There are some books that grab you from the first page. Then there are others where you’re casually reading away and suddenly realise it’s got you: you can’t put it down.

That happened to me with The Girl You Gave Away.

The story is told through two narrations: then and now. When Erin’s estranged daughter makes contact at her 40th birthday party, Erin thinks the worst that could happen is her husband finding out. She’s about to be proved wrong; when lies and secrets start controlling your life, there’s no telling what’s going to happen.

The second narration is Erin at 14 years old: naïve, desperate to be loved and prepared to go completely off the rails if it will make her parents notice. But when she ends up pregnant and the shame of her family, it’s not the reaction she was after.


Erin was an interesting protagonist. You feel for her as a teenager because she gets into trouble and no one notices, let alone want to help her out. Erin as an adult has picked herself up and turned her life around – by pretending that past happened to someone else.

You admire her strength, but even when she knows the odds are stacking up against her and the fall-out is going to be worst the longer she leaves it, she still won’t come clean to those nearest and dearest to her. It feels half of the events could have been avoided if Erin hadn’t been in denial so much.

The long-lost daughter, Jade, is the main reason you can’t turn the pages fast enough. Suffering from foetal alcohol syndrome, Jade is unpredictable to say the least. Her temper is fiery; her actions rash; and she isn’t bothered by either a conscience or telling outrageous lies. She provides the spikes in tension and when you know a character isn’t thinking rationally, there’s no guessing where it will go next.

The novel does well with misdirection. I’m staying spoiler free, but there are a few events that leave you guessing as to a character’s motive – or if they are who they say they are. I was thrown off on more than one occasion, thinking the book was predictable because the characters themselves had figured things out, only to be wrong.

It’s clever: once you realise a few things weren’t what you thought, you start questioning everything and any answer suddenly seems plausible – you end up asking how as much as who or why, which always makes for an engaging read.

One thing that disappointed me, however, is that there is no closure. You don’t know for sure the results of the events that take place. Erin never knows the truth about what Jade has done. You don’t find out the fall-out from how the events affected her family and her marriage. I’m not sure how this would have been done without being cliché, but I wanted some closure.

An enjoyable and gripping read that leaves you guessing and page turning.

A tense, well-crafted read that kept me turning the pages until the end! Thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for the ARC,

The Girl You Gave Away by Jess Ryder is about Erin’s fortieth birthday party. “Pink and silver balloons drift through her garden, the platters of food are empty and the recycling is overflowing with empty wine bottles.
As Erin mingles with groups of family and friends, surrounded by love and laughter, she feels like the luckiest woman alive. She has no idea what fate has in store …
Then a little red envelope lands on the doormat and everything changes.
Inside is a birthday card from somebody she never dreamed would get in touch. Its message is a chilling reminder of the dark past that Erin has worked so hard to bury, a past that could put her precious family in terrible danger…” This was a delightful psychological thriller. I could not put this book down. The story took you down many paths until the thrilling end. Great book and story - recommend highly. Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Having read a couple of Jess Ryder's novels before, with my first one being a bit hit and miss and the second being marginally better, I wasn't sure what to expect with this one. But THE GIRL YOU GAVE AWAY happily did not disappoint. While the concept of the direction the story is going to take is fairly obvious, there are plenty of twists and secrets along the way to keep you guessing. It's about secrets, lies and revenge on a whole new scale that you won't be able to put it down!

Erin Whitesteed is celebrating her 40th birthday and as she mingles with her guests she feels like the luckiest woman alive. She owns her own business, has a loving husband and two wonderful children who thrive at school. After being an unwanted surprise for her parents late in life and then falling in with a rough crowd, she now feels as if this is where she is finally meant to be. Her life couldn't be more perfect. Does that mean it could only get worse?

When her best friend Asha hands her a red envelope she found on the doormat, little does Erin know that the fickle finger of fate is about to drop a bombshell she will not see coming. Puzzled, she opens the envelope to reveal a birthday card with a champagne glass overflowing with bubbles adorned with the number 40 inside...and her heart jumped into her throat.

"Happy birthday, Mum!
With love from the girl you gave away xxx"

With that single message, Erin's past comes back to haunt her with a secret so deep she has kept hidden and now threatens to smash her perfect life and that of her family to pieces. And the card? It's from the daughter she conceived at the age of 14 and gave up for adoption. Twenty five years ago.

Why is her daughter suddenly getting in contact now? Is she wanting a relationship with her birth mum or is there an ulterior motive? How did find her - where she lived, her phone number, email address? And most importantly, how is Erin going to explain this to her husband and children who have no idea of her other daughter's existence?

