This was an intriguing book, trying to figure out what was going to happen next and which character. I really liked.
As the story went on my feelings for the characters would change and evolve.
The Swap although predictable at times was still an entertaining journey and kept me engaged from start to finish.

Easy to read, but just a very odd read with unlikeable characters.

The novel follows 3 women - Freya, Low and Jamie. Low is a teenager and befriends Freya and quickly becomes obsessed with her. Jamie and Freya become friends and are roughly the same age, so it's not as odd, but Jamie also obsesses over Freya. And then to finish off the weird triangle, Low works for Jamie.

I never really liked Low throughout the novel. I found it odd that she was spending so much time with Freya and didn't understand some of the actions that she took. I also didn't like Freya, who was stuck up and thought the world revolved around her. Although with Low and Jamie worshiping her every move, you could see how it got into her head.

I did see some of the results of the swap coming, but I was curious on how the novel would end up. Like Harding's previous novels, I find them very easy to read since they hook you in.

Thank you to Netgallery and Simon & Schuster Canada for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was kinda creepy. You never know each character's motives. You think one thing, then the character says or does something and you're like. "WTF".
The characters aren't really likable, but you cannot stop reading because you just don't know what's going to happen net!
I didn't love the ending, but it does make sense.

Highly recommend to read during the quarantine.

The Swap by Robyn Harding (PUB day is June 23rd)

Low Morrison doesn’t fit in her world. Just about to graduate high school she is lonely & unsure of where life is taking her. Then she meets Freya a beautiful, rich social media influencer escaping a troubled past with her handsome athlete husband. Freya gives Low pottery classes & they become close friends. Then Jamie walks into their lives, a better contemporary for Freya’s friendship, that has Low fighting for her friends attention. What follows is a story obsession, revenge, petty actions, bad decisions & a many mistakes being made.

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This is a pretty quick & fast paced read & it definitely does a good job portraying obsessive behaviour amongst female friends. Both Low & Jamie are obsessed with their friendship with Freya, so much that neither one can see how truly awful a person she is until it’s too late. It’s a good book, not a great one. I wanted more to happen but it was a bit repetitive until the final act that finally gears up a bit. I’d still read another one of the authors books though, this one just left me feeling pretty medium about it.

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A huge thank you to @netgalley and @simonandschuster for the ARC of this book.

I honestly didn't know what to expect going into this book - other than it obviously being a domestic thriller, which I'm not a huge fan of to begin with! However, I was pleasantly surprised as one of the main characters is an angsty teenager, Low, vying for the affection of a beautiful, married woman.

That being said, this book shifts perspectives, but mainly focuses on Low, and Jamie, who's desperate to have a baby despite her fertility issues. We also see things through the eyes of a few other characters as well, however I really do wish we saw things from Freya's perspective. I think it would have rounded out the story really nicely. I was drawn to each and every character, who all had such compelling storylines. I couldn't stop reading in the hopes of discovering more about them.

This book really reminded me of Big Little Lies and A Simple Favour, and seemed like a really nice blend of the two! If you enjoyed those, you'll love this one.

Thank you Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for the e-ARC to read and review!

Woooooooooow! I've been itching for a 5 star thriller for a while now, and I've finally come across one! Everything about this book was amazing. From the writing style to the flow of the story to all the twists and turns. Rarely (in my experience) do you find a thriller that keeps you on your toes the way this one did. I loved the alternating perspectives, although I wish that we have heard more from Freya's point of view, I feel like it would have been really interesting to get into her head and see what she was thinking. I can't recommend this enough, read it, read it, reeeead it!

WOW! is all I can say about this book. It was fast paced and very intense thriller.

I struggled a little bit in the beginning trying to figure out how this book will come together as there's a lot going on and there are quite a few perspectives through out. My advice: don't spend too much time trying to figure it out because you'll probably be wrong!! At the end, it comes together and Robyn Harding does a really great job of bringing together all the stories and characters. To be honest, I'm not sure if I even had a favourite character I was rooting for....I definitely HATED each one of them at certain times in the book. I guess it's a good thing?

