I would like to thank Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Friend’ by Teresa Driscoll in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
Sophie lives in the village of Tedbury in Devon with husband Mark and four-year-old son Ben. When she goes to London she leaves Ben in the capable hands of her friend Emma who has a young son herself. But during her train journey home Sophie receives a phone call to say there’s been a terrible accident and both Ben and Theo, Emma’s son, are in hospital. Sophie thought she could trust Emma to look after Ben but after learning about Emma’s past she’s now not so sure.
The rapidity of the chapters changing from past to present caused me to become a little confused, but nevertheless, ‘The Friend’ was well written and the plot gripping. As the tension mounted it became full of menace and the conclusion was shocking and completely unexpected. I can wholeheartedly recommend this novel which kept me enthralled till the end.

Sophie is on a train when she is informed her son and his friend have suffered a terrible accident. Whilst frantically waiting for the train to take her back home she relives the moments that have got her to where she is now. Should she have trusted her new friend with her child?

The Friend is a psychological thriller mainly told from the perspective of Sophie as she starts her new life in the small village of Tedbury, makes a new friend and raises her son, Ben. The plot is well thought out and there’s the perfect balance of flashback vs present narrative to keep you intrigued. It also occasionally skips to different character perspectives for a chapter or two to advance the story and the threads all pull together in a great crescendo at the end of the book. In the last few chapters especially the pace upswings dramatically and although it was getting late I couldn’t tear myself away from it to sleep – I had to know what was going to happen!

This is the second book by Teresa Driscoll that I have read, and it does not disappoint. The book begins with aterrifying scenario for any parent: Sophie is stuck on a train when she receives a call that her son, Ben, is at the hospital and possibly needs surgery. However, another young boy is involved also, one of Ben's friends, and the hospital staff cannot tell the two boys apart.

The chapters alternate between present day and the past, developing the characters and plotline along the way. Sophie befriends the new girl in town, Emma, and it seems like they have quite a few things in common. The characters and plotline are complex and multi-layered.

Subtle foreshadowing at the beginning of the book may lead you to be suspicious of Emma and her motives. An incident at a local fair casts a dark cloud over Emma that remains throughout the book. Little by little more people come to suspect that there is more to Emma than meets the eye. Her character is shaped as the story develops and she is more closely scrutinized.

A series of shocking twists at the end that will leave you reeling and breathless long after the final page.

I would recommend this book to fans of psychological thrillers and suspense. I received this as a free ARC from Thomas & Mercer on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sophie is on a train when she is informed her son and his friend have suffered a terrible accident. Whilst frantically waiting for the train to take her back home she relives the moments that have got her to where she is now. Should she have trusted her new friend with her child?

The Friend is a psychological thriller mainly told from the perspective of Sophie as she starts her new life in the small village of Tedbury, makes a new friend and raises her son, Ben. The plot is well thought out and there’s the perfect balance of flashback vs present narrative to keep you intrigued. It also occasionally skips to different character perspectives for a chapter or two to advance the story and the threads all pull together in a great crescendo at the end of the book. In the last few chapters especially the pace upswings dramatically and although it was getting late I couldn’t tear myself away from it to sleep – I had to know what was going to happen!

The book gives you just enough information throughout and then unexpectedly floors you with something new, whether that’s a large event, a sinister phrasing from a character or a new backstory – everything is handed to the reader in slow, methodical drips to keep you reading and wanting to find out more. Although this lends itself to a great pace and makes the ending more dramatic, I think it does become a bit too much at times which can be a little frustrating to the reader. There’s also a couple of really odd phrases used in this book that I personally hadn’t heard of (and as I could see the editor’s comments on the kindle version – neither had they!)

It’s a nicely written and complex story that includes a lot of details but it’s easy to read and keeps you guessing right until the very end. I would highly recommend The Friend and thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Sophie is on a train miles from home when she gets a phone call to say that her son is in hospital.

Her son was playing with his friend and was supposed to be looked after by Emma, Sophie's new friend.

After a tragic accident, Ben is rushed to hospital and Sophie and her husband are stuck on the train.

The train gets held up and sophie is really upset what has happened to her son and will she get to the hospital in time?

Sophie finds out the truth has she put her whole family in danger? And how well did she really know Emma?

In places this book was very hard to follow which was a shame because it would have made the book so much easier to follow.

