Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC.
This book was my first by Victoria Jenkins and I thoroughly enjoyed it and definately won't be my last.
A domestic thriller gives us two very different mothers. Dani and Adele, 2 moms who meet at a community playgroup and become unlikely friends. The beginning of the book was a bit of a slow burn to set up the raging fire and twists and turns in the second half. A well written story.

Huge amount of thanks to NetGalley and bookouture for an e arc of this book in exchange for my honest opinion and review.

Dani and Adele are two very different women that meet during a play group for younger children. Despite their differences, they become friends. We eventually see that they aren’t so different after all. Each woman is flawed and they’re both hiding secrets. One woman just wants a friend and acceptance. The other wants revenge.

I did find it a bit of slow burn to start, but never slow enough that I lost interest. The more I read, the more invested I was. The amount of misdirection was clever. I did not get the outcome I was expecting, which is the way every thriller should end, in my opinion.
If you enjoy a good domestic thriller, pick up a copy of this book on May 21.

I initially liked the premise of this story - I find a lot of novels with child abduction themes can be repetitive but there were some revelations and twists in The Playdate that made it a bit more unique. However it is definitely a slow-burner and while that works for some books, I wasn’t really engaged until the second half of the story because it felt like not much was happening until then. I felt ambivalent toward the main character Dani and didn’t find myself feeling sympathetic toward her - she didn’t come across as the best mother to her daughter Layla, although I kept reminding myself that she’s a young mum, and her short temper and anger problems only made her more unlikable in my opinion.

Ultimately this book was a fairly standard domestic thriller and while there were definitely pieces of the puzzle that I didn’t see coming and a few juicy plot twists, it’s not a story that will particularly stand out for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed The Playdate by Victoria Jenkins. The author had me guessing the background of the main players and what their roles were. In the story, you read about Adele and Dani who meet at a play date with their daughters. Slowly you find out more more about each character. You then understand how each person is connected to the other. I definitely recommend reading this book. Thank you #Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read #ThePlaydate by #VictoriaJenkins.

The Playdate is a rollercoaster ride of a story. It’ll keep you on the edge of your seat as it unfolds. A great read.
Thanks to #NetGalley for an ARC of this book. #ThePlaydate #PsychologicalThriller #Gripping

A story of two mothers of different age group told in their alternating perspectives. The initial part is very slow with just fillers. It takes more than half the book for the actual plot to kick in, after which the narrative picks up. As the actions of one of the characters in the past is unclear, the conclusion doesn’t make much of an impact.

This is the first book I have read by Victoria Jenkins and I highly recommend it. Looking forward to reading some more books from this great writer.
I read a lot of psychological thrillers but I have yet to be gripped by one I have read this year.

I just finished reading The Playdate and all I can say is WOW! What I loved most about this book is that I couldn’t predict the shocking ending. Throughout the entire book I kept trying to guess what was coming, but to my delight, I was wrong. The book is told by 2 different perspectives; both enjoyable and intriguing characters. I can’t say enough good things about The Playdate!

A domestic thriller with lots of twists and turns, this was well plotted but ran a bit too slowly for me - for a short novel it took me way too long to read, which is a clear indication it just wasn’t gripping enough for me.

Enjoyable, but not unputdownable.

This domestic thriller gives us two very different mothers. Dani is a young, single mother living with her own mother and training to be a hairstylist. Adele lives a much posher lifestyle - married, nice house. But they meet and connect at a playgroup. And both are harboring secrets. The book alternates between the two women’s stories. Jenkins is more open about Dani’s backstory, but keeps you guessing about Adele.
I had to keep reminding myself how young Dani was, as her mothering style upset me. She’s not a totally sympathetic character, with her uncontrollable temper. But she obviously loves her little girl.
I thought I had a good idea about Adele and how things would come together. And I was partially right. But it was a much twister story than I had envisioned. I can’t say the ending really worked for me. It’s not a bad story - it’s quick, mildly entertaining and fast moving. It’s just one I know I will have totally forgotten in another week.
I was a fan of Jenkins’ police procedural series, Lane and King. But this didn’t ring true for me. I’m starting to think I need to take a break from psychological thrillers. I’m just becoming way too jaded.
My thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of this book.

The Playdate by Victoria Jenkins
My first book by this author and I wasn't sure what to expect.
I felt that the story took awhile to warm up but I'm glad I stuck with it as it just got better and better.
Plenty of twists and turns which built up to a brilliant unexpected ending.
The story features Dani and Adele who met at a children's playgroup.
Dani is a struggling single parent and Adele is an older and seems to have it all but sometime things are not always what they seem.
I thought I knew what was going to happen in the end but I was wrong which I loved.
Overall a very good read and I would read more by this author.
Thank you to #netgallery and #bookoutour for the chance to read this early copy.