Great book!

Reading this dark, twisty book by thriller writer, Robyn Harding, is rather like binging on a Netflix suspense series. Set on a hippyish island off the Pacific North West coast, the book focuses on the destructive nature of toxic friendships and the far-reaching consequences of decisions made under the influence of those friends. Populated mostly by unlikeable, unsympathetic and unreliable characters, the story shows how one rash night of pleasure can have extreme reverberations. Low, the main character, is a tall, gangly loner and teen misfit who attaches herself to Freya, a beautiful but terribly superficial sociopath obsessed with her own image on social media. Low feeds off stalking around on the edge of the action—particularly the incendiary action around Freya and her hunky husband, ex-hockey player, Max—and storing up useful info as future ammunition to manipulate people into doing what she wants them to. Jaimie is a gullible, childless woman who opens a gift shop on the island to support her distractible author husband, Brian.. The story twists and turns with everyone vying to become Freya's BFF and falling in and out of her favour for varying periods of time. The author really ramps up the tension with some unexpected twists and turns. A definite page-turner. Thanks to Net Galley for providing me a preview copy for an honest review.

The best thriller that I've read in a while!

The plot is absolutely fantastic. On first glance, you would think that a mix of infertility issues; husband swapping; teenage angst; and polygamy would be too much for one book - but Harding weaves them together perfectly into a great, fast paced story.

Harding also does a great job of creating dynamic and interesting characters for this story. The book is told through everyone's perspectives and adds so much to the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC of this book - I can't recommend it enough!

When you read a book flagged as “for fans of Gone Girl” you have certain expectations for darkness and twists. ‘The Swap’ isalong those lines, and even when looking for unexpected twists, a la ‘Gone Girl’ still surprised me.
‘the Swap’ was enthralling, relateable, twisted, and unexpected all in one.
I plowed through this book in a single evening, and now have a proverbial ‘book hangover’ and couldn’t be happier.
Low is perfectly awkward and desperate for connection, for proximity to perfect. She makes you remembee every awkward teenage year and all of the conflicting emotions that went with it.
Freya is....both exactly how you imagine an Insta Celeb to be, and yet more than someone who lives for likes.
Jamie....Jamie is someone who is both contained and yet not limited to the page, such is her genuine spirit.

Cancel your plans for the night, tuck in with a glass of wine, and put the rest of y0ur TBR pile on hold. ‘The Swap’ is glorious.

I received this book free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Here I come to be the bad guy. This book was fine. Nothing special. I was actually really disappointed in the ending. For all that was going on I just felt dissatisfied. For some reason I was thinking the swapping would contune you to happen and the book would be sexier.

I thought the teenager (I just finished and can’t even remember her name) was off putting and I don’t think she added to the story but I can see why she was needed. I’m still confused why Max, or anyone else involved wouldn’t have sought out help for Freya. I felt she had a few mental health issues going on. Oh I just remembered her name “Low”. I don’t get the Low Freya relationship. Like I do but I don’t understand Low at all. I don’t get why she was so attached to someone who treated her like shit.

I don’t know. If this is how all of the books by this author are then I won’t be reading anymore.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2020 and I'm ecstatic that I was able to get my hands on the e-ARC. This was such a riveting read. There were moments that just made my skin crawl but I couldn't stop reading. We see the story unfold from different POVs but mainly from Low, a taciturn and awkward teen and Jamie, a woman desperate for a baby. This book is filled with drama, secrets, twists and turns. I'm all for it. The ending is brilliant.

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read and review this book! Definitely a recommended read.

