I'm going to start by saying I really enjoyed this book and finished it in 3 days, which for me, with a young child at home, is really good. The first half of the book is the story of Amelia being taken prisoner alongside her vaguely fake husband, Ned. Flashbacks to the past show us her history and how she got involved with Ned. This part was SO suspenseful and pulled me right along. I couldn't wait to find out what happened next.

Around the halfway point *SPOILER ALERT stop reading here if you don't want the story to be spoiled SPOILER ALERT* she is allowed to leave, and the story goes deeper and deeper. While I did enjoy this part of the book it felt so unrealistic. It also felt almost too complicated. The ending just didn't do it for me--not only was it almost all monologue by the characters, which I always find frustrating, but it just wasn't an ending that worked for me for this type of book.

All that said--I still really enjoyed it. It's only my 2nd book by this author, and this book made me want to pick up more by them. Solid 4 stars from me.

3 stars for a thriller that has more mystery than thrills.

This new book by B.A. Paris grabbed my attention right away as you meet Amelie who is being held prisoner in a dark room with no light and no explanation, and you begin to discover the back story of how she ended up being kidnapped along with her husband, uber rich playboy, Ned. I enjoyed learning about Amelie's life before the kidnapping and her friends Carolyn, Lina and Justine. The first half of the book (The Kidnapping) was definitely a 4 star read as it was extremely well-written, captivating and really kept you guessing with some good plot twists. The second half of the book is entitled "The Reckoning" and unfortunately this part of the story really fell flat for me. The book lost its momentum, the character development stopped entirely, and I was not really satisfied with some of the explanations and resolutions. The second part of the book was a 2 star book for me and the overall rating is 3 - 3.5 stars. B.A. Paris is a great writer and this is still a well-written mystery that really captivates the reader for a long time as the larger portion is about The Kidnapping and how Amelie ended up being held in a dark room by herself with little to no contact with the kidnappers. While The Reckoning was not as enthralling as The Kidnapping, it is still an enjoyable book to read that will keep you turning the pages quickly and guessing about where the booked is headed.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the chance to read an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Prisoner started out strong with some intense action, short chapters, and a unique premise. I find with many of Paris' books, you have to be willing to suspend reality a bit to enjoy, so if you can't handle a few plot holes and some unrealistic elements, then this is not the book for you.

As I worked my way through the first part of the novel there was some good suspense and a couple of interesting little twists; however, I struggled with the character development, or lack there of. The more I read the more I realized I didn't know much about anyone other than our main girl Amelie. This makes the story lag a bit as you're not invested in the characters and start to lose interest in the plot. I still found myself able to continue on without losing motivation to read though.

I was hoping the second part of the novel would be redeeming, but there was a bit of filler between the climax and the resolution that wasn't necessary and the delivery of the resolution wasn't executed that well. Paris relies on one character unravelling the entire reveal like a villain monologue at the end of a movie. I prefer endings that are a bit more engaging for the reader.

This is still a solid read and I did enjoy it. I found it much better than The Therapist, but not as fantastic as The Breakdown. Paris is still one of my auto-buy authors and I will continue to look forward to new releases!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was just 'okay' for me, but giving it a 3 because I don't think it's a bad book, and I think people who like cut-and-dry mysteries could still enjoy it.
I liked the quick pacing and that it's a plot-heavy book that does not for a single second get bogged down with extraneous details. But the real issue for me was that there's almost no character development and very little in the way of relationship-building between any of the characters. I'm genuinely surprised that a woman wrote this, as it felt the entire time like a (male) writer of hard-boiled detective fiction trying their hand at writing a female protagonist. While there's a high stakes plot going on, there's little emotional resonance. I think the fact that Amelie was never drawn in by Ned was the biggest issue here. Had she been madly in love with him, only to discover that he'd done all of these horrible things, maybe it would've given us some emotional stakes. But as it stands, I just felt detached.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

Amelie has been through a lot in her life. More than most people. When billionaire Ned comes into her life, she is swept away by his glamorous lifestyle and finally builds a life for herself. When Amelie wakes up in a pitch-black room, she doesn't know where she is, why she is there, and who did this to her.

