This is a gripping twisty thriller. The characters were well developed and unable to be trusted.
Well written

This was a good thriller but I didn't connect with any of the characters which made this a difficult read.

Absolutely loved this novel, an exceptionally well written thriller. The author takes you on a roller coaster and does the slow reveal so you are on the edge of your seat waiting to see what will happen next.

I waited until July to read and review Birthday Girl.

You see, it is my birthday month and I love to keep things in theme. This is also the post I will be using on my blog and all social media accounts on my actual birthday. Not just because its fitting but this book deserves a special day to shine.

Love, is an understatement.

Obsessed, seems more fitting.

I am completely obsessed with Birthday Girl. Niko Wolf, where the hell have you been my entire life? You have made a fan out of me and now, it is my pleasure to stalk everything you will ever publish.

This book is jam packed with twists and will have you instantly engaged on page one. I love to read, as we all do, but we also all get satisfaction out of completely a book and moving on to the next. This was not the case when it came to Birthday Girl, I did not want this book to end!!!!!

Wolf was a mastermind with getting this story down on paper, skillfully written and mind blowing. I can not rave anymore about this book but I suggest you do not make my mistake and wait for your birthday to pick up this thriller, stop what you are doing and get your hands on a copy ASAP.

Well, I tried! I really liked the book's blurb, but it simply mis-sell it to me, I felt.
It did not feel like a mystery/thriller at all!

The pacing, the story developments and pacing were not thrilling or edge of the seat at all.
The characters were extremely unlikeable and for me, that is a dealbreaker.

Not my cup of tea, unfortunately.

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC!

Nineteen ninety-six – New York – In the ‘almost Hampton’s – Jonathan, a struggling writer, his wife Maggie and friends, Laura and Jay pool their money and rent a small cottage for a budget get-away. On the morning of Maddie’s birthday, Jonathan and Maddie go to the local beach. Hours later, he finds himself at the local police precinct trying to explain how on earth he let his wife get into a stranger’s car and allowed it to drive away. “It’s her thing – that’s she’s always done, over their four and a half years together. Maddie loves vintage cars, and can be a bit impulsive.” To others, Maddie’s behaviour wasn’t cute or endearing, but downright dangerous. She never came back!

More than twenty years later, Maddie is still missing and presumed dead, and Jonathan has channelled his grief into a best-selling series of crime novels. Jonathan is now successful, wealthy and as far as he can, is living the perfect life. Then one day, he catches a glimpse of his ‘dead wife’, moving through a throng of people. Is Maddie alive? Has she come back? And why does no one believe him? As Jonathan attempts to uncover the truth, he feels like he’s beginning to lose his mind. Have the people closest to him been hiding something all of these years? Something that could change everything?

“Afterwards, he would wonder how anyone got through life without dying”

Jonathan Dainty
I liked this book, it was beautifully written and perfectly paced – slowly revealing secret after secret until you’re not sure of anything anymore – only that you have to keep reading! The author does a great job of moving from past to present – throughout, you really can not tell where this book is going – it keeps you guessing right up to the end! I would however pin this story as more of a literary thriller/mystery, but more mystery than a thriller.

My thanks to the author and Hodder & Stoughton for my advance copy to review via Netgalley. Due out today!!

Back in the 90s Jonathan took his wife to the beach for a birthday treat. He was intending to surprise her with a wonderful gift that he knew she would love. To say that things did not go according to plan would be an understatement as his day ended with him at the police station reporting her missing after seeing her get into a stranger's classic car.
Back in the present and Jonathan has tried to get on with his life, his wife still missing presumed dead. He has taken his tragedy and grief and spun it into a series of best selling crime fiction books. He is successful and doing well for himself all round. Just not as perfect as he comes across, the shadow of Maddie's disappearance still looming.
And then, one day, he sees her. A fleeting glance, but it's her. Definitely. Is she back? Where has she been? Why the absence? All questions spinning around his head. Jonathan is determined to find her. discover the truth, and put the whole sorry story to bed. But at what cost...?
This book was quite the journey. Almost literary fiction wrapped up in a psychological thriller. Or vice versa! Mixing the present with the past to give us the journey, and it is a journey, that Jonathan goes on through the book to find the truth. A jaw dropping truth that caught me on the hop. I quite early on gave up trying to second guess where we were going. Although I did have several theories, all fizzled out along the way!
We do spend a lot of the book in Jonathan's head and it's not the best place to find yourself to be honest. Although a lot of what is gleaned therein is important and integral to the overall narrative, I think that maybe there was a little too much introspective and some info could have been found from another source, maybe.
All in all, a good solid read that was a little different to my usual fare. And different is often good, as in this case, offering a fresh look on the genre. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Jon's wife Maddie disappeared on her birthday 20 years ago. The closer it gets to Jon's next wedding with Maddie's friend Laura, the more he thinks about and thinks he sees Maddie. As the stress unravels him, he discovers more about the past through his friends.
Wonderful twists! What happened to Maddie? Great for mystery fans and psychological thriller fans. An excellent debut which keeps you up reading as there is so much to it!

