Awesome! A really gripping thriller. An overprotective mother, a teenage daughter and a loving, doting aunt. A shocking up to date story with online menace. Amazing twists and turns. A truly great read.

I love a good psychological thriller that really gets under my skin and consumes my every waking moment whether I am reading it or when life has kept me away from it by making me have to go to work!
It's the story of two sisters, Toni and Bridget, who share a big secret that they have made a pact never to speak of again. But when Toni's daughter Rosie ends up fighting for her life in hospital, the sisters are forced to reevaluate their secrecy to get to the truth of what happened to Rosie and cope with the fallout of the events leading up to it.
Told in the present with flashback from the past, we follow what happened in the run up to Rosie's accident, how she rebelled against her mother's overprotective and overbearing nature towards her. How she uses social media secretly to try and spread her wings and get a bit of spark in her sheltered life. And how this has a really rather devastating effect on her and those around her.
This was a book that, due to the use of social media and what happens thereafter, had me reaching to check my privacy settings. I do find this sort of book to be more frightening as what happens within is pretty darned credible, some aspects of which appear in the press all too often. Tightly plotted, with twists and turns aplenty, it had me rapt throughout as I raced to find the truth. Although, as I approached the finish line I was torn between racing to the end and not wanting the journey to be over. I was on tenterhooks as I worried about the fallout from what actually happened and what it all meant for the characters that I had grown to love.
It was also a book that I also got a wee bit emotionally involved in. I lost track of the number of times I shouted at the characters as they put themselves in certain situations. I really felt for them at times. I cried with them, I laughed with them, I held my breath so much that I was gasping at times.
Rosie is a typical teen - determined to break from her mum and have a life of her own. Sadly, she makes some bad judgement calls and, without the guidance she obviously could do with, she does put herself in bad situations. From what I read, I understand Toni wanting, needing to protect her, but I just wanted to bang their heads together and tell them to just trust and help each other through life rather than battle against each other's wills. Bridget was brilliant. Playing devil's advocate as much as she could and trying to chip away at Toni's hold, trying to give Rosie a bit of life and freedom. She was a great leveller in the book and someone I want in my corner when the chips are down. Basically, you could say that it was definitely a character driven book for me.
All in all, a brilliantly plotted, intriguing story that held me hostage throughout and left me spent and satisfied at the end. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

The Pact is about promises and secrets.

Rosie is a 15-year-old girl who is lying in the hospital in a coma. She has been sheltered for most of her life. Her Mother, Toni, has tried to protect her and keep her safe. Due to her Mother's strict rules and constant hovering, Rosie has secrets of her own. She communicates with friends and a "possible" suitor on social media. Knowing that her Mother checks up on her, she has secrets accounts and is not always honest about where she is going or who she is going to meet.

Toni, Rosie's Mother has secrets as well. She had a traumatic childhood which she wants to keep secret from her daughter. Her sister, Bridget, knows the truth and has vowed to never discuss the past with her. Toni sees her daughter as happy and talented. She believes her daughter will have a good life, if only Toni can keep her safe. When Rosie is approached by a talent scout, will this be a chance at a bright future? Will she be an entertainer like her Aunt Bridget?

What happens when one has secrets? How does a traumatic past shape our future, our relationships and the choices we make? What role does social media have in our lives? As the story progresses, the reader learns about Toni's past, about Rosie's use of social media, about secrets hopes and dreams, about deception and about the hidden dangers which exist in the world. This book flows between the past, the not so distant past and the present effortlessly. I found it very easy to follow and over the course of the book, several gaps are filled in for the reader. There were some sections which I wished would have moved along a little faster but overall, I felt this book was well written and thought out. There are some twists and turns along the way that kept the story interesting.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Oh what a tangled web author SE Lynes has woven with her latest release, The Pact. Centred around a single mother, her daughter and her sister, this book has more threat and menace than a tarantula poised at the edge of said web, and more thrills than any fairground ride. It's a corker of a read and no mistake.

Now without going to far into the plot, The Pact sees us join Toni, Bridget and Rosie at a very difficult and vulnerable time. Rosie is in serious trouble, having made a very grave mistake, one she can only dream of being able to apologise for. Toni is fraught with worry, Bridget full of regret and Rosie ... Well - you need to read to understand. The book is a thrilling combination of past and present as the family recount the months leading up to that fateful day when we first meet them. And what a story this is. Rosie - the aspiring actress who suffers terribly with her nerves. Aunt Bridget - her inspiration and the secret antidote to Toni, her over protective mother.

Toni is a wonderful walking juxtaposition. She is over protective of her daughter, taking things to extremes in terms of protecting her by limiting her social media contacts, weekly monitoring of all her accounts. Basically patrolling anything and everything that Rosie does. She is a teenage girls worst nightmare and it is easy to see why Rosie may suffer with her confidence. There are reasons for her being so protective and as you read you will uncover them. Least of them all is the sad story of what happened to Rosie's father when Rosie was just a young child. Toni drove me nuts at times, so uptight, but then she would do something so seemingly out of character, usually when it was just her and Bridget, that you realise she may be human after all.

