An email arrives in Nicole Mueller’s inbox. It is an application to join a women's networking group that promises to help women succeed. Panthera Leo may just be what Nicole needs to get her career back on track. So, why not?

She joins and goes off to the corporate team-building retreat. I could tell right away, that this group was up to no good. They are demanding and things turn pretty complicated and tangled. I had a hard time believing that Nicole would let herself be sucked into such promises. Her husband, Dan seemed to have a better sense of how things might turn out.

I found this to be more of a mystery than a thriller. There was quite a bit of build-up and team building where the women and their motivations start to become clear. I found much of the first half to be slow and a bit mundane, at 55%, I was still wondering if anything surprising would happen.

Then, yes, a nice surprise twist near the end, but the way it played out was so unimaginative. I was hoping the book would make a turn at that point (and save the book), but instead of using the twist to take off, it fell a bit flat and predictable.

Thanks to NG and the publisher for my early review copy. OUT May 24, 2022

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC! So obviously you had me at possible cult. And then give it a feminist spin? Yes please. Were the signs there that Nicole was joining a cult? Yes, even her husband saw the signs. But the level of deception and planning this women's group put in was a whole other level. This book honestly got wild and parts of the ending I did not see coming.

Natalie has been working her butt off for years at her law firm only to have everything she’s worked for pulled out from under her thanks to the Boys club mentality. Shortly after she is robbed of what is hers because of a skewed point system she is contacted by an organization promising to help women like her beat men at their own game.

Intrigued by this offer Natlaie joins the secretive group that promises to make her even more successful with other successful women helping one another. What starts out as an amazing support system soon feels like a cult.

Now Natalie must extricate herself from the group before she loses those things she holds dearest to her.

My thoughts

I really liked the premise of this book about women fighting the patriarchy. Unfortunately they turned out to be ruthless women doing more harm to fight against the patriarchy than good. I did like that was somewhat rectified in the resolution of the book. There was a lot of mention of the Me Too movement and how there is still a lot that needs to be done for reall progress. Otherwise I really enjoyed this story! I would definitely read another book by this author.

This was my first book by Catherine McKenzie and a women's thriller type genre I don't typically read. And I guess I know why.

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for a copy of this book. Unfortunately it just wasn't for me. I was not drawn to the main character Nicole. I found her behaviour unbelievable and inconsistent (wishy washy to start and then an unexpected backbone) and her character lacked depth. The other characters, for the most part, were one dimensional. And the plot itself was kind of unbelievable. Sorry for the negativity, I probably should not have chosen this book.

I have seen many good reviews so I think it's a matter of being careful about knowing what books and genres you like, and what you don't.

Thank you to NetGalley, Catherine McKenzie and Atria for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I usually read McKenzie’s thrillers when I feel like a popcorn thriller. This one was no different. I found myself going quickly through the first and last quarter of the novel but the middle was just okay for me. Some of the twists were quite surprising so I enjoyed that. I will continue to read what she writes because I do enjoy the way she writes.

I loved the synopsis for this one and it sounded right up my alley. It ended up being an okay thriller. Definitely something I would reccomended to those looking for a quick read!

Catherine McKenzie usually writes a book that will knock your socks off. This one was very good but a fell just a bit short for me.
It had all the ups and downs that I like. Somewhat likable people. A beginning that drew me in although a little slow. A plot that sounded fantastic. The ending was quite good. But there was something about it that just didn’t keep my interest going as fast as I like. It took me several times to finish this book. I read then put it down. Then picked it back up again. It just didn’t grab me and hold on. But it was well written and still had some good plots going on. I just don’t like the cult feel involved. It could have been that I was not in the mood for it yet.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. This is my thoughts about this book.

3.75 stars

Catherine McKenzie writes terrific books that pull you in and won't let go until the last page. Terrific story and characters. I'm late to the party but I loved it.

I decided to pick up this book after reading Six Weeks Left to Live. We meet this lawyer, Nicole whose both work and home life seem to be struggling. All of a sudden she receives this invite from a super exclusive women's networking group and figures it wouldn't hurt to join and recharge her career. The whole group is suspect from the start but Nicole's desperation for change clouds her judgement into the things already happening around her. From there is a story of manipulation, controls, and lies. I'll admit the story was slow for me in the beginning but it was all for a reason and it was exciting to see all of the pieces come together. Some parts I saw coming but over all the factors were there for a solid thriller story.

Lawyer, Nicole Mueller can’t get no satisfaction with her boss holding her back, but then when a life-changing invitation pops up, she joins…them.

