I wanted to like this story more, but it was more of a slow burn for me. It took to long to get to the "good stuff" for me. Bella and Kate's relationship is a complicated one from childhood to adults, but the writing style sometimes threw me off, and I couldn't tell which character was speaking,. This ended up being a DNF for me.

I received a free e-arc of this book through Netgalley.
This book goes through the lives of 2 friends from early school to their 80s. It's written in a choppy short style to keep the story moving quickly, but it was kinda disconcerting that way and hard for me to get really comfortable in the story.
The story hints at a lot of things or starts to go down a path and then stops leaving the reader to interpret things their own way which could be good or bad.
It wasn't really the genre for me and it took me out of my comfort zone a bit with references to rape while never saying the word.

The Best Friend by Jessica Fellowes was a quick and interesting read. This is a story of the complex and changing relationship between two women spanning several decades. The author leaves a lot to the reader's imagination. I found myself wanting to know more about the lives of each of the main characters and their respective families. I enjoyed the writer's style and the way she used an ongoing dialogue between the two women to reveal the story.

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review

This one was pretty twisty- some more obvious than others but still an enjoyable ride. You really do you fall in love with the main female characters. Enjoyable take on female friendship. Solid four

Bella and Kate have been best friends since they were little girls. It was impossible to see one and not the other. In the last term of their senior year, Kate tells Bella she's moving because her father's work is relocating him and his family. Bella fears that she and Kate will lose the closeness they have, and Kate will find a new best friend. Kate assures her that will never happen, and they will call and write to each other. Even with Kate's reassurances, Bella knows their friendship is about to change.

I requested this from Netgalley and started reading it last night. I liked the plot because I had a best friend where I was always in her shadow, and she was shining brightly. I was at the halfway point where I considered making this a DNF. The writing format is odd, with short chapters and unlikeable characters. I also had to go back a few chapters to figure out the pivotal turning point since I missed it earlier. Once it was clear what the twist I chose to speed-read the rest of the book. Once I reached the end, I sat and thought about how I felt about it. I did have that one revelation of oh, that's why that happened, now it makes sense! Unfortunately, it still doesn't change my opinion overall on this story. I wouldn't recommend this unless you're looking for something to read while lounging at the pool.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me early access to this book.

Pub Date: 09-13-22

✨Book review✨
The Best Friend
By Jennifer Fellowes

I liked the way this book was written. The chapters were based on the ages of the two main characters, and the dialogue was presented in a first person, conversation the majority of the story. This allowed me to read this one fast!

I sort of had an idea of how this one was going to play out, but all in all my attention was held, and the pages turned.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5

Thanks so much to

The Best Friend follows the friendship (or is it ?) between Kate and Bella. They start as inseparable childhood playmates that morphs into co-dependent adolescence. But as they grow and change so does their friendship. This novel follows the fluctuating and albeit toxic relationship between two women who must learn how to navigate the world together and apart. 

Personally I struggled to read this novel due to formatting. The difficulty primarily laid in the lack of no quotation marks to differentiate who was speaking. I found myself getting lost in the conversation and having to re-skim what I just read to count out who was currently speaking. It made the dialogue muddled and I had a hard time connecting to the characters. There were also instances of gaslighting that I found upsetting. 

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

Have you ever had a toxic friend? Tia toxica? I feel like almost everyone in their lifetime has had or has known of someone who could be categorized as toxic. The Best Friend is a story of just that. This is the story of Bella and Kate. Bosom buddies since babies. They have known each other forever, but does that make their relationship solid and trustworthy? Or do secrets and betrayal intersect their intertwined lives?
Although I would have loved to read more character development for both Bella and Kate, I truly enjoyed this book. I love reading about women's friendships and just how complex relationships can be.

Thank you NetGalley and Jessica Fellowes for the eARC.

The Best Friend is a slow burn - the kind of creepiness that insinuates throughout the novel but does not crystallized until the close. Bella and Kate are the best of friends at age 6, age 8 and age 12. When one moves away with her family, they promise to keep in touch. The novel then touches on many ages when the two intersect and what transpires to keep them together or separate them again.

The writing can be fragmented and it requires the entire book to understand just exactly what happened. It's a beautiful toxic friendship though, to the very end. If you love a slow burn, a female-centric story, a potentially unlikeable and unreliable narrator, then The Best Friend is for you#minitour #stmartinspress #netgalleyreads #netgalley #thebestfriend

interesting book about being friend and the friendship over the many years. I liked bella and kate and how they changed over time. overall an okay book.

I’m definitely in the minority with my 2 star rating but this story fell flat for me and I could not connect with any of the characters. DNF at 30%. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release in exchange for my review.

This one was a little different than I expected it to be. The writing style wasn’t what I expected and I had a hard time getting through it. I love the premise of it, so I may give it another try.. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This was different. It read like a play with almost all dialogue, although there were no quotation marks. Even though it is contemporary fiction, it reads like a classic novel, which won points with me. The chapters are organized by the characters ages and it spans the friends’ lives. It was oddly entertaining. Plot holes abound, but that may be because I was too dense to figure out the clues dropped throughout. It is an odd book, but an intelligent one. Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this book. Bella and Kate’s friendship was such a roller coaster. Such a amazing descriptions of the characters. Loved being able to see everyone grow.

Thanks for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, it was a bit confusing and I had a hard time getting into it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for my ARC in exchange for my honest review

This smart, well-told, with taut suspense, mystery read will have you hanging on the edge of your seat with anticipation!
Her characters were engaging and prodigious.
This book ultimately hooked me from the beginning.

I devoured this book about the relationship between Bella and Kate. A compelling read about what can go wrong between two people. A tense well-paced read.

I really, really enjoyed this book! It had me hooked from the very beginning and kept me hooked the whole time!

Kate & Bella have been friends almost all of their lives—or have they? From childhood misunderstandings to tragic adult mistakes, each step the women take toward each other seems to include at least two steps back. The reader is left to question if this is friendship, love, or an unhealthy obsession.

This book was not what I expected going in, and perhaps that is one reason why I struggled to connect with the plot. In addition, the lack of clear dialogue shifts left new a bit confused at times. That being said, a reader who enjoys exploring the layers of friendship, love, and betrayal may very well like this title.

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital advance copy.

“The Best Friend” is by Jessica Fellowes. This book follows two women - and their friendship - through their lives. I really didn’t like this book. Part of this was due to the formatting of dialogue - without many hints of who was speaking, I found myself confused at times over who was speaking. I also wasn’t too happy with the author’s choice to skim over parts of the story - to have a sort-of-explained explanation near the end of the book. I also found myself not warming up to neither of the main characters. However, every book has some good - and this was a quick read that mostly held my attention. Overall, this was an interesting idea, but it just did not work for me.