband Luke is supportive and protective of her but almost to the extreme. Bizarre and unusual events start occurring which had Darcy on edge only to have Luke and others dismiss her concerns. When her beloved dog Jinx becomes sick and found unconscious Darcy’s paranoia soars. Things in the house seem to be misplaced or missing and strange noises that Luke attributes to her imagination.

Was it really a coincidence that Gillian appears after she apparently ran away almost 20 years prior and presumed dead? Darcy begins to annoy me with her naïveté at this point although it’s hard to fault her when everyone else seems to dismiss her worries. There is another story being told along the way to add drama and mystery as the two eventually collide. I found that I could predict a likely ending but probably because I’ve read a zillion books in this genre. It was hard to put down!

Pros and cons with this book but overall, I did enjoy reading it. The cons for me are the time shifts between characters narrative, past and present. I think this may have been intentionally done to add a little confusion and keep you guessing until the end but it was a bit too much for me, took away from the impact of the story. I also would have liked to get to know the main characters a little better before we jump straight into time shifts, swapping characters and story action. I like to build bonds with the characters quickly, it's what keeps me reading. To the pros now. I did enjoy the plot, it was imaginative. The story built suspense to the intense drama at the end. Once I felt connected to the main character, I enjoyed the story much more. I really felt empathy for her. Dragged a little at the beggining for me but I'm glad I stook with it because it was a good read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Amazon Publishing for this advanced reader's copy. A must-read for fans of psychological thriller. This book drew me in from the start and really messed with my head. Showcases the darker side to social media and highlights how not everything is as shiny as it appears. Loved it!

Keep Your Friends Close was a definite 5 star read for me. I loved the characters especially Darcy. She wasn't at all wishy washy and was strong when she needed to be and well fleshed out. The suspense was brilliant, and the ending was unexpected. A real page turner for me.

Darcy Hogan is a successful businesswoman, an expecting mother lives in Ireland married to her high school sweetheart, Luke. They have a perfect life everyone dreams of.
But behind the walls, their life is far more perfect. Her difficult pregnancy and out-of-control debt threaten to ruin everything they have worked so hard for.
Despite struggling to keep up with all the problems they have, she was invited to have an interview with the Ireland popular TV show. Little that Darcy knows, that one call comes in from a voice of the past during the TV show, will change her whole life….

“Keep Your Friends Close” is my first reading from Janelle Harris and I really loved the storyline. It was easy reading with an interesting Irish vocabulary and I love the writing style and I appreciate how the author keeps the chapter relatively short making reading so much easier.
The whole story is from the POV of Darcy and two other main characters in two different timelines. The suspense builds throughout the book, kept me guessing at what might happen next.

But there are a few things that I thought were far-fetched, where overall rating landed an on 3 stars.

Nothing serious happens in the first half of the book except telling how Darcy and Luke struggle in their financials, Luke always comforting darcy to go to bed and rest, cooking for her, etc...But the third part of the book to be the most engaging and action-packed.

There is a lackluster in character development. I felt the main character “Darcy” seems to be weak, where she is supposed to be a strong woman. Also “Luke” chooses to willful ignorance all the red flags flying around them. There were times where I struggled to connect to some events and the characters.

Also, the plot twist happens at the end was quite predictable.

Overall, I found this book to be well written, enjoyable, and had me turning pages and it was one fun ride. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys this genre!
The author has so much potential to write a great mystery/thriller and I’m excited to check out more books by the author!

Thank you to Amazon Publishing UK and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.
I Highly Appreciate it for giving me a chance to read Keep Your Friends Close.

This is one of those books that will have you confused (in a good way) for around two thirds of the book and then everything comes together.

Told from the POV's of three characters in the past and present, your mind will be flitting back and forth the whole way through trying to keep up.

Theres not alot I can say on this one without spoilers so I've kept it brief!

A really good read but in my opinion overly predictable hence the 3 stars.

Thanks to netgalley and Amazon Publishing UK for the ARC.