I’m a frivolous thriller reader with particular tastes. Most of my thriller reads are buddy read or book club initiated. But at one point long ago, I was just in the mood. So I hoped on the netgalley machine, spied this aesthetically pleasing cover (it’s my fave color dreamscape) and clicked request. I read it & voilà here we are months after it’s release cause writing reviews for books I don’t care for is definitely not my fave.

Like me, Nicole signs up for something that isn’t quite what it seems. She accepts an invitation to join an all women’s retreat that promises to provide opportunities to help her achieve her goals. The group’s main philosophy—they’re a girl’s club in a boy’s club world. When she returns home from the trip and her life immediately changes for the better, Nicole can’t believe her luck. But when things seem too good to be true…she begins to think that maybe joining Panthera Leo is the biggest mistake of her life.

Honestly, I usually enjoy going into books without having read the synopsis, but sometimes I wish I had. I probably wouldn’t have picked this book if I read it. Please Join Us includes some quasi-cultish vibes, sexual harassment and #metoo, a weird housing subplot, and revenge. I’m not big on revenge plots.
I really enjoyed reading about the actual retreat which included some really whacked out group games, but the rest of the book really dragged and the twist was a non-event for me. One other thing to note is that while I really enjoy making lists, I don’t like them in my literature. Here, the author used quite a bit of lists in order to rush the plot forward, which just seemed like pre-edited notes that never got written into sentences.

Have you ever regretted not reading the synopsis?

Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. It wasn’t a win for me, but it just might be for some thriller fans.

I was so intrigued by the synopsis of this one and it turned out to be a fun thriller! I felt like I was sucked in and couldn’t stop reading! I love that the author is a lawyer-turned-writer. It brought a realistic element to the main character who is a lawyer herself. Recomend!

This was my first read by author Catherine McKenzie, and it just wasn't my favorite. It felt slow and didn't grip me the way a solid thriller does. The build up felt a bit anti-climatic. While I did like the double twist at the end, it lacked luster. The author did grab my attention enough to hold on through the storyline to find out how deep the lies went and to figure out what in the world was going on. People aren't always who you think they are, and main character, Nicole, is asking herself this question, but also wondering if she is who she thinks she is.
Only time will tell.

Thank you to Atria Books and the author for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Review being posted to Amazon and B&N (awaiting approval) and my bookstagram account.

The benefits of professional networking, until they provide too much and ask too much in return. This is a page turner! Enjoyed the characters and the premise of this story so much..

This book was a page turner! It kept me on edge the entire time wondering what was about to happen and I couldn’t get enough.

I really could not get into this book. It felt, redundant in a way. Like I'd heard this story before? It felt like a character study more than any kind of thriller. It's a good example of how an incredibly gullible person could get sucked into a cult but this wasn't meant to be a gullible person. This really seems like a caricature of a cult. Very much not for me.

**Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the eARC**

I typically really enjoy Catherine McKenzie's books, but this book about a cult group and the Me Too Movement fell a bit short for me. When Nicole Mueller is not awarded the partnership level at her law firm, she is discouraged. She doesn't understand - she had the billable hours, she has done the extra work. So, now she is at a crossroads. Surprisingly, she receives an invitation from Panthera Leo, a group of women that she believes will bring in more business for her. She goes to their retreat, and meets several prominent women. But, what she doesn't know is that she is a pawn in their plan to exact revenge on men they believe wronged them.
The positive things - the book read quickly, the plot was well planned.
The negative - I just didn't believe it, and I wanted a more psychological feel to it.

This was a fun, quick read for me. Very entertaining with some drama, great twist at the end, and a pro-feminist theme.

- boss babes getting revenge
- take down the patriarchy
- THAT ENDING
- issues with your in laws
- legal/law setting

The authors writing was smart but made it easy for us to follow, which is always appreciated. It was a great, unique story!

Huge thank you to the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I can honestly say that i was very pleasantly surprised by this book. I thought this was gonna be another basic cult books but it was definitely not that at all. It was a cult book with a mix of NSFW if you have read that. I love the strong female vibes, as always. There was a lot of twist and turns that make this book fun to read throughout. Honestly really enjoyed this book would recommend to any thriller fan!

Nicole has had a major setback at work but then receives an invitation to join an empowering women's group called Panthera Leo. She is hopeful this will help her career get back on track but instead she is drawn into a web of lies and mind games. I thought this was twisty and highly entertaining.

What a perfect and intriguing title! Cult premises have become my guilty pleasure and I found this one to be such a fun and refreshing take on the trope!

While focusing on women empowerment, I enjoyed the mysterious aspect as Nicole begins looking into this perplexing network called Panthera Leo! I was totally engrossed from start to finish and that end?! 👀 I relish in a great twist and this one delivered.

If you liked this entertaining page turner and the idea of secret societies, make sure to check out The Collective and The Last Invitation!