This novel was fantastic, it had all the elements of what I love in a thriller, especially a psychological thriller!
Kat and her husband Nick are doing everything in their power to become parents. Unfortunately, heartache after heartache for this couple in getting their dream of becoming mother and father. Out of nowhere, Kat runs into a long time childhood friend Lisa.. who decides to do an amazing favor for her friend Kat and become her surrogate.
But, everything isn't always perfect is it? Slowly, we start to see things that are falling apart and Lisa isn't really who she says she is. Or as a matter of fact, is Kat who she says she is?

There isn't much I can say about this one without giving too much away. It leaves you questioning everyone and everything you've read so far. All the characters harbored incredible secrets and each one was more shocking than the last as they slowly were revealed.
If you want an edge-of-your-seat thriller, this is one of my all-time favorites now!

As part of the NetGalley community, I often have an opportunity to read books before they are released to the public.  Since I'm always open to authors I wouldn't ordinarily be familiar with, I was excited to read the subject of today's post, The Surrogate by Louise Jensen.

Kat and her husband, Nick are desperate for a baby and they've tried everything, but Kat is just not able to conceive. They have suffered so many heartaches and Kat and Nick try to adopt, but they fail again. Then Kat runs into her "ex" best friend, Lisa and something crazy happens - Lisa offers to become their surrogate. But Lisa is an "ex" friend for a reason - something happened between them ten years ago and they severed all ties with each other. Kat has never forgiven herself and has even kept it a secret from Nick. Lisa has secrets of her own too, and as readers dive into this story, it's hard to figure out whether or not Lisa can even be trusted. Slowly, readers begin to see things that are falling apart and learn that Lisa isn't really who she says she is.

I can't say too much about this plot since I don't write spoilers. I will say that this novel is definitely entertaining and keeps readers on the edge of their seats trying to figure out exactly what the heck is going on.

Louise Jensen does an amazing job of leading readers down this suspenseful path of hidden secrets leaving clues that had us trying to figure out this twisty story! The Surrogate is a fast-paced and entertaining, while intriguing and I felt like I was watching a train head toward a wreck! I enjoyed the suspense and anticipation of wondering what would happen next and to see how things would all end and I felt the author did a great job of building up the suspense throughout the story.

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for providing a digital copy of The Surrogate by Louise Jensen for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

A gripping psycological thriller that will not disappoint! Louise Jensen writes with a lot of emotions and develops the characters very well.
A couple Nick and Kat are desperate to have a baby. They both have a dark past they have not been forthright about.
Kat runs in to a friend from a part of her past that she has tried to forget, who offered to be her surrogate. They quickly agree . But her friend is not what she seems and they do not get what they bargained for.
A page turner with a surprise ending!

Having very much enjoyed Jensen’s previous two novels, I was looking forward to getting my hands on this one, and by large it didn’t disappoint. The notion of something as selfless as surrogacy woven into a psychological thriller was tempting.

Kat and Nick are desperate to become parents and after two failed adoptions, their hopes are renewed when Kats childhood friend Lisa offers to be their surrogate.

This was a dark and claustrophobic story, and like Jensen’s previous books, I felt myself becoming captivated by the storyline. Kat herself lives with anxiety as a result of the untimely death of her first love and her desire to become a mother. Anxiety is a difficult emotion to capture in written word but the author does a decent job here.

There are of course one or two twists, and I was surprised by the ending. Jensen has an ability make you believe almost a hundred percent that you’ve got everything figured out and then hits you with a bolt out of the blue. I look forward to her fourth book.

Wow. Kat is desperate to be a mum. She and her husband Nick have had two adoptions in China fall through at the last minute. They’re beginning to think that they’ll never be parents when Kat bumps into her old school friend Lisa who offers to be a surrogate for them. This book is full of twists - dark family secrets, revenge, paranoia - gripping from the start. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thanks to Netgalley, Bookouture and Louise Jensen for the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

A truly compellingly twisted read that keeps you guessing until the very last sentence. Very cleverly written but all of the characters are impossible to like, possibly why the plot works so well.

After reading 'The Sister' by the same author and giving it the full 5 stars, I was very keen to get stuck in to this one. It didn't disappoint in fact I would say it was even better!

Pleny of twists and a definite page-turner! Highly recommended and a full 5 stars for this one too. I cannot wait to read more from this author.

Louise Jensen is another great author published by Bookouture, a reliably good publisher. Having enjoyed her previous books I was very keen to read this one, especially when I saw the cover and the title also intrigued me. Surrogacy is such an amazing thing but so many things can go wrong which makes it a perfect subject for a psychological thriller.

Jensen shows us in The Surrogate how she has progressed as an author, this book is such a twisty turny read that is cleverly woven together in a believable way. I really was never quite sure who to trust, whose version of events was accurate and what was the real motivation for what they did?

And then there’s the ending. Well, I wasn’t expecting that. It’s one of those endings that you have to read again just to make sure that you didn’t miss something and that it all really did happen. So clever and well done. I really cannot wait to see what Louise Jensen does next.

