great story showcasing the perils of social media in the modern age. super creepy but engaging. this book absolutely captured the atmosphere of how one would feel receiving a friend request from someone believed to be dead.

In the age of social media, this book grabbed me from the title. The premise was very interesting and the story was great.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Australia for sending me an eGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Wow. Just Wow. I absolutely loved the premise of this book going in: a woman gets a Facebook friend request from someone from her past, someone who died 25 years ago, someone whose death she feels responsible for. This was right up my alley, reading it I got the same feeling I did when I read Girl on the Train. I was hooked, and I was not disappointed.

So the book immediately opens with her getting the friend request and feeling freaked out, because she has always been filled with guilt and this stirs everything up. Then when she realises there is also a school reunion she gets extra panicked.

I can't reveal anything else because I don't want to spoil it but I highly recommend this. There were so many twists I didn't see coming and it had me filled with so much pent up anxiety I literally had to stop reading before the final reveal to pace to get some of it out of my system. I have not feel this with a story to this magnitude ever.

I will be recommending it to all my friends.

A good story which kept my attention. I did, however, find Louise rather annoying. She seemed quite immature and her insistence on keeping the events of the Leavers Party a secret despite all the things going wrong in her present-day life was quite childish and very annoying. Just tell someone, you fool!

Also not enough made of the early signs of Sam's true nature and his multi-page, lay it all out on the table confession was a bit too pat for my taste.

I liked it, but it didn't thrill me.

It may have just been when I picked this up but I just didn't feel like this was for me. The writing is pretty good and the premise is killer but I just felt like it fell a little flat. Definitely recommend any thriller lovers still picking it up and giving it a go, it just didn't have enough suspense for my liking.

A good story, good plot and thrilling end. Look forward to reading more by this author. Great story.

I'm not entirely sure how to write this review. On one hand, I enjoyed the story and got through it rather quickly (by my current reading standards). On the other, the ending - realistic and well put-together as it was - didn't offer as much satisfaction as I'd have expected. It's an ending that really worked, but it didn't quite land the impact for me.

I think part of it was that Louise's story was built up so much that I thought she'd have a larger part in what happened to Maria; her part was certainly not small and is something she'd definitely carry with her for the rest of her life, but I was still waiting for something more to be revealed about her involvement - especially with how much angsting Louise was doing over the past, and how much she was blaming herself and hiding the truth from even those closest to her.

Henry was adorable. And I enjoyed Esther's reluctant not-quite-friendship with Louise that developed after Louise reached out about the friend request from "Maria".

Overall, a thriller worth picking up.

I read this almost a year ago but forgot to review it at the time. For this I apologise and my memories may be a little hazy. It is a psychological thriller and I read it in pretty much one sitting (I was on a flight to Europe) and as such it kept me mostly engaged and threw in a few intriguing twists. I do recall that some parts felt drawn out and the twist was not entirely unexpected. Overall, a good quick thrill of a read that is certainly aimed at the modern social era.

This is one of those thrillers that about halfway through made me think 'The twist at end of this better be worth it' and I stuck it out because there are plenty of average thrillers that are redeemed by a really good ending. this was...ok. It was fine. Ultimately it will not be one of those creepy thrillers that stays with you for days or weeks afterwards. Not awful but nothing special either.

A psychological thriller in the mode of the "Girl" thrillers of late. The lurking threat of a social media stalker and a long-held shameful secret makes for an interesting twist on this genre, although I do think that the "reveal" at the end was both a twist yet derivative of other novels of this type.

Friend Request by Laura Marshall is a very convincing debut mystery thriller which highlights the trials of teenage rivalries, and all the angst and jealous bullying that often goes with it.
You could say it's about the possible consequences of such behaviour and how, if you are not careful, karma might very well get to have the final say.

This well written debut novel has a very relatable and convincing plot because it is so relevant in today's world...such a scenario can easily be envisaged in today's everyday environment of social media communication, making it all the more gripping.

This story will have you looking over your virtual shoulder and thinking about how easy it is to get stalked or bullied on social media.
I must admit it had me hooked at the title...and what right minded regular users of social media wouldn't be? We've all heard the stories right?

I won't risk giving out spoilers by going into any more detail about the story itself as the title gives a good enough hint and is, I believe, tempting enough to get your attention...plus the book blurb will tell you enough to whet your reading appetite further. The less you know the more you will enjoy it I think.

Although I enjoyed being grippingly transported along with the events as they unfolded, I felt at times they were unfolding a bit too slowly and at times got lost in what I thought was unnecessary trivia...but that was just me...it didn't slow my reading progress as I was still keen to find out more, I just felt it was unnecessary padding.

I gave it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️'s

Many thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy to read and review.

Oh wow! This story has been a rollercoaster, starting slowly and gently then ever so subtly ramping up the tension and innuendo. With plot twist upon plot twist it kept me guessing right to the end. Perfect pacing, little hints of foreshadowing here and there and beautifully rounded characters completed the package. I was utterly enthralled.

