An enjoyable read.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting psychological thriller-the plot was a little forced and overdone in places, but a good thriller nonetheless.. Recommended.

Got the chills! Don’t read this at night if you want to get a good nights sleep - you’ll be up all night finishing it.

I honestly only finished this to see what was going to happen. I felt like there was a lot of holes,/ missing information. Like how normal is it to get a text 10 years later from someone how apparently doesn't like you anymore to come meet their fiance? After learning they have seen or spoken for this long kinda makes the book very unbelievable and weird.

Most people I know would turn around and leave finding out the person who invited them over wasn't even home. Just so many odd things happen.

Also the twist at the end was just a tad too much.

Some may like this and some may not just depends on your style of thriller.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this.

A strong 4. I read this in one sitting as it is well written and has that compelling feel where you can’t put it down. I’d recommend this to anyone who likes a really good thriller/mystery.

This was a quick read that held my attention enough that I wanted to find out what happened next. I did however, find that some of the characters acted in ways that weren't entirely believable...at least to me. If I had been in some of the similar situations as Alice was, I probably would have reacted much differently. I liked how near the end we finally got some of her backstory and to see her growth, but the twist at the very end I did not care for. I probably would have rated it a little higher had things ended on a slightly different note. I did think that the "bad guy" in the story made for a good villian but that I could predict who was behind the whole diabolical plan from pretty early on in the book. That said, I did stay interested and would definitely read more from this author.

★★ 2.5 stars

I like a good psychological thriller as much as anyone, particularly one that keeps me engaged from beginning to end with a thrill ride of emotions. However, THE BRIDE just didn't do that for me. I wanted to like it, I wanted to enjoy the ride, but it was a bit like driving Miss Daisy on a road to nowhere.

Alice has just come out of a relationship with the man she had planned to marry when she receives a text out of the blue from her childhood best friend Joanna announcing she has just got engaged and inviting her to come and meet her fiance. When? How about Saturday? OK, I'll be there! Now Alice hasn't seen or heard from Joanna in quite some time and it's not until she has arrived and met the said fiance that we find out just how long it has been.

So Alice sets out early Saturday morning from her Brighton home she had once shared with Drew (cue a few more sobs and self flagellation) and makes the journey to London. She arrives, not at the beautiful home she had envisioned Joanna now living in, but an abandoned deserted and somewhat creepy collection of buildings known as Black Water Dock. Surely Joanna doesn't live here? But then she sees the signs for New Tobacco Wharf, the address she has for her friend. However, this is no Canary Wharf.

OK, so as soon as Alice drives into the underground carpark, cue creepy music because it's dark. And by now we have come to the conclusion multiple times that Alice is terrified of the dark. However, the lights are sensor controlled and as soon as she drives in, they come on. The lift, however, is another matter. So she climbs the six flights to Joanna's floor, rings the apartment buzzer and comes face to face with Joanna's fiance, Mark.

Alas, despite coming all this way for answers Alice discovers all that awaits are more mysteries and uncertainties. Joanna, it seems, is away on a course. So why would she invite Alice up on a weekend she knew she was going to be away? It all seems a little suspect and as nice as Mark appears to be, something is amiss. Tired from her 3 hour journey and getting lost along the way, Alice reluctantly decides to stay the night before making the journey back home to Brighton. But Mark manages to convince her to stay when he reveals that Joanna is actually missing and has been for the past three days. Why has he not informed the police? Did something sinister happen to her friend and is Mark somehow involved?

When the police are finally called two days later, the truth as to how long it's been since Alice has seen Joanna comes to light. Ten years. So then why, after all that time, would she suddenly drop everything (not that there was that much to drop) and make the long journey to see someone she hasn't seen nor spoken to in ten years? And why, after all that time, would Joanna text her simply out of the blue? And would both women really have the same mobile numbers after ten years? I know I have had the same one for the past 12 years but not everyone does.

But that's not all that's suspect in this rather strange but twisted tale. Despite the vastness of these showroom apartments of New Tobacco Wharf, only three of them are occupied. Eloise on the 4th floor who is a little eccentric and someone else who is hardly ever in residence. So much so we never meet them. But then there is wild-eyed random squatting in one of the empty apartments who frightens Alice with his vicious insults and abuse. And then there is Derek, hired as security, sitting in his cubby hole surrounded by monitors of every nook and cranny of the building...who seems to turn up uninvited and leers at Alice, making her uncomfortable. Who are these people? And do they have something to do with Joanna's disappearance?

But then Alice finds the key to a locked drawer in her room and is shocked to discover it is filled to the brim with photos of her. Some on her own and some with Joanna. Why are they here? And what do they mean? Is Mark hiding something? Does he know what really happened to Joanna?

