I enjoyed this book, it certainly had some surprises in it, just when you thought you knwe what was what there was a surprise waiting for you. Great read!
Thank you to Pan MacMmllan and the author for a free ARC copy in return for an honest review

I enjoyed this book , it wasn’t quite the thriller I usually read but I do love this authors books . I loved the main character despite her flaws , they weren’t as many as her husband and friends in the end. I would recommend this book but it just lost a star due to the lack of intrigue for me .

Sorry this one wasn’t for me. I thought it was slow burner and very repetitive and not a thriller. I found myself skimming through the pages. I did finish the book but it was a struggle to get to the end. Just not for me. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

The Guilt Trip - Sandie Jones

When I saw this one, I just had to request it as it looked right up my street. I did find the beginning a little drawn out, but about half way through it really began to pick up pace. Overall it is a fairly quick read, with a satisfying conclusion and would recommend to someone who loves a twist.

Rachael and Jack are heading off to Portugal with theirs friend Ali, Paige, and Noah. They are going to attend the wedding of Jack’s brother Will to Ali. Although having worked for Jack a few years ago and subsequently met her husband to be, Ali is relatively new to the group.

Staying at a stunning mansion, tensions soon rise to the surface between the three couples, histories come to the surface and the group become suspicious of Ali and the secret she hides. As the wedding comes around, the relationships become more strained and as the reader, you don’t really know who,s story is true or who to trust.

The story is atmospheric, and you can literally place yourself there in Portugal in the lead up to the wedding. The characters are totally believable and the plot well-founded.

What I love about this book is the way that you are drawn in from the first page. The plot doesn’t drop off at any stage and keeps building up to the main event. As the reader, you are immediately drawn into a very realistic plot and just when you think you have got the gist of it, another plot twist is revealed to stop you in your tracks.

With a great twist to the end of this book, I would heartily recommend it.

When I read the synopsis for this book I thought I was in for a twisty turny thriller for the summer. Unfortunately I think the blurb doesn’t do it any favours as I would describe it more as a domestic drama, so my expectations were misaligned from the start.

The story revolves around three couples who stay together at a beautiful villa in Portugal in the run up to one of the couple’s wedding.

I found it a little improbable that they would all stay together, or in fact would have kept in touch over the years as all of them seemed to dislike each other for various reasons! There was suspicion and bitterness from the start and it meant that I didn’t warm to any of the characters in the book.

It moved fairly slowly for me so that by the time it reached its conclusions sadly I didn’t really care what happened to any of them. I’m really sorry to sound brutal as I know authors work so hard on their books, and I certainly couldn’t do it but I do wonder whether I would have felt differently if it had been described accurately before I picked it up.

All in all, you’ll probably like it if you’re into domestic drama, but it isn’t the thriller I was looking forward to. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A weekend away for a friend's wedding turns into a nightmare when secrets and revelations are spilt in every corner. It didnt quite hit the mark for me, I wasnt very invested in who was doing what with who, and all a bit too drawn out. Some of the twists were well plotted and unexpected though

Thoroughly enjoyed this psychological/domestic thriller. It was quite a quick read and couldn't wait to find out what was happening next.

We meet couple Rachel and Jack, Ali, who is marrying Jack's brother Will, and also Noah (Rachel's best friend of 20 years) and his wife Paige who are all heading off to a villa together for the wedding - a few days in a beautiful, Portuguese villa with your best friends for a wedding - what could go wrong? You'll have to read it to find out, but quite a lot as it happens!!

There's a lot going on, but its easy to keep up and a real page turner. They all seem to have history are not who they initially seem to be. Will the wedding go ahead? There's a lot of heartache and secrets but definitely worth the read.

Thanks to Pan Macmillan for the opportunity to read and review this book. A brilliant summer/autumn read.

Rachel and Noah have been friends since they met at university. While they once thought that they might be something more, now, twenty years later, they are each happily married to other people, Jack and Paige respectively. Jack’s brother Will is getting married, to the dazzling, impulsive Ali, and the group of six travel to Portugal for their destination weekend. As they arrive at a gorgeous villa perched on a cliff-edge, overlooking towering waves that crash on the famous surfing beaches below at Nazaré, they try to settle into a weekend of fun. While Rachel is looking forward to getting to know her future sister-in-law Ali better, Ali can’t help but rub many of the group up the wrong way: Rachel’s best friend Paige thinks Ali is attention-seeking and childish, and while Jack is trying to support his brother Will’s choice of wife, he is also finding plenty to disagree with Noah about. But when Rachel discovers something about Ali that she can hardly believe, everything changes. As the wedding weekend unfolds, the secrets each of them hold begin to spill, and friendships and marriages threaten to unravel. Soon, jumping to conclusions becomes the difference between life and death.