B. A. Paris jumped right in with this book - no slow burn at all - and I loved that. This book is told in two parts (The Kidnap and The Reckoning). While Part One had me engaged with the suspense and kidnapping, Part Two kind of fell flat. I did very much enjoy this book though and would recommend it to thriller readers.

B. A. Paris is the queen of suspense! This book took twists and turns I did not see coming. Things I didn’t even guess until the end. Kept me on the edge of my seat.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley for an early read of The Prisoner!

I have read one other book from B.A. Paris, "Behind Closed Doors," which was one of the first psychological thrillers I've read. "The Prisoner" captivated me, I read it over the course of one day in my beach chair. I will say, I wanted to like the book more than I did. The relationships between Amelie and her friends were barely there, only a few months old. Some of the pieces of the story happened so fast, too fast to feel realistic. I would have liked to see more character development in Amelie's friends and in her relationship with Ned. At times, it was hard to root for Amelie because I did not know a lot about her. I wanted to know more. Also, why was Ned the way that he was? With so little consequences to all his actions that caused enormous loss.

I did like the way the story wrapped up. Amelie kept hunting for the truth, refusing to back down. The twists kept coming and it was enjoyable as a reader. I will recommend this book as a thriller for others to read, it just was not one of my favorites.

was graciously gifted this book to read in exchange for my honest review from NetGalley.

I enjoyed the read! Was a page turner. While unnecessarily complicated at times, the main character was likable and I felt myself rooting for her throughout.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4867947499

Enjoyed this action packed book by BA Paris. Lots of tension, secrets with plenty of twists and turns. Loved the characters and the lengths they would go to for love.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

This is the first book that i have read by this author. I thought that the book started really strong and kept me turning the pages, trying to find out who the captors were and why they took Ned and Amelie. Once I realized who took them I felt the plot fell flat slightly. I still enjoyed it but i felt like the second half of the book was a little slower and didn't hold my interest as much.

Present - the room is pitch black….. Amelie is feeling her way around the small space so she’s trying to figure out who abducted her. The next thing she realizes is that her husband has been abducted too. She can hear him yelling nearby.
The past- Amelie took care of her father until he passed, she found herself in a café hungry and watching two beautiful women finishing a pastry. She was left salivating as I left the food untouched on the table as their conversation left the woman heartbroken. She followed the woman to her apartment to make sure that she made it home safely the woman noticed her caring demeanor and offered her a job. Friends can be found in the oddest of places.
The story was fast paste in riveting keeping you in tune with the characters personality and characteristics. I love BA Paris is writing style bringing the story together as she leaves a web of explanation and connected in the dots all the while keeping you on the edge of your seat.

I have mixed feelings on this book. I enjoyed the anticipation and slow build up. It really held my interest the whole way through. The ending felt like it dragged a bit. Overall, it was a great book and different than a lot of books I’ve read this year.

(Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy).

When penniless orphan Ameile Lamont tries to start her life anew in London, she quickly falls in with a crowd of women who seem to have their lives together. But appearances aren't all what they seem at Exclusives magazine...

Well, this is one of the worst books I've read in a while. I couldn't even round my rating up to 2 stars because it was just that terrible. There's no character development, no truly likable characters, the plot is absolutely absurd, the prisoner chapters have no real sense of urgency to them and are way too drawn out and tedious. This was a relatively short "thriller" novel with nothing really thrilling about it and it was an absolute chore to finish. B.A. Paris has written some great books and some okay ones, but this one was just awful. It seemed rushed and like a rehashing of <u>Behind Closed Doors</u> but with an absolutely bonkers plot and a naive lead that just proves to be downright dumb. And then the ending!? What was that??? Just nope. This was a huge nope.

I have had the pleasure of reading most, if not all, of the books that B.A, Paris has had published. I typically really like her work but The Prisoner was just okay for me. I didn't find the lead character, Amelie, particularly compelling although I was certainly confused and intrigued by the kidnapping in general and did not know what was going to happen.

Still, I didn't find the overall trajectory of the book nor any of the characters that memorable, except for my pure hatred of Jed. That being said, I will absolutely be reading the next book B.A. Paris gets published!

