Twist after twist, I loved the plot and could never guess what was going to happen next. Such a clever plot.... Gemma and Ruth’ had a tight friendship.... years later they are brought back together but behind the insecurities and malice who is to blame from all the drama. I stayed up late reading this book because I needed to find out the truth. A solid 4 star twisty dome toon suspense thriller!!!

I just reviewed Did I Say You Could Go by Melanie Gideon. #NetGalley
https://www.netgalley.com/book/209117/review/626029 Edit

This book was hard to enjoy because some of the characters- particularly Ruth- were so unlikeable. I understand that was part of the purpose of the story, and it means the author did a great job developing her character, but I just couldn't stand her to the point of almost not finishing the book. She was deceitful and manipulative and just... awful. The story itself wasn't bad or great, and there were a few twists and turns, but none of them were very shocking to me. It kept my interest, and I'd definitely read more by this author as I liked her writing style, but it wasn't one of my favorite reads so far this year.

This book was a page turner from beginning to end. I literally couldn’t put this book down and finished in one reading. Modern mean girls and acceptance as a mom in a new town. This does has a disclaimer as trigger warning for eating disorders. Amazing character development and integration. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Wow, this is one of those unputdownable, riveting reads, which absolutely blew my mind! So well written, captivating, unique, and amazingly well done character development! Gave me whip lash with the twisty turns, on the edge of my seat with the thrills, goosebumps with the chills, and gasping from the shocks! Fast paced and fun! A must read for my fellow thrill lovers and seekers! I highly, highly recommend!

Will make sure to buzz around platforms and use low Amazon reviewer number on release date!

Just when you think you know what happens next, a twist gets the best of you.
I read Did I Say You Could Go in one sitting. The characters are your neighbors, friends, fellow parents and students at schools. The teenagers are perfectly honed as well as overbearing mothers. When you leave your eye off the ball for a minute, anything can happen.

Ruth and Gemma are single moms who live vastly different lives. While Ruth is a wealthy divorcee, Gemma is a widow living paycheck-to-paycheck. When Ruth hosts the Hillside Academy kindergarten meet-and-greet, the two, along with their daughters, quickly become close friends. For years, the foursome becomes inseparable. Ruth takes Gemma and her daughter on lavish vacations, treats them to expensive dinners, and helps with Gemma's daily expenses. While Gemma is grateful for Ruth's generosity, she begins to feel controlled by Ruth and the unpayable debt accumulating. When Ruth has an affair with a married man and is shunned by the Hillside community, Gemma uses it as a reason to sever ties with Ruth. Several years later, Gemma is embroiled in her own scandal and Ruth is the only one who comes to her defense. Gemma needs Ruth's help - her business is collapsing, her daughter needs medical attention, and she could use a friend. As Gemma and Ruth reignite their friendship and their daughters become close again, Gemma starts to feel trapped as Ruth becomes increasingly obsessed with their relationship.


Did I Say You Could Go is quite the domestic suspense novel chronicling an unhealthy relationship between two grown women. Largely alternating between Ruth and Gemma's POVs, the two are compelling characters with opposite stories, so watching their friendship develop was fascinating. I found Melanie Gideon's writing enticing and page turning. However, I didn't get a lot out of this story - it felt pretty basic to me and I was annoyed by the back-and-forth and overtly toxic behaviors. There were several times where I found myself in the middle of a weird soap opera waiting for anything remarkable to happen. While I didn't love the book, I do think it is a good, casual read for people who want a fast-paced drama. If you're looking for an easy-to-read book packed with soap opera-level drama and a pretty good ending, I recommend Did I Say You Could Go.


Thank you, Simon & Schuster, for an advanced copy of Did I Say You Could Go in exchange for an honest review.

Ruth just wants people to like her. And it should be easy since she’s beautiful and has more money than God, right? Except somehow it isn’t. She experienced loss at a young age and it jacked her up. So much in fact that it’s hard for her to form relationships, both romantic and with friends. But she’s desperate for a connection.

