This is a really dark, gritty story, covering manipulation and coercive control in a very toxic relationship.

It is well-written, clearly demonstrating the depths of damage and in no way is a comfortable read, deliberately so I believe. The main setting, a gym, is very appropriate and adds a level of grit and determination to events.

Told from two timelines, Cassie(then), before meeting Liam and at the start of their relationship and (now), 2 years after.

Character wise, Cassie initially draws empathy, which is then stretched and shaken by some of her behaviours, making the reader question reality. Again I believe that is deliberate, as part of the impact. It is tough to read about the extent of eating and exercise control. Liam drew no empathy from me at all, being totally unpleasant, clever, slimy, sly, snide and smug. You get the idea of what I thought of him!

What this book also offers, is a fascinating insight into the people around Cassie, her friends, colleagues and her parents, reflecting their differing views of her and what is going on. It really made me stop and think.

This book is not an easy read, however it is highly effective at detailing the emotional toll on someone.

Fantastic book. I read it in two days and have no idea why it took me so long to get around to reading it!

The story is completely engrossing from the off and led by a great lead character, Cass. We meet her as she's rebuilding her life following her escape from a controlling, abusive relationship with a fitness fanatic called Liam. But it's clear that Liam's influence still has a hold over Cass, and is shaping how she sees herself and how she lives her life.

Liam had tracked Cass's every move in the name of 'care'. This focused largely on what she ate and her exercise, with Liam claiming his rules were for her own good. In fact they led to things such as a lock on the fridge and, eventually, Cass being locked in her flat.

When Liam appears at the gym that Cass now works at as a personal trainer, but he is now blind, she sees her chance for revenge. But having any involvement with him ends up being a very bad move, and while Cass thinks she can keep control that isn't how things work out.

This is a truly brilliant description of how coercive control works - not only in terms of its depiction of Liam's behaviour and words, but also in how others see him too. Cass's mum, for instance, is convinced Cass is overreacting to Liam's behaviour and swallows his version of events. She can't even tear herself away from this after Cass finds evidence that Liam planned to do her serious physical harm.

It's a reminder of how difficult it can be for people in this situations to make themselves heard and believed.

I don't want to give the impression that this is a 'worthy' kind of book - it isn't. Cass has some brilliant lines and is a strong character with lots of boldness and immediate, witty comebacks. I liked this about the book. The author has made sure that, just because Cass has been in an abusive relationship, that doesn't make her a certain 'type' of woman or person.

What I also liked a lot was the little nods to working class life that pepper the novel throughout. They are small things, such as people bulk buying alcohol for an event to save money on the bar, the party food from Iceland and so on. None of this is done in a condescending or patronising way, it's just a description of things people do that I found very relatable.

Tanya, the only one of Cass's friends who seems to have recognised the full scale of the threat posed by Liam, is very well done. Cass's relationship with her and with her kids is a chance to ;model what a more healthy relationship to life and food looks like. But the impact of an obsession with calories and food (Cass obsessing about being 11 calories over her target one day, despite the fact that Tanya has finally come to visit her after not seeing each other for a while) was a very striking example of how this can take over people's lives.

As the plot unfolds and Cass becomes part of Liam's life again, the suspense as to whether he it's all a trick, whether he really is blind, whether this is a trap to harm her, is genuinely terrifying. The novel avoids giving a simple ending that ties everything up neatly, which is admirable. Cass's fate is yet another reminder of how coercive control can leave victims with pretty much everyone stacked against them.

It's a fantastic, gripping read that I will be recommending to everyone I can! Thanks to Netgalley for the access.

This was darker than I expected going in and definitely took a few turns I wasn’t quite prepared for.

Sweat is a slow burn to start with, but the tension ramps up the further in you get. The relationship between Cassie and Liam is incredibly toxic, and while both are clearly dealing with their own issues, Liam is genuinely terrifying at times.

It’s a sharp look at mental health, body image and coercive control, all wrapped in an increasingly intense and unsettling storyline.

That said, I did find it a little repetitive in places, which made the pacing lag a bit for me. I enjoyed it overall, but I think I was just hoping for something a little punchier – it didn’t quite hit as hard as I wanted.

Still a solid and thought-provoking read, especially for readers who like their reads a little messy and unfiltered.

This is the first of Emma Healey’s books I've read (despite owning all of them!) and it was a lot more disturbing than I expected it to be! Although, when a book is about coercive controlling relationships you don't really expect it to be a light-hearted barrel of laughs!

Cassie left her boyfriend Liam a couple of years ago and is still recovering from the abusive relationship. Then she finds herself in a situation where she suddenly has power over Liam. She can look straight at him and feel no fear. But what will she do with this newfound power?

This book goes to some dark and disturbing places. It's pretty uncomfortable at times. Cassie narrates the story in the present day with flashbacks to her relationship with Liam. Liam uses food and exercise to control Cassie and some of the things he does are horrific. In the present day Cassie makes some questionable choices and her actions don't sit right but also you can see why she does what she does.

