The Girlfriend by Michelle Frances was such an entertaining read that I finished in a few hours.
A well written story that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
The characters draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
They are realistic and very well developed.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself hooked, turning the pages.

Thank You NetGalley and Kensington for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

This was one I wanted to read before the series premieres. It’s a thriller centered around a very wealthy family and a woman desperate to climb the social ladder, just unsettling enough to set off every protective instinct in a mother sizing up her son’s new girlfriend.

What started as fairly standard gold-digging tactics — the kind I’ve watched more than a few of my now well-off girlfriends employ (morphing into sunny, subservient personalities, suddenly sharing all the same “interests,” strategically placing themselves at the right bars or restaurants to “catch” these men) — takes a sharp turn once the mother enters the game.

A good enough read, but it didn’t leave much of an impression on me. I’ll still watch the series, but I’m hoping the on-screen drama gives the story a bit more spark.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the opportunity to read this thriller by Michelle Frances - soon to be a prime original series! All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 5 stars!

Laura Cavendish has revolved her life around her son Daniel, now 24 and in medical school. Although Laura started her own production company, besides Daniel, her life is pretty empty. Very wealthy, her and her husband, Howard, are basically just going through the motions of a marriage - he golfs and has a mistress. When Daniel meets Cherry, a girl from the wrong side of the tracks, Laura is at first excited to meet her. Then she starts thinking that Cherry is a gold digger and only out for Daniel's money. Both women have their claws into Daniel and won't let go. Then Laura makes a fateful error and lies to Cherry. When Cherry discovers the deception, watch out.

Clear your schedules now and read this book before the series comes out - because you know the book is always better. I literally could not put this one down because my heart was pounding to see what was going to happen next. The creepiness continues to build throughout the book. This is just a thrill ride - don't miss it!

Decided to request this book on NetGalley after seeing it was going to be a series on Amazon Prime. There were many positive reviews from when it was previously published, which made it seem even more intriguing. It was, however, a big letdown in terms of excitement. The beginning was extremely slow and rather dull. Neither of the lead female characters started out as likeable. The plot did get more interesting towards the middle. The ending was just okay. Would give it 2.5 stars, so bumped it up to 3.

Thanks to NetGalley, Michelle Frances, and Kensington Publishing for allowing me to read a copy of The Girlfriend in the return of an honest review.

You like me might have read this when it was originally published, Know that this twisted tale of a mother and her son's girlfriend stands up. And it's going be a series on Amazon. No spoilers from me. THanks to Netgalley for the ARC. A page turner that will have you saying Oh No you didn't.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc. This one was kind of slow at first, but then became better, with a mystery and lots of lies!! I didn't know who to believe

Michelle Frances’ debut The Girlfriend has been on my TBR list ever since its original publication, but now that it is being adapted for a Prime series, I figured it was time to bite the bullet and finally read it.

Many a mother does not approve of her son’s new girlfriend, but Laura feels especially justified for finding her only son Daniel’s love interest Cherry to be a bit off. At first, everything is coming up roses, but it soon seems to be apparent that Cherry is only with Daniel to gain access to their family’s money. The only problem? No one else sees it except Laura.

Laura is a mama bear, and she will stop at no lengths to protect her son. When Daniel is involved in a terrible accident that leaves him in a coma, she makes a deceitful decision that will change the course of all of their lives forever. And when Cherry finds out just what Laura has done, there will be hell to pay …

I’m not a mother myself, but I imagine it would be incredibly difficult to raise up a child from birth and then stand by them as they make decisions that you know are not in their best interest. Some mothers suffer in silence, disapproving of their child’s choices, but never expressing it to said child. Laura is not that mother. She makes her feelings known to her son Daniel, and there are certainly consequences to her being so vocal.

However, I frankly can’t blame her, because as we get to know Cherry better, we can see that she is a piece of work. Just how far her scheming and deceiving goes is up to you to find out by reading this book, but author Michelle Frances does a fine job of allowing readers to get comfortable with liking Cherry and perceiving her as a victim before all is laid bare about who she really is.

