I may be the only person in America to have never watched a reality show. No Survivor, no Big Brother, none of the Housewives series. They just never appealed to me. But I loved Jessica Knoll’s first book, so I wasn’t going to miss out on her sophomore effort.

It took me awhile to get into the book. I read another review where the reviewer gave up at the 10% mark and I totally understood that. In the beginning, the characters come across as so reality show fake I didn’t think I could stand it. Even when someone shared an opinion I agreed with, like

“no, I correct them, I’m showing young girls that you don’t have to be beautiful to matter. The thinking that women of all shapes and sizes can be beautiful is still hugely problematic, because it is predicated on the idea that the most important thing a woman has to offer the world is her appearance.”

Because at the heart of it, they are all mean girl nasty; snarky egotists. So, it took me awhile to realize that Knoll has perfectly nailed the whole concept of reality show contestant. And at that point, my view of the book changed and I could understand what she was trying to do.

As the book goes on, the pace really picks up and it’s just a totally wild ride. It is a book that definitely improves with each chapter.

This book is like junk food, you know you shouldn’t like it, but it is addictive. If you want something in the nasty fun category, than I say go for it. And do not miss the Q and A with Knoll at the end of the book. It’s fascinating to read where the inspiration for this book came from. Also, in the answers she indicates she’s writing the screenplay for her first novel. I think the traits for a good screenplay have been taken to heart, because this book reads like it’s been written totally with the idea of translating it into a movie or mini-series.

My thanks to netgalley and Simon and Schuster for an advance copy of this book.

I was really intrigued after reading the description for this novel.

“a thriller starring competitive sisters whose dark secrets and lies result in murder when they sign onto a reality TV show.”

In the novel, five successful women are starring in Season 4 of Goal Diggers, a popular reality show. Goal Diggers purports that it’s different than other reality TV. This show is supposed to be about women who are doing some amazing things with their lives as well as supporting other women (at least that’s what they are trying to portray).

Brett Courtney is the fan favorite. Brett achieved success with her spin studio SPOKE that she runs with her sister, Kelly Courtney. Kelly is new to Goal Diggers and the veteran staff isn’t all that welcoming. The sisters have some deep-rooted issues stemming from childhood and have a difficult relationship, to say the least.

But Brett and Kelly are hiding a big secret…

Stephanie Simmons is the oldest cast member. Stephanie is married to Vince. Stephanie and Brett are former best friends. They had a falling out but no one really knows what happened. They would like to keep it that way.

Lauren Fun is a creator of some very successful apps. She had some personal issues in previous seasons but this is supposed to be her comeback season.

Lastly, we have Jen Greenberg who became successful through her very popular vegan food line. She’s also known to be the most ruthless of all the ladies.

Stephanie, Lauren, and Jen have secrets too…

The producers hope that the season will be drama filled and shocking. However, they have no idea just how shocking things will get.…

When I first saw the title I actually thought it said GOLD Diggers and wondered how that was supposed to empower women? Then I realized it actually said GOAL Diggers, which made much more sense. I was really interested in learning about the characters and reading about the ins and outs of the show itself. I know it’s a fiction book but I imagine a lot of what happens in the book really goes on in these reality shows. However, after a while, the personalities started to grate on me. Everyone was ruthless. I couldn’t decide who I was rooting for as almost everyone was unlikable.

“I don’t actually know who is pretending anymore and who isn’t. Who knows what really happened and who actually believes that what we are saying happened, happened”

However, I REALLY wanted to know how things were going to turn out. I figured out a few things but I was shocked by the ending. I honestly didn’t see it coming.

