I'm surprised at the number of positive reviews for this book. I really, really disliked this book. I've read all of B.A. Paris's previous books and while I enjoyed her first two, I didn't care for Bring Me Back and I liked The Dilemma even less. For starters, this is NOT a thriller. This is a family drama and an extremely BORING one at that. The actual dilemma the title is referring to is RIDICULOUS. The way a 40 year old woman spent so much time and energy on a birthday party for herself was immature and silly... I could go on and on but the bottom line is, I didn't like this book and probably won't read further books by this author.

I have read several books by B A Paris and went into this book with expectations of the same kind of thriller type story. This book is very different from the author's previous books however it is still a page turner. It's true, parts are a little unbelievable but I found myself engrossed in the story. The book was very enjoyable for me and I will recommend it to others.

The Dilemma is a departure from B.A. Paris' usual psychological thrillers, but it's a good departure. Livia is a successful attorney, married to Adam and with two young adult children. For many years, she has dreamed of having an extravagant 40th birthday party, in large part to make up for the wedding that she never got to have. Livia has spent years planning out every last detail, and finally, the day has arrived. The only downside to the day? Livia's 19 year old daughter Marnie is studying abroad in Hong Kong, and won't be able to make it home for the party.

When the day arrives, Livia is elated. There is just one minor flaw to the day....she is troubled by something she recently discovered about Marnie. The news has the potential to not only tear the family apart, but Livia's group of friends as well. Livia is struggling to keep this secret from Adam, not realizing that he is also keeping a secret from her. As the day goes on and the party prepares to start, both Livia and Adam discover more truths. Should they inform their spouse, or wait until the party is over to break their respective secrets?

The Dilemma is a riveting novel that digs deep into the secrets and choices that families make to protect one another, and the devastating ramifications of those secrets. While I understood why each spouse did not confess to the other, I also found their choices to be incredibly selfish, with outcomes that neither of them could have predicted. The Dilemma will make you question your day-to-day existence, and will also bring to light the potential consequences of the fateful decisions you might innocently make in your own life.

The book takes place over one night span. There is a dilemma that affects all their lives but i felt it was a bit drawn out and a little hard to read. Of course i finished because i had to see the end. Not my favorite B A Paris book.

Very well written, very compelling story. If you are into dramas and emotional roller coasters this is the story for you. There’s always something to tantalize you into reading just one more page to see how things will work out. It takes real talent to make me become thoroughly engrossed in a story that on the surface sounds ridiculous, but B.A. Paris managed with flying colors.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for this ARC.

This is a suspense novel that had me racing to get to the finish!
It is a slow and dramatic climb as the uncertainty accelerates through each chapter!
I needed to know what happens- NOW!
Livia is planning her own fortieth birthday party and has an awful secret that she will attempt to deal with after her celebration!
She is happy that her daughter Marnie is unable to come home from Hong Kong.
It means less to hide until she can attempt to comprehend this confidential matter and share with her husband, Adam.
Adam is so happy for Livia and this party she has always strived for, but he too, has a gut-wrenching nightmare he needs to face and share with Livia!
Can he survive the party for a night before the world changes for his family?
This suspense drama is so different than the other B.A. Paris novels, but wait! It is definitely a great read!
Loved it!

Title: The Dilemma

Author: B.A.Paris

Genre:

Rating:3

Livia is finally having the birthday party she always dreamed of. When she and her husband Adam fell pregnant as teenagers, she was disowned by her parents. Their marriage has had its ups and downs, but now, twenty years on, they are blissfully happy now with their two grown-up children, Josh and Marnie. And tonight, Adam is throwing Livia the party of a lifetime, to make up for the fairytale wedding they could never have.

Marnie has been studying abroad and can’t make it to the party. Livia can’t help but be slightly grateful for this, as she’s recently uncovered a secret about their daughter which, if revealed, will shake the foundation of their family to its core. For just one night, Livia wants everything to be perfect.

