A thrilling read! The cast of characters were well developed. I liked how the focus of the story was on the reactions of the main characters to what happened that night in front of the swimming pool. The Hamptons were a character in their own right and it was interesting seeing the divide between the wealthy vacationers and those who worked for them over the summer. The ending surprised me which was nice.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Park Row Books, and Jason Allen for the opportunity to read and review his debut novel - 5 stars for a book I couldn't put down.

The difference between the have's and the have not's are very clear in the Hamptons, where million dollar estates sit empty most of the year until their rich owners come to vacation. The have not's are the ones who live in the shadows of those estates and work for the rich families. Corey is the son of single mom, Gina, who works for the Sheffield's, one of the extremely rich families. Corey is ready to graduate high school and worried about how he will ever escape for fear of leaving his mom and brother. For kicks, he breaks into the rich homes and pulls pranks, such as putting salt in their milk, preferably when the residents are home for the added thrill. With Memorial Day approaching and Corey due to work alongside his mom to make sure all is well when the Sheffield family returns for the holiday festivities, he decides to break into the Sheffield house. However, the daughter and her friend are there, as well as the father, Leo, who shows up with his lover, Henry. A fatal poolside accident, witnessed by Corey and the family friend, cause major implications for everyone. Told in various viewpoints, we feel the characters' dilemmas and decision-making.

I couldn't put this one down - bravo for a great debut novel. Can't wait to read more from this author!

I wanted to like this book more but for me it was just ok. The story just fell flat. It was just ok for me

When I requested the book from netgalley, I was truly intrigued by its excerpt and synopsis. I was expecting it to be a great thriller. Sadly it was not a thriller. I don’t know why its listed under a thriller category in goodreads, when it is anything but that.

Lets start with what I liked about this book. I liked the synopsis, I would really like to read a thriller with this same setting. I liked the writing style. It had a easy flow.

But I didn’t like any of the characters. I didn’t like Corey or Jina or Leo. I kind of liked Henry and HE DIED!

The plot was too slow. For a billionaire who just needs a day (just because its a holiday season) to arrange more than a million, I don’t think there would have been a trouble taking care of the corpus. Rich people kills other people left and right and gets away with it, and here he didn’t even kill his lover.. Whats all these fuss about?!! I actually had to skip read to finish this book as literary nothing happens in 200+ pages.

There is a lot of Drug and Alcohol abuse in this book. Some times it gets overwhelming, I honestly got pissed of from time to time at Jina and Leo. Aren’t you supposed to be a responsible adult? Specially when you are the bread winner of a family?

I still am shaking my head and thinking WHY ITS ON THRILLER SHELF?!!!!!

Thank you Netgalley & HarperCollins/Harlequin for the eArc in exchange of my honest review.

The book is coming out in 7th May, 2019

The East End is neither well described nor summarized in its official blurb. This book isn’t really a thriller but a thoughtful look into the lives of both the rich and the poor in the Hamptons. How does one handle a closeted life if you are rich and must put on a good show? How does one handle the stress of teenage life without money and good support system? How does one handle having children when you are stuck between a rock and a hard place? These are questions Jason Allen tries to answer in The East End.
Corey I poor and lives with his alcoholic mom and abusive step-dad. In an effort to control something in his miserable life in the Hampton, Corey sneaks into homes for a thrill. One night Corey sneaks into the wrong home. He finds himself over seeing an overdose of drugs that will not only tie him to his mom’s rich employer, but one of the daughter’s friends as well. How each of the three deals with the death will dictate how their future lives will turn out.
Allen spends a lot of time inside the character’s head. The majority of the novel spends time going through their thought processes and reliving their history. There are bursts of action but because it’s so cerebral, it isn’t a typical thriller and is why I don’t consider it so. I enjoyed seeing how this evet was a coming of age story for Corey and that is where it is so powerful.
That being said, I really didn’t care much for Corey otherwise and I didn’t like any of the other characters. The author seemed to be trying to get across that no one is perfect but the characters didn’t have enough good characteristics to even them put. Corey’s mom tries to evolve but never makes it. Her chapter seems to just stretch the story along. I wasn’t invested in Angelina. While I felt for her family situation, her history soured her for me.
Where Corey’s chapters are the best thematically, it is the first few chapters of Leo‘sperspective that is the best mechanically. Allen does well with the erratic vibe of the character as he snorts and gulps his way to oblivion.
Overall, The East End doesn’t live up to the HR hype. It’s not a typical thriller and fails at trying to be one. When you look at what it is, a cerebral look into the variety of lives in the Hamptons, you enjoy it more and truly understand the story the author is telling.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jason Allen and Harlequin Park Row for this ARC.

