This was an enjoyable, easy read with plenty of action, twists and turns, flawed characters, exes and tension. I constantly changed my mind about the various characters, who to trust and who might have done what - feeling empathy for someone one minute and doubting them the next. And, whilst some of the reveals were not wholly unexpected, the final twist was totally unpredictable and cleverly brilliant.

Friendship, sisterhood, trust, love, marriage, control, lies, betrayal...Read it!
A quick and easy read,. None of the characters were particularly likeable. A tale just interesting enough to keep me turning the page.

A unique twist on the trope of men getting away from it all by heading into the woods and leaving their responsibilities behind, The Perfect Escape is everything you would want to read in the post Christmas limbo period.

Three women, one or more of whom may not be telling the truth, are all in need of escape from their crumbling relationships, and decide to mobilise 'Sgt Diana's Lonely Heart's Club' getaway.

Diana, separated from husband Brandon, Margaret(also called Peggy) and Sam, whose new husband Harry has left their marriage of less than a year , for the arms of another woman are all heading for the perfect setting of Saratoga Springs but there is just a teeny tiny problem...

You might think you are running away from your problems but 9 times out of 10, you bring them with you. And when someone is hiding who they really are , the danger is exponentially increased, to the point where not all 3 of the women might return back home.

The short, sharp chapters revolve through each of the women at the time, ratcheting the tension up as small details of each woman's life are revealed in turns. We , the readers, have no idea about these women and are heading out to the middle of nowhere with no real idea of who they are or what their motivations are. This puts you ill at ease and uncomfortable as you try and work out just what is happening to whom and who, if any, of the women you are rooting for. Leah is always several steps ahead of you, and I was happily there for the ride, getting whiplash, gasping out loud at the plot twists which come thick and fast despite my air of cynicism and suspicion from page 1.

She has done it again, taking the skills she displayed in debut thriller novel ,  'One White Lie' and ramping them up to the max. The three women create this reactive triangle of feminine friendship, where they bounce off of each other, engender an atmosphere of mistrust and danger which leaves you, and them, dangling at the end of each chapter and promising yourself, 'Just one more before lights out...' .

Both the book and you know this is a well intentioned lie and that you will keep going to the bitter end!

Three women trying to help each other through relationships breakup plan a weekend away. Should have been a perfect escape until the rental car key goes missing. Just the start of a weekend from hell.

Secrets need to come out and the truth about how a man died. A gripping novel with plenty of twists that make you want to keep reading. Enjoy the ride as you discover the truth.

A good plot,plenry of twists and turns in this psychological thriller,a good set of characters made it an all round exciting read

The Perfect Escape is the perfect thriller ... exciting, well written, and with twist after twist to keep you guessing.
Leah Konen's book is atmospheric, with believable characters ... massively enjoyable.

Thank you to #NetGalley for the advance copy of #ThePerfectEscape by #LeahKonen
BRILLIANT!!!! What a roller coaster ride, the story of 3 friends going for a weekend away.
Sam, Diana and Margaret, what can go wrong ?
Everything can narrated by the the three characters, this book will have you changing your mind every three minutes about who did what, and who’s to blame. Compulsive reading. 5 ⭐️ From me.

Brilliant book! I was never quite sure who to trust and who was lying! A really good plot and some very well thought out characters had me hooked. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Perfect Esacape is a good easy to read book. It is a suspenseful mystery / psychological thriller all in one. It took me a while to get into it but once hooked just wanted to keep going until the end. Well written plot with good characters. An enjoyable read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers Penguin for an Arc in exchange for an honest opinion

In bed with flu, this was a perfect read. I didn’t have to engage my brain and the plot kept me reading. Leah Konen supplies all the devices you expect from a thriller: the missing car key, the Cabin in the Woods without mobile reception, the storm which cuts off the electricity, the missing person, the dysfunctional, binge-drinking women … all enjoyable stuff.

The story is told from the point of view of Sam and Margaret, two young women who are struggling with failed relationships. Sam and Sam’s love affair with Harry never came to life for me, as it all seemed a bit clichéd, but I found Margaret more real and her relationship with Lars and the reasons for its breakdown were plausible and sad. I enjoyed the small details of their lives as millennials in New York. The women are a bit annoying and too dependent on men but that makes them more real I suppose. I don’t expect characters to be likeable.

Of course, you know from the title that the girls’ weekend will turn out to be a disaster. I enjoyed the description of the musty, creepy cabin where the three glamorous friends end up staying when the key to their rental car is lost. All the sudden reversals of fortune that turn the weekend into a nightmare are well done and unpredictable. How plausible they are is another matter.

I did get completely lost when one character turned out to be someone else. So why were they brought up in Poughkeepsie when their sister lived somewhere else? I literally lost the plot at that point, but it might have been flu brain. I also felt that the final plot twist was unnecessary and was added on almost as an afterthought. Also, are we really expected to believe that three millennial women have never taken any selfies?

So it’s a perfect beach read or flu read if you don’t scrutinise the plot too closely.

With thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for an ARC in return for an honest review.

