I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I liked this author I loved Best Day Ever and she didn't disappoint with The Favorite Daughter at all. I loved Jane, I could see where she was coming from as a mother. I mean she just wanted to have the perfect family and would obviously go to extreme to get it. I didn't care for her husband at all. I had my suspicions about Sam her driver and when his involvement came to light I was even more surprised. Even though I said I understood where she was coming from, I also think that if she had just left none of what happened would have happened at all. She could have moved on and back to LA where she wanted to be in the end anyways

I enjoyed Rouda's last book, BEST DAY EVER, and similarly, this one kept me wondering what would happen next and put me right in the headspace of a very sick individual. We want to know if a young woman's death was accidental or murder, and whodunnit, and ultimately we do get those answers in a satisfying way. But I wish we'd seen behind the facade sooner in the book. Unfortunately, I didn't really have anyone to root for in this book the way I did in her prior book (with the psychopath's wife), because the whole story was from one POV and the husband and daughter were portrayed in a poor light, understandably given their living situation.

Rouda excels at the narcissistic characters. This was a quick, well woven read.

Free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars
psychological thriller- check
family drama and secret- check
reliable or unreliable narrator- check
accidental death or a murder- check
This book has it all. A total page-turner which will keep you trying to figure out what will happen next.

Sorry, but this book is awful. I can't even get to the third chapter. I suppose the creepiness is factored into the plot but I can't even...

4.5 stars

Jane Harris is a woman that I wanted to hate from the beginning. She was not a character to love or feel any emotion for at all.

I felt like most of the story I saw coming but it was well paced and laid out well to make it enjoyable. This was a very quick enjoyable read for me.

Whoa! This book will have you on pins and needles. It's so mysteriously creepy and impossible to put down. I don't even know how to begin to describe it, but it's unlike anything I've read before. Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for the chance to read and review this book!

This story opens up with Jane, who has finally emerged from her year-long fog of grief from her daughter Mary's sudden and unexpected death. She is starting to re-engage with husband David and younger daughter Betsy who both have big secrets. The book is told from Jane's perspective, and this is really entertaining because Jane is a narcissist.

My opinion of Jane swayed back and forth. I couldn't help but feel sorry for her at the way that her family treats her. Jane seems to have good intentions but she feels very misunderstood. Her husband is cheating on her, and her daughter despises her, but did she cause this or is she a victim of the circumstances? Is she a grieving, heartbroken mother or a messed-up narcissist? How and why did Mary die? These burning questions kept me reading.

As the book progresses, Jane's calm and cool demeanor crumbles and she becomes unhinged, but it happens gradually through Jane's humorous, dark perspective. I laughed out loud many times. I hated David for cheating on his wife. I rooted for Jane and wanted her to get revenge on David and pay for what he did. So what if she's crazy?! Jane needs retribution!

Jane Harris is just as fascinating as Paul Strom, the character from Kaira Rouda's first book, Best Day Ever. There are some similarities between the two characters, but Jane is more layered, complex, and an unreliable narrator. I like Jane more than Paul. I had a hard time completely hating her because of her circumstances, but it's obvious that she is cray cray.

Kaira Rouda's writing is compelling and engaging, ominous, darkly funny, and creepy. She is a master at creating narcissistic, psychopathic, and sociopathic characters that you love to hate but relate to on some level. If you like books with unpredictable, crazy female characters like Lydia from Lying In Wait by Liz Nugent, or Louise from Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton, then this book is a must-read for you.

A wonderful and entertaining story told by a riveting narrator, Jane Harris. It’s a year after her favorite daughter died and Jane is emerging from a medicated haze of grief. She’s ready to reinsert herself in the starring role as Mother. But the cast of characters have different plans. If you enjoy psychological thrillers, this one fits the bill!

Wow! This book is a psychological thriller at it's best! If you read The Perfect Day, then you know how unreliable Rouda's characters can be.
The book follows the story of Jane, a grieving mother whose second daughter is graduating from high school in a few days. Her first daughter died in a tragic accident, so Jane is nervous about letting her daughter go. However, things are definitely what they seem, and trying to figure out what is real, and what is not, is part of the intrigue!
I loved this book, couldn't put it down, lost sleep over it, and HIGHLY recommend!

