Because You’re Mine is shockingly good, fast-paced, filled with lies, deceit, jealousy, addiction—with an ending that completely blew me away! The story is so brilliantly conceived; the story starts off as a family drama—best friends, two single moms, struggling together—until the lies insidiously seep into their lives, leaving wreckage in their wake. Rea Frey’s storytelling was astounding, as I was continuously shocked, saddened, and even repulsed as each deception is revealed, never prepared for the next twist! The shock factor is off the charts in this sinuous novel!!

I love Rea Frey and her uncanny ability to breathe life into her characters that exist in her imagination and on the pages of her books. I went right along with Sarah when she kidnapped a child in “Not My Child”, and went so far as to make excuses and approve of her actions. Yet again I’ve been snookered by the lead female character in her new book, “Because You’re Mine”.
What’s not to love about Grace, who not only proves to be a supportive friend to Lee and her autistic son Mason but is also a loving and attentive mother to her own son and a true and caring friend to her invaluable circle of friends? Is the underlying problem that hunky Noah, who, as a boyfriend is almost too good to be true? Is Lee unstable, going flippers for her son’s tutor without provocation? It certainly isn’t Mason. He’s the one character we all love, no matter what twisted adult games the grownups around him are playing.
This is a quick-paced and enjoyable read with lots of secrets and a few unforeseen twists. I anxiously await Rea’s next imaginary world of characters and the mayhem they wreck!
(I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review. Thanks so much to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for making it available.)

This book has more twists and turns then a country back road!!! I will recommend this book to all of my friends and family!!

This was not, to me, an edge of your seat, couldn’t put down sort of thriller. But then I don’t believe books have to have that big sizzle to be a good story. The story is told by Grace, Lee and Noah and we go from past to present. These three people are holding secrets and one or maybe all of them are telling lies. This was an enjoyable mystery and I thought I had it all figured out .... I didn’t.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

This book will surprise you! The author paints a picture of each character and then bam at the end you won't believe what happens. I recommend this book to keep you on your toes.

Wow - the hours FLEW by while I was engrossed in this book. If you want a gripping book about family, friends, and secrets pasts - this is the book for you. I loved how everything in the book intertwined and came altogether in the end. Everything fit well into a perfectly matched puzzle.
I didn’t give it 5 Stars because I thought Lee was a bit whiny in the beginning - I understand she had a really difficult life but I get sick of characters that are always like “why me.” Another reason is because I did guess some of the twists in the book from the clues - but definitely not all of them!
Definitely a read well worth your time!

This was a fast reading domestic thriller that kept me turning the pages to find out what was going on.
It opens with a death, but you’re not even sure who dies til about halfway into the book. There are several narrators & you’re not sure which ones are reliable...even at the end. There are also diary entries interspersed so you know *someone* is lying, but who?
The ending was a twist I didn’t see coming at all but it was a little abrupt after all the detail we’d been given up til that point.
Overall I really liked the book, especially the Nashville setting (it’s always fun to read a book set where you live!)

Ok so you know when you are reading a book and it has a slow build and your like ok this can go either way well this book is just that way and don’t worry it go the good way ... well I mean it goes bad but in a good way lol.

Rea Frey wrote this book so interesting, she gave me a ton of tiny chapters that jumped from multi view points which was amazing.

And I really must applaud Rea on her very emotional letter to the reader. After I read the letter I had to get myself ready for this book. I knew it was going to be a tough one. Rea you are not alone and again I applaud your bravery, strength and courage. You are an amazing person! Thank you!

I really enjoyed this book! The story moved a bit slowly at first so it took me a little while to really get into it and hooked. The multiple perspectives also threw me off a little, but I was able to adjust and soon found myself sucked into the story.

Lee, Mason, Noah, and Grace were all very well developed characters. This story had me turning pages quickly so I could find out what was going to happen next. I was not expecting that ending at all. My mouth was dropped open in shock.

What did I just finish? I totally didn’t see this one coming, and to be completely honest, this one probably would have been a five if it wasn’t for the tremendous “EW” factor that is involved with this book. The characters are well written and the plot moves along so well. I question a few motives: I think it’s because I try to see the good in everyone, including fictional characters. :) I highly recommend this one to those folks who like domestic thrillers.. because this one is a tremendous spin on the genre. Promise you won’t try to read any spoilers. If you like domestic thrillers get this book!

Poor Lee..

