The Best Friend by Shalini Boland

Publisher: Adrenalin Books

Date of publication: October 20th, 2016

Where you can find this book: Amazon

Goodreads synopsis:

‘I can tell we’re going to be the best of friends…’

When Louisa Sullivan takes her little boy to his first playdate at a new friend’s house she doesn’t realise life is about to change for her family. Because she’s about to meet Darcy Lane.

Darcy is a woman who has everything – a dream house, a powerful husband and enviable wealth.

She’s the perfect wife. 

The perfect friend. 

The perfect liar. 

From the top ten bestselling author of The Secret Mother and The Child Next Door, this utterly gripping psychological thriller will have you up all night reading. If you loved Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train and The Wife Between Us this book is for you.

My review:

Shalini Boland is fast becoming my favorite thriller/suspense/mystery author. She can creep me out to the point where I jump if interrupted while reading her books!!. I had done a review for The Girl From the Sea back in September that was creepy and thought it couldn’t be beaten. The Best Friend proved me wrong.

I liked Louisa from the beginning, even though I was convinced that she was overreacting. They were great friends at first and then things started to head south with their friendship. It was after Joe’s birthday party, and her being let go from her newspaper job, that Louisa seemed to go off the deep end. It wasn’t until something awful happened and that I started seeing Darcy in a different light.

I was convinced that Darcy was innocent in all this until about a few chapters from the end. The things that Louisa was harping on could have been written off as Darcy having Mom brain. But then little things started going on that started casting doubt on Darcy.

While the Louisa/Darcy drama is playing out, there is a substory going on. It’s about a girl named Nicole and her brother Callum. Nicole and Callum are abused by their alcoholic mother. They were taken from her after Callum (and Nicole) got caught stealing from a local grocery store. The first time they were mentioned, though, was when Nicole was 6 and Callum was 3. Then they are mentioned every 3-6 years, ending when Nicole is 22. How they are tied into the Louisa/Darcy drama is explained at the end of the book.

The ending of the book was not what I expected. It was good, but 100% not what I expected and the epilogue was even better!!!

How many stars will I give The Best Friend: 4

Why: A very well written psychological thriller that kept me guessing and on my toes for the entire book

Will I reread: Yes

Will I recommend to family and friends: Yes

Age Range: Adult

Why: Violence and language. No sex.

**I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book**