Story moved slowly in the beginning but ends strong. The main character Fran is difficult to like and she makes some questionable choices throughout the story. The writing style is intriguing so I was still invested in the plot despite feeling a lack of connection. Copy received from Netgalley.

#YouAndMe #NetGalley
Nicola has changed the definition of bullying. An epic psychological thriller.
Meet Freaky Fran who's living with Barnwell, her cat. She has a crush on her class friend Charles who once saved her from the teacher when she didn't have her book and notes. She's the owner of a bookshop where she can help others to select appropriate book according to their need.
Once she had a family, her mom and her sister, Ellie but she's cut off from her sister after their mother died.
The story starts with Fran's narration in which she's saying that she was there on the night Dickie Graham died. Dickie was also her classmate.
Dickie once looked behind and then he stumbled in front of the train.
Now the question is that was it suicide or murder?
If it was a murder then who did it?
Characters of the story were creepy but Fran's character was really pathetic sometimes in the story. I also loved Juliet Bentley's character. She and Fran are opposite.
The story is told from the single POV of Fran.
Thanks to NetGalley and Avon for giving me an advance copy of this awesome psychological thriller.

I felt like a good portion of this book just kept plodding along, and then the ending flew by and was resolved very quickly with everything neatly wrapped up.

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I felt this book took a long time to go anywhere.
I was ok with that. I was enjoying the writing style... easy to read.
Then it took on a break neck speed towards the end,throwing things left right and centre that I almost found myself nodding along to ,agreeing that of course,that's what happened.
Fun times.

This psychological thriller is wonderfully written. An intense and twisty suspense until the last line, You and me is also a touching story about two sisters. They love each other and count on each other. Ellie the younger of the two is attractive and popular while the bookish and studious Francesca is awkward and ostracized. She bears the awful nickname of "Freaky Fran" at school where bullying is the law. The girls and boys they encounter at this school will play a crucial part in their adult life and not for the better. Fran becomes addicted to Charles, the only young man who has been kind to her while Ellie is dreadfully abused in a pool by Dickie and Tom who supposedly were her friends. Years later, Fran lives a sad lonely life since the pregnant Ellie left her after a fight. Fran knows Ellie had a little girl but they rarely communicate and as far as she can tell Ellie is traveling the world with her baby Rose. While Fran is stalking her adored Charles, she witnesses Dickie's plunge to death in a tube station. She thinks someone pushed him. Little does she realize that this is the beginning of a painful road towards the dark reality of life and evil minds. This book is a winner.

Fran sits on the bench, near the lake and watches his house, she is a sad and lonely figure who would do anything for the opportunity to spend time with him again, gaze into his gorgeous eyes and hear his voice. They haven't spoken for a long time but she knows deep within her heart that it is only a matter of time before her dreams will come true. One day Charles Fry will realise that they are meant to be together. Fran and Charles, Charles and Fran, together forever.

Then a tragic incident alters the course of Fran's solitary existence and she suddenly finds herself mixing with people that she hasn't seen or spoken to for years including Charles. But not everyone is who they appear to be secrets, lies and past deeds bubble away beneath the surface and Fran finds herself caught up in a deadly game that results in the ultimate betrayal.

This captivating thriller that has a story which slips back and forth in time between the present and the past is voiced entirely from the Fran's perspective. In her younger years she had been nicknamed Freaky Fran by her peers at Chesterfield Boarding School, a nickname that although it wasn't very nice and a bit cruel. was also a rather apt description of her. Fran was a complex character who caused me to experience a mixed bag of conflicting emotions as the story unfolded. She certainly had a number of issues but despite this she did have some redeemable qualities and it was impossible not to feel sympathy for her at times. It was whilst she was attending the boarding school that she met Charles and her obsession with him began. It was also at the boarding school were something horrific happened to Fran's sister Ellie, the events leading up to this incident are gradually revealed as the story unfolded. In the present day, Ellie has been missing for nearly three years, the last time Fran saw her, they had a massive argument and Ellie stormed out of their flat. Apart from the occasional comment on social media and posting pictures of her young daughter Rose, no one has seen her since, not even Fran. I did have a theory about what had happened to Ellie based on a aspect of Fran's behaviour but was I right, well you will just have to read this brilliant book yourself and find out?