Adam, meanwhile, has set up another surprise for his wife: Marnie will be secretly flying back for the family celebration. But soon it emerges that Adam is faced with a dilemma of his own, and he too may have to keep a terrible secret. After all, if you could give the person you love the most in the world a few more hours of happiness, you would . . . wouldn’t you? As the day of the party dawns, one thing is clear: Marnie’s arrival could shatter


My thoughts

Would I recommend it? Yes

Would I read more by this author?yes

I was so happy when I got an email from St.Martins Press inviting me to read her new book, because of the two I've read I ended up loving them, and I didn't even know she was coming out with a new one until I saw the email ,and I was like yes please ,it even made its way on to my most anticipated reads for this year, bit sadly it didn't work for me, while I did like the concept of the story and as always her characters came to life it just didn't have her normal punch that her other two books (The Breakdown and Bring Me Back),and while I know and understand that every book is going to be different this one just didn't want to hold my attention at all,it was just boring even though it was a spectacular emotional display of love and deceit in a marriage. With that said I want to thank St.Martins Press as well as NetGalley for letting me read and review it , and I can't wait to to read more by this author .

The Dilemma is not so much a dilemma as it is a family drama and tragedy. When Livia turns 40, she throws herself a lavish party to compensate for the dream wedding she never had, due to a teen pregnancy and hasty marriage to Adam. Years later, Adam and she are reflective of their troubled start, their complex relationships wjtb children Josh and Marnie, and each wields a secret they’re keeping from the other. Then tragedy inevitably strikes the family and as the family grieves, they finally release all of the secrets that threaten to cleave them apart.
Meh. I don’t mind unlikeable characters - as long as they’re well developed and have important places in the story. . Livia, Adam, Marnie - they all were just selfish and self absorbed but nothing beyond those traits that made them interesting or memorable; they were either self pitying themselves for what they didn’t get in the past, or they were focused on their own needs in the present. Josh was perhaps the only family member who wasn’t so annoying, but again, he lacked depth and was forgettable as a character. The “dilemma” that was the core of this plot was underwhelming to say the least. I finished the book feeling cheated out of my time and effort. Yawn.
Conclusion: forgettable and dull.

When you know a secret; do you keep it to yourself for a time,, or do you reveal it immediately? This is the dilemma faced by Adam and Olivia Harman. Does anyone else know? Tension filled situations kept me reading until I finished this book!

B A Paris has created her fourth novel and it is a physiological thriller equal to her other suspense filled books.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the review copy!

I enjoyed this one overall, although it stretched on a little bit. The story is really about a marriage and parenthood, although Adam and Livia's relationship is never fully fleshed out. Overall there was too much focus on Livia planning and executing her birthday party--which seemed a bit too ridiculous considering she was turning 40 not 16. I found myself asking why she didn't just renew her vows, since the party was to make up for her wedding she never had. Overall, I just felt sad for her.

Adam's storyline was a little more varied and his character seemed more dynamic than Livia. I wish we had a more in-depth look at their relationship and how Livia's relationship with her parents impacted her marriage.

Overall an enjoyable read and would make for an interesting book club discussion. I think the characters will elicit strong feelings from readers.

This book just did not work for me. It should have been a short story but it was stretched into a book that lacked real substance.

The Dilemma covers a day in the life of Adam and Liv. Told by the view points of Adam and Liv. Each person holding on to a secret that can potentially destroy their lives.

If you are looking for the typical suspense that you usually get from B.A. Pairs you are looking in the wrong book. However, if you are looking for a page turner that will bring joy, laughter, and tears, look no further. This book is definitely all that and so much more. I was hooked from the first page and found it really hard to put it down.

I absolutely love all of B.A. Paris's books so I was excited to read this one. It was different from her other novels, less of a psychological thriller.

About a third of the way through the book, when we find out about the start of "The Dilemma", I couldn't put it down. I had to know what happened.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around it, thinking of the characters and the events that preceded in the novel. There are little things in everyday life that remind me of the book. Which is blowing my mind, it feels like it really happened.

This novel really makes you think. I even cried. What would you do in this situation? Since I really connected with the husband, Adam, I had a hard time considering if his decision was the wrong one. But maybe that's the point...you'll rethink what you know.

*Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC, for which I have given an honest and unbiased review*

I received a complementary advance reading copy from NetGalley. This has not affected my review and this is my honest opinion.

