One night, 15-year-old Olivia comes home late from a party she was strictly forbidden from going to, and she and her mother, Hannah, start arguing. Soon Olivia speaks the words that every parent has heard from their teenage child: ‘I hate you. You’ve ruined my life. And I’m never speaking to you again.’

Olivia has never been an easy child, and Hannah was used to her outbursts. She doesn’t think much of it, but Olivia stuns both her parents by keeping the silence on for more than a few days. And that’s when she starts wondering what really is Olivia hiding? What happened at that dreaded party which she wasn’t supposed to attend?

The first half of the book fell flat for me. It was difficult to understand what was going on in either person’s mind. It’s like they were engaged in a battle of hormones. Olivia thinking she knows best, whilst Hannah pretending nothing is happening and trying to keep up the normalcy of her life. Something doesn’t add up with Hannah, or what Olivia tries to portray through her essays in school.

There is also an untold narrative between Hannah and Michael, and nothing about the family seems to fit in. I found it strange too, that they were willing to blame Olivia for everything that started to go disastrously wrong.

However, the ending had a twist which would leave you stunned. And perhaps redeemed itself towards the end.
This is worth one read, if you like twisted plots.

3.5/5 for me

This is my second book by Jenkins and, after some reflection, I had about the same reaction to them both: mostly positive, while a liiiittle bit slow. But man, I can always count on Jenkins to write something that interests me from beginning to end. Even the slow parts I find myself blowing past, because I just have to find out how the story ends. If she can work on that pacing and depth, she'll be working with some stellar books, because she can certainly write an exciting story. I just got an ARC of her next book and I'm greatly looking forward to reading it.

TWITTERESQUE REVIEW:

I nearly abandoned, but kept going as I wanted to solve the mystery. The plot was solid, but the slow pace of the book hindered my enjoyment. Also I never felt invested in the characters. If they had drawn me in, I would have cared more about the outcome. As it was I was merely curious.

What started out as a slow burner of a read turned out to be brilliant. This was an excellent stand alone domestic drama that will leave you speechless. I thought it was just fantastic.

thank you for the opportunity to read this book and I really enjoyed it, not seen author before but will defo look for more fab read

I absolutely adore stories focussed on relationships between teenage children and their parents. I love the nature of how both in the real world and in fiction they can turn into big sticky messes. There is no guidebook on how to navigate the murky waters of parenthood, but I would live in hope that we would all fare better than the events that take place in The Argument. The mother/daughter relationship is one that often falls foul to the trappings of clashing personalities and this story is no different. Be prepared to hear the painful ticking of the clock in the silence of everything that is left unsaid.

In a quiet cul-de-sac a mother and daughter are engaged in the battle of hormones. The daughter thinking, she knows best and the mother enforcing her will with drastic consequences. Olivia sneaks out to a party that she has been emphatically banned from. Her parents, Hannah and Michael do not want her there under any circumstances. Olivia is fifteen and looking through an objective microscope, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out what could happen…a teenager going missing. Rape. Drug misuse. Alcohol abuse. The list is endless. Olivia finally arrives home and an argument ensues. Hannah is angry, and Olivia professes that she has ruined her life and refuses to speak to her again. Seems very like teenage behaviour, right? However, it is at this point my eyes and my brain cant compute. Something doesn’t add up with Hannah, my senses are on red alert.

Olivia sticks to her guns. She indeed doesn’t speak to her parents for several days. You know there isn’t something quite right about the dynamics between Olivia and her parents and conversely between Rosie, her sister and her parents. It’s clear as day that she gets treated differently and a knot forms in the pit of my stomach. The untold narrative between Hannah and Michael, the silent looks passed between them. What aren’t they saying? Why are they so quick to pass the blame to their eldest daughter when things start to go disastrously wrong?

My tongue was itching to scream the answers into Olivia’s ear. She was on the right track she just had to hunt harder and take decisive action before it was too late. Could a diary give her all the answers she has ever needed? Could it explain why she has always felt different…never quite fitting in. As a mother of three (boys I might add) this was a narrative that was difficult to both digest and understand. Being a mother of teenagers is a difficult road to travel but ultimately, we have to give them the freedom to make their own mistakes. We need to be their beacon of trust and love. The one constant that will have them returning to you. I count myself lucky that I seem to have found a workable balance.

Just when you think you have the story worked out in The Argument, along comes a bomb to blow your thoughts into space. So many details unravelled to turn my brain into soup. I was confused by the actions of certain characters. I revelled in the confusion, I was completely here for it. Trust in the author she will deliver you safely to the final page but not without a rollercoaster ride of emotions. We are engulfed in a fog of toxicity, but it will clear and bring us the light once more. Everything we learn leads in multiple different directions but it all has a purpose. Victoria Jenkins is the spider spinning her web and the reader is the unwitting fly tempted by the thread.