You And Me is a well written, mesmerising and at times chilling tale of secrets, deception, manipulation, obsession, friendships and relationships that had me glued to my kindle and frantically turning the pages. I wanted to know what had happened to Ellie in both the present day and the past. The story was intriguing and kept the reader guessing, there was some unexpected twists and turns and the characters were well rounded and believable. I really enjoyed this gripping thriller and look forward to reading more of this author's books in the future.

This story about a dangerous obsession that a woman has over her married neighbor will resonate with fans of the book and series You. A creepy and wild ride that demonstrates you don’t have to be looking for trouble to find it

I found this book slow to start with but i think that is just to keep you reading as the book gets better the more you read. If like me i dont always persevere

‘We’re meant to be together... you just don’t know it yet.’

A tale of obsession, the lies we tell ourselves and others and the power of love.

Whilst this book wasn’t the creepy/obsessive love story I was expecting I did enjoy the way in which its story unravelled.

Fran, is largely misunderstood by everyone in her life with many facets to her character making her very interesting. Ultimately she is a good person but has led a somewhat sheltered life partly through her upbringing and partly because of her shy nature. She’s quiet and reserved in her feelings and chooses her words with the upmost care which sometimes makes her come across as cold. But deep inside she is passionate, loving and totally loyal to those she cares for. Fran is certainly a very clever, observant and well read woman but she makes a few weird choices (like allowing the press to hound her in her home and never questioning people’s motives) which didn’t feel consistent with how she had been portrayed.

I won’t go into too much detail because I don’t want to spoil the book. Rayners style is slow, detailed and methodical. Allowing the reader just enough before switching perspective and your mind.

For me, the book felt like it was on the fence as to whether Fran was utterly obsessed and believed Charles would leave his wife. Or whether she was a hopeless romantic that refused to see anything but the best and was totally harmless. I’m sure Rayner did this so you could make up your own mind but I think the lack of true definition meant that the plot didn’t have enough gumption.

Thanks to NetGalley for my advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

The main character is hard to like and the style of writing isn't for everybody. But keep reading. Twisty, domestic thriller with shocking ending.
As always - do we know people or we know only the image of them that we created?

Joy to read.

An excellent domestic thriller that kept me engaged throughout the entire journey. The writer’s depiction of the characters was spot on. Highly recommended.

This is one twisty book. Quick to whizz through as you really want to know what the heck is going on! These people are crazy! Something is very wrong! Sharp writing really brings the story forward. Much better than The Girl on the Train which it's being compared to. There's no drunken excuse for mistakes here - just sheer evil and darkness in the soul.....ooh er...

I’m not a fan of the writing style, I read a similar story If I Can’t Have You by Charlotte Levine and that was a similar writing style but it just had a better flow. You and Me has a slow writing style that betrays little emotion.

I like a bit more emotion flowing in the words! Don’t tell me how to feel, make me feel it. I just wasn’t captivated by this and put it down at 28%.

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review

This one was pretty twisty- some more obvious than others but still an enjoyable ride. 3.5 rounded up.

My Goodness. This book! Absolutely incredible. I'll be honest, in the first few pages I was thinking 'I' m not sure what's going on here'. And then I clicked that maybe that's what the author wants and so I went with it. I'm so glad I did. In actual fact this book is so sharply written, the author teasing us without giving away the whole story. A brilliant read and I guarantee you'll read it fast. It's a hard one to put down. Highly recommended xxx

This book is that rare and wonderful thriller that actually shocked me with its ending. My feelings towards the main character were constantly shifting between empathy, pity, disgust, suspicion, and rooting for her. It asks the question, do you really know the people you love or have you created a version of them in your mind that does not exist? I highly recommend this book! Thank you so much to Avon Books UK for this stirring read. I'm off to read more by Nicola Rayner!