If I could, I would rename this book avoiding trauma. The entire book is a husband and wife keeping two devastating secrets from each other. It was emotional and well written, which is why it got two stars rather than 0 from me.

I kept waiting for the plot twist, the surprise, and it never came. I love B.A. Paris but this book wasn't the same level, in my opinion, as her other four reads. It was less dark, twisty, mystery shrouded amazing-ness and more slow, relaxed pace and just flat out sad. Still a great great by an amazing author, but would recommend The Breakdown or Behind Closed Doors if you are looking for suspense and a dark and twisty mood.

The pacing was too slow, and I didn’t think that the dilemma was really that big and worth the entire book. I know BA Paris can write amazing suspense books, so I was disappointed by this.

Was not my favorite Could not hold my interest and I kept forgetting everything when I put the book down.,

This was my first B.A. Paris book and to tell you the truth this book was not what I was expecting. I thought based on the synopsis it was a thriller / family drama book. It was not what I expected. I felt the writing was okay, but the pacing was incredibly slow and I was not interested in the storyline. I ended up DNF'ing half way through the book. Since this was my first book by this author it will not discourage me to check out other things the author has written.

This book was a quick read, but not my favorite by her. I look forward to upcoming releases and will not give up on this author.

I love jumping into a book with absolutely no idea what the book is about, other than the genre. That also means that every once in awhile I come across a book that I really don’t like.

I had previously read Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris and thought it was just ok. I constantly hear people talking about how much they love this author. So I thought I’d give it another try. It didn’t go well.

The story centers around a woman, Livia, who has been planning her 40th birthday party since she missed out on having a big wedding when she was very young due to an unexpected pregnancy and parents who shun her and the father. <Cry me a river> She can’t wait to be celebrated and be the center of attention. What a disgusting character. I was physically nauseated every time she talked about her party and how long she has looked forward to making something all about her. Gross!

The other part of this story focuses on her husband, Adam, who is keeping a devastating secret from her. Something that will change all their lives forever. Without listing any spoilers, all I can say is ‘how dare he’! His actions are INSANE and I kept giving him the mental middle finger throughout this entire book!

The children, Marnie and Josh, are also a focus of this story. Marnie, an unlikable character, who becomes likable by default and poor Josh, probably the best character of them all, is practically sidelined the whole story and when his time to shine occurs, it’s only to tell how his father basically ignored him his whole life. Josh deserves a better family for sure.

Unlikable characters (except Josh), over the top selfishness and a story that was waaaayyyyy too long for the content (it really dragged along)! I am definitely not a fan of this book.

Yikes. Uhhhh...this was something. I was obsessed with The Breakdown and Behind Closed Doors and couldn’t wait to read this. Well, what a hot mess. Utter nonsense and people behaving like absolute morons. I considered papercutting myself to death to put myself out of my misery...alas, I persevered and live to tell the day that I survived this book.

The actual “dilemma” in this book would never in real life EVER be a dilemma. The fact that one of the main characters pondered for over 300 pages about whether or not to communicate some fairly pertinent information is just beyond me. And good god- holy inner dialogue. “Should I tell my wife? No she needs to have a nice party. But maybe I will try to tell her. Here I go. I’m going to tell her now. Oh man but she’s happy so I’ll just wait to tell her. When should I tell her?” SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP. This nonsense went on for hundreds of pages and I literally wanted to pull my hair out.

And this 40 year old mom hyper-focused on throwing herself a birthday party that she’s been planning for TWENTY years. Twen. Ty. Years. And it wasn’t even that great of a party. Basically the moral of the book- these characters are the worst. They act like children. They are basically just terrible humans.

I went into this expecting a thriller and instead read an entirely anxiety driven family drama. Not my favorite by this author but it did keep me engaged and reading though out. I appreciate her ability to provoke emotion with her story telling and the development of all the characters was spot on.

This can’t be a B.A. Paris book, no way! What a huge letdown! I can’t believe I actually finished this book. I don’t think I liked a single one of these characters. I thought the main couple was childish and simple, Livia needs to realize that not everything is about her. I kept thinking there had to be a major twist or a huge reveal or something major coming up as I read, for I knew this book wasn’t like her other books but it couldn’t be like this, could it?