I enjoyed this debut novel by Jason Allen...right up until the end. It was a well written story, but the ending seemed rushed. I still liked it, and look forward to reading more by this author.

This book is a fun, wild ride from start to finish. I read most of it in one sitting and wanted to keep reading. Set in the Hamptons, the worlds of townie vs. wealthy collide in this story of drama and suspense and loyalty. This book will make a great beach read in the upcoming Summer months.

What follows is going to be an outlier opinion. In re-reading the book description, I'm not sure why I requested to read this as it really isn't something I normally would choose. Please take everything below with a grain of salt!

The East End is a story of a young, working class local named Corey who works with his mom, Gina cleaning the house of a rich family (The Sheffield's) in the Hampton's. For fun, Corey breaks into the homes of the rich and commits small, harmless pranks as a way to get back at the families that swarm the Hampton's and generally make the lives of the locals miserable. On the night that Corey decides to prank the Sheffield house, he stumbles upon a major event that "changes lives forever". (I say that in quotes because it sounds so cheesy, but that's the best way to describe it.)

Unfortunately, within a few pages I knew I wasn't going to like this book. The characters are all miserable people with very little to redeem themselves, the amount of drugs and alcohol consumed is way over the top and I honestly dreaded reading this at every turn. The writing was pretty good, but this story just wasn't for me and I shouldn't have requested it. I was hoping this would be something like "Big Little Lies" or something equally as fun (yet with substance) and I just couldn't get there. I normally would have DNF this, but I felt obligated to finish it and write a review since I was given an ARC.

Thank you to Netgalley, Harlequin, and Jason Allen for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of this book.

Publication Date: 5/7/19
Review Date: 4/28/19

The East End is an interesting kind of story as it doesn't exactly lead to the places you might expect. I was surprised by how emotionally charged the story was although I admit I got lost in the middle as it felt like the book was trying to cram way too much into one story. Some of the characters weren't all that likable, like Leo's wife, Sheila.

But there is a compulsive element to the story. Even though it isn't exactly a thriller, you are compelled to push through to figure out what end these characters will meet. The emotional complexity of the story is definitely one of the highlights.

There were things I loved about this novel, and things I just did not. I loved how there was the perspective of multiple characters, all both flawed and sympathetic, but didn't love that we didn't learn more about certain ones (the wife, the daughter, etc.). At some points, I thought the prose was beautiful and literary, and at other times, felt like it was over the top. Ultimately, the story was intriguing and the setting was perfect. I ended up liking it a lot- just wish I had loved it.

The East End by Jason Allen is a powerful, suspenseful and gripping novel. It focuses on socioeconomic disparity, showcasing both the wealthy and the less fortunate. I'm not usually drawn to this type of book but when I was approached about a spot on the book's Blog Tour, I decided to give it a try.

I found the characters not very likeable because they consumed alot of drugs and alcohol. I don't understand how people can waste tehir time and their life consuming so much crap. Nevertheless, I did care about the outcome. I found myself turning page after page, engrossed in the drama and wanting to know how the story would unfold.

The story covers a few days at a billionaire's Hampton mansion. When a tragedy occurs, the reader is taken through a fallout between the homeowner and his unhappy housekeeper and her son. All three of them are trying to forget about their unhappiness and hoping for a better life.

This was a fast-paced read and I would recommend to readers who like reading about conflicts between different socioeconomic groups.

I couldn’t put it down, nor did I want it to end!
This was a story unlike anything I’ve read before, and kept me thinking about long after I finished.
The story is set in the Hampton’s. The main character Corey is so spent on working for the rich. He can’t stand the wealthy and hates how they treat his mother.
To rebel and blow off some steam, he occasionally breaks into the empty homes he and his mom are employed to clean, not to steal anything, just for the thrill of getting away with it. On this one night before Memorial Weekend, Corey sneaks into a home that is not even close to being empty. He witnesses way more than he can handle and gets more involved than he anticipated.
I loved Corey’s character in the story along with his mother, Gina and Mr Sheffield who owns the home. Everyone in the story is dealing with their own life altering dilemma and it really makes you wonder what you would do in their shoes.
This story takes a few chapters to get into but once the action starts it is impossible to put down! So good!
My review will post on my blog May 1, 2019.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for this advanced copy.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this amazing book

every so often you find a book that is different from everything that you normally read and this is that book...its not a horror, or a murder mystery or anything paranormal...its just a book that grabs you and keeps you hold until you finish it....

at first with the title being the east end you think gangsters of the east end...but again that isnt it at all...its the story of corey and his mother gina...who work in the hampton, slaving away for the rich families that come up every year for the summer...

and its about a forbidden love that cannot be allowed so we have a very wealthy family and a very poor family who start that summer going from one crisis to another that will bring them ultimately together in ways they never expected....

such an unassuming book that kept me glued till the end...gonna keep an eye out for more of this authors work, hes a keeper

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to.

