I loved this book! A fantastic page turner! I really cannot imagine myself in Adams position.

The chapters alternate between Livia and Adam. A husband and wife who are both hiding a devastating secret from each other. Livias 40th birthday party is fast approaching, and they are both faced with the tough choice of when to break the news to the other. With the chapters jumping from one hour to the next on the day of the party, the tension is very well built.

The book is thought provoking, gripping and heart breaking. Another brilliant book by B A Paris!

I have to be honest, although this book gripped me, it really frustrated me. I just wanted to get the characters and make them open up to eachother.

Livia has been planning her 40th Birthday Party for years. The only person who won’t be there is her daughter Marnie who is in Hong Kong. But Livia is glad she is not going to be there because Livia is keeping a secret about Marnie from her husband Adam. Adam is also keeping a secret from Livia he is hoping his daughter will be home for the party as a surprise. There has been an aircrash the plane marnie should of been on has crashed and everyone onboard has died. But Marnie told Adam that she wouldn’t make the connecting flight. Adam can’t reach Marnie was she on the plane should he tell Livia and spoil the party when Marnie could walk through the door at anytime.
Thanks NetGalley

This book wasn't entirely what I expected - its not the psychological thriller I had expected from BA Paris, but rather a family drama, set over less than 24 hours. It is told in alternating points of view by married couple Livia and Adam on the day she is having a much anticipated 40th birthday party. It turns out they are both keeping secrets and the dilemma is about how and when they should reveal them to the other. Whilst at times it felt a little drawn out, and I found Livia and Adam both fairly unlikeable, it is well written, and I did find myself drawn in and keen to keep reading as the story unfolded in order to find out what happened. As someone with children of a similar age it certainly made me think and had me in tears towards the end, making it overall an emotional read I would recommend.

The Dilemma is the story of Livia and Adam and the secret each of them hold about their daughter Marnie. The story is told in a dual narrative and takes place the day of Livia’s 40th birthday party - a day that Livia has planned for the past 20 years.

The story held my interest throughout. It is a story about love and friendship and what each of us does to protect others around us. I loved how the story unfolds as the day progresses and the inner conflict the protagonists face. A well-developed storyline.

I loved the book and recommend it to book clubs and fiction lovers.

Thanks to Netgalley and HQ for the ARC of this book in exchange for the honest review provided here.

Livia’s is 40th today and she’s having a party of a lifetime to make up for the fact she didn't have a large wedding service. Everyone she knows and loves will be there except her daughter Marnie, who has been studying abroad this year. But Livia is secretly glad Marnie won’t be at the party as she needs to tell her husband Adam something about their daughter but she’s decided to wait until the party is over so they can have this happy time together.

Adam wants everything to be perfect for Livia's birthday so he’s secretly arranged for Marnie to surprise her by coming home. However during the day, he hears some terrible news which he needs to tell Livia, because how can the party go on? But Livia is so happy and excited for her party plus the guests are about to arrive.

How far will each of them go to give each other a last few hours of happiness and will they survive the fallout from keeping a secret from each other?

This was a cracking story, a quick read and I really enjoyed it. It switches between Livia and Adam throughout the day of the party, each noticing something about the other, that they are keeping something back or acting strange around their friends but cannot explain why. As they day progresses, you get to find out what they are hiding from each other. At one of the book I did feel my eyes welling up, but usually for me it didn't spill over!

I received this book from Netgalley in return for a honest review.

This storyline handles the difficult subject of bereavement and particularly a young adult in an accident. Unaware of the accuracy of a potential fatality the reader is drawn throughout the book as to the conundrum should one parent discuss their fears and dread of the child’s involvement before confirmation either way is know. Simultaneously a pre planned party is imminent and the dilemma for one of the parents is to articulate the fear and uncertainty and curtail the event, or allow the party to go ahead and leave their partner in happy ignorance as long as possible. The muddying of the water, by introducing a hidden secret related to the potential victim whilst still highlighting the dilemma at the forefront of every chapter is a trivial and annoying distraction when compared to the impact of a terrifying death and confusion over who knows what. Having first hand professional knowledge of human reaction to death, and unexpected fatalities I question some of the reactions and behaviour of the chief protagonists over a lengthy period of time. Also the reason for the deceit tied to a 20 year regret over the cancellation of a white wedding trivialises every aspect of the protagonists relationship and family stability notwithstanding the potential for the loss of a child. This storyline had the potential to explore many aspects of marriage, children and bereavement. Unfortunately I was left feeling each subject had been exaggerated, trivialised, and misrepresented towards an ending that was hyperbole rather than excruciating sadness. The ARC from NetGalley was appreciated and although a previous admirer of the author, this was not one of my more enthusiastic reviews although as always , I read to the story’s conclusion .

I want to start of by saying I went into this book knowing nothing about it but I did however know that BA Paris was a thriller author or known for writing thrillers so I assumed this was a thriller, I was very wrong.

It's very difficult to discuss this book without spoiling it however if I were to sum of the plot I'd say it was pretty lack luster. The first few pages made me believe that something interesting was about to unfold when In reality I was about to endure hours of bland characters making decisions that made no sense at all.

The book was filled with pretentious people whom were focused on one single event but the amount of times said event is mentioned and given the fact this book takes place over a twenty four period, is highly arritating and unrealistic.