3.5 stars

<b>But it’s the lies that keep you safe.</b>

Lee is a single mother who has a carefully crafted life. Everything is timed to the minute. She does this for her on-the-spectrum son, Mason. She works from home; he is schooled from home. Their lives are constructed and stable. When Lee is invited to go on a weekend away with her friends, she wants to go, and eventually is talked into going by her best friend, Grace. Noah, Mason's tutor, agrees's to watch Mason for the weekend and provide hourly updates. When asked, Mason tells his mother he is comfortable staying with Noah for the weekend. So, as the synopsis tells us, four friends go away, but only three come back. One is dead - but who and why?

This book is told through the POV's both past and present of the three main characters - Lee, Grace and Noah. Through their voices the reader learns about what brought each character to where he/she is today. That is if they are all telling the truth, because there are entries in this book which brag about lying and doing so great a job at lying that no one knows. Who wrote those entries?

<i>“Lying comes as easily to me as breathing. Everyone believes me. I’m good. I’m safe. I’m trustworthy. Most people like me. Which is why no one suspects me of lying.”</i>

I thought I had this book figured out approximately halfway through. One twist I was extremely confident about, I was wrong. The Author does a good job at leaving clues both reliable and unreliable through the book. There are quite a few twists and turns in this book and it proved to be a fast compelling read. I found that the alternating POV's both past and present worked nicely for the storytelling. The writing is wonderful and as I was getting to the end, I wondered when the reveal is going to happen and then it did. I have mixed feelings on the ending. One hand, it felt as if it came out of left field but on the other hand, I do recall the character making mention of one thing toward the beginning of the book so then I thought, well maybe no so left field after all.

So, I am teetering with this one. I enjoyed the book all the way through and I enjoyed Frey's writing and use of POV chapters. I thought she did a great job with her clues and use of lies in the book. I found the book to be perfectly paced especially with the reveals but toward the end, things really sped up and I would have liked a couple more pages. But at the end, I felt a little underwhelmed. Instead of being shocked by the ending, I just "okay, so that is how it ends." I did enjoy this one quite a bit hence the 3.5 stars.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley, I received an e-arc of Because You’re Mine by author Rea Frey to read and review. All opinions are strictly my own. After having read Frey’s first novel, Not Her Daughter, I knew I would want to read this. Although now that I have, I can tell you they are nothing alike. I preferred this story so much more. It’s a suspense novel told by the perspectives of the 3 main characters. One thing I got right from the start was that everyone was lying. You didn’t know who or what to believe. There was times when I thought I had the storyline figured out only to find out that I didn’t. It wasn’t until the very last few pages of the book that I learned the truth and believe me, was I ever shocked! It knocked me for a loop! I never seen it coming. The one character that I thought was truly good, one that I really liked, was actually more deceitful than the others. It’s definitely a book to read if you enjoy suspense type thrillers that keep you guessing right to the end. I found it to be a very engrossing story and will be recommending it to all my reader friends. In my opinion, it’s a 5 star read!

I loved. “Not Her Daughter “ (5 stars) by Rea Frey, so when the publisher invited me to read an advance copy of “Because You’re Mine”, I jumped at the chance!

Lee is a single mother, raising Mason, who is on the Autism Spectrum. She can really use a break, so when her best friend, Grace, along with their other friends, Carol and Alice, invite her to join them on a weekend getaway, AND her son’s tutor Noah, agrees to care for Mason, while they are gone, she allows herself to be persuaded to say “yes”.

One woman will not survive the weekend.

The book alternates between “one week before the fall” to the past, and then back to the present again, flipping between the two until the secrets and lies of Lee, Grace and Noah are finally revealed.

There are also chapters interspersed which are written in italics, and are meant to be “diary entries”...they were my favorites...

Excerpt from one:

“Lying comes as easily to me as breathing. Everyone believes me. I’m good. I’m safe. I’m trustworthy. Most people like me. Which is why no one suspects me of lying.”

Sounds like a book that I would normally love, right?

So what went wrong?

I FELT LIKE THIS BOOK COULD NOT FIND ITS IDENTITY.

The SYNOPSIS and DIARY ENTRIES read like a “psychological thriller or suspense novel” but the main body of the book is not consistent with that genre, reading more like women’s fiction or chick lit with detailed sex scenes and silly conversations between friends.

More than once, I found myself thinking... What are the odds of THAT happening?”

