With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital arc of this book, all opinions expressed here are my own.

The Lies and Crimes of Sweet Caroline by Darren Wills is an intriguing read.

Caroline was born a twin. Caroline was born to be neglected an unwanted. Caroline was born evil, or did circumstances make her that way?

After life gets them down Caroline and her best friend/lover set out to dupe the rich and powerful, trying to claim back some of what life owes them. Caroline is a rather psychotic character with a lot of plans and not a lot of feelings. I enjoyed reading about her first meetings with Leoni, though I feel like that should have potentially been earlier as I was a little confused who Leoni was at first. There was definite potential for more character development, not just crazy plans. Jumping to the past and back was a little clunky, but overall an easy read.

An enjoyable 3 star read. The story continues in Beneath the Blood Moon.

Really intriguing book. Great characters. Really enjoyed the flashbacks, they helped give perspective. Can’t wait for the next book.

First off I did DNF so I don't have too much to say, but the beginning of the story givea away that Caroline was definitely born evil and I'm guessing there doesn't seem like anything will change with that/her

What really made me stop reading was the writing style. Wasn't a fan. And the overly done descriptions of everything mixed with run-on sentences just killed me. Monotone and became a chore to read.

Overall I'd been so intrigued by the premise and cover, but nothing held me and I stopped reading. I think it could've had more potential

Sweet Caroline is quite the opposite of sweet. A lot of people don’t like to read angsty books from a “villain” perspective. I see why this was a DNF for many. You’ll either enjoy it or hate it, there’s no in between. I think everyone should just go in blind and give it a chance. It’s an oddly satisfying story.

Not a fan unfortunately. The story was easy to follow but not a 'couldn't put this down' kind of book.
I felt the big twist shouldn't have been given away at the start

I've seen mixed reviews of this book on Goodreads but have to say that I think it's a brilliant book. While I wouldn't necessarily describe it as a thriller, I think the dark plot and insight into the main character fits in more with psychological fiction. The plot is almost biographical in that it follows the events of Caroline's life that have shaped her into the woman she is today, though these events don't appear chronologically so the reader is left guessing at first. By the end of the novel so much had happened that I'd completely forgotten about a key event which led to one interesting last development. Definitely worth reading!

Well, this was certainly full of lies and crimes! Sweet Caroline is not all that sweet, that is for sure. Not much mystery, it seems like Caroline was born evil, and stayed that way through the whole story. And now there is a sequel coming?? Not for me, I skimmed it a lot. Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for this book.

Disclaimer - I had to DNF this book, and as result, I won’t be speaking to the characters or plot as I feel it’s not fair to judge without having experienced the entire story.

It’s really rare that I can’t finish a book, and usually the biggest reason is a lack of connecting with the writing style. I tried to reword this review in my head multiple times to sound less harsh, and finally just realized that honest feedback is better than watered down feedback.

The prose is not great. The writing reads like a college student who has just entered their first Creative Writing class and is anxious to prove why they had won their legions of fan-fiction readers in high school. It’s so unnecessary flowery and so peppered with “big” words that it feels like the author had their thesaurus open next to them the entire time they were writing.

I am going to paste in a direct quote from the first chapter. (Note that this is *one* sentence.)

“ Having necessarily and willingly rebuffed the intrusive journalist, he was distracting himself from tonight’s awful reality by looking through his copy of the training manual, and making the occasional notation, whilst the only others around, three men of varying ages, sat silently on the long seat on the facing wall, nursing their own concerns.”

It’s just...so many words to tell us that the man sat down at his desk to read, ignoring the anxious men seated nearby.

I didn’t have the heart to give one star as it’s obvious this author is capable of writing, and the summary/cover did hook me initially. (And I also am fully aware that I may be heavily influenced by the fact that Hemingway (with his love of succinct prose) is my favorite author...and as result my opinion should be taken in that context.)

Entertaining, twisty and hard to put down. This tale of revenge for the main character, Caroline, had me racing to the end!

Decent story, easy enough to follow. I would read more books by this author. Overall, I liked the characters, the plot, the dialogue, and the wrap up.

3/5 Stars

Born to a mother who doesn’t want her, living in a world that doesn’t understand her, fuelled by anger and hatred, Caroline dreams of a different life!
Such a dark. Twisted. Crazy read! This was an edge of your seat ride.
I enjoyed the reading and writing style.

I was immediately lured into this book by the intriguing title and a gorgeous cover. And of course, the book itself did not disappoint. I tend to read a lot of dark thrillers, especially those with twisted characters - which is certainly the focal point of this novel.

From the beginning, we know that Caroline doesn't shy away from doing bad things; having come from a difficult family background, she does what she has to do to get by. But throughout the course of this book, the reader wonders - is Caroline a resourceful yet really criminal woman, or is she a psychopath? And what would you do if you were simply good at doing bad things for a large personal gain?

Suspenseful and oddly satisfying, I enjoyed this short book, most importantly for its beautifully written characters.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Dark, twisted, suspenseful tale. Caroline is born to a mother who never wanted her and neglects her more than she cares for her. As Caroline grows up she learns that she must make her own way and learns to get revenge on those who have wronged her. Darkly entertaining and difficult to put down.

I found this to be a bit of a slow burner and I did find that it quite often had too much detail and was a bit repetitive in places.

The second half did pick up and although a bit wacky I was intrigued to see what Caroline would do next!

I think overall this book wasn’t really for me so 2.5 stars rounded to 3.

Thank you to #NetGalley for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

#TheLiesAndCrimesOfSweetCaroline

Wow this is not what I expected once I started reading this book. A young girl Caroline sweet Caroline whose mother thought of her as and intrusion makes a life for herself. Not the kind of life any mother would want for her child. Caroline grows up to become a con artist, prostitute and a natural born killer. Through her life of being bullied and ridiculed her life of crime begins at a very young age. Killing for money, killing for the love of it. Then she meets Leoni and she changes Caroline's life in a loving way. We go on the roller coaster of a girls life and the surprising end which I did not see coming. All through this book Darren Wills the author shows us the crazy life that brings Caroline to an ending she herself did not see coming. Her life with her mother Judy was far from perfect which is why Caroline turns to the crime ridden life she has, but the ending was a big surprise. Now we must read Mr. Wills next book to find out what happens.

I found this book fairly enjoyable although it is VERY similar to Chloe Esposito’s Mad, Bad... series. Fans of Killing Eve would enjoy

OMG y’all. I just knew I was going to like this book as soon as I read the description. It was so amazing and written very well. The characters were fantastic!

Dark, Twisty Suspense....
Dark, twisty suspense with a troubled and damaged protagonist, anti-hero Caroline. In search of a new existence Caroline knows no bounds, there is nothing that she will not do to satisfy her desires and fulfill her needs. She is, however, living in a perilous world and she soon takes one step too far. With well drawn characters and a suspenseful storyline this is an engaging read.

I’ve literally devoured this in one full sitting. The story is well written and even better, oh the joy!, it’s going to have a sequel. Nothing better than loving a book and an author and knowing they’ll have a follow up! I shall be buying this for my friends as birthday gifts and recommending on social media to all. A strong 5/5.

I guess I’m one of the odd readers that couldn’t get into or enjoy this book. I can’t really explain why, but it just didn’t grab me and I did not finish it. Maybe I will try again later.
Thanks for the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my review.