A character-driven domestic thriller perfect for contemporary book clubs. I was gripped from the very beginning, and found it hard to put down. It's mysterious and creepy without losing the dishy, gossipy hook. The story is told from 5 perspectives: Low, an awkward teenager with an eye for photography. Freya, her adult pottery teacher and sexy Instagram influencer. Freya's husband Max, a professional hockey player with a troubled past. Jamie, a slightly uptight store owner who becomes Freya's on-again-off-again best friend. And her husband, Brian, a YA novelist struggling to finish his latest novel.

One night, high on mushrooms, the two couples swap partners, and it ruins everything. Jealousy, secrets, and obsession abound.

This is one of those books where you aren't really "cheering" for any one character. You might find yourself relating to all of them in one way or another, but never really liking them. Harding's ability to write 5 fully realized and intriguing characters is this books greatest strength. The plot and pacing is great, with small twists propelling us forward all the way through. While it begins with the tone of general fiction, it gradually morphs its way into true psychological thriller.

Really enjoyable, well done novel.

Robyn Harding writes these incredible psychological thrillers and I couldn’t put this one down. It follows centers on teenage Low who is ‘friends’ with her pottery teacher, Freya and Jamie, a new resident in their small island town.

As Jamie and Freya’s relationship develops, Low becomes increasingly jealous until one night when she discovers a secret the two women are hiding. Over the next few months, Freya uses her newfound information to take her obsession with Freya to a whole new level, and to play games with both women’s emotions and lives.

The book was easy to read and I the ending was satisfying. Great read! Thank you to the publisher for sharing.

This was a fabulous read! I was on edge trying to figure out what was going to happen and who would be the key players through the whole story. Told through multiple lenses, this a story about obsession and how far people will go when they feel desperate!
Great character development and plot! Highly recommended for all thriller fans.

* I received an advanced reader’s copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

Coming from a hippie family, Low Morrison doesn’t fit in. When she meets famous influencer and local pottery studio owner, Freya, Low is starstruck and finally happy to have a friend she can share her secrets with. When Jamie, another island resident, comes into the picture, Low’s friendship with Freya is threatened. After a night of “swinging” between Freya, Jamie, and their partners, the consequences of their actions threaten their friendships and change their lives forever.

This book was not at all what I expected—a different kind of thriller, but one you have to keep reading until the end. It was interesting to read the ever-changing dynamics between Low, Freya, and Jamie throughout the book. To be honest the start was a little slow for me, but once I grew more attached to the characters, I couldn’t put it down. For fans of Lisa Jewell.

4/5 stars

It’s a small town island with a huge secret. This story has many delicious elements of Single white Female and The Couple Next Door. This isn’t your average swap party. It is a juicy weekend read on a Tuesday. I can’t wait to explore more of Robyn Harding's library.

This was an intriguing book, trying to figure out what was going to happen next and which character. I really liked.
As the story went on my feelings for the characters would change and evolve.
The Swap although predictable at times was still an entertaining journey and kept me engaged from start to finish.

Easy to read, but just a very odd read with unlikeable characters.

The novel follows 3 women - Freya, Low and Jamie. Low is a teenager and befriends Freya and quickly becomes obsessed with her. Jamie and Freya become friends and are roughly the same age, so it's not as odd, but Jamie also obsesses over Freya. And then to finish off the weird triangle, Low works for Jamie.

I never really liked Low throughout the novel. I found it odd that she was spending so much time with Freya and didn't understand some of the actions that she took. I also didn't like Freya, who was stuck up and thought the world revolved around her. Although with Low and Jamie worshiping her every move, you could see how it got into her head.

I did see some of the results of the swap coming, but I was curious on how the novel would end up. Like Harding's previous novels, I find them very easy to read since they hook you in.

Thank you to Netgallery and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was kinda creepy. You never know each character's motives. You think one thing, then the character says or does something and you're like. "WTF".
The characters aren't really likable, but you cannot stop reading because you just don't know what's going to happen net!
I didn't love the ending, but it does make sense.

Highly recommend to read during the quarantine.

