I received this book from William Morrow and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This statement is always true. I’m not given compensation to discuss a book and I’m not told how to rate a book. I am given a book in exchange for my opinions on it, and I am truthful in all my reviews whether I loved them or not.

What a ride this book was. Definitely very intriguing plot twists and turns. This book was hard to put down. Exciting, suspenseful, thrilling, and captivating.

Nicola is an American who had just lost her boyfriend and job. In her misery, she decides to take off on a 2 week holiday. On the plane, she is seated next to James, a charismatic, handsome man who happens to be rich. Immediately, they hit it off and sparks fly.

James invites her into his world of posh friends and money, Trez, Hugo, Badger, and Nigel, but unexpectedly, James' ex-girlfriend shows up and centers the attention on herself. No one can see Juliet as doing any harm to anyone. She is outgoing, funny, the life of the party, and everyone just absolutely adores her.

This book is filled with secrets and plot twists from every angle. Greed and jealousy hit the 5 friends who have been friends for as long as they can remember. Nicola seems lost in this world. would she be able to keep James' heart or will he fall in love again with Juliet, his first love and leave Nicola hurt in a strange country with no way out?

This story is riveting. There is no detail left out, everything about this book is flawless, the characters, the games that are played, the distinctive scenery, everything in this book is in proper order.

The Games She Plays captures you from the start and doesn’t let up till the very end. I really enjoyed Siena Sterling’s writing and was pleasantly surprised by this engaging thriller. Twist after twist after twist. It kept you on your toes and surprised you until the last page. I would definitely recommend this to all my thriller loving friends.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. I really enjoyed it!

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for allowing me to read this eARC.This book is one I could not put down.It is a solid , fun thriller. This is the first book I have read by author Siena Sterling.

“The Game She Plays” is a great story concept that many women can relate to. Dating a man with a perfect ex-girlfriend who broke his heart and is still loved by everyone. She comes off as nice and supportive, but there’s something about her that feels sneaky. You do not have firm evidence, only your personal feelings, so you keep them to yourself to avoid looking like the jealous insecure girlfriend.

Prepare to be taken on a roller coaster with a twist you won’t see coming! I found this book to be an interesting psychological thriller because we do not know what is real and what isn’t. Is Juliet truly evil, or does Nicola want this to be true to justify her insecurities? Are the jokes made about Nicola friendly, or is there underlying malice? I would also encourage readers to put themselves in Nicola’s shoes before judging her feelings and frustrations.

My issue with this book, however, is the writing. I felt the dialogue was too quick and awkward. I did not get much imagery to understand the setting or the character’s tone or expressions. There were also times when it wasn’t clear who was speaking. Eventually, it became difficult to follow along and remain interested.

I also found the American jokes very redundant. Maybe the characters were intentionally made to be stereotypical Brits that think Americans live under a rock, but it became exhausting after a point.

Overall, I think this story has great potential but needs writing improvements.

Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow Publishing for providing this book for an
honest review!

Entertaining quick read with twist at the end. Yet still something was missing for me that just didn’t draw me in. Thank you to netgalley and publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you love to hate the rich.(or hate to love them in secret), strap yourself in because you are in for a bumpy night!
Must
This one was a must request- even better than Sterling’s last book. Easy five star psychological thriller.

Have you ever boarded an airplane and been excited that the seat next to you was empty - until the last passenger comes and takes up your precious space? Nicola has been having a rough time, so she decides to take a break from life and head to Europe for a little adventure. As she’s flying from New York to London, she meets her annoying seat mate, James. Only, after a little talking, James didn’t seem so annoying. He turned out to be funny, well-educated, handsome and quite a catch.

Nicola wasn’t looking for a relationship, but she immediately fell into one with James. They travel to Paris, then back to England, where she is invited to meet James’ group of friends. There we are introduced to the gang from his university days at Cambridge: Trez and Hugo, a couple who will soon have royal titles, Nigel and his “commoner” girlfriend Bella, and a random guy they just call Badger. As an American, these people overwhelm Nicola…but not as much as Juliet.

Juliet was James’ first love, but one day she left for Hong Kong and left him behind. She shows up unexpectedly at the hunting weekend the gang has planned, giving people in the group mixed feelings. Overall though, they welcome her back into the circle. Juliet is fashionable, beautiful, charismatic … many of the things Nicola feels she is unfortunately lacking.

As the weekend rolls on, the drama does too - this group has quite a past, and there is also a lot going on in the present. Juliet likes to play games, but Nicola doesn’t find them fun at all. After learning more about this woman, Nicola finds herself getting angry - and this anger leads to an argument. When tragedy strikes, that argument will haunt one of them.

I thought this was very engaging and entertaining; the characters were written very well, and the book had a nice flow that made it hard to put down. I was totally invested through the whole thing, and I’m giving it a solid four stars for being a fun, thrilling read.

(Thank you to William Morrow Books, Siena Sterling and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released on June 6, 2023.)

The Game She Plays was a very interesting read! It was twisty and the author made the unlikeable characters very easy to dislike. There were times where I wanted to get to the point of why Juliet did everything but the final twist was so good! Figuring out who did it wasn’t a shock but reading about the mechanism of it all was worth the read. 3.8/5 stars! Thank you William Morrow for the ARC!

A twisty drama with a side of murder, set in the posh world of English aristrocracy. This one will keep you turning pages!

