“No list of thrillers is complete without Robyn Harding,” proclaims Real Simple. Now the USA TODAY bestselling author of The Party delivers a riveting tale about the toxic relationship between two couples after a night of sexual shenanigans, and the manipulative teenager with an explosive secret at the center of it all.Low Morrison is not your average teen. You could blame her hippie parents or … You could blame her hippie parents or her looming height or her dreary, isolated hometown on an island in the Pacific Northwest. But whatever the reason, Low just doesn’t fit in—and neither does Freya, an ethereal beauty and once-famous social media influencer who now owns the local pottery studio.
After signing up for a class, Low quickly falls under Freya’s spell. And Freya, buoyed by Low’s adoration, is compelled to share her darkest secrets and deepest desires. Finally, both feel a sense of belonging…that is, until Jamie walks through the studio door. Desperate for a baby, she and her husband have moved to the island hoping that the healthy environment will result in a pregnancy. Freya and Jamie become fast friends, as do their husbands, leaving Low alone once again.
Then one night, after a boozy dinner party, Freya suggests swapping partners. It should have been a harmless fling between consenting adults, one night of debauchery that they would put behind them, but instead, it upends their lives. And provides Low the perfect opportunity to unleash her growing resentment.
Robyn Harding brings her acclaimed storytelling, lauded as “fast-paced, thrilling, gut-wrenching” by Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six, to this dark and suspenseful thriller for fans of Megan Miranda and Lisa Jewell.
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Thank you to Netgalley, Gallery/Scout press books and the Author Robyn Harding for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Buckle up for a bumpy ride with this one, a tumultuous edge of your seat thriller that the actual “Swap” is in the middle of all the action.
I will definitely be following and reading more by this author.
WOW! Wow what a thrilling ride this amazing book was!!! Low is a very lonely high school student who doesn’t have any friends and doesn’t fit in at home. She meets Freya who just moved to their small town and is also lonely. They become friends as Freya teaches Low how to make pottery. Freya is also friends with Jamie who after several failed attempts to become a mother is an emotional wreck. The three women are a train wreck waiting to happen. This book has it all; obsession, jealousy, lies, and lies. I read deep into the night as I just could not put this book down and needed to know what the heck was going on! I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.
Talk about a thriller! I just love Robyn Harding’s books and this one is no exception. I was completely absorbed by this crazy story and read it in two sittings. It was very fast paced and edgy and kept me thinking even after I was done. What could possibly go wrong while swapping husbands after a drug induced night?! This is a guaranteed must read.
The Swap is all about secrets, lies, scheming, obsession, betrayal and then there is always the twists that catch you by surprise.
What more could I the reader want ?
None of the characters are likeable but that makes you want to read on somehow.
I am not going to give anything away, tempting though, suffice to say The Swap is worth the read!
Thanks to NetGalley , Simon and Schuster Canada , Simon and Schuster Mystery, Thrillers for the opportunity to read The Swap!!
Thank you, NetGalley, for my eARC.
The author was the reason I chose to read this. I have read and enjoyed all her previous books. The plots and/or subject matter are contemporary and are geared towards a tolerant, open-minded, adult audience. Aside from her storylines, I love the writing style, with its alternating perspectives and short chapters.
Seventeen year-old Swallow(“Low”)Morrison sticks out, literally. Her lanky build, prickly personality, and unconventional family make her a misfit and a loner. She hates school and her life…until she meets Freya. Low signs up for pottery classes at her studio and they get to know each other. Despite the age gap, Low feels a connection with her. She feels accepted. She is fascinated by beautiful, charismatic Freya, her stunning home, and her Greek God husband, Max. She was perfect. Their life was perfect(or so she thought). She was desperate to be a part of it. ANY part and ONLY her. She didn’t want to share. She saw her first and Freya was hers.
