Fab read - atmospheric and tense. Loved this book. Strong characters and loads of twists and turns to keep you guessing

Brilliantly entertaining read that I couldn’t put down. It was one of those addictive stories.

Amy hauled Cara to safety during a terrorist attack in London. Along with one of Amy’s colleagues they stay in a storeroom above Pret a Manger. The colleague leaves and is murdered by the terrorists. The two women stay and Cara reveals her innermost secrets to Amy.

Cara and Amy tell the story in alternate chapters and there is no mystery as to who is manipulating the situation. However, the plot is clever and wicked in parts with some excellent twists including a great ending.

Although I felt I should like Cara I found her selfish and one of those people who want the best of all worlds without consequences.

Thanks to NetGalley, Penguin UK, Michael Joseph and Karen Perry for my ARC in return from my honest review.

Excellent read. Highly recommended.

I enjoyed this book. Maybe a little far fetched at times but mostly quite believable. With a lot of references to PTSD and mental health issues, I found the characters very true to form of 21st century society.

I loved the idea behind this book, very believable in today’s world. But sadly, after the early chapters it just didn’t capture and hold my attention.

It’s a not for me book, but may well be for you. Thanks for the arc.

I couldn't finish this book as I just could not envelope my myself in the story line. I thought if I could get halfway it would start to make sense, but no.
So I am sorry not to have anything good to say about and I will not be sharing this review with other source. Nor will I give it any star rating.

This started as an interesting book however didn't keep up the interest. Towards the half of the book, especially right after Part 2 it start to feel a bit too long and difficult to concentrate.
As we knew the characters and their intentions, there was nothing to keep the plot flowing. Unfortunately I had to skim read until the end and I don't think I have missed too much.
The writing isn't bad and there are still good scenes in the book, and old love interest coming back to life, the terror threats and it's reflections, being unloved and lonely...etc. However Amy and Cara didn't come as deep characters and the plot doesn't grip you as it should in a thriller.
Thanks for NetGalley and publisher a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Definitely a book that stays with you! Could not put it down!

Highly recommended if you enjoy suspense genre! Thank you for my review copy, which I received through Net Galley.

When Cara finds herself in the middle of a terrorist attack and being pulled to safety to a room with Amy she is so relieved that she ends up telling this complete stranger her deepest secrets. Cara starts getting strange text messages from "Your Closest Friend (YCF)" and she believes they are from her ex from years before that she has recently bumped back into. Over the next few weeks, her life starts falling apart, especially when an old naked photo is sent to her boss, work colleagues and her husband. The text messages from "YCF" starts turning nasty. The realisation of who they are from ends with her fighting to protect her daughter and step-daughter and even her own life.

I really enjoyed reading this as it tells the story from Cara's view, oblivious to whats really going on and from Amy view with her obsessive, manipulative ways. It shows how delusions and obsessions can push people to to drastic measures. Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity of reading this.

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Cara shouldn't have survived the attack, but at the last moment, a stranger snatched her to safety. In the hours that followed she told this Good Samaritan secrets she'd never told a soul. Not even her husband.

Cara finds herself caught up in a terrifying terrorist attack on the streets of London her certain death prevented by Amy, who drags her into a doorway and up a flight of stairs to a storeroom above Pret a Manager. In the darkness and desperate to survive Cara divulges to Amy her darkest secrets about her marriage, her husband, her affair.

In the aftermath, Cara is home, and safe. Which is when the anonymous threats begin. Someone knows things about her they shouldn't. Cara's Good Samaritan offers to help her to save her all over again. That night Cara made a friend for life, but what if she isn't a friend at all?

Each chapter was told from alternate point of view of Cara and Amy which I enjoyed. I don't want to give any spoilers, but the latter part of the book left me shocked, and the cliff hanger was so clever I didn't see it coming
.
I have to say that this book is a tour de force and I loved it. Fantastic.

I thought I had already read my best book of 2018. Wrong. This is it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin UK for and advance copy for a fair and honest review.

A tale of love and obsession,some not very nice characters and a great deal of drama. A tense physiological thriller.

Wow what read, be careful who you let into your life and become your friend because Your Closest Friend might prove to be deadly

The story of two women who are thrown together during a terror attack, and the aftermath. Worth reading !

