Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of The Bad Daughter by Joy Fielding that I read and reviewed.
This book blew my mind. I was shocked with all the twist and turns and the end left me speechless. This is one of those books that leaves the reader with so much to think about when they are finished that I am still trying to process everything.
The Bad Daughter was an excellent read from start to finish. It was full of family drama, intrigue and Fielding kept the reader guessing who the shooter was. I am giving this book five out of five stars!

There were many people that wanted Greg Davis dead, but why shoot his wife Tara, and 12 year old daughter? What looks like a home invasion gone bad soon morphs into a family drama. A story of past hurts. Fielding does an good job of trying to lead the reader astray, but there were just too many clues pointing to the real killer. A dysfunctional family, a horrific crime intermixed with a bit of mystery, made this a good read, but a little too over the top to make it a great one.

The Bad Daughter is my first book by Joy Fielding. It was a simple read and I enjoyed it.

A hostile relationship with her sister, Melanie and a complicated past with her father and his second wife, has kept Robin estranged from her family for many years. But when her father's family is attacked in their house, with her father, his wife, and young daughter in critical condition in the hospital, she returns home to await their fate and hopefully mend fences. But what was first considered a home invasion but now the police thinks the attack was personal. Could it be the mean sister who hates her father and his new family? Could it be the brother who was once engaged to his father's new wife? Could it be the autistic nephew who seems to have a fascination for the young daughter?

The story held my interest throughout and it kept me guessing. The story was well written with developed characters. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for supplying me a copy of Joy Fielding's "The Bad Daughter" in exchange for an honest review.

Our Review... 
Robin has good reason to have walked away from her family 5 years ago. She always knew her father was a cheater and a verbal abuser of her brother Alec. She had a horrible relationship with her sister and the icing on the cake after her mother died an awful death from cancer... her best friend married her father! 
Yuck! I would have left too! But one day at work, Robin received a phone call from the sister she hasn't spoken to in years! Dreading the call to her... she finds out that she HAS to go back to Red Bluff to deal with an unbelievable family matter! 
Family secrets will reveal their ugly heads, the small town of Red Bluff thinks it's the most news worthy thing that's ever happened in their small town, AND SOMEONE is to blame for death and deceit! But who? 
Joy Fielding has written a suspenseful novel that will definitely keep you second guessing! A solid crime/murder mystery! We look forward to more titles from Joy Fielding.

Joy Fielding is known for writing suspenseful thrillers with a psychological twist. I have read most of her books. While perhaps not her best, this one held my attention and kept me guessing.

Ms. Fielding is good at entwining the complexities of relationships with her storylines. Sibling relationships, parental relationships and a thriller- sounds like a recipe for a good book to me!

This book was an excellent written thriller. This author makes sure to take the time to develop characters in ways many authors forgot to do in books written today. It makes you actually relate; I could feel the anxiety, tension, pain, and every other emotion the people were feeling. It was not as unexpected as I was hoping, hence the 4 stars, but definitely worth reading!

Classic Joy Fielding! If you haven't read her, this is psychological suspense with a precipitating event that forces people into figuring out who among them is the worst. Here, we've got a really messed up family, complete with a father who marries one daughter's best friend, who was also engaged to his son. When Dad is shot, Robin comes home at the behest of her sister Melanie (no gem herself) and finds herself questioning what exactly happened. You might guess who the villain is before Robin does (and it's not surprising) but this is a page turner. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Robin returns home after she gets a phone call from her estranged sister informing her that their dad , his wife Tara and her daughter Cassidy has been shot in a home invasion . Soon they realize that it was more of a personal attack and with no lack of suspects Robin and the Sheriff have their work cut out for them

A fast paced mystery with a dysfunctional family full of lies and secrets. It was easy to guess early on who the killer was but still an enjoyable read due to the compelling characters

I would like to thank Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review.

This and more reviews at https://chloesbooksblog.wordpress.com/

Another great read y Joy Fielding. I really enjoyed this story and loved the ending. I love a book where I have no idea who did it until the last page

This was a typical 3 star thriller for me; entertaining enough but it will not be memorable after some time has passed. I liked the depiction of Robin’s relationship with her sister, especially the background on their past and their family. The relationships felt authentic and relatable. I have murkier feelings on the twist. On one hand, I liked it because I did not predict it. The cast of characters was interesting enough where I was constantly guessing who the actual killer was. However, on the other hand I did not like the twist because it felt very unrealistic. My favorite thrillers are when the twist is both unpredictable AND feels like it could have actually happened. That was not the case here. Ultimately, I would read another book by the author but would not go out of my way to recommend this particular one.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and netgalley for an ARC.

