This was a fun one. It took a minute to get going, and I can't say the twist was a surprise, but I was eager to keep reading all the way through. An underdog story, some rich folks gaslighting, and a Criminal Minds-esque plot make for a solid thriller in my book.

4 stars!

"You Can Trust Me" by Wendy Heard exceeded my expectations! I could not stop reading this book and refused to put it down until I was finished with it. From the very first chapter, I was transfixed with main characters. Best friends and brilliant con artists Summer and Leo have two dual stories slowly revealing what happens when Leo goes missing. Summer winds up on a secluded, private island owned by a billionaire looking for her. Their dual perspectives unravel two mysteries wrapped up in one story. There is obviously more going on than what is on the page, and that was enough to keep me guessing until the book finished. Author Wendy Heard lets the story simmer as a claustrophobic slow-burn until it all comes to a head in the last few chapters of the book. I found this to be a binge-worthy summer mystery you won't want to miss!

Thank you to NetGalley, Wendy Heard, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and Bantam for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for my review.

You Can Trust Me tells the story of two con artist friends who have become sisters, due to their individual circumstances of family estrangement. Summer, who grew up pickpocketing with her vagabond mother, takes Leo under her wing to help get her a little money as she is living on the streets. The story alternates from the girls’ pasts to present day where they are scheming and trying to land a billionaire target. The author creates characters with rich backgrounds that the reader can connect to, thanks to the detailed backstory of each girl. When Leo hits it off with self-made billionaire and philanthropist Michael, he invites her to his private island off the coast. Envisioning the riches that can be stolen from the estate, Leo agrees and in turn, disappears. Summer is left to investigate what happened to her friend and infiltrate the island in her own way. When she makes it there, nothing is as it seemed. The story is fast-paced and left me wanting to find out what was happening on the island and if/how Summer would find Leo. There were a lot of twists and moments that the reader would not be able to see coming, and at the same time it was very much a case of needing to suspend reality while reading.
While the unbelievable moments in this story are plenty, it still left me immersed.l in the overall story and excited to get to the end.

I literally couldn’t put this book down from the moment I picked it up. Two best friends. Con women. Looking for their next mark. A rich billionaire. Except things do not turn out exactly as they thought it would and everything proves to be a challenge. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is what I call a summer thriller. Summer and Leo are both con artists but you can't help but root for them when they land on the island of an evil man of wealth. There were a few loose ends by the conclusion, but they are easy to overlook. I would be happy to see a sequel to this one. I am recommending to my readers who want a mild thriller for their pool/beach bag. This is my first book by Wendy Heard and it will not be my last.

As thrillers go, this one was ok for me. The plot was tight and suspenseful, but I figured out the twists early on and found myself a little distracted from the story.

I never turn down a con artist story, especially if they’re about women and this was so fun. I blew through this book but ultimately there was such a small detail that I couldn't get past (involving bread if you've read this lol). I don't know why but it enraged me so much so it knocked this down a bit for me. Either way, this had some excellent twists and kept me interested the whole time. The audiobook apparently has a full cast for those who enjoy that!

I requested this book on Netgalley since it reminded me of the tv show Leverage. Summer and Leo are best friends that travel around California in Summer's Land Cruiser. Unfortunately, even free spirits have bills to pay. Summer is a skilled pickpocket. Leo is a small-time thief. The two con artists are eager for a big score and Leo has marked Michael Forrester, a self-made billionaire and philanthropist as her prey. Michael succumbs to Leo's charms and invites her to his private island for the weekend. Summer doesn't hear from Leo the following day after her date with Michael: so she comes up with a way to get to Michael's island to find Leo. With no way on or off the island until after the weekend. Summer and Leo may have been outmatched by Michael. in their con to collect riches from his guest.

Hey there! Have you ever read a book and found yourself thinking that maybe if you read it at a different time, you might have a different opinion on it? That's exactly how I felt when reading this particular book. Although I struggled to get through it, I don't think it's necessarily a bad book - it just didn't resonate with me at the time. I would still recommend giving it a read and forming your own opinion on it. Let me know what you think!

Riveting mystery!

