This was a brilliant book and a great holiday read, I did not want to stop reading it and thought about it since and have recommended it to friends. 
Believable and with great twists throughout I have since bought another 2 books from this author as it’s the best book I’ve read in a while.

A solid 3.5. Friends glamorous Kate, and new mum Orla fly to Lisbon for a girly weekend. The morning after a drunken night out, Kate has disappeared and Orla is left to piece together what happened. 
There were lots of twists in the story and I enjoyed the descriptions of Lisbon. Some of the characters I felt were a little cliche but nevertheless relatable.
I would happily recommend this to customers.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

Thanks to netgalley I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I loved this book! A great thriller that I could not put down. Cannot recommend it enough.

Fantastic read. As soon as I picked this book up I new it was going to be a great read. A hit. It was very well written. Great plot. A big hit you won’t be able to put down

As a HUGE fan of beach reads, throwing in a thriller like this one is summer vibe perfection for me! This one surprised me with how quickly I devoured the book, especially for 400 pages and I would attribute it to how well written it was. For me this is what MADE the book, Alderson had such a way with words, she really gave what would be a standard thriller in plotline something much MORE.

This is one of those stories where the phrase "this escalated quickly" really feels appropriate. 
We're setting up for a girls' weekend away, and suddenly the proverbial bomb is detonated. 
Everything I thought was going to happen in this fluffy chick-lit story was suddenly turned on it's head, but it kept me entertained from start to finish and I read it in one sitting. Would have liked it to be a little longer, to be honest.

Fun light mystery. Finished quickly. Saw a few twists coming but not the ending. A little bit of an overdone plot but I did want to see the book come to its conclusion.

Orla and Kate have been best friends for years.  Their lives couldn’t be any different.  Orla is married to Rob and has a young baby who is precious as she was conceived by IVF.  Kate is still living a single carefree life after recently divorcing Toby.  They always had an annual trip away but this hasn’t happened for a few years.  This year Kate books them a break in Lisbon.  Orla isn’t keen on leaving her husband and baby but thinks Kate needs the break after her divorce.  They go our for a meal on their first evening away and Kate ends up persuading Orla to go clubbing.   They  meet two men and Kate invites them back to their apartment against Orla’s wishes.  Next morning on waking up, Orla realises that she has no memory of the previous night.  As well as being drunk she is convinced she was drugged, especially when she realises that Kate has disappeared.  Thr police don’t seem interested so Orla has to try and trace the two men herself to find out what has happened to Kate.  Orla tracks down the taxi driver who drove them the previous evening and he offers to help her.  But can she trust him?  There are plenty of twists and turns and I did enjoy the book but did find some of Orla’s actions very implausible but overall it kept me turning the pages until the end.  A very good read.
Thanks to Netgalley and Avon for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This book is about two long time besties. Kate is going through a messy divorce and Orla is struggling with her role as a new mom. So together, they jet off on a weekend in Lisbon for a much needed holiday. 

After their first night out, Orla wakes up the next morning and finds Kate missing.  While her memory of last night’s events are fuzzy, the one thing Orla knows for sure is something bad happened to Kate. 

This was an entertaining read. The flow and pace of the story was fast so there were no dull moments.  The twists and misdirection was great. At first, as I was nearing the end, I was disappointed in how it seemed to turn out. But then bam! Overall, an enjoyable way to spend an evening. 

Thank you @netgalley and @avon books for the ARC!

Totally guilty pleasure book!

Of course this book isn’t unique, just this year I have read four books with the same premise but I can’t get enough of them.

It’s a perfect beach read and a perfect read to just escape for awhile.

I would say there are too many suspects and I was getting confused by the end

Set in Lisbon, The Weekend Away by Sarah Alderson is the story of two friends who go on a weekend trip to the capital city of Portugal, where one of them goes missing. With the help of a local Uber driver, the other friend then embarks on the journey of finding her friend and the perpetrator of the crime.

The twists in the fast-paced story are interesting, but the ending is as predictable as it can get. A lot of red herrings were added to build the smokescreen around the actual culprit and add some much needed twists to an otherwise simple and most expected conclusion.

Thanks to the author and the publisher for the ARC.

Verdict: One time read.

