Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin Press for the opportunity to read and review this book in advance of the official publication. I highly recommend this book to readers who love books which revolve around family relationships. This book starts at full speed and draws you into the characters’ lives quickly and fully. I loved the story of this family but it is an emotional roller coaster from the start. Frustrating and heartbreaking but a true page turner. I couldn’t wait to find out how all the secrets and lives unfold. The majority of the story takes place in the span of 24 hours with the two main characters reflecting on their lives through flashbacks and memories. If there are lessons to be learned from these characters, it is to manage the story you tell yourself and to be open with your loved ones. These characters keep secrets from each other for various motives but these secrets ultimately cause pain. These characters are flawed, real and relatable. If you enjoy novels based on family dynamics and emotions, you will truly enjoy this book.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I wasn't expecting this. This is family drama to the extreme. Livia is turning 40 and wanting a huge party. Unfortunately, there is secrets she is keeping and her husband has some of his own. This was an interesting take on lies and deception. Very enjoyable.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy of The Dilemma in exchange for my honest review.
I had previously read one other B. A. Paris book (Behind Closed Doors) which I enjoyed, so I was excited to read this one early. I read it over the course of a weekend because I could not put it down and needed to find out what happened - the sign of a terrific thriller!
I recommend it to anyone looking for a fast-paced, family-drama-centered thriller.

NetGalley, St. Martin's Press and B.A. Paris, you are responsible for another sleepless night when you allowed me an advance copy of The Dilemma for review!
Adam and Livia have been married for more than 20 years. Because she didn't have a wedding, Livia has been saving and planning for her 40th birthday extravaganza for 20 years. When party day rolls around, Adam finds out some news which will devastate Livia and ruin the night for her. Livia also has a secret she knows will upset Adam as well as their close friends and is holding on to it as well. Josh, is trying to figure out what is going on while they all wait to hear from his sister, Marnie, who is studying abroad and can't make it home for Livia's party.
Told from Adam and Livia's points of view, this book starts fast and doesn't let you go! B.A. Paris has done it again and I recommend you pick up a copy as soon as you can!

I went in to this without an idea of content, just that I've enjoyed everything else by this author. Assuming that it was similar to all of her other works and that it was a thriller, I was pretty much waiting for it to get good. Once I allowed myself to see it as something different, I really enjoyed it.

I love that it was written from the perspectives of each side of a couple. Both fighting with themselves over what to do in their different situations. It really shows the harm of lack of communication in a relationship. It was just very real.

A heart breaking story of love and loss , their is no greater loss than the loss of a child. This story immediately pulls you in. Kudos to the author for a job very well done.

The beginning confused me and the ending broke my heart. I did not think I would cry as I read the story and it lead us to the hours of a heart wrenching conclusion, but oh my eyes were blurry on those last hours and chapters.

This story has depth to the characters and family dynamic. Some of the confusion was because the book starts right at the beginning of a major family moment and has POV from two characters who both are hiding a secret that will impact the family. Along with the secrets is the family dynamic due to how the marriage and family began many years ago. The story was fast moving, but horribly slow at the same time and you could sense that slowness in several characters reactions and emotions to then breaking news of the day. The emotions and reactions were raw and moving.

I thought the story was creative and well done. Once I got started and understood the pacing and premise of the story I could not put it down. Thank you for the chance to read this book and share my opinions!

I love all of her books! I think this book was a little different. To me it was not really suspenseful. I really enjoyed the book, but the suspense wasn't all there.

Livia, wife to Adam and mother of Josh (22) and Marnie (19), is finally throwing her long-awaited dream party for her 40th birthday. Despite what everyone would assume, Livia is secretly pleased that her daughter will not be able to make the trip home from studying abroad in Hong Kong. Preparations for the big day are in their final stages when Adam’s birthday surprise for his wife turns into something so horrendous that he cannot fathom sharing it with his wife. What will happen to this family when all of their dark secrets are finally exposed?

I was super excited to get into this one as I am a huge fan of two other books by this author; however, this one was not what I was expecting. I would not classify this book as a thriller, it’s much more of a domestic drama. The writing was fluid and the alternating points of view kept the book intriguing so that is definitely a plus. It was a quick read and I finished it in one sitting. I have a lot of respect for authors branching out their writing to different genres but I did not enjoy #TheDilemma at the level I had hopes for.

A special thank you to @NetGalley and @StMartinsPress for my advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Livia has had heartbreak in her life. All she wants, apart from the always-out-of-reach love and acceptance of her estranged parents, is a happy 40th birthday party. It will be the Perfect Day, a celebration that will eclipse the wedding she and Adam never had, when they married hastily as teens. But Adam and Livia, and their children Josh and Marnie, have secrets. The party will be everything Livia wants, or will it? What do each of them know. and will they share it? This story draws the reader into this family's narrative with subtle cues and suspense, slipping in previews of what we think we know about these characters. But can we know everything about even those closest to us,?

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for this ARC.

What a harrowing and heartbreaking story. It was so well told. I kept hoping for a different outcome. Hoping for a happy ending. Hoping for this family. This book truly captured my emotions. I highly recommend it.

This is the story of a family and each of the family member's wishes and desires. Livia will be celebrating her 40th birthday at an outlandish celebration intended to make up for the wedding her parents deprived her of. Her husband Adam has planned the perfect surprise and arranged for their 19-year old daughter Marnie to arrive from her Hong Kong college.
Having had their children when they were young and barely acquainted Adam has struggled with parenthood but is finally trying to establish good relationships with his children, particularly his 22-year old son Josh. For once Adam wants Liv to have the perfect celebration she's been planning. Adam also begs Liv's parents, who Liv hasn't seen in more than 20 years, to attend the party.
When circumstances threaten the perfect party Adam is faced with a total dilemma that makes this a brilliant, suspenseful read.
I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and I'm happy to have had this opportunity.

