This is one book where I really hated the main character but could not stop reading her story. A sign of an excellent writer where the character grabs you into the story. The ending could have been handled better but a good suspense story as you never knew what Juliette/Lily/Elizabeth would do next.

This gripping thriller — named one of PopSugar’s 10 Books by Debut Authors to Watch in 2019 — has big screen written all over it. It’s a chiller from the get-go as the truly nuts ex-girlfriend Juliette stops at nothing to get once-beau Nate back. After they break up she cleans his house unbeknownst to him when he’s not there, stocks his fridge with his fave foods, becomes a flight attendant at the airplane where he’s a pilot to be near him. It adds psychological nuance too as Juliette has been badly hurt in the past and is written compellingly, sympathetically. Keeps you up ‘til the wee smalls as you page furiously to find out: What will Juliette do? 5/5 stars

Pub Date 26 Mar 2019

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#ThePerfectGirlfriend #NetGalley

I have a few people to thank for my copies of The Perfect Girlfriend...Netgally, Goodreads, and Harlequin Books!  I didn't realize I had this on Netgalley so I tried to win it on Goodreads...and won.  Whoops!  However, it did provide for a fun buddy read with my co-worker!  I shared the love!  Here's my honest review in exchange for the free copies!

If you were to look up the definition of a crazy psycho ex-girlfriend a picture of Juliette would be what you would find!  WOAH.  Just when you think she couldn't be more of a stalker, there she goes, doing something else batshat crazy!

She adores her ex-boyfriend.  She will do ANYTHING to make him hers again.  The ironic thing is that Juliette thinks she is completely normal and is doing nothing wrong.  Put it this way...Nate, the ex-boyfriend, is a pilot so when they break up she decides to become a flight attendant for the same company he flies for.  

She keeps track of him through his work schedule.  She somehow has an extra key to his house and freely roams about when he's flying.  She also manages to get a spying app on his phone so she can see what he is always doing!!!

I won't say too much more about the book because I don't want to give anything away, but I think I read this book with my jaw open the entire time.  It was absolutely crazy!  Since I was doing this as a buddy read every day the two of us would be, "CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT?!?!"

I have to give a lot of credit to Karen Hamilton for what her imagination conjured up...although I have to wonder if she was once a crazy ex-girlfriend herself, haha, just kidding!!  I would like to note she is happily married with children (yes, I looked it up) so we can all rest easy!

Juliette is everything a devastated ex-girlfriend is; jealous, envious, and revengeful.  The things she does will leave you speechless.

Here's where it gets tricky...rating.  I love a solid ending.  The Perfect Girlfriend doesn't have it.  I was left a little miffed with how it ended.  On the other side, I know people (one of my good friends included) who would LOVE how it ends.  I don't want to say how it ends, but just know if you read it you'll understand.  Would I say not to read it because of the ending?  No, what Juliette does is well worth a read because it's unimaginable.  I think I'm just miffed because what I think should have happened to Juliette didn't.  Looking at it from my friend's perspective, I get it.  It was still a very well written suspenseful, thrilling novel.  Well, I guess that settles it then.  4 stars.

Oh my word, what a crazy woman. And I mean that literally. The author has great skill, because although Juliette/Lilly/Elizabeth is certifiably insane, I actually cared about her and was rooting for her throughout the book. In the end I didn't think things went quite far enough, but it ended decently.
I felt terrible that her past had affected her in such a way that she essentially devoted her entire life to revenge. She seemed like she had it together on the surface and could hold her own in many situations. Yet...wow, I couldn't believe many of the things that she actually did so brazenly!
I started out listening to this one on audio, but finished with print. The narrator is awesome and gives the main character a fantastic voice that is both chilling and occasionally warming at the same time.
The author also did a wonderful job keeping everything within the realm of believability. This tale could easily have devolved into eye-rolling territory, but Hamilton keeps things reined in (albeit the main character does so many incredible things that I would never do, I still totally believed that they could happen under the right circumstances with the right person)

Juliette has been patient. She's moved into a cruddy apartment and has been waiting patiently for Nate to come to his senses. For him to realize that they are meant to be together.

