Cover Image: Betray Her

Betray Her

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Member Reviews

This book was very slow and I almost gave up on it. I did finish it but sadly would not recommend it . Sorry

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My thanks to NetGalley and publisher Little, Brown Book Group UK, for the ARC.
This is rather a slow-burner of what could have been a 'thrilling' story, with three-quarters of the book taken up with laying the groundwork for the last quarter to contain the revelations, the twist, the uncovering of lies and deceits. So, in all, I found it all too a bit 'wordy' and would be better condensed in some places. Nevertheless, thank goodness there is indeed a 'thrilling' and twisted ending!
The story is told from Jo's perspective, between being aged 8 and starting at boarding school, where she meets Kate; 2 years ago when her husband dies, and present day.
Jo and Kate become firm friends, with Jo having to defend and protect Kate from bullying at school. Jo is from a very working class background whose parents have become financially secure through hard work - Kate from 'old-money'. Jo goes to university and thence into journalism, Kate marries a good-looking young man - from the 'wrong end of town' and turns into a model housewife and mother.
Jo's husband dies suddenly and Kate is the first person she turns to, 30 yrs after meeting at school.
Two years after her husband's death, Jo is still trying to find her place in the world but, through trying to revive old friendships, she starts to discover some very unpalatable truths. Her world starts to crash, and confrontation is the only option.

A very good conclusion, good twists, but as said, all rather too drawn-out for my liking for most of the book.

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This is another excellent read by Caroline England. There’s plenty of twists and turns throughout and a strong ending. It’s a domestic novel set in the Peak District with a dark undercurrent that will keep you interested.

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I loved this book and found it hard to put down. I really liked the main character and cared about what happened to her; I wanted things to work out. It was a good twist at the end of the story and I would definitely read Caroline England’s next book.

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A good book, well written but did take me a while to get into the story line and gel with the characters.

Not the best book I have read but not the worst either.

Thank you to Netgalley and The Little Brown Book Group for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

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Brilliant, I really enjoyed reading this and got through it quickly. A great twist that I absolutely didn’t see coming. Recommended.

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We meet Kate and Jo as small children just starting boarding school, they befriend each other and the friendship lasts for many many years. The book dips in and out of boarding school, three years ago and now. Jo is a widow, Kate has an idyllic life, child and husband. And tensions can occasionally simmer, frustration can surface. But thirty years friendship, thirty years of knowing each other, each other’s family’s, each other’s life, well that’s got to count for something. Right?

Jo and Kate are well drawn characters and you will see both sides of the story. How does it all resolve? Read it and see!

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The book focuses on Kate and Jo. Best friends who meet at boarding school at 8 years old. It flits between different time periods giving you snippets of mainly Jo’s life. It is a very long drawn out book and for the first half I didn’t find it very exciting and almost gave up. But after that there are plenty of shocking events that make sure you don’t skim the pages! And nothing in their relationship is as it seems!

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This book was utterly fantastic. Sooo gripping and addictive, and shocked me constantly. The characters were wonderful, left me guessing their next move. Probably the best book I've read so far this year!

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A book that left me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, there is much more going on than it seems at the start of the book. We meet with Johanna (Jo) and Katherine (Kate) as little 8 year old girls, starting boarding school. And of course they hate it, and of course they become best friends, and of course... thirty years later it is a whole different story. The story revolves around friendship and betrayal, about family love and hate, about the thin line between being friends for life or being enemies for life.
Basically it is a well-known story about love and betrayal with some surprises thrown in but I had a little trouble keeping concentrated while reading. There is so much not going on... there is so much thinking aloud, and drinking, drinking, drinking. This is the second book in a short time I've read where thirty-something people seem to fill their days with drinking. I have nothing against having a glass or two with friends, but I think it is too easy to have all characters do and say stupid things because they are drunk all the time.
So all in all a nice read but it lacks that 'special feeling' that would have earned it a star more.

Thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown for this digital review copy.