The Girlfriend is an easy-to-read, compelling domestic thriller featuring a small cast of characters and a soapy storyline. This novel reads like a Lifetime movie, and I am surprised it is Prime and not them who latched on to the adaptation! While this story is fairly predictable, perhaps not at first, but more so once the clues are put into place, it is still quite entertaining and at times, shocking.

SPOILER: TW: A dog dies in this one. Not my favorite moment.

Whew

this one is deliciously toxic in the best way. The Girlfriend takes the classic mother vs. girlfriend tension and dials it up into a full-blown psychological battlefield. Laura and Cherry are two women you love to hate, and watching them circle each other with fake smiles and hidden daggers is utterly addictive.

Michelle Frances writes with such sharp precision that every glance, every word, feels like it’s hiding something darker. What starts as simmering tension escalates into sabotage, lies, and choices so chilling you can’t stop turning the pages, even when you want to look away. And that “unforgivable lie”? Yeah, it left me reeling.

This is a thriller that gets under your skin, not because of jump scares, but because it’s rooted in something real: family, love, jealousy, control. The twisted dynamics between mother, son, and girlfriend are brilliantly crafted, and I can absolutely see why this is headed for the big screen.

If you love your thrillers wicked, stylish, and dripping with tension, The Girlfriend will not let you go.

Daniel and his mother Laura have a close, almost codependent relationship until the day he brings home his new girlfriend Cherry, a gorgeous yet mysterious woman. Laura is excited to begin a relationship with Cherry, but the more she tries, the more Cherry seems to push away. As tensions rise, so do Laura's suspicions that Cherry may not have the best intentions, quickly escalating into a deadly game of cat and mouse.

This was an addictive, drama fueled story that took twisted, deceitful turns at every corner. I was impressed to learn that this was a debut. The characters were so vividly brought to life, and I could feel the mother, Laura's pain through the pages. Every time I started wanting to like the girlfriend, Cherry, or have some type of sympathy towards her, she would do or say something to throw me off again. The pacing was steady, keeping the story engaging, and the intrigue solidly felt until the very end. Any fan of drama, manipulation, and revenge will enjoy this one. Four stars.

Thank you, Netgalley and Kensington Publishing, for this ARC.

This book is a slow-burning psychological read that kept me hooked from start to finish. Though the pace was a bit gradual at first, I couldn’t put it down and ended up finishing it in just two days (I had to know how it ended). It’s the kind of story that builds tension and anxiety as it goes on.

I really enjoyed getting inside the minds of the main characters. The shifting perspectives had me constantly questioning who to trust, who to root for, and who was truly in the wrong. Let’s just say neither of them comes out clean...but karma definitely comes through in the end!

If you’re into tense family drama with a psychological edge, no obvious heroes, and plenty of intrigue, The Girlfriend is definitely worth the read.

TW for animal abuse, I didn't see that coming and don't feel it was necessary.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ebook!

Tense and addictive, this psychological thriller explores the dangerous dynamics between a possessive mother and her son’s new girlfriend. Full of secrets, manipulation, and shocking twists, it’s a page-turner that keeps you guessing until the end.

#TheGirlfriend #NetGalley
Laura has it all. A successful career, a long marriage to a rich husband, and a twenty-three-year-old son, Daniel, who is kind, handsome, and talented. Then Daniel meets Cherry. Cherry is young, beautiful, and smart but hasn’t led Laura’s golden life. And she wants it.
When tragedy strikes, a decision is made and a lie is told. A lie so terrible it changes their lives forever…
The Girlfriend is a taut and wickedly twisted debut psychological thriller—a novel of subtle sabotage, retaliation, jealousy and fear, which pivots on an unforgivable lie, and examines the mother–son–daughter-in-law relationship in a chilling new light.
Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for giving me an advance copy.

This was such an incredible book. I hated the characters and their decisions at times but it kept me hooked from the beginning. I would consider this to be more of a drama than a thriller but it was still amazing. I loved getting to know these characters and while I may hate Cherry I also have to admire her too.

