After reading the synopsis I was expecting a fast paced murder mystery at a wedding in Portugal, a similar storyline to ‘The Guest List’ (even the cover looks very similar) but unfortunately, this was not that.

The story follows 3 couples, travelling to Portugal for a wedding, and slowly, secrets and betrayals are revealed. Emphasis on the word slowly. We spend most of the time reading Rachel’s internal monologue and it gets very repetitive. There isn’t much action until the last few chapters of the book, and even that isn’t very exciting, and actually pretty confusing. By the end of it, I still didn’t know really know what happened and the epilogue only made it more confusing for me.

One thing that bothered me was a side story about one of the characters being overweight in the past. It was written in a way that it’s something to be embarrassed about or ashamed of. There’s a lot of negative talk and shame surrounding women’s ages and appearances. I feel like I see this in so many books these days, can we just stop doing that?

All in all, it’s still a decent drama, but I was expecting a thriller murder mystery, so I ended up being disappointed. I have read all of Sandie Jones’ books so far, and will still continue to.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Minotaur books for the advanced copy in exchange for a honest review.

The Guilt Trip is one trip you will not want to make reservations for! I prefer my trips with happy memories and drama free arguments. This is not the case for 6 friends or 3 couples. Affairs, secrets, and lies are exposed. What will the fallout be after the damage is out there?
Pretty decent story. A lot of build up at the beginning with a fairly whiney wife who questions her husband's fidelity the entire trip. The end finally explodes with an act that one of them commits but no one can believe to be true. Will marriages and friendships survive this trip?
This title is due out August 3, 2021. Look for it this summer. Thank you to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for the gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Oh what a crazy twisted guilt trip it was! Guilt is such a powerful emotion that it seems to leak out of our pores for others to see because it affects our behavior in ways we don't even realize. Two married couples go on a trip to another country to attend the wedding of the third couple they are traveling with. They all have complicated relationships with each other and some have a history with each other that goes back years. Once they all reach the wedding destination tensions rise and guilty secrets leak out slowly until the biggest secret is revealed. I enjoyed this story from the beginning to the satisfying ending.

This book is a fun but somewhat overcomplicated book. The premise brings three couples to a destination, where secrets are revealed and of course thrills commence. The premise of the book obviously hints at lies and secrets between the couples, which makes the characters come off as a hit unlikeable. Due to all the secrets, everyone appears suspect, but it felt too purposeful at times which was annoying. Overall I think it is worth the read as the plot twists aren't all predictable. Due to the large cast and additional minor characters, there does feel like some wasted space getting to know all these people.

Wasn’t my favorite for a “thriller.” Not very likable characters and so many useless questions. Kind of frustrating to read

I was hooked from the get-go. This was a gripping, fast-paced, quick read that I couldn't put down until the end. The title of the book is great. Each one of the characters had a secret that ultimately would come out. None of the characters were really likeable although towards the end, this reader started to understand and forgive their behaviors. The build up and suspense had me entertained throughout. Excellent read. Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Six friends are traveling to Portugal for Ali and Will's wedding. Even though they are friends, there is some tension in the group when they arrive at the airport and Ali cannot find her passport. Ali rubs Jack, Will's brother, the wrong way and Rachel, his wife, can't figure out why. Ali is flamboyant, flirty, loud, and likes to drink, however, Rachel is hoping to get to know her new sister-in-law better on this trip. The weekend takes a turn for the worse when Jack tells his wife and two of the friends that Ali is cheating on Will. When Rachel overhears Ali confide that she doesn't want any children after Ali tells Will she can't wait to start having babies, Rachel doesn't know what to do. With all of the lies and deceit, it is no surprise that the weekend ends in murder.

Sandie Jones is a master of the psychological thriller and her latest book does not disappoint. I love it when I can't figure out who the good and bad guys are. Great for beach reading and Bookclub discussions.

This was not exactly what I was expecting. However, once I got through the first few chapters, I enjoyed it. I was interested in the web of relationships and connections between the characters. Great dialogue and situational suspense!

I really enjoyed Sandie Jones last book, and this one was an easy read but I felt like it was rather predictable and needed more of a story line to keep me hanging on. I definitely didn't see the ending coming which is good but I thought there could have been a bit more going on. It would be a good beach read.