Enter Gemma. An unsuspecting single mother who’s hustling to provide for her daughter after being widowed. Ruth is ruthless (ha!) at the lengths that she will go to be friends with Gemma, especially after she thought she had lost her forever. It’s obsessive, it’s crazy and it’s not actually that unbelievable. We’ve all met people with a few screws loose, and after some of the stories I’ve heard, these people do exist.

I really don’t want to say much more, because this book is amazing. As each crazy detail leads into the next, this book with scratch every single itch you have to gossip IRL. I think this is why people like reality TV? But this is fiction so you indulge guilt free! Did I Say You Could Go? is an amazing page-turner that really gets into the dark world of how far some people will go for a best friend.

I would recommend Did I Say You Could Go? to fans of Bridget Jones’ Diary, and Jane Green. Special thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out August 3, 2021. It’s the perfect read to sneak in before the end of summer.

This book was really engaging - I really enjoyed the dynamic between Ruth and Gemma and thought that the author did a great job of keeping you pulled in by the story, even when there was a lull in the action. It is told from alternating viewpoints, but the author did this with ease. Some of the twists that happened were more easy to figure out, but the end had one that really hit hard.

Oh my god! My head is spinning in a million different directions! What a crazy story! I read this in one sitting because I couldn't get it out of my head. Ruth is loaded but shunned and Gemma a single mom. They form a friendship that doesn't seem 100% sincere as it seems like Gemma is always going to have a debt to pay to Ruth for her money generoristy. I mean really it is a crazy friendship. Almost a obbessive friendship. So many twists and turns. Such a great book!
Thank you to #Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Ruth and Gemma have a shaky past, as do their two daughters who were close as children. When Gemma is embroiled in a scandal at work, Ruth is back by her side. As Ruth continues to support her, Gemma feels like she is beginning to owe Ruth.

I loved the drama of this one. Any book with parent involvement in school drama is a book I will enjoy. This was one that you had chapters from both the mothers and daughters, which allows for different perspectives. It was so full of drama, gossip, and needy manipulation that just got worse and worse as the pages flew. The ending was perfectly done. I wasn’t expecting this story to have twists, so when they happened it was entirely unexpected. I highly suggest this read if you enjoy books such as The Gifted School and Girls With Bright Futures.

“As soon as high school starts, parents shift from ‘them’ to ‘we’. Getting into college is a family sport at Hillside.”

Did I Say You Could Go comes out 8/3.

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster. I received an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Ruth is a wealthy divorcee, not liked by the other parents at the private school her daughter, Marley, attends. Gemma, a single mother to Bee, lost her husband a few years prior and lives paycheck to paycheck. They become close, and Ruth uses her wealth to “treat” Gemma and Bee to lavish vacations and meals. Gemma can’t help but wonder if she is somehow indebted to Ruth.

This book spans the girls’ kindergarten to high school years, and the chapters are through the four main characters’ perspectives. It was interesting to read the book from everyone’s perspective. I was disappointed by the time it took for things to build up and felt that more time could have been spent on “the twists” to really do them justice. Some parts kind of lost me, too, and I felt that they weren’t tied up well in the end.

I’m giving this book 3 stars because I would still recommend it to others as a quick read and a fun thriller.

This book got me out of a funk I was having with reading cause I am still grieving the loss of my mother. I started so many other book but none of them stuck so for that I am thankful for this book.....I gave it 3 stars though just cause I didn't like Ruth but I loved the Gemma and her daughter

Wow- what a suspenseful thriller! I loved all the POV shifts, twists and turns, and the "frenemies" theme, which is my catnip!! Did I Say You Could Go by Melanie Gideon was quite the wild ride and I absolutely loved every page!!!

I was excited about this book. The premise sounded interesting. It promised to be a psychological thriller with twists and turns. Just my type of book. The main characters are friends. Single moms whose daughters are friends as well. They do everything together. But then something happens (which is never really explained) and they are no longer friends. Years pass and they rekindle their friendship. One of them is unstable, manipulating the other to see and do things her way. This is when the book starts to get interesting. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened next.