I strongly suggest that you read this book and I cannot wait for the series to come out on prime.

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A fantastically pacey thriller that will keep you turning the pages. Daniel falls for Cherry and his very rich mother has suspicions that Cherry's motives aren't what they seem.
The plot is pacey and filled with twists and turns. What the author does particularly well is creating complex characters with both women acting in absolutely loathsome ways. very readable.

This is the story of a mother with an extremely close bond to her son. Laura is married to Richard and together they have a son Daniel who is the apple of his mother’s eye. Richard has always worked long hours and travelled a lot, and it was really left for Laura to do most of the raising of their boy on her own.

Daniel is a very outgoing guy with a great disposition and a very caring attitude, and he appreciates the time his mum has always put into his upbringing and cares for her deeply as well. He has had girlfriends before but then he meets Cherry, and he falls hard. Daniel finds Cherry so different to other girls he has met before to him have been very superficial, not Cherry. He can talk to her for hours and the relationship moves forward quickly

Then an event occurs that will change everyone’s world, and a lie is told, a l.ie that can destroy relationships that have been built over years. Cherry also is not all she seems and soon things get messy, very messy.

An enjoyable fast read even though it was over 450 pages, but I devoured it in one long afternoon. A little predictable, I would describe it as a popcorn thriller, but I did enjoy it. Both Cherry and Laura were unlikable characters, but I found I did connect with Daniel and Howard. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy, all opinions expressed are my own.

I ended up DNFing this one early on so I won't be leaving a rating anywhere to be fair. It felt more domestic suspense than a true thriller. That being said, I wasn't feeling gripped or invested as much as I wanted to be.

I absolutely loved this book! This psychological thriller had me hooked from the first page, and I couldn’t put it down until the shocking end. The story follows Laura, a successful woman with a seemingly perfect life, and her son Daniel, who falls for Cherry—a young, ambitious woman with a knack for stirring trouble. 🍒

What made this book stand out was its intense exploration of the mother–son–daughter-in-law dynamic. The tension between Laura and Cherry crackles with jealousy and subtle sabotage, making every interaction feel like a chess move. The plot twist involving the "unforgivable lie" (no spoilers, but wow! 🤯) completely flipped my perspective and kept me guessing about everyone’s motives. Frances does a brilliant job building suspense, and the way the tragedy unfolds is both heartbreaking and gripping.

I also appreciated how the characters weren’t black-and-white. Cherry’s cunning nature and Laura’s protective instincts made me question who to root for, which added to the thrill. The pacing was spot-on, with short, punchy chapters that made it impossible to stop reading. 📚🔥

The Girlfriend is a fast paced thriller. Laura is the mother of Daniel who she has put on a pedestal and idolizes him. Cherry meets Daniel at work as she sells him an expensive flat.

Daniel is Cherry's ticket out but will Laura just stand back and let that happen.

You know that this just isn't going to end well. Who is crazier, the mother or the girlfriend. At times its a toss up. Wasn't sure who to vote for except perhaps Daniel; wanted him to run as fast as he could.

A great read , the pages turn quickly.

Looking forward to reading the next book by Michelle Frances.

Dont miss this one.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensiington Publishers for the privilege or reading and reviewing The Girlfriend.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this arc.

This was a suspenseful read with drama between a mom and her son’s girlfriend. Overall, this took me a long time to get through and wasn’t satisfied with the ending.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. The plot caught my interest, which is why I requested it, but it ultimately didn’t deliver. Although advertised as a thriller, the book lacked the suspense and tension typically associated with the genre. The characters were incredibly unlikable and lacked depth — the women were portrayed as manipulative and self-absorbed, while the men felt flat and underdeveloped. The pacing was slow, with repetitive internal monologues and sudden, confusing changes in point of view. I kept hoping the book would improve, but it never did. Although everything came together in the end, it felt rushed and lacked any real shock or impact. To be honest, I’m not a fan of this one and wouldn’t recommend it.