Rosie was your typical teen, anxious to be liked, desperate to be loved and only wanting to make a success of her dream of being an actress like her Aunty Bridget. Her naivety is peppered with an awareness of the dangers of modern life instilled in her by her mother, but she is a teenager after all and likely to make the same faux pas I think we have all made at times. I did like her, I understood her need for independence, but I could also see exactly where this was going to lead.

Bridget is brilliant character. Kind of wild compared to her uptight sister, her down to earth attitude was a calming influence on those around her. However her simply being there scuppers the plans of others somewhat and you will need to understand why. Bridget has sacrificed a lot for her family, her own life tinged with regret, but she was a strong and kind woman who I really liked.

Now there are scenes in this book which will shock and scenes which will appear inevitable. I liked the way the narrative moved between the three women in the present and the memories from the past, slowly building the tension and adding to the dramatic feel of the read. Yes there were a couple of times when I was all 'gah - just tell me already' not because I was impatient to see it end, but because the tension tightly wound by this point that I felt like something, possibly me, was about to go pop.

The book touches upon subjects which have been a concern of parents for many years, stories which, of late, have become all too common on the nightly news. Not just modern cases but historic ones, making this a very poignant subject. It should also serve to remind parents that while they may think they control their children, they are more savvy than you may realise. It is best to foster honesty and support than drive their actions underground perhaps. I'm no parent, so I'm not best placed to comment and, at the end of the day, kids will be kids, but there was something so claustrophobic about Toni's actions at times I could understand what drove Rosie to make the mistakes she made.

The ending, the deadly bite from that ever-present giant spider at the edge of the web ... Well it's a good un. You may think you know but your won't. There are clues dropped throughout but whilst the winds kept blowing my reasoning back and forth, it wasn't until nearly the end that the penny really dropped. Shocking, perhaps a little sickening, but not gratuitous, it is hard to think about but so carefully and skilfully executed. Well done Ms Lynes.

Two Sisters, Toni and Bridget , a traumatic past and a childhood pact sealed with a tattoo.
Scarred by her past , Toni is determined to protect her Daughter Rosie in any way she can and sometimes to the point of suffocation. I loved the relationship between teenager Rosie and her Auntie Bridge who strives to bring some balance in to Rosie’s life and give her the life and freedom her Mother struggles to.
The book is very topical and highlights the dangers of social media for our children and indeed ourselves.
It took me a few chapters to fully settle in to this book but having read the authors previous two books I knew I had to keep going and wouldn’t be disappointed and I most certainly wasn’t .

A story on the backdrop of dangers of social media, with 3 women taking centre stage, is what beckoned me to this book.

The mother, Toni, overprotective about her daughter, Rosie, lives with the cool aunt Bridget. Toni and Bridget have their own secretive past, which they can never talk about. Rosie is growing up and at 15, tests the limits of her independence. Till social media shows its dangerous side...

My first book by the author S. E. Lynes, though her third, it was an entertaining read but lesser than what I had expected. The story is narrated from the three women's point of view, looking back into the past for most times. It does switch between past and present till about 70% of the book, then it is all in the present and the thrilling moments begin...

For me, I wanted to love the characters, but I couldn't connect with any. There were too many disjointed thoughts of each. I loved that this book dealt with the dangers of social media where we like, follow, and become close to strangers (Read: 'extra-close' to unknown men)

The author has presented those dangers in the background of fiction, but it serves as a warning to the kids and teenagers and even to the adults, how the trap is laid ever so slowly and the victims are drawn. The story has its twists and turns, and there are moments when adrenaline does thrum through, but no sudden rush with heart pumping and palms sweating.

There were a few niggles, the book did not deliver what was promised on the blurb. The secrets of the sisters had very little bearing to the present story. I found it pretty slow, it didn't keep me hooked on, the book went at a slower pace. And I saw the end coming, as there were a lot of hints throughout the story. I didn't feel it worked as a psychological thriller as it didn't get into my mind.

Read it (took me 4 days), enjoyed it (had its twisty moments), forgot it (could have been so much better). Onto the next!!

I received an ARC from NetGalley and publisher, Bookouture, and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

Toni has been a single mother to fifteen-year-old Rosie since the death, years earlier, of their beloved husband and father. Toni’s a little - OK, a lot - overprotective of her daughter. But when you learn what she’s been through in her life, it’s not surprising. Equally unsurprisingly, Rosie is starting to kick against the restrictions her mother, with the best of motives, imposes.

Auntie Bridget lives there too, the third point in their triangular family. It’s different, but it works.

Toni and Bridget went through hell in their youth and made a promise to always be there for each other - and not to involve others.

Toni is determined to protect her daughter at all costs from the risks she experienced. But the most protective parent is no match for a teenager set on deceit, and the heart-wrenchingly vulnerable Rosie’s secrets lead her unknowingly into terrible danger.