The Argument is a book that the term edge of your seat was invented for. The edge of my seat is worn out – I spent most of the novel on it! Victoria Jenkins grabbed me by the throat and refused to let go until the final page had been put to rest.

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and Netgalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for a unbiased review of these works.

This book is packed full of tension and suspense, made for a very good read

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my own request from Bookouture via NetGalley and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

I have to admit that the first few chapters of this book were slow for me, but as I read more of this thriller I could not put it down. The argument is written in the POVs of a mother and daughter who of course, suffered an argument.

We all know about the drama between a teenaged girl and her Mom. These relationships are often rocky, dramatic, full of emotion and hormones. This duo was no exception.

After an argument over a forbidden party, Olivia tells her mom she will not speak to her anymore - and she doesn't.

I will admit that a majority of this book was written to lead up to the burning twist which will definitely send you reeling. The secrets this family has kept up until now will shake you to your core - however could, at times, be seen as, too shocking, or unbelievable.

This book was truly unputdownable.

Get your copy now!!!

I have to confess that I found this book hard to get into and contemplated giving up with it. I’m so glad I persevered however as the second half of the story blew me away. Such an original theme.
I’m going to limit the spoilers as the element of surprise and disbelief is what makes this book so good.
Olivia is a rebellious teenager, arguing with her parents and younger sister. When she sneaks out to a party and is caught, Olivia, decides she won’t speak to her mother again and silence descends.
Things start to unravel however, someone breaks into their home and sprays the word “Liar” on the wall. Then Hannah receives a call to say her younger daughter Rosie has been hurt at school. When she arrives however, she finds nothing has happened. Could it have been Olivia? Or worse still, is someone out to punish the family?
Olivia is finally suspended from school following a shocking incident and this is when the reader finally finds out what is going on.
I’d like to read more by this author.

I enjoyed this book. First one by this author, but for sure it will not be the last. Great book to return too at the end of the day.

This book was allll over the place. The twist was sudden, but not well set up. The various pieces of the book—mother/daughter conflict, mysterious intruder, unknown flashbacks—didn’t mesh well together and ultimately just weren’t cohesive. An interesting idea that just didn’t work.

The Argument by Victoria Jenkins
Publisher: Bookouture

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher Bookouture for the ebook ARC of The Argument by Victoria Jenkins for an honest review.

It happens to every mother. One day whose world you once were, become someone you barely know. And you don’t know the secrets she’s hiding….
One hot summer night, 15 - year old Olivia comes home late from a party she is strictly forbidden from going to, and she and her mother, Hannah, start arguing. Soon Olivia speaks the words that every parent has heard from their teenage child:
“I hate you. You’ve ruined my life. And I’m never speaking to you again.”

Olivia has never been an easy child, completely different from her younger sister, Rosie. But Hannah thinks Olivia’s outburst is the end of a normal family argument. In fact, it’s only the beginning of a nightmare…

After one week of Olivia giving the silent treatment, Hanna knows Olivia is hiding a bigger darkness - something that could threaten to tear the precious family apart…

I give this book a rating of 3 stars. This book was really slow to read, I just couldn’t get into it. I found that he characters were brought together well though, some characters weren’t very likeable though. I didn’t really enjoy this book at all. There was a shocking twist around 80% of the way through the book. The twist seemed to come out of nowhere and there were no clues or hints leading up to it.

#TheArguement #NetGalley

I wanted to love this book, the synopsis had me looking forward to starting it and I fully expected to be gripped. However I found the plot a bit thin and the characters fairly unlikeable, struggled to engage with it from the beginning unfortunately. Expectations too high perhaps?

An original story line built in alternating layers from the perception of a mother and her 15yr old daughter. What seems from the outside to be a perfect family is a completely different picture from the inside. Everyday arguments with her teenager come to head when this mother catches her coming in from a party she did not have permission to attend and has alcohol on her breath. The screaming comes to a head when her daughter vows silence. Silence seems to be a short term blessing but soon becomes part of a concentrated contest between the two of them.
This seems to be an everyday family argument, but no! First impressions of this family are so wrong, it's surprising. Victoria Jenkins has really kicked this story into a higher level of thriller with a single twist of her pen. You will go back looking for clues that you did not see at first. Loved this book!!!!

I really enjoyed this book. Wasn’t too sure at the beginning but was pleased I kept going. It definitely turned out to be a page turner.

Strong characters and a powerful storyline.

A recommended read.

After enjoying Victoria Jenkins' King and Lane series I was disappointed with her last book, "The Divorce", which was her first in the thriller genre. With THE ARGUMENT I was hoping for something a little more intriguing...and I must say I was pleasantly surprised. A book that is surrounded by a single argument sounded fascinating.

