I Readly enjoyed this one at first but then it took a turn for something else and I found myself losing a bit of interest. I also didn’t enjoy all the parts of the retreat where the self psychology stuff were presented.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read this eARC for my honest opinion.

This took me several attempts to read.
Started off ok, Sam is at rock bottom and Erin is living her best life. Time for things to change.
I just felt it was a little over the top and went on far longer than it needed to.
Not the best from this author in my opinion.
My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

This book fell short for me. The premise seemed very far fetched- starting with two friends that had a huge falling out and didn't speak for 6 years. They reconnect through social media and Erin invites Sam to come stay with her - no strings attached. Red flag #1...

The story goes on with lies, manipulation, and so much deception. It just seemed like they wouldn't have put themselves through the drama when their past was such a mess.

But the last 20% is so repetitive and just unnecessary.

If you're into psychological thrillers with toxic friendships, sun-kissed settings turned sinister, and surprising twists, Wish You Were Her delivers a head-spinning, bingeable ride. Go in expecting fast pacing and moral ambiguity, but also be ready for an emotionally ambivalent heroine and a finale that may feel sudden. It’s a smart, sneaky thriller with enough curveballs to keep you guessing—but it’s definitely not a comforting, feel-good escape.

Wish You Were Her by J.E. Rowney is an intense and entertaining psychological suspense novel that explores detailed planning, manipulation, hitting rock bottom, and rising from the ashes.

I loved it!

Reading this book felt like watching a tennis match! It was incredibly entertaining to follow the unfolding story of manipulation and lies, with secrets revealed layer by layer. And that final twist? Genius! The psychological depth of each character was clever and intriguing.

Divorced and broken, Sam reunites with her college roommate, Erin, after years of silence. Erin has essentially taken Sam’s motivational ideas and turned them into a multi-million-dollar enterprise, while Sam has struggled to find her footing. However, beggars can’t be choosers, so Sam agrees to work for Erin as a photographer. What starts off smoothly ends in a massive disaster!

It's unbelievably good (for me!) and I believe many will love it!

📚 PUB DAY E-ARC BOOK REVIEW 📚

Wish You Were Her By J. E. Rowney
Publication Date: June 20, 2025
Publisher: Books Go Social

📚MY RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Books Go Social and NetGalley for this #gifted e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

📚MY REVIEW:

Wish You Were Her is a psychological thriller that's perfect for readers who love books about revenge amongst friends and cat-and-mouse vibes! The twists in this book genuinely shocked me, as I didn't see them coming at all, and the last few chapters REALLY made this book so much fun.

Twisty enough to give you whiplash, this one had my head spinning by the end. A toxic friendship, betrayals, revenge, a luxurious tropical setting, and oh-so-much intrigue...Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down.

When Samantha’s life falls apart, an unexpected message from an old friend offers her a way out—and a ticket to paradise. Swept into a luxurious world of beaches, cocktails, and curated perfection, Samantha starts to believe she might finally leave her past behind. But not everything is as it seems. Behind the glossy smiles and sparkling oceans, old secrets are waiting. And the closer Samantha gets to her new life, the more she wonders: Was reconnecting with Erin Blake the best thing that ever happened to her... or the most dangerous?

Happy Pub Day to J.E. Rowney! If you're a fan of intelligent psychological thrillers featuring toxic friendships, tropical getaways, betrayals, and shocking twists -- this book is for you! And it's out TODAY!!

#WishYouWereHer #JERowney #BooksGoSocial #gifted #ARC #NetGalley #NetGalleyReviews #bookreviews #bookrecs #thrillerlover #thrilleraddict #psychologicalthriller #booklover #bookaddict

J.E. Rowney’s Wish You Were Her is a gripping tale of manipulation, vulnerability, and long-brewing revenge, told through the eyes of a woman pushed to her emotional limits. This psychological thriller delivers a tense, unsettling ride as it delves into the complexities of toxic friendships and the cost of trust misplaced.

Rowney does an excellent job crafting the character of Samantha—a woman reeling from years of emotional hardship. Fragile yet sympathetic, Samantha’s internal struggles are written with striking realism. When she reconnects with a so-called friend who has a history of using her, readers immediately sense that not everything is as it seems. As the story unfolds and strange occurrences escalate, Samantha is forced to question her past, her perceptions, and the true motives of those around her.