32yo Summer and 22yo Leo are con artists and thieves who prey on rich people and they’re very good at it. Summer comes from a hippie lifestyle and her mom never gave her a last name and she doesn’t have a clue who her father is or where her mom has been for the last fifteen years after she left so Summer could “spread her wings”. Leo left her desolate family after her sister died because everyone was so depressed and when her parents looked at her they became sad all over again because Leo looks so much like her deceased sister Amber. When Leo doesn’t keep in contact with Summer for a day, she assumes Leo is missing. She’s determined to find her and make sure she’s alright but when the guy Leo was with denies being with her still, Summer worries that the worst has happened. Riveting mystery! 5 stars!

Likes/dislikes: The story kept my attention and I didn’t want to put it down. I liked learning the backstory of Summer and Leo and the mystery was nicely intertwined. I don't appreciate the book being promoted as young adult because it is written for adults as the characters are full-fledged adults.
Language: R for 100 swears and 24 f-words.
Mature content: R for somewhat detailed sex and gaslighting.
Violence: PG-13 for strangulation and shooting.
Ethnicity: White and olive skin main characters and mixed races present in side characters.

4.5 ⭐️
The PERFECT poolside/momma naptime/late night read for summer! I don’t want to spoil the plot at all; going in blind is best. But when the world of two pickpocketing gals collides with one very rich man, it creates an unputdownable book! I can’t wait to see more from Wendy Heard and catch up on her back list.

This book is told from the perspective of two young women who have been traveling together for five years, both grifters of a sort. Summer was born on the road to a hippie-ish traveling mother and literally never lived a normal life, and is a skilled pickpocket, while Leo ran away from her family after a tragedy and eventually learned more of a long con where she ingratiates herself with rich guys to see how much they’ll give her. This book covers one very eventful week, along with flashbacks to their past.

A lot more happens than that, but I went into this book totally blind and it was fun that way so I shall say no more! Just trust me that it starts as a slow burn, builds an increasing atmosphere of suspense, and ends up a totally crazy thriller. If you know me, you know that while I read a lot of thrillers, I’m also a tough critic of them, often bothered by things that other people love like too many twists, preposterousness, and books that go cuckoo towards the end. Well, somehow this book had some of those elements, and not only did it not bother me, but I loved every minute of it. Totally couldn’t put it down, stayed up late to finish it, and just genuinely found it such a good read. Plus I just loved Summer and Leo who were both great characters. This was my first Wendy Heard book, but definitely won’t be my last!

I really liked this book.
The two perspectives between Summer and Leo made me not want to put it down. You have two mysteries in one book. What happened to Leo’s sister and where is Leo? The island setting amps up the suspense.

The ending is so good!!

Summer and Leo are inseparable; they live in their Land Cruiser while traveling along the coast of California planning and executing cons with their seductive charm and a little bit of pickpocketing. Summer is the pickpocketing expert, she’s been scamming the rich and unsuspecting since she was eight. Leo is absolutely beautiful and plays the famous billionaires until she sucks their bank account dry.

Leo has her eyes on a new prospect that will eventually pay the bills and the debt she owes Summer. When she starts to romanticize with him…she disappears.

I went into this book completely blind; the cover, the Goodreads rating, and a buddy read with friends was enough for me to binge read this fast-paced thriller in a day! I loved Summer and Leo’s sisterly friendship and how their fearless personalities shone when faced with danger. I screamed, yelled, and cheered them on as they embarked on a life changing adventure.

You Can Trust Me was my first Wendy Heard book but certainly won't be my last! Overall, the plotline was both believable and fantastical at the same time, which is truly a sign of a great writer. I enjoyed the character development throughout the book -- there were many themes of sisterhood and friendship that worked well together. A great thriller beach read for 2023!!

This was a ton of fun and very addicting. Not a great piece of literature by any means but just a great read. I enjoyed the female friendship in this, the mystery throughout kept me guessing, and it had a very satisfying conclusion. Very rarely do we get that in these kinds of books. I feel like this is the perfect summer read!

This was the perfect thriller to pull me out of my reading slump. I don’t often find a book that I just can’t stop reading.

Summer and Leo are bonded by unfortunate circumstances from their pasts. Leo is thankful to Summer and in her attempt to repay her ends up picking the wrong billionaire. Summer goes in full big sister mode to save her friend when she realizes she’s gone missing.

Netgalley, I really enjoyed this book and have already recommended it to my friends before I even finished. I appreciate the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. I have never heard of this author but now I’m definitely going to check her other books out. Thank you!

loved this romance and her trying to find love and finding herself. loved the friends and and the romance. I would read this author again. I really enjoyed the pacing and how the story and the character worked things out.