I think it's well written, some parts are fascinating but it never involved me or cause anything more admiration for the style of writing.
Not my cup of tea
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Jonathan made a success of himself as a crime writer after his wife Maddie disappeared in 1996. Now, though, just as he's about to remarry, he sees her in a crowd- or does he? This moves back and forth in time and in Jonathan's mind to unravel the mystery of what happened the day that Maddie got into a stranger's car and rode away. It will be almost immediately obvious that Jonathan isn't the most reliable narrator but what's really happening isn't revealed until the very end. It's not propulsive but more of a slow burn and hits familiar themes well . Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This was such a good book. It was well written, with a compelling storyline and well developed characters that were relatable and believable. It was fast paced and twisty and I couldn't put it down

Hard to believe this is Niko Wolf’s debut thriller. Birthday Girl is a gripping novel that builds from an ingenious starting point.

Jonathan, Maddie, Jay and Laura are a tight knit group of friends at college. Jonathan marries Maddie, Maddie is abducted, and years later he is with Laura. That is essentially the starting point of the story with the abduction being the pivot on which Jonathan’s life turns.

Right from its striking opening sentence, the novel has a hypnotic quality as it introduces the idea that a woman may have been complicit in her own abduction. The risk taker who took a risk too far. But, of course, it is not as simple as that.

Maddie is a force of nature. She is the novel’s Gatsby - an exotic past largely shrouded in mystery; full of stories but more fairy dust than reality. Jonathan has fallen in love with an enigma. Is it just chance his best friend is called Jay and essentially a salesman?

Jonathan is a writer of crime novels and the story is told from his point of view. He is successful but easily manipulated. Certainly, he seems a natural victim as his early relationship with Maddie is revealed.

The writer creates the relationship between Jonathan and the reader carefully. Is he reliable? Can he be trusted to tell his own story? And there is so much that he doesn’t know.

The novel switches between three time periods: the years before the abduction; the day of the abduction; and many years later when Jonathan has achieved success as a novelist. It builds to a powerful ending and a satisfying conclusion. Niko Wolf is a novelist to look out for.

, I was expecting a lot from this book.it just didn't grab me. I was disappointed I just didn't connect with it, and it seemed quite flat .

3⭐️

This literary mystery is a debut. It is set in the US.

Johnathon’s wife (Maddie) disappeared more than 20 years ago, he had moved on with both life and love, planning his wedding to Laura until he thinks that he saw Maddie one day.

The premise of a woman getting into strange mens cars seemed hard to accept, which is when Maddie allegedly went missing. The author acknowledges how bizarre this is which gives the reader the opportunity to accept it.

It’s slow paced, moving between the past and the present. It’s heavy on characterisation and light on plot.

The writing is good, it’s just the lengthy descriptive style doesn’t suit me. The reveals are kept til the end, it didn’t hold my attention well enough to get to that stage, so although the ending was good, some sneaky twists and revelations. Unfortunately this book wasn’t for me.

I think people who enjoy slow burn literary fiction would love this

I’ve had a run of books that I have really struggled with lately (perhaps down to my poor choices!) and therefore really wanted to love this. But sadly not for me, I could not connect with any of the characters or the story line and it felt like a real marathon to finish. Hopefully more up others street!

In the 1990's, Jonathan is a struggling writer and Maddie, his wife is an aspiring actress. Then one day, Maddie gets into the stranger's car and disappears. Jonathan was trying to explain the police about his wife's disapperance and soon comes to term that his wife maybe is dead. Many years later, Jonathan is now a sucessful writer. One day, among the throng of people, he spotted Maddie. He believed that she was still alive but was not sure why she was avoiding him. No one else seemed to believe that Maddie was alive but soon find that his closest friends might be hiding something.

I do like the plot but then I found this slightly boring. The story shifts between present and past--the past his life with Maddie, the time of her disappearance and how he ended up becoming a successful author. This wasn't much fast paced and not much twists and turns you would normally expect in a thriller. But then it wasn't really bad either--the writing was great and the plot was good as I mentioned before. The ending, well, in my opinion or maybe it was just me was slightly confusing.

Overall, it my opinion, it was an OK thriller and worth three stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Hodder for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.

I really wasnt q big fan of this book. I liked the writing style but I just couldn't get into it because I really didn't like any of the characters. Sorry.

I enjoyed this book but I have to say I did not like many of the characters in it but it was a good read ..

This one was just not for me. Slow burner and unremarkable characters. Nothing in it had me gripped. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

Gosh, I was expecting much more from this book.it just didn't grab me. I feel really disappointed just didn't connect with it, and it seemed flat to me .I hope other readers enjoy it more, but it just wasn't a good read for me.