I related so much to Frances Metcalfe! Agh, Robyn Harding's writing in this book was fantastic and gripping and I sped through this book! This is such a thrilling novel and suggest every woman - especially every mom - read this!!

In the abundance of fast-paced thrillers out there, this novel quietly removes itself from the pack and is happy to be a slow burning drama (much like one of the novel's characters Daisy). We know something bad has happened in the past and that somehow these people in the present are connected. So now we slowly go through everyday events until the past catches up with our characters. Can you guess before you are told? That's always the fun with thrillers.

This story while sad, held my attention through to the end. This book is a roller coaster of a push and pull. It shows power struggles and over coming being complacent to being edgy and feeling that wild side for once. You see how both women are damaged and how they are each healing in their own way and how they reciprocate off one another. 

The writing to this novel was phenomenal and well thought out. The characters have good drive and the story has good pacing. This ended up being a one click read for me. I immensely enjoyed this book and would love to see more by this author. 5/5 stars from me. Thank you NetGalley and publisher for letting me read this title in exchange for an honest review.

A psychological thriller, about love, hate, manipulation and forgiveness. This book was very interesting and enjoyable. The characters were believable and worked well together. The twists and turns were exciting. The backstories of the main characters really are up who the characters are now. Very enjoyable read. I highly recommend it!

This story focuses mainly on Frances and her son, Marcus. Kate and her daughter, Daisy. I was more into Frances and Marcus as they are more of the outcast and nicer. Kate and her daughter were mean girls. I really didn't understand Frances's admiration and desire to hang and be like Kate. In fact, most of the other characters were stuck up. To the point that they turned me off.

This book is told from the different characters points of view. This is nice as it does help to give each character their own voice and allows me to get closer to them. Another thing that this book does is alternating from the present to the past. It was pretty easy to figure out which one had the secret identity.

The story does drag some. At times making it hard to want to keep reading. For me the past was stronger; as it told the tragic story to the reveal. Also, because the present had most of the characters I didn't like. Getting to the half way mark was slow reading but if you do stick with this book, it does pick up in the latter part of the story.

Frances Metcalfe is basically friendless and ostracized by the snooty moms
in her son's school until one day she meets the new arrival to the neighborhood Kate. The two quickly become the best of friends although something always seems just a bit off. While Kate dotes on her son and on Frances she seems to have no interest or time for her daughter Daisy. Both of these women have secrets in their past but is one of them a sociopath? A murderer? Even if you figure out who is who before the end, and you probably will, this story is still juicier than a soap opera and moves a lot faster. I loved it. 5 stars. A perfect guilty pleasure.

She was insecure, an outcast in a world of beautiful, self-assured people with perfect children. The life makeover Frances Metcalfe hoped for when her troubled son was accepted at a prestigious private school only further isolated and unnerved her.

Then she met Kate Randolph and Frances finally had a true friend, an ally. The beautiful, self-assured woman was warm, interested and caring, but one of them has a heinous past, that once revealed will threaten to tear these women apart.

We never know what lurks in a person’s past, what makes them who they are today. For some, a defining moment becomes a catalyst to living better, for others, it is merely part of a cloak of deceit to hide behind.

HER PRETTY FACE by Robyn Harding is a chilling tale that shares flashbacks of the past while filling in events of the present as two women bond over motherhood, disdain for snobbery and, in reality, never quite fitting in.

While intriguing moments are peppered throughout, particularly in the flashbacks to the past, I found the “present day” characters to be just a little flat. Cleverly woven subplots add interest, and some difficult decisions must be made, but were they the correct ones?

An interesting way to spend a few hours away from reality, with some horrendous past events that felt unbalanced with the present, which seemed more one woman’s personal soap opera. But, it does beg the question, “Do we ever really know the people around us?”

I received a complimentary ARC edition from Gallery/Scout Press.

Publisher: Gallery/Scout Press (July 10, 2018)
Publication Date: July 10, 2018
Genre: Women's Fiction
Print Length: 352 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
For Reviews, Giveaways, Fabulous Book News, follow: http://tometender.blogspot.com

Two women meet at their child’s private. One is outgoing and flamboyant with an older daughter she seems to care little about and a son who can do no wrong. The other is painfully shy and obsessive about her own son. The boy it seems has no friends so his mother is thrilled when the mega watt mom takes a liking. The two women and their sons become fast friends, or do they? Neither woman is who she seems, and when the cracks start to show how far will they go to cover their pasts?

This book is well written and will keep you wanting more. I lived it and I hope you will too.