I really was excited about this book and while I’m glad that I finished it…I still felt let down. I’m not exactly sure why. The negativity didn't help. Definitely had to suspend disbelief at times, but that usually isn't an issue for me. Normally it doesn’t bother me whether or not there are likeable characters, but I had a harder time with this one. Although this wasn't my favorite read, I do feel the author told a decent story and I believe many readers will love it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a very interesting read which raised many questions -- "How much of reality TV is truly reality? Whose reality is it? How thin is the line between love and hate? How long does it take before a person begins to believe his/her own lies? and "Who really is the favorite sister?" It is that last question that I continue to ponder long after turning the last page.

Interesting - a book set around a reality TV show called "Goal Diggers" starring young professional women who have "made it". The story is told alternating both past and present time and from several different points of view so I was somewhat lost the first half of the book and kept backtracking to see whose point of view I was hearing. Once I had an understanding of who the characters were, the second half of the book was much better.

This reminded me very much of the reality TV show "Desperate Housewives". The central theme of the book is "what happened to Brett". There are some surprising twists in the second half that had me intrigued.

The book was not what I expected, but it ended up being a good story and probably gave a good picture of what could happen behind the scenes in reality TV. I think this might appeal more to 20 - 30 year old readers.

Thanks to Jessica Knoll and Simon & Schuster through Netgalley for an advance copy.

I am a big fan of reality tv especially the housewives shows so when I started reading this book I was in my world. Loved this book so many twists and turns . This is a great sit by the pool and read book. Definitely would recommend reading!

This one wasn’t my favorite I found it somewhat predictable. I have enjoyed this authors other book and think she still has great potential I just wansnt a fan of this one.

This was such a fun book, and I LOVED the storyline. Jessica Knoll is a fantastic author, and I will be grabbing all of her books now--binge coming soon!

Loved it! The book opens with a reality show producer interviewing Kelly about her sister Brett who has since died. The rest of the book is told through flashbacks into some of the "characters" on the reality show "Goal Diggers". "Goal Diggers" is a show about highly successful young women, but like most reality shows, this one tries to pit each of the women against each other, instead of raising them up due their successes in various entrepreneurial businesses. Kelly is a wanna-be member of the show according to the other women-Steph, an AFrican American erotic book author, Jen a wealthy healthy eating guru and Lauren, an app designer who seems like she came from one of those Bravo shows about rich housewives (although she is not married) . Brett, who is tattooed and lesbian, runs a successful spin studio business while also donating to women in peril in Morocco with the proceeds. Who killed Brett? I had my suspicions but all of the secrets these women held definitely made me change my theories more than once! This book takes a very cynical look at women's relationships and reality tv.
Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for this ARC in return for my honest review.

I did not enjoy reading The Favorite Sister, but I respect its message.

The Favorite Sister is about 5 women who continuously tear each other down on a reality TV show (a la The Real Housewives) that “espouses” feminism. These women do whatever it takes to stay relevant and remain in the spotlight. Filled with hideous characters who only care about themselves, this was not an easy book for me to read.

Stephanie, Brett, Kelly, Lauren, and Jen are the stars of Goal Diggers--a reality show that showcases millennial women in their attempts to build successful careers, while at the same time give back through philanthropic causes. All 5 women create TV persona’s built on lies--they have fake relationships, fake friendships, and support fake feminist causes. Fearful of losing their role on the show, these women stop at nothing in order to remain on the show even if it means destroying someone they care about.

Told through Stephanie, Brett, and Kelly’s POV’s, I found the pacing slow. I almost DNF’d it in the beginning because I couldn’t get into it and found that were too many characters to keep up with. I was curious to see how things were going to play out and wanted to know what secrets everyone was hiding, so I kept on reading. I can’t say it was worth it.

All of the characters are unlikable, but the fact that they do whatever it takes to remain on TV no matter the consequence makes for some thought-provoking moments. The main point The Favorite Sister seems explore is whether or not women can be successful without feeling threatened by other women. Why must women tear each other down instead of building each other up?

I didn’t enjoy reading this and would not read it again. It does have some good, unpredictable twists but in the end, it left me feeling icy cold and disgusted.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Simon & Schuster in exchange for an honest review.