The Swap by Robyn Harding (PUB day is June 23rd)

Low Morrison doesn’t fit in her world. Just about to graduate high school she is lonely & unsure of where life is taking her. Then she meets Freya a beautiful, rich social media influencer escaping a troubled past with her handsome athlete husband. Freya gives Low pottery classes & they become close friends. Then Jamie walks into their lives, a better contemporary for Freya’s friendship, that has Low fighting for her friends attention. What follows is a story obsession, revenge, petty actions, bad decisions & a many mistakes being made.

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This is a pretty quick & fast paced read & it definitely does a good job portraying obsessive behaviour amongst female friends. Both Low & Jamie are obsessed with their friendship with Freya, so much that neither one can see how truly awful a person she is until it’s too late. It’s a good book, not a great one. I wanted more to happen but it was a bit repetitive until the final act that finally gears up a bit. I’d still read another one of the authors books though, this one just left me feeling pretty medium about it.

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A huge thank you to @netgalley and @simonandschuster for the ARC of this book.

I honestly didn't know what to expect going into this book - other than it obviously being a domestic thriller, which I'm not a huge fan of to begin with! However, I was pleasantly surprised as one of the main characters is an angsty teenager, Low, vying for the affection of a beautiful, married woman.

That being said, this book shifts perspectives, but mainly focuses on Low, and Jamie, who's desperate to have a baby despite her fertility issues. We also see things through the eyes of a few other characters as well, however I really do wish we saw things from Freya's perspective. I think it would have rounded out the story really nicely. I was drawn to each and every character, who all had such compelling storylines. I couldn't stop reading in the hopes of discovering more about them.

This book really reminded me of Big Little Lies and A Simple Favour, and seemed like a really nice blend of the two! If you enjoyed those, you'll love this one.

Thank you Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-ARC to read and review!

Woooooooooow! I've been itching for a 5 star thriller for a while now, and I've finally come across one! Everything about this book was amazing. From the writing style to the flow of the story to all the twists and turns. Rarely (in my experience) do you find a thriller that keeps you on your toes the way this one did. I loved the alternating perspectives, although I wish that we have heard more from Freya's point of view, I feel like it would have been really interesting to get into her head and see what she was thinking. I can't recommend this enough, read it, read it, reeeead it!

WOW! is all I can say about this book. It was fast paced and very intense thriller.

I struggled a little bit in the beginning trying to figure out how this book will come together as there's a lot going on and there are quite a few perspectives through out. My advice: don't spend too much time trying to figure it out because you'll probably be wrong!! At the end, it comes together and Robyn Harding does a really great job of bringing together all the stories and characters. To be honest, I'm not sure if I even had a favourite character I was rooting for....I definitely HATED each one of them at certain times in the book. I guess it's a good thing?

Great book!

Reading this dark, twisty book by thriller writer, Robyn Harding, is rather like binging on a Netflix suspense series. Set on a hippyish island off the Pacific North West coast, the book focuses on the destructive nature of toxic friendships and the far-reaching consequences of decisions made under the influence of those friends. Populated mostly by unlikeable, unsympathetic and unreliable characters, the story shows how one rash night of pleasure can have extreme reverberations. Low, the main character, is a tall, gangly loner and teen misfit who attaches herself to Freya, a beautiful but terribly superficial sociopath obsessed with her own image on social media. Low feeds off stalking around on the edge of the action—particularly the incendiary action around Freya and her hunky husband, ex-hockey player, Max—and storing up useful info as future ammunition to manipulate people into doing what she wants them to. Jaimie is a gullible, childless woman who opens a gift shop on the island to support her distractible author husband, Brian.. The story twists and turns with everyone vying to become Freya's BFF and falling in and out of her favour for varying periods of time. The author really ramps up the tension with some unexpected twists and turns. A definite page-turner. Thanks to Net Galley for providing me a preview copy for an honest review.

The best thriller that I've read in a while!

The plot is absolutely fantastic. On first glance, you would think that a mix of infertility issues; husband swapping; teenage angst; and polygamy would be too much for one book - but Harding weaves them together perfectly into a great, fast paced story.

Harding also does a great job of creating dynamic and interesting characters for this story. The book is told through everyone's perspectives and adds so much to the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book - I can't recommend it enough!