Wish You Were Her is layered with suspense and emotional tension, with a satisfying undercurrent of revenge that plays out in clever, unpredictable ways. Rowney’s storytelling is sharp, immersive, and psychologically charged—making this novel a must-read for fans of dark, character-driven thrillers.

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for an advanced copy of Wish You Were Her.

Sam is at the lowest point of her life. She is broke and staying at a motel when she sees a post from her former friend Erin about her perfect life. Sam accidentally liked the post and Erin reached out to her and invites her to stay with them. Sam has her reservations but she is desperate. Nothing can change what Erin did to her in the past and Sam knows that she always has an ulterior motive.

I thought this book had potential but the execution failed for me.

The beginning and middle of this story were really intriguing. I was so hooked up until about the 80% mark. It was getting super twisty, and I liked the position the FMC took as part detective to try to figure out the maze she found herself in. HOWEVER, when it was time to start revealing the big twist, multiple other twists tumbled out all at once. I was a bit lost with all of the information being thrown at me, and I honestly felt like I was watching a tennis match (reference not intended) with how back and forth the twists were. One character thought that had a leg up on another character until it was revealed that they didn’t because the other character revealed another twist…. It was just a lot of information at once that wasn’t necessarily needed. The ending was overall decent. I wasn’t the happiest with the ending, but it wasn’t a flop either. We see the end result of all of the twists that were revealed, and it’s slightly satisfying to see. Overall, for the last 20% of this book, I think the story kind of flopped compared to what it could have been.

Are you a thriller fan? Check out Wish You Were Her by JE Rowney. It’s out soon and is one you’ll want to pick up.

While the novel presents an intriguing psychological premise, its execution suffers from uneven pacing. The first two-thirds of the story move slowly, largely centered on the introspective and self-pitying narrative voice of Sam, an unreliable narrator. The final chapters, by contrast, accelerate rapidly, compressing a series of shifting power dynamics between characters into a fast-paced, dialogue-heavy conclusion the book itself likens to "psychological tennis." This abrupt shift in momentum creates a sense of narrative imbalance. A multi-POV structure may have provided a more immersive and evenly distributed exploration of the story’s core tensions, enhancing the suspense and character dynamics throughout. Although the book wasn't a personal favorite, it was an enjoyable and fast-paced read—well-suited for light, casual settings such as the beach or poolside.

This was such a fast-paced read for me! Wish You Were Her pulled me in right away with it’s writing and emotional intensity. I loved the premise and found myself flying through the first half, constantly wondering what was real and what wasn’t. J.E. Rowney does a great job getting into the main character’s head. I absolutely loved the writing style.

That said, I did start to feel a little worn out by the end—the pacing felt a bit stretched and I was ready for things to wrap up sooner. Still, I really enjoyed the ride overall and would recommend it to anyone who loves psychological thrillers! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this fun ARC.

i got the E-arc to this book and i read it in one sitting. it was an amazing book with amazing writing and well written characters. I started the book blindly and went just based on the vibes of the cover thinking it would be a random fiction novel. there is a line close to the end that definitely hit though it might not make much sense out of context. if you don’t want “spoilers” then please don’t continue reading.

“I found myself trapped," she continues, ignoring him completely, "unable to move forward into your worthless life or backward into my own without raising suspicions. Stuck in this paradise with someone else's maxed-out credit cards and a passport that couldn't get me anywhere I wanted to go."

This is such an interesting concept - stolen ideas, stolen lives and an attempt at the old switcheroo. I think Sam and her predicament are supposed to resonate with readers, but I found her self pity so annoying and her management of the ultimate undoing of the stolen framework so bumbling that I just couldn’t sympathise. The ending also seemed a bit rushed but was a very satisfying resolution.