Olivia and Adam as main characters made me want to throw my kindle against the wall several times with the foolish choices they made or how selfish they were.

Also the men in this book were written to be horrible people, Adam was a deadbeat Dad to his elder son and then their was Rob who was cheating on his sick wife.

Over all I'd not recommend this book and I think this will be the last BA Paris book that I read.

I have loved every one of the novels by B.A. Paris so far, and 'The Dilemma' is no exception!
At the heart of the story is a tale of communication, or lack of, and how withholding information for whatever reason, can result in major issues. The reasons generally are, of course, entirely subjective, sometimes selfish but not always, and as Newton's famous Third Law states, will result in 'an equal and opposite reaction.'
The main characters are husband and wife team Livia and Adam, and their two adult children, Marnie and Ben. It's the eve of Livia's 40th birthday party, an event she has been planning for a very long time, and which is intended to make up for the lack of a 'proper' wedding celebration many years ago.
Livia however has discovered something shocking about Marnie, a secret so shocking she can barely deal with herself. She needs to tell Adam, but Marnie is the apple of his eye, so she decides to wait, at least until the party is over.
Adam also has a secret about Marnie, which will devastate his wife when he tells her - so he decides to preserve her last chance at happiness for the party she has planned for so long.
Supporting sub-plots revolve around Adam and his son, Livia and her mother, and the best friend that Livia is now desperate to avoid.
I can't say anymore or the story would be spoiled, but reassured, this is a cracking story that will keep you reading beyond your bedtime!
I give this book 4 stars.

You know you’re reading a good book when you get most of the way through it in a day. You know you’re reading a brilliant book when your husband wakes you snoring at 2am and you don’t even care because you can read some more.

This is very much this book.

It is an absolutely crafted story of a family with a number of crises. It is a story which will make you question what you would do in their circumstances. And it is a novel which will make you fall in love with the characters - even the small players.

In short, it is excellent.

Another brilliant book be B A Paris. I loved this one. I wanted to get to the end to find out what happened but I didn't want it to end. It is difficult to review without giving away the story . I recommend that you read it, you wont be disappointed

Another amazing page turner from BA Paris. Loved it and it was super thrilling!
Totally recommended.

Thanks a lot to the publisher and NG for this copy.

Wow!! This book is a real page turner. I sat and read it in two sittings (on my because I had to cook dinner!)

I can't say too much about the plot because I don't want to give anything away but I'm interested to know what people would have done in the same situation. I think I would have spoken up right at the start of it all.

Ooh this was a book with a difference. The Dilemma by BA Paris is a fascinating look at the responsibility of secrets and the duty that we have to those around us. It focuses on one family. Mum, Livia is about to turn 40; daughter, Marnie, is living abroad but is returning to surprise her mum; dad, Adam, is in cahoots with Marnie but is also finding his relationship with his son difficult. Alongside these characters lies the extended family who are also impacted by the secrets and lies.

In a weird sense nothing really happens in this book but equally lots of things happen. I think with the mix of one day of real time events with the series of flashbacks we get a fuller picture but nothing big or explosive happens throughout the majority of it which given that it is a thriller is something that we are expecting. It is exciting and keeps you on the edge of your seat but it is not a thriller in the sense of high speed and guns. However, it is a thoroughly enjoyable read.

The Dilemma by BA Paris is available now.

For more information regarding BA Paris (@BAParisAuthor) please visit her Twitter page.

For more information regarding HQ Stories (@HQStories) please visit www.hqstories.co.uk.

Many thanks to Netgalley and HQ for my copy of this book. Wow what a read. I hadn't read a previous book by B A Paris and was instantly gripped, I could barely put it down. Fantastic on all levels - great plot, I loved the characters too, this was so movingly written and just overall very clever and excellent. Really loved it. Will definitely be reading the author's previous novels now.

Diddnt get a chance to read this book it was archived before I got the chance I was so looking forward to reading this

This book sounded more interesting from the blurb. I went into this eager to find out what the dilemma was and ended up disappointed as I thought it was trivial, Livia caring about a 40th birthday party because she never got the wedding she wanted over 20 years ago. Found the book repeated itself a lot as well. I still have two books by this author to read and I'll try her again. At one of the book I did feel my eyes welling up and I don't cry easily at books.

Thanks goes to net galley and the publisher for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the arc, which I did enjoy reading, through the tears near the end. The Dilemma by BA Paris, was a totally engrossing read and I read the bulk of of it in an afternoon and early evening. It was so unlike BA Paris’s previous thriller that at first I was waiting for the psychological drama to kick in and realised the dilemma wasn’t about drama, but tragedy and what would you do if?
An excellent storyline and an extremely well written book.
Possibly her best yet! I am only sore that I can’t give it more than five stars!!
Highly recommended.

I always look forward to the new B.A. Paris book, and this was no exception. It was typically well written, grabbed my interest from the start and held it enough to keep me reading quickly. However, the characters in this one were particularly frustrating with a plot revolving around a couple not telling one another important information.

Characters that you either liked or not I did get a bit exasperated with the husband not telling his wife and it did all revolve around this to an extent. I was really hoping that it had all been a mistake and the daughter was going to turn up at the party.