A good suspense.
Sam, Margaret and Diane plan the perfect weekend escape after all going through messy breakups, but loose their car keys when they stopped for petrol halfway to their destination and end up staying in the small town where they find out they didn`t know their friends as well as they thought, with lots of secrets had by all and things start to go downhill fast with Diane disappearing.
Loved the twists with the story coming together at the end.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a murder mystery/ psychological thriller. Three female friends go away for a spa break. They all have secrets and the hotel is located in a town where an ex husband lives. There’s a murder and the idyll is quickly shattered. The characters are plausible although I didn’t particularly like most of them. As the layers are peeled away, other issues emerge and for the reader, it’s difficult to guess where it’s all leading.

The plotting is complex and there are twists throughout that are surprising. Something fell a little flat for me; it’s well written but my attention kept wandering and and I put the book to one side a couple of times. In the end, I finished it but it was a struggle.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

Three unlucky in love friends decide to escape their recent break-up woes and head out of the city for a girls weekend. When they experience car trouble on the way and are stranded in a small town (the home of one of the girls exes no less) and one of their number goes missing, things begin to unravel for the group.

The Perfect Escape is a great easy to read mystery packed with secrets and tension to keep you hooked throughout.

Missing persons, stalkers, false identities, new love and deceit….no-one is as they seem. What more could you ask for!

The twists and turns of the narrative will keep you on the edge of your seat – desperate to find out what has happened, but not wanting the journey to end!

This book is so GOOD!!!! Creepy chills. A slow burner to start with but then it takes off like a rocket. Gut wrenching and so edgy. I finally turned the last page at 2.am. This is a real rollercoaster of a thriller and so highly recommended.
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for giving an honest review.

What a good read, well written and good characters although it did take me a little while to get into the story line but once in I really enjoyed it.

There was quite a bit of mystery in this book that grabbed me and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Books (Michael Joseph) for allowing me to read this book which I can definitely recommend.

How well do you really know your friends? This was a brilliant thriller, I absolutely could not stop reading. The beginning starts a little slow as it sets up the story but wow does it pick up pace! There was so many twists that through me every time I thought I had it figured out!

Not enough happened in this book for my liking. It felt like the same thing kept happening over and over again - they have new information, they are confused, they go to the police station. I forced myself to finish the book in case the ending changed my view, but it sadly didn't.

This thoroughly enjoyable story begins as a pleasant journey for three ladies who are looking for a good time at a spa. For reasons unknown, and become far clearer later in the book, they are stranded in a town which is extremely convenient and inconvenient for all three ladies, but for different reasons.
One lady disappears and this causes the other two to enter into and reaffirm relationships which wouldn't have occurred had they not stopped in this town. The writer keeps you needing to turn the next page and begin the next chapter as soon as possible as the pace and problems are increased. This causes the reader to move from a leisurely pace to a full blooded 100 metres dash to find out the who, what, why and when. Even when you think you've solved it all, the detective may be one step ahead of you.
Unlike many books that introduce a variety of story twists that appear out of place, the twists and turns in this story are all merited and understood and then you will find twists on the previous twists until you finally understand what is happening.
All three ladies are hiding significant secrets and the details are only gradually shared as you turn the pages quicker and quicker. A murder, a disappearance and urgent changes in everyone's relationship standing lead to an extremely tense finishing line. The police, of course, are involved and you will undoubtedly choose everyone to be guilty of something at some stage and change your mind as new information comes to light.
A free copy of this book found its way to my kindle and I am very pleased with the result. For me, the story was different for many reasons I cannot tell you in a review, but as you reach the end of this novel you will be pleased you took the time to find out the big reveal. I doubt this story can become part of a series, but I will certainly investigate this writer to see what exists now and in the future.

An American girlie road trip with newly single Diana and Margaret joining Sam which starts really well with interesting characters, well drawn. However, this weekend away starts to go wrong when their vehicle key gets lost and then the many twists and turns occur.

I half expected a romcom with the girls meeting blokes in bars etc. but how wrong was I !

Apart from a rather complex ending (in my view) this book was a terrific read. Loved it.

Thanks to Net Galley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for the chance to read and review/

A good solid thriller from an author I have newly discovered. Written in chapters from the point of view of the main characters, spanning a few days. Easy to follow the storyline, making it a quick and easy read. I actually read it in two sittings in the same day as I was keen to discover the outcome.

Three friends are all recently in split relationships from their Ex’s so they set off on a girly trip to give themselves a break. Unfortunately, shortly into their journey they stop for a break and to refuel the car and then the car key goes missing! This forces the three friends to book a rental house for the night and then see if they can get the garage to cut them a new key in the morning.

That night, they all go to a local bar and this is where the storyline really kicks in. Sam sees her Ex husband at the bar and they reconnect. Margaret gets chatting with a younger guy and they spend the night together. Diana on the other hand goes missing!

When Sam and Margaret wake the next morning, Diana has still not turned up so they inform the police. What soon unravels is that not everyone is telling the truth and there are old secrets which will soon be discovered, leading to a couple of shocking twists which I didn’t see coming!

Many thanks to netgalley, the publishers and the author for an arc.