Then there is Jade, Erin's now 25 year old daughter. She volunteers at a charity shop, lives in a hostel and claims her adoption fell through when she was just 7 and has since grown up in care. Erin, of course, is mortified that the baby she gave up to give her a better life had in fact an even worse one than she could have imagined for her. Jade is annoyed that her existence has been kept a "dirty little secret" from Erin's family. Is she ashamed of her? Embarrassed? Humiliated, even?

But little does Erin know that Jade has secrets of her own. Secrets that are about to shatter her perfect little world into a million pieces.

The narrative alternates from both Erin and Jade's perspectives throughout weaving the past with the present as Erin's story is slowly revealed and the reader is given an understanding into her past. But it's what happens in the present, influenced by the past, that paves the way as Erin's perfect life begins to unravel.

Erin is not a sinister or vindictive woman. Just a woman who was shamed for her past and worried about what those secrets might do to her family. However, I do think her choices were a little stupid. While I sympathised with 14 year old Erin, I had little sympathy for adult Erin in part when all she had to do was be honest with Tom in the first place. Especially considering she knew how black and white his perspective on things were and how blinkered he could be. She knew this and yet she failed to be honest with him from the beginning. Of course she had done nothing wrong - she just made a mistake and was given no option but to do as she had been instructed to do. But as an adult, she had the option to tell him...and she didn't. So I wasn't surprised by Tom's reaction to her secret, although I was disgusted by his behaviour afterwards. A supposedly good caring husband prior to it all coming to light is suddenly cruel, unfeeling and unsympathetic after discovering he's been deceived. As if it is all about him and without a care towards his wife as to why she had kept this secret for all of their married life. He even gave her an ultimatum prior to their wedding "Promise me you will never deceive me, Erin. I won't be able to deal with it. Betray me once and our marriage will be over." Charming. However, knowing that about him Erin should have come clean from the beginning.

On the whole, pretty much everyone behaves diabolically. Erin deals with everything in the worst way possible. Tom is suddenly unfeeling, uncaring and unsympathetic towards his wife of almost 20 years. Oli and Chloe show next to no loyalty to their mother. Oli decides to chuck in his studies to spite him mum whilst Chloe becomes an even more rebellious 14 year old. And Jade? Well, let's just say she is an enigma with a lot of issues. I didn't trust her from the beginning. Basically everyone makes a series of lousy decisions throughout the entire story that makes you want to just smack their heads together.

And just when you think THE GIRL YOU GAVE AWAY is going to be a predictable read, all hell breaks loose.

THE GIRL YOU GAVE AWAY is a taut, tense psychological thriller that had me turning the pages with such speed and kept me on the edge of my seat. The story was absolutely gripping from beginning to end filled with suspense, secrets, lies and deception that made the tension palpable throughout.

My only complaint was the ending seemed a little rushed and I was left a little confused as how everything actually ended up. The final twist that should have been a segue into another revealing part of the story really just flopped into nothing, leaving it all in an unsatisfactory conclusion. It was this that dropped a star off my rating and apart from that, it was an enthralling and compelling read.

A thrilling suspense-filled tale, THE GIRL YOU GAVE AWAY is a mixture of psychological thriller, domestic thriller and family drama all rolled into one. Perfect for fans of Sheryl Browne.

Recommended for thriller fans who love a domestic tale gone wrong.

I would like to thank #JessRyder, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheGirlYouGaveAway in exchange for an honest review.

Omg omg omg .......... this book was amazing I could not put it down I read every word on the edge of my seat I loved the story line even though it was quite sad it was so believable and kept the reader engaged I love it

This book was like a roller coaster with all the ups and downs. I didn’t know what way it would end.
Erin made some mistakes in her younger days and has kept some secrets from her family. Her biggest secret is Jade, the daughter she gave birth to at fifteen and was forced to give up for adoption. On Erin’s 40th birthday, she receives a birthday card from her long lost daughter and her world is turned completely upside down. Her secret daughter could cause her to lose her current family, career and so much more. Erin is torn between the undeniable love that she feels for Jade and keeping her family intact. Jade is torn between the hole she feels for the mom who gave her away and the anger she feels toward her and what she did.
There was a roller coaster of emotions and wondering what was really going happen! It was a great read! Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I enjoyed this book from the beginning and it continued all the way through. 5 stars from me. I loved Jess's novel The ex Wives so was worried this would be a let down and it was far from it. Love this author

I absolutely love Jess Ryder's books, they are always so captivating and are proper page turners. This was no different, I enjoyed it from start to finish. An excellent piece of work

This was an easy to read thriller thaylt kept my attention all the way through! Lots of twists and surprises I didn't see coming. Very good, would recommend!

