I'm ashamed to say this is my first book by this author. But this will certainly not be the last. I expected this to be a mystery but it was more a family drama. That said, I loved it. Absolutely loved it. I can see now why this author is so popular. She can really bring a character to life.

A jaw dropping read! Both have their secrets and their reasons for doing things the way they did. Secrets can bring families closer, secrets can tear families apart!

Livia's 40th birthday is approaching. She has invested the last year planning her big birthday bash. She also harbors a secret but chooses to wait until after her party to reveal all to her husband, Adam. Adam also has a life changing secret. He too chooses to wait until after the party to reveal his secret. The longer they hold onto their secrets the harder it is to divulge what they are holding onto! Will their secrets bring them closer together or tear them apart?

B.A Paris phenomenal! Her books are near impossible to put down as you can't wait for the end! She has a way of holding onto her audience with each turn of the page!

This is a tough review to write. If you are expecting a thriller when you pick this book up, you will be very disappointed. This is a family drama. It is taut and suspenseful, but it is not a thriller. I read all genres and even though I was disappointed that it was not what I expected, it was still a well written story. We all have to make decisions every day. Some will affect others in profound ways and therein lies "The Dilemma". The story takes place over 24 hours. It is Livia's 40th birthday and she wants to have a blowout party. You see, she never had a wedding celebration, so for years they talked about making this "the party". Adam and his son have planned a wonderful event, Marnie, Dan's and Livia's daughter is in the far east and can not make it home, or can she?

This is a story about a close knit family that has some issues. Both Adam and Livia have something to tell the other, but when is the right time? There are some secrets that may or may not need to be shared. There are flaws in this family, flaws that could tear them apart. I liked the characters, they were realistic and human. I would not have wanted to be in their places though. This was a tense story, an emotional story and a well-written story. I recommend it, but warn you again, this is not a thriller.

A family drama, not a thriller. The story draws you in well leaving you wondering how it will end. It was a bit sad but I appreciated the ending. Thank you for the free review copy.

Wow, the buildup and suspense throughout The Dilemma was overwhelming. The entire novel covers only a 24-hour period in the life of Livia and Adam, two high school sweethearts, as they both deal with hiding secrets from one another. I can't even tell you how many times I wanted to throw my iPad across the room or scream "just tell her" to Adam. It's crazy to think that this book could have been summed up in a short chapter if only the two main characters were more open and communicated their greatest concerns and secrets. With that said, it did feel a little drawn out but I wouldn't change anything about it. It was that struggle within each character that made it feel more realistic and suspenseful.

I hesitate to say I "enjoyed" this book, because so much of it was terribly sad, but it was certainly beautifully done and held my attention. The characters were written in a way where you are simultaneously very sympathetic to their situation and unable to understand their ways of dealing with them.

While I found this to be a lot more serious than this author's previous books, it was some really well crafted and I couldn’t put it down. I definitely recommend it! Great for fans of Jodi Picoult!

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good family drama!
Reviewed in the United States on November 5, 2020
I liked the changing perspectives in telling the story. I thought it portrayed the struggle of giving one’s spouse a night to remember for happiness vs letting them know a secret and possible sadness to be riveting. I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion

The moment I saw that B.A. Paris had a new book coming out, I knew I had to try to request it. So I was very excited when I got accepted for this e-arc. However I feel I was a bit discouraged from picking this up it was falsely advertised as a thriller. I know that is what B.A. Paris is known for but this was more a family drama. I wish it was advertised as such because I do like reading family dramas. I still would have picked this one up. I thankfully have a friend who is also a B.A. Paris fan and she read this before me. She ended up letting know that it wasn't a thriller. So I did go into this knowing that. However I just didn't really end up enjoying this one as much as I use to. I did feel pretty bored majority of the story. Sure there was some information the characters were vague about and are trying to piece what exactly happened. I did find myself guessing as I read but nothing ever felt like a shock. Sure there were things I didn't see coming. I just didn't feel like I cared or was shocked enough when finding out. I did see someone say this would have worked as a novella and I agree. I just felt like there were so much repetitive information it could have been shorten.

Even though I didn't love this book, I still plan to pick up whatever B.A. Paris writes next. I do hope that whenever that is that it is correctly advertised. I am a fan of B.A. Paris so I always pick up her books. I just would have been a lot sadder if I didn't already know this wasn't a thriller.

I am a huge fan of B.A. Paris' first 2 novels, but the last two have just been ugh for me. I thought she was the author for me, but I am not so sure anymore. I just could not relate to this book at all. Who choses to live in a smaller house for years just so they can have a fancy birthday party? Totally unbelievable. Also, every problem in this book could have been handled quickly if people would have just spoken to one another. I mean, honestly, you fear your daughter is dead but you can pretend like nothing is happening and you don't tell your wife so she can enjoy her party??? I just didn't buy an of it. Sorry, I will try another novel by this author but maybe I need to move on.

