Woah just woah 😶 I have recently finished this book thanks to netgalley. I really liked the idea of this book and thought the storyline was brilliant but I felt it went on a little longer than it should have, I felt myself starting to lose interest at certain points, but I couldn't stop reading, I needed to find out how it all ended and wow I was not expecting that ending AT ALL, still processing it all now. Brilliant book. Thank you!!! I hope to add full reviews to my blog asap.

A well written, tense thriller with lots of twists and turns. Possibly a bit too long with too much backstory but I enjoyed it very much.

Thanks to Netgalley and Raven books for a copy of “ Never have I ever “ for an honest review.
As has been mentioned this seems very reminiscent of episodes from the tv series Desperate Housewives.
I struggled to get into this book and I was disappointed because I expected to enjoy the story more than I did from reading the synopsis ,
An average 3 star rating from me.

Good, light beach read. Well placed thriller and easy to read. The characters felt a bit one dimensional though, but it's still an enjoyable read.

Amy Whey has a good life. Happily married to Davis, helping raise her stepdaughter Maddie, and their baby son Oliver, this family is all she could wish for. She's a popular member of the small community, she runs a dive club, is best friends with Charlotte and is a member of a thriving book club. It is at one particular book club meeting that Roux, the New Kid on the Block, shows up and within minutes takes over, insinuating herself into the group with much alcohol and a seemingly silly game she calls “Never Have I Ever” in which she demands each woman tells of the worst thing she has ever done. Amy is not about to spill her secret, a secret so dreadful she hasn't even told Davis, and now here's this mysterious, sly, strange woman who seems able to see right through Amy's carefully constructed veneer....

Who is Roux? Where did she spring from? Amy is determined to find out before Roux destroys all she holds dear.

There are a few too many implausible coincidences, but the writing is really good with touches of black humour. I like the construction and characterisation, but overall I felt it lost pace because it was too drawn out. Having said that, it is good, it's different and most of the time it did hold my attention.

A Book Club turns into a situation, initiated by a new member. She gets the rest tipsy and they have to talk about the worst thing they have ever done. Not for the fainthearted!

This book is a veritable maze of twists and turns. Every time I thought I had things straightened out in my head I would hit another dead end. As well as a plot that had me rushing around corners there was some great characterisation. By the end of that first book club meeting I could see all the players from uber organised, slightly prissy Charlotte to former prom queen Tate and her entourage of mean girls. This all kept me turning the pages late into the night until I reached the shocking climax. An absolutely brilliant book from an author whose name was new to me but whose work I googled as soon as I put this book down.

Review posted on Goodreads and Amazon

Book blurb...
It starts as a game at a book group one night. Never Have I Ever... done something I shouldn't.
But Amy Whey has done something she shouldn't. And Roux, the glamorous newcomer to Amy's suburban neighbourhood, knows exactly what that is.
Roux promises she will go away. She will take herself and her son, who is already growing dangerously close to Amy's teenage stepdaughter, and she will go. If Amy plays by her rules.
But Amy isn't prepared to lose everything she's built. She's going to fight back, and in this escalating game of cat and mouse, there can be only one winner.
My thoughts…
Wow! I was so drawn into this book. It was like being a character in the middle of the domestic mess, created by some powerful conflict.

I so felt for Amy. She has a past (as we all do) but hers is such that if revealed the truth will hurt a lot of people she loves. So, of course that’s exactly what happens when the author introduces a character to test and push Amy to her max.

This novel is so well plotted and written in such a way I felt a part of the game being played. I particularly enjoyed the scuba diving experiences and the way the author used the concept of being under water to symbolise a place to breathe and win back your strength. I almost want to get certified to dive.

Definitely one for the TBR pile.

Thanks to Net Galley and Bloomsbury Publishing for an ARC of this book in exchange for a review.
This is my first book by this author, I will definitely be reading more. A twisty thriller packed with suspense, the pages turn themselves.
How far would we go to protect our comfortable life, to keep the family unit together, would we be prepared to risk everything?
It starts with a book club, all the members being mummies. The newest member, Angelica Roux, arrives looking like a model and it’s not long before she has taken over, she wants the woman to play a game ‘Never Have I Ever’
There are certainly lots of secrets to be revealed, blackmail, gambles, with the stakes being high.
Amy has a lot of secrets and this exotic new neighbour Angelica Roux seems to know her darkest moments.
Highly recommend 4.5 stars.

I enjoyed this book very much - the story twisted and turned and I had no idea how it was going to end. I was really rooting for Amy and despised Roux. The descriptions of diving were appealing and the outcome was very satisfactory. Recommended.

Well worth a read! Think Desperate housewives with a more sinister feeling. A few well written twists throughout, will keep you guessing right up until the end.

