Thanks to the author Lucinda Berry and Netgalley for giving me the ebook. I've read all of the author's books and it couldn't be different, perfect book.
She always writes books that make us reflect on our motherhood and how we raise our children. I loved it so much.

It’s no secret how much I love all of her books. I love how she walks that line between education and entertainment so well.
This one focuses on trauma, grief, suicide, loss, guilt, betrayal, and so many other things all rolled into one story.
Which is hardest- losing a child completely and suddenly, having a child hang in life/ death limbo, or your child possibly murdering others? Is it easier to think your child was murdered by a best friend or shot by their own hand?
This story navigates generational friendships and secrets and doubts and fears.
It really was a heart breaking story (as most of hers are) that sucks you in and keeps you hooked from the first page to the last.
Thank you so much to @netgalley and @lucindaberryauthor for the arc.

*My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me with a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Publish Date: August 18, 2020

⭐⭐⭐⭐ - This was a rough one, folks, but not in the way you'd think.

The Best of Friends is a harrowing tale of family, secrets, and the circumstances surrounding the death of two teenage boys and the silence of one. Jacob, Caleb, and Sawyer have been friends since birth, and their mothers before them. From the outside, they all had perfect lives. But when Sawyer is shot dead, Jacob into brain death, and Caleb terrified into absolute silence, their mothers desperately try to piece together what could have happened while the illusion of perfection falls down around them. Secrets are dragged kicking and screaming to the light and one thing becomes clear: They did not know their children as well as they thought, and that they weren't the only ones keeping secrets.

First I must attest to Lucida Berry's ability to move a story along quickly. I started this at about 9:30pm and finished at 12:30AM. That's fast even for me, but it wasn't for lack of information. The story is told from the inter-changing POVs of the boys' grieving mothers, who had also grown up together since little kids. Their families were always very close, but now with one child dead and another on the way they start quickly pointing fingers at each others children while trying to navigate the horror of the case to find out what really happened that night.

Each family held an entire cache of secrets, some worse than others, and that most definitely sent the pace of the book into breakneck speed as you attempt to figure out how that secret could have affected the boys actions in a way that led to their careless use of a gun. When the seeds were dropped about certain motives pertaining to Jacob and Sawyer in particular, there was no way I could stop until I found out for sure, and of course, by then, my heart was shattered. This book will definitely make you feel things. It is not lacking in emotion in any respect.

I'm not sure if this was intentional, but I did not enjoy the parents. At all. I found them each to be cruel in their own ways, whether to their remaining children, each other, or their husbands(when they didn't deserve it), and it reminded me of why I stopped reading adult fiction. There is a pervasive attitude that adult relationships are nothing but bitter. Full of cheating or divorce or violence or flat out mistrust and that message ripples into our perception of the world and what it is like to be in relationship.( TLDR: Are the straights okay??? I mean honestly? Can we stop this? ) Now, I understand that the particular disfunction in these relationships were absolutely plot necessary, so I find no fault in that. But it definitely speaks to the fact that I was not as surprised by any of it as I probably should have been.

This book isn't for the faint of heart. It delves deeply into the grief of losing a child and the complicated emotions surrounding it. It speaks about abuse in marriage and in the home. There is some concerning language triggers (though they are not used against anyone as much as they are repeated for information's sake). It will throw you for a loop or two, but it was not entirely hard to find out a lot of the twists. Really, what kept me going was the absolute visceral need shared by the three mothers to find out exactly what happened that night. And it was. A lot to process. I cried my eyes out. So, if you are looking for that kind of twisty, fast-paced read centered around family, you'll wanna pick this up.

Its no surprise that I am a big fan of Lucinda Berry's work. This is my 4th book of hers, and I've given them all 5 stars.

What i feel is a major strength of the author's is creating relatable and complex characters. The Best of Friends follows 3 friends: Dani, Lindsay and Kendra. The women have been friends since high school, and even their sons became friends with each other. The story is told in alternating perspectives between the three women, so we get to know each character and her imperfections as the book progresses.

In true Lucinda Berry fashion, the prologue instantly grabs the reader's attention as Dani rushes out the door after hearing gunshots. We learn of a tragic accident involving their teenage sons, where one is killed, another is in a coma, and the third is alive, but refuses to talk about what happened. The women desperately want to piece together the details of the night, and realize as secrets surface, that they didn't know their children as well as they thought.

