Every year on the same day, on the anniversary, I receive a single black rose. Thirteen years of dark petals, jagged thorns, dredging up memories I’ve tried to forget… I’ve packed up my life. All my belongings are carefully sealed in labelled boxes, my suitcases ready for my big move. I’m just days away from a new life abroad with my boyfriend, Ben.No one knows the real reason I’m desperate to … the real reason I’m desperate to leave.
My best friend, Lena, is throwing me a leaving party. A celebration, to say goodbye. Champagne to toast my farewell. Speeches, full of fond memories.
No one knows what I’m running from.
Then another black rose appears, dragging up thirteen years of buried memories. My passport goes missing. The very people I am trying to escape from turn up to our house.
Someone knows what I did.
This party was meant to be the first night of the rest of my life – but now I don’t know if I’ll see tomorrow.
Someone knows my secret. They’re in my home, at my party, and they’re making me pay for it.
Psychological thrillers don’t get more addictive or gasp-worthy than this! Fans of K.L. Slater, The Girl on the Train and The Wife Between Us will love this unputdownable page-turner.
Readers are loving The Leaving Party:
‘Wow wow wow!!!!!! What a thriller this book is! One killer secret that will leave you holding your breath until the last page! This book has so much suspense that you can’t help turning the pages faster and faster!! A definite must read!’ Goodreads Reviewer, 5 stars
‘What an intense read, I was captivated from the start…full of twists and turns…wow.’ ’ Stressed Rach, 5 stars
‘I sat down to read this book before dinner… and didn’t put it down until I fell asleep that night.’ The Sweet Wanderlust, 5 stars
‘A very quick and compelling story that I read in a couple of very short hours… unable to tear myself away for any reason.’ Rachel’s Random Reads, 5 stars
‘There are secrets, obsession, manipulation, lies and revenge, the plot will keep you hooked… There is nothing negative I can say about this book, it has been a fantastic read which I devoured in a matter of hours.’ Little Miss Book Lover 87, 5 stars
‘I couldn’t stop turning the pages fast enough. High five for Lesley Sanderson. A thoroughly engaging read.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Wow! I couldn’t put the book down! Amazing!’ Goodreads reviewer
‘An edge-of-your-seat novel which will either leave you holding your breath or with a temporary nervous twitch’ Goodreads reviewermore
Thirteen years ago Ava attended a party which ended horribly. She’s been on the run ever since. But every year on the anniversary, she receives a single black rose. Someone knows her secret … and where she is.
Ava is moving to another country to live with her boyfriend. It means leaving everything familiar .. her friends … her family …. and maybe the black roses.
Her best friend is giving a going-away party. There’s lots of champagne, well wishes, hugs and I’ll miss yous. Another black rose shows up and her passport go missing.
Someone knows her secret … and they’re attending the party.
The book is written in two timelines … two parties then and now. There are lots of characters, making it somewhat difficult to follow. The beginning of the book is actually more suspenseful. It is intense in places, but it comes and goes. The characters, themselves, weren’t impressive.
Many thanks to the author / Bookouture / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
This was my first book by this author. It was a very interesting one and sure had me wanting to know what happened next. I did figure out who was doing what with the exception of someone’s little sister. That part got me. The best friend is not always who they seem to be. But a best friend will always be there for you. Won’t they.
This is a story of two best friends who experienced a tragedy thirteen years ago. A girl was killed and one was hurt badly. One saved her best friend. It’s told from two different people’s view and from the two timelines. From the past when the accident happened and the present when the party happened. Ava is moving far away to be with her boyfriend, Ben. Her best friend, Lena, doesn’t want her to leave but is also happy for her. At least she wants to be. She honestly does not want to loose Ava but doesn’t know what to do to keep her from going. She throws Ava a huge going away party and the fun begins. At least the mysteries and the stories.
This book didn’t really have any likable characters in it for me. Though it was a good story and kept me wanting to read more, it just didn’t have any characters that I liked. Lena was to needed and Ava seemed to be afraid of her own shadow and totally did not have a mind of her own. Whether it was Lena or Ava’s sister, Martha. One of them was constantly taking Ava by the hand and telling her what to do and how to feel. And with all the alcohol they drank I do not see how any of them, with the exception of Martha, could stand up much less tell anyone what to do. There was enough going on that it held my interest and made me want to know what was going to happen next and find out who was doing the mean things that were being done and I wanted to know who did what back in 2005. It was a good story just no good characters to connect with. It had lots of twists going on and will make you hold your breath in parts. In places it’s a bit repetitive though. But that aside I still am glad I read this book. It definitely is one that I had to finish.
Thank you to #NetGalley, #Lesley Sanderson, #Bookouture for the ARC of this book.
I gave it three stars. I do recommend you read it for yourself as things to appeal to different people in different ways. It was one that I had to finish and I enjoyed it in many ways.
#NetGalley #The Leaving Party #Bookoutore
The story is told in the past and present by Ava and her best friend Lena.
Something happened at a party thirteen years ago that has deeply affected Ava. Every year on the anniversary of the party someone sends Ava a single black rose to make sure that Ava never forgets. Ava is about to move to New York to live with her fiancé Ben, so Lena throws her a Leaving Party. The day of the party another black rose is sent and things just get creepier from there. Who is the mysterious person that does not want Ava to forget what happened thirteen years ago? Is this person or persons someone Ava knows? Are they at the party? Do they mean to harm Ava?
The Leaving Party is about obsession and secrets and the consequences that happen when the truth is revealed. It was a bit slow at times, but did hold my attention.
With an intriguing plot that juxtaposes the claustrophobic trope (all action takes place in one location) with a going-away party, this book helped me pass the time quickly on a long bus ride. The plot unfolds over both current time events and in flashback chapters that detail a past event. It also contains a fascinating look at the depths of friendship. One of the things I liked most, however, was the red herrings that kept me guessing. A recommended page-turner. For a full review, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks. Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for a digital ARC of the book.
Favorite Quotes:
Joe had long hair and John Lennon glasses and wasn’t her type at all. He looked as if he listened to old hippy music and played a guitar.
Our eyes meet and her smile flickers at me. It’s one of those unpleasant smiles that looks like it hides a mouthful of rotten teeth.
Our eyes meet and I bat away that sliver of uncertainty about her that wriggles inside me like a tapeworm.
My Review:
This slowly evolving tale was maddeningly paced and zigzagged through two timelines which were thirteen years apart, with frequent vague mentions of a significant event, although we aren’t given the exact details until much later of what that significant antecedent entailed. And I was all about the knowing. So many shifty trick cards this canny author pulled from her sly sleeves. I was totally crushed amidst all the ruthless twists and turns to learn that no one was trustworthy, everyone had their own agenda, and most ended up a bit screwed over, hmm, sounds a lot like real life come to think of it…
Ava is moving to be with her boyfriend-not a minor change, but leaving the country. She’s escaping, but first she has to get through her leaving party. When another black rose arrives on her doorstep the morning of the party, an anonymous reminder that 13 years later someone knows what she did and won’t let her forget, Ava fears the sender may be a guest and how they want the night to end.
The Leaving Party is a fun, quick read about secrets and obsession, and what happens when they collide. The story is told in two timelines, both present day and a different party in 2005. Everything happens in the course of one night.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. The opinions in this review are honest and my own. #TheLeavingParty #suspense