I was so excited to read this book! I absolutely love this author and Behind Closed Doors, but this one fell short for me. Some of the characters were just so irritating I didn’t want to read! That happens to me sometimes. I really loved the beginning and it had a lot of potential, but it did fall flat for me. I didn’t like that they were talking about this huge secret the whole time...it didn’t impress me much.

Love all of B.A. Paris’s book and this one is no exception. Keeps you guessing as to what the secrets are and what will happen when they come out. It was a hard one to put down.
Thank you to St Martins Press for this arc.
#thedilemma #netgalley #indigo employee

This married couple needs to learn how to communicate. Left me very frustrated but maybe that's what the author wants.. interesting characters but frustrating topic.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title.
Having loved the other books I’ve read by B A Paris i was disappointed that this on didn’t work for me. I was quickly skimming along just to get the end. Even so, i will definitely continue to look for new books by PAris.

In general, I have really enjoyed Paris's books in the past. This one, unfortunately, did not do it for me. It's not really a thriller as with her previous books, it is more like a domestic drama.
The main problem is that I did not like ANY of the characters. They were awful from the first page, I could not get past Livia's obsession with having a party where everything was centered on her. So much that she basically revolved her entire life and savings for YEARS to make it happen. Ick. And Adam isn't any better. The secret he's keeping from Livia is far and away more devastating and worse than the one she is keeping from him. The fact that he puts on a fake face throughout the entire party is unconscionable.
There is seriously not much plot here. I plowed through the book in a very short while because there was really literally nothing to it. Like other reviewers have mentioned, this would have been a halfway decent novella or short story, but there's nothing here to warrant a 342 page book. The synopsis literally tells the entire plot. Except for the secrets they are keeping, but you find those out pretty quickly and then it's just minutiae for pages and pages. The only reason I gave this two stars instead of one is that the ending confrontation between the couple was pretty good. It just seems like it takes forever to get there.

I'll give this author another try, hopefully this book was a one-off clinker.

Spouses Livia and Adam spend 24 hours building angst over not sharing their respective secrets regarding their children. Paris' writing style saves her story here, as the heightening emotions of the couple not communicating draw the reader in despite the repetition, until finally the damn breaks and secrets are spilled, but dear reader was already aware of all the secrets. I received a digital copy from the publisher St. Martin's Press through NetGalley.

Marnie is completely engrossed with planning her 40th birthday party.  She has saved for years to throw the party of all parties.  Adam only wants to make her happy, but he has a devastating secret that he is keeping.  He is completely torn between telling Marnie and ruining her day and waiting until after the party to tell her.

The book was well-written, but I just couldn't get past the shallowness of Marnie and her group of friends.  Three stars, but not my cup of tea.

It took a long time for me to review this book, because I really couldn't make up my mind about it. It was a unique concept with some twists and turns. However, this book just didn't grab me. It dragged a lot. I just wanted the birthday party to end and everyone to be honest with each other. I struggled to get through this book just because I did want to see how it ended. I thought there might be another exciting twist at the end, but there really wasn't. Even the end was very meh. I think giving it 3 out of 5 stars may be a bit generous.

B.A Paris is an auto-buy author for me and The Dilemma is another great read that shows the author's diversity in the thriller/mystery genre.

I read many reviews that said this wasn't what they were expecting based on the author's previous books. And that's one of the reasons I loved it. Creating tension and suspense in every day environments is not easy and Paris just nails it in this book.

Livia has been waiting for her fortieth birthday party for the past twenty years and is going all out to celebrate. The only thing stopping it from being perfect is the absence of her daughter, Marnie, who is studying in Hong Kong. Livia is also hiding a secret about their daughter that she thinks will destroy her husband Adam. Adam, however, has a secret about Marnie of his own. How far will they each go to protect the happiness of someone they love?

This is fantastic slow burn domestic drama that really dives into relationships and the family unit. Readers who enjoy reading tension and drama in an everyday scenario will enjoy this book.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the arc in exchange for my honest thoughts.

"The Dilemma" left me pretty disappointed. This book could have been a much shorter story and I felt that it really dragged on. I found myself bored. The characters were really unlikeable. This book was not suspenseful and seemed to be more of a family drama. This author seems to be a hit or miss for me and this book was definitely a miss.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was thinking this book would be more domestic thriller as the other books I’ve read by B.A. Paris have been from that genre. This book was more domestic drama with secrets and lies.

It all takes place on Livia’s 40th birthday. She’s planned a huge party to make up for the huge wedding and reception she never had. She’s keeping a secret from her husband, Adam. Adam is keeping a secret from her. It’s actually quite frustrating, and I was annoyed with the characters for not just telling each other the truth. Somehow, I still kept turning the page to see how it played out so I’d say it’s a quick read. It was good, just different from what I expected out of this author. I enjoyed the writing style and was a page-turner, but I was expecting more of a thriller. Recommended to those that enjoy a good fast-paced family drama.

Many thanks to Netgalley and St Martin’s Press for an ARC of this book.