Low, short for Swallow lives life on the outside. She’s never really belonged anywhere. She’s never really had any friends. Maybe it’s because of her parents unconventional life style. Maybe it’s Low herself. We all know someone like her, that person in school that was there not but you barely noticed them. And you can’t recall them by name.
And we’ve all known someone like Freya. The one that everyone wants to be friends with. She’s beautiful and fun and magnetic. But cruel and violent. What could possibly make these two friends? A few kind words and a shared interest in pottery was all it took for Low to be totally mesmerized by Freya and wanting to spend every moment with her.
Freya and her husband Max have moved to the island of Low’s home after Max and Freya were disgraced by the outside world. They moved there to hide. Or to start over.
Jamie and her husband Brian, so anxious for children and exhausted after an adoption gone wrong also chose Hawking to start over.
The two couples didn’t really have much in common. In the beginning it was just Jamie’s store selling Freya’s pottery that brought them together but like Low, Jamie fell under Freya’s spell and the relationship naturally turned to lunches and coffee and then couple time. But where does Low fit in now? Even knowing Freya as the self absorbed cruel woman has she is doesn’t quiet Low’s obsession.
And then that night happened. The night that changed everything. Changed the relationship dynamics. Changed all of their lives.
Robyn Harding has quickly become one of my favourite authors, ever since I read “The Party”. There are so many psychological thrillers out there, but Robyn has an original touch to hers. When I saw “the Swap” available, I didn’t need to even know what it was about to want to read it; that’s how confident I am in her writing.
Her characters here are flawed and in some cases, ones you love to hate, ones you feel empathy for, ones you feel endeared to. The storyline is like a car crash that you can’t turn away from. The more you get into the story, the more you feel that impending doom, but the journey getting there is gripping and addictive. I devoured this book in a little over a day and enjoyed every minute of it. This is a solid 5 star for me.
Thanks to Net galley and the publisher for allowing me the privilege of reading this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book, I read it in one sitting and couldn't put it down.

Low is a lonely awkward teenager, who be friends an adult who used to be loved on social media, who now has been disgraced. It follows their friendship, from being friends to enemies and back. It is a toxic relationship and I hated all the characters. All of them! But that's when you know the author is doing her job.

This is the first book by Robyn Harding that I have read and I believe I need to go back and read everything she's ever published. Her writing is magic, I felt like I was in the small sleepy island town. Loved every second of this book.

I was given this book in exchange for my honest review.

I loved this book just like I love all of Robyn Harding's books. It's about a socially awkward teen with no friends that becomes obsessed with an Instagram celebrity. It was twisty, and exciting and I couldn't put the book down until it was finished. I'm excited for more books from her in the future.

The Swap had everything I have come to expect from a Robyn Harding dark thriller...and more. The subject matter was thought-provoking and the characters intriguing. As the story is told from multiple points of view, the reader is able to experience the depth of each character’s emotions, making even the most unlikable characters relatable.

From the first chapter, I was invested in the story and enjoyed the journey all the way through to the twisty, unexpected ending. The Swap really was a fabulous thrill ride that I didn’t want to end.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley for the advance reading copy.

I could not get into this book. It starts off with a lonely wife and a teenager becoming friends. The teen then becomes jealous and obsessive. A big DNF for me.

This is my first Robyn Harding read and I loved it! This story of manipulation, obsession, and deceit kept me turning the pages. I loved the multiple POV's, I thought it created a more complete understanding of all these characters. There were lots of twists and turns and gasp-worthy moments! The blurb certainly didn't disappoint my expectations.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a temporary digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this book was...intense! I wasn't sure I would like it when I started and I almost gave up on it, but then I got into it and kept reading just to see how things would play out. None of the characters were particularly likeable and they all seemed to have serious issues. I didn't root for any of them, except the baby, and it seemed like it ended with everyone getting what they wanted (except Freya) and no one being held accountable for their behaviour. I would definitely recommend the book if you're looking for something you can binge through in a day or two. The writing will draw you in and keep you interested to the end!

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for the advanced copy of this book!

WOW. What a drama filled story and I loved every single part of it. All of the characters were incredibly interesting.

I would have loved to read from Freya’s perspective, but overall, this was another great book from Robyn Harding.👏🏼