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I was a little disappointed in this book as I just didn’t seem connect with it and I really don’t know why. The story had plenty of twists to keep you guessing but it all felt a bit underwhelming and I struggled to keep my attention from wandering. I cannot fault the writing it was really excellent and perhaps I have just been reading too much of the same type of genre as other people seem full of praise for the book but I found it a little predictable sadly. So all in all it was a 3 star read for me.
My thanks to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for giving me the chance to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

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Wow! This kept me gripped right up until the last page!! A brilliant, dark, thriller that keeps you guessing all the way through. Definitely recommend

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I really enjoyed this book - it has a great plot, excellent main characters and is a real page turner. I would highly recommend this book.

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I enjoyed the boarding school aspect (takes me back to my Enid Blyton days!). I enjoyed the relationship between the different characters and how this unfolded as the book progressed. The book was well written and the aspect I enjoyed was how who i considered 'the bad guy' changed several times throughout the book.

However, whilst I am sure lots of people will love this book but for me it struggled to keep my attention at times. If I wasn't reading it to provide an honest review I may have skipped elements of this. It is hard to put my finger on why this was but perhaps there wasn't enough 'drama' for my liking. I found the ending a bit predictable and overall not a book I would re-read again and again. I have enjoyed other books by this author so I would look forward to reading future books I am sure she will be writing.

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The relationship of two best friends since boarding school, as different as chalk and cheese, comes to a head when their lives take different directions. Jealously, greed, envy, cheating, lying and revenge play out in a twisted novel where the reader doesn’t have all the information. Great fast read and well written!

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I really did not enjoy this book found it a bit jarring I DNF it after 25 percent through which is a shame as the start was promising. I found the writing style boring and reminding us every 5 seconds that Jo's husband is dead and how much she wants a child was over the top in my opinion. I really did not like Kate or Tom very annoying. If I had read any further it was very predictable. 2 out 5 stars. Thankyou for the opportunity Netgalley and to the publisher

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The summary of Betray Her is brief but addictive, hinting at dark secrets and complex relationships, a thriller to keep you reading all the night.

For me, the reality was a bit underwhelming.

Jo and Kate met at boarding school, and have been best friends ever since. While their circumstances may be different (Jo is a widowed journalist, Kate is a stay at home mum with a well-off husband), their relationship has lasted through the years. Until everything changes.

Betray Her flits between a few different time periods - boarding school, late teens, and now, with a few sections spread over the last few years. I normally really enjoy books like this, but for some reason it took me a while to get used to it, and to really pick up the thread of what was happening. Now obviously a major advantage of multiple timelines is being able to slowly reveal information from the past, and how its affected the present, but I didn't think it was particularly well done here. I won't say too much because of spoilers, but there is a past relationship that influences pretty much all of the current events that felt a bit forced, and a lot of the actions related to it just didn't really make sense to me.

I will say that I loved the ending, as I genuinely didn't see it coming; something that's quite rare for psychological thrillers, which I normally find aren't particularly subtle about what's coming next. Jo as a character was ok, not offensive but not someone who you really rooted for either. All in all, for me it was a bit meh - I didn't hate it, and it had a strong ending, but it wouldn't be one that I'd read again. I will say though that I seem to be in the minority in terms of not being blown away, so it might just be me!

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This is such a tale full of twists and turns.

It centres around the friendship of Jo and Kate, a friendship that spans over 30 years after meeting at boarding school.

Jo is recently widowed and her first port of call on that dreadful night was her best friend's house and Kate is continuing to keep an eye on her.

This story flits between the past life of the girls schooling and the present...whilst neither character is especially likeable, there are moments in the book where you feel sympathy for the things the characters have experienced.

This novel covers so many topics, but it keeps the flow of the narrative fast paced.

Really enjoyed this story, the second of Caroline England's I have read. Thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to review this book, this is my honest opinion.

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It was an interesting read. In some respects a little samey to other concepts. It's clear from the start where it's going to go so there wasn't any real surprises. But still enjoyable and it was well written. It didn't keep me hooked, but I certainly got through it pretty quickly.

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After being reeled in by what is an exciting synopsis, I was left feeling underwhelmed by this book.
The characters are created well enough and the writing is excellent, but in all honesty this story was quite boring.
It’s a slow starter which didn’t really pick up any pace and could have been so much more exciting.
Even the final revelation was disappointing.
I have awarded it 2.5 stars but if I was asked whether I’d enjoyed it or not, I would have to admit that no, I didn’t. Disappointing.

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