The Dilemma is the fascinating new book from B.A Paris. Just when is it the right time to tell someone you love something that you know will devastate them. Livia has been planning her 40 th birthday party for twenty years, to make up for the wedding she was denied after getting pregnant at seventeen. As the day arrives, the marquee is up, the catering sorted and her husband Adam is surprising her by bringing their daughter home for the party. But there are things about Marnie that Adam doesn’t know, and that will effect their relationship. As the day progresses however, Adam faces the biggest dilemma of his life, something that will change their lives forever. Should he tell Livia straight away, or let her enjoy her long anticipated party and be happy for one more night.
I found this to be an emotional but compelling read. It was heartbreaking in parts but also life affirming in many ways. B.A Paris really captured the emotion and the dynamics of the family, their feelings, interactions and ultimately their love for each other. This is a moving and intelligent read.

The Dilemma is another enthralling read by B A Paris. It is a family drama centred around the preparations and execution of a 40th birthday party for Livia. Her husband, Adam has secretly arranged for their 19 year old daughter to fly back from Hong Kong to attend the party, but Livia is keeping a secret from him about their daughter that will change their lives forever. The story also provides details of Livia and Adam’s early relationship, which provides important background information relating to their current situation. 
I throughly enjoyed this book; the plot moves at a brisk pace and provides plenty of twists. The relationships between the characters is well explained and despite a few plot lines that didn’t seem as believable as the majority, I would highly recommend this book.

This is a fabulous read  about a family and decisions they have to make.
Both Adam and Livia have something they need to tell each other but with a party looming over them, they both keep putting it off.
Livia has been planning her fortieth Birthday party for twenty years and wants it to be special so Adam can’t find a way to tell her the truth.

As compulsive a read as any other B A Paris book. I was hooked from the beginning and couldn’t put it down until everything was revealed.

Another astonishingly good book from one of my favourite authors!
Such a clever idea and the tension mounts throughout the book making it so hard to put down. You feel the characters emotions throughout.
Thank you so much for letting me read this amazing book

The Dilemma.  To tell someone something that will not only shatter one world, but many.  What more could you possibly want in a psychological thriller?  My attention was immediately stolen.  I was hungering for the words contained in this explosive novel.  I particularly enjoyed the element of older characters being in the forefront.  There unique take on life, their emotions and their reactions when they are faced with the explosive ramifications that life can throw at you.  I was deeply curious to see how the author would weave a highly addictive plot that would have me hooked by the end of the first chapter. 

I cant applaud B.A. Paris enough for writing yet another compulsive psychological thriller.  This book was refreshing and felt entirely unique.  It gave me a propulsive look into a family’s life almost like looking at it through a microscope.  Livia and Adam Hartwood tell their story over the course of a day, told over increments of an hour.  They both have a dilemma.  Both of them know something that will crush the other.  If they divulge that secret, will they ever be the same again?  Livia has experienced a traumatic childhood and no longer has contact with her parents much to her lifelong regret.  Adam had a perfect childhood with supportive parents but has equally made mistakes that have impacted their family life, but will these secrets finally break them? 

Its finally the day that Livia has been preparing for for the best part of twenty years.  It’s her fortieth birthday party, the day that has been arranged to make up for the wedding she didn’t get.  It’s going to be a fantastical affair with everyone and their granny invited.  Livia leaves for the day to treatments at the spa with her friends.  Adam however, needs to get into town to pick up her birthday present.  He discovers however news that could potentially rock their worlds.  How can he possibly let the party go ahead now?  B.A. Paris sent a wave of unfairness coming over me like a tsunami.  How could this actually be a family’s reality? 

This book made me feel things!  I had moments of anxiousness, sadness, fear and sadness.  I had so many questions and my brain seemed to be operating at over its capacity.  A book that makes me ask questions turns it into mush – it was a glorious and exciting feeling!

Livia wants nothing more than to have all her family around her, but one key person isn’t able to make it, their daughter, Marni.  Adam has a difficult past with his children – this is the part I loved.  It made the dynamics of family life more realistic.  Having children young for many people is no picnic.  It can be fraught with hardship and conflicted feelings about the perceived life you have left behind.  B.A. Paris has defined what real life looks like and hasn’t sugar coated it.  It reads effortlessly and ramps up the drama into the top gear. Both Adam and Marni hatch up a plan for her to get there secretly, a birthday surprise for Livia.  Will it all come together and be the day that she has been imagining forever?

The Dilemma is a twisted and utter compelling psychological thriller.  Cunning and captivating a book that deserves the idiom – utterly unputdownable.  Be ready to have our mind blown.

B.A. Paris is an absolute gift to fiction, let’s be honest. I am yet to be disappointed by any of her books – she’s written some of the best thrillers I’ve read in the past few years. The Dilemma is a little bit different, in the sense that it’s not a thriller in the ‘someone’s been murdered sense.’ A domestic thriller, The Dilemma explores a relationship in a single day – a relationship where both the man and the wife have a secret that will change their lives forever. It’s Livia’s 40th birthday and she’s throwing the party she’s always dreamed of having. She’s obsessed over this party since she was in her late teens – but, amongst all of her excitement, she has a secret. Even worse- so does her husband, Adam.