I really wanted to love this book because I love this author but I found it to be a bit of a disappointment. The plot was so repetitive I found I could skip whole pages and not miss anything. I liked the idea and I hate to say that not enough “happened” but it just felt like there was no movement in the plot till the last 20 pages!☹️

B.A. Paris is known for wonderfully suspenseful books, so when I had the chance to request The Dilemma, the latest book from Paris and St. Martin's Press, I couldn't pass it up.

The intrigued picked up quickly within the first few chapters of the book. Not knowing what was happening propelled the story forward; however, it was quickly explained with the result begin left until later. Although I understood the motives of Adam, and it was what I would have been compelled to do, I felt like there was a lull to the story because of that choice. I found myself flipping ahead to find out the bit of information I wanted to know and only then could I bring myself to settle in to read the book itself. The 'thriller' aspect isn't enough to carry the book, but I did like the look at how communication in the face of terrible news causes breakdowns in the best of relationships.

Overall, it was an okay read with some great parts. It was just lacking enough intrigue to make it a page-turner like I am used to from this author.

Love! Yes - I know there are complaints that this is not typical "B.A. Paris" - as "thriller" as her past novels- but I still loved it, she is still my favorite. The other complaint I saw a lot in the reviews was that it was silly for a grown woman to take a birthday party so seriously - also did not bother me.
Livia has been waiting most of her adult life for this party, and the day finally arrives and her husband Adam has quite the dilemma. His thought process was honestly pretty captivating to me and made the whole book. Livia has a secret of her own as well - great family dynamics here.

So this book is interesting to me. I enjoyed it as I read but once I finished it and slept on how to review it, I found my feelings were a little different. My issues arrived after thinking, why would someone dream of celebrating their 40th birthday YEARS in advance? Also, this is a very different style from the other books read by her, but this was all about lacking communication between a couple. I’m giving it the 4 stars because I had enjoyed it as I read the book.

I wanted to love this book, I really did. I have read all of her previous books and loved all of them. But this one, I just couldn’t finish fast enough, so that I could put it down and let it be over. I skipped pages just trying to get to the end and find out about Marnie, I did want to know what happened to her. And there really was only a 50/50 shot I would get it right. And I was wrong. I was hoping for some twist or unexpected event. But nope. That didn’t happen.
First of all, I am a mom, and if I was faced with this kind of dilemma, about my daughter, and my husband wanted a big bash for his stupid birthday, I’d choose my daughter. What the heck is wrong with this man?

I understand you want to please your wife, and let her have fun one last time. But come on?!

I just couldn’t relate, I didn’t agree with ANY of their choices and found myself “hate reading” it.

That’s all I have to say, I don’t think I’ll be recommending this book, but being that I loved her other books I will continue to read B.A. Paris. Just hope the next one wows me more.

Behind Closed Doors was excellent, The Breakdown was also quite good. This one not so much. The fact that it is being marketed as a thriller is doing it no favors. It most definitely is not that. I find that happening a lot nowadays and it is doing these authors is disservice because I may have appreciated it more had I gone into it with the right expectations (family drama).

Livia (maybe where the “O” went was the mystery) is not the character for me. Don’t get me wrong, Adam didn’t pull the heartstrings either. I just couldn’t wrap my head around a woman that has pined (for decades) about her day in the spotlight (that she felt cheated of on her wedding day) so much so that she has organized a 40th birthday party for herself. At this point in time, all these years later, she is still thinking about herself because that is what a wedding day is all about? Had it been an anniversary party or a vow renewal I think I could have been more on board with this whole concept. Maybe that’s the point?

This story really spans one days time. Mind boggling, and somewhat clever, that was. At times it didn’t feel like it though. Poor Marnie and that whole story. She was a child being taken advantage of. That David could remain stoic enough to continue the charade of this ridiculous party after he knows what he knows is impossible, unfathomable.

The we get to the end and everything is going to be all right. All the secrets are out and they are just going to carry on stepping around each other and Rob (which maybe is the truest dilemma). I will always try to get my hands on stories by this talented author regardless of genre but this one has left me a bit sad. Again, I went in with the wrong mindset so if you’re looking for a family drama then you look no further.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and St. Martin’s Press for a copy in exchange for a review.

What a great read! I wasn't expecting my rating to be a 5, only because I was thinking this was overhyped and started slow. It's a slow burn, which I personally don't mind, but know others do.

The book is about Livia and her 40th birthday party, which she's been planning for over 20 years. She has a loving husband, Adam, a great son, Josh, and a wonderful daughter, Marnie.

Before and during the party, Livia is faced with a dilemma involving Marnie that she's not sure how to reveal to Adam. Little does she know that he may have a revelation about Marnie to reveal as well.

Author B.A. Paris steps out of her element of fast-paced suspense with a family drama that keeps the suspense building at a slow (but steady) pace until things explode. I was at 75% when my jaw dropped and emotions took over. Paris walks a perfect line of drawing you into Livia and Adam's thought process (told through alternating chapters) and making you understand each decision that was made. This one will stay with me long after reading.

Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for an ARC.

This is my first read by B.A. Paris and I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact, after I started reading, I simply could not put it down!

This is a novel about Livia and Adam, who have been married over 20 years with two children, Josh, age 22, and Marnie, age 19. The story takes place over a 24 hour period during the 40th birthday celebration of Livia. Both Livia and Adam attempt to make this party as perfect as possible including keeping a big secret from each other that will affect everyone in devastating ways.

I found this novel to be a fast paced unexpected family drama that was entertaining and kept me wanting more. I will definitely look forward to reading more books by B.A. Paris.

Thank you to the publisher for giving me an opportunity to give my honest review. .