This is marketed as a thriller, but the pace felt incredibly slow.
The story was great, but had this been marketed as more of a domestic suspense I think I would have gone in with different expectations and enjoyed it more for what it was.

An intense thriller focused on two plucky ladies making their own way through life until they run into evil. The back-and-forth POV adds to the texture of the story, introducing the characters more and more in depth. A quick, exciting read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Company - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This was too slow for me, and I just was not invested in what was happening.. It did not seem fast paced enough to be a thriller.

Leo and Summer are closer than sisters and have overcome difficult pasts to make a life together. They are young and beautiful and use those assets to full advantage to survive. They've set their grifting sights on a billionaire, and when Leo is invited to his private island and then disappears, Summer will do anything to get her best friend back.

I love a good con artist/grifter story -- especially when the grifters are young women going after dumb rich dudes. It's so satisfying. I loved Leo and Summer's relationship and how fiercely they protected each other. The plot clipped along and never stalled out or got slow - this is a binge-read for sure. There were some too-coincidental coincidences, but just roll with it and let yourself enjoy this fast-paced, feminist story about two scrappy young women surviving at any cost.

Summer and Leo are making their way through life a dollar at a time. Under the California sun they find ways to steal from others to keep getting by. Summer has lived her whole life this way, Leo only began after the tragic death of her sister. When they set their sights on tech giant, Michael Forrester, they're hoping for a big cash out to get ahead. Leo is immediately enamored with Michael. When he invites her to his private island, how could she refuse. Summer waits to hear from Leo, when she doesn't reach out by the designated time she begins to worry. Summer gets herself invited to the investor weekend at Michael's Island, she's not leaving without answers and Leo.

Wendy Heard takes you for a ride. These two characters want to get ahead and keep slipping farther behind. Great Summer vibes read, especially with the California scenes. Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the ARC!

Wow. I could not put this down. I had been in a rut with thrillers prior to this book and this immediately took me out of it!

I absolutely loved this book. I really didn't want it to end. This is the first novel I have read from this author, Wendy Heard. I look forward to reading more of her books. "You can trust me" is a story of two free spirits Summer and Leo. They move freely through California as petty thieves and looking for men to con. Leo finds the perfect man or does she? Leo disappears after a night with the perfect man. Summer is determined to find her but she can't shake the feeling that Leo left her to go on her own journey.
I loved the story and would definitely recommend reading this.
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

This was such a great book. I read it in three days. Couldn't put it down. The way that the story weaved its way through the characters was truly intriguing. Was so hoping that Michael was a good guy. Did not see the plot twist! I definitely recommend this book to any one looking for a good thriller.

This was such a phenomenal read! Any thriller that can keep the twists and turns coming is a win for me. I love unpredictability and suspense and this book had plenty of both.

Best friends and con women Summer and Leo set their sights on a tech billionaire for their latest con. Leo manages to get an invite to the private island owned by the tech magnate, but when Summer doesn’t hear from her, she manages to finagle her own invite to the island to try and find Leo. When Summer arrives, it’s apparent that things aren’t what they appear on the island, and Leo is missing. You Can Trust Me is a spellbinding thriller that goes in a direction you won’t see coming. The narrative switches between Leo and Summer in different time lines days apart, which helps add to suspense and there’s a backstory that weaves itself through the plot, with the timelines and plots merging to form a thoroughly enjoyable thriller. The story moves at a rapid pace, with even the requisite early scene setting holding your attention, and the story explodes once the action shifts to the island. The witty dialogue, great characters and unique plot all add up to a five star read. Highly recommended! I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Summer and Leo are young women, bonded over their similar nomadic lifestyle, living out of the back of Summer's Land Rover, roaming California, making a living as a pickpocket and a sugar baby respectively. They steal and con from the wealthy and live a simple life, only taking what they need to survive. Summer has always lived off the grid, in fact she doesn't know her own birthday or last name. Leo runs away from home after her older sister is tragically killed and she can no longer face her parents and their grief.

At the opening of the book, we see how Summer cases a club and uses her wiles to steal from wealthy LA club goers. On the same evening, Leo is setting up a meeting with tech billionaire Michael Forrester, her newest Sugar Daddy mark. From there, the book quickly pulled me in, and things quickly go awry. Michael whisks Leo off, and Summer begins to worry when their prearranged contact time comes and goes with no word from Leo, and eventually Summer manages to connive her way onto the private research island owned by Michael's holding company. She's determined to find Leo at all costs.

The setting goes from bucolic SoCal beach to isolated and atmospheric island easily, and from there the tension in the novel builds up as well. The big twist revealed near the ending was relatively easily guessed at about the halfway point, but all in all, this was an enjoyable read, with a satisfying ending for all involved.

Thrillers and mysteries are usually a hard sell for me, and rarely do I end up enjoying them, but this book exceeded my expectations, and these 2 women won me over.

Thank you to Random House - Ballantine and NetGalley for the electronic ARC of this novel for review.

I saw another review that described this book as an episode of Law and Order SVU and I really couldn’t agree more! The mystery of it all really kept my attention and, just like an episode of SVU, I was itching for answers! Overall this was def a good read!