The story surrounds Hannah Walters, a stay at home mum, with two beautiful but equally different daughters - Olivia and Rosie. With a loving husband, Michael and a beautiful home, what more could Hannah want? How about a bit more respect and appreciation from her defiant and rebellious teenage daughter? Why couldn't she be more like Rosie, her golden child?

And so it starts with...well...an argument.

Fifteen year old Olivia Walters is told by her mum Hannah that she cannot go to a party. But being 15, does she listen? Of course not! She's 15! So she sneaks out of the house and attends the party anyway. Her mother is fraught with worry, suspecting that Olivia defied her and went anyway, so she waits up. When she does finally get home she's a little tipsy and she shouldn't be surprised to find her mother waiting up for her.

And so the argument begins...

...and it ends with the words every parent has heard from their teenager at some time or another. "I hate you! I am never going to speak to you again!"

But Olivia is determined. She doesn't speak for a day, two days...and soon it turns into a week. Hannah continues to engage with her daughter despite her silence until she decides that two can play that game. She even begins to enjoy the peace and quiet. Until...the nightmare begins...

Late one night, Hannah hears a crash from downstairs. Someone is in their house. But when she and Michael go to investigate, they find Olivia on the stairs. Michael orders her to her room as they continue downstairs. They find the back door windows smashed and a frightening message scrawled on the cupboard doors. Just one word. LIAR.

Did Olivia do this? Was she coming upstairs or going down? Hannah knows her daughter doesn't understand the lengths to which she goes to protect them, believing her mother to be a tyrant. But if she did do this, what exactly does Olivia know?

The nightmare doesn't end there. Keys going missing, phone calls from the school, a stranger on her doorstep. What does it all mean? Is Olivia trying to destroy them? Her own daughter? But then, Hannah holds a secret far greater than anyone knows. And she is sure that it is the reason behind Olivia's defiant and disturbing behaviour.

What starts as a family drama soon turns into something far more deadly. To say that this family is somewhat dysfunctional is an understatement. No one is who they appear to be and all of them are completely screwed up in so many ways. The parents, seemingly protective and loving, don't have any redeeming qualities to them. Michael is distant and never there. Hannah seems to be in a bubble of her own with a narrative that is sometimes as chaotic and confused as she is. Olivia got up my goat from the beginning, blaming everything and her whole life on the way her parents treat her. But then, what teenager doesn't? In her eyes, her behaviour was a reflection on their treatment of her. I found her to be self-entitled, selfish and a bit of a brat. Rosie, despite her age, seemed to be the most mature of them all...and far wiser than her 10 years.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Hannah and Olivia, as well as the odd diary entry, THE ARGUMENT is more than just an argument. It's more than just a family drama. It takes family drama to a whole new level. Only one of these narratives is truthful...and nothing is as it seems.

I normally don't like slow burns but this one was different. There was something about the narratives that just drew me in and I couldn't put it down. The suspense built slowly and the tension was palpable. 70% of the book was family drama so when the twist came and turned everything on its head, I wasn't expecting it! It seriously blew me away...and that doesn't happen often. While I was beginning to put the pieces together I never really expected them to fall into place...

A very different but well-crafted plot, THE ARGUMENT is a psychological thriller that pushes the boundaries. A seriously twisted domestic drama that shatters the illusion brilliantly.

An intriguing and twisted thriller where nothing is as it seems! I enjoyed this book far more than I thought I would. Definitely recommend.

I would like to thank #VictoriaJenkins, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheArgument in exchange for an honest review.

Victoria Jenkins hit it out of the ballpark with this novel. I mean the characters were just fantastic and one that I did not want to stop reading. I cannot wait for more novels from her! But seriously read this one.. you will not be disappointed.

Thanks to Netgalley for my copy.

This book starts off with an argument between Olivia and her mother after Olivia comes home from a party she was forbidden to go to. Olivia like any other teenager then gives her parents the silent treatment like any other teenager. Olivia however is not like any normal teenager, her and her sister live a very sheltered life and the resulting fallout of the silent treatment leads to devastating consequences. This is a family drama and psychological thriller all rolled into one. It is shocking, entertaining and well written.

This is centred around one family .
Olivia the teenage daughter goes to a party without her parents permission. Her dad is away and her mum Hannah catches her coming home. Hannah smells alcohol on her breath which starts the argument which then proceeds to Olivia not speaking to her mum for several days,
There are plenty of secrets in this family . This book is told from both Olivia and Hannah’s points of view but which one is telling the truth.
Thanks NetGalley

What a well written book this was - so many situations every parent - and every child - can empathise with. We knew there was something not quite 'normal' about this family because it is described as a psychological thriller. I was fairly confident I could see the twist very early on which was a long time coming but because the characters were so well drawn I was not disappointed. Yes I was right - to a degree - but then it twisted again and then again. Sadly you only have to look at the news to see that this is a believable scenario.
I will definitely be looking out for Victoria Jenkins earlier novels.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Victoria Jenkins/Bookouture for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.