This book ended in an interesting way, but it took a while to get there. This story was a really slow start. Loved the ending and the twist.

Friends Like These is a fast-paced thriller with incredible twists that you won’t see coming. The narrative from both Becca and Lizzie’s points of view give it extra depth, and I read it in one sitting, as I was so eager to find out the ending. Highly recommended for a bit of escapism!

What an excellent storyline. The plot was gripping and unpredictable. We are all engrossed by social media and this is a warning to us all. Don't believe everything you read. I really enjoyed this book so well done Sarah Alderson I am looking forward to your next one.

FRIENDS LIKE THESE by SARAH ALDERSEN

I was reading this in bed at night and found one big problem. It is quite a page turner and found that I couldn’t sleep and just kept on reading through the night so ended up reading it over the course of three nights! The flow of the story is very fast and keeps you gripped until the end. There is some predictability in what happens especially as the beginning is the transcript of the telephone call from Lizzie to the emergency services so it was clear that a murder was going to take place but the reasons for it and the way it happens unravel as the book unfold.
The idea that an incorrectly sent Facebook post can cause such mayhem is not a new one but the twists and turns throughout keep you absorbed. It was particularly gripping at the end when Becca is captured and taken back to the house in London.
A couple of criticisms is that all the characters are quite unpleasant and totally narcissistic from Becca to Lizzie to the boyfriend, James, they have both been involved in at one time or another. I also found some of it slightly far fetched. On the whole though a good book that keeps you guessing.

What a Book Friends Like These by Sarah Alderson was. It was an easy book to read with lots of twists and Turns and it left you wondering who to trust!? The ending I didn't see that coming and was perfect to end the book.

Lizzie and Becca were work colleges, and were not close. However, Becca was a girl who everyone loved and she seems to have everything, even a perfect boyfriend, until she suffered a life changing injury whilst at a party and everything around Becca had to changed. She disappeared off the radar.
Lizzie was a normal girl and so wanted to be like Becca. She spent 3 years working hard to change her life for the better and to become popular. Lizzie was on Tinder a dating app and came across Becca's boyfriend and messaged him.

Then, after a glass or two of wine one night, Lizzie started to look for Becca on Social Media etc to see if she was still with him. What she found out about Becca she was amazed, especially as her Life was so Perfect now.
She is married, lives in a beautiful home, has a child and a growing business!

WoW! She has done so well!!!

Or has she?

After another glass of wine.....Lizzie sent a bitchie message who she thought was to their work friend about what she had found about Becca.
OMG.......It all goes so wrong for Lizzie as she sent it to the wrong person.......Lizzie's life has become a nightmare!! will she come out of it alive?

This book was Just Brilliant. I had to finish to see what happens next.
I really Hope I don't send a message to the wrong person on Social Media........

5 Big Stars from me and the ending was just Excellent!

Big Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton Mullholland Books for this arc in exchange for an honest review.
Wow, I had to just keep reading and reading until I finished this book this morning, and now I've sat down to write this review, I am at a loss for words!
The first half of the story has you settling back in your armchair while you read about the seemingly, not out of the ordinary work and domestic life of Lizzie. The story then picks up the pace, and has you sitting upright in your chair reading avidly, until that moment when you think you have just sussed it all out. Suddenly your armchair takes on the persona of a rollercoaster, and you move off with kinetic energy that lasts until you are almost at the end, by which time you are completely dazed and speachless. When you finally slow down and reach the buffers, you will want to go again......

I found this book drew me in immediately as the style of writing was excellent. It dealt with female rivalry, envy, revenge starting in the workplace. I didn’t particularly like either of the main characters: Becca, a beautiful girl with a ‘so-called’ perfect life; and Lizzie, an envious, rather frumpy girl with a boring life.

The story was thrilling and I was very keen to continue reading it into the early hours. I did get a tad confused at times but it did not detract from my enjoyment of the book.

I think it is a solid 4* read.