Told via alternative narration of Cara and Amy, this is a story of two women brought together during a terrorist attack, and who then go on to have a connection after sharing secrets while in hiding. Amy's action in saving Cara during the attack goes on to have dire consequences as she becomes obsessed with her new 'friend' and moves in to look after Cara's child. I enjoyed it, thought it was quite well written and suspenseful.
Thanks to the publisher for a review copy.

What does a terrorist, a betrayal, a nanny, and a stalker have in common? Cara. This story is centred around Cara; mother to Mabel, and wife to Jeff. The story starts out with her witnessing a mass murder by a terrorist, where she is saved by Amy. From there her world is turned upside down, and she feels things spiralling out of control. Well worth the read!

This book is fabulous. It started out making me think I was going to read about post traumatic after a terrorist attack but turned into something totally different but just as intriguing. I thought the characterisation of the main protagonists was spot on and the use of different voices for different chapters made the story even better. A well plotted and excellently executed novel. I can’t wait to read more from this talented author.

Cara and Amy meet on the night of a terrorist attack - Amy saves Cara's life by getting her away from danger, and Cara ends up sharing a little too much information about her complicated life as the pair wait for the attack to end. However, this isn't the end for them, as Amy clearly feels a connection in the shared experience and wants to keep in contact. Initially, Cara doesn't feel the same way, but as the women grow closer, she becomes increasingly dependent on Amy. But is Amy really as trustworthy and supportive as she seems?
I found this book a little frustrating in places - probably because this is not a mystery. The reader knows exactly who is pulling the strings from a relatively early stage, which makes it slightly different to other psychological thrillers I've read recently, although not different enough in the grand scheme of things. Another rather annoying element is how openly Cara trusts Amy when she's given her absolutely no reason to do so - however, Cara comes across as a rather selfish character who accepts people into her life when it benefits her.
Looking back, it's not a great story but I finished this book really quickly and was eager to get to the end, so it must have been doing something right. Having read the acknowledgements, I can see the book has been optioned for a TV series, so it will be interesting to see how that works out.
A perfect 'read it in one day' holiday read, but nothing new or particularly challenging.
Thank you to the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a unique story and nothing like anything I've read before. You are thrown into the middle of a terrorist attack at the beginning of the story and not knowing whether she is going to survive or not, Cara confides her deepest secrets to the young lady who plucked her to safety. Secrets that should have stayed hidden as they are now used against her.

The writing style is easy to read and flows really well with each chapter written from the perspectives of the 2 main characters - Cara and Amy - which works extremely well for this book and the story. I did feel there was a bit of a lull in the middle but it certainly makes up for it as we move towards the thrilling conclusion.

Never having read anything by these authors before (Paul Perry and Karen Gillece ), I will most certainly keep my eyes open in future and thank you to the Publisher, Penguin UK - Michael Joseph, and NetGalley for once again introducing me to yet another great book that would likely have passed me by.

A gripping contemporary thriller that begins in the middle of a terrorist attack but ends in even greater personal turmoil for Cara, the central character. The book is written as a two-hander with alternate chapters narrated by Cara and her fellow terror victim, Amy. The sense of dissatisfaction after the attack is intensified and mined through a series of manipulations and disorientation, and forms the basis of the pressure which builds throughout the plot. and creates a mounting sense of tension and suspense. Will Cara discover the cause of her increasing misery in time?

Cara is having such a bad day when Amy enters her life. The events that follow cause no end of problems to what appears to be a perfect family life. I really enjoyed this book and with plot twists and turns to keep you guessing. This is a very well written novel that had me gripped from the first page to the last. 10/10 for Karen Perry.

This is the second book I have read and enjoyed by these talented authors Paul Perry and Karen Gillece, Your Closest Friend is another fantastically written book. From the start I was hooked to the story, I read it in a few sittings and was even sat up in bed late at night finishing the last chapters.

One of the things I loved most about this book is that I genuinely had no idea which way the story would turn next, I had no idea of what would happen and so I became very immersed in the story and the characters are each fascinating in their own way.

Your Closest Friend is a book that really makes you feel involved and part of everything that is happening. This story is full of twists, turns and is a compelling psychological thriller that deserves to be read by many.

Thank you!