Rating: ⭐⭐⭐💫
This is my first book by S.E. Lynes and boy did she take me on a ride! It took me a bit to get hooked, but once I was, there was not waiting to finish this audiobook.
If you're in the mood for a twisty, gripping thriller, The Perfect Boyfriend should be on your list!

3.5🌟
Sometimes you never forget your first love…even though you probably should!
Still working long hours at the hospital as a midwife, Kristy is only weeks away from giving birth. Leaving the hospital after a somewhat difficult shift, she glances up and spots someone she never thought she would ever see again. Her first boyfriend, her first love and her first heartbreak, Hughie! He left her suddenly with only a nasty note. No explanation. Is that any better than ghosting? Hmm…not sure.

When Kristy shouts out his name he acts like he doesn’t know her. Going so far as to even deny he’s Hughie. But Kristy is sure it’s him and will do whatever it takes to expose him and all his secrets.

A bit too much telling and not enough showing for my taste. But the author did include a wicked twist in the end! Didn’t see that coming!

🎧: Narrated by Tamsin Kennard. She did a great job but I do believe this audio would have been elevated with a second narrator.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio

This was a quick, fun, twisty read. Kirsty sees an old boyfriend who ghosted her over 10 years ago. She's confused when he seems to have no idea who she is. Kirsty is now with a new partner, Dougie, and she is pregnant. She still wants to dig into the background with Hugh, but doesn't find out much. She is also distracted by her elderly neighbor missing and not being taken seriously about those concerns.

Pacing was okay, I would say I was engaged but I wasn't ever really on the edge of my seat. It was just okay for me. I would read more from this author.

Narrator did a nice job with both gender voices and characters were distinguishable.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

🎧Audio Book Review🎧

The Perfect Boyfriend
SE Lynes

🌟🌟🌟🌟

This was my first read by this author and I have to say that I was hooked from the start.

I love a thriller that starts towards the end and gives that sneaky peek into what's to come - then we flip back in time to work through the events that got us to this drastic point.

I really liked Kirsty and didn't really ever doubt that when she spotted Hughie, her teenage boyfriend, at work, that was exactly who he was.
But when he feigns ignorance, demanding that his name is Barry, I was excited to dig deep into this storyline.

The writing style was fairly fast-paced and there was always something going on to think about and try and link everything together.
I definitely got some of the twists worked out before the reveals, but there were a couple of things that still had me shocked.
These, of course, threw other parts of the read wide open again.

This was well presented, worked out and developed making it really easy to follow, even with the relatively complex storyline.

I absolutely loved the narration - I've heard a few books by this narrator now and love how well the characters are portrayed and the excitement and tension of the storyline comes across.

I am sure that I'll be reading more by this author soon and can't wait to see how this one plays out!



💕Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for my ARC copy - this is my honest review 💕

A psychological thriller that delves into themes of betrayal, deception, and the resurfacing of past relationships. The narrative centers on Kirsty, a midwife who, while pregnant, encounters a man she believes to be her ex-boyfriend, Hughie, who disappeared years earlier. Despite his denial and claims of a different identity, Kirsty becomes entangled in a web of suspense and uncertainty. The plot is intricate and full of twists and turns that has me hooked.
I found myself getting frustrated with Kirsty making a lot of bad choices.

This was an interesting true crime book. I enjoyed the twists and turns. The ending explains how it all came about. Definitely worth reading.

**4 Stars: *The Perfect Boyfriend***

She thought she’d never see him again—the high school boyfriend who disappeared without a trace. But when their paths cross years later, he denies knowing her. Determined to uncover the truth, she digs into his past, unaware of the danger she’s inviting.

Told from two perspectives, this gripping tale of lies, betrayal, and dark secrets delivers twists that will leave you speechless. Perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell and Ruth Ware, it’s a thrilling ride from start to finish!

The Perfect Boyfriend by S.E. Lynes is my first introduction to the author so I'd like to thank NetGalley, the author, Bookouture and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to both read and listen to the book. I really enjoy reading a book myself then listening to it. The narrator did an excellent job bringing the characters to life and giving them their own unique voice.