Becca seemingingly has it all - good looks, a rich professional boyfriend, popularity in the office. It can spark envy especially if like Lizzie you are just ordinary, but you yearn to be so much more.

A chance accident and Becca as she was is no more. Lizzie is also transformed into a confident bright young woman. An encounter with the ex boyfriend of Becca's sets off a story which is so implausible, it has to be true.

We have all sent a text to a wrong number but in this case a Facebook post which is derogatory to Becca sets off a catastrophic tirade of revenge against Lizzie with disastrous consequences. When Lizzie realizes her mistake and tries to rectify it in the form of a face to face apology, she opens a can of worms in the form of a concocted life full of fabricated stories, showing a life much removed from reality.

The twist in the tale however does not end there. It catches you unaware and was bizarre. The author certainly knows to keep the best for last.

Sent to me by Netgalley for an unbiased review, courtesy of Hodder & Stoughton.

I enjoyed this book but found some parts to be rather predictable which is the reason I'd give it a 4/5, overall it was a good read though

A great read from start to finish, a great storyline, kept me hooked and a great ending, really enjoyed

I just love when you don't know what to expect going into a book and come up completely blown away. Friends Like These by Sarah Alderson was pure binge-read fun which twists I didn't see coming. Addictive, exciting and so relatable.
This follows Lizzie who's completely had a make-up and wants to move forward with her life. One night on Tinder she spots James - her ex-colleague, Becca's, boyfriend - and swipes right. So does he! When Becca was working at the office before her accident she was the pretty, cold and confident one with a gorgeous boyfriend who frumpy Lizzie was a bit obsessed with. Now 3 years later she hasn't heard a peep from Becca with whom she was never really friends with but a date with James stirs old feelings and Lizzie finds herself internet searching Lizzie which sets into motion a series of events...The novel is written in dual narrative where in the present narrative Lizzie is being interviewed by the police because Becca has gone missing.
What hooked me was Lizzie's voice which I found very relatable. The characterisations in this book felt very familiar. The plotting was well-done. I didn't know where the story was going to go but it took me by suprise. Thrilling, addictive and difficult to put down.

Lizzie works hard as an accountant and is slightly envious of Becca. Becca is beautiful and aloof with the perfect man and perfect instagram life until an accident and she is no longer around. Until Becca finds her on social media and mistakenly sends her a message meant for someone else. Soon Lizzie is in a bad situation that leaves her fighting for her life.
Wow! This is one of those books that has the page that turns the whole book around and you curse the characters, the book, the author and the world! Absolutely loved this read. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

While I found Friends Like These to be quite an addictive read, it ultimately left me with mixed feelings, and I think I enjoyed the first half of the book more than the second. My initial reaction to the “twist” was some doubts as to whether the author had entirely played fair with the reader; however on balance, I think she did.

Like a lot of current novels, it seems, the plot is steeped in social media - it’s clearly hugely important in many people’s lives and also, with its potential for manipulation and misrepresentation, provides a rich source of drama for writers. Here we have Becca, a former work colleague of Lizzie, who apparently drove people (particularly Lizzie) mad with her picture perfect Instagram life and constant #blessed #bestboyfriendever type hashtags. Then, Becca disappeared from everyone’s radar following her involvement in a terrible accident. But when Lizzie “swipes right” on Becca’s ex-boyfriend (yes, #bestboyfriendever himself) on Tinder, their paths will cross again... with unexpected consequences for both.

The story is cleverly constructed even if it does defy credibility quite a lot and at times felt almost tongue in cheek (the message Lizzie accidentally sends Becca and the Tolkien-expert police officer being a case in point). I was never quite sure how seriously I was meant to be taking it, particularly towards the end when things got so extreme you really did just have to suspend disbelief and go along with the ride. I enjoyed it, but found it all just a bit too unrealistic to enable me to connect with the (very small cast of) characters.