The ending really surprised me and I enjoyed the book. It was fascinating reading and hard to put down!

Bit too grim and dark for me but appreciate being given the opportunity to read it.

I, myself, have never been in a toxic relationship or situation and therefore find it particularly disturbing to read.

Entirely advise checking your trigger warnings as this one will be a difficult read for some. I found it very harrowing, grim and depressing at times, but well paced and engaging.

3.5⭐️

It has been 2 years since personal trainer Cassie escaped the clutches of her controlling and abusive ex-boufriend, Liam. Although months of harassment and stalking followed the break up, Cassie finally feels able to relax a little - until she is introduced to her new PT client: Liam. And he is now blind.

This story was so much darker than I thought it would be. The premise really grabbed me and I ended up being surprised by the events that unfolded. Sweat is a bit of a slow burner to begin with but the drama very much ramps up the further through the book you get. The relationship between Cassie and Liam is very complex and they each have issues that contribute to a completely toxic and unhealthy partnership (although to be fair to Cassie, Liam is an actual psychopath).

While I had some irks with some of the situations that took place, Sweat is ultimately a gripping read that shines a light on a lethal combination of mental health issues, poor body image and the need for coercive control.

Such an unique concept with a darkly humorous undertone. While quite different to Elizabeth Is Missing, Healey's tone and humour is evident throughout.

Wow. This book was a rollercoaster and Cassie? A little unhinged. I don't blame her though. She's a complete product of what she went through with Liam.

The underlying theme of abuse through food and exercise was honestly so sick and twisted that there were some parts that made me gasp out loud.

The plot is clever and pacy, and Emma has done a really good job in not only highlighting the impact and after effects of toxic relationships between people but also toxic relationships to health and fitness. Setting up this cat and mouse thriller through the lens of revenge was so satisfying to read and while I knew we were heading towards a tense ending, I didn't expect the novel to take the turn that it did take.

I've been impatiently waiting for Emma Healey's next book ever since flying through Elizabeth is Missing and Sweat was well worth the wait.

Thanks to netgallery for letting me have an early copy review book

I enjoyed reading the this, it changed for my usual topic but it can be a bit out the normal read. With the abusive relationship topic.

Well written

A psychological thriller that tackles and observes coercive control within a decidedly very toxic relationship between Cassie and Liam with the story beginning with Cassie deceiving her now blind ex-boyfriend and former personal trainer in the hopes to finally gain closure and revenge to their relationship which we learn from Cassie's reflections on the past during the novel that Liam was incredibly controlling and abusive with Liam controlling Cassie's body image, weight and food, yet to outsiders appears charming to the point that initially her own family don't understand why she broke it off with him.

Definitely a must-read to anyone who wishes to understand how coercive control works and it's ramifications to the victim who begin to lose all sense of themselves, as Healey tackles the topics in this novel sensitively without any form of glamorisation.

Thank you to Netgalley & cornerstone/Penguin Random House UK for the chance to read an e-ARC before publication, it's a book that will live with me for some time...

"He was frustrated, he was scared, he was vulnerable. I was fascinated, vindicated, delighted ... I was happy. It had been a while since I'd felt this way, but I recognised it, and recognised the danger. I always did do crazy things when I was happy."

It's been months since Cassie finally escaped from her ex-boyfriend, Liam. At the start of the relationship, she loved how Liam – a personal trainer and fitness expert – pushed her: to lose weight, to be healthy and to be her best self. But after two years, being with the controlling Liam turned into a nightmare and even after she left him, he continued to stalk her.

Cassie joins a gym as a personal trainer and after Liam finally leaves her alone, she feels less vulnerable. Then, she sees a familiar figure in her gym. It's Liam. Except Liam is now blind. This is the moment Cassie decides that from now on, she'll be the one in control.

This is a story about toxic relationships, with others and ourselves. Liam's obsession with Cassie is seriously creepy, as is her decision to stalk him when he loses his sight. On the one hand, I wanted Cassie to have her revenge because Liam is a complete and utter psychopath. On the other, I was horrified (in a strangely pleasurable way) by how Cassie treated the blind Liam. Schadenfreude much?

Then there is Cassie's incredibly unhealthy relationship with herself and her body. Even after her relationship with Liam ends, she obsesses over eating, over what she looks like, and about what people think of her. This is very much a comment on the modern dilemma of how we should relate to our bodies in a world that privileges thin people.

I didn't like Cassie as a character and struggled to connect with her, but I was certainly in her corner after what she suffered with Liam.

The tension is like thin glass, ready to break at any ominous moment. I was so disturbed by Liam's behaviour that I had to put the book down at times, both angry and frightened. The author sustains the suspense really well.

This is a gripping read about coercive control, abusive relationships and the choices victims make about how to deal with these. Gripping and taught.

Sweat is a really uncomfortable read (and I really liked that about it!)! I like a book where the characters are unlikeable, and Sweat certainly delivers on that score.