I bet lots of people understand how easy it is to need to have a difficult conversation and shy away every time, until it simply becomes too late, then rather than bing uncomfortable, it can be explosive.
Trying to conceal deception never seems to work, yet everyone tries all the time with very unpleasant consequences.
Here is a nice woman, nice family and all should be hunky dory, Till the note that threatens to expose the cover up.
I did have a hard time sympathizing with a few characters, but overall mostly nice folks trying to adjust to new characters with questionable motives.

This is more of a psychological story than a thriller,

Firstly, I am a big fan of Jess Ryder. This book grabbed me on the first page. The synopsis just got me in to it as well. We have a bit of a time travel theme in there. I got so emotionally involved with the characters. This book had lots of plots which kept me reading. Highly recommend.

It’s Erins 40th Birthday Party.
The party is flowing then a red envelope lands on the doormat and it changes everything.
A secret she has kept from being a teenager and never told her husband or family.
It shows a secret can mess up a family
This was a very good book
Thanks NetGalley

3 for neutral, I really enjoyed the first few chapters, but after that it started to lose my interest and I just couldn’t will myself to pick it back up and finish it! Will update review if able to finally get through it, as I am a very moody reader!

The Girl You Gave Away started really strongly for me. I loved the idea of the story and found it quite suspenseful at first. About a third of the way in, I was really struggling to keep reading. The narrators became really unlikable and I felt there were certain parts of the book that could've just been left out completely. All in all, I am sorry to say that I just wasn't a fan of The Girl You Gave Away.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me a copy of The Girl You Gave Away for a review. Sadly I didnt like this one and had a hard time getting through it. The book was okay at first but then it just started going downhill and got boring. Characters were annoying and the story plot just wasnt intriguing to me. I dont like stories that drag on forever.

Erin has her fortieth birthday party all planned. It will be more than perfect, despite a eerie feeling that something just might go wrong. For starters, Erin has been getting little things that bring up unpleasant memories of her past - and she has hidden these things from her family. When she gets birthday card on her doormat, it is not like the others. Instead, her past has just landed right in front of her. This card, and the other reminders she has received, just might prove to be the undoing of her perfect little family.

The Girl You Gave Away is indeed a taut psychological thriller that definitely kept me on the edge of my seat. The secrets and lies that Erin held onto were delivered in a past and present manner. The past shows that Erin got pregnant while a teenager and gave her daughter up, and this is something she never shared with her family. When her daughter shows up at her birthday, Erin's careful life begins to unravel.

Erin never presented as a dark, sinister woman, just a woman who was shamed of her past and who worried what her secrets might do to her family. Conversely, Jade, her long-lost daughter, is not what she seemed and was most certainly the type of character I would never like to meet.

There were several disturbing factors in this book which did garner my attention, but often made me cringe. I was, however, able to be shocked at the real truth of the matter and, although I wished more of a satisfying ending, I couldn't put this book down.

Many thanks to Bookouture and to NetGalley for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.

Erin is celebrating her fortieth birthday with a party at home. Everything in her world is perfect as she has a loving husband and two teenage children. But a red envelope, that has been pushed through the letterbox, is about to change all that. Erin has been hiding a secret for years from her husband and children. This is about to be revealed when Jade, the baby she conceived when she was fourteen years old, comes back into her life, will things ever be the same again? We feel Erin’s grief at the adoption of the baby and we learn about her younger years and her pregnancy, with even more secrets being revealed. Jade, though, is a very complex person and not a very likeable character. This book is full of other interesting characters, with plenty of drama, twists and turns. A very compelling read and highly recommended.
Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

The Girl You Gave Away by Jess Ryder sounded like a great book to get stuck into. Especially as I loved the cover to it. Sadly I found it hard to get into it. It started off good but then it lost it for me! I clicked with the some of the characters and some of them just annoyed me!! Then, I lost interest within the book which is very unusual for me as I usually enjoy Jess Ryders books. But it won't be the last one I read from her. The end was just flat! Sorry

Big Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I kept guessing what will happen throughout the book. I loved this mystery / thriller book. Looking forward to other books by this author

Really enjoyed this book. It had the right balance of intrigue, suspense and storyline. Enjoyed the characters and the flow of the story.

A recommended read to all.

Thank you Bookouture and Netgalley