Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an early copy of The Prisoner. A B.A. Paris book WOOHOOOO!! Behind Closed Doors is by far the go to book I tell everyone about, it is why I read psychologicals. This novel was a good read!! Very suspenseful, easy reading chapters, a few shockers throughout and interesting characters. Even though I still have not found one that rivals Behind Closed Doors, this was worth the read.

B.A. Paris is one of those author's that when they release a new book, I'm reading it. So I was incredibly excited to get an ARC of this one. And while it was not my favorite of Paris', I still couldn't put it down. Poor Amelie! I loved the short chapters. It kept me up night after night til I couldn't keep my eyes open, so if you're looking for an easy, entertaining read, this book is a good pick. 3.5 stars rounded up.

I read this on a weekend that I was home alone in our new house… probably was a poor decision lol. Amelie is kidnapped, she doesn’t know who has kidnapped her or where she is but she feels safer here than she did with her husband. We get the full story as to why but it felt like it took awhile to get there. B.A. Paris is a bit of a hit or miss for me, I loved Behind Closed Doors & The Dilemma but have not loved the others i’ve read from her. I’ll still keep up with this author but this was simply was not a hit for me.

I'm a fan of all B.A. Paris novels. She does psychological fiction so well. I did enjoy the Prisoner, but it's not at the top of my list for this author. The story and pacing were great. It was a quick, enjoyable read. Some of the characters could have been fleshed out more, but Amelia was well depicted. Thanks for the arc!

This is so much more than just a kidnapping. A woman who lost her father in France goes to England to start over. She gets a job as a housekeeper. She meets a rich man who whisks her off to Las Vegas and convinces her to marry him. Then, all hell breaks loose.

While very enjoyable and fast-paced, this book didn't blow me away. Whenever I read a Paris book , I can't help but compare to her first three books which were AMAZING. This one is definitely better than The Dilemma and The Therapist, but I had a few issues with some characters that I didn't feel were consistent. However, if a fan of Paris and/or psychological thrillers, it's worth the read. I stand by my 4 star rating!

Welcome to your stunning Fall Thriller! The Prisoner is not like any domestic thriller you have read before - you will stay up all night reading so beware!

When Amelie's father dies, she leaves for London to try and make a life for herself. Nearly broke, she relies on strangers to survive in the city. Flash forward years later and she is married to a very, very rich man - billionaire Ned Hawthorne. Unfortunately, now that she is in the spotlight, she is vulnerable and one day she wakes up in a dark room with no windows. She is also kidnapped! But she doesn't know by whom or if she will be freed. If you love a domestic thriller, don't pass this up! The Prisoner is a sizzler! #StMartin #ThePrisoner #BAParis

2.5 locked-up stars

Amelie is the prisoner, she’s in a completely dark room plotting her escape. Her husband is locked up in the basement, and they are waiting for his billionaire father to pay the ransom.

As the book continues, we get Amelie’s backstory and learn how she lost her family in France and ended up homeless in London. She manages to get invited into a live-in chef/cleaning job. Then she goes on her first trip to Las Vegas with billionaire Jed (suspend more belief) and he ends up proposing marriage. It’s a business deal, not a real marriage, but Amelie seems so naïve.

Here’s a book that starts off well and then manages to dwindle, and the ending was truly disappointing. There were plot holes and the storytelling was too much telling, and not enough showing. I know some reviewers have loved this one, but it did not work for me.

The Prisoner by B.A. Paris (available 01NOV2022) was one of my most anticipated reads and I am sad to say it was very underwhelming.

I thought the plot was interesting albeit unrealistic. The chapters alternated between past and present which helped to build tension in the narrative and the short chapters kept things moving along, the but the characters weren’t developed at all and there were huge plot holes, making it difficult to understand what was happening or why. I kept waiting for a big reveal but it never came, instead there were pages and pages explaining the why’s but I was left with more questions. Characters that were only mentioned in passing early on in the story ended up playing a significant part in the plot, but as they were mentioned in the reveal, I couldn’t recall who they were or what role they played. The ending was anticlimactic and left me even more confused and disappointed. I have enjoyed several books by this author but this was a miss for me.

I had the opportunity to read an advance digital copy as well as listed to the audiobook. The narration by Georgia Maguire was well done making for a pleasurable listening experience. For this I’ve rounded up my rating from 2.5 to 3 stars.

Special thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Macmillan Audio for the audio and digital arcs, which I received in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I would give this book 2.5 stars rounded up to 3 stars. There were a few interesting things in the book, but it just lacked unique twists. I was disappointed by this because I enjoyed parts of it, but overall I can say I didn't love it. I can't say very much in this review because I think it would spoil it for others.

This is my first B.A. Paris book. I was really enjoying the story, trying to figure out what was going on. I kept reading to find out what would happen next. For the first 3/4 of the book, I couldn't put it down, then it just got too far-fetched. The last 1/4 of the book was just odd, felt rushed and unfinished. Some motives were clear, others were not. I would be willing to give her other books a chance.

Thank you to St. Martin Press, BA Paris, and NetGalley for the eARC

The Prisoner is the latest story from B. A. Paris. Amelie is a young orphan in London. Because of a blueberry muffin (and hunger) Amelie manages to get a good friend and job. Always in the back of her mind, she wants to go to college and become an attorney to help people. Amelie knows she will have to save money in order to be able to accomplish her dream. When an easier path to college opens up she hesitates, but decides to go for it. It's actually difficult to discuss this story while being careful of spoilers. I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an early copy to review.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press & Netgalley for an eARC of The Prisoner by B.A. Paris.