When five hyper-successful agree to appear together in a reality show called “Goal Diggers”, the producers have no idea that all of their secrets, ambitions, and false loyalties are going to culminate in murder. Brett is the fan favorite and this along with the meteoric success of her spin studio, and her recent engagement to her girlfriend, combine to make her the object of jealousy and vindictiveness from her cast mates. Kelly is Brett’s older sister and business partner, along with the newest member of the Diggers cast, causing her to be dismissed by the rest of the cast as merely coasting on Brett’s success. Although she was the golden child growing up, she now defers to Brett, acrole requiring her to protect their shocking secret. Stephanie is not only the first black cast member, but also one of the few left from the debut season, and the very successful author of erotic novels. There have always been rumors about her hot, unemployed actor husband and his wandering eye. But the focus this season is on the ever widening rift between her and Brett, her former best friend. And it doesn’t take long for resentment to breed contempt. Lauren is the startup world’s darling, whose drinking has gotten out of control. Since everyone loves a good comeback story, the season will also focus on her recovery and sobriety. And, then, there’s Jen, who made her fortune through her cultishly popular vegan food line. She comes across as a holistic hippie on camera, but just may be the most ruthless of the entire cast when she’s off camera.

I really wanted to enjoy this book but I couldn’t connect with it, at all. I’m not saying that it’s poorly written because I could see how talented the author is. It just wasn’t for me. I felt like the characters were all truly horrible people. The book alternates points of view between Brett , Kelly, and some of the others. Honestly, there wasn’t anything, personality-wise that set them apart from each other, to the point that I had trouble figuring out which person was narrating, at times. Honestly, I think that this book was just a bad fit for me and I almost stopped reading it a few times but kept going because it was an arc. Perhaps I’ll try other books by this author and see if any of them are a better fit.

I really enjoyed Jessica Knoll’s first book Luckiest Girl Alive so I was interested in reading more from this author. I was not aware of the plot before I requested this book, as I had requested it based on the author. I do not watch “reality” t.v. such as Real Housewives, Big Brother or similar shows, as those do not interest me. This story is about a reality t.v. show featuring a group of women as they pursue their careers and their love lives. There is a mystery surrounding the death of one of the main stars of the show. This book did not grab me immediately as this author’s previous book did. It took awhile for me to figure out who all the characters were, whether on the show or in the background, and I had trouble at first remembering the relationships between the characters. It was not until about 1/2 into the book when it started to pick up and get interesting. I do wish the pacing had been a bit faster up until then. The last 25% or so of the book went much faster as I raced to the end to find out what really happened to Brett. I do enjoy a good mystery and it was not until the very end that you learn everything that really happened. I did like the fact that the truth was kept until the very end. Overall it was an enjoyable read but I did not enjoy it as much as the author’s first book. I do enjoy this author and I look forward to her next book. As for a rating, I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

I thought this book was hard to finish. I had to stop and start it a bunch of times before I actually got to the end. I had the same problem with The Luckiest Girl Alive, which I actually never finished. Maybe Jessica Knoll just isn't for me. I really thought I would like this one better. The story was interesting and had some good twists and turns, but it was all together it was kind of trite. There were too many characters to keep straight and I had to go back and reread to keep everyone straight, Maybe there was TOO much going on. I am sure that others will love this one too, though, just not the book for me. THANKS FOR THE ARC!!!!!!

3.5 Stars. I enjoyed the surprise ending(s). If you like Real Housewives and the slow burn of Liane Moriarty novels, you’ll love this book.

I want to give big hugs and thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a free arc in return for my honest review.