When his realizations don't come fast enough, Juliette takes matters into her own hands. Still giving him space, she gets a job at the same airline as him. Although they are not coworkers, she's careful to take flights he's not on for the time being.

What she doesn't count on is him meeting someone new and that simply won't do. See what Juliette will do to keep the man he loves in this suspenseful tale of what one woman will do for true love.

The Perfect Girlfriend is the perfect plane read! I devoured this book on a long-haul flight. The fact that it includes a flight attendant as a main character makes it even better to read on a plane.

As much as I really did not like other, similar books with stalker narrators (You and Looker), this book was a bit more nuanced and convincing. I still had difficulty believing the ending although the plot line and story in general had me hooked. The other two were just fraught with such disturbing protagonists that they were difficult to enjoy. With this novel, it was a thriller and the protagonist was awful to be honest, but more believable due to the bullying she endured in high school and history with the other characters. This background made the story much more convincing. I also liked that she was patient and planned her strategy rather than just winging it and getting lucky.
Although there were features that are just personal preferences that aren’t my favorite, this book kept me turning the pages so overall it was compelling, especially for a debut novel. I wish the author good luck for future work!

#ThePerfectGirlfriend #NetGalley

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was torn between being horrified by Lily/Juliette and feeling sorry for her. She is both a character who invites empathy and takes crazy to a whole new level.

Elizabeth was jilted by her boyfriend. She reinvents herself as Juliette, takes a job in the same company as her ex then, relentlessly spies on and stalks him, all in the name of love and winning him back. On the surface, this sounds like the making of a fantastically twisted suspense. For me, the pacing was just off. Rather than a big build up, Juliette read as a narcissist stuck in a virtual Groundhog Day of stalking behavior. This was readable, but just fell flat for me with not enough action.

A perfect pulse pounding thrilling that will take obsession to a whole new level. This novel blew me away with every twist and turn. The sheer obsession this girl has as she tries to get Nate back goes beyond any movie I've seen and book I've read. My only complaint would be that the ending felt abrupt. I would of liked a more detailed tied up ending but it was still good.

This book was so good that I can't believe it's a debut novel. This was a totally twisted love story that gives a new meaning to being obsessed with someone.

Hey. She is the perfect girlfriend and she will never let him go. Exactly. Juliette loves Nate. It is that simple, isn't it? Unfortunately, not so. But Juliette will go to any lengths necessary to make Nate realize how much he loves and needs her. For starters, Juliette becomes a flight attendant on Nate's airline, where he is a pilot, simply to be close to him. Now, it is only a matter of time for Nate to realize what a huge mistake he made breaking up with her six months ago.

This may be a familiar trope of an attraction that could and very well become fatal. But I did love how Karen Hamilton developed this novel. Not only do we have Juliette and her extreme focus on winning Nate back, but we have a bevy of other characters that just know something is more than a bit off, yet somehow seem rather reluctant to stop what is going on.

The Perfect Girlfriend was a quick read. I am ecstatic that it is a debut novel, because it clues the reader in as to what this new author's talents are. She developed a fast-paced, almost ridiculous read with characters that you couldn't like even if you tried. Kudos! I loved the fact that the book was written in first-person giving the reader opportunity to temporarily dwell in the mind of a loon. I will certainly be around for the next one.

Many thanks to Graydon House Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

Oh, how I love an unreliable narrator! The market has been filled with them over the past several years; what sets this book apart is the fact that the reader knows the narrator is unreliable / batshit crazy, but the narrator sees her behaviour as totally acceptable. It is amazing how much I loved this take on the unreliable narrator.

That's not to say the book wasn't without its faults: some of the actions seemed just way too out there to be actually legit, but this is the same girl who spent months training for a new skill set so she could infiltrate her ex-boyfriend's life in EVERY POSSIBLE WAY. The extent that she would go to ensure she stayed in his life was over-the-top, but NOT TO HER. I'm actually gleeful just thinking about it. And then, to find out her motivations are even more deeply rooted was just icing on the cake.

