The Perfect Friend by Barbara Copperthwaite is quite a clever mystery, and though it started a bit slower than I expected, the pace really picked up about halfway and I had a hard time putting it down then!
The story starts with Alex, a woman going through a rough time. She is not in good health and is trying to recover as she deals with some overwhelming personal issues. I don't want to give away too many details regarding the plot, because there were quite a few twists I wouldn't want to spoil for anyone. Alex meets Carrie, a young woman suffering from cancer, and they become fast friends. Something, however, is not quite right with Carrie and as Alex begins to investigate, she has to face and reveal some of her own secrets.
The strong point of this book, for me at least, was the way Alex developed as a character. I am such a character-based reader and found myself wanting to learn more about both Alex and Carrie. I have been reading so much crime fiction this summer, some of the stories are blurring together, but I think The Perfect Friend will be quite memorable because of the strong description of the characters. The plot is engaging, but I did guess quite a few of the twists before they came. I didn't really mind this, as I mention, my heavy fare of mysteries has possibly spoiled the unpredictability of many books these days. That being said, I was never bored. I did wish some of the figures in authority had respected Alex's concerns more and not dismissed her on account of her illness, but maybe it's not unrealistic.
Overall, I found this to be a satisfying, solidly plotted and written mystery by an author I will happily read again in the future!

I am torn between really enjoying this book and being disappointed in the ending.
Alex is in a support group to deal with her anorexia. She is a forty year old, divorced mother of 2 who feels more in control of herself when she controls her eating. Her kids don't believe anything she says and her husband won't speak to her. (But, she also calls herself a liar throughout the whole first few chapters, so what is the truth?) She befriends a young girl named Carrie that is terminal with cancer. (Again, is this true?)
When bizarre notes and behavior start showing up around Carrie, Alex must decided what is true. Or whether she is crazy.
Interesting premise. Solid plot.

Alex is a recovering anorexic whose condition has caused her to be estranged from her family. She attends a local support group where she meets Carrie, who is suffering from terminal cancer. Alex is drawn to Carrie and the two become close friends, seemingly perfectly suited – Alex with all the motherly love to give to Carrie who desperately needs it. But neither are as they seem and they are both hiding things that, if discovered, are bound to destroy their friendship. Alex is the first to become suspicious when Carrie is not as grateful as she was hoping she would be after her amazing bucket-list fundraising efforts. As she starts to dig a little deeper into Carries life, she realises that she isn’t the only one keeping secrets from her past.

I really enjoyed this story. It had me coming to conclusions that were ultimately wrong and will really make you think twice about whether to believe everything people tell you.. even close friends! I don’t want to say anymore because this was such a brilliant, slowly (but not too slowly!) unfolding story that drew me right in, I don’t want to spoil any of it for anyone! My first book by Barbara, but I will definitely be reading more.

5 Perfect Stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

“I lie to myself all The time. But I never believe me.“
~S.E.Hinton

This book was quite the ride! Two unreliable narrators for the price of one, got to love that! Barbara Copperthwaite how in the world do you come up with this stuff, this was crazy! Also how long did it take you to learn to spell that last name? that last name is crazy long! Do you ever look at somebody’s last name and think... thank goodness I did not need to learn to spell that in kindergarten... my last name has a total of four letters so I was lucky! Nobody can pronounce it, but it’s easy to spell... but I digress....

Alex and Carrie met at a support group... Alex has reached rock bottom her husband and children want nothing to do with her, and she has developed adult anorexia... Carrie has terminal cancer... Alex and Carrie form a bond a tight friendship... they rely on each other... they need each other... and they trust each other implicitly... sounds lovely, right? The problem... both Alex and Carrie have a little problem with telling the truth.... this is the true brilliance of this book... I did not believe a single word that came out of either of these girls mouths.... and I thoroughly enjoyed trying to unravel the puzzle of what was true and what was a lie....