Keep Your Friends Close by author Janelle Harris is a thriller that really had me confused for awhile. And by that, I mean confused in a good way because there was something so puzzling about the characters that I just couldn’t figure out. It wasn’t until about 2/3’s of the way into the book when I thought I had it figured out when the author finally reveals what I had suspected. This is a story that is told in 2 different time frames with all the same characters. It tells of the characters 20 years ago when they all attended a private school and about some of the incidents that lead up to the current days telling. It’s a really twisted story and one I enjoyed very much and would recommend. I’d say it’s revenge where karma comes into play. I felt the author did a really good job at writing a story that grabbed my attention and held it the whole way through. She’s an author that I will be reading more of in the future. I’d like to thank NetGalley for the arc that I received off the Read Now section to read, review and enjoy. I have given this 4 stars.

Pretty interesting read. Keep Your Friends Close had some truly surprising twists. There were more mysteries than suspense . The latter portion of the book was a bit unbelievable but I still enjoyed the read😊

What an entertaining thriller! I read this one quite quickly, even after I had my suspicions about the plot and where it was headed. Darcy runs her own business with her husband Luke. She is having a difficult pregnancy, and has an online presence harassing her. Enter in a new neighbor who wants to "help" and you have a great plot that keeps you guessing!
Alternating points of view, and time, it keeps you on the edge of your seat until the finale.
If you love mysteries, thrillers, plot twists, this is a great quick read!
Thankful for the ARC

This is one of those Wow books for me! It had some things, which some might find to be triggering (like gaslighting a pregnant woman). If this is something that won’t bother you, than I definitely recommend! Very unique, realistic, and chilling! Well written and full of domestic suspense and drama! A book that is very quick and easy to read, but keeps you captivated! Highly recommend!

This was quite the page turner! I had heard about this book and was excited for the chance to read it. I am a fan of thrillers and this one certainly delivered many twists and turns. Recommended!

I have never read anything by this author before so was extremely happy to say four glorious stars. It kept me on edge reading when I should have been doing far more important things. The characters were well drawn although I did think Rose wasn’t quite the portrayal that she should have been.

It was taut, suspenseful and altogether an excellent psychological thriller.

I realized I hadn’t read a true thriller all October, which is very unlike me! I was hearing buzz about this one, and decided to check it out.

To me, this book was the epitome of gaslighting. Darcy, the pregnant protagonist, knew something was wrong. She tried to tell everyone, especially her husband, Luke. But he told her everything was fine and she’s stressing herself out for no reason. That alone pissed me off.

I found the third part of the book to be the most engaging and suspenseful. I couldn’t stop reading! And I was really satisfied with the ending, which I can honestly rarely say about thrillers.
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Thank you Net Galley and Amazon Publishing UK for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Wow I just loved this - and have just spent an hour in the bath which has gone cold as I wanted to finish it!
Believable characters, a great plot and so worth reading I know this will stay with me for a while - but would thoroughly recommend this.

This story is told from three peoples points of view and told over two timelines, the past and the present. It was a little confusing at the start but then once it became clear what was happening and the action picked up I couldn't put it down until I had finished it.

There are a few things that I thought were too far fetched but if you can dismiss them then the book is quite enjoyable.

If you are looking for a quick, somewhat creepy psychological thriller then this one will fill the spot.

Thanks to Netgalley, Janelle Harris and Amazon Publishing UK for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Darcy and Luke are the perfect couple - in love since high school and co-running a successful business. But Darcy's complicated pregnancy and the couple's money problems make her wonder if Luke is hiding something from her. Is Darcy just imagining things, or is someone plotting to destroy her perfect life?

I enjoyed the beginning of this book, and Darcy was a great protagonist. However, the multiple perspectives made the book drag a bit in the middle. I was able to guess the "shocking twist" (normally I am terrible at guessing these) so the book was not as suspenseful as I had hoped.

Thank you to Amazon Publishing UK for providing an ARC on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book started out strong but it then turned into a slow burn with totally implausible plot lines. The "twist" was also known to me from the get go. I won't go into detail regarding what was so inplausable so as not to spoil anything for those who do read the book, but man, it was just things I could not ever ever see happening in the real world with anyone owned a business like Luke and Darcy.