The Friendship Pact is a psychological thriller that keeps you guessing. It's a quick read that has you turning page after page until the end. The twists and turns are throughout the book and literally kept me guessing. At one point, I thought I had it figured out, only to be surprised again. I liked the then and now writing style and the way the characters were developed throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

If you love psychological thrillers, this is the book for you.

It starts out with the friendship of Lucy and Adele and how one moment as children will change their lives and they are forever bound by a pact.

Don't want to say too much about this book but I will tell you that I thought I had it all figured out. I might have been a bit close but thats it.

A whirlwind of a ride, couldn't put The Friendship Pact down. Get your copy !!

Thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for a great read !!

I was a bit bored with the first 50% of this book. The protagonist made decisions I couldn’t understand and the plot became a bit repetitive. Then the action picked up and I was invested.... only to be pretty disappointed with the ending. I wasn’t overly impressed with this one, sadly.

2 stars ⭐️⭐️

This book was a page turner and had interesting and complex characters. I liked this book a lot, but it wasn’t a five star read for me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free copy in exchange for review.

I really enjoyed the plot. Was very hard to put down.
I give this book 5**** just because i loved it
Cant wait for other books

The Friendship Pact is a story told in a now and then format, telling the story of Lucy (Lucinda) and Adele's friendship during their latter pre-teen years, and Lucy's story from now.

Lucy and Adele are from different sides of the fence - Lucy being from a well-to-do upper middle class family living in a big house in an affluent neighbourhood. Adele is living with her mum, step father and step brothers and sisters in a council flat on an estate. Their lives couldn't be more different. They bond as school friends but following a tragedy down near the reservoir one hot summer's afternoon, Lucy's parents decide to send her to a different and private school, deeming Adele a bad influence on their daughter.

Fast forward and Lucy is married to Marcus, a cardiologist. She wants for nothing however the marriage is not a happy one. As Lucy tries to escape from Marcus, she turns once again to her old friend, Adele, for help.

The premise of this story is really good, old friends bound together by a secret turn once again to each other in later years for help. The first 2/3 of this book is excellent, had me on the edge of my seat and my heart pounding at times. It is very much in the vein of the B.A. Paris book "Behind Closed Doors", but more realistic and believable. I could picture the characters, and actually liked them both, particularly Adele who made no apology to anyone, and who was just who she was, take it or leave it. But, and it is a big BUT, the last one third of the book drifted hugely from the premise of the original story, so much so that the story lost that believable edge and also, unfortunately, lost my interest along the way. It turned from a story where I was thinking "OMG this could actually happen" to my questioning "REALLY???" disbelievingly at the end of every page. 3.5/5*

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read an e-arc of The Friendship Pact in exchange for my honest opinion.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

This was a GREAT read. Captivating Thriller, filled with twists and turns .
Lucy and Adele meet as kids from opposite ends of town and have a brief, but intense friendship, that comes to a halt after tragedy strikes. Years later, Lucy finds herself in an abusive relationship, and desperate to get away from her husband, looks up her old friend Adele to help her. Things go tragically wrong, and the plot takes many twists and turns.
This was the first book I have read from Alison James, and it did not disappoint. The characters and plot were well developed and had me unable to put the book down. Kept me guessing till the last page. Highly recommend to anyone looking for a good psychological thriller.

This was the first book I read by Alison James and it did not disappoint. It was a quick read filled with twists and turns. Read it in one sitting. I recommend it for anyone that loves psychological thrillers.

**Thank you Netgalley for the advanced copy.

This was the first book by Alison James that I had read. The cover intrigued me. I do not necessarily agree with the tag line on the front, there is truth to it, but in my opinion does not encompass the plot. I enjoyed this book, it had me guessing throughout the read, and once finished was able to look back at subtle clues. This book was a quick read, and one that I would recommend.

This was a book that, ultimately, didn't quite deliver. The mix of past and present timeframes explained things well but the story moved too far away from being realistic a few too many times for me to enjoy it.

Lucinda, Lucy, is married to Marcus, a cardiac surgeon whose reputation precedes him. He is rich, famous and successful. He is also a bully.