This was a book that had you second-guessing everything... finding suspicion in everything... there were twists and turns and just when you thought you had it all figured out... not so fast... BAM that final twist!

Absolutely recommend to fans of a twisty psychological thriller with two seriously unreliable narrators🤥🤥

*** many thanks to Bookouture for my copy of this book ***

Is it me or is it the book? I fail to understand...

I do not know what to say about this book. I liked the premise and the story line. I liked the twists and the fast pace. I liked how anorexia and bulimia is dealt with.

I liked how the author Barbara Copperthwaite writes the prose. I liked the detailing and the sensitivity. I liked how the characters thought and how they played. I liked the con, the double con and the conner becoming the connee and the connee being in double blind (if such words exist, otherwise I am totally owning them!). I liked the possibilities and permeabilities of the story. I liked how physical abuse can take a toll. I liked how each react to it.

Then came these thoughts which niggled me and wormed into my brain.. Where is the WHAM!! Where is the plot which hits me right between my eyes? Where is the story that steals my breath away? Where is the ending which gives me shivers into the night? Where are my gasps and my screams? Where are my palpitations and heart gallops? Where are the characters which are wolves in sheep's clothing? Where is the psychology behind this thriller which shocks my brain? Where is the WHAM? Hence I ask the question

Is it me or is it the book?
A Thriller-y read in parts

When everyone knows you are a liar, don’t expect them to believe you when you tell the truth…

Wow, what a twisty read The Perfect Friend by Barbara Copperthwaite is!!! About 20% in, I found myself thinking, what is this book? And then by 50% in I could barely put the book down! This was my first book by Copperthwaite, but several reviewers who’ve read her other work say that readers should always expect twists and secrets and lies. And boy, were they right!!!

About the Book

Alex is trying to rebuild her life. Her husband has left her. Her kids won’t speak to her. And alone in the world, Alex turns to restricting her eating in order to gain some semblance of control over her life. And then she makes friends with Carrie. Carrie is the best friend and daughter that Alex desperately wants back in her life. And Carrie also has terminal cancer... Alex finally feels needed.

Alex is the perfect friend for Carrie, but Alex is also a self-proclaimed liar. Alex becomes more and more dependent on her relationship with Carrie. But is Carrie the friend Alex thinks she is??

Reflection

I hate to say this, but I actually can’t say much about this book! I know, I know, it drives me nuts when reviews say that. But this one will go in its own direction and I am terrified of spoiling it! Just enjoy it. Get through the beginning (which is covered in my recap). Once the twists start, they won’t stop. I’m actually so excited for people who haven’t read this book yet!

Alex is a fascinating character. She calls herself a liar. She says she can’t be trusted. But she also is incredibly honest at times. Alex is so vulnerable. She is a person who is almost overwhelmed by life. She uses external control to manage her darkest demons. She has almost too much love to give. Her relationship with Carrie is completely bonkers. But there is something sweet about their friendship. There is something hopeful about two lost souls finding one another at the their time of need.

But then, you can throw all of that out the window once those secrets start coming out! No one is telling the full truth. But the key is figuring out what are the secrets and what are the lies!!

Thank you to Bookouture and to Barbara Copperthwaite for a copy of this book to review.

Secrets and lies... And even more secrets and lies! Who can you trust?

The book follows two women, Alex and Carrie, who met in a support group. They became best friends from the day they met. With Alex suffering from anorexia and her family not speaking to her, and Carrie dealing with terminal cancer and being all alone, they were each other's support system. They really are perfect friends... But should they be? Can they trust one another?

The Perfect Friend is a dark, twisted, and entertaining read that has an ending you won't see coming. A great psychological thriller that I highly recommend!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

Thank you for providing me with this to read. IT was fab! Couldn't put it down, and was definitely one of the best psychological thrillers I've read for a while. READ IT!

Love, love, love it.

Full of lies and secrets, simply unbelievable and believable at the same time! We all have some hidden secrets of the past, small ones, bigger ones, dark ones…. Stuff we won’t tell and definitely don’t want others to find out but nothing beats this book.

