Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC for my Kindle.
This book wasn't a thriller but more of a drama-girl friend had secrets. It was just ok.

The Girlfriend is a novel that focuses on the relationship between a mother, her son and his girlfriend. It is a story that focuses on the dynamic and how it can all play out. There are some frustrating things that happen in this novel which may cause you to detest some of the characters. For me, this made the story not as enjoyable as it could have been. Nevertheless, I appreciated the story and Michelle Francis' storytelling. If you are interested in a slow burn family drama that focuses on familial relationships, then I'd recommend this read for you!

I normally don't write any kind of review when I don't finish a book from here, but I'm making an exception for this excerpt. I came across this last year and the cover caught my eye first. I love the cover. I read the description and it sounded like the kind of thing I was looking to read more of (thrillers, and particularly psychological thrillers at that time). I've only managed to make it about 35% of the way through it, unfortunately. I think this might be a case of "It's me, not the book," but I'm not sure.

I had an idea of where this was going, so I checked out some spoiler-y reviews, and I think I was right. And this just isn't something I'm interested in. I'm also not a fan of the way it's written (personal preference, not a reflection of the author's talent). I don't usually enjoy books with so much of the characters's inner thoughts being on the page, and this is multiple POV, which is something I try to avoid.

From the first chapter or two, I had a feeling this was going to be a dud for me, and--at least for now--that seems to be the case. It's a shame because I've seen a lot of buzz about this book, but after reading more about it, I'm going to have to pass on reading the full novel. I sometimes like "unlikeable" characters, but the direction these were headed seemed far more likely to annoy me than entertain me or keep me hooked. I initially expected this to be fast-paced, but expected a bit of a slower beginning. It seems like it either never achieves a fast pace (like I would expect from a thriller), or the pacing doesn't pick up until much later in the book. Which is fine, if books like that are your thing. But for me, when I'm reading a thriller, I almost always want things to move along and keep me engaged, flipping pages as quickly as I can to find out what's going to happen. I can't see that happening with this one. However, I might recommend it to other people at some point. I know a few people who enjoy more types of thrillers than I do, and this might be right up their alley, so I'll be mentioning it.

This opens with a prologue: Daniel is in hospital and his mother, Laura, is about to tell an unforgivable lie...Flashbacks to 9 months ago and we see a happy Laura, who has it all - perfect job, house and son. Then Daniel meets Cherry, whose is stuck and looking for the perfect man who’ll be her exit out of her tiny life. Things go well until mother and girlfriend clash and a terrible accident occurs...followed by Laura’s horrific lie...
Alternating from Laura and Cherry’s POV this is a tense and compulsive page turner. Frances has created compelling and layered characters. A brilliant psychological thriller with twists and turns.
5/5

The girlfriend starts out as a spoiled doctor type finding a good looking girlfriend. His successful career driven mother can see right through her gold digging ways. It's basically a book about what most women do, compete for a man.

This is a story of a lavish life full of happiness and great things, until Cherry who has had a very different life walks in and decides this is the life she'll have at any cost... This is a great tale of how a lie perpetuates itself and other lies. Taught writing, great characters and faced paced storyline will have readers curling up tight and settling in.

The Girlfriend is a solid debut novel from Michelle Frances. The story revolves around relationships and lies. The reader will hear from three voices, David, his mother Laura, and Cherry, the girlfriend. The pacing is relatively even, and though there are some tense moments, I didnt find the book as gripping as I like to see in a psychological thriller. The Girlfriend is a bit predictable, and some of the twists are telegraphed. I did appreciate that Ms. Frances tied up all the loose ends in the book's ending. If you like a novel that intertwines family and personal dynamics, no matter how dysfunctional, The Girlfriend would be a strong contender. It was an entertaining weekend read and I would read more from the author.

3.5 stars
The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances is an addictive read. Nothing is worse than not getting along with your mother-in-law!
This book wasn’t exactly what I had expected, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I would say that this should be advertised more as a domestic drama rather than a psychological thriller.
The Girlfriend was entertaining though somewhat predictable. I would recommend this book for those easing into the genre.
Thank you NetGalley, Kensington, and Michelle Frances for the opportunity to read The Girlfriend. It was my pleasure to write an honest review

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in return for my honest opinion.

I would like to say I really enjoyed this book but it was a challenge just to finish it. This storyline was actually pretty good but the book was way too long and it felt like it was never going to end. I would read some and then get bored and read another book, several times I did this, but eventually I finished it. I actually liked the ending just wish it had been many chapters earlier.

Daniel loves his mother and they have a close relationship. He also has a new girlfriend. His mother, Laura, wants to protect her son. His girlfriend, Cherry, wants him to be all hers.

