This reviewer thoroughly enjoyed reading Clarie, Darling. This compelling psychological thriller kept me awake late into the night to finish the story, and I loved every minute. The author offers a modern twist on a seemingly familiar tale and then surprises us with an original storyline.

There are lots of mixed reviews on this book, but I found the novel to be highly entertaining and well written. The characters are well drawn. My empathy for Claire stayed with me to the last page. I can't imagine why she wants to reconcile with a man who dumps her so callously and hurts her so badly, but her passion for Noah blinds her to the truth. No spoilers here. You'll have to read the book to learn more.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballentine for providing an advance copy of the book to read and review. This review will post to Bayside Book Reviews.com at https://baysidebookreviews.com and its Instagram page on release day. Follow us! *NetGalley Top Reviewer*

A devious, addictive little read which I gobbled up in one sitting! Callie Kazumi is a powerful and fascinating new voice in suspense fiction, and her main character, Claire, is equally intriguing. I knew pretty much from the beginning of this book what the "twist" was -- in fact, the author doesn't really try to hide it -- but that didn't take away at all from the fun of the reading experience. This is one of those books that can be read in a couple of different ways depending on your interpretation and how reliable you find the narrator. Kazumi does a masterful job of letting the reader into Claire's mind -- which is a bit of a dark and twisted place. I really enjoyed the supporting characters in the book especially Claire's best friend and her mother. Without giving too much away, the second half of the book becomes more of a traditional mystery/thriller and that plot is cleverly interwoven with Claire's internal monologue.

A really fun book that reads like a popcorn thriller, but has a little something more to say. Intelligent, witty, compassionate, and always fun to read. I'm looking forward to reading more by this author!

This book told hold of me and I binged it in one sitting. Great premise and characters. It is creepy, startling, and good. Can't wait to have my friends read this, too!I Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC. Pub Date is March 11, 2025.

#ClaireDarling

I really liked this!! What an interesting concept and what a bingeable book!! As soon as I read the summary I wanted to get my hands on this soooo bad. The ending wasn’t my favorite but it did keep me hooked and it was so fun to read :) thank you netgalley for the early copy!!

Claire thinks her fiance is wonderful. That is until one day when she tries to bring him lunch at work and finds he no longer works there. Why didn't he tell her and what other secrets is he hiding?
After realizing that he has blocked her on social media, she has a friend look him up. Who's the beautiful blonde in the pictures? It's time for Claire to do some investigating.
This book kept me on edge. The twist was very clever.

Thank you, NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group and Callie Kazumi for this ARC.

I read this book in one day, I could not put it down even though I figured out what was going on in the first few chapters. I felt for Claire since she grew up with a horrible mother, but she still annoyed me. I kept telling myself to have empathy for her but it was kind of difficult for me to feel anything but annoyance for her. I just found her so unlikeable. That is just my thoughts on her.

The plot was interesting even though as I stated earlier, I figured out what was going on with Claire and Noah early on. It did keep me drawn in but that was because I wanted to see when everything would blow up. It did but not in the way that I expected. I did find the ending a little disappointing, I felt like it was missing something and I wanted more. I have to admit that I wouldn't complain if there is a sequel later on.

Propulsive and disturbing "Claire, Darling" is a psychological thriller that begs to be devoured.

It's not a flawless book, but this debut holds its own.

After a year with the love of her life, Claire's future is looking bright following a painful dysfunctional childhood. However, after a simple trip to drop off lunch for her fiancée ends in revelations that shake Claire's foundation, her path to happiness veers off course. She is informed that Noah her fiancée hasn't worked there in months. He's not returning her calls, she's blocked on all his social media accounts, and he won't come home. Claire is desperate for answers and to repair their relationship. She's not willing to accept being ghosted.

The novel is comprised of Claire's POV as an unreliable narrator and includes her journal entries. The timeline moves from the past with her experiences of traumatic abuse at the hands of her mother, to the history of her relationship with Noah, and to the current timeline. The transitions between timelines are smooth and provided a lot for me to mull over as I read. The writing was snappy and to the point which I like in this type of story.

The first half was more compelling than the last half by a mile. Those that read a lot of psychological thrillers will probably see the twists coming and find the ending predictable, but this still held my attention so much so that I read it in a day. I will definitely be keeping an eye out for what Kazumi writes next.
3.5 rounding up to 4

This was a wild ride! It was well written and wickedly clever. It was a trip to read through the plot because darling Claire was a bit of a hot mess. She seemed like she had it all together and then BAM. Everything implodes. The author did a fantastic job of sucking you into the story and I was definitely sucked in. I read this constantly until I was finished. It was rather interesting and didn’t have so much British slang that I felt I was reading a foreign language. Great book, definitely recommend!

