The twist was great and had me excited...but then it all fell apart.

The actions of the main characters made no sense.
And I honestly have no idea what the point of this book was.

This book had so much potential but unfortunately fell flat!

Thank you to netgalley for an E-arc and to the publisher Simon & Schuster for a physical arc.

I loved Magpie! It was such a gripping read and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I would definitely recommend this book to any fellow thriller lovers.

Unexpected twists. Great writing and characters. Keeps you engaged.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

The strength of Magpie solely lies in a halfway point twist. If you're not a fan of the twist then you'll probably not enjoy the book because it takes the story in a completely different direction. I did like the surprise of the twist but it didn't really go anywhere after that point. The characters weren't the best, each had their own issues. I did enjoy the first half though and think the author has a great writing style. Overall, 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Jake asked Marisa to move in with him shortly after they start dating. For Marisa, Jake is the one. After an unstable and chaotic childhood, Jake provides Marisa the security that she’s been craving. Once they decide to start trying for a baby, they take on a lodger named Kate to help make ends meet. Kate becomes overly interested in both Marisa’s husband and her pregnancy. Halfway through the novel, the perspective shifts from Marisa to Kate, thus revealing the twist. Nothing was quite as it seemed. Going back to the first few chapters of the novel, it is interesting to read them knowing what Marisa’s perceptions of the events are compared to Kate’s point of view.

The novel was written well for a thriller. I think Day could write in any genre and produce a successful book. The biggest flaw for me was the way that a couple of tropes were used. It really takes away from my overall enjoyment of a book when I don’t agree with how a trope or literary device is used. The biggest one for me was the unreliable narrator trope, but the main character is really exhibiting symptoms of an untreated mental illness and that’s why they can’t be trusted, which I think is the most harmful in this form. In hindsight, every female character in this book is somehow “crazy”. Kate is a stalker. Marisa is clearly experiencing a psychotic break. Jake’s mom is the stereotypical narcissist and manipulative mother-in-law from hell. I think it’s time that we move past using these harmful narratives as plot devices.

The twist in this book occurs halfway through so remaining portion of the novel gets wrapped up over the remaining half. For me, this means that the ending is wrapped up well and not rushed. However, we could have probably cut out about 50 pages as nothing of note really happens after this point. Overall, the book does fall a little flat for me. It’s a very average thriller with an author that I truly think has potential.

I liked Part 1. When we reach the end of that part and things start falling into place I thought.... oh this is getting JUICY. The ending got more twisty and thrilling again but the middle was.....slow
The beginning of Part 2 felt super slow for me... it was, honestly, kind of boring the way the story was presented.
Once we get back to when the timelines meet it gets back to more interesting times. The end interactions are very twisty and I felt unsure of what characters I could trust. The writing is good to the point I was feeling infuriated by characters and circumstances. The last few chapters wrap everything up neatly but got back to the boring territory of how the story was presented (now I'm thinking back maybe it was the third party present tense..? or maybe I'm just taking it wrong, lol!)

CW: definitely infertility as we get an inside glimpse of Kate and Jake's journey of trying to have a baby.

Thanks to the publisher for the Netgalley approval to read and review. This was one of my first few approvals back when I initially joined NG so I feel terrible I haven't gotten around to it until now but don't they say better late than never :-D

Could not recommend this book any higher. It's just a really great book that keeps you engaged. Great writing and characters. Look forward to more from this author.

NB: I read this while experiencing fertility struggles, and will note that it may be triggering for those in a similar situation.

This book had so many twists and turns that I could never have predicted the ending - just when you think you know what's going on, the author takes things in the completely opposite direction!

There's not much I can say about this book without spoiling things, but if you're looking for a mystery, this one is for you!

One of the best thrillers I’ve read in QUITE a long time. After reading so many of them, I typically don’t get too invested and usually I can see the twists coming, but this one hooked me.

A couple and their surrogate, an odd mother-son relationship, infertility, mental illness, and so much more. Lots of triggers in this book, but the author has handled the topic of infertility with care as she has firsthand experience.

Loved this one!

This book definitely threw me for a loop with the role changing in the different point of views. It definitely kept me engaged throughout the whole book.

I wish I liked this more than I did. I really wanted it to be a 5 star read. but it fell flat for me. I just felt it drug on and would not end.

Magpie is an easy and entertaining read that will keep you guessing and take the reader to unexpected places. Elizabeth Day is great at keeping the suspense high from chapter to chapter - I never wanted to put this one down. I easily devoured this book in two sittings (hey, a girls gotta work!)

My only criticism of this book was that it ended rather abruptly. Throughout the entire book the suspense is building, and the reader is questioning Marisa's recall of events. Personally, I would have enjoyed the conclusion being extended a chapter or two more to increase the suspense.

A solid four stars for this book and one that I recommend to friends when they ask me for an entertaining read. I often refer to this one as a "beachy thriller" due to its ease of reading and juicy storyline.