Whoa!! I’m sitting here alone in my room and I feel like I need to talk to the author herself to shake me out of this! This book! If you like thrillers and twists and turns and whodunnits like me, THIS IS FOR YOU. Every person you come across seems suspicious and may have a motive. There may even be an unreliable narrator. But what REALLY happened that night between Orla and Kate on their weekend away? Read this and good luck picking up your jaw off the floor!

Sarah Alderson’s The Weekend Away is an entertaining thriller about trust, friendship and betrayal with plenty of twists.

Orla and Kate cannot a remember a time when they hadn’t been the best of friends. Their friendship has seen them through divorce, break-ups, heartache, unparalleled highs and crushing lows. Regardless of what happens in their lives, the two women are always there for one another with a listening ear and a sympathetic shoulder. Every year, Orla and Kate enjoy a weekend away and this year they cannot wait to head off to Lisbon where they’ve found the most perfect flat with a stunning view and an itinerary that will enable them to sample the best the city has to offer. Both Orla and Kate cannot wait to get to Lisbon, and they kick off their holiday with the perfect night out. Only, in the cold light of the day, their perfect day gives way to a blood-chilling nightmare for Orla as she wakes up and finds Kate gone..

What happened to her friend? What caused this shocking turns of events? And what did Kate know that compelled somebody to do this? With Orla’s memory of what happened the night before fuzzy, the police give her the brush off and refuse to take her distress seriously which makes her even more determined to get to the bottom of her friend’s disappearance. As Orla finds herself frantically retracing her steps and trying her utmost to remember vital clues that could shed some light on that fateful night, she quickly realises that maybe the answers to all of her questions might not lie in Lisbon, but somewhere much closer to home.

I found Sarah Alderson’s The Weekend Away to be a tense and chilling exploration of friendship and relationships, however, I did have some problems with the book as it took a while to really get going as the pace at the beginning was rather sluggish and this slowed down the action somewhat in the first half of the book. Although on the whole, I found The Weekend Away to be a thrilling read once the story got going, the pacing issues prevented me from enjoying the book as much as I thought I would.

I was initially drawn into this book by the blurb, it sounded like a perfect thriller with an engaging storyline. The book was easy to read but due to the length of it I found it slow going with far too many twists and turns. Now twists are a staple for a thriller but this felt a bit excessive, like we were going round in circles just to lengthen the book. Personally I would have preferred it to be about 100 pages shorter. 

There was some development of the characters as a few back stories were provided to add some depth, however I just didn’t relate or engage with any of them. I found the lead character, Orla, to be a bit lacking and I hated Kate! 

I wouldn’t say I was disappointed but the ending fell a little flat for me and it stopped so abruptly that it felt like it needed another chapter to wrap it up completely. Ironic considering I said the book is a bit too long! Overall it was an easy read, I wouldn’t rush to tell my friends to read it but I wouldn’t tell them to avoid it either. 3/5

I am always on the search for a good thriller. 
I love the turns, weird characters, and insane plotlines these people manage to get into..
Some are better than others of course but I still manage to enjoy even those not up to par. There's still a journey to read and sometimes it's just better to let it take you,
I wasn't expecting much from The Weekend Away but the plot was interesting and yes, I was in the mood for murder.
Best friends go through it. It's the test of time, the test of friendship. Orla and Kate have been best friends for years. They've been through everything and even now when so much of their life is hectic and has changed, they still make the time for their annual girl's trip.
They arrive in Lisbon and Kate as usual is fashionable and daring while Orla is feeling out of sorts as she is a new mother.

Their one night out turns out to be the final one..

Orla awakens to find Kate gone from their Airbnb and  as the hours tick by so do the chances of finding Kate.

But somebody knows something, somebody has to. Or is that just wishful thinking on Orla's part?

This book is fast. It hits you like
bam
bam
BAM

From the start we're thrust into these women's lives and we get it. It's completely relatable. Orla's insecurities about her post baby weigh, Kate's fury with her shitty soon to be ex-husband, The characters are written wonderfully but I did find a few of the secondary characters to be a bit lacking. But they were men so that could also be their problem.

The book has so many twists and turns  which I enjoyed until the very end.

In fact I screamed at the end because the ending was just so abrupt and shocking. I'm still processing it but I'm leaning towards I didn't like it.

This is a great book to pick up if you're looking for a nice, flighty thriller that gets your blood pumping. I wouldn't mind a sequel because of that ending, Sarah Alderson. Just saying...