You Can Trust Me is the latest book from author Wendy Heard, a new writer I found on NetGalley after the book was listed as a most requested or top read for 2023. Focused on two late-twenties women, Summer and Leo, the story builds slowly to share how they became friends and what happened in their pasts to leave them either homeless or purposely living in their cars. The women each use their skills (theft, lying, et al) to lift money from other people (rather than work a legitimate job) because they cannot be confined to a traditional career. At first, it was off-putting because I was angered by the way in which they stole from others but as their pasts were revealed, my ire lessened, eventually becoming more of a hope they would turn things around and find a way to live their best lives without stealing from others (pickpocketing, credit card fraud, etc.). About a third in, both girls separately end up on the same yacht that's sailing to a billionaire's private island. They assume the other is safe and happy with the mark she's chosen and make the best of their scam. Except... it seems there is something darker going on with why the billionaire and his friends invited them both to his secret hideaway. At that point, it was an intense and very well written ride. I eagerly read through to the end and loved the way in which the author shows how human nature can be manipulated on so many levels. With an extremely fiery ending, life definitely changes for the women, and I'm not entirely sure I like where they end up, but at least it was a thrilling ride. Will definitely read another from the author's backlog in the coming months and watch for future releases.

This book is like the novel version of Law and Order SVU or Criminal Minds with a lush White Lotus setting. Likeable characters even if the central mystery was not much of a mystery. I read a #NetGalley Advanced Review Copy prior to beach season but I'd recommend it as a beach read. 3.5 stars.

My thanks to Bantam books and NetGalley for a e-ARC of this book.

Summer and Leo are partners in crime, thick as thieves. Literally. Living out of a truck, they make their way through the world pickpocketing and running scams. Their biggest catch is on the horizon as Leo has caught the eye of a billionaire and is jetting off to his private island. But when she doesn’t return, Summer knows something has went down.

This is a perfect book to stick in your pool/beach bag and binge read this summer. Fast-paced with strong, kick butt women, it’ll keep you turning pages.

This book was un-put-down-able!! I found both main characters to be so interesting and loveable and was drawn to their bond. The plot was interesting and provided twists that I did not see coming. Thoroughly enjoyed!

Summer and Leo are a dynamic duo of thieving grifters. Summer’s the pickpocket raised by her nomadic hippie mother, and Leo plays the long-game of conning rich men out of their money. Together, they’re unstoppable. The perfect team. Able to conquer anything they set their minds to. But pickpocketing is getting too risky for Summer, so Leo decides to cast her net wider to catch the big fish—tech mogul and billionaire, Michael Forrester.

With a few well-placed moves, Leo puts herself directly in Michael’s path. The two instantly hit it off, so well that in fact that Michael invites her to his private island near the Catalinas. Eyes on the prize, Leo doesn’t hesitate to accept his lavish invitation. It all seems too easy, everything going according to plan—until Summer stops hearing from her. Determined to find out what happened to her best friend, Summer cons her way into getting onto Michael’s island. Once there and in front of him, she confronts him about his date with Leo and right away, she knows he’s hiding something. And Summer refused to leave until she discovers exactly what.
•
•
•
Wow, Wendy Heard is 3 for 3 with me! Another grand slam novel. Wickedly psychological with all the dark shadows that hide under the glitzy glamorous facade of SoCal. I was immediately drawn to Summer’s character and I absolutely adored Leo. Their friendship blew me away, as did their bohemian lifestyle and creative cons. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to Leo and how everything would come together. Heard totally knocked it outta the park with the twist, bridge, and finale. One hell of a killer read!

Other things I loved:
- Summer & Leo’s backstories
- how Summer followed Leo
- the closet scene
- wickedness of the dinner date
- the painting of the girl in the yellow dress
- how the island was set up
- that SNAP
- everyone got what they deserved!

Thank you to Netgalley & Wendy Heard for letting me read this fantastic book!

First I want to say thank you to netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. I am giving this book 4 stars, because I did figure out a plot twist about half way through. However, that does not take away from the masterpiece that is this book. I absolutely love Summer and Leo's friendship, and wish that so many other females could experience the type of friendship they have together. I will be recommending this book to all my friends.

You can Trust Me - Wendy Heard

This novel is Wendy Heard's BEST YET (and one of my favorite novels of the past year).

In You Can Trust Me, Wendy Heard delivers a blockbuster novel that is the modern-day equivalent to Thelma and Louise!

A HUGE thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC of this wonderful adventure of a novel (I can readily envision the excellent movie that should be produced from this story).

Although this novel is about the rough and tumble lives of Leo and Summer, young women who begin the story living out of a van and providing "girlfriend experiences" to rich men as they lift whatever they can get their hands on (cash, credit cards, watches, jewelry, and the like) by the end of the story they are so much more.

Both of these wounded souls are so VERY likeable! I can't tell you how many books I have read lately where the author hasn't produced even ONE character you could give a darn about, which is definitely not the case with the two women in this novel.

If you enjoy books about women whose bond of friendship for each other strengthens and grows in a time of adversity, you MUST read this novel. Frankly, I am buying a copy for two of my sisters (but not for my Mom and my more conservative Southern Baptist sister, because I would rate it an "R" for light sexual content if I had to give it the equivalent of a movie rating) as I am sure they will LOVE it.

Note to Wendy and to the publisher:
Wendy, after this novel, you mentioned you would really miss Leo and Summer, and I think your fans would LOVE IT if you CONTINUED their story by serializing it. I would have gladly started reading book #2 of their story (in a different locale, perhaps a different country even, as they stumble into trouble over pictures they posted as influencers) immediately after finishing this one!

This is a rollicking FUN novel, I too will miss the two main characters.

Thank you both for this wonderful book. In these times of stress due to issues such as political upheaval and intolerance, mass shootings at schools, gay clubs, malls, and the pandemic, we have all lived in a hothouse of fear, stress, aggression, and anger.

During such times, the work an author does by transporting us temporarily to a new experience and environment is invaluable! Reading a captivating novel serves a similar function as the rocker on the top of a pressure cooker, it releases some of the built-up pressure so we can get up tomorrow, press "repeat" (Monday through Friday, anyway) and do it all over again without imploding and making a mess of our lives... thank you.

This book was WAY better than I thought it would be. The story is far more complex than you think at first. The extremes that these people go to are beyond. Just beyond!