This was a twisty and fun read. It centers on Mary, who is going through a divorce from super rich and powerful George, who is not letting her go so easily. During this time, she makes a good friend named Willa but it turns out Willa also has secrets to hide. Poor Mary has been screwed over by basically everyone she let in and she is just trying to make a better life for herself and her toddler son.

While it seemed like Mary might be a pushover initially, I really didn’t think she was as the book continued. Sure, she made some bad decisions but she seemed like a genuine person who wanted to see the best in people, and she had the moxie to pull herself out of a bad situation when she got into one. There are a ton of twists in the 2nd half of the book that left me constantly changing my mind about who did what and how it all fit together. The loose ends were all tied up nicely when all was said and done, and I felt the ending was satisfying. If I had one complaint it’s that there were simply too many coincidences to be fully believable; this didn’t take away from my enjoyment, though.

Overall, this is a good book that is hard to put down. It has good twists and I’d recommend it for those who enjoy psychological thrillers. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

★★★★½ // 5
𝐊𝐄𝐄𝐏 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐒 𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄
by Leah Konen

✿ Pub Date: February 20, 2024

💭 THOUGHTS:
This was such a good cat-and-mouse chase! Just when I thought I knew what was going on, a new detail would pop up and my whole thought process changed. I didn’t know who killed George until the very end and even then I was waiting to make sure there was not another twist! I loved all the characters — they seemed like real people I could know and were very relatable. This book felt familiar but different in all the right ways for a domestic thriller. I loved the little dash of con artist thrown in! I’ve never read a Leah Konen book before, but this girl can WRITE. I’ll definitely be picking up another book of hers. Highly recommend!

💕 READ THIS IF YOU…
• loved Strangers on a Train
• enjoy solving murder mysteries
• have a frenemy in your life
• always win Clue during game nights

Thank you to @netgalley, @penguingroupputnam, and @leahkonen for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review!

Loved this quick read by Leah Konen and couldn’t put it down. I wanted to know who was involved in George’s death. I thought I knew who many times. As another reader said, this book is filled with red herrings and kept me guessing until the very end. Solid four stars and would recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley, PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, and Leah Konen for the advanced copy of Keep Your Friends Close.

This was a bit different premise that most domestic suspense. Had a bit of a con to it as well, to keep you thrown off. A twisty, red herring filled, enjoyable read!!

I read this as an ARC, and I loved every minute of it! It kept me guessing, had twists, and was very entertaining. This was my first book by this author, and I will read more of her books now!

I devour all of Leah Konen’s books… but as an NYC mom I connected with this book on another level.
It captures perfectly the frantic and sometimes desperate friendships women make on the playground.
We are all one shitty ex away from being Mary, and we all know the Willas out there too well!!
Fun fun fun!

Great book! Wow! So many who done it that had me guessing right till the end!! This book also had suspense, intrigue, murder, mystery, revenge, gas lighting, a great who done it and some really crazy twists and turns! The storyline was very interesting and had me glued to my Kindle till the very end! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one! I highly recommend reading this book! It was well worth reading! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Let's be clear- an avid reader of this genre will most likely figure out a big part of the plot early on.... that said, I want to emphasize that it does not take away any of the excitement in reading. Told in a alternating past and present timelines, the tensions of society run deep in this novel. Class and wealth disparity; female friendships; loyalty and disloyalty; failing marriages and new beginnings are all themes explored, all wrapped up in a well-written, fun to read thriller. I don't think I've read anything by this particular author in the past, but do plan to look for her future novels. Definitely worth reading!