Thank you NetGalley for this advanced copy.

Marissa and Jake are having a baby, and to help with expenses, they take in Kate as a renter. Kate begins to seem overly involved in their lives and a bit too familiar with Jake for Marissa’s liking. She follows Kate to work and reads Jake’s emails, realizing they have been having an affair for months and want to take her baby as their own. She won’t let that happen.

I love an unreliable narrator that keeps you guessing who or what to believe and where the truth lies. I found Magpie haunting and suspenseful, full of unexpected twists and turn throughout, even to the very end. I think I was most surprised with the ending, but this domestic thriller is worth a read.

Magpie follows Marissa, Kate and Jake. Marissa and Jake seem to have a perfect relationship. So perfect, in fact, that they dream of having a baby together. Kate, is their perfect new lodger, whose rent should help them start their family. She gets on with Jake quite well.

All sounds perfect, doesn't it? Guess what, if it seems that way, it's probably not. We all read Thrillers, we know this. It's not just the fertility issues that start to put a strain on their relationship. Their new lodger also seems to like to push boundaries. It's most distracting.

Magpie is a good book. It's a solid story that I know a lot of Readers will really enjoy. I'm glad I picked it up, but unfortunately, I don't think it is one that will stick in my mind for long. For one, I'm not sure the subject matter really suited my tastes. Additionally, from the beginning I couldn't stand Marissa. I felt like I was supposed to be on her side and if anything, it was the opposite for me.

This book is broken into separate Parts. Part I is from one perspective and then Part II shifts to another. Right around this time there was a big reveal. For me, the reveal felt like it happened too early, because after that it was sort of just telling the aftermath of that reveal. It sucked any intrigue out of it for me. I also feel, and this is 100% personal taste, that I would have enjoyed it more if it would have had a format that alternated perspectives for much longer. Sure, this could add some confusion, but also, that's part of the fun.

There was something else more towards the end, but that ended up falling a little flat for me in comparison. Overall, this is a solid story. The things that didn't work for me are personal taste issues and completely subjective. I'm sure many, many Readers will have a lot of fun with this. If the synopsis sounds intriguing to you, absolutely give it a shot. There's a book for every Reader and a Reader for every book. This one could be a new favorite for you.

This review feels a bit shorter than those I generally tend to write, but this one is really difficult to talk about without going into specifics. I don't want to spoil it for anyone, so will leave it here. Magpie is entertaining, if not super memorable. I'm glad I gave it a shot. Even though it won't end up on any of my favorites lists, it wasn't a bad way to pass the time.

Thank you to the publisher, Simon & Schuster, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I appreciate the opportunity to provide my opinion.

This book was amazing! And the plot twist came out of nowhere and left me speechless.

I must say this is the second book that I read with a similar secondary story line, but the way this was written was so clever that I was truly shocked when it was revealed.

In this story, Marissa and Jake are the perfect couple, and their relationship is going great until Jake decides to rent their home's empty bedroom to Kate. Things are great at first, and Kate's rent money will allow them to finally start the family they both have dream to have since they met. Kate is the great roommate until she starts to get too friendly with Jake and she pushes Marissa's boundaries. And when Marissa finally announces her pregnancy, things start to get worse in the perfect picture image that she has created in her mind. As she tries to figure out whats happening between Kate and Jake, Marissa realizes that everything she has worked so hard to create with Jake is in danger, and Kate is not to be trusted.

This story was truly engaging and I just couldn't stop reading to learn about Kate's motivations. I must say that at first, Marissa came out as truly unhinged and non-trusting, and I was truly frustrated with her overreactions to Jake and Kate interactions. But as she shares more about Kate's behavior, I grew suspicious of Kate and Jack's intentions. It seemed that they were both gaslighting Marissa and making her look bad on purpose, so I start to feel sorry for her. However, I truly liked Kate and felt like she was more authentic in her interactions with Marissa that what she was leading us to believe. Overall, I feel that both characters were written in a wonderful way which makes the developments in the story even more shocking. This was a wonderful read, and I wasn't expecting to like this book as much as I did. Also, loved the secondary story line with the Monster-in-Law and felt that it gave the main plot an unique perspective. It was an amazing book!

Truly could not predict where this one was going. Such fascinating characters and truly gets to the heart of motherhood. Thanks to S&S for the arc for my honest review.

Wow! This was quite the nail-biter- can’t put down-stay up all night book! Be prepared for a number of both surprising and shocking twists!

4 stars! WOW...Magpie was a rollercoaster! The tension and twists are strong with this one. Recommend!
Thank you to Elizabeth Day, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a quick read for me and it was so difficult to put down. I was so engrossed in this story and loved the writing style. This was heavily focused on infertility so I’d keep that in mind if that’s a triggering subject for you before you read this one. It really broke my heart at times and I really felt for these characters.

Solid psychological thriller. The twists made me question everything and I liked that the perspective flipped half way through (a la Verity, where suddenly everything you believed is flipped on its head).