The Dilemma allows for a whole different type of thriller – there is no murder involved, no psycho-analysis and the story itself has a particularly homely feel about it. Arguably, that makes it all the more affective in its purpose. I immediately connected with the characters and felt their ‘dilemma’ and understood exactly why they had to keep it a secret. I dread to think what I would have done had I been put in their situations and I don’t envy their torment whatsoever. This is a hard one to review without going into detail as to what exactly the two characters are keeping secret but what I will say is that you should definitely get yourself a copy of the book upon publication – one that really did keep me hanging on right until the very last page (I even stayed up until 2am reading this one one weekend in November as I couldn’t bear to go to sleep without finding out what was going to happen!).

It’s Livia’s 40th birthday and she’s having the party of a lifetime to make up for the wedding she never had. Everyone she loves will be there except her daughter Marnie, who’s studying abroad. But although Livia loves Marnie, she’s secretly glad she won’t be at the party. She needs to tell Adam something about their daughter but she’s waiting until the party is over so they can have this last happy time together. Adam wants everything to be perfect for Livia so he’s secretly arranged for Marnie to come home and surprise her on her birthday. During the day, he hears some terrible news. He needs to tell Livia, because how can the party go on? But she’s so happy, so excited – and the guests are about to arrive. The Dilemma – how far would you go to give someone you love a last few hours of happiness?

I am obsessed with this book and will be recommending it to everyone! This has to be the best yet from Paris. 'The Dilemma' is a deviation from the psychological thrillers we have come to expect from Paris although I still felt there was a thriller vibe running through the read. Early on the reader learns what the dilemma is, there are two strands, one for Livia and one for Adam, I will not go into details but one we find out and one is teased a bit longer and left for the reader to guess before it is eventually revealed. Both of them are heart-breaking and will spell massive changes for the family before the evening is over.

Heart-break is a theme of this book. First and foremost 'The Dilemma' is incredibly emotional, possibly the most emotive book I have read this year. I think it helps that I quickly attached myself to Livia, Adam and their family and friends. Paris has created a very realistic family and it was a pure joy to get to know them and I feel like I experience the events of the book with them. Because of my connection to the characters I could not help but feel despair when they did, hope when they did and love when they did, most of all I felt completely bereft when I finished it. 

'The Dilemma' has no real shocks or twists in it but it is still incredibly powerful reading. Paris has crafted this perfectly, the timing of reveals are spot on and the read is simply stunning. I could give this a hundred stars I loved it that much. If you read one book this year, make it this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for an advance copy.

There is something special about B A Paris from the moment you open the first page she has you hooked.  

The dilemma is another brilliant read.  It’s the day of a party but both Adam and Livia are holding things inside about their daughter Marnie.  The party should be perfect it has been planned for years but the weight of the secrets they are each holding takes it toll 

Definitely a book you won’t want to put down.

‘The Dilemma’ has been on my TBR pile for ages, and so this week I’m pleased to say I finally sat down and read the whole book (in one sitting!)

Neither the cover nor the title give anything away and so I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy this book as much as I did. It isn’t a particularly difficult read, but I’d definitely recommend it to anybody wanting to get out of a reading slump, or just wanting a smaller, simple cast of characters to follow! That being said, don’t mistake the simplicity of this book for dullness - there was plenty of character study to follow and as always, B A Paris will have you gripped until the very last page.

Set over just one day, this book centres around the preparation and celebration of Livia’s 40th birthday. She has never had an elaborate party, or even a wedding to remember, and consequently this day has been in the making for the past 20 years and must be absolutely perfect. The marquee is set, the food has been organised and Livia is whisked away by her friends to enjoy a relaxing spa day before the big evening.

However, Livia is hiding an unwelcome secret from husband Adam that risks destroying her family. And Adam has also learnt of a life-changing headline that he chooses to conceal from Livia. Can they both keep their secrets from one another to avoid ruining the party? And even if they can, is it the right thing to do?

The relationship between Livia and Adam, despite their secrets, is very genuine and believable and the love between the two of them is plain to see. They create a strong marital unit to raise their two children, Josh and Marnie, and if their secrets get out, they risk ruining their family dynamic, social circles and friendships forever. 

‘The Dilemma’ is very aptly named, with clear reasoning given from both Livia and Adam as to why they chose to hide their secrets from one another - to keep the other happy. A conscientious book about love, life and learning to accept loss.

If you’re looking for a replica of B A Paris’ other work, you won’t find it here. What you’ll find is a close study of familial relationships, and a dilemma unlike any other. Wholly recommend this read - but you won’t be able to put it down!