Sweat is set in the present and near past, and tells the story of Cassie, Liam and their thoroughly toxic relationship. It goes to prove that you should always make sure you know all of the details before you pick a side - and to be extra safe, just don’t pick a side at all!

I started out feeling sorry for one character, and ended feeling that they all got precisely what they deserved. The story is really well told to make the reader feel this way. It plays with your emotions, making you believe that Cassie has had a terrible time with Liam’s coercive behaviour and constant gaslighting.

But was Cassie complicit?
Is she any better than Liam?

I wasn’t 100% sure, even at the end!

Contains coercive and controlling behaviour that is realistic and unsettling.
Overall, it's worth a read because it's a very real and insightful look into what a narcissistic, controlling, and coercive person is like.
Total rating 3.5 stars

This had such a strong premise and i was so excited going into it but i just felt the more i got into this book, the more i disliked the title. The characters were okay but i just didn't warm to any of them. The book itself is not bad but it wasn't for me, i don't think the writing helped but this title missed it entirely for me. I would try another title by this author but this book wasn't one i would try again.

Sweat is another enthralling novel from Emma Healy that draws you in through its fast pace and realistic characters. Cassie works as a Personal Trainer in a gym and when her ex boyfriend comes in she is shocked to discover he has lost his sight. The book takes us back to when the couple met and how their relationship develops whilst following the story of Cassie and Liam in the present day as she helps him with his fitness. I do not want to give too much away, but the book takes you on an emotional journey where you question each character and their interpretation of the past until the final page. Highly recommended.

This book left me feeling conflicted and uncomfortable throughout and I feel this could be a very triggering read for many.

I absolute loved the writing style and the structure to the book. It made it easy to read, great character development and an easy distinction between the past and the present.

However, I found the main character Cassie a little bit frustrating at times. I found it hard to understand why and how she could make some of the decisions she did throughout the book and I found myself wanting to scream at her because if the relationship was the way it was, I couldn’t understand why she continuously went back and put herself in multiple dangerous situations for no reward or gain. It left me feeling incredibly conflicted throughout.

Overall, I don’t think I’ll be recommending this book to people, but I would pick up other books by this author due to the writing style being enjoyable.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

A highly addictive read- two years after Cassie leaving her fitness fanatic controlling narcissistic ex Liam. He turns up for a session at her gym- blind from a brain tumour. He doesn’t recognise Cassie and she decides to pretend to be her colleague Steph, suffering years of abuse- it’s time for Cassie to get her own back.

As much as Sweat by Emma Healey was an addictive read, it was also difficult at times where Emma covers toxic relationships, cohersive control and domestic abuse. I really enjoyed the book from the beginning to the end.

It’s rare that a book can make me feel as uncomfortable as this one did. There’s no joy in reading about abuse in any form, or about characters so damaged and warped that you’d need a magnifying glass to spot any redeeming qualities. That said, this new novel from Emma Healey has a curious fascination to it; the same kind of fascination that draws you to a murder trial or multi-car pileup. It’s nasty, but you can’t tear your eyes from it.

Sweat is the story of Cassie, who two years out of a controlling relationship has payback dropped into her lap, when ex Liam turns up at the gym where she works as a personal trainer. He has lost his sight due to a benign brain tumor and is taking advantage of a cut-price offer to get back into shape. Out of the blue, the ball is firmly in Cassie’s court, and she has carte blanche to exact retribution for the years of misery he subjected her to.

As revenge tropes go, this one’s a doozy. You do, however, have to buy into the idea that a change of name, voice and accent would be enough to throw Liam off the scent, and this despite the physical proximity of the trainer/client relationship. I wasn’t totally convinced, but let’s go with it.

I initially found Cassie’s petty victories — putting hand sanitizer in Liam’s juice, filling his water bottle from the toilet — childish and amusing. Harmless but also discomfiting to witness. The man was blind, after all. As helpless as a kitten.

It was only once the extent of Liam’s obsessively controlling behavior was gradually revealed through sickening flashbacks that I found my allegiances shifting, then realigning yet again, as Cassie’s actions became more unhinged and dangerous.

Healey was toying with me, and I knew it.

Suffice to say that this story goes to some very dark places and with a growing sense of unease and foreboding. The twist, when it comes, is not totally unexpected but is bolstered by the explosive climax, which both grips and shocks, and which left me with a keen respect for the destructive power of revenge.

This was terrifying. A story of a very abusive relationship where the abused partner doesn't see the control as abusive. Finally clear of her controlling ex, Liam, Cassie is still obsessed with fitness and calories and working as a personal trainer. Her friends recognised Liam for what he was but Cassie almost lost them in not accepting this. Her mum and dad still think he's a very nice man. Cassie comes across now vulnerable Liam at her gym and sets out for revenge. It's hard to work out who is in control. A story of mental anguish, and the results of how damaged someone can become while going through the motions of normal life. I was not expecting the ending. A compulsive and uncomfortable read. #netgalley #sweat