For most of the book I thought it was just a so-so family drama then it twisted into a direction I never expected and took off at a breakneck speed to the end.

Unique mystery...

PLOT SUMMARY: Olivia is fifteen and is having a serious argument with her mother Hannah. After uncharacteristically attending a party without permission, rather than airing out their differences, Olivia chooses to maintain the silent treatment with her mother. And when her father returns home from his business trip, well, she will maintain silence with him too. The only family member she won’t freeze out is her sister Rosie.

What is really going on behind these toxic family dynamics? Is there a reason behind this stand-off? And why is Olivia trying so desperately to be noticed? Why does everyone seem to be keeping secrets?

PROS: Lots of twists and turns to this one, that’s for sure. An underlying tone of menace pervades the whole novel, and I was very interested in the big reveal at the end.

CONS: The plot was...what exactly? A bit unlikely? Impossible to guess? Something about it didn’t fit quite right with me.

YES or NO: It’s a YES - I enjoyed it and won’t forget it in a hurry, at the same time, there were a few problems with the plot..

The more I read, the faster I was turning the page to see what happens next! A very fast paced read and loved how this book was written. I can't wait to read more of this Author!

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. It was a very good read with lots of twists, I thought I had it all worked out but I didn't and I wasn't expecting the end.

After Olivia sneaks out to a party one night, she comes home to an argument with her mother, Hannah, in which she swears she will never speak to her mother again. At the beginning, I felt like both parties were overreacting a lot in their feelings towards each other. Hannah was assuming way too many things were Olivia's fault without any reason to do so, and Olivia was assuming her mother hated her and so on. It made me glad I don't yet have a teenager to deal with (and especially a girl). As the book went on, I started disliking Hannah more, especially when she told her younger daughter that the reason she was a good kid was because she listens, does what she is told, and doesn't ask questions. Great. I don't really want to give anything away, so I won't say much more other than the fact that Olivia's silence and other behaviors eventually force a lot of family secrets out. There was nothing wrong with this book and it was intruiguing and at points surprising, but I still didn't really enjoy reading it. Three stars.

The Argument by Victoria Jenkins is a slow, tense read that left me feeling unsettled from the very start, although it is difficult to ascertain exactly why that was the case. There is a sense of unease that settles over the reader quite early, despite the fact that not much seems to happen beyond what appears to be a normal dose of teenage angst, and a troubled relationship between a mother and her 15 year old daughter. We sense almost innately, however, that something has to give. Those who opt to stick this one out will have their due diligence ultimately rewarded, and any unsettled feelings will be wholly justified.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

I found this book slow for the majority of the novel. The teen in this book, Olivia, is annoyingly bratty, and the central conflict seemed relatively trivial for most of the book. I did enjoy the last 25 percent and the twist (which feels a tad random but enjoyable nonetheless). This was a middle of the road book for me, not my cup of tea.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Wow! Twisted story of a majorly dysfunctional family. Olivia is a typical 15 year who is acting rebelliously, at least that is what you are lead to believe as the story begins. What you soon find out is Olivia is living in a twisted nightmare with her younger sister. What looks like a typical normal family on the outside is anything but when you get into this well written novel. I can usually see major plot twists coming but I absolutely didn’t with this one. Excellent psychological thriller that is impossible to put down.

To say that the family in this story is royally screwed up is an understatement. The parents don't have the least bit of redeeming social value as human beings, although by the end it was pretty clear how they came to be that way. The best I can say is that others in the story - themselves seriously flawed - managed to escape, though certainly not unscathed.

While I can't say I really "enjoyed" the book, I can't deny the almost inescapable "can't put it down" aspect. Had I not started it on an evening when a couple of favorite TV shows and a couple too many glasses of Labbatt's Blue hadn't intervened, there's no doubt I could have polished it off in one day (at 235 pages, not all that difficult to do).

The title refers to a battle of words between 15-year-old Olivia and her mother, Hannah, when Olivia returns home late after going to a party her parents had nixed. Olivia is so enraged at what she considers her parents' unrealistic, controlling attitudes that she announces she will never speak to her mother again. And by golly, she sticks to her guns - much to the angst and anger of her parents.

As for her parents, Hannah and Michael wish Olivia could be like her little sister, Rosie, who's both outgoing and compliant. Little do they know, though, that despite their efforts to keep Olivia from turning Rosie into a cohort, the two girls have formed a solid bond. As the story progresses, readers learn that there's much more going on in Olivia's head than typical teenage rebellion - and once that realization dawns on her mother, things begin to turn sour. Meantime, weird things start happening in what Hannah always considered a close-knit household - things that worry Hannah even more than the silence of her elder daughter.