Personally, I could not finish this book - it felt a bit derivative and like other crime novels I have read. I was not sympathetic to the characters and so I could not recommend this novel.

A new woman shows up at book club. She takes over and suggest a game - Never Have I Ever. It's clear she knows everyone's secrets already and will do whatever she can to expose them.

I struggled to engage with the characters in this novel. Amy' has a dark past that she's trying to keep hidden and Roux is doing everything she can to blackmail her. How long it will it takes for all the secrets to come out?

This is a book that starts out slowly but once it's got you hooked it doesn't let go until the end. Told by Amy, a first time mum with a loving husband & a stepdaughter. Her life is fairly ordinary, but she likes it that way. At the regular Book Club meeting, held in her house, a new neighbour arrives & takes over completely. Roux hi-jacks the gathering, getting many very drunk & playing the game' Never have I ever'. Quite apart from getting people to admit to things Amy knows will hurt others, Roux hints that she knows something about Amy's past.

Amy's story goes back to her teenage years- there is definitely something she doesn't want anyone to know. How far will she go to stop her secret being revealed? The battle between the two very strong women is totally gripping. It is also more complicated than it seems at first.

This is definitely the best thriller I have read this year & will be telling everyone to read it. Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this brilliant book!

I will be honest and say that I read chapter one and I did wonder if this book was for me. It all seemed a little fluffy and a little bit missing something. I didn't grip me. I considered not carrying one however I rarely not finish a book and therefore cracked on with chapter two. I am so glad I did as I was plunged into the darkening web of the story and was hooked.

The game never have I ever, which I have to say, my children love to play leads to a lot of secrets being unearthed and the twists just start coming thick and fast.

When a stranger gate crashes what should be a quiet book club meeting Amy is instantly on edge. As the alcohol begins to flow the atmosphere begins to change.

I don't want to give away the plot on this one but deep buried secrets are about to be revealed.

Reading this book was almost like watching a high action movie and once it had me hooked I was lost in it.

Despite the slow start once the action started it did so in abundance and I was left flipping the pages as quickly as I could.

This is like icy fingers on your spine- a real page turner, fast paced, and eerie. I loved the who will win aspect of this thriller., who will come out on top? A brilliant read.

Lots of twists and turns in this imaginative thriller. A bit far fetched at times but definitely kept me on the edge of my seat. Well worth a read.

This novel is described as fast paced, and it is. I read through it quickly, wanting to know what would happen. There are a lot of characters,.but they're crafted well, and mostly believable. I didn't connect with any of them, and at times it felt a little extreme. However it had a unique take on a trope that is quite common for this genre, so that was refreshing. A good read.

Amy Whey is proud of her ordinary life and the simple pleasures that come with it—teaching diving lessons, baking cookies for new neighbors, helping her best friend, Charlotte, run their local book club. Her greatest joy is her family: her devoted professor husband, her spirited fifteen-year-old stepdaughter, her adorable infant son. And, of course, the steadfast and supportive Charlotte. But Amy’s sweet, uncomplicated life begins to unravel when the mysterious and alluring Angelica Roux arrives on her doorstep one book club night.

This book is shocking…dark…twisted…addictive. It felt like a movie that played out at an incredibly fast pace and introduced characters with extremely strong personalities. It starts when a new member shows up at a book club…nobody wanted to say it was getting a bit samey…so they were all secretly pleased when Roux turned up. Until she started to unearth their deepest secrets…

What if you had a secret so profound that you spent your entire life trying to hide it? And what if the new mom on the block decides she wants to expose that secret!?

There were some fantastic twists in this book – and I got to the end without quite working out what was going on which is always a bonus. It could have gone in many directions. Psychological suspense is one of my favourite genres and so to find a book where it’s done well is brilliant.

This was the first of Joshilyn’s books that I’ve read and I don’t think it will be the last. It’s always nice to discover an author who has lots of books already out there that I haven’t discovered yet!

Reading the synopsis of this book my initial thought was ‘this has been done hundreds of time before.’
Main character (Amy) is a suburban housewife with a loving husband, a feisty teenage step-daughter and sweet new baby.
Enter the new neighbour (Roux) who seems to have details of a terrible secret that Amy has been living with since her adolescence and which, if exposed, will tear her perfect world apart.
Then I got to thinking ‘this has been done so many times before because it makes great reading.’
I loved all the characters in this book- even the ones I hated!
As Amy and Roux play out their twisted and dangerous game others become involved, juicy secrets are uncovered and dirty laundry is aired. The pace quickens and this book turns into a roller coaster ride with twists and turns galore.
It was a page-turner that had me guessing right up until the end.
I’d like to thank NetGalley for sending me a copy of this book that was released on August 8