As a huge thriller fan, I found myself engaged and intrigued throughout the story. This plot was one where the secrets of the past are threatened to be exposed which could alter or destroy the characters carefully cultivated life. If you enjoy thrillers of that nature, I would definitely recommend checking this out! It was released two days ago meaning it's available now!

After reading The Perfect Boyfriend, and rating it a four star read, I immediately added more books from S.E. Lynes to my TBR list!

I loved the narration of this book, it was very well done and kept me engaged. I did find it a bit slow through out it started off well but fell a bit flat for a while then picked up again. I liked the plot and was interested to see where it went. I rounded this to 4 stars but rated it 3.5. thanks to netgalley and the publisher for this audio arc.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
3.5/5 (rounded up to 4 for Goodreads)

This book had a very unique twist that I wasn’t expecting. I listened to the ending twice to make sure I was understanding it all.

Thank you NetGalley, Bookouture, and S.E. Lynes for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The Perfect Boyfriend by SE Lynes, the book is about Kirsty Shore, who is a midwife and one day after a touchy delivery. She see’s a man that reminds her of her teenage boyfriend Huey, who just up and left with an ugly note left behind. The man claims not to know her, but she certain it’s him. Other things start happening, like her elderly neighbor Joni going missing and when Kirsty text her, she knows it isn’t the octogenarian texting back. The police don’t believe her even when Joni‘s best friend also goes missing. everyone blows her off, but Kirsty only wants to know the truth. She’s about to give birth any day now and even when her baby is put in danger she persist in her endeavor, but soon Kirsty herself goes missing. Will anyone take her serious now? Will she find out the truth or lose her and her babies life in the process? OK this book was narrated by Tamsin Kennard, one of my all-time favorite narrators. She is awesome. Awesome. Awesome. She could sound like a seductress, teen girls/boys, a man/woman, English/ Scottish, etc. I really love the books that she narrates. On the book itself, there were some things, especially at the end that were very, very far-fetched but due to the great character development the relationships between Kirsty and her best friend and her husband they were all like real people as opposed to the stereotypical thriller characters you find in thrillers. I also thought the whole connection with Luna was such an awesome twist. I do find the author to be very talented if she could get the believability down just a smidge. I think her books would be door busters. I really liked this book so much so despite the eye rolling moments in the plot, I still went and downloaded two of her other books that I cannot wait to read. I definitely recommend this book if you like Theo Baxter, Darby, Kane, James Kane, etc the you will definitely enjoy this book. #NetGalley, #TamsonKennard,#SELynes, #ThePerfectBoyfriend,

This was a GREAT story to listen to! AWESOME narration! Great main characters. The plot was easy to find. The story was engaging and easy to follow. Will be purchasing this book. Shout out to Netgalley and publishing for allowing me to listen and review this story.

4 STARS!

I finished this book in one sitting; it was so entertaining! The pace may have been slow, but I didn't mind. Even though we knew about the deception from the start, the ending still surprised me.

I sometimes found Kirsty irritating, and her reckless actions, which endangered her life, bothered me. However, they served a purpose in the story, and everything came together nicely.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for the free audio copy.

The story had a great plot- heartbreak, unrequited love, mistaken identity and murder. I was in from the beginning. It had such a great start. A midwife runs into a doctor at the hospital she works, and mistakes him for her high school sweetheart who left her heartbroken over a decade ago. When she approaches him, he assures her that she is mistaken and that he not the man who she believes him to be, nor does he know her. His identification suggests that she is definitely mistaken, and that he is not her ex, yet she cannot shake the feeling.

The book started off so good but soon fell flat. I wanted to like this story after hearing another bookstagrammer who loved it. However, that was not the case for me. I struggled through this book. It felt disjointed and convoluted. I found myself rereading passages of this story to fully grasp it all. I did like that the story was told from his and her Pov, but there was a lot of unnecessary fillers within the story that didn't seem to directly connect. I found a lot of things incredulous to believe and really tried to suspend my disbelief. The fact that there was mistaken gender, and no one mentions it, I find to be rather odd. The story moved along very slowly, and the lead character was rather annoying and extra. While I do think the title is a clever spin, I don't find that the cover really relates to the main theme of this book.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookoutoure for access to this ARC audio

I really enjoyed this book. I felt like it was unique compared to a lot of other thrillers and the plot kept me intrigued. I love some twists and turns and this book definitely gave me that.

