I've heard that one should write about what one knows. Following that logic, this author certainly knows about sailing. And now I know a little more about it. Most of it was over my head, though.

Summer Carmichael is blonde, beautiful and appears to lead a charmed life. Her mirror image twin, Iris, however, has always felt she is somehow less in every respect and constantly tries to imitate Summer. Summer has the perfect marriage while envious Iris' is falling apart. You get the picture?

Summer calls Iris while in Thailand and begs Iris to come and help her sail the family yacht across the Indian Ocean because the yacht is about to be impounded for overstaying its permit. Summer's stepson is in the hospital and husband, Adam, must stay with him. Iris, staying at Summer's home in Australia while her divorce is finalized, immediately flies to her sister's side. Oh, yes, and just to spice up the story, the twins' deceased, thrice-married father has stipulated in his will that the off-spring who produces an heir first, gets his non-sharable $100,000 fortune. And, of course, blessed Summer is pregnant. And so the twins set out on their epic voyage. What could possibly go wrong? When Summer is swept overboard while Iris is sleeping, Iris searches in vain for her sister and then proceeds to the Seychelles where Adam is waiting. Adam mistakes Iris for Summer and Iris steps into her sister's life. Not pregnant? No problem. Iris quickly becomes pregnant with Adam's loving help.

Twists abound in this debut novel by Australian writer Rose Carlyle. Some are obvious and tie up plot holes, others strain belief, especially the final twist. Although an engrossing read for the most part, I did find myself looking at the percentage remaining and wondering how long we were going to be sailing. None of the characters are especially appealing, including the stepmother and stepsisters who are also vying for the fortune. The brief appearance of the younger, gay brother being the sole exception and the only character not in the running for the fortune.

Thank you William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in return for my honest review. The book will be published in October, 2020.

The Face in the Mirror is about how identical twins who are so much alike yet can be very different. I could sense the tension building in the story but didn’t know what was going to happen next. Without giving away spoilers, I realized that siblings can be very competitive even when they are twins. How far would the twins go to get 100 million dollar inheritance? Rose Carlyle did a masterful job in conveying their similarities along with the differences that made the story riveting.

I didn’t finish this book as the writing style didn’t appeal to me. I could see that it was going to be an interesting and wild story but just not my type of book.

At first I thought - another twins that hate each other and try to do away with each other book - yawn!

Boy was I wrong - these twins and this author will take you on a journey you can't imagine and when you're done - you still may not know who's who!

Well written - great plot!

Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for my ARC of The Girl In the Mirror (pub date: 10/20/20)

While I admittedly have not read as many thrillers this year as I used to, The Girl in the Mirror is by far my favorite pure thriller that I’ve read this year. This debut had the perfect mix of everything I needed for a good old fashioned page turner: twin sisters, a family fortune hanging in the balance, a trans-oceanic sailing trip destined to go awry...this book was filled with drama and I loved every second of it. As I turned the final pages, I was reminded of the first thriller I ever read, Gone Girl, and that absolutely bonkers wtf moment where you realize you’re reading about absolute lunatics. While the formula for thrillers remains approximately the same, this one was written with such subtleties that even when I was absolutely positive that I knew what had happened at the end, I was proven wrong in the last few sentences. And boy did it feel good to be wrong. I highly recommend picking this one up when it hits shelves next month.

Twin sisters Iris and Summer are alike in so many ways, but not all. Iris has always been jealous of Summer. Just how far will she go to get what she wants? Oh, and to claim the prize, the winner needs to get pregnant. Makes for a crazy, fast paced read!

The Girl in the Mirror is a super twisty tale of identical twins. Summer is the perfect twin, Iris is the other one. The sisters are from Australia, but when Summer call Iris to Thailand to help with her step-sister, Iris runs to help. She adores the sister she thinks is more beautiful more charismatic, and has a more perfect live. Iris thinks she's the smarter twin, though. When Summer is lost at sea, Iris becomes Summer. This is a very suspenseful, ver twisty mystery. It's so readable, I could not put it down. I was very surprised by the ending.

I learned a lot about sailing in this book, but I didn't really like any of the characters, however I don't think the author wanted us to like them. The story was fascinating but everyone was greedy and selfish and hateful, except Iris and Summer's brother. The ending was twisty and gripping and page-turning (I had to delay dinner for just a little bit to finish it). So it was definitely memorable and suspenseful and thrilling, but I can't say I really enjoyed the characters.