Kaira Rouda is a unique storyteller with a talent for character creativity! We first meet Jane, the narrator of the story. I have to admit that initially I felt sorry for her. She was grieving for the loss of her daughter, Mary, in a tragic accident. It seems her husband was not sympathetic and she had been reliant on drugs to help her get through the days. Then doubts crept into my mind and I was not sure that I liked Jane very much. She proves to be a narcissist, controlling and probably a psychopath. I did enjoy a line I read in one of the later chapters where Jane described she was going to have the Best Day Ever, which is the title of her previous book. I loved it!

5 stars. The Favorite Daughter will be a standout in 2019!
A psychological thriller with chilling suspense and an unreliable main character.. She will make you laugh out loud and shutter at the same time with her dark wit and sinister thoughts. There are twists and turns at every corner and a satisfying ending. A hugely entertaining and satisfying read.

Oh wow. Put some time away for this book. It has all the ingredients for a terrific psychological thriller.

No spoilers from me. Book is great with lots of lies, deception, tragedy, and twists. Also, loved the unpredictable ending. Can't say enough great about this. Read it today!!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this fabulous book.

I received an advanced copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book had me on the edge of my seat the whole time! It was definitely a book that kept you thinking! I would definitely recommend this book to fellow readers. Thank you!

I have been a victim of a book hangover...because of this book. Holy Cow, Kaira!!
taking a concept that worked in her last book (in my opinion the best thriller in the past 5 years) and focusing the MC as an unlikeable and unreliable person. I never thought I could detest and yet feel for a character at the same time. Jane, is a grieving Mother. A helicopter Mom if you will. A devoted wife and she is being wronged. At least that's what she wants you to think...inside her head, sinister thoughts arise.

I loved every page of this novel

Wowza what a thrilling non stop ride!!! Jane Harris is living a perfect life. Perfect husband, perfect daughters, and a perfect house in a wealthy gated community in California. A terrible tragedy happens one year ago, Mary the oldest daughter is tragically killed. Jane lives the year in a haze of anti-depressants. When it is just days before Betsy's high school graduation, Jane knows she needs to reclaim her life. What has Jane's husband David and only remaining daughter Betsy been up to in the year Jane checked out of life? In just a few days Jane tells a story of a mother's love and a devoted wife but can she be believed? This story had so many fantastic twists and turns it left me at the edge of my seat wanting more and the ending? Wow!!! I received an advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Harlequin Graydon House. All opinions are my own.

An intriguing thriller with an unreliable disturbed main character who leads the reader on without revealing the truth, till the end.

Wow. This book was so incredible. I read this book on vacation and I found that I couldn’t wait to get back to it. I haven’t been this hooked on a book in a long, long time. It was so good that at about halfway in, I immediately downloaded the author’s previous book, Best Day Ever, because I knew I had to read it. I even paid over $7 for it, which for me is a lot for a digital copy for a book (I usually wait til digital books are $3 or under before buying them).

I felt like I was riding along in the mind of someone very different from me. The main character is just chilling. Some of the things she thought or said actually astounded me-I actually shook my head or gasped- which really weirded out the people who were next to me on the plane. I don’t physically react to books very often.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes psychological novels that put you inside the mind of a very disturbed person. This author is the master, as far as I’m concerned!

*than you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC of this book in exchange for this honest review*

Jane Harris is an interesting and complicated main character. She has been grieving the death of her daughter, Mary for a year and is finally ready to stop the meds and reconnect with her husband and her younger daughter Betsy who’s about to graduate HS.

Author Kaira Rouda has big talent when it comes to writing unreliable narrators. Similar to Paul in her last book Best Day Ever, Jane talks to the reader and works hard to prove what a considerate and thoughtful person she is. She’s a good wife and an involved parent.

No spoilers here so all I can say is you will be hooked and won’t be able to put this chilling and complex title down. Bravo to Kaira for another fantastic read!

I received an ARC from Netgalley.

I hated the narrator. Hated her (which I think you are supposed to). I had zero idea what was going on, mainly because we are reading from the view of an unreliable narrator. The plot was ok, nothing crazy but nothing completely boring. The characters all felt very similar, no one stood out from the other. The story built up to this whole graduation climax and it felt very blah. The writing was excellent and definitely kept me engaged the whole time, hence the 4 star rating. But there were definitely things that could have been done better.