Corey gets his thrills by breaking into the mansions on the Hamptons. He doesn’t steal per say, he more explores and leaves a small mark on the house. It’s really more of an F&%# you to the rich folks who don’t know how good they really have it.
So on the night before Memorial Day weekend, when Corey and his mom will return to work for the Sheffields, a family made up of spoiled children, a power-hunger wife and a sometimes absent workaholic husband, he breaks into their house to stick it to the man.
Of course he doesn’t realize that not one, but two family members have decided to come to the Hampton’s early. So more than one person witnesses the grisly accident that occurs. The book started out with so much promise. I loved the set-up. But then for me, it fell a little flat.
I had a hard time grasping the character Gina, Corey’s mom. I think she is supposed to be attractive, but an alcoholic and addicted to painkillers or sleeping pills. She is trying to get out of an abusive marriage, but lacks the common sense to just be done with it. I think I was supposed to like her or feel empathy, but she just annoyed me.
Corey has the ability to be a great character, but I felt he was a bit underdeveloped. I got that he was supposed to be a rough around the edges, but cute local. I don’t think that the rich girls would avoid him. I think that’s exactly the type of guy they like to date to get their daddy’s attention.
Then the conflict itself was just so drawn out. Maybe I watch too much Scandal, but I feel like the privileged have people to clean up their messes. And I think Leo is important enough that his mess would have been taken care of halfway through the book by just placing a call to the right person.
The East End was not my favorite, but I’m intrigued by Jason Allen. And it didn’t seem like the prose was written by a poet and scholar, and it makes me wonder, how much the book changed during the editing process.
Special thanks to Netgalley and Harlequin Park Row for an advanced e-galley of the book. I’m always excited to try a new author and I’m looking forward to what Allen will write next. This one releases May 7, 2019. My review will be published on my blog, Women in Trouble Book Blog on May 5, 2019.

So much scandal, disfunction and questionable choices, all packed into this hard-to-put-down novel, set at the beautiful Hamptons. I really enjoyed this book, kept me guessing as to how it'll all get sorted out, and what will happen next. Well depicted disparity between the hard working, low income town residents, and the millioners living at the mansions. Thank you NetGalley for the Advance Review Copy, all opinions are my own.

East end⭐️
Corey is a thief and he is quite good at it.
Leos house is the house thats being broken into.
But Coreys break in doesnt go to plan when they run into the owners and a confrontation occurs...

The writing was very good and kept me wanting more. I instantly liked Corey and thought he was great (and a horrible human being but thats part of the reason why i liked him) and took me effortlessly into the wealthy world, behind those closed doors that Corey opens.
I recommend this book.

Thank you so much to Park Row via netgalley for sending me an ARC copy of East End- by Jason Allen. This will be released on May 7 2019.
All opinions are my own.

Corey is a young kid from the Hamptons who gets his kicks by breaking into the neighboring mansions and playing pranks on their owners. One night, he decides to break into his employers house, but his boss, Leo Sheffield, turns up with a companion in tow. Unable to leave in fear of getting caught, Corey witnesses a horrible fatal accident by the pool, and the lengths that Leo goes to in order to cover it up before the rest of his family and friends arrive. What Leo doesn't know is that Corey wasn't the only one who saw what happened, and he'll do whatever it takes for his secrets to stay hidden.

What a gripping story! Allen gets you hooked right from the very start of this fast paced debut. You can really feel the tension building as the story progresses, and you're at the edge of your seat waiting for the other shoe to drop. Aside from being an engaging thriller, it also touches upon the socio-economic divide between the wealthy Hampton-ite McMansion owners and the barely getting by middle class workers who all occupy the same town. This is definitely one you'll fly through because you just won't want to put it down.

This book is a slow burn but wow. I was completely consumed by it. Great read, I will be looking for more by this author.

My thanks to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest opinion.
Unfortunately, I could not get around the bleak atmosphere of the first chapter of this novel. The characters did not appeal to me, there was paragraph after paragraph of narrative and description with very little dialogue, and the characters in this novel did not ring true to me. I see that other reviewers really enjoyed this novel. The synopsis on NetGalley had sounded so appealing to me.
I have to admit that I could not finish it, after several attempts to do so. It was not my cup of tea, but I will concede that it is very well written.