When Isla an insomniac is having a late night walk, she witnesses a jogger killed by a hit and run driver. She tries to save his life along with Beth who lives locally.

Isla and Beth become friends. Isla has not had a close friend in years, what harm can it do? From the outside they have nothing in common, Isla lives in a nice house and has no money worries whereas Beth lives in a council flat struggling to make ends meet. 

The chapters alternate between Beth and Isla. Seems like both of them have secrets. All the time there is a darkness hiding amongst this story. I was totally addicted desperate to find out what the connection was between the characters and how it would all end.

Beth has a plan to get close to Isla. But she wasn’t expecting to actually feel sorry for her and start to see her as a real friend, will she be able to carry on with her plan? 

Loved this book and did not want to finish it. You never really know what goes on behind closed doors!! I really wanted Beth to be a true friend to Isla who I felt very sorry for!!

Thank you to  Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a review.

The tension in the thriller starts as a slow boil and builds, compelling the reader onward. Onewoman trapped in an abusive marriage, another trapped in a dead end life of her own making. Both have secrets and regrets. Two women, seemingly so different, bound together by murder. The Girl Across the Street is a taut thriller with a satisfying ending.

The Girl Across The Street
Vikki Patis
Description
You’re hiding a secret that only she can see.
Her name is Beth. She came into my life when I needed her the most. We lead very different lives, but she’s the only person who understands me.
She was the only other witness to the terrible accident on the street between our homes. The only person who saw the cracks in my perfect life before I had the chance to cover them up.
It’s been so long since I’ve had a friend. Someone to talk to, to listen to, to laugh and dream with.
Beth would never do anything to hurt me.
She only wants what’s best for me, for my marriage.
Doesn’t she?

Holy Moly. This book was brilliant. Seriously, I had to read it front to back. What a wild ride. Not a book to just read...you have to at times remember to breathe. Best book in a long while. I never saw it coming.  What can I say without a spoiler? It would be a movie to see as well. Hell yeah, I was involved and connected. Just amazing.
Thanks to NetGalley and the writer for the pleasure of an advance copy.

Well! I started off enjoying this despite feeling it was a little silly with nearly all the male characters being horrible and nearly all the women characters being victims, used by men and very weak. 

I stuck with it and despite my initial misgivings and I found myself swept up in the story of Isla the wealthy but utterly unhappy housewife, who is terrorized by her husband Jake, and Beth a struggling young woman working all hours in a restaurant to make ends meet while her pot smoking layabout of a boyfriend spends his days in bed, getting high ans playing video games with his mate. 

When they both witness a fatal traffic accident, their lives are brought together and they find out that they have more in common than than they think. Both have secrets and slowly but surely they find that their worlds have collided indirectly in the past as well as the present. 

As I said at the beginning, I had initial reservations about this one. Despite being immensely readable from the get go I was a little worried about the rather two demensional “women victims” and “horrible men” characters. However as the book went on I just got totally swept up in it and went with it. These stereotypes do subside somewhat as the characters are fleshed out. 

What this book does have going for it is the fantastic storytelling. It’s precise and engaging with just enough character development to let it breath. It’s not a long book at under 300 pages but despite this, we have quite a few long chapters in here and this format works extremely well to keep you engaged. The editing on this feels near perfect as I’m sure this could have ended up a much longer read in the wrong hands. 

The last few chapters really amp up the tension and excitement to near unbearable levels. Flying through the last part of this book I realized I was totally engrossed in the book and thoroughly enjoying it, and at the end of the day that’s what readings all about right?

My first read of Vikki Patis, her name is now on my radar and I look forward to what she comes up with in the future. 

Many thanks to Netgalley, Bookouture and Vikki Patis for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy....

This is unbelievable twisted story I ever read!!!! 5 stars!!

Looking forward to read another next book soon..

Brilliant plot, excellent main characters that you invest in.  I read this book in one sitting and I would highly recommend it.