Honestly, I did guess the biggest "twist" a while before it was revealed, although to be fair I wasn't sure I was right until I read it with my own eyes. Toward the end, things got really hectic, and yes, from that point on, nothing would have stopped me from getting to that last page. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

The pace was very slow. It is not clear how the author wants to portray the characters, what sort of personalities, why they are behaving thus. I could not connect with this book.

Wow, this grips you at times and gets you thinking! Was not expecting that at all. Thank you netgalley. A psychological book indeed.

This book started out a bit slow for me and unfortunately it didn’t really capture my attention the way the authors previous book did.
Th twist although a good one just wasn’t enough to make up for how slow I found this. I will absolutely read her next book as I am a fan .... this book just wasn’t for me.

I didn’t know what to expect from this book based on the blurb, and almost the whole way through I was still waiting for something to happen. The pacing felt slow and a times it was hard to keep reading. The twists were definitely unexpected, but that’s because they felt like they came out of nowhere. I don’t want a thriller that spoon feeds me the mystery, but there were no kernels to go off of at all. My reaction to the first ‘big twist’ was something like, “wait, what? Really?” I didn’t hate this book. For the most part it was entertaining and the premise isn’t bad. It just could have been executed better. 3 stars.

I was expecting much more from this novel, but it fell short from my expectations. A large chunk of the book just dragged on, I had no idea what the book actually was about. And then the twist out of nowhere. It wasn't a horrible book, just didn't live up to the hype.

Although I found this a little slow in parts I still really enjoyed it . Olivia a bratty 15 year old gets in trouble after sneaking out to a party , she decides that she just won't speak to her mum , Hannah and I really felt for her . The reveal about 3/4 of the way in was epic and not at all expected . A solid 4 stars from me . Thank you

Thank you to Net Gallery for providing a free digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

2.5 maybe 3 stars

Oh, where to start?! First off, The Argument was not a horrible book, just didn't live up to the hype as a Psychological Thriller. For the first 3/4 of the book, I would classify it under more of a family drama. Olivia is a bratty 15 year old kid who gets in a fight with her mom and stops talking to both parents. First half of the book is nothing great, but readable. We then come to the big twist at the 3/4 mark. Did not see any of it coming. To be honest, it felt like the ending didn't fit. Felt like there was no real hints to make the twist believable.

Oh well, next....

Wow! I’m not sure where to begin. I was drawn into the story right away. Unfortunately, it went a tad slower than I liked during the middle part. Only with the mother, Hannah’s inner dialogue and workings. The oldest daughter, Olivia, was rebellious but I felt so sorry for her. The mother was so horrible to both children. She hated Olivia. I sort of wish it had a different title now but I see how The Argument is fitting. This is what started the downhill slide. This was a really messed up couple and family.

It was sort of depressing to read but like a train wreck happening before your eyes, I just couldn’t look away. There were so many twists at the end. I never saw them coming. It would make a great movie.

Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for my copy in exchange for an honest review

This was a hard book to review. I had a hard time getting into it until almost the half-way mark when it suddenly became a page turner. The first half seemed to be a lot of banter between a helicopter mum and a rebellious bratty teenager. Once things started to fall into place, I really liked it. It is a complicated story with lots of surprises. Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC of this interesting book in exchange for an honest review. I will give it 3-1/2 stars.

Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the ecopy. Hard book to put down. A psychological thriller that absorbs you with a familiar plot. A mother and daughter disagreeing regarding a party. You will not see the twists coming!

I was expecting much more from this novel, but it fell short from my expectations.
It is a decent story with a simple premise. Daughter Olivia had a huge argument with her mother Hannah over a party that Olivia snuck to attend despite being forbidden to do so by her mother. The argument was huge and Olivia vowed to not talk to her mother again and only talks to her younger sister.

Then we have lots of internal monologues from the mother showing that Olivia was always needy and acting out, maybe seeking attention but we don't know why. However, those monologues also show that Hannah's relationship with her daughter is not smooth as Hannah seems to be distancing her self from Olivia and rather dotting on her younger daughter.

The problem with the book is primarily the pace which was too slow with so much time spent on internal monologues without any action to push the plot forward. Also, the ending, it was really unexpected as there was no proper build up or any slight hint towards it. It was rather abrupt and out of character.

Thanks Netgalley, the publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.