Easily one of the more compelling psychological thrillers I have read in a while. Well done, Karen Hamilton. Slow clap

This book was very slow in beginning. Picked up towards middle but not enough. It was an ok read. I expected more suspense for this book.

This book was CRAZY... crazy good. The obsession and fixation was NEXT LEVEL. It kept me turning the pages with vigor, all the way through the twists and turns and unpredictable end. Holy wow! I don't even know what to say!

This storyline pulled me in from the very beginning. I couldn’t put it down. The lengths Juliette would go to so that she could try to work things the way she wanted became more and more frantic. I couldn’t wait to find out just how far she would go. There were definitely many “She wouldn’t! Did she really think that would work!” moments. There were a few parts of the storyline that I felt could have been fleshed out a little more and I was left lacking a little on. Thank you NetGalley for an opportunity to review this book in exchange for honest opinion.

I received this book in exchange for a honest review from NetGalley

The Perfect Girlfriend, by Karen Hamilton, is an engrossing story that centers on obsession and revenge. Juliette is a narrator that will keep you on your toes and guessing what she will do next, and it's absolutely brilliant! The novel is told through Juliette's eyes, which causes readers to question everything and hold their breaths to how her schemes and plans progress. A great read for fans of psychological thrillers!

I read a few reviews about Karen Hamilton's "The Perfect Girlfriend" that likened it to Caroline Kepnes' "You." I'm pretty obsessed with the guilty-pleasure Netflix series of the same title. If you haven't seen it or read the book, do both. You won't regret it. In "The Perfect Girlfriend", the plot isn't far off from the comparison--Juliette is an extremely unwell woman struggling with the recent break up with her soul-mate pilot boyfriend, Nate. She's convinced if she orchestrates just the right amount of coincidence mixed with destiny mixed with neurosis, she'll show him just how meant-to-be they are.

The plot is interesting enough. I LOVE a good unreliable narrator who does bad, bad things but makes us root for her to get away with it. What's lacking here is a sense of urgency. The writing moves along almost lackadaisically; Juliette is constantly scheming and setting things into motion, but the pace drags and I'm bored with her constant side games. By the time we reach the ridiculous (and positively delightful) Vegas scheme, the climaxing action isn't enough to redeem the snails crawl of repetitive Nate-dodging afterward. After a while, I stopped wanting to pick the book back up after I'd fallen asleep on my iPad trying to read it every night. When it takes me longer than a month to finish a thriller, I know I'm just not interested. I DNFed this one and I don't regret it.

If you ever wanted to know the beginnings of the bunny-boiler, this is it! This is a thrilling novel of obsession, relationships and self-awareness. The twists and turns are magnetic and the overall feel is that of equal parts dread and anticipation. This is a book that really makes you wonder, how far is too far and blurs the line forever. I could not put it down!

The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton

book 34/105 for 2019
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“If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, they’re yours. If they don’t, make them.”
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Juliette loves Nate. The fact that Nate broke up with her 6 months ago is nothing to Juliette. She has a Plan of Action to get her “true love” to take her back so she can prove she is the perfect girlfriend. Juliette sets out on her plan of action starting with becoming a flight attendant on the same airline where Nate is a Pilot. She uses her position as a flight attendant to her stalkerish advantage and puts her plan into place. There is nothing that could stop Juliette.

Review: I was so excited to receive an ARC of this book. I am a big suspense/thriller fan and this book sounded so promising! I was sure it was going to become a favorite. Well, I was wrong. A book that started off strong quickly fell short for me with its far fetched and highly unrealistic plot. The first half I was intrigued and curious to see where the book would go, but by the second half it had unraveled and took a weird turn. Maybe it’s because I read so many thrillers that this one couldn’t hold a candle?! I’m well versed in having to suspend reality to an extent with some books, but this one was even too unrealistic for that. I will say, it did keep my reading and it was a fast paced book. I waited for a major twist that never happened and I was disappointed at the ending.

This was just an “ok” book for me. I think some people will really love it and if it’s on your bookshelf I say give it a shot, you may be one of them!

My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (3 stars)