This book personifies the old adage, don't judge a book by its cover. It may have seemed that Rachel and Jack had the perfect marriage but it certainly was not the case as she learned more and more about the person she had believed to be and who.he actually was. In addition, Ali was believed to be all looks and no substance which could not have been further from the truth. She was the best one of them all. Quite a shocking ending and epilogue!

This was not what I expected it to be. Having read Sandie Jones in the past, it was a bit of a departure. Typically I would describe her books as thrillers. This had a thriller element toward the end, but was far more focused on the core relationships. Despite the departure, the book kept me interested and hooked. I enjoyed the story and kept coming back to it as I wanted to know how the relationships would evolve. The title really sums up a major theme of the story. I found the book fun and engaging and a great summer read.

I like suspense, and I LOVE a locked-door (or isolated island) mystery, so I'd expected to enjoy this one, but this didn't do it for me at all. There are two couples, Jack and Rachel, and Noah and Paige, going to a destination wedding where they kinda all hate the bride, Rachel and Noah have been friends since college, and still maintain a wonderful close friendship where they understand each other better than their spouses, and Paige spends loads of the book talking about how well-suited Rachel and Noah are, and how it wouldn't even be cheating if old friends got together and.... Ugh.

Anyway, it's not a one-star because there actually WAS a surprising twist with the bride's past.

When I first started this book it was a good steady story of 6 friends who have some drama in their relationships. Their is suspected betrayal, infidelity, questions of paternity, and insecurities and comparisons among friends. About half way through the book, I was on the edge of my seat. I could not put it down and did not want to be interrupted because I had to figure out what was going on only to find out in the end I was totally wrong. I had to pick up my mouth off the floor. Wow. I haven't read anything this intense in a long time and it was well worth it!

I enjoyed this fast paced, quick read about a group of friends in a beautiful location for a destination wedding. I liked the premise of the book and the slow build up of suspense. I did feel that a little too much time was spent building up to the wedding and more time could have been spent on the ending. The ending felt rushed and it was a little confusing. Overall it was an enjoyable read that I would recommend to others.

I enjoyed this book. It starts out as an annoying bride getting majored in a destination wedding and it ends up in tons of secrets. What could go wrong. Well practically everything! So good and kept me glued to the pages.

I requested to read and review this book for free from St. Martin Publishing Company. Wow this book wow. Just when you think you know how the book is going to end or what happened there is a huge curveball. The ending I couldn't have predicted. It was amazing. This book will leave you wanting more and not wanting to put it down. The characters Ali, Rachel, Jack, Noah and Paige and Will. Very much intertwine with each other more then you know. This book will make you think I should never judge something without proof. Is there such this as a happy ending? Can you really know someone whether you live in the same house or have been friends for many years. Does the truth set you free? This book is for a mature reader and can be ready anytime.

This book took place over a timespan of a two wedding weekend. With that being said, it was not short on suspense and romance. I really enjoyed it’s a nice relaxing summer read.

Another fast paced read from Sandie Jones. This one involves three different couples, an affair, and plenty of deceit. It is somewhat easy to guess the twist early on in the novel. That said, the mystery between the couples unfolds in a tangled way, and the intrigue comes in finding out how the twist is revealed to the other characters.

I raced through this one. The characters weren’t always likable but the setting was enthralling and the plot was engaging. I was eager to see its conclusion in a good way. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I had high hopes for this novel, a domestic thriller. The beginning of the book grabbed my attention; six friends going to Portugal to celebrate a wedding and of course lots of secrets come to light. About midway through the book, I found it difficult to get through it. There was a lot of dialogue in the present and past which I found confusing. The ending seemed so rushed. I would have liked a cleaner resolution.

-𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊 𝐑𝐄𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐖-
The Guilt Trip by Sandie Jones
pub date 8/3

first of all, huge thank you to @netgalley and @minotaur_books for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰: i’m going to keep this short since i decided to read this immediately when i got it and it’s not out til August! this book was a fast paced, domestic thriller. i got into the story right away then started to get a little bored. you have to get settled into reading, to me at least- i had a hard time figuring out who was married to who at in the beginning. overall, this is a good summer read and a story you definitely can tell Sandie wrote!
⭐️3/5⭐️