There is definitely a trend for destination wedding thrillers this year, not that I am complaining as I have been loving them and at least the locations have been different! This wedding sees us journey to Portugal and finds ourselves in a stunning villa. Once again, this provides the perfect backdrop for a destination wedding, secrets being revealed and death.

This is a very atmospheric read and Jones builds the intensity throughout the book until it comes crashing down towards the end as all of the secrets are revealed. As a result, a lot of the action is right at the end of the book but Jones does such a great job at building the drama that this does not matter. I have mentioned about secrets being revealed but there are a lot of secrets to be unveiled in this book and a lot of twists too. Jones really keeps the reader guessing right up to the very final line and beyond.

A book like this does rely on its characters so it is good that they are an intriguing group of people. I hesitate to use the word likeable as I do not think any of them are particularly likeable but they all have something about them and are definitely realistic. I loved that they have known each other for a long time, that definitely comes across and of course, longevity means more secrets!

'The Guilt Trip' is a gripping destination wedding thriller that will find you transported to the beauty of Portugal. This is a great summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for an advance copy.

I really enjoyed this book! Some hideous narcissistic characters, relationships on the rocks, affairs, secrets and lies, this is the kind of domestic drama I love! At first I thought the storyline was so obvious that I was going to be disappointed but it went in a whole different direction. It got a bit repetitive at times in the middle of the story with too many of Rachel's thoughts being expressed over and over with me thinking come on woman get a grip! But things soon pick up pace again with lots of preconceptions being shattered.
Very enjoyable.

Enjoyable read, especially with it set in Portugal and longing for a holiday here!

Five couples head on holiday, several of whom have known each other for some time. But it’s not the holiday they imagined. All have secrets. There are a few twists and turns, but as the holiday progresses. So does the truth and someone has died.

Not quite the thriller I had imagined but still an interesting cleverly written book.

Loved this book. So fast paced I read it in two sittings as I wanted to know what happened. Great page turner , I highly recommend !

A really enjoyable thriller. I loved the portuguese setting, it gave it a sense of a summer read. The twists were very well executed and the characters were relatable and drew you in to their dramas. I usually read at night and found myself looking forward to delving back into Rachel's world. A book that has secrets, sun, sea, drama and thrills aplenty. Definitely recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book, gripping. the ending did fall a bit flat, but it was still a good read.

Not a bad read for me but not what I call a page turner. Although it was well written it didn't keep me on the edge of my seat unfortunately.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book.

I have read and enjoyed the authors previous books and this was equally enjoyable. I was hooked right from the beginning and kept me guessing throughout. Many twists and turns to keep the reader intrigued. A recommended read.

This was not good. It was not a thriller at all. Couples who all have secrets and lies between them.
It was repetitive and boring. I really do hate leaving a bad review as I could never write a book myself. But by the time I finished I did not care what happened to anyone in book I just needed to finish it. Took over a week to finish which is unlike me. I have read other books by her which I have enjoyed but this was not for me.

What a whirlwind! A tangled web of friendship, lust, love and lies with an ending that will make you gasp! Not only is it beautifully written, but it captures the many layers of women and marriage so perfectly.

What an incredibly aptly named book this was. for all the characters could be considered guilty of something and well they are all on a trip.

Set in sun drenched Portugal, three couples, 5 of which was known each other forever, have their lives turned upside down, as it turns out almost all of them are hiding things from each other.

But the question is can you guess any of the truth before it's revealed for I couldn't. And this is a very twisty book that has you thinking in one direction and then another, all the while building to a dramatic conclusion.

This may have been the first book I have read by this author but given how I was gaping open mouthed as the book reached its crescendo, it certainly won't be the last.

This book has everything, sun, lies, secrets, characters you can't help but be invested in although not overly likeable, a dead body, and over the course of a few days, life changing actions and consequences for all.

Simply put this was my sort of book and I really enjoyed reading it.

Thank you to Pan and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily,

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, totally gripping. I did think the ending could have been better, but a recommended read.