Louise is divorced and in her 40s with a 4 year old son. While in High School many years ago she tried very hard to be in the "in crowd" and engaged in some behaviours that she is still not proud of. So when she receives a friend request on Facebook from a girl who was in her High School and died 25 years ago, it brings up all kids of memories she had thought long buried.

The premise for this book is interesting enough, but Louise's character was tiresome and difficult to empathise with. I also found her inner monologue quite repetitive and detracted from the story being able to move forward. By the end, I didn't care too much about the mystery and wasn't really surprised with the outcome.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I quite enjoyed this psychological thriller - certainly the premise is one for the time, given the popularity of social media. The twists and turns were quite compelling - and although I had a feeling about what transpired, there was another element to the story that I genuinely didn't see coming at all, which was great! Well-written and intriguing, I would definitely recommend Friend Request to those who enjoy this genre - plus, the flashbacks to 1989 might ring bells with a lot of readers of a similar age to the character (and me!). ;-)

Fantastic read , engrossed the whole time, Ireally enjoy reading Laura's books

I was in the mood for a mystery read, and Laura Marshall's debut captured my attention with the title Friend Request. As we live in a technology based world, it makes sense that Social Media tools make its way into mystery novels. This book is set in 2016 but flashes back to the class of 1989. It starts with the present time and Louise getting a Facebook friend request from Maria Weston. The photo is taken from the profile is their high school photo but it can't be Maria can it as she died during their last year of high school in 1989. Louise flashes back to her first meeting of Maria Weston and how Maria wanted to fit in, but the girls made it difficult for her. As the book progresses someone is sending Louise messages and taunting her, is it Maria or is someone wanting to toy with her? During the book it is also the ten year High School reunion and Louise has shown up as is her ex-husband Sam and their group of friends. Louise was best friends with Sophie back in school, and it looks like Sophie was sent the same friend request. What will happen when one of Louise's classmates is found murdered the morning after the reunion? Has someone come to exact revenge for what happened to Maria Weston and as we go further into the novel, we find out the truth about what happened that fateful night of the 1989 Leavers party and who saw Maria Weston last that night she disappeared? If you are in the mood for a good mystery using Facebook and High School Reunions, then check out Friend Request by Laura Marshall today.

Getting Facebook friend requests from old school frenemies or even those you only vaguely knew many years earlier is a weird thing. My 30th school reunion was held a couple of years ago and when I joined the reunion Facebook page I sudden received friend requests from people I’d not seen (or thought of) in decades.

Weirder still were those from people who were just not nice in school. The bitches and bullies – most of whom left school as young as possible in my day, so weren’t a problem after we turned 15. But at least I’ve never received a friend request from someone who disappeared 25 years earlier, and who’s presumed dead.

This book mostly unfolds in the present though there are snippets from 1989 and Louise’s final year at the local school and her relationship with popular-but-only-just Sophie and the cool kids; as well as new girl Maria.

It’s obvious to readers (most of whom I’m assuming have left high school far behind us) that Sophie is really a bit of a bitch and using Louise big-time. And of course 2016 Louise realises this and has made no effort to keep in contact with from anyone from her school years…. with the exception of her ex-husband Sam – who she ran into (and married) a decade after leaving school.

But the ‘friend request’ from the long-departed Maria and seemingly sudden school reunion shunts Louise back to 1989 and she realises what an impact the events of that year – and Maria’s death at the ‘school leaving party’ – have had on her life.

She has however, moved on for the most part and has a son (Henry) and successful business. She’s not entirely over her ex Sam with whom she shares custody of Henry who cheated on her and hurt her in ways she won’t admit even to her best friend.

The school reunion and increasingly menacing Facebook messages (supposedly from Megan) bring everything to a head however, and when a new tragedy emerges Louise fears all she’s worked for may be lost.

I’ve read a lot of books lately involving lies and secrets from the past, which invariably come back to bite the secret-keepers on the butt. Interestingly here, there’s a sense that – if Louise hadn’t been as secretive in the present – things may not have unfolded quite as they did and there may have been happier consequences for all involved. I said something similar about the book I reviewed yesterday (Last Seen Alive by Claire Douglas) though Friend Request offers readers far more closure and is more of the traditional whodunnit with a twist at the end.

I did not expect the ending!! Really enjoyed it & could not put it down when reading the last 20% staying up way to late to do so. A great psychological thriller about school years, bullying & bad choices & how they can affect us years later.

I quite enjoyed the premise of this book- a protagonist haunted by something from her past of which she is deeply ashamed. The anxiety that accompanies a school reunion and the possibility of seeing again those people who featured prominently in her school days is made quite palpable. Yet, I felt that this text could have been edited for greater concision which would have maintained the suspense better. At times, descriptive passages and detail, detracted from the momentum and made some actions seem implausible.