This was a great book that I found easy to get wrapped up in. The flashback scenes were my favorite and so was the London setting. The outcome was quite twisty. I felt the author did a good job with the pace, character development, and also the ending. I definitely recommend this book to other readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I am of two minds with this book. On the one hand, I read it in one day because it drew me in immediately. I couldn’t wait to find out what was going on. There is a lot of possibility here. On the other hand, I am not sure it reached its full potential. I don’t like to give any hints or spoilers in my reviews, so it’s impossible to explain that statement without giving anything away. I just wish it had “More”. Maybe I mean a little more drama or maybe a gotcha moment. I don’t get that with this book. While I felt sorry for Claire, I also don’t feel she was as fleshed out as she should have been. Showing depth and flaws makes a great read to me.
That’s not to say I don’t recommend it. I do! I enjoyed reading all of it. Just needed a little more.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Random House Ballantine for this ARC copy. #Clairedarling #Ballantinebooks #Randomhouse #Netgalley #2025mustreads

Newly engaged Claire decides to bring her fiancé Noah lunch one day at his job, but the receptionist tells her no works there by that name and her texts to him go unanswered, and Claire’s life spirals out of control. Claire, Darling starts on a promising note, but soon sinks into a sea of cliched scenes and stereotypical characters, and the book just never delivers on the opening excitement The plot is a familiar one, and there’s little drama or tension as steady readers will see the path this one is leading to. The flashbacks to a younger Claire, while succeeding in eliciting the reader’s sympathy for the character, didn’t have the dramatic finish the buildup hinted at. Overall a disappointment. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for an AMAZING Read!!!!! I am not sure if this a debut book or not but WOW!!!! I did figure it out immediately BUT that did NOT stop me from keeping on reading, I devoured the plot. Very, Very sad story because there are toooo many people like Claire in this world. LOVED how it kept me hooked, thank you again.

The plot and premise of this book was what drew me to it, but I was not as taken by the protagonist as I needed to be in order to care deeply as to how it turned out, as her voice, thoughts, and actions were bothersome to me. Claire, who has been with Noah for a year and is engaged, comes to discover early on in the story that he is leading a double life. When he disappears and says he doesn't know her and she finds out he is living with another woman in an upscale neighborhood--a woman who is everything she is not, including beautiful, successful, and rich--she begins a downward spiral. This "ghosting story" is interwoven with the story of Claire's horrible upbringing by a mother who vacillated between deriding, ignoring, and abusing her. The first half of the book is drawn out much too long, with what could be cut to a fourth of both parts of the story, past and present. However, when the second half kicks in, things do begin to pick up, and we come to see Claire's life in a new light. Little by little, the truth unfolds as seen by Claire, Noah, and others in their story, and we are left to wonder, Who's Worse? There is a nice twist at the end which I mis-guessed, but all in all, this story was lacking the depth of character and richness of plot I had hoped for.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review. Claire, Darling was something else but in a good way. I would not call it a thriller but I still enjoyed the book very much and read it in one night.

This book was a fast paced, obsessive read. Claire has no friends, and no family. Despite that, this books starts on a day that Claire is on top of the world! It is her first anniversary with her fiance, Noah, AND she thinks a coworker may actually become her friend! Claire is excited to surprise Noah, by dropping off lunch at his work. Her coworker joins her. The receptionist in the lobby informs her that Noah hasn't worked in the building for months. This revelation stuns Claire, as she and Noah live together.

She tries to call him. She tries to text him. Nothing, nothing, nothing. He is just gone. He never returns to their apartment. She, with her coworker, start to snoop around. Because something does not add up. And they discover that Noah has another life, with a beautiful home, and a gorgeous girlfriend. But she cannot stop her obsessive snooping, all the while her mind continues to drudge up her childhood. Her mother has completely diminished her as a person.

This book, while twisty and excellent, also brings light to the words we say. Abuse isn't just physical. And while this book may seem predictable, it is not.

This book was a ride. Take over from this one- breakups can be messy. We have Claire who has found her prince charming or has she? You'll have to read it to find out. The twists and turns in this one kept me reading way into the night. I gave this one 4 stars and can't wait to see what she does next- will be reading her next one for sure.

First off, kudos to author Callie Kazumi on her debut novel, Claire, Darling. This is a strong first outing. I found it to be well written and fairly fast-paced. I recently watched Baby Reindeer on Netflix, and this novel left me with the same reaction — sadness. Kazumi uses the “unreliable narrator” deceit that seems so popular lately, but I thought the truth behind the deceit was pretty obvious. I was a little surprised by the final page revelation but generally I felt as though the truth was pretty obvious from early on in the novel.

The main character is Claire, a largely unremarkable woman who we meet when she decides to deliver lunch to her fiancé. She’s accompanied by her workmate Sukhi, and her world comes crashing down when her fiancé’s boss informs her that he hasn’t worked there in months. Thus begins Claire’s downward spiral as she attempts to discover the truth about her lover. Claire’s character is the only one that is truly developed as we learn about her troubled childhood with a narcissistic, abusive mother.

Though it is described as a thriller, Claire, Darling is really a psychological drama, and no one, including the reader, comes out unscathed. Just as with the experience of watching Baby Reindeer, this novel left me feeling nothing but sadness.

My thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC.

This book was so good! I enjoyed every chapter! I really liked Claire and felt for her. The twists were a surprise and the ending was an even bigger surprise I definitely didn’t see coming!

This was a crazy, psychotic ride by a talented debut author! The fast-paced plot kept me on edge the entire time. Claire’s story turned from love to obsession quickly.
The varied timeline, journal entries, her inner monologue and recollections with Mother are deliciously creepy! The epilogue was the cherry on top!!
(This reminded me of a true story I watched on Netflix.)
Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I loved this! I work in mental health so this is a topic right up my alley and I thought it was done well, Very quick read, I couldn’t put it down!