Until the interloper makes an appearance. Jamie and her husband Brian are also new in town. Brian, YA author, thought the setting would inspire him to write. He had looming deadlines. Jamie is thrilled to fulfill her dream of opening a gift shop. They also needed a fresh start after a personal setback. Freya’s entry into her store and life was like a ray of sunshine on a cloudy day. Like Low, Jamie is charmed by her. Soon, Jamie, Brian, Freya, and Max become couple friends…and more. The “more” is the catalyst to reactions nobody could even begin to predict.
Harding has written another unputdownable twisty domestic suspense thriller I did not want to end. I am so looking forward to her next book, I would read it without even looking at the blurb.
Swallow “Low” Morrison is a seventeen year old, who lacks a social life and lives in a very unconventional family. At a young age, her parents informed her that they wanted to accept other people into the family. Low is the oldest with two younger brothers, and one day at school sees a woman, who immediately draws her attention. The woman pins a notice offering pottery classes. Low intrigued by the woman decides to take a class.
Freya and her husband Max were adored celebrities until a very public event involving Max and an out of control temper. Freya takes Low under her wing, and makes Low feel like they are best friends. A connection, Low badly wants. Freya has a way of using her charm to get what she wants.
Jamie Vincent is new to the island, and opens a quaint little shop to help make ends meet. Her husband, Brian, is an author. After a tragic event, the two of them are trying to move on, when Freya comes into Jamie’s shop, and the two develop an instant friendship. They start to spend more and more time together, which leaves Low out of the picture.
Low is overcome by jealousy and finds ways to insert herself, picking up tidbits along the way. Low has no choice, but to pull away from Freya, she discovers she has a knack for a new hobby.
As Freya and Jamie have gotten close, they start to do things as a couple, and one night the couple pair off with the other’s spouse. All is not well in the aftermath. There are secrets on top of secrets, and someone is pulling the strings of the others.
This was a fantastic, twisted read! I bounced back and forth from being sympathetic towards Low, whose family seems oblivious towards what was going on in Lows’s life, and wanting her to wake up to see her destructive nature. I felt bad for Jamie and Brian with their struggles. Freya and Max present themselves as the perfect couple, but underneath has more to do with self punishment, and neediness that neither can provide. The ending was a shock!
I received an ARC from NetGalley via Galley/Scout Press and I have voluntarily reviewed this book.
The Swap by Robyn Harding is a dark, psychological thriller that will totally engulf and captivate readers from the first page. Without giving away any spoilers, Robyn Harding has done it again with this brilliantly constructed novel about a dangerous, obsessive fixation, deep dark deadly secrets and twisted relationships. In my opinion, the author’s timeline of events was sheer genius. Readers will be beyond shocked as they read each page and the ending will rock everyone’s world for those who read it. I received an Advanced Reader Copy and these opinions are solely my own. I rated it a five, but it definitely deserves a ten plus rating.
In Norse mythology, Freya is the goddess of fertility, as well as the most beautiful diety. In The Swap, Freya is the daughter of an Icelandic mother, and a sensual, beautiful artist who moves to the island with her husband, Maxime Beausoleil, after his career as a professional ice hockey player comes to a tragic and notorious end. So too does Freya’s lucrative and ego-feeding status as a social medial influencer. She loses the lucrative endorsement deals, luxurious trips, and free products she has become accustomed to receiving, as well as the adoration of her followers. Max is a large, brooding presence in the life to which Freya is now consigned — in a gorgeous, cedar-and-glass home situated on a rocky cliff above the sea.
Low lost at least one previous friendship as a result of questionable behavior. Since then, she has been a loner both at school and in her commune-like home, where she feels left out and ignored. Her parents have incorporated other partners into their unconventional marriage, and Low is mortified when she learns that her mother is pregnant with a third younger sibling. The island, with its rugged coastline boasting waterfront mansions, is a summertime escape for the wealthy, but is populated full-time by organic farmers, artisans, and locals employed in the hospitality industry. In the eclectic community, alternative lifestyles are accepted. Nonetheless, Low finds her parents’ lifestyle embarrassing.