This is such a roller coaster of a novel. Isla and Jake are living their best lives, when a man is killed by a hit and run near their home. Isla tries to save him, and meets Beth. Through happenstance, Beth and Isla become friends, and when Beth moves in with Jake and Isla, she realizes things aren’t right in their marriage. 

This is a quick paced thriller I’m glad I was able to read early, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

This was one of those reads that took a bit of time to get into. After the prologue, which sets up some kind of “event to come,” the opening begins in the midst of another event in the past that sort of matters, I guess. From that point on we meet the main players through tedious passages of minutiae about their day-to-day routines. At first, this bored me to no end, but as I read on, I realized it was purposeful. I was actively turning the pages midway through, engaged and interested in how things would turn out. I was waiting for the “thriller twist” at which the story seemed to hint. 

But … for me, it just didn’t pan out. I suppose some readers may find the inner workings of one of the characters a shocker. Maybe? I can’t say I was gripping my seat by the end. It all sort of fell flat. There is a fine bit of escalation in the main story, but nothing truly interesting happens here. It’s pretty obvious early on how things will play out, which makes it a disappointing read because you’re kind of expecting … well, something more interesting to happen. 

Otherwise, the writing itself is fine, if plain, but the flipping back and forth between characters seems merely a convention to have an omniscient narrator for part of the story. One of the characters’ chapters are in first person, the other third, which I found jarring at times. Perhaps Patis was going for a particular effect. If so, it slipped past me.

Really enjoyed this book.  Keeps you guessing & plenty twists.  Would highly recommend it & look forward to reading more by this author.

Isla suffers from insomnia and frequently wanders the streets of her neighborhood in the wee hours hoping to tire herself out, but on one of these nightly jaunts she is surprised by a jogger and then a crash.  While she struggles to process what has happened, another woman, Beth, runs across the street to the accident.   In the days following, Beth begins to insert herself into Isla's life and begins to see the pain and suffering Isla has been hiding for so long.  But what has Beth been hiding, and how does she know Isla's husband, Jake?

Truly thrilling and unputdownable!!  Highly recommended!

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this eBook by Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

A twisty and heart pounding read!

Rating: 4/5

Book Insight: Isla has many secrets despite the picture perfect life that everyone else sees. However an accident brings Beth into her life to her at the perfect time. Isla doesn't have to hide anything from her, Beth saw the problems before she ever voiced them out loud. Now Isla and Beth must find a way to figure out how to navigate through the darkness that is Isla's life and their friendship might just be their lifeline.

The Good: Vikki Patis is a very skilled writer and is able to shock her reader even when they think they have it all figured out. Most of the book I felt I knew the twists, but I was totally wrong. This was one of those plots that may start slow, but once it gets going it doesn't stop. I loved the depth of all of the characters and felt that there was just enough detail to really see them as people. I love how she handled controversial subjects within the story with such class.

The Bad: I wasn't hooked in the beginning. I felt that the prologue was sort of weak and I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to get into this book, however Patis brought it together with an ending I never saw coming.

Should you buy it?: Yes, definitely! I can't wait to read more from this author!

I really enjoyed this book - read it well into the night.  It was a good story that just got better as it went on.

A Hit and Run Accident.

Two women, one struggling to make ends meet, and one affluent, both trying to save the victim. 

Seemingly they have nothing in common...or do they? 

Isla (excerpt) “Jake is leaving to visit his mate. Is that really where he is going? I realize that I don’t care. I only care that he isn’t here. I fall asleep quickly, drifting into a dreamless sleep. I always sleep better when Jake’s not here.”

Beth (excerpt) He’s finished within minutes. He flops down on the mattress beside her, eyes closed, a smile on his lips. She wants to punch him, smash him in the face with her fists, grab a knife from the kitchen and stab him in the throat. But she doesn’t. She can’t even speak. 

The hit and run accident may have brought the two women together, but it’s been a long time since Isla had a friend-someone to talk with, and listen to, over a shared cigarette or glass of wine.  Each of the women can use a friend. 