When you read a book flagged as “for fans of Gone Girl” you have certain expectations for darkness and twists. ‘The Swap’ isalong those lines, and even when looking for unexpected twists, a la ‘Gone Girl’ still surprised me.
‘the Swap’ was enthralling, relateable, twisted, and unexpected all in one.
I plowed through this book in a single evening, and now have a proverbial ‘book hangover’ and couldn’t be happier.
Low is perfectly awkward and desperate for connection, for proximity to perfect. She makes you remembee every awkward teenage year and all of the conflicting emotions that went with it.
Freya is....both exactly how you imagine an Insta Celeb to be, and yet more than someone who lives for likes.
Jamie....Jamie is someone who is both contained and yet not limited to the page, such is her genuine spirit.

Cancel your plans for the night, tuck in with a glass of wine, and put the rest of y0ur TBR pile on hold. ‘The Swap’ is glorious.

I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Here I come to be the bad guy. This book was fine. Nothing special. I was actually really disappointed in the ending. For all that was going on I just felt dissatisfied. For some reason I was thinking the swapping would contune you to happen and the book would be sexier.

I thought the teenager (I just finished and can’t even remember her name) was off putting and I don’t think she added to the story but I can see why she was needed. I’m still confused why Max, or anyone else involved wouldn’t have sought out help for Freya. I felt she had a few mental health issues going on. Oh I just remembered her name “Low”. I don’t get the Low Freya relationship. Like I do but I don’t understand Low at all. I don’t get why she was so attached to someone who treated her like shit.

I don’t know. If this is how all of the books by this author are then I won’t be reading anymore.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2020 and I'm ecstatic that I was able to get my hands on the e-ARC. This was such a riveting read. There were moments that just made my skin crawl but I couldn't stop reading. We see the story unfold from different POVs but mainly from Low, a taciturn and awkward teen and Jamie, a woman desperate for a baby. This book is filled with drama, secrets, twists and turns. I'm all for it. The ending is brilliant.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this book! Definitely a recommended read.

Low, short for Swallow lives life on the outside. She’s never really belonged anywhere. She’s never really had any friends. Maybe it’s because of her parents unconventional life style. Maybe it’s Low herself. We all know someone like her, that person in school that was there not but you barely noticed them. And you can’t recall them by name.
And we’ve all known someone like Freya. The one that everyone wants to be friends with. She’s beautiful and fun and magnetic. But cruel and violent. What could possibly make these two friends? A few kind words and a shared interest in pottery was all it took for Low to be totally mesmerized by Freya and wanting to spend every moment with her.
Freya and her husband Max have moved to the island of Low’s home after Max and Freya were disgraced by the outside world. They moved there to hide. Or to start over.
Jamie and her husband Brian, so anxious for children and exhausted after an adoption gone wrong also chose Hawking to start over.
The two couples didn’t really have much in common. In the beginning it was just Jamie’s store selling Freya’s pottery that brought them together but like Low, Jamie fell under Freya’s spell and the relationship naturally turned to lunches and coffee and then couple time. But where does Low fit in now? Even knowing Freya as the self absorbed cruel woman has she is doesn’t quiet Low’s obsession.
And then that night happened. The night that changed everything. Changed the relationship dynamics. Changed all of their lives.
Robyn Harding has quickly become one of my favourite authors, ever since I read “The Party”. There are so many psychological thrillers out there, but Robyn has an original touch to hers. When I saw “the Swap” available, I didn’t need to even know what it was about to want to read it; that’s how confident I am in her writing.
Her characters here are flawed and in some cases, ones you love to hate, ones you feel empathy for, ones you feel endeared to. The storyline is like a car crash that you can’t turn away from. The more you get into the story, the more you feel that impending doom, but the journey getting there is gripping and addictive. I devoured this book in a little over a day and enjoyed every minute of it. This is a solid 5 star for me.
Thanks to Net galley and the publisher for allowing me the privilege of reading this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, I read it in one sitting and couldn't put it down.

Low is a lonely awkward teenager, who be friends an adult who used to be loved on social media, who now has been disgraced. It follows their friendship, from being friends to enemies and back. It is a toxic relationship and I hated all the characters. All of them! But that's when you know the author is doing her job.

This is the first book by Robyn Harding that I have read and I believe I need to go back and read everything she's ever published. Her writing is magic, I felt like I was in the small sleepy island town. Loved every second of this book.

I was given this book in exchange for my honest review.