I’m such a huge fan of Louise Jensen’s writing so grabbed a copy of The Surrogate as soon as I saw it. I didn’t need to even read the synopsis because I knew it would be good… and it was so very, very good! I think this may be my new favourite of her novels and it’s a book that has really stayed with me. Kat and Nick had been trying for a baby for a long while and eventually turned to look at adoption. When this didn’t work out it leaves Kat devastated so when an old friend turns up and offers to be a surrogate Kat shrugs off her concerns regarding how they fell out years ago and agrees. This book has so many twists and turns, and actually had me gasp in surprise at one of them, that I honestly couldn’t predict how it would all turn out. The denouement when it comes is shocking and chilling and so utterly perfect. This is definitely a thriller not to be missed!

A gripping, fun read! You think you know what’s going on and how it will end, or do you?

Kat wants nothing more than to be a mom. After two failed overseas adoptions, a friend from her past unexpectedly comes back into her life. Lisa and Kat were best friends growing up, but a terrible accident made Kat flee from her hometown of Farncaster promising never to return. Lisa gives Kat, and her husband Nick, an opportunity that they never could have imagined – to become parents.

Kat is finally getting what she has always wanted, a baby. This should be the happiest time of her life, but as the pregnancy progresses she becomes very paranoid, anxious, and scatterbrained. Her relationships with everyone, including her husband, become strained.

I enjoyed the layout of this book. The chapters are either “Now or Then”. The “Then” chapters slowly reveal Kat’s and Nick’s childhood and all the little secrets that they have been holding onto for years.

Louise Jensen does a fabulous job of slowly ramping up the intensity in this book! I literality could feel the intensity in my body, especially as I got closer and closer to the end. I couldn’t read the last half of this book fast enough, I had to know how it was going to end.

I loved this book! It kept me guessing and even to the last pages it managed to surprise me. It's difficult to review this book without saying anything about the storyline and what happens, so I'll just say I did not manage to guess the twists throughout the book. Even at the end you are still questioning what you know about the characters you've just read about. It's very well written and great entertainment. This is the first book I've read of Louise Jensen's and I'm very interested in reading more.

I thought this book was a very good read. I enjoyed the surprises through out the book. After trying for kids a long time the Kat and Nick get once more chance. I'm not sure I would've taken my friend up on it since they were once very close but people drift apart. But it makes a great book! I loved it! *This book was given to me for free at my request from Netgalley and I provided this voluntary review.*

This book helped pull me out of my “reading slump”. I didn’t want to put it down

THE SURROGATE by Louise Jensen is a suspenseful psychological thriller novel with so many twists and an unexpected ending that I never saw coming! Having been so impressed with her previous novels, “The Gift” and “The Sister”, I didn’t know if she could keep up the momentum…but she blew it out of the water with this one!

The novel deals with the emotional roller coaster that a married couple, Kat and her husband Nick go through, when they have tried to become parents, and are at the point of giving up. They have tried the adoption process but that fell though, and now must consider other methods, when their fertility problems are taking a toll on their marriage.

Then a chance encounter with Kat’s childhood friend Lisa gives Kat and Nick one last chance to achieve their dream. Then Lisa, as a surrogate, agrees to carrying a baby for her.

But Kat and Lisa’s history hides dark secrets. What happened with Lisa and Kat in the past, why did they separate? The alternating chapters are titled “Now” and “Then”, where slowly clues are released on a need-to-know basis, and we learn what happened so many years ago and how it effects the characters today.

But while following the story, I didn’t know who to trust. Something just doesn’t add up!

On a personal level, this book stirred up a lot of emotional baggage of my own, as I also suffered from this problem, and went through numerous unsuccessful In vitro fertilization attempts, so I know the pain this couple went through, and could feel their anguish.

I liked the quote from Lisa to Kat:

“We always get what we deserve.”

Read this book, to see how it all works out. Highly recommended!

My thanks to Bookouture via Net Galley for my copy.

Kat and Nick are on the verge of giving up on their dream to become parents. Unable to have a child of their own, they decided to adopt a baby instead—only to be crushed after the adoptions failed to go through not once, but twice. Then Kat unexpectedly sees her old friend, Lisa—whom she hasn’t spoken to in years, for reasons readers aren’t privy to until later in the book. Rather than the upset she expected, the two women fall back into their friendship as though their estrangement never happened. The despair Kat feels over not having a child changes to hope when Lisa offers to be a surrogate for Kat and her husband. Her dream is about to come true… or is it? Lisa begins to do things that make Kat suspicious, and she wonders if her past is coming back to haunt her, but she could never have foreseen the horror that awaited her.

The Surrogate doesn’t waste any time in grabbing the reader’s attention, kicking off at a crime scene with two bodies and a murder investigation. The identity of the victims, along with how (and why) they died isn’t revealed until the end, but the ultimate reveal is WELL worth the wait. Holy guacamole… what a fantastic ending!