And then the police inform them that a body has been found. Is it Joanna?

A somewhat unlikely plot, THE BRIDE is as eye-rolling as it is baffling. The characters were unlikeable and impossible to relate to that it made it difficult to care what actually happened to them. From the beginning Alice came across as needy and flaky with no real direction. She starts her journey on a plane returning from Corfu and seeing her father to returning to the home she shared with her fiance to being dumped to receiving a text from Joanna to jumping in her car and making the 3 hour drive to London to...what exactly? I didn't see how her journey from Corfu and the playout of her relationship falling apart had anything to do with the story. These are things that could have been mentioned as a backstory...why did they have to play out? I saw no purpose in them. Not to mention that Alice herself was so whiny and flaky I could not like her at all. As for the other characters, a question mark hung over them all as to their involvement in the mystery so it was impossible to get a take on any of them. Added to that, Alice was so jumpy her perspective couldn't be trusted either.

As the story moves on, it is clear that something is amiss...as the narration deliberately leaves you with that sense. But then again, Alice is such an unreliable narrator it's hard to know what to believe. But we do get to hear another voice besides Alice further in when we then hear from Joanna. So what secrets will she reveal?

In summary, THE BRIDE is a claustrophobic thriller that you will either like or you won't. There is an element of suspense but the problem is the story moved with such a glacial speed at the beginning with too much left unresolved in the end. There are a few twists, some of which give you whiplash and leave you wondering what really is the truth?

Overall, THE BRIDE had a lot of potential but falls short in the end.

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

The twists in this book were fantastic. It was full action and suspense. I couldnt stop reading it and I couldnt put it down. Secrets, lies put you on a roller coaster when you read this book. You just want to know whats happening all the time. TWIST TWIST TWIST This book was so addictive.

I loved this book! From the first page to the last, there were so many twists, my head was spinning.
Alice’s life isn’t going to plan, she has no job and her fiancé is cheating on her. Then she gets a text from her old best friend asking her to come and visit, to meet the man she’s going to marry.
Something doesn’t ring true right from the start, but Alice sets off anyway for Joanna’s luxury riverside apartment. When she gets there, Joanna isn’t there, and her fiancé Mark is very vague about where she might be.
I’ll leave it there so as not to spoil it, but suffice to say, I read this book in record speed as I just had to know what had happened, and each page uncovered something new. Brilliant, a new author to add to my “must read” list.

Keeping you guessing to the end is what Wendy does best and this one proves it! I loved the book and got through it in two sittings and not by choice. I had wanted to read right through but you how life can get in the way of reading.

A deliciously gripping rollercoaster read. Heavy with unexpected plot twists, turns and heart palpitations. This story will keep you up late, maybe leave a light on.

With feelings of dread mixed with, "Oh this can't happen", author Wendy Clarke grabbed me by the hand and pushed me through the door of claustrophobic moments, twisted subtext and addictive unreliable characters.

The story opens with an invite to an old friend..."Come and meet my future Husband...I just got engaged!"
Except when Alice arrives at Joanna's home, she isn't there. Actually she might be " missing- maybe cold feet?" Or maybe something else...

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers at Bookouture, and the author, Ms Wendy Clarke, for the opportunity to read this Advanced Readers Copy of "The Bride".
The opinions expressed in this review are mine alone.

Unfortunately I was unable to get in to this story and had to put it down. I'm sure for all larger Thriller fans than myself, however, it was a highly loved book and appreciated by the right readers.

I loved this book, kept me guessing til the end. Full of suspense, twists and turns. Will definitely read more from this author.

I enjoyed this book. Alice was an irritating character though but think that was probably part of what made it so good. I’d recommend this book to anyone who likes a good psychological thriller with plenty twists.

A brilliant psychological thriller that I read in one sitting. This is a book that will stay with me . I was gripped from start to finish.

A great read, it kept my interest and I enjoyed it. It had me hooked enough to want to read it in one sitting which is always a good sign. I have 4 stars because it didn’t leave me thinking about it for days after but other than that it was a great read! Well done!

Full to the brim with suspense right to the end, this book is a truly perfect psychological thriller.

The author had planned the story so wonderfully that it kept you hooked from beginning to end.

I really enjoyed this book and will give it a huge thumbs up. With a great story line and excellent main characters - I would highly recommend this book.

This was such an entertaining read I enjoyed it from beginning to end. It was thrilling and entertaining and full of suspense until the last page. Recommended.

An entertaining read? Yes. A thriller? No. This book is not believable whatsoever, but, it is a very entertaining read from beginning to end.