One day at school, Low notices Freya speaking with the principal and placing a flyer on the bulletin board. She immediately sensed that Freya was “different. She exuded glamour, significance, and a palpable sense of cool.” Low quickly signs up to take pottery lessons from Freya.
Brian and Jamie Vincent have moved to the island for “a fresh start.” Jamie left her stressful marketing career to open a gift shop, and Brian sold a series of young adult fantasy novels, permitting him to leave his job as a teacher. They liquidated most of their assets, including a Seattle home and stock portfolio, to put their painful past behind them. Infertility has thus far rendered Jamie’s dream of carrying a baby impossible. When Freya brings her handmade bowls, vases, and platters to Jamie’s store, hoping she will stock them, the women strike up a friendship. Indeed, Freya becomes the only friend Jamie has on the island, and Freya convinces Jamie to give Low a part-time job in the store.
Low’s obsession with Freya manifests quickly. She becomes unreasonably jealous that Freya and Jamie have also commenced a friendship. She wants Freya to herself. One evening, as she lurks outside Freya and Max’s showcase home that boasts massive windows, she is able to observe the two couples’ activities. After Freya and Jamie share intimate secrets, Freya convinces her that the four of them should consume “‘shrooms.” Jamie agrees, even though she had a bad experience with mushrooms in college. But Brian is game, and Jamie is so desperate to maintain her friendship with Freya that she will do anything to win Freya’s approval and affection. Jamie has found Max attractive since meeting him, and becomes convinced that Brian and Freya are engaging in sexual activity, so she agrees to sleep with Max. She instantly regrets her decision.
That evening sets in motion a series of reactions and events that are the focus of a story inspired by author Robyn Harding’s awareness that some people with whom she is acquainted are “in open relationships.” That knowledge “piqued” her curiosity, causing her to wonder, “How would that work? Or, (more appropriately, for a thriller) how would that not work?” Although her characters only swap partners once, the ramifications are far-reaching and permanent. Harding employs multiple points of view to convey the details: alternating first-person narratives from Low, Jamie, Max, and Brian. Jamie and Brian relate the ways in which their relationship changes after that fateful night. Each harbors secrets from the other and experiences guilt, frustration, and anger, in part due to erroneous assumptions about the state of their marriage and each other’s desires. Low lurks in the pottery studio and the home Freya shares with Max, determined to be in Freya’s good graces and presence. Part of her preoccupation with Freya is incited by her exploration and discovery of her sexual orientation. She ponders whether she is in love with the much-older Freya. Low learns damaging secrets about Freya and Max, and is willing to use that information, if necessary, in order to stay close to Freya. Freya’s relationships with both women are on-again, off-again, with each reveling in the fact that, at least for the moment, she is Freya’s very best friend. Freya recognizes how insecure and needy both Jamie and Low are, and revels in using and manipulating them for her own purposes and gratification. Recognizing Low’s talent not just as a potter, but also as a photographer, Freya permits Low to serve as her unpaid personal photographer when she decides to resurrect her social media accounts in an attempt to repair her image and standing as an influencer. Low’s parents are not as indifferent as she believes, and they become concerned about the amount of time and effort that Low is devoting to Freya.
None of Harding’s characters are particularly likable, even though, as she was crafting the novel, she wanted Jamie to be. But Harding acknowledges that Jamie “is going through so much drama and strife. It brought out the worst in her.” There is more to it, however. Jamie is not empathetic because she is weak and clingy. She calculates her self-worth according to her inability to conceive a child, and whether Freya has, on any given day, deigned her worthy of being Freya’s friend. Freya is a devious, scheming narcissist who in incapable of feeling true compassion, but manages to convince those in her orbit to comply with her wishes by employing charm, false praise, and the threat of abandonment. The exclusion of Freya’s point of view from the narrative invites readers to draw their own conclusions about the source of her dysfunction and motivations.
