Life can take many turns and in The Birthday Girl, it did just that for two teenage girls. Mish and Leo have a wild night that ends in tragedy and no one involved gets out unscathed. Riddled with doubt and lies , lives driven by the need to be more. The story begins and ends with one woman’s need to find her place.

The Birthday Girl is the story of Ellie, a socialite clothing designer who is throwing herself a huge, extravagant 40th birthday party. Something ominous took place on her 16th birthday and the book flips between these two time periods. The book was engaging and I wanted to keep reading to find out what happened. The issue I had with this book is that none of the characters were particularly likable-they were selfish and spoiled. I also felt the switch between time periods and narrators was confusing. I was hard to keep track of who’s voice was being used. This is a very readable book just no one you necessarily feel much after reading.

Fun. A little silly, but not ridiculous. The twist was odd without being off-putting. There was no horror here, no gore, light suspense. A bit of a relief going into the weekend.

Great roller coaster ride!! I wished I lived near a beach as this was the perfect beach read for summer. Ellie was so relateable and the story was so stirring. I would have read it in one sitting but I had to get up and go to work the next morning so I split it up over 2 nights. Really hard to put down. Would like to read more adult fiction from de la Cruz!!

Dark and twisty, just the way I like it! This is my first time reading one of Melissa De La Cruz’s more adult novels (LOVED the Blue Bloods books when I was in high school though) and it did not disappoint! In this book, she does what she does best: misdirects you with one story, and then sucker punches you out of nowhere with the twist! Would definitely recommend!

I’ve read books by Melissa de la Cruz, and have enjoyed most. I was skeptical starting The Birthday Girl because I’ve never read this genre by this author. I enjoyed this book much more than expected. Told in two story lines of past and present birthday celebrations, reads easily between the two. Not an edge of your seat mystery, but definitely enough drama and mystery to keep me reading. I hope to read more of this genre by de la Cruz.

The Birthday Girl by Melissa de la Cruz centers around 2 characters, Ellie, in the present, and Leo 24 years in the past. For Ellie, it's her 40th birthday and she is throwing the perfect party at her brand new Palm Springs house, and she is really pulling out all the stops. Extravagant doesn't even begin to describe it, it is so over the top. In Portland, Leo's 16th birthday isn't going as well. Spending the evening as the third wheel to her best friend and her new boyfriend is not as exciting as she had hoped.
In the present, in Palm Springs, Ellie's life is beginning to unravel. The cost of the party is close to bankrupting her, she thinks her unemployed husband must be cheating on her, her 4 kids are causing problems for different reasons, and the plates she is spinning are about to go out of control.
Leo and Mish are determined to find the bright side of this evening. Buying booze and drugs, sneaking into a club, and crashing a party. Things are definitely getting out of control for these two.
As the tension builds in both the present and the past, de la Cruz foreshadows the ending in the past that has shaped Ellie's life, but you don't find out the connection until the end.
Super fast paced and definitely a party I wish I could have for my 40th, I read this book in one sitting. I couldn't put it down. Loved it!

I was initially delighted to see that Melissa de la Cruz had written an adult book, but then I read it. I found it very disappointed and the writing extremely immature. I read many books every year and this didn’t live up to my expectations. I’m really unsure of what the plot was, it seemed like a rollout of a YA novel surrounded by a faux sophisticated birthday party for an extremely unlikable main character.

I honestly cannot recommend this to my readers. Thank you Netgalley.

This book was received as an ARC from PENGUIN GROUP Dutton in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

This book was the ultimate explosion of a perfect situation turned terribly wrong. I am a huge fan of Melissa's work and this book did not disappoint. I loved the she focused on how great of a life Ellie had living in Palm Springs, with a loving husband, a ten year old daughter, twin boys and a college aged step=daughter living happily. She has her fortieth birthday party but can't enjoy it due to her 16th birthday with it being such a disaster and her life came crumbling down all in one night. With past experiences coming to haunt her, dark secrets are uncovered and her life is starting to fall apart. This is a prime example that nothing in life is perfect and no matter what you have and how you are, there will always be bumps in the road, but it's how you handle them that makes all the difference.

We will consider adding this title to our Fiction collection at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

I don't even know where to begin with this book. This was such a different read that I honestly cannot say whether I liked it or not. There is some twists and turns in this book and I really did not like any of the characters. They were all selfish and superficial, trying to be something/someone they weren't. In the end the twist or all the hype about the secrets coming out were not that great or awe shocking. It was an okay read but just not for me.

Arc provide via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I love Melissa de la Cruz, and this one was no exception. Her smart, snarky writing style, the multiple character perspective, and the back and forth between past and present all contribute to a tightly-woven, compelling story with a fresh twist.