Story of two friends joined by their own traumas, opening up to each other and letting one another into their past and secrets, but not all of them… There is so much more to tell, to reveal and surprise you as story goes on. Who is compulsive liar? Who is hiding dark past? Can you just lay your cards on the table and hope the other one does the same? Can sharing your troubles and worries help you to move on and start a new life?

I won’t give you the answers but this book just might. There was so much going on that at times I had to scroll back and check if I read it correctly as things weren’t adding up. But everything will slot in to the right place, at the right time or maybe there is more to tell?

I really enjoyed it, story that kept me on my toes and made me question everything and everyone. Just the way the thriller should be written in my opinion so if you can, go on, treat yourself and grab a copy now!

The third book I’ve read by this author. I really enjoyed the other two but this one, it kind of annoyed me and bored me a little. I persevered because I liked the previous books and would have felt bad to give up on it, but could easily have given up half way through.
Lies, deceit and two unreliable narrators. I need to give this genre a miss for a few months I think.
Thanks to Bookouture for the review copy, although I won’t be leaving an Amazon review or featuring on my blog.

Holy thriller! Gripping, enthralling tail of 2 ladies who have a very bad habit of lying. One lies about who she is, where her family really is, what she is truly is. The other lies about who exactly she is. With the tangled web of lies, you get confused then it is righted again. It keeps you guessing from the very first page to the last and you will never guess the true ending. Exciting read all the way around!

This is a new author for me and wow, what a twisted tale she can spin! For a good portion of the book it was a hard to decipher what was really happening. Both Alex and Carrie were excellent at hiding secrets. Piece by piece their secrets unravel for a shocking conclusion. Anyone who loves a psychological thriller will enjoy this book. Recommended!

Thanks to netgalley for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book and I thought it was well written. For awhile I thought this was going to be too reminiscent of other books I had recently read like Woman In the Window, but it ended up being different enough from those books that it didn't feel repetitive. I didn't know which of the characters were lying and whether I could trust the account given by Alex, the narrator. I liked the author's style and found the book to be an easy and enjoyable read. The chapters were short and the story moved along. It wasn't laborious at any point. I would read more from this author.

If you are looking for a book that will have you sitting on the edge of your seat in eager anticipation as to what will happen next then read this book.

If you are looking for a story that will have you guessing throughout as to who is lying and who is telling the truth, and not knowing who to trust, then look no further, read this book.

Barbara literally has such a way with words that she just draws you in right from the beginning and brings the whole story alive, completely gluing you to your seat so as you don't want to stop reading until you reach the very last page. Which is exactly what she has done with this amazing book.

There was a fair few moments when I gasped at what I was reading and a lot of oh my gods, really or wow didn't see that coming. It was a real page turner and just when you think you know what is going to happen next, you get the unexpected.

As for the characters, again they were very well written and highly executed, they were all so detailed, in-depth and completely believeable.

I was truly captivated and enthralled with this book and throughout reading it, I kept trying to piece everything together in my head, and figure it all out, and wondering how it would all end. Suffice to say I couldn't have been more wrong if I tried.  Absolutely amazing and a brilliant ending.

As for the whole concept of friendship, this book really does make you wonder and makes you want to question everything you've ever known about your friends. This book seriously got under my skin, but in a completely good and addictive way lol.

To all readers out there, you soooo need to read this book.

The Perfect Friend has to be up there with one the best books i have read this year,a gripping psychological thriller that left me completely hooked as to what the next page would bring.Alex has lost her husband and children and meets Carrie at a therapy group.Carrie is suffering from terminal cancer and the two become firm friends bonded together by their past lives.But is everything truth or lies ? and can they really trust each other ? packed with twists and turns on nearly every page you are left with a feeling of who is actually telling the truth.A superb thriller once again by Barbara Copperthwaite which will leave you stunned. A .5 star read without a doubt !!