If you are looking for a book that keeps you on your toes and has lots of twists and turns, then look no further than Sarah Alderson's Friends Like These.
This is one of those books that you don't want to put down until the very last page.

I had to go back and re-read the tensely unexpected ending, just to make sure who had murdered who!
Social media is something I have nothing to do with, and after reading this book I'm glad! What a clever and deeply psychological thriller this is.
Two women, Becca and Lizzie, lives intertwined through working at the same company. Becca has a tragic accident which leaves her fortunate to be alive.. Lizzie, with whom we slightly sympathise at the beginning, turns into a very different personality as the story progresses.
Gripping, frightening, and very clever, this is a book that gives you much to think about....not least the dangers of Social media!
Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for a review copy. All opinions are my own.

After reading this book you will definitely be checking who you are sending messages to via social media !!

It all begins when Lizzie sends a Facebook message to the wrong person. Although she apologises it is too late and her life suddenly starts to fall apart. Where will it all end ?

I don’t really want to say too much about the plot as I think it’s a book you just need to read. It’s a great psychological thriller with modern day issues as the basis. Expect some dark twists and turns throughout which will keep you changing your opinion on the main characters.

A great psychological thriller that you really just need to read !!

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

Friends Like These, Sarah Alderson's debut thriller, attracted me as it uses the fallibility of technology and human error as the precipitator in the demise of Lizzie and was exactly what I needed - a technothriller that is intense, captivating and very cleverly written. The dual perspectives of Lizzie and Becca allow the reader to understand the vastly different thoughts and feelings that each character is experiencing. This is a tense psychological thriller that is a helluva ride with twists and turns aplenty and a complex and intricate plot that had me on the edge-of-my-seat throughout.

At its heart, this is a cautionary tale showing the propensity of social media to help manifest or worsen mental health and self-confidence issues, whilst also exploring jealousy, revenge and predatory behaviour. It shows just how quickly a derogatory message sent to the wrong person can descend into chaos. It's definitely one of those novels that work best when the reader goes in blind or with as little knowledge of the contents as possible. The pace and writing are both excellent, and I very much enjoyed the fact that you never knew who you could trust. Testament to it being a page-turner I devoured it in one sitting before bed. You will certainly think twice before you put every detail of your life on social media because, as this story illustrates, you never know who is watching!

Many thanks to Mulholland Books for an ARC.

This book is dark and creepy. Just when you think you've got it figured out, you haven't. The ending is superb and unexpected. The depth of the main character is fantastic, she is a true antihero.

You won't know who to trust - and you'll never guess the twists... that is the tagline for this book and it is so true!! Friends Like These by Sarah Alderson was a book that I could not wait to finish - I had to know how it was going to end! I did not see it coming. Be careful when sending bitchy messages on social media - you don't want this to happen to you!! Characters that we believable, untrustworthy and nasty all at the same time. You don't want to miss this one.

Becca and Lizzie were work colleges until 3 years ago when Becca suffered a life changing injury. She was the kind of girl that others loved to hate as she seemed to have it all. Lizzie has spent the last 3 years trying to change her life.. One night when Facebook stalking Becca she send a bitchy message to the wrong person - it is all begins from there. The chain of events that follows you would not wish on your worst enemy.. Secrets and lies of all those involved are unearthed - and that ending wow!!!

Thank you to Hodder and Stoughton and Netgalley for another fantastic advanced copy to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased.

My thanks to Hodder & Stoughton/Mulholland Books, via NetGalley, of an eARC of this tense psychological/domestic thriller.

What a ride this was! A cautionary tale about the dangers of social media and the corrosive nature of envy and jealousy.

Sarah Alderson has crafted a very clever story with compelling characters and so many twists and turns that I have been glued to my settee for hours as I just had to know how things would resolve. I certainly wasn’t disappointed.

With this kind of novel I always stress that it is best to read ‘cold’. Avoid the temptation of spoilers 🤫and just prepare to settle in for a great read.