A huge thank you to the teams at HQ and Netgalley for gifting me an ARC of this book, and I wish it all the best of luck with its publication. This honest review has been given at the request of the publisher but all of the opinions given are my own.

This story is about Livia and Adam a couple who have been married over twenty years with two children, Josh and Marnie. Livia has been planning and saving for her 40th birthday party pretty much from the time she got married. Livia and aAdam have been together since they were childhood sweethearts who married in a hurry. When they married Livia’s parents cut off all contact. Over the years the couple have made their way in life and Adam is a world renowned carpenter and they live in a large house in the suburbs of Windsor. The tale begins the morning of the party and is told through the voices of Livia and Adam. On the morning of the party Adam receives some news and cannot decide what to do with the information as this day is so special to Livia and he wants her to enjoy every moment.
This is the fourth novel by this excellent writer who is so skilled at keeping the reader on the edge of their seat and The Dilemma does not disappoint.

The Dilemma is a book inhabited by a bunch of unlikeable characters with lives that are full of secrets but to my mind empty of anything particularly meaningful. This isn't a negative as I'm often happier reading books full of my worst nightmare of characters as I am reading about the good and the great. 

With the story set over a twenty-four hour period and featuring a tragedy it would take a far harder person than me not to keep reading to the bitter conclusion.  However with The Dilemma my lack of connection with the character meant that I perhaps didn't care enough about the outcome when those secrets started leaking out.

Emotionally hard-hitting and thoughtfully crafted, The Dilemma is an intense drama about family, loss and the unravelling effect of harbouring dark secrets. 

Despite being set over 24 hours, the plot felt disappointingly slow and needlessly repetiative, yet Paris' ability to tease out the secrets and the harrowing motivations behind the characters decisions captivated me enough to finish.

The first book by B A Paris that I've read and I'm looking forward to reading more by her.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is like a capsule of a moment when some knowledge change everything. Written in a two person narrative it captures the intricacies of a relationship and how it can shatter with just one small change. The two MCs Livia and Adam each are holding onto devastating news - delaying its release until after Livia's longed for 40th birthday party. 

The book is so well written. The reader knows throughout what has happened but the tension rises as they wait for what will happen when everyone knows. The author captures that tension beautifully. She is an author to follow

I really enjoyed this interesting, sort-of-slow-burner of a novel. Not a lot of 'action' really 'happens' as such, and I therefore don't feel it's a thriller like with many of her previous works, but nevertheless B.A. Paris manages to infuse tension into every page.

I feel that The Dilemma is a family drama and character study into Livia and Adam, a married couple with two children (Josh and Marnie), both trying to work out what to do about some secrets that have come to light regarding Marnie. It's the day of Livia's long-awaited 40th birthday party, and so the story largely takes place over one day, with the emotions and decisions of both characters weighing heavily on their minds as they try to do the best for their family.

I didn't really know what to expect (and I don't want to give too much away about the story, as I feel this book is best enjoyed without), but I found it hard to put this novel down. It's very easy to read, and the story flows well. Although, as I mentioned above, there isn't a lot of 'action' in the novel, as it focuses on the run-up to Livia's party, there is a lot of emotions, thoughts and feelings in there, and that's what this book really focuses on. I found it a really addictive read.

Another read by BA Paris which had me turning the pages to find out the outcome of the twists. An exciting read. Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for letting me review this book.

This was the first book I have read by this author and I was absolutely gripped! The twists towards the last third of the book were incredibly well written and I finished this book in a couple of days because I couldn't put it down! I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book before publication.

This is an epic tragedy.  I was left feeling quite unsure about what the point of the book was - I felt like it ought to have a point, but the point that came across was opposite to my norms, so left me with a hollow feeling.  Despite that, I think it was a great book and really well thought out.

Livia and Adam did not have the wedding that dreams are made of, so as Livia’s 40th is coming up, she wants the party of all parties. Everyone has been invited but unfortunately her daughter Marnie is studying abroad and secretly Livia is glad she won’t be there as she needs to tell Adam a terrible secret she has been keeping from him- she’ll tell him when the party is over, for fear of spoiling her time in the limelight. Adam wants everything to be perfect for his wife, so secretly arranges for Marnie to come home on the day of the party to surprise her mother. However things don’t go to plan and just before the party Adam hears some dreadful news - he needs to tell Livia, but how can he deny her the chance of happiness - she is so looking forward to this party, he can’t bear to ruin her dreams. The guests arrive, and each go about trying to act as normally as possible before their lives explode with the revelation of their secrets. Not the usual psychological style thriller that you would expect from B.A.Paris,this is more an emotional rollercoaster that leaves you tense with the anticipation of knowing what will happen when these terrible secrets are revealed. This story stays with you  long after you have finished it.

My first novel to be read in 24 hours! Gripping, heart breaking and thought provoking- I loved this book. Although, I did get frustrated with the characters and their secrets, it was well constructed to help the reader understand their reasons. I look forward to more by this author.