I found this book a slow burner. This was my first Victoria Jenkins book and although I read a lot of psychological thrillers I didn’t feel this gave gripping feeling like other thrillers do. The story flicks to and fro 2 mothers who meet a playgroup. Dani is a young single mother who struggles with her daughters tantrums, Adele comes across as an older mother who is trapped in a marriage she wants out of. Both mothers have secrets, will they be revealed?

Dani, young single mother, meets older Adele at a playdate. They come from different worlds, Adele lives in an affluent neighbourhood in an abusive marriage, and Dani struggles every day to survive. Both seem to be good mothers and become friends.
But what lay behind closed doors is often very different from the facade on display for the eyes of the outside world.
Secrets just wait to be exposed.

Twisty thriller, but somehow slow and unconvincing for my taste.

Overall good read for all domestic thriller lovers.

Wow! This book had me on edge from the start!
The Playdate is told from Dani, a young single mother and Adele an older married mum’s points of view. Meeting at a playgroup they become fast friends even though there is a significant age gap between them, but all is not as it seems...
Both characters were likeable at the beginning even though they both had secrets, however, I did change my mind about one of them later on in the book.
It had me feeling sorry for both of them in different ways. Obviously, I was led down the garden path with one of them.
Lies and deceit and revenge, this was a page-turner like no other I had read. I did not see what was coming at all.
This is the first book I have read by Victoria Jenkins, it was fantastic and I will definitely be looking out for more of her books in the future.

The beginning of the book was a bit of a slow burn to set up the raging fire and twists and turns in the second half!

Our story centers around Dani, a young 22 year old single mother who is struggling with her 2 year old daughter’s tantrums and her past mistakes. Adele is an older woman with sweet little girl, Ivy, living in an affluent neighborhood and suffering in an abusive marriage. But things are not as they seem and neither of these women are who they appear to be.

The chapters are told from each characters perspective which I really liked! It was different to read what each woman was thinking and feeling in each chapter and literally seeing them unraveling as the book progressed.

And let me tell you the twists the twists! Oh my God I was not expecting that one at the end! I was literally on the edge of my chair flipping pages anxious to get to the conclusion!

I loved loved this book! A superb psychological thriller, one of the best I’ve read in a while!

Thank you NetGalley, Victoria Jenkins and Bookouture for this ARC ❤️

#netgalley #theplaydate

For me, the book was slow in the first half but then picked up fast. This book had lots of twists and turns and lots of surprises that all came in the second half.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. An enjoyable thriller that kept my interest to the end of the book.

I couldn't put this one down! I don't know where to begin with this thriller thrill ride. Twists and turns, surprises to keep you on the edge of your seat. Victoria Jenkins knows how to keep readers engaged.

I found the play date quite slow to begin with and wasn’t really sure where the story was going, I’m glad I persevered as it became more fast paced with lots of twists and turns that Led to a surprising outcome!
The playdate features Dani a single mum and her new friend Adele who she met at a toddler group, both very different Dani being young and struggling as a single parent whilst Adele being older appears to have it all the big house, husband and perfect child!
As the friendship progresses things aren’t quite what they seem, Dani becomes the victim of cyber bullying, threats-and sullying of her character because of a previous incident and confides in Adele!
Adele meanwhile has a totally different agenda in mind revenge and this leads us into the twisty chilling read that is The Playdate!
Thank you netgalley for this early read.

If you can’t trust another mother with your child, who can you trust?

Dani is a single young mum to her daughter Layla and they both live with Dani’s mum, Caroline in their family home. Dani hasn’t had an easy life thus far as she has stepped onto the wrong side of the tracks in her past resulting in her being the headline gossip.

Now she is a mum, she is doing everything that she can for her daughter to ensure she has the best start that she is able to provide, and so she takes her to her local playgroup regularly. However, she struggles to fit in with the other mothers, until, Adele comes along with baby Eve.

Adele isn’t like the other mothers, she’s not judgemental, she’s kind and caring towards Dani and Layla, and this friendship is just what Dani needs, someone she can trust and confide in.

This book was a huge surprise. The first two thirds, I was thinking I knew exactly what was going to happen, that it was going to be predictable, however, I was completely wrong which I am very grateful for. I love a book that takes me by surprise and throws all my thoughts and conclusions out of the window.

This is a twisted story about lies, secrets and revenge, and makes you question you can you really trust.