Thanks very much for this ARC.

Orla, a new mother, and her best friend and good time gal, Kate, have decided to spend the weekend in Lisbon. Orla would like nothing more than to go back home to her baby but Kate wants to party and go clubbing. While out they meet two men that Kate insists come back to their place to continue the fun.

Orla wakes up in the morning with no memory of the night before. After searching the apartment she comes to the realization that Kate is missing. What happened to Kate?

This book, for me, was just okay. I read a lot of psych thrillers so something really needs to stand out to wow me and sadly nothing here really stood out as original and unique. This story has been told many times before making this rather predictable. I truly had this one figured out very early on so the later reveal was completely unsurprising. This book could have easily been 100 pages less. So, yeah, this one didn't work out so well for me but I did manage to finish it withOUT skimming which does say a lot. I think anyone that is newer to this genre will delight in the twist and turns Alderson throws their way but for this reader it's a ride all too familiar. 3 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for providing me with a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a great read that kept me on the edge of my seat about two long time friends, Orla and Kate, catching up on a weekend away in Lisbon. Orla is a mom of one, excited for her first weekend away from the duties of parenthood and Kate is going through a divorce and dealing with the problems that accompany. However, after one night out Kate is missing and Orla can’t remember what happened – convinced that she herself had been drugged. She has to walk through the steps of the night before, trying to remember what happened to try to find her friend before it’s too late – while the police are being less than helpful. 

First of all, I went traveling to Europe last year and reading about the Lisbon made me want to go back there so bad! Lisbon was one of the last places in my travels and it was so breathtaking (the views and the huge hills that I’m too out of shape for lol). A lot of this book seemed relatable to me on a level because I got my purse stolen with my passport in it while I was in London. I know it’s not exactly the same thing and the severity is very different; however, being in a foreign country and having to try to figure things out without anyone else to help you is so scary. I could relate to Orla’s thinking and the processes she had to go through, although I will say I am very grateful that London is English speaking so there was no language barrier because I can’t even imagine going through this with their being a huge language barrier. The best word to describe it is a feeling of helplessness. 

I really loved all the twists and turns this book took me through, most of them were very unexpected. So many of the characters seemed like they may have had something to do with Kate’s disappearance and you weren’t sure if you could trust them. I loved following Orla on this journey about finding the truth about her friend, past and present. Overall, this is a great read that you can escape the real world for a while, travel to Lisbon, and indulge in the mystery! Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of The Weekend Away by Sarah Alderson.

Did I just read the female version of The Hangover?

Orla, a new mother, is ecstatic to be getting away with her BFF Kate.  Kate has planned an over the top girl's trip that should be luxurious and relaxing, at least that's what Orla thought.  But after being dragged to a club way too late at night, Orla realizes just what different places her and her friend are now in.  Orla wants to catch up on sleep and enjoy some quiet, Kate wants to party and meet men.  So, already disgruntled and hazy, Orla wakes up after a wild night out to find that her friend is missing.  Now Orla is stuck alone in Portugal, and needs to find Kate, and put the pieces together of what exactly happened last night.

Yeah, I'm a total sucker for this stuff.  I love a good domestic thriller.  I was hooked immediately.  I could also totally relate to Orla through most of it.  I do love a good girl's trip!  I don't want to go out past nine!  I don't want to talk to people!  I don't want to meet your friends!

I'm giving three stars instead of four because the ending!  Ergh!

Orla and Kate have been best friends for 2 decades. But for the last four years or so they have spent a weekend away every year, each time at a new location. This time they decide on Lisbon, to get away from Orla's blues as a new mom and Kate's messy divorce.
As always Kate has made all arrangements and she wants to make the most of the time they have by club hopping and  partying till wee hours as soon as they land.

The next day Orla wakes up all alone in their apartment with no sign of Kate. Calls go unanswered and there is no sign of Kate's wallet or passport. Her suitcase and clothes are still in her room though. Orla has no recollection of the night before except flashes of some parts. Where could Kate have disappeared to?

The plot seems predictable but the story has a good twist in the end and then a final twist. Almost didnt see the final one coming. The pace and narration made it for a wonderful read on my weekend away.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon books for the ARC

This story hooks the reader from the beginning and takes you on a ride of your life. There is twists and turns and you don't know what to expect next.  The book is recommended for anyone who loves a good read! 
TB