I could not put this book down and read it in one night. There were many great reveals and even when I thought I knew what was going on, things would get twisted or turned slightly upside down. I don't want to spoil a moment of this book, it is a perfect summer read!

'She was having a girls’ day out. Like other women did. Like women whose children didn’t require special diets and structured routines and constant research into treatments and behavioral modification therapies.'

Frances Metcalfe clings to the hope that life will be better now that her troubled son is accepted into Forrester Academy, but like all the elite places in the world, it too has it’s hierarchy and one that doesn’t easily forgive children who deviate from the norm. When her son Marcus gets back at a student for bullying him, it’s vile and ‘disturbing’ to the child’s mother and any chance of fitting in seems lost forever, once again they are outcasts. Frances may as well be back in school herself, unlike the wealthy parents she and her husband have modest means, a second mortgage on their house to afford their son’s tuition, anything to help him get a ‘clean slate’ and flourish as he begins middle school. Unlike her handsome, charming husband she is nothing like the other mother’s, not at 5 feet and carrying excess weight, she’s never going to fit in. With their disapproval, she is sinking further into depression. Her social anxiety is at an all time high and the other women aren’t even attempting to make it easy on her. Then salvation arrives, in the form of Kate Randolph.

Kate doesn’t worry so much what the other mother’s think, she is just as beautiful and wealthy as any of the mothers. She doesn’t need anyone’s approval, in fact she enjoys sparring with the other mothers, cutting them down to size which is exactly what she does to Alison Moss in support of her new friend. When Kate’s around, the weight of the world is lifted and why she accepts Frances in all her awkward glory is a mystery, even Kate’s son Charles is the opposite of Marcus, naturally loved by everyone and like a godsend when her son has a meltdown. Charles and Kate save the day, finally her son has someone at school who is in his corner. Nothing could warm her heart more, after years of therapy and struggle, it’s such a welcome site she could cry. For once, she has found support, a mother and son who don’t treat her son like a freak. Could life finally be turning around for the better?

The two form a deep bond, Kate pushing Frances to tap into her wild side. Not all of their fun is ‘harmless’. Kate’s daughter Daisy knows her mother has another side, that she has high expectations of her, Charles is the apple of her eye while Daisy feels unwanted. Daisy should have a perfect life, “Girls who looked like Daisy were instantly popular, no matter the defects in their personality.” So why is she so sad, and distant from her mother, whom she looks so much like? Moving around so much takes its toll, and teenaged Daisy is flirting with her own disaster. Both Kate and Frances have dark secrets, ones that makes it wise to keep one’s guard up but both are vulnerable with the other, the trouble is one of them is a cold-blooded murderer. Just whose secret is the most devastating?

DJ is a character that wants justice, just a child when his sister was brutally murdered. Amber Kunik is at the heart of the tragedy, and he refuses to forget her. The novel has short chapters that reach into the past, the trial of Shane Nelson for her murder. The moment that changed the entire trajectory of Dj’s life.

Both women are hiding from something, or someone. Each are haunted by the transgressions of their youth that have cost other people everything. Someone is going to uncover their devastatingly shocking secrets, and neither family will be the same. The bonds of their friendship will be tested, just how much do they really know about each other?

This story was engaging and sad. Any mother can empathize with Frances and her struggles with her son. What mother doesn’t want their child to thrive, to be happy and have friendships. In any child with difficulties it’s the little things that make or break your heart, the slights and rejections are just as brutal an attack on a mother’s heart as the child’s. Lacking the confidence to stand up to the ‘in crowd’ (let’s face it, the popularity contest in school can be just as ridiculous in the adult world) who wouldn’t welcome the edgier Kate? Kate’s life is by no means perfect either, she has her own issues that Daisy has a knack for putting a spotlight on. Both women are deeply damaged in different ways. Dj breaks your heart, his story gets tangled in theirs and his own plans go wildly awry, and still it’s hard not to feel for him too. This book evoked both horror and sympathy.

Shocking, brutal and sad both women are guilty but which one can be forgiven? What will it cost the children when revenge comes to call?

Publication Date: July 10. 2018

Gallery, Threshold, Pocket Books

Gallery/Scout Press

Her Pretty Face is the first novel of Robyn Harding's I've read and it certainly won't be the last! The title alone sets it apart from it's girl-in-the-title counterparts, but is on par with the best in this category. Harding jumps back and forth in time without confusion and creates all the right characters we want and need. From the beginning, we know either Frances or Kate has a questionable past, but what gets revealed as the book progresses is not something readers can predict. Her Pretty Face is the Big Little Lies meets The Girl Before meets Chevy Stevens that should not be missed!