I admit that the epilogue was what gained the 5th star in the rating. While it was admittedly a little far fetched, I enjoyed the tie in to a plot point earlier on in the book.

I could not put this book down. I HAD to know what happened that night. It was almost a compulsion. Excellently weaves stories together and the end is unforgettable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC.

The Best of Friends by Lucinda Berry centers around three close friends Lindsey, Kendra, and Dani who without a doubt, faced every parent's worst nightmare. Their boys are 16 , excellent soccer players and best friends. One ends up dead, one in a coma and the other is traumatized by the events of that night.

The story alternates between multiple points of view by each of the moms. It was easy to see the different parenting styles.. The book definitely makes you think about things if you have kids. Did the parenting styles contribute to the what happened? Could it have been prevented? It had the potential to be a really great book. However, it fell flat because it was predictable I had already figured out who did what pretty early on. I did keep reading because it was an engaging story.

Story told from 3 POV. Every chapter is full with new details and leaves you in a cliffhanger but smoothly transitioning to the next chapter making it difficult to stop reading! I have never read a book in such a short time. Kept me on the edge all the time and I loved it!

I absolutely loved the book. Probably in my top 20 books I have read. I liked it told the 3 mother point of view. I don't like when writers only write in one person point of view. I'm hoping maybe read second book on how the ending ended.

Absolutely heart wrenching, soul gutting, story. Well written storyline with characters that have depth of emotions as well as personality.

Three childhood friends struggle to retain their bonds when tragedy strikes through their children.

I received an arc of this book and voluntarily provided a review.

Lucinda Berry truly blurs the lines between non fiction and fiction. Her characters are so real and raw that sometimes you forget that you are reading a novel and not a memoir. The tragedy will leave you heart broken, the thrills will leave you breathless. this is a one sitting type of read.

Kendra, Lindsay, and Dani have been best friends since childhood, just like their teenage sons are now.
But the women's friendship is about to be put to the test as their sons' fatal sleepover changes all of their lives forever.
One boy ends up dead, one in a coma and one too traumatized to speak.

The story, following the three mothers as they try to come to terms with what happened, gripped me from the very first pages.
However, the number of characters (the mothers, the fathers, several siblings, etc) made for a very confusing read. It must have been about half-way through when I finally got a grasp of who was who.
Regardless, it was a captivating, albeit difficult read, especially for those who are parents.
The ending wasn't particularly shocking, but it made me shed a tear or two. The final twist was a good bonus.
Overall, it was a good, gripping read, and I will be checking out other books from this author.

Absolutely loved this book! Lucinda Berry has a habit of writing books that draw me in from the first few pages, books that are hard to part with. The uniqueness of her storylines and the characters that leave the page and become real people make for the most enthralling books.

The Best of Friends by Lucinda Barry is every parent's nightmare. The kids get together to hang out and one of them winds up dead. How could this happen with boys who have been friends their whole lives?

As best friends Linda, Dani and Kendra try to find out what happened on that fateful night, their friendship is also threatened. One lost her son, one has a son who was horribly injured and one has a son who is fine. How can their friendship continue when no one knows who was responsible for this tragedy? An excellent novel that makes you question how well you know your children, even when you think you know everything about them!

Thank you to the author, Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest opinion.

Heart wrenching story of three families who have been friends for forever and their three sons all grow up together being very close, too. There is a tragic event that happens one night with the three sons and one is dead, one traumatized beyond speaking, and one in a coma. The parents are desperate to figure out what happened but the one son physically healthy, won't talk. There is a police investigation, families get lawyers, things turn ugly, etc. Of course, we find out relationship issues within the marriages. It's a sad story, but moves along quickly and I found I was so anxious to get to the bottom of what happened! I recommend it.

This book was A RIDE, let me tell you. It centers around 2 generations of friends: Lindsey, Dani, and Kendra and their respective sons Jacob, Caleb, and Sawyer. The novel opens with a tragic drunken incident that leaves Sawyer dead, Jacob on life support, and Caleb catatonic with frequent emotional outbursts.

Berry manages a striking portrayal of the chaos and deluge of grief. Nastiness, lies, secrets are revealed as the 3 women desperately try to unveil what happened between their sons on that fateful night.

The changing POVs in this book reminded me of BIG LITTLE LIES, but with a more confusing character narrative, as each woman has multiple children which makes it somewhat hard to keep up. Dani, Lindsey, and Kendra’s relationships are complex but I don’t feel there was enough time spent on why one minute they’re best friends, and the next they’re hurling around accusations about something that happened years ago. Speaking of, allegedly something happened on junior prom night that is directly referenced several times, but we never find out what it is!!! Besides too many characters, the extraneous plot-line that never actually gets revealed is my biggest complaint about this book.