I have had mixed reactions when it comes to B.A. Paris books. I really enjoyed this one. It is told in two perspectives, Livia & her husband Adam. This technique made it easy to see that two people can interpret the same experience two different ways. I don't like to restate what the book is about because you can get that information from many places but basically, Livia has a secret that she doesn't want to tell her husband until her long-awaited 40th birthday party is over. The morning of the party, Adam, her husband finds out that something has possibly happened that will ruin her life. He doesn't want to ruin the party so he holds off on confirming the information and telling her the bad news. The book was fast-paced and I couldn't put it down. I wanted to see what happened. I did have a bit of trouble identifying with what was so special about this day. I can't imagine planning and dreaming about a party for 20 years. That was a little far-fetched to me. Overall I really enjoyed this read and would recommend it.

Thank you @netgalley and StMartin’s press for this arc! Where do I even start ? I loved this book and read it in one day !!!
I have always enjoyed B.A.Paris’s work and this was no exception!
It’s Livia’s 40th birthday party, one that she’s been planning for for the last 20 years!!! The only person who will be missing is her daughter Marnie.
Livia has been keeping a secret from her husband Adam, but will tell him once the party is over. Adam wants everything to be perfect until .... he learns something the afternoon of the afternoon of the party that will leave him facing unbearable decisions.
I loved how each chapter was a countdown to the party and then a countdown to when the party would end .
The reader is taken on an emotional roller coaster through the eyes of both Livia and Adam as they both struggle with the secret they are keeping from the other .
I don’t often cry when I read a book but this one has me in tears, Adam’s secret once it’s revealed had me weeping for him !!!!
The writing is amazing and the way that other people come into play and become an important part of the story is so well incorporated that you can’t help feel some sort of a connection to each one ! I absolutely loved this book 📖

While reading the first few chapters of this book I was texting me friends, "This book is so good! I can't put this book down! You have to read it!" Then as the book went on...and on...and on...the story just started to drag. The conflict of the plot, in which Adam and Livia each have a secret that they are keeping from the other, was not well-developed enough to substantiate an entire novel. Each knows a secret about their daughter, Marnie, but neither wants to tell the other until after Livia's lavish dream 40th birthday party. The story started out strong, but by the end I was just ready for it to be over, and for each of the characters to be over themselves.

This author always comes with rave reviews and as always she did not disappoint. The Dielmma takes place over the course of one day, and what a day it is. It is a fast paced ride as you are taken along by different POV from the characters, uncovering secrets that could and will rock the whole family. I read this in one sitting and it will be one of my top rated books for the month and possibly the year.

The book focuses on Livia's 40th birthday and all the plans that she has for it, plans she has made for years and years. But she is keeping secrets and so is her husband Adam...the question is are the same secrets or is one worse than the other? Will their daughter Marnie be the end of the family as they know it? Both of them must make decisions on how to tell each other these secrets all in the midst of the party. What comes out will leave you rocked.

Make sure you grab this book and after this one, all the others they have written.

BA Paris delivers a novel which is not-quite a thriller: the fascination here is in the secrets characters keep from one another and from themselves. For those looking for an electrifying read in the vein of the author's previous novels, there will be disappointment, yet there is much to savor here in the author's deft examination of a marriage in crisis.

This book focuses on two point-of-view characters. They are a married couple, and each has a secret that he/she is keeping from the other. The story is told with the backdrop of the wife’s over-the-top 40th birthday party.

Throughout the book, more and more details are revealed about the wife’s secret. The husband’s secret is something he discovers on the day of the wedding.

By seeing the story from both points of view, you see how often the two are like ships passing in the night. Each is certain of the other’s moods or thoughts, and mostly, their interpretations are completely wrong. It’s frustrating and extremely repetitive. In my opinion, the book is improperly categorized as a thriller. It’s more a family drama. I felt like the book could have been way shorter- as I said, it was very repetitive, and the “mystery” was disappointing when it was revealed. It also didn’t really make sense the way the early POV chapters were written; the wife’s thoughts to herself obviously wouldn’t be as limited/vague as they were in those chapters. It didn't make sense and was obviously written that way to preserve the "mystery" throughout the majority of the book. The whole thing just kinda fell flat for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this eARC.

This book consumed me. Livia has something to tell her husband AFTER her 40th birthday party which she has been planning for herself for forever! Her husband, Adam has something he has to tell and he has also chosen to wait until after the party. This is about as dramatic a storyline as you can get. Had a hard time putting this down.