Lucy has moved away from her hometown,  her friends and family but the draw of that town is strong and when she needs to escape for a while it's where she ends up. Reconnecting with her best friend seems like a good idea when she needs some help and advice but gradually it becomes clear it was the exact opposite.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers in exchange for an unbiased review and am sure it will be enjoyed by many fans of psychological thrillers but unfortunately it wasn't for me.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a fast paced and riveting thriller. This is a brilliant read which had me hooked from the very beginning.

The Friendship Pack is a standalone thriller. Told in three parts. The story line was well developed and the twists were amazing. Overall it is a very well written book. It was very easy for me to read/follow from start/finish for the most part. Some of the flash backs seemed to come at odd times. It started out with a bang then got kind of slow before picking back up again.
So stick with it. The characters are strong and well developed. This is a well thought-out book that will keep the reader on their seat and even make him feel part of the plot. The ending had a definite twist to it . I totally did not see the twist at the end coming at all.

This was three books in one! Domestic noir with these interwoven stories coming to a head in the third half of the novel. Held my attention all the way through and kept me wondering how the author was going to wrap it up. Good read, some likable but mostly unlikable hateful characters..

The Friendship Pact was a very quick read, and a lot of twists and turns. I definitely want to read more books by this author. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I rarely dislike a novel so much, but this one was just too unbelievable and ridiculous. A soap opera gone sour. Poorly written, ridiculous plot, and characters who are too stupid to be even the slightest bit realistic. I finished it because I kept thinking it might get better, but it got even worse. Zero stars to this one and to the misguided author who thinks she knows how to write. Delusional

Lucy appears to have the perfect life. She is married to a heart surgeon and spends her spare time cooking and socializing. But Lucy’s life isn’t what it seems. After 5-years of marriage, she feels stifled, even controlled, by her husband. And things are becoming outright abusive. Lucy knows she needs to leave before things get worse. But her husband refuses to let her go, making it harder to escape.

When Lucy visits her dad in her hometown, she runs into her childhood friend, Adele, who has taken a different path in life. Adele’s now an ex-con and rather rough around the edges. Lucy has been keeping a secret for over 2 decades for Adele and she knows Adele owes her one. So she asks Adele to help her escape her marriage. Because if anyone knows how to work their way around the law, it’s Adele.

But Lucy quickly learns the mistake she’s made. She regrets asking for Adele’s help, especially now that her life is a living hell. You know what they say about best friends—they’re forever. And Adele is not planning on leaving Lucy’s life.

The Friendship Pact is a new standalone thriller from Alison James. Told in three parts. We see Lucy’s life headed in a downward spiral. We also see flashbacks of Lucy’s childhood when she first met Adele and the years that follow. I found the flashbacks to be a bit random and all over the place. Instead of going chronologically, they jumped back and forth. I also saw where the plotline was going after part one; it all felt a bit predictable and took some of the enjoyment out of it for me. I wanted to love this because the first half had such promise, but after part one, things just fell a bit flat for me. It was worth the read, but didn’t knock my socks off. 3/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and Alison James for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. I literally couldn’t put this book down. I have to say it’s so much more than I thought it was going to be. An absolutely brilliant well written thriller with lots of twists and turns. I was delighted this was a dark domestic noir and the characters were so well written and believable. Highly recommended for psychological thriller fans

Two unlikely childhood friends renew their friendship as adults with devastating consequences. On the surface, Lucy seems to have it all, a devoted, highly respected husband, who’s also a top surgeon. But behind closed doors her husband is brutal and controlling and his behavior is escalating. On a trip home to visit her father, Lucy runs into old school friend, Adele, and mindful of the secrets that they keep, she enlists Adele to help her do something about her husband. A sharp, intelligent thriller

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I have only read one of the author's prior novels, one I was lucky enough to get from here and really enjoyed it, with that being said, I really enjoyed this book as well, interesting characters and the plot kept me interested from beginning to end, a real page turner, can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

A good read with well developed characters, not one of my most favourite reads but it is a well written book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this book.