Bad daughter is about Robin who has been estranged from her family and former best friend for years due to her father marrying Tara , the former best friend . Robin comes home when her father, Tara and Tara's 12 year old daughter are shot in their home . Robin decides to start digging into the motives and possible suspects . Joy Fielding is a remarkable storyteller !!!
This is a incredibly gripping page turner with a cast of truly fabulous characters . You will never guess the bad guy !!! Thanks to #Netgalley and #Random House Publishing Group -Ballantine #Ballantine Books for the e-book in exchange for my honest review !

I enjoy Joy Fielding books but this was not one of my favorites. Maybe it was a little too dark for me.
The main character Robin has to rush home when her father, ex best friend married to her father and her best friends daughter get shot. She comes home to her jealous sister that is obnoxious. Everyone is suspect for the shooting including Robin's brother.
A fast read to find out who the killer will be. I just could not relate to the characters I think because everyone was pissed of at someone.

A more appropriate title might be The Bad Father. He was no prize, just handsome and a business icon in the community of the small town where this takes place. The daughters were quite interesting actually. Robin is a psychiatrist, engaged to an attorney. She left this town years ago with no desire to return. Melanie is a single mom to an autistic young-adult son and living like a martyr next door to her father and his new family. The third daughter is actually a step-daughter 12 years of age. Then there is an absentee son, Alec, who has only remained close to Robin.

Their father, with a history of womanizing and philandering has remarried a much younger woman shortly after their mothers death. The young woman was once Robin’s best friend and her brother Alec's fiancé. The father is shot in what appears to be a home invasion at his home, his wife killed, and his step-daughter injured. Melanie and Robin haven’t spoken in several years due to a convoluted story of sibling rivalry and family dysfunction. Melanie calls Robin to come home. Their father is in a coma and not expected to live. Their brother Alec isn’t interested in being at his father’s deathbed, still holding grudges against his father for marrying his former fiancé.

As a reader, I found the relationships of the siblings, Melanie, Robin and Alec the most interesting, though the main plot is about who did the shooting. So who is the bad daughter here and is she involved with the shooting ... Melanie, with her sharp tongue, resentments and secrets? Robin doesn't seem a likely suspect as she is kind, straight-forward and caring. Coming back to her home town and to her sisters unrestrained resentment of her causes her anxiety attacks in her attempts to deal with it. The 12-yr old step daughter is obviously devoted to her parents and was a victim herself in the shooting. The character development is good, as this is one of Fielding's strengths. The side characters of the autistic boy and Robin's fiancé Blake were well fleshed. Melanie rubs everyone the wrong way with her blunt sarcasm, but I actually could “get” her, and thought her personality added a lot to the story line. Her quick wit and realism about certain situations had me chuckling at times.

A long time Fielding fan, I hadn’t read one of her novels in quite a few years but I read this in two sittings. I had a “feeling” about who the shooters were, but you just know Fielding will have a surprise or two in store for you. I’m happy to recommend this to mystery fans. Thank you, Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

Great story/mystery. Had me guessing until the end! Highly recommend.

I've read most of Joy Fielding's books, so I was extremely excited getting approved for this one on NetGalley.

THE BAD DAUGHTER is about a woman named Robin who has been estranged from her family and former best friend for years due to her father marrying her former best friend, Tara. When Robin's father, Tara and her 12 year-old daughter are shot in their home after what may be a home invasion, Robin decides to come home to find out what happened.

Robin's sister, Melanie, isn't thrilled to see her and have her stay in her house with her and her autistic son, Landon. The sisters have never been close, and it's apparent that Melanie has never really cared for Robin. She has major attitude (but also some funny lines that will make you chuckle despite the subject matter).

As Robin gets reacquainted with her family, she realizes it may not have been a home invasion that led to the shooting of her father, former friend and friend's daughter...She starts digging and finds many possible motives/suspects for the attacks, and won't be able to go back to her current life in L.A. until she figures it out.

The book started a bit slow for me, and I was almost nervous to keep reading as I didn't want to say there was a book of Joy Fielding's that I didn't enjoy. Luckily, I didn't have to worry long. The story is well-written, there are characters you will love and hate (and love to hate), and there are just enough suspects that you might not be entirely sure who is the culprit until the end. Even if you guess the culprit, the motive and play-out in the climax might be a bit surprising.

All in all, this is a great thriller and as always, I can't wait for the author's next one. I will recommend this one to fans of the genre.