Thank you to Netgalley and St Martin's Press for for a galley edition of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I've read all of this author's books and this one did not disappoint. The Prisoner starts out with Amelie trying to figure out how she will survive after her father's death. She is only 17 and does not want to go into foster care so she leaves for London; and figures she will find a job easily there. Life is very hard for awhile until she meets Caroline who becomes her closest friend. Amelie is tricked into marrying billionare Ned Hawthorne. He tells her it will be a business arrangement only. It doesn't take long for Amelie to find out Ned is not what he seems. One friend of hers is missing, after allegations arise concerning Ned. Amelie agreed to the marriage for one month only, but soon begins to fear for her life and safety. One night she is taken from the mansion and wakes up in a pitch black room. Amelie is scared and wonders if she will get out of this alive. She has witnessed things that only increase her fear. The story builds to a shocking conclusion, with many surprises along the way. B. A. Paris is an author that leaves me eagerly waiting for her next book. I was lucky enough to get this ARC from Net Galley for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC, The Prisoner by B.A.Paris, release date Nov 2022. B.A.Paris is always a hit or miss for me. This was definitely a miss! The entire premise for this book is utterly ridiculous. A young woman’s father dies, so she leaves France for London with zero plans & becomes a homeless person. She then finds close friends while working as a housekeeper for the one friend? She somehow gets invited to LA by the big, rich boss of the working friends? She is incredibly naïve and doesn’t question his motives enough. Okay, so now she marries him in LA & makes a deal where she can get tuition paid for law school?? Meanwhile he has killed off all her friends & has kept her more or less a prisoner until they themselves are kidnapped & held in total darkness??? The protagonist is annoyingly naïve & the reason for everything that happens is stupid dumb! Not a satisfying book for me at all..

I have always enjoyed BA Paris’ novels and her distinct storytelling style. This novel, though, was a bridge too far, even for me. The writing style was elementary, extremely simplistic and lacked all style. The story was far-fetched and confusing. This has been my least favorite book this year. I received a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

Amelie, an ambitious young woman determined to make it on her own in the world, finds her plans interrupted when she is taken prisoner and held in darkness. How she deals with her predicament is tense and exciting, and it makes for a quick read.

I honestly felt the story was wrapping up rather well at about the 70 percent mark, but then it kept going, and I became somewhat confused. Maybe it's just me, but I almost needed to refer to a chart of characters. But no matter, because it was a thrill ride and unputdownable for the most part.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

Oh, yikes. I know this author is extremely popular but this one was a huge disappointment. This is my first book from this author and I do not think I will try their other ones. Get ready for an unpopular opinion!

My main issue with this book was the pacing. This book was SO extremely slow and drawn out. It switches between past and present which I thought was neat in the beginning but that only added to the slow pacing. I feel as though the majority of what we learned in the past chapters could have been told in one chapter. Instead it was dragged out for the entirety of the book. My second issue with this book was how basic it felt. The reader can easily guess the ending from about 25% in and with this book knowing the ending in my opinion does ruin it. I never once worried about Amelie’s character because even though she was kidnapped and was being held a prisoner there was no true threat. This took away any suspense the book was meant to have. Majority of the captive chapters at least in the beginning felt very repetitive and could have been cut in half without the reader missing anything. I felt very bored while reading this one and only kept reading to see if my theories were right. One thing I did enjoy was Amelie’s character. I thought she was written well and is a character that most will find relatable.

This book had so much potential but unfortunately just fell flat. I wouldn’t recommend this one because as far as thrillers go there are so many better ones out there. However, if you do read it as always I hope you enjoy it!

Thank you so much @stmartinspress for the gifted copy on #netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you #Netgalley for the advanced copy.

I am a fan of B.A. Paris's writing and was excited to get an early copy. In this read we follow Amelia in both present times and her past. In her past, she becomes an orphan and moves to London to start out on her own. At times sleeping on park bench's, until she meetings Caroline who takes her under her wing and moves her in as housekeeper/assistant. The two become close and and eventually Caroline loops her into her friend group. From there Amelia gets hired at one of the friends companies, little did she know her life would change. She ends up in a business arrangement resulting in marriage, leading to a kidnapping and reckoning. Amelia is left to piece things together about her new husband and their secluded life. So many plot twists up until the very end.