Overall I enjoyed THE BEST OF FRIENDS. I found the plot compelling, I found it unputdownable. This is one of those books you stay up into the night reading to figure out what the heck is happening. And in most cases, you find out! I’d recommend this one for sure.


Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book for an honest review.

The Best of Friends is a domestic thriller, that takes place in Southern California. Lindsey, kendra, and Dani are childhood friends, and their sons (Sawyer, Jacob, and Caleb) are best friends. One night at a sleep over, a horrible act of violence occurs with the boys, leaving one son dead. The story continues with many secrets revealed, friendships are tested, and many other twist and turns.

The book was faced paced, and intense!! Lucinda is one of my favs!! Have tissues ready!!! Thanks @Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for this ARC.

5 breathtaking stars!!!!

Kendra, Lindsey and Dani have been best friends since they were children. They grew up, married, moved close to each other, and had children. Their sons, Sawyer, Jacob and Caleb also became best friends, and life was pretty good for everyone. Except that it really wasn’t. There were secrets in each family that just didn’t seem that important, until one of the boys dies from a gunshot wound, one is left on life-support, and one is intensely traumatized.

Wow was this an incredible read. It is an outstanding, character driven novel. I absolutely could not put this book down.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy for my honest opinion.

Lindsey, Kendra, and Dani have shared multiple big life events over the year of their friendship. Their friendship has rubbed off on their teenage sons, who have grown up together and are very close.

Then one tragic night, everything is ripped apart, leaving one of their sons dead, the other in a coma, and the other unable or unwilling to provide any details of how, why, or what happened.

Lucinda Berry’s The Best of Friends has a great premise, a solid first chapter, and a great hook. It’s just too bad that the novel never really delivers on the promise of its initial chapter.

Part of this stems from Berry’s utilizing alternating first-person narration by all Lindsey, Kendra, and Dani. What should have been a great way to put us inside the emotions and thoughts of these three best friend as they try to make sense of what happened and why instead gives us three narrators who all come across as so similar that it’s hard to recall who is narrating each chapter were each one not identified at the top.

About a third of the way through the novel, I found myself earning for Berry to make one of the voices more distinctive, but it never happens. And while curiosity about what happened and who did what to whom kept me going, I never felt a connection with the characters enough to be truly shocked or rocked by any of the secrets each is hiding from her other friends.

We do get answers to the central mystery, but it ends of not feeling quite like enough. Maybe I’m spoiled by the likes of Laura Lippman or Elizabeth George who give us mysteries that not only work as puzzles to be solved but also attempt to give us some insight into the implications of the mystery on its characters and the larger world. I have a feeling this will be one of those books that I see crop up on my feed again in the near future and I’ll quickly forget most of the details.

I was beyond excited to read The Best Of Friends and I wasn't disappointed.
Three best friends face up to heartbreaking tragedy and deal with the ripples this creates in their lives.

The story starts with one of the friends realising that something has happened to her son.
As a parent I could actually feel that stomach dropping moment of 'something is wrong' and could easily put myself in the characters shoes and imagine their distress.
As the book goes on and you read the beginning of each mother's story and see the different types of pain it made me pause and think what would I actually do in each of their situations. Berry is skilled at making you feel like you are inside the characters heads and experiencing their emotions.
I often feel emotionally wrung out after reading her books and this one was no different.
There are some extremely upsetting parts that made me cry. I think reading about a mother's grief is one of the hardest to do but I also liked the theme of strong friendship that runs through the story as it gave me hope for the characters.
I became very invested in this book!

I found this very easy to read, not only because of the story but in the way it was written. It wasn't too 'wordy', the language was kept simple and that worked so well. It meant the heart breaking emotions could be the star of the show.

Another Lucinda Berry winner.

No! I read this book in two sittings. It is a page turner but the ending was a big disappointment. Granted I didn't see it coming and I love a surprise, just not that. The story is told of three woman, best friends with best friend 16 year old sons. There are lots of well built characters and I struggled at first to keep all the husbands and children straight. There is a tragedy that brings them all together and splits them apart. It's a fast read. I love this author. I just wanted a different ending. Thank you for the Advanced copy for an honest review .#netgalley #thebestoffriends @lucindaberry