And, don’ get me started on the page and a half I had to endure, learning about how chicken is processed for consumption (beware chapter 35) to demonstrate how Mason is fascinated, not repulsed by this.....(unnecessary filler that I have ZERO interest in reading about) 🐥 Author pushing a vegetarian agenda?

And, then the ending! NOPE-can’t buy into this one!

YOU may be a better fit for this one if you love surprising twists and you don’t care if they come out of left field.

Those don’ work for me.

I would like to thank Netgalley, and St. Martin’s Griffin Publishing for the digital ARC I received in exchange for a candid review! This book will be available on Aug. 6, 2019.

I received an Electronic Advanced Reader Copy through NetGalley.

All I can say is WOW. This book had me pulled in from the first word to the very last. The subject matter may make this a tough read for some, but it is a fantastic book. I appreciate the author’s writing style - the short chapters and alternating points of view held my interest and I had to know what happened next. The author’s note at the beginning, and the acknowledgments at the end make this read even more special.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced read. I fell in love with this book. I read this in one day. Such a page turner. It was quite messed up and I don’t want to give anything more away.

Book 59: Because You're Mine by Rea Frey
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📚 Big thanks to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This phenomenal read will be available August 2019. If you are a fan of suspenseful & dramatic reads that make you stay up late to finish them, I'm sure you'll be doing it for this one!
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📚 What a ride! Told from three alternating points of view and two different points in time, this storyline is one that makes you pay attention so that you don't miss a thing. Lee is a single mother caring for her young autistic son, Luca, when she is invited for a weekend getaway with her girlfriends. Never having been away from Luca, this makes her nervous, but things fall into place and she is able to attend, thanks to his tutor Noah. Unfortunately, secrets are brought to light during a night of confessions and before the trip is over, someone is dead. Everyone's life will be affected and links from the past will come back to seek revenge.
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📚 As I said earlier, what a ride! I made so many of my own predictions and entanglements between characters along the way and I was happy to be wrong! 🤭 I love it when an author can surprise me with shocks along the way and a nice twist at the end!

This is the book everyone will be talking about this summer!!! It had me hooked from the first sentence, and as I continued reading the grip took hold as I learned someone most certainly would die and how. But who? The story revolves around three main characters: Lee, Grace and Noah. All three characters have secrets; very dark secrets and the time has come for them to be revealed.
Lee is a single mom and business owner, who has carefully built a life that allows for the daily routines her autistic son Mason, needs to keep him a happy and thriving young boy. He is her world and she will do anything to keep him safe and content. Anything!
Grace is Lee's older and wiser best friend. The one and only person in Lee's life whom she can rely upon for anything.
Noah is Mason's tutor and Lee has recently discovered romantic feelings for him that she is unable to ignore. But is sharing them with Noah the right thing to do?
When Lee and Grace leave for a weekend getaway with a couple of other girlfriends, Mason is left in the care of Noah. Though Lee is very nervous about the arrangements, she is desperate for a break and time to relax. By the end of their girl's trip, secrets are shared, and someone is dead. Those left behind have to pick up the pieces and still have secrets that need revealing...
Author Rea Frey has masterfully crafted a story that weaves the past and the present into a fact-paced thriller. Just when you think there can't possibly be any more twists or secrets, Frey shows she has more tricks up her sleeve.
This is the best thriller I've read in quite some time!

I couldn’t put this book down! Love the way that all three main characters’ secrets were so tantalizingly revealed throughout the pages...some predictable but others definitely not. So many connections between the characters, Grace, Lee, and Noah. Loved, loved, loved Mason! No spoilers here. Do yourself a favor and read the book before you read the reviews that contain so many spoilers. If you like suspenseful books that keep you up all night reading this book is for you. This is sure to be the next huge bestseller in the suspense genre. Many, many thanks to Rea Frey, St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this exhilarating read, to be published in August.

I’m a little torn writing this because I felt that the first 3/4 of this was good but not outstanding. At times I was bored and felt that the plot lacked the certain nuance that thriller writers use to create tension without being blatantly obvious about it.

And then came the twist at the end. I was totally blown away and it completely changed my perspective. I read so much psychological suspense and there is nothing better than an unforeseen twist that I did not anticipate and that makes me gasp out loud. It honestly does not happen very often these days as I find more and more thrillers to be rather predictable. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for a killer ending.

Many thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Griffin and Rea Frey for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

First book I've read by this author and I really enjoyed it! I thought I figured out where the plot was going but got a big surprise at the end. Told by different point of view and also goes back and forth between past and present. Will definitely read more by her