This is a book I’ve been hearing such great things about lately. As anxious as I was to immediately dig into it, I feared the hype may be overrated, leaving one disappointed reader. Well...my worries couldn’t be further from reality! I loved it! It most certainly deserves all the buzz it’s been receiving.

Early on I was sure I had a handle on this twisty gem. Not even close. The curves never quit coming! And the ending...BAM!

How well do you really know the love of your life...or your best friend for that matter! Who can you really trust? Are you sure?

If you love a masterfully crafted, twisty thriller guaranteed to keep you in the dark guessing throughout...look no further! This is the book for you!
As much as I enjoyed Sandie Jones previous book The Other Woman, her latest release blows that one away, a must read! Highly recommend!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press-Minotaur Books and Sandie Jones for an ARC to read and review.

A truly unbelievable tale of deception and deceit. You will never see what unfolds in the end coming. The author does a marvelous job of holding the secrets close and keeping the reader guessing. Alice and Beth are both led on a merry chase to untangle the mess that their lives have become. Only through the strength of their friendship are they able to figure things out and survive to stay alive. The characters are enigmatic and the story is poignant and highly emotional.

Wow! Love finishing a book and feeling that way! The newest novel by Sandie Jones, The First Mistake, will keep you guessing throughout. As you explore the relationships of Alice & Beth as well as their friendship, you will be left questioning how well we ever know anyone and can you ever really trust anyone? The suspense in this book is not abundant, but rather skillfully layered in the stories of these two women. You easily get caught up in their lives as the suspense mounts. Looking forward to future titles by this author. Thanks to Minotaur Books for the ARC, I am happy to share my honest review.

3.5 stars.

When I read Reese Witherspoons Book Club pick, The Other Woman, last year, I immediately fell in love with Sandie Jones. So when I saw she had another book coming out, I couldn't wait to read it. Unfortunately, I have lots of mixed feelings about her sophomore novel so stay tuned.

I'm going to give you a super vague description of the plot, because I don't want to give anything away. But, basically, Alice lives a wonderful live with her husband Nathan and their two daughters, one from Alice's previous marriage to a man named Tom. When odd things start happening.... think jewelry found in husband's car or bouquet of flowers addressed to another woman.... Alice begins to become suspicious that her husband is having an affair. And when she goes down that rabbit hole, she will discover more than she bargained for.

Let me just start by saying that if I had read this book 5 years ago when I was first getting into the psychological thriller genre, I probably would have loved it. Unfortunately, with the genre getting more and more jam packed with talent, thrillers really need to stand out to "thrill" me anymore. And this one felt a little bit basic.

I enjoyed the story at a high level and appreciated the way Sandie Jones neatly tied up (most of) the loose ends with a bow. It felt clean and polished. But it also felt predictable. I only found one of the twists mildly surprising, but everything else I saw coming from a mile away. I also felt like the transitions from Part 1 to Part 2 to Part 3 were all kind of choppy. The first two parts felt like completely stand alone and separate stories (because they kind of were), but the structure felt disjointed and left me dissatisfied.

I will also say that the ending finished up too quickly for my liking and I could have done without the Epilogue. I didn't think it added any value and felt a little bit odd.

If I wasn't a huge reader of psychological thriller, I probably would have been more surprised along the way. So I could see this being a stepping stone for somebody into the genre. Would recommend for somebody who doesn't often read psychological thriller and may be looking for a quick and easy read. I wish I would have loved this more but still look forward to what Sandie Jones will come up with next.

-I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Sandie Jones, and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to review.-

I can't tell you how excited I was to see that I was approved for The First Mistake. I LOVED The Other Woman. But this one just missed the mark for me. I was having a hard time with it, and it just kept getting more and more outlandish. With that being said, the writing itself was really well done, I was just having issues with the storyline.

I really enjoyed reading this book. It’s my second book by this author and she didn’t disappoint. It’s perfect if you’re looking for a beach read this summer. The author puts in lots of twists. The ending was perfect.

This book was okay. There were certain parts of this book that were interesting and other parts that left me feeling blah. It was as if this book was not sure what it wanted to be. The plot was very jumpy, so much so that it made it hard to focus. Was this book about cheating? Was this book about friendship? Why were there flowers on the cover? Once I completed the book, I don’t think these questions were ever answered or maybe my attention was on some other plot line.