This story about identical twins Iris and Summer is a very suspenseful but so dark. Iris wants Summer's life but when she gets her life in the end of the story it is nothing like she imagined it would be. So I guess the idea becareful what you wish for is true in this story. It is too dark for me at this time in history but if you like this type of story it will certainly entertain you..

Oh my heavens, what in the heck did I just read! Yes, yes, yes! Thank you, #NetGalley, for allowing me to preview this ARC, about twin sisters with dark, twisted minds. Yachts, exotic places, freakish family spats, beauty pageants, betrayal, babies! I was ALL IN! So much demented fun! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Once you start this book, you won’t want to put it down. A story of twins and a $100 million dollar inheritance. It kept my interest until the end.

The Girl in the Mirror is a twisty, suspenseful thriller about mirror-image twins Iris and Summer. Iris has always been envious of her sister, but agrees to help her sail the family yacht from Indonesia to the Seychelles. An accident at sea and a fight over a major inheritance advance the crazy plot. The book intrigued me enough to keep reading, but the plot and the ending were too unbelievable.

I feel badly leaving a negative review,as I respect the process of writing and completing an entire novel. Yet, this just didn’t do it for me. The first half was poorly written And the second half was too far fetched and each “plot twist” was either predictable or felt like it was just thrown in for shock value.

Rose and Iris are complex twins to say the least. The characters take you in from the start and there are many surprising twists and turns. I was never sure where this was leading. A great suspenseful story!

Wow was this book a crazy good quick read because I wasn't able to put it down, had to know what the next chapter held. I had no idea what the book was about before starting it so I was surprised by all of the twists and the story itself. Wonderfully written. The cover is one to make you interested in the book as well

I had heard so much good feedback about this book, but unfortunately it wasn't for me! With it described as a "thriller," I thought it would be much more slowburn scary than it was. The synopsis hits all the high points, without making it obvious just how much of the book would be devoted to weird husbands and pregnancies. For what's it worth, I did enjoy the writing style, and the descriptions of sailing were gorgeous with a tinge of danger. I hope to see more from this author in the future, with a little more polish!

The Girl in the Mirror is deliciously twisted. First, we are introduced to the “mirror” twins Summer and Iris. It appears at first glance the twins are distinctly different. One is sugar sweet and the other is edgy. Next, throw in a boat named Bathsheba with all its layers of meaning and symbol then add their father’s unorthodox will stipulation. As you read this intriguing story about sisters, secrets, and situations, keep your life jacket handy. The waves are unpredictable.
Thank you #NetGalley and #TheGirlintheMirror for an advanced copy of this book.

I thought the twists and turns in this thriller were great!! It kept me on the edge of my seat and I loved the way a set of twins was used and the uniqueness of mirror image.

Books about twins are always popular but one about mirror twins is a rarity and thus more intriguing. Add in a clause in dad’s will pitting all siblings against each other and you have a winner. Summer is the first born and most liked sister. Iris is the 2nd. There is also a brother and step siblings as dad married 3 times. The clause leaves an inheritance to the one who births a child in wedlock first. Iris tried and failed and is now separating from her husband. Brother Ben is gay and the step siblings are younger so will it be Summer who wins? It seems so as Summer tells Iris she needs help sailing their father’s boat from one harbor to another and that she is pregnant. Iris agrees but all goes wrong after they set sail. Will dad’s will separate them all? And are the twins the people we think they are.?

What a ride! This is a psychological thriller which follows Iris, a mirror twin who believes she’s lived in the shadow of her sister, Summer, her entire life. She’s recently estranged from her husband, without a job and generally feeling down about her life. Her father died several years back and only one of the seven siblings from his three marriages can inherit. It’s a race to be first to bear an heir to the family name. Iris knows she’s likely not going to be the one due to the split with her husband and now, her sister has reached out for help. They need her to navigate their boat to Africa while they deal with a very sick child. Only one of them will join her while the other one stays behind. Summer isn’t the blood relative, so she joins Iris for the sail; then Summer disappears. Now, the bizarre story unfolds one lie at a time. I could not put this book down. There are many unsavory characters in this book and it was hard to root for Iris as well, but I could not stop reading . . .