This book really just took me for a ride. I loved the build up, the character development, and the writing. I would definitely read more from this author!

I could not get invested in this. I gave it a few shots! The characters were kind of unlikeable and I wouldn’t consider this a thriller. I found myself to be bored many times and I struggle with slower paced books

I'm torn with my review of this one. Did I love it? No. But I didn't hate it. I wasn't captivated by the storyline or the characters, there seemed to be a disconnect for me.

A solid mystery/thriller about the power of the press to destroy lives mixed in with a #metoo scandal. Fast paced and thoroughly enjoyable, this was definitely one of my favorites by this author and good on audio too!

Thank you @minotaur_books and @netgalley for the gifted copy of the book!

Pub: August 15, 2023

3.5

I grew up around journalism and journalists so I'm always excited whenever a book about the news comes my way. The Trade Off is a solid read by an author that consistently delivers bingable books.

Here we have a New of the World type of tabloid journalism that is prevalent in Britain and consumed around the world.

The dual perspectives worked well to show the environment at The Globe and compare and contrast Jess and Stella's experiences at different parts of their careers. The story moves at a slow, but steady pace, with tension ramping up towards the end.

Jones tackles the way women in the media are treated from two angles - the celebrities the tabloids hound and the women working at the papers that often build their careers off exploiting them. The Trade Off came out after a saturation of similarly themed movies and shows etc. Unfortunately, I do think this caused some of the storyline to feel a little "been there, done that." That said, I think it's an important message to repeat and a topic I always find interesting to read/watch as there are so many layers to explore.

I always look forward to Sandie Jones' new releases. If you haven't tried her books yet, I recommend giving them a read, starting with my personal favourite, The First Mistake!

This was a good read - I really enjoyed this book. I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

This was just an okay read for me. I love Sandie Jones' other books, but this one just didn't do it for me. I didn't connect with the characters and got a little bored reading the story. I'm glad I read it, I just hoped for more.

This book explores the ugly side of the tabloid press utilizing two journalists. This one took me a very long time to finish because I couldn’t get invested. The first half of the book is very uneventful and spends way too much time establishing the characters, who aren’t very likable. I don’t consider this to be a “thriller” it’s definitely more of a dramatic fiction story.

The Trade Off was a bumpy kinda story but it wrapped up nicely for me!! Current social issues tackled. Some trigger warnings would have been helpful. Huge fan of Sandie Jones but this was not my favorite of hers. A solid 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘼𝙣 𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙮𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙪𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙦𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣: 𝙒𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙖 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮, 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙡𝙞𝙚? 𝙊𝙧 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙩𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙡𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙖𝙩 𝙣𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩?

This is my second book by this author and unfortunately, I don’t think her books are for me. It was so slow-paced paced and the plot wasn’t as engaging, I had to switch to the audiobook to get through it.

I enjoyed the premise of this story and I loved the short chapters. Also, I think the journalistic elements had so much potential. Unfortunately, I just didn’t care for the book at all. There was a point when I thought it would possibly pick up, but it didn’t.

While I don’t think this book was for me at all, I could potentially see who the intended audience would be for this book. It was very slow, not as thrilling, such a lackluster story, and just all over the place. Again, it wasn’t for me but it might be for others.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

Loved that the entire time I had no idea whose side to be on. The publishing aspect was super interesting. Very long middle section which can be a little boring.

Honestly not one of my favorite by this author, but I will continue to read her books as I have enjoyed the others.

Positives:
Interesting premise of how far you would go to get a story and the dark side of journalism.
I liked the different perspectives of the seasoned reporter and the newbie.


Negatives:
The pace was very slow and one half way better than the other.
There were too many different storylines that I did not think all came together neatly in the end and I cared more about some more than others.
Took me a long time to finish this one which was unusual.

Overall just not for me, but will try Sandie Jones again.

I’ve read most books by this author and enjoyed them all, including this one. This latest one felt a bitmore suspenseful then some of her other books, which I enjoyed very much.

The Trade Off by Sandie Jones
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Jess has just been hired at the Globe and is stoked to be a part of the news team. Stella has been here for years and is at the top of her game, but Stella’s methods leave Jess worried.
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What I liked:
-This one was more suspenseful that I was expecting!
-The back and forth POVs kept me reading but also got me riled up! Which was a good thing because I needed to know what happens.
-I enjoyed the setting of a newspaper and seeing the methods the press used.
-I liked the end when people started working together.
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4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sandie jones never disappoints but this book absolutely blew me away. My anxiety levels were through the roof the entire time I was reading the book and the twists gave shock after shock. The character development was top notch as always. Sandie jones has a unique way of getting you to utterly despise a character and then BAM! you are shocked into loving them. I could visualize every detail of the events of this book, and it made for an outstanding reading experience!

Sandie Jones knocks it out of the park again! A up and coming journalist gets caught up in trash journalism and the great lengths some paparazzi will go to get a story. There is a twist that I didn't see.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of The Trade Off by Sandie Jones.

Thanks so much to the author, Sandie Jones, and the publisher, Thorndike Press, a part of Gale, a Cengage Company, along with NetGalley for providing me this book without charge in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t sure that I wanted to read another book by this author. The last book was one that I didn’t favorably review. I know it’s not all about having positive reviews but seriously- even in that review, I started that I don’t think that I would be giving her another try.

I’m so glad that I was so very wrong. This was a different type of book than the other ones that she wrote. She didn’t have a book full of pitiful missteps by the main character. Nope- in this one- I’m not sure who the main character was and even more so, I’m not sure what the true story was (at least while I was reading it, I didn’t). You will feel angst and irritation at the news media while reading this book. The lengths that the newsroom goes to, in this book at least, to get a good story is absolutely disgusting. This book has me questioning the validity of any flashy article that I’ve seen before. It’s amazing how the loss of life is presented- life after the media has targeted you- and whether or not this actually happens nowadays- I don’t know if it does. Regardless, “the what if’s” feels very real….

I didn’t reread “the inside flaps” of this book when I was notified that I had a copy without charge. I wanted to try to read the book without any preconceived notions. I truly wanted to give it another chance.

That was a good decision, because 79% of the way through the book, I said out loud, “What!?” I mean that in the way of “What am I reading? What is going on? How will this thing end? This is such a good book!!”

The action remains at a healthy pace throughout the book. I love the differences in the story being told from the viewpoint of Jess and from Stella. I cannot imagine the author’s task of eventually overlaying the entire story together without making errors along the way that would prematurely expose the outcome. But the author did it- well in fact… very well!

I’m glad to have taken a chance (or being given the free opportunity to take a chance) on this book / author again. She has provided something spectacular. This book has completely kept my interest. Now I’m ready again to read the next one!!

Enjoy! I sure did!

Thank you to NetGalley, publisher and author, for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
My favorite character in this story was Stella because she seemed strong although unfriendly. My least favorite characters were Stella's boss and the newspaper owner, at least at the beginning. They seemed cold and uncaring. This was an entertaining story for the most part. Even though the subject matter did not keep me very interested, the author is a talented storyteller.

hmmm. This was good. I listened to the audio which made the experience enjoyable. I appreciated the author's note and the inside look at journalism. However, I don't think this one will stick with me.