“We’re in this together”

But, are they? Can Isla trust Beth? 

Again we have the premise that “all is not what it seems, behind closed doors”, but this time there is an added dimension to the story. I knew there was something just beneath the surface of what the author was allowing us to see, secrets and motives, yet to be revealed, in this dark story. 

It held my interest and I seemed to be turning the pages quickly, wanting to know more, and hoping that these women had finally found someone, in each other, that they could count on...but knowing that this is not always the case in psychological thrillers........

Could Isla trust  Beth- “The Girl Across the Street”? 

Find out on March 8, 2019!

I would like to thank Netgalley, Bookouture, and Vikki Patis for the digital ARC I received in exchange for a candid review!

Thank you Net Galley and Bookouture for an early release of The Girl Across the Street.  Wow, Wow, Wow!!!  Wonderful book, one of the BEST I've read.  Loved the characters, just a good book that you didn't want to put down, love books that you cant get enough of.  Thank you Vikki Patis.

A fabulous psychological thriller that is hard to put down. The writing is fast paced and the characters are intriguing. 
My only negative would be that I expected a little more from the ending. That being said, I really enjoyed it and it’s worthy of 4 stars.

A fast-paced thriller with a twist that was...not quite as sinister as expected.  When Isla and Beth witness a hit-and-run, they are inextricably linked -especially if Beth has anything to say about it.  When she sees that Isla's life is more complicated - and a lot worse - than she saw from the outside, Beth's plan to profit from that night is forever altered.  I found myself rooting for both women, despite either of them being far from perfect. 

A couple of scenes at the end were a little over the top, and Isla's husband was the same - all evil, less than human. Even with his wicked witch of a mother, it was hard to believe that Jake could have gotten away with his abuse, living under the same roof as his decent father.

Overall, recommended for a fast-paced read that's not entirely easy.

For starters this was a good gripping story of 2 women who meet by chance.  But it also was a little bit too far fetched for me.  Who allows someone to move in with them when they dont’t even know them???  I was shaking my head the entire time! It also never got to the “mystery” part of the story until almost the end. The ending was definitely an interesting twist and wasn’t what I was expecting. All in all not a bad book but not sure I would recommend..  Thank you Netgalley for letting me give an honest review of this book.

Thanks Netgalley, Bookouture, and the author for the opportunity to review this exciting psychological thriller.

I loved the author's debut "The Diary" and was excited to read her next book, and it was amazing.

This has all the ingredients for a suspenseful , engrossing, and realistic psychological thriller. With shocking surprises, secrets, and twists along with relatable characters. Two women meet by chance, or is it? What secrets are they hiding? And how much do they really know about each other? Happy reading.

Thank you to Bookouture, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book. And what a good realistic physiological thriller this is. Two women come to together by accident, or was it truly an accident. Both have secrets and scars from their lives. The Author will keep you engrossed in this story, trust me. Great read, I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a realistic physiological thriller.

The Girl Across the Street by Vikki Patis was an extremely satisfying novel of mystery, intrigue, and domestic noir. The two main characters are brought together on the night of a traffic accident in which a cyclist is hit by a hit and run driver.

Isla and Beth live completely different lives it would appear but this accident brings these women together in more ways than either of them thought they knew. Told from the perspective of both women they may have more in common than they first thought.

Isla, immacutely put together but sad and lonely didn’t know that rough around the edges Beth may be that one friend she needs. Beth, independent and angry didn’t know that she also needed that one friend. A friend she didn’t even know she wanted or needed.

When circumstances beyond the accident lead to Beth staying with Isla and her husband Jake Beth soon learns that the grass is not always greener on the other side. But that’s not Beth’s problem. Or is it? Why is Beth really staying with Isla? Isla thinks she’s good at hiding the truth but so is Beth. Question is, what are they hiding?

A very special thank you to Netgalley and Bookoutre for my ARC of this page turner!