Thanks to Joy Fielding, Ballantine Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Totally dysfunctional family!! Great book! The main character, a psychologist, is called home to her father and his wife (who was her best friend growing up) and their daughter who are all shot dead in a in a violent home invasion. Everyone in the family is a suspect: the other sister, the brother, the nephew...lots of twists in the plot and clues start to add up as the story progresses. Great characters and writing. Keep me interested--a great thriller about a family that appears one way on the outside but is totally different on the inside--lots of secrets and inner-family

Melanie was calling for a reason, and whatever that reason was, it wasn’t good. The sisters had barely exchanged two words since their mother died, and none at all since Robin had left Red Bluff for good after their father’s hasty remarriage.

The news isn’t good, Robin’s father, his wife and her young step-sister have been in a horrific attack during a home invasion. Despite her years as a trained therapist, it’s hard to put what she has learned into practice when it comes to her own dysfunctional family. A philandering father who destroyed any bond they had, stealing her best friend Tara in the process, is on the edge of death. Who could possibly have had a reason to want to kill them? Maybe the real question is, who didn’t have a reason to kill them? What will the little girl remember from that ill-fated night, if she ever wakes up?

Then there is Melanie, Robin’s older sister who has resented her since birth. Melanie who still lives at home with her teenage autistic son. Why does her sister blame her for her own failings? She left, didn’t she? Isn’t that enough to please Melanie?

Melanie is a blunt character, maybe the only one whose true emotions are evident. Robin’s love life seems to be falling apart, based on fears her own dear daddy put on her with his many betrayals. Ever since losing the one person she felt closest too, best friend Tara, she hasn’t had anyone she is genuinely close with to share all her joys and sorrows. She also doesn’t have a reason to trust men, and her fiance seems to be ‘distracted’, hence she has put distance between them. Just another thing going wrong in her structured life. Her brother is as distant as she is, licking his wounds far away from the family. Wounds caused by his father’s disgusting transgression against him. He hasn’t spoken to dear old dad in a long time, in fact his father’s demise would be welcome, one imagines. He has a very strong reason to want to kill his father and Tara, but could he really be capable of harming Tara’s sweet little girl Cassidy too? Robin doesn’t think so.

Then there is her nephew Max, whose behaviors can’t help but raise suspicions, in the town and in Robin’s mind. Naturally, as his mother, Melanie is protective of him but why is she so angry all the time, and why is she hesitant to care about what will happen with Cassidy? It seems she wouldn’t care if she never came home, certainly doesn’t want to take on the responsibility of raising her if the worse happens to their father.

Cassidy takes an immediate liking to Robin, in fact asking to see her and not Melanie, strange considering she hasn’t known Robin and has lived around Melanie all her life. Something is seriously wrong! Suddenly her real father, a criminal, is sniffing around. There are too many possibilities, but the answers she is looking for may be closer to home than she thinks.

The relationships are great, it seems true that we return to the people our family expects us to be when we’re home. Melanie has a natural gift for knocking her sister down, regardless of her successes and Robin lets her. Melanie has a lot on her shoulders, her defensiveness about her son Landon is relatable. I’m not supposed to like Melanie, but I do, at least you know what to expect when dealing with her. Here is another story where if I delve into the characters too much I give away the whodunit. I wish Landon was more of a character and less text-book. However, the way others perceive his behavior as suspect is close to reality.

Just who is the bad daughter here? You’ll know soon enough!

Publication Date: February 27, 2018

Random House

Ballantine Books

I was really excited to read this book, but it was a bit of a letdown for me. The plot was a bit formulaic, and the characters were cardboard cutouts. The dialogue was stilted; the plot was like a bad daytime TV soap. The writing was very "tell not show". Every time they went to a new location, the first paragraph of the chapter was a description of the place that sounded like a Wikipedia entry. I've read and enjoyed other Joy Fielding books, but unfortunately this one just wasn't quite for me.

The Bad Daughter by Joy Fielding centers around a family with complicated dynamics. A father who marries a younger woman who was formerly engaged to his son and was also the best friend of his daughter Robin, a psychologist with severe anxiety, another daughter who seems mean spirited and her autistic son, and a stepdaughter. Add in a possible home invasion during which the father, stepmother and stepdaughter are all shot. This brings home Robin who has not been home in five years. Clues as to what really happened are dropped as the story unfolds. It all seems a bit more complicated than it needs to be. But for some readers there will be a surprising “twist”. It was a quick read and did hold my attention throughout.