I’ve been a fan of Jensen’s since the start, and I loved reading both The Sister and The Gift. With a twisty plot, complex characters, and a story rooted in a poignant desire for motherhood that’s guaranteed to tug at your heartstrings, The Surrogate is her best effort yet. I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

If you haven’t been reading any of these fantastic books… what are you waiting for? Like I said when she released her debut novel… you need to put Louise Jensen on your Author Radar. She is definitely deserving of a prime spot in your list!

I received an advance review copy of this book courtesy of Bookouture via Netgalley.

Kat and her husband Nick have been trying to grow their family, but after a second failed adoption, they are starting feel hopeless and a little desperate. When Kat runs into her high school best friend Lisa and she offers to be a surrogate for her, they jump at the chance. However, she hasn’t spoken to Lisa in ten years due to an accident that changed their lives forever. And she doesn’t know how much she can trust Lisa. While Nick knows about the accident, there are elements of the story that Kat has never shared, things she doesn’t want Nick or anyone else to know. Unbeknownst to Kat, Nick has his own secrets, the kind that would destroy his marriage, turn his life upside down. And Lisa isn’t exactly innocent either…

I loved The Gift by Louise Jensen. LOVED. And when I saw The Surrogate was coming out, I needed to read it. And let’s be honest, the premise of The Gift was a bit of a stretch (ok, it was a very long stretch), but it was so well written and so much fun to read that I didn’t care. So, I expected a stretch here, was looking forward to it. But. While I enjoyed The Surrogate, and the writing was totally up to par, I had a really hard time making the stretch. I believe there are a couple reasons for this.

The first, and likely biggest effect on my feelings about this book, is my own previous struggles with infertility. Not only am I little sensitive about that particular subject, I’m also very educated about it. I’ve lived it. Spent years swimming in the IF virtual community (blogged about it for several years). Having a lot of information about and/or direct experience with something that is used as a plot device can definitely affect your reading experience. Obviously, I knew from the title what the premise of this book was, and I went in with what I hoped was an open mind. But Kat and Nick’s thoughtless and impulsive approach to surrogacy didn’t settle well with me. I know it was a measure of their desperation, having tried all the other routes previously, trying to do it the right way and failing at every turn, but I know that desperation, and I still couldn’t get there with them.

The second issue is again likely my own. In truth, it’s a variation on the first. Right now, I’m struggling with stories that depict women as crazy because of infertility or post-partum depression, thinking about stealing babies, willing to sacrifice those around them to have their desperate needs met, doing things they’d never do under normal circumstances, becoming completely different people. Rationally, I know that these kinds of books are about extremes. It’s fiction. It’s not trying to say anything about women in general, not even about women who deal with infertility or PPD. Just like most mentally ill people aren’t serial killers, but all fictional serial killers seem to be psychopaths. And when I read a book about psychopathic killers, I don’t get all riled up about the unfair misrepresentation. I’m also not a psychopath or a psychologist/psychiatrist so…less personal, no? Point being, it’s me, not the book.

So, my final word is, read it. I loved The Gift. I think Louise Jensen is a wonderful talent, one whose books I will continue to read. As I’ve pointed out (ad nauseum, perhaps), my issues with the book were my issues. If you haven’t had similar life experiences, I suspect you’ll love this book to pieces. Give it a go. And if you love it, please let me know.

Wow! This book kept me guessing until the bitter end!

Kat is desperate for a baby, so when a friend she has had not had contact with in over 10 years reenters her life she assumes it is fate that she is offering to be a surrogate for her. She felt this despite the secret from their past that kept them estranged for 10 years. The author did an amazing job of holding my interest, as this book was full of twists and turns!

What I loved: Jensen can always write a book that has a surprise ending. Even though I thought I had cottoned on to what was going on in this story, it turns out I was wrong. (Unsurprisingly!) Jensen has a way of leading the reader to the ending she wants them to believe in and then totally changing up the game by the end of the novel. That's how this one felt. I thought I knew where the plot was leading, but in the last 10%, I was proved totally and completely wrong.

What I didn't love: Is it fair to say that a book ends too neat? I don't know, but that's what I felt about this one. Everything ties together so nice and perfectly that it almost left me feeling like I needed something unsolved. That's not to say it ends happily, because it doesn't, but each piece of the puzzle comes out a bit too neat.

That being said, I loved this book! I couldn't stop turning pages!

WOW! This book was such a thrill, and that epilogue was awesome. It is full of twists that keep you guessing till the very end and there is so much sadness that really stuck with me throughout the book. What I enjoyed the most was that I was wrong in my suspicions. That always gets me because I think so much more of the author when they are able to mislead me and then slap me with a turn. I literally gasped with I finally realized what was happening. The writing style was a little off for me, like it didn't exactly flow, but the story was engaging enough that I was able to ignore it. I recommend it if you like twists!

Great intriguing tale that was a brilliant read. Loved it.