Wow, just wow!! What an excellent book! Alex and Carrie are both members of a support group, Alex because she is estranged from her family and is a recovering anorexic, Carrie because she has terminal cancer. The two women develop a firm friendship, Alex sees herself as a mother figure to Carrie to replace her estranged twins who are rarely in contact with her due to past family difficulties. However, when the two women become entangled in each others lives, the outcome goes way beyond what either of them could have ever expected!
There were quite a few occasions when I was just gobsmacked with this book. I love it when a book takes you completely by surprise and you have to rethink everything you have been led to believe. Some of the actions the characters took in their past made me want to slap them and say get a grip for goodness sake!
Very hard to review without giving anything away, so I will just say if you are a fan of convoluted, mess with your head, psychological thrillers, you have to read this one. A fantastic read.

Wowee, when it comes to twistiness, this author has got it sussed! What a great read this is, bending your mind this way and that until you don't know which way is up and by the time I got to the end I felt like my mind had been in the tumble drier.

The story follows Alex and Carrie and events which call their friendship into question. You know, I can't say much more than that because it would give the game away! Suffice to say, not much about this people is what it seems!

The writing flows along at a great place, the writing is concise and so easy to read you just get wrapped up in the story. And the plotting is fabulous. I had completely misread the situation. Wonderful stuff. I will definitely be reading more by this author!

Now it’s no secret that Barbara Copperthwaite is one of my favourite authors and I am always waiting eagerly for her newest release. Thankfully I didn’t have to wait long before I could read The Perfect Friend; I have to admit that I read this book a few weeks ago but have been sitting on my review as I was simply lost for words! Once again I was blown away by the twists and turns and struggled to formulate my thoughts.

The Perfect Friend is a story about love, lies, friendship and how far we will go to believe our version of the truth. Alex (a recovering anorexic) who is estranged from her husband and children meets Carrie who has terminal cancer in a local support group. For reasons unknown to us Alex feels she needs to make amends with Carrie and is prepared to do anything to make her happy. This motherly love is obviously misplaced, a relationship that Alex’s therapist is not comfortable with her having. There are events in her past that Alex needs to come to term with but instead she shifts her focus to pleasing Carrie which does no favours for her delicate mental health. This book deals with a number of difficult issues including anorexia, cancer and domestic abuse. All of which are dealt with empathetically.

It is difficult to say much more without spoiling the enjoyment for others, but if you love an unreliable narrator and a book with more twists than a really twisty thing go buy The Perfect Friend. Once again the author has written a book that kept me guessing until the last page and even then left me gobsmacked! Another five stars from me!

My name is Ales, and my works has been shattered. My husband has left me. My children won't speak to me. My friend Carrie is the only person I have. She's the only one I can trust to keep all my secrets.

Alex has anorexia. She met Carrie at a support group. Carrie has terminal cancer and she also has no one she can depend on. Carrie is trying to make the most of whatever time she has left. Alex is estranged from her family and she is also old enough to be Carries mother. But despite the age gap, the women have become close. This is another one of these books where you can't say much more as it would give far too much of the plot away. And oh what a plot it is!

Well, there was parts of this book that I never saw coming, but you will need to read this tense, well written, gripping edge of your seat read to find out what they are. The story is told by both of the main characters points of view. I liked the thrill of the chase feel to this story. At first I liked and felt sorry for both Alex and Carrie, then I disliked them both in equal measures for different reasons. I do recommend this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Bookouture and the author Barbara Copperthwaite for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5
This was different and entertaining! I found some parts surprising (not the first twist but I didn’t see it coming for a while) but other confused me. I liked the support group setting. I haven’t seen that one.

The story does set the stage and then stalls for a minute or two but when it picks up it takes you for a fun ride! It was hard trying to figure out who to trust, if anyone??

The ending was a bit strange but oddly satisfying for me. I will check out the other books by this author. I would recommend this book. Thanks to NetGalley, Bookouture, and the author for a copy in exchange for a review.