Super exciting thriller about two con artists. It is the perfect beach read, super intense, and keeps your attention the whole time.

A fun filled thrill ride mixed with a dash of darkness! Summer and Leo come from different backgrounds but are thrust together by circumstance and become like sisters. They live off the grid and make their living by pickpocketing until one day they meet Michael. Michael is a big fish and changes their lives - completely. This GEM was a fun fast paced read and I’m grateful to NetGalley and the publishers for the chance to read it.

For the last few years, it’s been Summer and Leo against the world. Summer has been a grifter since she was a child, out of a need to look after both herself and her infuriatingly irresponsible hippie mother. Leo, on the other hand, ran away from home as a teenager after tragedy hollowed out her once normal, loving family:

QUOTE
I’d realized that everything my parents had worked so hard for–stability, family–was bullshit. There was no safety in this world, no permanence. Family could be snatched from you overnight as easily as losing jewelry in a swimming pool.

When we got the news, I left my house at two o’clock in the morning, walking through the dark streets alone. I should have been terrified to leave the house, but no. It worked the opposite. I’d realized that nowhere was safe, and that my days on this earth were numbered whether I did everything right or wrong.
END QUOTE

Thus Leo is living on the streets and barely managing to survive when Summer first comes across her. Taking pity on the spunky young woman, Summer cleans her up and gives her a place to stay. In Summer, Leo finds a substitute for the big sister she’s still grieving. Soon the pair are inseparable, traveling up and down the California coast and surviving by relieving rich people of their extra cash and valuables. Summer specializes in quick thievery, lifting wallets in crowded clubs. Leo prefers longer quasi-cons, finding rich men and milking them for all they’re worth before moving on to the next town.

Their latest mark is billionaire clean energy entrepreneur Michael Forrester, after he serendipitously likes one of Leo’s Instagram selfies. After “accidentally” meeting, Leo is surprised to discover that he’s actually pretty hot and charming in person. At the very least, she’s relieved that she won’t have to fake an attraction to him as she positions herself to receive the gifts that will help her and Summer see out another few months or more.

But after an overnight date with Michael, Leo disappears. Summer tries not to worry, but as time passes with no word from Leo, her fears increase. It’s not like she can go to the police and explain that her best friend vanished during the execution of a con. Worse still is the niggling doubt that maybe Leo just left her behind for better things. It doesn’t help that Leo had recently been talking about traveling beyond California and even the United States, something that undocumented Summer simply can’t do.

So Summer decides to take matters into her own hands. Posing as the girlfriend of one of Michael’s tech executives, she cons her way onto his private island during an exclusive investor’s weekend. The deeper she digs, the more she discovers, not only about what happened to Leo, but about the truths she’d still rather not face herself. As the bored wife of another executive whom she tentatively opens up to points out to her:

QUOTE
“It’s always like that. There’s always one friend who cares more, who tries harder. That’s why female friendships are doomed. Eventually she’ll get tired of you mothering her and you’ll get sick of cleaning up after her. The other option is being too much alike and competing for everything until you hate each other.” She reaches a manicured finger to play with the string on my bikini top. “Do you want to go back to my room? I have a massive spa tub.”

I laugh, but what she said about Leo and me makes my stomach hurt.
END QUOTE

Summer didn’t survive into adulthood by being a quitter. Even when everything seems stacked against her, she perseveres, clinging to the thought of and belief in her one true friend. How far will she have to go to find out what’s happened to Leo, and what will she risk to get her back?

You Can Trust Me explores female bonds and solidarity in a highly suspenseful, thoroughly absorbing manner. I was so invested in Summer and Leo’s relationship that there were times I had to put this book down because I was so scared that something irrevocably bad was about to happen to one or both of them. Better, my overwhelmed sympathies told me, to leave them in a limbo a la Schrodinger’s cat than to find out for certain and break my own heart.

But the story was so enthralling that I couldn’t stay away for long! While bad things do happen to our heroines, the ending was deeply satisfying, wrapping up all the book’s clever plot threads – I especially enjoyed the one about social media algorithms acting as a collective unconsciousness – into one dazzling tapestry of a thriller. This novel is the best kind of beach read: smart, sensitive and sexy all at once. I loved it.