To compensate for the wedding that she never had, Livia sets her sights on having a 40th birthday party blow-out. The idea of this party consumes her, I mean totally consumes her. Every beautiful item that Livia sees, up to the day of her party, she ponders on whether she could use that item for her party. Every item! From food, to clothes, to furnishings, Livia has these thoughts running through her head for years. You know Livia, you are an adult now, act like one. Adam, her husband, is a yes man. He loves Livia dearly and would do anything to make his wife happy but I think he needs to learn to be adult also. Adam also has a very close bond with their daughter, Marnie. His relationship with their son, Josh is a different story. I felt sorry for Josh a few times as I read this story, it seems like he was trying and he did make some compromises. I thought the children played an interesting role in this book.

There are a few other individuals in the story but everyone comes together with Livia’s 40th birthday party which should be a five-star production, since she’s had years to plan it, but the secrets that individuals are holding put a damper on the festivities. It frustrated me that these secrets ballooned. They didn’t seem to amount to much, when compared to the drama the individuals who kept the secrets were making them out to be. It was that anticipation of their reveal, that energy and that mysterious reaction that was going to be brought out by the characters not sharing the information until the last possible moment, that keeps the pages moving forward. I’m a huge fan of B.A. Paris but this one is not my favorite B.A. Paris book.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for my copy of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.

This book is about Livia who throws herself a big bash for her 40th birthday. Her wedding was slipped under the rug and ignored by her parents so this celebration means a lot to Livia. However the festivities are threatened when secrets shrouding Livia and her family come to surface. I found this book pretty underwhelming and the pacing was too slow for me. The reveals are surprising though.

Omg I just love a B. A. Paris book that makes you scream at the characters! 5 huge stars for another one of her books! She has such a great way of creating characters you bond with and a plot that you can’t resist!

The Dilemma was a very good read and while I enjoyed it I will say that I was disappointed. My favorite all time book is The Breakdown and while I know that they are different books I really, really wanted this to be another slow burn thriller.

But I will read anything B.A. Paris' writes!

Another B.A. Paris five star read. The Dilemma was an instant page turner, and I found myself absorbed immediately. All the hidden secrets around Marnie, that both parents are keeping, kept me guessing. Loved the format as well, back and forth between Adam and Livia.

What exactly is open honest communication within your marriage? Does it extend to your children? Are some secrets okay? That's the dilemma.

This book is told through duel perspectives. Livia is about to turn 40 and has had dreams of having a huge party since her wedding wasn't as glamorous as she expected. Adam her husband is trying to plan for there daughter Marnie to visit and surprise Livia for her birthday. Everything that can go wrong does including a plane crash. This is my first B.A. Paris book and I really enjoyed all the twists and turns and the suspense of both secrets Livia and Adam were keeping.

I felt like I was watching a lifetime movie. The book was a quick read but it wasn’t what I was expecting. I would not consider this as a thriller, definitely not a psychological thriller. There was a lot of unnecessary stuff in this book. It could have almost been cut in half. There was about 15% left in the book when I was just ready for it to end. I’m a bit disappointed due to all the hype. There was so much potential for this plot line but I feel it missed the mark. Had I been wanting/expecting a lifetime mystery, the rating would be higher.

I had previously read other B.A. Paris novels and loved them. This one was very good and very well-written, but frustrating because Livia and her husband wouldn’t communicate. It did keep me reading, but overall it was a bit depressing. I do appreciate the opportunity to read this and will definitely keep reading B. A. Paris!

I have been reading B.A. Paris's books for years and I have enjoyed each of them a lot, she has a great way of setting up suspense and her plot twists are always ones I don't see coming. This book was more of a slow burn with the suspense and twists as you found out a couple key points pretty early on in the beginning and then the bigger reveal happened towards the end which I really enjoyed.

The writing style was intriguing as always and keep me hooked on this book enough to read it in one day. I've always enjoyed family drama/suspense books and hers are some of my favorites to read. The only reason I gave it 4 stars was because I felt it was dragging on a little for awhile, I know the book was primarily set around a single day and night and I was starting to get bored with all the monologue. But then it threw me for a whole loop at the end and I was speed reading to find out if everything was true.

Another great book by B.A. Paris that I highly recommend if you enjoy suspense and drama books that are centered around family problems.

Thank you so much to St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Arc provided by Netgalley and Publisher. In no way influences my review.
I enjoy B.A. Paris's writing, but this book was unequivocally frustrating. I wanted to throttle both Adam and Livia. An entire book that could have only been one chapter if the married coupled just simply communicated.
I will say the I hand not caught on to the twist. I assumed the big reveal was another person, but I did guess early on what was coming for one character. An a decent read.

Paris is at it again. I don't know why I am surprised that I liked this book so much. I have devoured every single one of her other novels. THE DILEMMA is an emotionally powerful story dealing with secrets and how far one will go for the ones they love.