USA Today bestselling authorDear Carys, Zoe and AndreaCome and join me for my fortieth birthday adventure weekend, full of mysteries and surprisesthe like of which you can’t imagine.When Joanne’s friends reluctantly accept an invitation to her birthday party, it quickly becomes clear that there is more to this weekend than they are expecting.One of them is hiding a secret.And Joanne is planning … weekend than they are expecting.
One of them is hiding a secret.
And Joanne is planning to reveal it…
A weekend away in a cottage in the woods sounds like fun – until no one can hear your cries for help.
Four friends.
A party to die for.
Who will survive?
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This is the first book I’ve read by Sue Fortin, and it won’t be the last. The premise won me over before I even started the book. I’m not a huge fan of the organised ‘weekend away’. Hen dos generally fill me with a cold dread, all those organised games and the unpredictability of not knowing what’s going to happen next. Well, The Birthday Girl features the weekend-away-from-hell, my worst nightmare! An action and adventure one at that! Even worse!
Just like an alcohol-fuelled hen do, The Birthday Girl is unpredictable, and every time you think you know what’s going on, another potential suspect is thrown into the mix. There are no black and white characters in this book, they are all complex ‘grey’ characters, each of them having committed a wrong in the past (or present). All of these things are great ingredients for an entertaining and twisty psychological thriller! I finished this book last night and recommend it to all fans of grip lit and psychological thrillers.
Sarah A. Denzil
Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Silent Child.
A good thriller. It opened with a set-up similar to And Then There Were None, detoured In a Dark, Dark Wood, threw in some Force of Nature and ended somewhere entirely different. The author paraded an array of suspects to crank up the tension and to keep the reader turning the page. .
Loved this book! Its always great when you think you know how the book is going to end and then there is a twist!
Now never having read anything of Sue Fortin before I wasn’t quite sure what to expect with this.
Well, Wow, this certainly didn’t disappoint.
I read this in practically one sitting, it was such addictive reading that I struggled to put “The Birthday Girl” down I was so engrossed.
This story tells the tale of four best friends, Carys, Zoe, Andrea and Joanne, all in or approaching their forties.
All Bogged down with the usual life dramas, petty jealousies and rivalries that usually come with groups of girls of all ages.
So when one of the girls, Joanne to be exact, decides to throw a very different fortieth party.
The other Girls half-heartedly accept her invitation.
Straight from the get-go, I loved how the scene was staged, Johanna lulling her friends into a false sense of security, outwardly not portraying her anger, but showing her game face and going in for the long con.
So there you are, You think you know where This tale is going, who the baddies are, when suddenly and without warning “The birthday girl” changes directions on you leaving you floundering in the wake of the upheaval.
And you’re left there scratching your head in total confusion.
The Birthday girl will seriously confound your expectations and have you questioning everything that happens, nothing will be taken on face value and nobody is above suspicion.
On top of all this, there is also the mysterious voice that seems to hate Carys so much, I was so wrong on all fronts with this when attempting to use my sleuthing skills to unmask, brilliantly done indeed.
So the story that unfolds here drew me in straight from the beginning.
It manages to build layer upon layer until gradually a bigger overall picture is finally revealed.
This was so well done and it actually helped make the Birthday Girl such a page-turner.
this has all the ingredients of a five-star read and it wasn’t until the last chapter that for me this lost some of its star quality.
I just really didn’t like the ending, I’ve never really been into self-sacrificing or cutting off my nose to spite my face and that is what the last chapter to me stank of.
So Sorry to be so cryptic, but needs must as I really don’t want to spoil this experience for others.
So there you have it, in a nutshell, this was such a good solid read, it flowed brilliantly, kept the reader guessing till the final pages and overall just pulled you right in.
So yes I would most certainly recommend this if you like a good psychological thriller, this is hands down, definitely one of the best I have experienced for a while.
So All that’s left is to say thank you to NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with an ARC of The Birthday Girl this is my own honest and unbiased opinion.
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
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The personalities of each of these four women were easily separated. Twists and turns, unexpected outcomes.
I couldn’t put it down!
This book kept you guessing. Just when you thought you had it figured out, it added another layer. Very good book
Entertaining. Although I thought I had it figured out before I got to the end of the book, I still enjoyed it. It was not as suspenseful as I hoped it would be.
Excellent
Interesting and intriguing.
Good read!
Tedious. O ly reD a few chapters. Too much silly detail.
Great plot with original story line. All elements of the novel, inccluding character development, narrative, settting, and conclusion melded perfectly.
I enjoyed reading this novel. I will read other books by this author.
I wouldn’t say it was the best book I’ve read, but kept you guessing until the end. I was kind of disappointed in the end. It was a good read.
This book is full of surprises and plot twists.the author paints a perfe t picture of four friends who seem more like enemies. Trust nobody in this creepy story of re venge.