Amelie is building a life for herself in London after losing her parents. While doing so, she becomes swept up in the glamorous lifestyle of billionaire Ned Hawthorne, who she quickly marries. When Amelie wakes up in a pitch-black room, she wonders why she’s been kidnapped, and by who. Why does she feel safer with her captors than with her husband, Ned?

This book wasn’t what I expected, but in a good way! Amelie’s POV takes us between past and present, showing us the build up to her kidnapping and what she’s going through with her captors. The background of Amelie’s life helped establish a relationship with her as a reader, and I was invested in her success and making it out alive. Part I was a really strong build-up for me, and the last Part of the book, the reckoning took an interesting turn that I wasn’t anticipating. I wish that we had gotten more closure in Part 2 with a number of the side characters that we follow throughout the story. As always, I look forward to reading more of Paris’ work!

This is the third book that I have read from B.A. Paris and I do own one or two more. I have rated all of her books at the 4-star mark and this book fell a bit short. I was intrigued by the premise of the story and it kept my interest. I did want a little more of a back story of the characters but we got some of that at the end of the book. I needed to care a bit more about Amelie by learning more about her life earlier.

3.5 stars

A solid entry for B.A. Paris who has become one of my old reliable authors (still think Behind Closed Doors was one of the best in what I call the "British girls in trouble" genre). Well-constructed story and good overall thriller.

I really enjoyed the last book of B.A. Paris that I read. The Prisoner sounded like a super interesting premise of a women feeling safer with her captors than with her husband. The way the story unfolded, was somewhat Cinderella-esque where Amelie is an orphan and meets the perfect employer who saves her from being homeless. Even with that background story, I was left not feeling a lot of empathy for what Amelie went through. There had been enough lead up with her other friends having negative experiences with Ned, that she could have used an iota of common sense to not make some of her choices. Amelie redeems herself and becomes her own savior to get the answers/closure she needs by the end to move on with her life.

The story definitely held my interest throughout, but certain plot points were easy to surmise as the book progressed. I perhaps would have enjoyed more if it wasn't as obvious.

*Thank you St. Martin Press, BA Paris, and netgalley for my eARC in exchange for an honest review. Publication date 11/1/22*

I was so excited when I got approved for this highly anticipated thriller but unfortunately it just did not do it for me.

Amelie has had a tough life after her father died, all she wants to do is go to college and make a life for herself. She has a small group of friends and they introduce her to Ned. Ned is a millioner and and owns Exclusives magazine.

Part 1: The Kidnapping
Amelie is thrown into a pitch black room with no lights, window borded up, with only a mattress on the floor and a tiny bathroom. But why? The timeline alternates between Amelie's past and present while she is locked up in the room.

Part 2: The Reckoning
All told in present time Amelie is free from the Kidnapping but still does not know who kidnapped her and why she was let go. Amelie, along with us readers go on a journey to get answers as to why she was held prisoner.

The first part of this book I couldn't flip the pages fast enough. The author did a great job describing how Amelie was feeling in the room I actually felt claustrophobic. The second part just dragged on and was boring. The ending was abrupt and I just felt like the second part could have been so much better.

This book was ok for me. I love all of B.A. Paris’ books, but for me this one just never seemed to get off the ground. It felt a bit all over the map, floating from character to character but not fully developing any of them. It wasn’t bad at all, it just didn’t capture my interest like all of her other novels have in the past.

I’ve read a few books by this author so I was excited to get the chance to preview her newest piece.
This book moves quickly, jumping between timelines of past and present in part 1, and it perfectly comes together at the end to uncover what is going on. I enjoyed that the book was broken into two parts. With what the main character experienced, it was necessary to show the change in her.
I liked the characters and I do wish we had gotten more about some of the side characters. I felt that we got to know them fairly well in part 1, but I didn’t feel enough closure on them in the second part.
All in all, I really loved this book as a fast paced thriller, with a great main character!

I’ve read everything B.A. Paris has written and was very excited to have access to an advance copy of “The Prisoner” from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press. Big thank you! I always find the suspenseful slow burn mystery of B.A. Paris’ books highly engaging. This one kept me reading into the wee hours of the morning.

The plot moves along in the familiar now and past chapter narrative. I loved the storytelling that allowed me to gradually gain insight into the main protagonist, Amelie, and her life through this storytelling technique. I found her to be a person I could empathize with and want the best for. Amelie makes some life decisions that I’m not sure she was actually desperate enough to make, but female characters making sub-optimal life decisions in popular fiction now seems like a common occurrence.

I found the story had just enough twists and turns to keep me off kilter and unsure of the “good” and “bad” guys. I was bothered by the severe losses Amelie endures and a rather abrupt and marginally ambiguous ending that left me a bit unsatisfied. I wanted things tied up more clearly and Amelie is pretty damaged by the end of the book in a way that had me feeling uncomfortable about her decision-making in the final moments of the story.

“The Prisoner” will keep you engaged until the end, but you might not be fully satisfied as the story arrives at the final moments. The best characters earn our love and support, which I had for Amelie. Happy Reading!