Very hard hitting and emotional in places you really feel Sophie heartache and can't imagine what she is going through trapped on a train.

It also makes you think that do we actually really know our friends?.

A great book bit confusing in places but good.

Loved this book as I did the last one by this author I love her style of writting and the way the story unfolds but has twists in that you don't see coming looking for ward to the next book!!!

Sophie has suddenly found herself trapped in every loving parents worst nightmare.She is on a train,hours from.home and has just received a chilling phone call.Her four year old son Ben and his young friend are in hospital after a serious accident.

Sophie is at her wits end,she thought Ben would be safe with her best friend Emma.Someone Sophie had bared her soul to,despite the village rumours.But now Sophie is beginning to wonder if she has made a unforgivable mistake.

Because how well does she know Emma? Should she have trusted her to take care of her precious son?

Sophie is about to discover the truth.And her life will never be the same.


It is absolutely terrifying when your child is gravely ill in hospital and you aren't with them,believe me I know from personal experience.So I could fully understand Sophie`s fear,guilt and desperate need to get to the hospital as quickly as possible.Trapped on a train with nothing else to do but panic and wait for updates on her son`s condition,Sophie takes us into the past and goes over the events leading up to her current situation.Through her eyes we meet the residents of the small village of Tedbury where she lives with her husband Mark and their young son Ben.Like most other small communities everyone knows everyone else's business and what they don't know,they make up.We get to see the inner workings of Sophie and Mark`s marriage,how and where she met Emma and the effect that seemingly innocent meeting had on her life and relashionships.There are parts that are voiced by other characters including Mark and Emma but the story is mainly voiced by our protagonist Sophie.

I really enjoyed this well written,gripping thriller,it was intense,creepy and had a twist that I definitely didn't see coming.There where a few parts that where quite hard to read and I really felt a lot of sympathy for one character.This story really played with my emotions at times,a emotional roller coaster ride from the first page to the last.

Well written, enjoyable psychological thriller. A 'keep on reading even though I am tired' kind of book. Guessed some but not all of the ending. Look forward to future books by this author.

I loved this book! Great book. Brilliant storyline and excellent main characters. I would not hesitate to recommend.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one, it's had me banging through it ALL DAY.

So imagine that you are stuck on a train, miles from home, your child has been in an accident with his friend - the hospital don't know which is which - the injuries are severe perhaps more for one than the other - what do you do? Well there isn't a lot you CAN do except pray for the train to go faster and reflect on what has brought you here...

Therein lies the premise for "The Friend" - a twisty psychological thriller that follows Sophie's new friendship with Emma, a seemingly perfect pal, bringing a fresh new feel to the small village they live in, both with young children, they naturally gravitate together. Suddenly though divisions within this small community seem rife, gossip about Emma abounds and maybe she isn't quite as perfect as she seems...

So things I loved about this: The position the author put her main protagonist in brought a fresh feel to the genre - you know how you often read these books and the idiotic actions of characters can make you crazy - there's danger lurking and they'll run right into it, usually having forgotten to charge their phones, or not bothering to call the police because of some unrelated thing they don't want to disclose, or you know all the plot ploys by now to make sure the reader has to wait for things to be revealed. In this case the main character has no option for stupidity, she's stuck on that damn train, so apart from some very natural hysterics, she has no options. As a reader this ensured I stayed right on her side. No rolling of eyes with this one...

The story told in flashback as Sophie remembers it all, is clever and quite scary in places. We do see some things from other character's points of view but it's mostly Sophie who has had a fairly rough time of it, none of which I'll give away. Still, she is ripe for this new friendship, one that might be more toxic than even our external characters are beginning to realise...

It was a page turner, to be sure. As we all wait for that darned train to get Sophie home, the story unfolding is fascinating and intriguing. The characters all have levels and I liked the exploration of friendship, real and otherwise, plus the family drama side was realistically described.

Overall a really good read. Recommended.

Sophie and her husband are far away when they get a call that their young son and another boy have been badly injured in an accident. Sophie had left her son in the care of new friend, Emma. She hasn’t known Emma long, but something about the woman invited confidence and Sophie has shared things with her new friend she hasn’t shared with anyone. Now she wonders if she made a terrible mistake. How much does she really know about Emma. Hours away from home and from her son, Sophie becomes increasingly desperate. This is one of those “every parent’s nightmare” stories that will have you second guessing your own babysitter