The story is told from Laura and Cherry's viewpoints. Laura seems to have a wonderful life - long marriage, nice home, great job, and the perfect son. Cherry came from a more modest upbringing, and her goal is to marry rich. Neither woman is likable. Laura was almost likable, but Cherry had no redeeming qualities. Both characters were manipulative, though Laura's manipulation wasn't as nefarious as Cherry's.

A suspenseful family drama. This book seemed longer than necessary, but it was a fairly quick read.

3.5*
It all starts with one little white lie - it can’t hurt anyone. Come on! No one will ever know. The problem is, just like potato chips, can you stop at just one. And exactly how many lies are needed to get what you really want!

When Cherry meets David, maybe one tiny lie slipped out. Just enough to gain his attention. Oh, and maybe one more just to hold that attention. When she meets David’s mother, well you see where this is going!

The heart wants...what the heart wants....

Laura loves her son David, more than anything in this world. She will do whatever it takes to protect him from everything and more importantly from anyone! If that means telling a small lie...well then...

I actually ended up having a love - hate relationship with this book. There were certain parts that I found too unbelievable and left me rolling my eyes. Yet I did find it engaging and my curiosity was kept piqued wanting to see how this was going to play out! I’m glad I stayed with it to the end as I came out on the positive side! Hope you do too!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kensington Books and Michelle Frances for an ARC to review in exchange for an honest review.

Book blurb...
A girl. A boy. His mother. And the lie she'll wish she'd never told.

A chilling study in domestic noir, The Girlfriend is a taut and wickedly twisted psychological thriller by BBC Development Executive Michelle Frances. It's a novel of subtle sabotage, retaliation, jealousy and fear, which pivots on an unforgivable lie, and examines the mother-son-daughter-in-law relationship in a chilling new light.

We all know that family relationships are never straightforward, and we can't choose our children's partners. We just have to hope we like them . . .


Mt thoughts…
I really enjoyed this story. It is an example of the trouble we get into when we tell a lie and fail to set things right.
Laura is a loving mother who makes a bad decision-one that drives her son's girlfriend, Cherry, to defend her relationship with Daniel. What follows makes this novel one of the best psychological thrillers I've read in recent times. The book will keep you reading into the early hours of the morning. The plot may keep you awake as you ponder the consequences of a selfish decision.
A great read and one for the to be read pile for 2018.

Wow, apparently this is my week for books about liars. HA!! I just started this one and it looks as if everyone is living in their own pretend world and lying to everyone. Well . . .

This is the first time that this has ever happened to me ever in requesting books. I didn't get the whole book! The book just ended right when the girlfriend found out that her new boyfriend's mother was spying on her. And, yep, that doesn't work for Cherry. She's hiding too many things!

I was so, so, sooooooooo into this book. I'm really sad I didn't get the whole thing on my download.

:(

Would definitely recommend it though. I was at location 1195 when it ended very abruptly. Loved it though!! Want more!! HA!!!

Thanks to Kensington Books and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

My ARC copy included just a sample of the book (and clearly an early version, as there was still much formatting to be done). I felt like the beginning was quite slow and I found myself abandoning the read quite frequently as it just wasn't holding my attention. It did pick up near the end of the sample and I found myself interested with the direction the story was taking. Other reviews make me think that the story does hit its stride, but I don't know if I'd consider it a thriller. Perhaps those elements begin to pop up later.

This is more a drama than a thriller. In a similar vein to 'The talented Mr Ripley' it follows the relationship between a beautiful young woman, who knows what she wants and is keen to get it, and a mother and son with a close relationship that is put to the test.

It's got cliches a plenty and little in the way of surprises and is much more of a page turning family drama than the thriller it's being marketed as, having said that, it's well written and kept me turning the pages.

I received a preview copy from netgalley and kensington books in exchange for this honest review.

I love my son. That was all that counted.


I’m a little torn about this book and I’m giving it 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

On one hand I absolutely loved the premise. A girlfriend and a mother competing for a man’s attention – it seems like such a classic premise but one that hasn’t been done too often, and I really wanted to love it.

On the other, it was a little disjointed and I found a couple of things hard to believe, which made me enjoy the book a little less. That’s really a shame because it was very well written and the suspense was definitely there.

I think this book would have benefit from another edit. I found some of the things Cherry did somewhat unbelievable. I just didn’t see her as a sociopath, and some of her actions seemed quite uncharacteristic. Laura though! I wanted HER to be the crazy one. The whole premise of the book is that Laura does one thing wrong, but comparing the two women I just couldn’t see that much of a difference (unless you count the previously mentioned uncharacteristic stuff Cherry did which I really don’t think fit well with the rest of the book as well as her personality).