When Samantha’s life falls apart, an unexpected message from an old friend offers her a way out and a ticket to paradise. Swept into a luxurious world of beaches, cocktails, and curated perfection, Samantha starts to believe she might finally leave her past behind. But not everything is as it seems. Behind the glossy smiles and sparkling oceans, old secrets are waiting. And the closer Samantha gets to her new life, the more she wonders: Was reconnecting with Erin Blake the best thing that ever happened to her... or the most dangerous?! Good book! This book had suspense, mystery, dark past secrets, and a few shocking moments! The story was interesting! It wasn’t my top favorite but still worth reading! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

‘Wish You Were Her’ by J.E. Rowney was a book I was super excited for, but fell a little flat for me. I’ve heard great things about this author, but I don’t think this ended up being what I was expecting.

The story is about Sam, whose college roommate, Erin, essentially took Sam’s motivational ideas and turned them into a multi-million dollar enterprise…without Sam’s permission. A chance encounter brings them back together, with Erin wanting to make amends, but Sam thinks there may be more under the surface.

I feel like the pacing was strange, like mostly drawn out for the first 2/3 and then trying to wrap up quickly in the last 1/3. It definitely didn’t feel like a thriller to me, definitely more mystery. Unfortunately just didn’t love as much as I wanted to.

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

Wish You Were Her is a suspenseful, sun-soaked escape that quickly turns into something much darker. When Samantha reconnects with her old friend Erin and is whisked away to a luxurious island, it feels like the second chance she desperately needs. But the further she sinks into this paradise, the more cracks begin to show.

J.E. Rowney does a great job creating a moody, slow-burning atmosphere. The tropical setting is glamorous and dreamy on the surface, but there’s always a sense that something’s just... off. The friendship between Samantha and Erin is complicated, layered with old memories, secrets, and shifting power dynamics that keep you guessing.

This is a great read for fans of domestic thrillers or psychological dramas. It’s about trust, reinvention, and the danger of trying to outrun your past. Not a full-blown thriller with big action moments, but the tension and emotional stakes are high enough to keep the pages turning. A smart, sneaky beach read with a bite.

Samantha has hit rock bottom. She follows Erin on social media. Erin invites Sam to join her as a photographer. She stole Sam's life, and Sam wants it back.

Living your authentic life. The life you imagined. The perfect life.
I could not stop reading this book, I had to know how it ended.
I am not sure how I felt about the whole plot.
Everything was a surprise, and yet, everything was perfectly planned - the 'like' on the post - the reunion - the whole kaboodle.
Good thing this is fiction, because to my knowledge, the best laid plans never pan out. Like the say "Man proposes - God Disposes".
Couple of twists, unreliable narrator, unbelievable plot.
Not my most favourite book by JE Rowney.

It's a game of manipulation and lies, with multiple parties thinking they have the upper hand and they're the ones who have been planning all along how their brilliant scheme was going to unfold, fooling everyone else. The psychology behind each character - Sam, Erin, a third party I won't name to avoid spoilers - was quite clever and interesting to puzzle through in the end. Though I found none of them even the tiniest bit likeable, their motivations were intriguing. (Mind you, if I have to hear one more time how someone - don't care who - has developed a brilliant "framework", I think my eyes will roll so hard they'll get stuck facing backwards.)

Unfortunately, the pacing of how everything was revealed was very uneven. The first two thirds of the book felt very slow, almost boring, and just full of Sam, our unreliable narrator, giving off self-pity and woe-is-me constantly. Then all the back-and-forth leading the reader through multiple rounds of "Sam has the upper hand now", "no, Erin still has the upper hand", "no, actually, neither of them does" was all crammed into the last few chapters in the form of a verbal sparring match the book fittingly describes as "psychological tennis". It was giving you whiplash! I think the story would've worked much better if it had been multi-POV (at least Sam and Erin and maybe the aforementioned third party too), so that the experience of questioning who has the upper hand and who's been the most masterful schemer all along could've been present from the start, not just retrospectively rushed through in the last few chapters.

I received a review copy from the publisher, BooksGoSocial, via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thank you BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for an early copy of Wish You Were Her. The cover definitely caught my eye and hearing it was taking place in Aruba, I couldn’t wait to start reading. It did take awhile to get wrapped up in this but eventually that happened. I was confused a few times regarding how Erin hurt Maya and what did she actually write in the laptop about Nicholas, I never found out. It was a Great cat and mouse psychological toward the end, one outsmarting the other. The very last chapter was Awesome, Good for Sam. Stick with it, your mind will be spinning towards the end,