Meet Frances Metcalfe. A mom of a special needs child, which has become her full-time position. After a shaky start at the snobby Forrester Academy, he's made a friend. Unlike Frances, who is riddled with guilt she can't share and looked down on by the snooty moms at the school and has not one friend.

Meet Kate Randolph. Beautiful, confident with a son she also adores and who becomes Marcus's best friend and a good influence on his behavior issues. And miracle of miracles Kate doesn't want to be friends with the upper crust at school. She wants to be friends with Frances.

But there is something off about the Randolph's. While Kate dotes on her son, her daughter is pretty much forgotten. Until she needs Frances to bail her out of some trouble and that is when Frances finds out Kate is not who she says she is and is keeping an awful secret of her own. Not just from the world, but from her own daughter.

Asking the questions, Can people really ever change who they are at their core? And if so, can they be forgiven for the sins they committed? After reading this one, I'm not so sure anymore!

Great Read. And just twisty enough!

Netgalley/July 10th 2018 by Gallery/Scout Press

This was a pretty good psych thriller. There are some pretty obvious red herrings so you can guess which lady is the real criminal, but I have to say the book keeps you guessing until the end what the extent of her guilt might be. I recommend if you are into this genre.

A great read! Totally engrossing. After reading just a few pages I was hooked. Unputdownable. The ending was a complete surprise to me. I enjoyed reading this book. I want to read everything that this author has written. Highly recommended.

A perfect title and a perfect story! Robyn Harding is an incredible storyteller. I spent my day off reading this book from cover to cover because I couldn’t put it down. I liked how the story is told in three POV’s, and each one is fascinating and well done. Frances Metcalf and Kate Rudolph are both complex women battling demons from their past. Harding does a great job evolving the two main characters and pulling the reader deeper and deeper into the personal battles going on within each of them. The secondary characters are well developed and contribute to a better understanding of what drives both Frances and Kate. The story is very realistic and was an entertaining read. Frances’s and Kate’s stories are told in the present, but DJ’s point of view is in the past. The author does a wonderful job of fusing that past story into the present at the end of the novel. I found the story intriguing because there were little surprises along the way as to how everything interrelated. This book would be great for a book club discussion because the author does such an amazing job of portraying the characters that they evoke a wide spectrum of emotion in the reader. Some readers may feel a sense of justice and others will have great empathy for the characters. When an author is able to elicit such a range of emotions, she’s created a remarkable story.

What a throughly addictive read! Even though I found this to be predictable, this is the first mystery book in 2018 that completely captured my attention and kept me entertained from start to finish! I think I'll definitely be looking out for this one when it's released for sale.
This will be the perfect, short summer read if you're looking to read an engaging mystery that may not shock you or blow your mind, but it will deliver fast-paced thrills.

Find my complete review of Her Pretty Face on my blog: gabyviem.blogspot.com

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

** spoiler alert ** Great book although I did guess some of it before it was revealed.

I wish there had been more from Amber’s perspective... and her whole disconnect from
Daisy felt off. For someone trying to put on a good show, her disinterest and coolness towards her daughter just felt strange.

She’s supposed to be a sociopath, I guess, but without knowing all that entails I wonder how much of her behavior was from that. She seemed rather normal other than her relationship with her daughter. In fact, the power moms were welcoming to Frances only after Amber friended her.

Anyway, good and quick read. Perfect summer thriller!

There was really only one “wow” factor in this book, but there was the potential for so much more.

I’m sure this book is fabulous for some, but it just fell short for me. The suspense wasn’t built up to all it could have been, and everything just kind of went along seamlessly.

I would have loved a little more drama and action towards the end, or at least a bit more excitement. The way this book ends is more of a fizzle than a firework.

I’m struggling to go more in-depth about why I didn’t like this book, but I don’t want to post spoilers and honestly, the more I think about it the more I feel like it was just blasé.

At times Her Pretty Face by Robyn Harding seems like a YA book and at others not so much. The pages go by fast as the reader is compelled to see what is on the next page. This is a "let me read one more chapter" kind of story. I will be looking forward to the next book by this author. I was given an early copy of the book to review.

<u>Her Pretty Face</u> was a great read! The story is told from 3 different characters’ point of view, but each was well-developed and unique. It kept me hooked from beginning to end. I really liked how DJ’s point of view from the past and in the midst of the criminal proceedings. It helped to break up the story. I thought that Frances’ character was so relatable! Semi-introverted mother lacking in self-confidence – I’ll be your friend Frances! Great storytelling that kept you guessing!

You need this book if you are looking for a intensely readable domestic drama in the vein of Liane Moriarty, but perhaps a little darker.

<i>Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review</i>.