Low, meanwhile, is a disturbed young woman whose upbringing in a nontraditional environment and unconventional appearance have compromised her ability to gauge and navigate social relationships, and inhibited her development of healthy friendships. Her moral ambiguity contributes to her issues. Her fascination with Freya is grounded in her insecurity and desire to emulate Freya’s self-assured glamour and style. Max is also troubled — his anger issues, exacerbated by hormone use, have brought tragic consequences that he must live with on a daily basis. His marriage to Freya is teetering on collapse. Brian is easily the most likable, relatable character. He is struggling to pursue his dream of being a writer, and genuinely cares for Jamie and their marriage. He wants to make her happy, but makes one terrible decision that has far-reaching ramifications. His consternation about how to make things right between them again is the most heartrending aspect of the tale.
The Swap is an engrossing and entertaining look at the lives of five flawed people who make terrible choices. It’s a compelling consideration of the fallout from their bad decisions, and whether good can ultimately flow from her characters’ actions. The story moves at a steady pace. Although the back and forth nature of Freya’s relationships with Low and Jamie grows tiresome, those plot developments propel the story forward and illustrate the dysfunctional, toxic nature of their purported friendships. Harding’s creative and deftly-timed plot twists and disclosures are surprising, and the conclusion is shocking, but decidedly satisfying.
The Swap is dark and atmospheric. Harding tackles unsettling themes by creating captivating, unbalanced characters, particularly the diabolical Freya. Psychological thriller fans will enjoy the twisty, evil story and find much to discuss with fellow fans.
Thanks to NetGalley for an Advance Reader’s Copy of the book.
Boasting quite an intriguing premise, I eagerly dove between the pages of Robyn Harding’s latest novel, “The Swap.” A twisted tale of narcissism, obsession, and deceit, the story revolves around on odd triangle of friends and their laundry list of treacherous deeds. For me, however, the characters were so unlikeable, that it detracted from my overall enjoyment of this book. That said, “The Swap” is still a good read, but just not as good as I had initially hoped.
Shifting perspectives weave throughout a story of manipulation, obsession and violence in Robyn Harding’s latest novel, The Swap. Low (short for Swallow) is an awkward young woman whose upbringing in a nontraditional family has alienated her from her small island community. Dissociated from her own sexuality and identity, she latches on to a local artist offering pottery classes. Freya is dangerously captivating but mercurial, and Low becomes increasingly desperate to monopolize her mentor’s attention. She is intensely jealous of anyone else in Freya’s orbit, and terrified that she will be abandoned by this fascinating person who finally shows her the respect and affection she craves. Low is so besotted that she becomes a stalker whose every moment is spent trying to infiltrate Freya’s life. Jamie is Freya’s best friend and Low considers her the primary threat to their relationship. Jamie is also vulnerable to Freya’s charms. Her deep insecurity and low self-esteem combine with infertility struggles and a stressed marriage. Freya seems to enjoy the competition between her admirers and leverages her power to get them to succumb to her whims. It certainly seems that Freya’s ability to attract followers is endless. Max, Freya’s former-athlete husband, who is recovering from a career-ending scandal seems subordinated to his wife. Brian, Jamie’s husband whose own artistic efforts have stagnated also succumbs easily to Freya’s extraordinary charms. As testament to her control over the other characters, Freya easily orchestrates a partner swap one fateful night with Jamie and Brian. The rest of the novel addresses the impact this exercise in infidelity has on all the players involved. The Swap is an interesting study in obsession and self-punishment, but often stretches credibility and veers into over-wrought emotion. Freya’s point-of-view is the least represented and the plot relies upon the reader’s acceptance of her ability to hypnotize others. Since she is underdeveloped and inscrutable, it becomes difficult to understand why the other characters are blind to her many faults erratic behavior. Harding keeps the tension tight, however, and fans will enjoy this page-turner if they are seeking a thriller that is engaging but not profound.
Thanks to the author, Scout Press/Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.