This book really surprised me. At first I thought that I wouldn't like it. It was heavy on the British lingo. Which normally I wouldn't have an issue with but some of them I just didn't understand. Other than this I thought this was well written and very twisty. Great start to my new year.

This is my first S.E. Lynes book and it definitely won't be my last! I was super excited to see how many books the author has published already!

The Perfect Boyfriend follows a woman who, after years of trying to move on, unexpectedly runs into her high school boyfriend—the one who disappeared without a trace—and everything she thought she knew about him starts to unravel.

The story is told through two perspectives: hers, the woman who believes she’s finally living a quiet, happy life, and his, the man who is back with a purpose—and a secret. From the moment she sees him again, her instincts tell her something is horribly wrong, and as she digs deeper into his past and their shared history, she begins to question her own perceptions, as does everyone around her.

What makes The Perfect Boyfriend so gripping is the way Lynes blurs the line between reality and delusion. Though it is infuriating to listen to at times, the layers of manipulation and gaslighting, and the way everyone around her discounts her concerns as 'hysterical' keeps you on edge, and kept me listening into the wee hours of the night.

The narrator was phenomenal, but I may be biased as I adore a Scottish accent. She was great, though, and added a lot to the story with her distinct accents for each character. If you enjoy dark, twisty thrillers about obsession, revenge, and tangled relationships, this book will keep you hooked from start to finish, just like it did me.

Kirsty works at the hospital where she is a midwife. After helping to deliver a baby, she is on her way out when she spots a man. She’s sure she knows him from somewhere! It’s her high school boyfriend, Hughie Reynolds! Though, he just up and left her high and dry one day. But when she approaches him, he tells her she’s mistaken. That he’s not Hughie. Everyone around her believes that she’s just mistaken and just hormonal, after all, she is very pregnant. Then strange things start happening and Kirsty can’t keep her nose out of this man’s business.

I’m not normally an audiobook listener, but a friend told me that this one was really good and to listen to it. So I did. I really enjoyed it! The narrator did such a great job bringing Kirsty to life. I will say that is one of the positives about listening to an audiobook rather than reading the book. The narrator can really bring the characters to life. Kirsty had such a great personality, and she even made me chuckle a few times (especially with the Leona Lewis line!).

Lynes wrote a fantastic thriller. The suspense was brilliantly built up to an explosive ending filled with twists. I listened to it rather quickly, and in less than a day. The cast of characters are great, and there are some twists leading up to the ending as well. This book is a well thought out thriller, leaving nothing open ended.

I haven’t read this author before, but I am now thankful to be introduced and will make sure to read more of their books!

I loved this book!

I was gripped from the start! It’s a rollercoaster of twists and turns and when you think you’ve figured it out it just gets better. I could feel the tension in the situation of the main character and couldn’t wait to finish to book and find out how it would end.

The narration by Tamsin Kennard is brilliant as always, really bringing the book alive she makes the story addictive.

I will definitely read more by this author and will be recommending this book to others.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I was really intrigued by the premise of this story and dove in with high expectations. While I can see how others might enjoy it, unfortunately, it didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

The book centers around Kristy, a very pregnant midwife, who becomes convinced that she’s crossed paths with her long-lost ex-boyfriend. He disappeared years ago after leaving her a cruel letter. Now, he seems to have reappeared with a different name, a much worn out and lived appearance, and even a new accent. While everyone dismisses Kristy’s suspicions as pregnancy brain or stress, she sets out on a determined mission to uncover the truth.

Although the premise was compelling, I found the execution lacking. The pacing felt slow, with several chapters that didn’t seem necessary to advance the plot. At times, it felt like a struggle to keep going, as the story didn’t fully hook me or deliver the tension I was hoping for.

This isn’t a bad book by any means—it’s competently written, and readers who love domestic suspense with a touch of mystery might find it enjoyable. However, for me, it lacked the freshness and gripping intensity needed to stand out in a genre full of similar stories.