I was really looking forward to reading this one, but honestly I feel like it just fell a little flat for me. Easily predictable.

Nicola (Nic) is from Maine, now living in Buffalo NY.
She meets James who’s from London on a plane while traveling to Paris.
They hit it off and fall in love.

Juliet is Jame’s ex girlfriend who has been in Hong Kong for the past several years, she makes Nic a bit jealous.

Trez is married to Hugo, he’s next in line to become an Earl, they live in a mansion in London’s countryside. They’re trying to get pregnant. They have all their friends for the weekend shoot adventure that goes suspiciously wrong.

Much thanks to the Author, Publisher and NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review, it was so hard to put this book down.

The ending will have pondering and for me I’m hoping for a sequel.

#pregnancy #affairs #romance #suspense #mystery #drama

I liked most of the book that began with and continued to look at British society, its written and unwritten. rules for the upper, middle, and lower classes, especially compared with the more relaxed American view of society and how people should and could behave with one another. .

The book then ends on a different note. It took a distinct turn into a kind of thriller, and ends on the same note, which I found disturbing. A twist in plot and direction, definitely. It left me thingking, What? Why? What next? And uncertain how to rate the book.

The Game She Plays is well written. The pace is on point and the characters are well developed. Especially Juliet! The author excels at making you dislike Juliet. The plot was at times too obvious but the way the ending twists brings the story to a satisfying conclusion.

The Game She Plays is a solid read well worth your time and attention.

The Game She Plays is a solid, fun thriller that fans of the genre won't want to miss. Sterling's characters you love and others you love to hate swirl around one another, leading to a twist ending to excite the reader. We follow Nicola, an American as she is swept off her feet by James and his UK friends. A wrench is thrown into her love story by the appearance of James' manipulative ex Juliet, who charms everyone around her. Not everyone will make it out alive in The Game She Plays, and finding out who lives and who dies is definitely worth the ride.

Note: I received a free ebook copy of The Game She Plays in exchange for an honest review.

I do not normally love books with women competing for men. Men aren't a prize.
But this was so good. Our protagonist is having a great adventure. She has quit her job and gotten on a plane to travel other countries and in the process she meets a charming and hot englishman. He is also so rich that he hangs with people who have titles, or will.
Then his super hot ex shows up at the "Langley estate" and starts being manipulative.
Our girl sees right through it but none of the men do. Of course they don't. They love the attention.
It gets super ugly for everyone.
Anyway, there is a huge twist, or several and I loved it.

This book was not really for me. Nothing against the style, plot or author. I found it hard to get into and felt my mind wandering while reading.

#TheGameShePlays #NetGalley
Wow! A brilliant novel.
To everyone else it was “just” a weekend house party—complete with a pheasant shoot, inside jokes, and after-dinner games. But for American Nicola Harris, swept off her feet by aristocratic Englishman James Shuttleworth, the weekend is her first chance to penetrate his close-knit circle of posh friends—people with names like Badger and Trez, people who will soon have the titles of Earl and Countess. Nicola is eager to fit in, but she can’t seem to navigate this insular world, where everyone speaks a private language and secrets are hinted at behind the jolly jokes and witty barbs. Just as Nicola begins to feel welcome, Juliet arrives. Mysterious, stunning, charismatic Juliet is also James’ first love—the one who left him heartbroken ten years before. Juliet holds the men in thrall and the women under her spell. And although it seems she can do no wrong, outsider Nicola senses something poisonous in her presence, something that sparks insecurity, jealousy, betrayal, and violence. Because Juliet is a champion game-player, able to lure you into her circle by finding your most vulnerable spot....and when the game she plays turns deadly, everyone is a suspect.
Wow!!! This was a twisted tale. I couldn't put it down. Characters of the story were awesome.
I'll publish my review on Goodreads and Amazon on the publication day.
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for giving me an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a good read! I liked the plot behind the story,I had not read many books by this author, but would definitely consider reading others!

The Game She Plays starts as a romance that morphs into a mystery.
Nicola is an American on an international flight - she is trying to heal her broken heart. She meets James, a wealthy Englishman. A romance blossoms. He takes her through the English countryside and all seems to be perfection.
His friends are all wealthy and snobbish. They speak the language of the privileged and Nicola does her very best to fit in. Then Juliet, James' ex-girlfriend, appears. She quickly becomes the focus of everyone, seemingly dangling them from her little finger.
Nicola is the only one who sees the malice in Juliet. Things grow dark once a murder occurs. This is when the novel becomes truly intriguing.

It took a long time for this book to get going - and was hard to read long enough to get to the payoff. The payoff is fun, but patience is required.

This was a fun “locked room” type thriller. Nicola meets the rich and dashing James on a cross country flight and finds herself thrown into his orbit where he and his group of friends stay at fancy mansions with servants and go pheasant hunting. This is all very new to her but she likes him enough to try to fit in, until his ex-girlfriend Juliet shows up- everyone seems to love her and only Nicola can see that there is something dangerous under the surface.

Most of the book is a slow burn, where not much happens but the stage gets set for things that will happen later. I was never bored. When it all comes together, it’s very satisfying, though there were times when I wanted to smack Nicola for acting like such a big baby instead of taking a step back and better planning her next move. The ending had a twist that I didn’t see coming, though it actually made me kind of sad. Loose ends were deliberately not tied up so I can only hope it all turned out ok.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I’d recommend to those who like mysteries and psychological thrillers. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.