The ending left me with more questions and was just meh overall. I will say that this book was an easy read, and kept me turning the page throughout. Every chapter was almost a cliffhanger which made me push through to the next. Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Alice to outsiders seems to be living the perfect life. She has two beautiful daughters, a handsome husband, and she owns and runs her own interior design company. However, Alice isn't as happy as she seems. She still can't let go of her first husband Tom, who died ten years earlier. Nathan came to save Alice when she was in the darkest of places. With his help, she has learned to move on without Tom. Alice is hiding that her world has been chaos lately, she still misses Tom, one of the girls is having trouble at school, and Nathan seems to be acting strangely. Alice knows there's someone she can always count on to be there for her no matter what. Beth has been Alice's best friend for years and has always been there when she's needed her. Lately, though Alice isn't sure if Beth is as good a friend as she once thought.
This book was a slow burn for me, but once it took off, it took off with a bang. There's a lot I want to say about this book, but then I would be spoiling it for someone else, and I rather not. Overall, this was a fun read it I wanted to keep reading to see if I was right in figuring out what would happen next. Throughout the book, I was right about one thing. This story has a lot of twists and turns and an ending you'll have to read to believe.

A big thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this advanced copy.in exchange for my honest review.

Really enjoyed this book. Alice, the main character, has been struggling for years over her 1st husband's death. She never gave her 2nd husband her full attention as a wife. When she finally begins to, strange things start to happen. This novel has quite a few twists and turns so you are never really sure who is telling the truth or who is lying. Great beach read. Definitely a recommend to my friends who like suspense.

From the author of The Other Woman comes The First Mistake by Sandie Jones.

Alice lost her husband, Tom, very suddenly. Leaving her a widow with a young daughter. She didn't handle his death well. And who could blame her? But now she is married to Nathan and they have a daughter together. Her interior design business is going well, she has a great house and enough money. All her own. 

She also has a secret best friend, Beth. Beth has a daughter also. She also has a secret. One that could blow Alice's entire world apart. And Nathan may not be who he says he is. Is Alice being gaslighted or is she losing her mind? And what was her first mistake?

This had an Alfred Hitchcock feel to it! There were so many loose threads to pull and they all were leading in different directions. More than one person is messing with her mind and her marriage. But why?

I figured out the why early on. And the who. But that ending, truly satisfying!

NetGalley/ Minotaur June 11, 2019

2 Stars-- The First Mistake by Sandie Jones-- Out June 11
-
Thank you Minotaur books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.
-
Alice's first husband Tom disappeared 10 years ago. During this time, she has fallen apart and put herself back together. She is remarried to Nathan and they share two children (one from Tom) and are about to break with a big deal for their company. But something is nagging Alice about Nathan. Weird things start to happen with not just Nathan but her best friend Beth.
-
What I Liked: I enjoy the pace (minus one part) in which Jones writes. Her debut novel was a page turner as well. The plot here had a lot of potential, but was just bogged down by things mentioned below.
-
What I I Didn't: I felt there were many plot points that were just absolutely useless. Jones tried to use Alice's daughters in different ways-- Sophia and her Snapchat and Olivia and her problems at school-- but these honestly fell flat. Also, part 2 in the middle of the book was really unnecessary. I felt this could have been explained through dialogue and subtle hints in the text. I found the second part to be drawn out and took what should have been a twist at the end and to me made it quite obvious.
-
I had mixed feelings about Jones' last book too, but I do enjoy her writing style. So I am not ready to give up yet!

3.5 stars
I'm wasn't too sure how to rate this. Up until the ending, it was a definite three stars for me. The ending was somewhat twisty, so I added half a star.
This story is told in three parts: Present day Alice, Nine years ago Beth, and then present day Alice and Beth. Alice is married to Nathan. They have a young daughter, Olivia. Alice was married to Tom, but he died. They have a teenage daughter, Sophia. Tom and Alice started their business together and Nathan has come to work at with her since Tom's passing. Beth is a school mom friend of Alice's and she is looking for her daughter's daddy, who bailed on her without even knowing she was pregnant.

Things start happening that leads Alice to think Nathan is having an affair. She goes back and forth in her thinking this, which Nathan denies. I don't want to say too much for fear of spoiling it, but there was some definite foreshadowing early on that I picked up on regarding the big reveal. There was also some obvious things with social media that were key. I didn't completely guess the big twist, so that is always nice.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press/Minotaur Books for providing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a complete “bookstagram made me do it,” especially because I didn’t love her first book, The Other Women, as much as everyone else did. I heard this one was better - and they were right! It was a good mystery and a good twist without being creepy the entire read. It was highly entertaining and kept you guessing, while still giving plausible end predictions along the way. It’s exactly what I wanted to read in the moment.