As the mother of a not quite (but definitely heading in that direction) teenage girl, this made harrowing reading. I was entirely gripped as the story unfolded, both afraid to read on and unable to look away, almost shouting at the characters at times for their naivety or iniquity (“Noooo, don’t do that!” “Oh, you utter bastard!” etc). At other times I was in tears. And by the end I was emotionally wrung out.

The characters are so brilliantly drawn, especially auntie Bridget who I would love to have as a friend. (She’s awesome.) As a parent I could relate to Toni too - although her behaviour was excessive and misguided at times it was also somewhat understandable in the circumstances.

I loved this book - beautifully written, incredibly compelling and with several twists in the tale. But parents of daughters: be warned, it’s an emotional rollercoaster.

Wow. Another brilliant book by this author. I loved the main characters in this story, Toni, Rosie and Bridget, very likeable and real. Toni and Bridget are sisters who made a Pact 30 years ago which they will never break but this has made Toni overprotective of her daughter Rosie. An nail biting read.

I have to admit that I was very confused after reading the first few pages. I did not know what I had to think about it. But I am not a quiter and I have to admit it intrigued me. Little by little the story is told by the three main characters : Rosie, her mother and her aunt and everything is being unravelled.
The first half was rather slow. I kept waiting for the thriller part and suddenly I got what I was wishing for. I still had to read about 25% last night and I could not put the book down anymore. I had to finish it and I did.
I would advise you to keep reading even though you think the first part is too slow. It's building up and will unravel the twists het author has in store.
Thank you, Netgalley and Bookouture

Over the top, memorable, jaw dropping, story telling expert... SE Lynes's best one yet in my opinion! The topic is brilliant! The recipe for a psychological thriller hasn't been written.... one part murder, two parts dysfunctional family, a sprinkle of psychotic people, an overprotective mother, and a social media phenomenon! Whoa... a true rollercoaster ride of a read! 10 stars!

The Pact is a gripping thriller full of suspense and intrigue. Twists and turns at every corner! I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone else.

I found the start of the book a little slow going but I’m glad I stuck with it. It was an interesting read with the three main characters going from one perspective to another but a storyline that we can all relate to as being all too real in the world today. All in all a great read.

I really enjoyed this book, it was fast paced and easy to read... I couldn’t read it quick enough.

I loved the triangle of female main characters who had a different dynamic between each pair within.

The book is written from each persons perspective so you do need to pay attention to who’s chapter your reading. Although the chapters flicked between perspectives and different times, I found it easy enough to keep track of what was going on.

There were twists and turns that I thought I’d worked out but never had fully which I really enjoyed. The one twist that still has me puzzled is the one at the end!!!

I’d definitely recommend this book as a must read.

After a slightly slow start, I found The Pact to be a gripping thriller with plenty of secrets and some serious twists and turns. It’s well written, gathers pace nicely and draws you into a thrilling conclusion.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.

What an amazing read . The story of a young teenage girl ,her overprotective mother and her lovely aunt . Told from each viewpoint when Rosie is in hospital unconscious the story unravels as to how she got there by each page turn . Not only a thriller but a book that shows the love of a family.and also the dangers of our modern day world .Once again the author has written a book worthy of 5 stars . My thanks to netgalley and bookouture for my chance to read

Rosie is a 15 year old girl currently lying in a hospital bed. We slowly get the story of how she ended up there and the trials and tribulations along the way. Toni her very strict mother smothers Rosie, she is over protective due to her own past experiences, Tonis sister Bridget is trying to hold them all together but has a secret past with her sister (The pact) that is the underlying current of the story. This is a bit of a slow burner but its all leading up to a super story that will keep you questioning along the way.

Toni and Bridget share a secret, Rosie and Toni have suffered heartache.
When 14 year old Rosie joins a drama club and meets her first love online is everything as it seems.
The characters in this book are intriguing, the storyline is gripping although at times a little unbelievable.
I really enjoyed this book, I did not see the ending coming and it added a whole new side to the story I’d just read.
Thanks for allowing me to read this book.

I loved Mother by S E Lynes, I was really looking forward to reading this and it didn't let me down . I read it in a day from cover to cover . Toni and Bridget shared a really traumatic childhood and made a promise that they would never discuss what they went through . I loved Bridget and Toni's relationship and there is so much in the news and written about what can happen with social media and child grooming . it was handled brilliantly and had me on the edge of my seat . Brilliant

This is an edge of your seat thriller. I couldn't read it quick enough. It shows how dangerous the Internet can be, especially to young people.

Toni and Bridget share a pact. They have had their share of tragedy and form a triangular family with Toni's daughter, Rosie. Toni's biggest focus in life is to keep Rosie safe. She wants to ensure Rosie has a childhood, something she missed out on. An unforgettable story, with relatable characters and a very relatable timeline, which especially resonated with me as a mum of a teenager.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for the review copy of this book