DAMN. , What did I just read. There was so much going on, cyberbullying, abuse, and insanity. Did I Say you Could Go made me feel uncomfortable parts, as it should? It was a good read, and after reading it I almost started over.

I wish more books had the summary be the background info you needed for the story. I'm sure that only works for certain types of books, but those types would be anything mystery-related. I picked up this ARC from Netgalley based on my love of the author's previous books but this was a little detour of what those books were like. One was a memoir type of book and another was more of a fun marriage type book, dare I say 'women's lit' or whatever.

But I got sucked right in. Each chapter has a heading based on who it's about. You have Ruth who is uber wealthy and scathing. Her daughter Marley who is the complete opposite as sweet and naive and painfully insecure (actually all the characters are but Marley is that childlike insecurity that was painted with a perfect touch in this novel- being that of a teenager). Then there is Ruth's friend Gemma who is not rich but dependent on Ruth's generosity even if she truly doesn't want it but can't help saying yes to where money is concerned. But with Ruth's gifts come a price. She basically owns you. BUT this isn't a cookie cutter cliche plot. It is SO very realistic feeling. I identified with all the characters. Even Gemma's super popular daughter Bee who is forced to be friends with Marley because what Ruth wants Ruth gets and pushing the girls together when the moms first meet at a parent's night when the girls are in kindergarten would mean that the women would be friends. I have no idea what it's like to be rich but I do remember what it's like to be manipulated or to manipulate to make yourself feel better, if only for the moment.

I don't know what else to say about the book because a lot happens and it reads quickly but if you're in the mood for women's relationships and spot on eye to detail regarding the nuances of such friendships and want to read about teen girls' drama (again, I can't stress enough how un-angsty it is, truly so good (in a voyeuristic way)). This book is sure to be a hit when it drops in August. I have been going through some personal shit and lost my reading mojo and this saved the day.

I had a hard time enjoying this one. Ruth and Gemma were the “adults” but they were horrible. Gemma took advantage of Ruth’s wealth, even though she clearly didn’t want to be/stay friends with her. And Ruth was just an awful human. Then their kids POV chapters, were just too YA and juvenile for me. The twist at the end was slightly shocking, but not really because the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Not my favorite, but an easy read.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! Ruth has a daughter, Marley. Gemma has a daughter Bee. When the four of them are united at a kindergarten function, they all become friends for life....
But life can be strange! Those you think you can trust and are always there for you may have other motives, not just for their friends interest!
When you think you have it figured out, you dont, more than once!! Excellent read
This book keep my intrigued, hard to put down! I will be looking for more books from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

TW: suicide attempt, cyber bullying, child abuse

This is the story of two single mom’s and their daughters who share a long & complicated history. Ruth & Marley seem like the perfect mother-daughter duo due to their immense wealth, picture perfect life, and seem to truly have it all. Gemma & Bee are seen as outcasts due to a few scandals and are envious, yet weary of Ruth and her generosity. Ruth gifts them with luxurious vacations, new cars, pays their bills, and never seems to want anything in return... except nothing is ever as it seems!

I thought I had the book totally figured out - a narcissist who wants to ruin everyone else’s lives to make herself feel better.... but who is the true mastermind behind all of the misery?

This was such a fast, easy read and I did not see the twist coming at the end!

I wish to thank NetGalley and the Simon & Schuster Publishers for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a gripping story about relationships between friends and between their teenage daughters. Gemma and Ruth are single moms with young kindergarten daughters when they meet. As the years go by their friendships strengthen. Ruth is very wealthy and showers Gemma with lots of expensive gifts and trips. As the story unfolds the friendships unravel several times due to Ruth’s need to dominate, her obsessions and betrayals at the very roots of their friendship. Even the daughters grow apart and then reconnect several times. This is a very up to date book with lots of cyber technology and crimes woven through it.

I found the book a little slow at the beginning but once it grabs you it becomes a “cannot put down” story. Ruth’s parenting style amazed me. How can she do those things to a girl she loves? How can she try to manipulate everyone she encounters? Read it to find out.