Great characters and a fast moving plot line coupled with a couple of surprising twists makes this a great read. Recommended

The twist at the end really got me! The only negative I thought was that the book started off with Alice, which is to be expected since she's the main character; however, just when you've become familiar with her, the chapters turn to Beth, her best friend. Instead of the typical alternating chapters I'm familiar with, this one devoted several chapters to Beth so by the time it switched back to Alice, I'm like "who's Alice?" I had forgotten her story. Once I caught on though, wow, the ending - so twisty and stunning! This book is fast paced and a perfect summer read.

Wow. What a good book! I really didn’t see that ending coming! For about the last half I couldn’t put it down. I would definitely recommend it if you like a twisty page-turner! Thanks to @netgalley for the arc!

THE WIFE: For Alice, life has never been better. With her second husband, she has a successful business, two children, and a beautiful house.

HER HUSBAND: Alice knows that life could have been different if her first husband had lived, but Nathan’s arrival into her life gave her back the happiness she craved.

HER BEST FRIEND: Through the ups and downs of life, from celebratory nights out to comforting each other through loss, Alice knows that with her best friend Beth by her side, they can survive anything together. So when Nathan starts acting strangely, Alice turns to Beth for help. But soon, Alice begins to wonder whether her trust has been misplaced . . .

The first mistake could be her last.



My Thoughts: The First Mistake takes the reader inside the domestic lives of several characters, beginning with Alice’s world in which she lost her beloved first husband. Now her second husband shows promise…but suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, she begins to see the cracks in the façade.

In confiding in her best friend Beth, Alice thinks she has found the support she needs, but has she really? Certain details do not add up, and she may have misplaced her trust.

Alternating from the perspectives of Alice and Beth, we find ourselves in a quandary. Can we trust any of these characters? Who has the most to gain from a long con game, and who might be hiding deep, dark secrets?

In the end, I couldn’t stop reading and trying to decide who I should root for. A captivating tale with unexpected twists and turns, I had to give this book 4.5 stars.***My e-ARC came from the publisher via NetGalley.

A disturbing read with twist and turns and ups and downs leaving you just as miffed as the women, as they tell their stories and their lives entwine in ways they could not possibly have foreseen. One woman lost the love of her life, leaving her heartbroken and alone with her young daughter. As her mind fractures and she finds herself unable to even do the most basic things she meets a man whilst she is being treated. Years later she is still struggling, but with a husband, two daughters and a business that is going places she is pushing through. Trying to be happy and live. But things happen and she finds herself doubting everything she thought she knew. Her bestfriend has her own story of loss and betrayal that have left her bitter and alone, with a daughter that has no father and desperate for answers she confides in her friend who vows to help her. But life never goes the way you think it will and secrets have a way of coming out no matter what you do to keep them hidden. An interesting story that kept me occupied throughout my day, held my attention and left keep feeling satisfied with it, from start to finish.

I used to be a huge fan of thrillers and suspense novels for the longest time. But I read so much that I reached a point where it became easy for me to predict the ending, at least for most books. I still love the genre a lot but I usually go in with a lot of trepidation because I honestly don’t want to read yet another thriller just to see if I’m still good at sussing out the culprit.

I requested The First Mistake by chance on NetGalley. When I eventually started reading the book, I did make my usual guess. But you know what? I only got a little bit of it right. There are two major twists in the book and I only got one of them partially right. And this twist happens halfway through the book, which meant the suspense was still intact for the ending.

The First Mistake is the story of Alice, owner and designer of AT Designs, a company she started with her late first husband. She’s now living a happy life with her second husband and two children, has a kind and supportive best friend, and owns a company that’s fast growing. Things start going awry once she notices her husband behaving oddly. Alice figuring out if she’s trusted the right people in her life forms the rest of the story.

Sandie Jones has done a great job with sketching out the characters in this novel, especially Alice. This novel is the perfect mix of character-driven and plot-driven, making it a page turner, especially if you don’t read a lot of suspense novels.

I did have a problem with this book, but I can’t reveal it for fear of spoiling the ending. Let’s just leave it at the fact that I was a little unconvinced by the reason for the antagonist’s deceit.

In all, The First Mistake is an entertaining suspense novel I’d recommend to anyone looking for an easy page turner to read tonight.

Mystery Based on Relationships: The story revolves around trying to figure out how all the relationships fit together. The characters are defined well despite the pieces to unravel. There is death in the story, but it is not graphic or tear jerking. The romance is not graphic. In one place there are some facts that get hazy as they don’t fit and the reader might find this confusing, but the ending sorts that out.
.