I really think this author tried hard to vilify one of the women, and that shouldn’t have been the case. I think if either of them was going to be the villain, they should have been set up differently. In this case, it seemed like more of an afterthought.

Well-written and suspenseful, but a bit lacking for me with character development – and man, Daniel was such a pushover! I wanted him to take some action of his own… He just let everyone walk all over him, that guy sure was unlucky.

I’m definitely interested in reading more from the author as I really enjoyed her writing style. I could tell this was a debut novel – while it was superbly written, I noticed some flaws with the plot. I’m very interested to see what the author writes next! I think she’s one to watch out for.

Would recommend for: fans of domestic noir with light suspense. There’s a trigger warning here for animal abuse – just thought I’d add that because it’s something that really disturbs me.

A deliciously malicious tale of the age old struggles of mothers and their daughter in laws, and the lengths that both parties will go to in order to take pole position. Cleverly written with fabulous characters, this book was easily devoured in two sittings. Fantastic.

Happy Valentine’s Day, book worms! I am so excited to share my review of The Girlfriend and I want to thank Kensington Publishers for sending me a physical and digital ARC of this gripping read. The story starts out like others - girl meets boy. Girl falls for boy. Boy falls for girl. Boy brings girl home to meet parents. This is when it diverts from the story you may have heard. The Girl (Cherry) ends up becoming the obsession of the mom (Laura) because something just seems off about her. As you venture through the book you start to see the good and bad of both characters (and let’s be honest, there’s more bad than good) and start to form an opinion for yourself. There were a few unexpected things that happened in the book, but overall I just liked the slow ramp up and the anxious feelings it caused in me. What a fun book to finish just in time for Valentine’s Day.

It can be hard for a mother to let her son go... to relinquish her place as the woman in their life. It's hard to imagine no longer being the first person they go to for comfort, for congratulations, for support. But what happens when that is made even more difficult by a bad feeling in regards to the woman your son has fallen in love with? There's just something wrong with her... something a bit dark, something calculated and manipulative. How do you deal with that?

I would certainly recommend this one if you want a domestic drama with some thriller aspects that's very juicy. The rivalries in this one are intense, and there's no limit to what these two women will do to both keep and protect the same man. It's not a short book, but I flew through it in just a few sittings. It's very gripping. While I thought the main character Laura would be hard to identify with because of her immense wealth and success in life, I felt for her so much. Even when her actions seem tinged with insanity and desperation, you feel for her. Cherry is the opposite of Laura. Her calculated actions are intended only to benefit herself, hardly ever worrying about anyone else. She's a fascinating character, but not one who I would want to meet.

Daniel is in every sense of the word, a catch. He's training to be a doctor, and he's compassionate and caring. Though he was lucky enough to be born into money, he hasn't let that affect his ambition and drive to make something of himself. When he meets Cherry, he's smitten. Though she was never afforded the same opportunities as he was, she too seems driven and ambitious... but is that just a cover for the gold-digger who lies underneath?

This is a crazy book who manages to go off the rails but still make it possible to suspend your disbelief a bit and enjoy the ride. I'm so glad I finally got the chance to read it, having had it on my to read list for some time.

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Kensington Books, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

Oh what a delicious book this is; I haven't had so much fun reading a book in some time!! Take one very affluent mother (Laura), who, though she has a husband and a career, has invested all her emotional feelings and self-worth in her 24-year old son, Daniel. Add one girl (Cherry), of lowly, self-described embarrassing beginnings, determined to catch herself a rich man and live a life of leisure. Cherry failed at her first attempt, and is determined that won't happen again. Gold-digger? You betcha!! Then there is Daniel, caught in the middle between the mother he has always adored, and the girl that intrigues him so and steals his heart. Let the games begin!!!

At first, I was sympathetic to Laura, who was excited about Daniel having a girl-friend, envisioning all the mother-daughter type things they could do together, but my sympathy soon turned to dismay and then disgust. Helicopter mom? This woman hovers so close that her blades would make mincemeat of the son she adores. The closer Daniel and Cherry become, the more bothered Laura is, and the more lines she begins to cross.

Cherry (such an annoying name!) wants no part of a close relationship with Laura; she wants Daniel ALL TO HERSELF. His parents might raise valid questions about her in Daniel's mind and she's not willing to take that chance. She is a formidable young woman.

It's delightful to watch these two unlikeable women have at it, raising the stakes higher and higher, wondering who will ultimately win, and at what cost?

A very satisfying read!! Many thanks to Michelle Frances for writing such a fun book, NetGalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed here are strictly my own.