The Perfect Girlfriend by Hayley Smith offers an intriguing premise but ultimately falls short due to pacing issues.

The audiobook was an entertaining experience, with brilliant narration that kept me engaged. However, the disjointed pacing lagged in too many places, making it challenging to connect with the main character. I often found myself unsure whether to cheer her on or question her choices, which pulled me out of the story.

While the twists were clever, they couldn't quite make up for the uneven narrative flow.

TL;DR: An engaging listen with strong narration, but the pacing issues left me struggling to connect with the characters and their journeys. A solid thriller for fans of the genre, but it didn’t fully hit the mark for me.

Jay and Lauren meet one night and it’s not long until Lauren gives everything up and moves in with Jay who she barely knows..

Jay is sketchy, but then again so is everyone in this story! Although the book was captivating at times, I felt that it fell flat for me because I pretty much saw almost every twist coming.

Read this if you like books with:
🩸 Obsessive Love
🩸 Unreliable narrators
🩸 Revenge

I loved this book! It was very entertaining and the characters were likable. I love how fast paced it was and kept me on my toes. The characters had good layers to them and Lauren and Jay are not what they seem at first which makes for some interesting scenarios. Five stars from me.

What an annoying group of toxic people. Insta-love, abuse, lies. None of it works for me. I struggled to even care about any of the characters. What kept me reading were the correlations and twists surfacing. They were on par with what I would expect in a thriller. I just wish they were happening to characters I had emotions about.

The audiobook is read by Katie Villa. She provides an easily understood voice at faster speeds and a personality to otherwise boring and toxic characters.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, and author Hayley Smith for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Ultimately this book was fairly predictable, but still really entertaining even if the ending was kind of a mixed bag.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I was not expecting anything like this book! Katie Villa's narration was exceptional, to the point where I sometimes thought there were two narrators! Despite living off the grid and playing music, a girl and her boyfriend have alternative motives that slowly surface. I really liked that I couldn’t predict where it was headed and would definitely recommend if you like thrillers or mysteries!

This book is disturbingly sinister, and a good thriller. I am not the biggest fan of remote area thrillers, but the premise of the book is fascinating and this is a fantastic debut from Smith. I will keep my eye out for another book from Hayley Smith in the near future!

"The Perfect Girlfriend" by Hayley Smith is a rollercoaster of emotions, featuring a unique take on relationships and obsession. The intense narrative and psychological depth are commendable, but at times the plot feels slightly overwrought. While the protagonist's complexity adds intrigue, it may not resonate with every reader. A solid three and a half stars for its bold storytelling and character exploration, with a note that it might not be everyone's cup of tea.

Debut novel from this author and for that applause is due. This story had a little bit of everything! It was all over the place, but in a good way. This book has all the twists and turns that make for an amazing thriller. This was a twisted domestic thriller with a lot of suspense that will really make you invested in the story!

Rather dark thriller about a woman who goes to live with a man in the sticks of Derbyshire to see if he killed her best friend. The house is very remote and has no internet or heating. The nearest house is beyond earshot and there is a big quarry behind the house where her friend allegedly committed suicide. The man seems to have a liking for women with long dark hair. They live a self-sufficient lifestyle, living off the land, keeping chickens and busking for extra income. But not everything is as it seems and the man disappears on a regular basis with his friend Rick. And who is Ruth? Lots of sex, drugs and rock and roll basically. A few twists to keep you going. Mostly enjoyable except for the very dark parts.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so twisted! It took me a while to figure out what was going to happen in the end. This book had me hooked and I really enjoyed this book. It was fast moving and full of twists and unreliable characters.

This was a good debut novel with a few twists and turns. I couldn’t give it a higher rating as a few times I really struggled to understand what was actually going on as it seemed to jump back and forward scenes with no warning or explanation which confused me. I also struggled to relate to the main character

I could not connect with this one. Had to DNF it.
Nothing against the plot and storyline but I was not able to get into it.

This audiobook was just ok. I wasn’t completely drawn to the story but I was able to finish it and there was a few things I wasn’t expecting. I’m not sure why I didn’t connect with this story but again, it was just an ok read. I think this story had a lot of potential but I really didn’t like the characters or the pace of the story. I wouldn’t read it or listen to it again but it might be ok for others.

3.5⭐
This is a good debut novel, though some part was too predictable it was enjoyable, however I just couldn't stand the MFC, she was incredibly naive.
I felt frustrated at how dumb and stupid she was 😅. I slapped her a lot of times In my head to snap out her stupidity. Lol
Well i guess all these feelings makes a book worth the read, in this case listening to.

Lauren quickly move into Jays countryside home after they meet at a music festival and spending few days together.
Lauren Wanting to leave behind her old life and secrets saw it as an opportunity to start afresh, to be the perfect girlfriend.

But it’s nothing like she had imagined. It’s completely isolated, miles from anywhere. There’s no internet, no phone signal, and no neighbors.

Jay is keeping secrets from her, there are hints of women before her in the cottage that he refuses to acknowledge.
Lauren is also keeping secrets of her own.

As the story unfolds, all the secrets are revealed, there are a few twist n turns, that will keep you interested to the very end.

Thanks NetGalley & Bookouture for this audiobook.

Want a jump into a debut novel that is fast paced, right from the beginning?!? It's one of those books which make you actually forget ur reading. This may be your next mystery thriller, perfect to pull you out of slump!

Lauren meets Jay at a music festival and quickly moves into his secluded cottage. She is desperately trying to sort her life out after a lot of trauma. She takes up the role of perfect girlfriend. The problem is neither Jay or Lauren are what they seem and perfect doesn't truly exsist.

The tension was build up perfectly. The twists and reveals were perfectly timed. All characters were layered and developed within the main story. The side characters bring a lot of extra drama into the story.

The ending comes together better with the prologue as it lines up with a specific chapter. It’s makes all the more creepy!

The Perfect Girlfriend is a thrilling debut novel from Haley Smith.

Lauren and Jay meet at a music festival and since Lauren is struggling in her own life she decided to pack up and move in with Jay and see where this relationship goes. Lauren settles in to his commune style life (no internet, remote cottage, etc) and begins to heal herself, however something sinister is going on and Lauren must get to the bottom of it before it's too late.

There were some breadcrumbs dropped throughout the book, some I picked up on, some I definitely missed. There is a solid cast of side characters, including a child that seems to hold the key to unlocking some of Jay's secrets.

It was a little wild at times, but I was here for every moment. Highly recommend!

<i>The Perfect Girlfriend</i> had just the right mix of everything you need for a great psychological thriller. There was the "What?! Why did she say/do that? She's just going to make him mad!" to "Oh! I did not expect that to happen." Lauren had all of the qualities that make her an easy target for a manipulator to strike. She became a bit of a chameleon and fit into exactly what she was expected to be. The perfect girlfriend, especially with her black hair. But does she have her own ulterior motives?
This book kept my guard up and my interest piqued.

Unpredictable and captivating, I really enjoyed the narration of this audiobook. Lauren, a musician, is searching for an escape route after her personal life starts to spiral downwards. With little support from her family, she takes the opportunity to travel with a band. Before long she has met and moved in with her new boyfriend, Jay. Jay lives off grid and Lauren embraces her new life. Gradually she realises everything isn't as it first appears. Plenty of twists and turns in this addictive thriller. Thank you to Net galley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled with this book. I had the audio I often struggle with audio when there’s an accent. I managed to push through. Halfway, through the book I found myself uninterested. This was a true slow burn and sadly, I could not finish.