Let’s see, where to start. I really really wanted to love this book, I loved The Luckiest Girl Alive, bought a physical and digital copy just so I had back up. I was expecting so much from the book, maybe that’s why I feel a tad disappointed.
The premise of the book sounded like a fun interesting book. Five successful women on a reality show (which I admit I have a bit of an addiction to in real life) called Gold Diggers. Brett and Kelly Courtney are sisters and the show's stars, set in New York and ends in murder! Dun dun dun!!! There are a lot of twists and turns in the story, but I just couldn’t get into it. I had to put this book down multiple times just to get back into it…which I never could.
I can’t push enough, on how much I wanted to love this book, but atlas I could not. The books seemed long and predictable. Which in turn made in kind of meh.
The book is getting a 2.5/5 stars. ---please don’t hate us for it 😉

Jessica Knoll really knows how to keep you captivated and coming back for more in THE FAVORITE SISTER! I was so engrossed in this reality tv show fiction that I kept coming back for more! This book is perfect for any BRAVO TV junkie that wants to see what could happen when a reality television star loses it...

This book took me the longest to read and I read A LOT of books! It definitely takes time to read this book as there are multiple characters to learn and understand their connections. I got confused at times, but it didn't take away from understanding the plot.

I found so many AMAZING quotes from this book that I am going to refer back to! The plot twists and women drama kept me continuing with this book. Jessica Knoll has a unique writing style that kept me captivated to see where she was going to take me next. I REALLY, REALLY need to know what happens when Jesse & Kelly speak after the book ends ahhhh!!!!!

Thank you Jessica Knoll for bringing us this dynamic reality tv show twist that I did not see happening! You get caught up in these characters and find yourself shocked again and again!

The Favorite sister was just not for me. I had a hard time getting into the story and characters. This was a DNf for me. The story line was interning with a lot of strong powerful characters.

The Favorite Sister is definitely more of a character-driven thriller than an action-packed thriller. We know from the first chapter that Brett has been killed, and a reality show is covering the truth up. The question is – who killed her, and what really happened?

Brett, Steph, Jen, Lauren, and Kelly are this season’s stars of the reality TV show Goal Diggers. Brett, Steph, and Jen have been on the show from the start, have seen several Goal Diggers exit (and their lives plummet post-show), and each are worried about losing their place on the series. Let the backstabbing commence.

The narrative alternates from Brett and Steph’s perspectives leading up to the incident, with a post-death perspective from Brett’s sister Kelly at the end of the sections. The further you read, the more you realize that each of these women have lied to get where they are, and will do almost anything to protect the new reality they have built for themselves.

If you want a book where you fall in love with the characters, this book probably isn’t for you. I found them all unlikeable (except Kelly’s daughter) by the end.

If you enjoy character-driven stories, stories with twists, or reality TV, you will enjoy this book. Just like reality TV, The Favorite Sister will be a guilty pleasure for you to read this summer. Add it to your books-to-read-at-the-pool bag.

I found it very hard to get into this book. The beginning was confusing to me because I just couldn't get straight the setting, the characters, and the situation. However, I was interested in seeing how things played out, so by the time I got into the meat of the book and got into the past where the characters are on Goal Diggers, things got a bit more interesting.

The bulk of the book is told in alternating perspectives while filming the show Goal Diggers. Basically we are seeing how Brett became the star (the 'Favorite Sister' if you will), and all the layers of drama form around that. Sometimes the voices get confusing, but then a point of action happens or someone is defending their specific business venture and you're back on track.

Difficult to read in the format chosen as there are too many characters to follow in the one chapter per character. It was difficult to maintain the flow of the story and to develop any connection to any of the characters. All are shallow and evoke no real emotion in the reader. I recognize it is a fictitious novel about a fictitious reality show. Just cements why I do not ever watch reality shows.

I really enjoy this author’s edgy, hip, and current writing style. It’s a nice change of pace from other genres. I enjoyed her first book more probably because it was more shocking and more of a page-turner, but this is a good book, too. If you like Reality TV, especially shows like Real Housewives, you will like this book. I read this on my Kindle and enjoyed the interview with the author at the end. Be sure to read that if you have the option. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!