This was a pretty good read overall. There were a few aspects that felt a bit overly complicated, but overall I really enjoyed it and it was a quick read!

The queen of the twist does it again! I enjoyed this book, but with multiple POVs and two different time periods, it was a lot to handle. I do think it paled in comparison to The First to Lie, but it was very enojyable.

Lily Atwood has crafted the perfect life for herself. She is an award-winning journalist, she has an adorable daughter, a great job, and an outstanding reputation. Her life couldn’t be better.

However, it could all be taken away from Lily when her reliable source threatens to reveal her secrets. Lily’s producer, Greer, gets roped in to this dilemma as well, and thus, unfolds all the drama from here.

I could not get on board with how gullible Lily was, especially since she is supposed to be an Emmy award-winning journalist. I could understand one of the character’s naivety due to their age, but a simple Google search would have immediately revealed a major clue to Lily. All of the characters made bad choice after bad choice. Greer’s were the worst.

Despite the short and snappy chapters, I nearly fell asleep several times while reading this. Some plot points dragged on for what felt like forever. I did correctly guess some of the big twists early on, but not all of them, so there’s that.

On the plus side, my favourite character was Lily’s daughter, Rowen. She’s such a charming and intelligent little girl. I also liked the debate on keeping Rowen out of the public eye. Lily wanted to respect her child’s privacy, while the media were desperate to get a glimpse of Rowen. I would have liked this to have been explored a bit more, but it was eventually forgotten amid all the chaos.

Thank you to Forge books for the ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lily Atwood is a well known television reporter who appears to have the perfect life. She has her successful career and a beautiful daughter who she would do anything for. What people do not know is that she has a sister Cassie who was been missing since Lily was a little girl. One night Cassie disappeared and no one has been able to find her dead or alive. What happened to her is still a mystery and Lily cannot seem to accept that Cassie may be dead. Lily has a source who has been helping her with her stories and adds to her success. One day it becomes personal and Lily who is very private begins to worry this person knows about her sister. As this source becomes closer to the truth Lily is not sure if she can trust him or not… who is he and what does he want from her? Will this hurt her career and perfect life?This book had some great twists and turns and I enjoyed it. Somewhat predictable, but still a great book.

I really struggled with this book. I didn't connect with any of the characters & found myself getting annoyed with them. While the twist at the end was great & not something that I expected, it was not enough to save the book for me. I've read The First to Lie & enjoyed it, and I look forward to reading Hank's other books, but this one was just not for me.

Everyone knows Lily Atwood―and that may be her biggest problem. The beloved television reporter has it all! To keep it, all she has to do is protect one life-changing secret.

Lily has an anonymous source who feeds her story tips―until he/she is describing Lily’s own secrets. Now she is terrified someone will destroy her world. How much will she risk to keep her perfect life?

Thoughts: I cannot believe I’m saying this but, this is my first book by HPR. I have three on my shelf of hers that I haven’t read yet. I had to start with this one because the cover was gorgeous! Now I get why everyone loves her books! This book is so twisty it will make your head spin! You literally cannot trust anyone. I loved the alternating POVs because it made it that much more suspect! This really is a story on deceit, fame, perfection and lies! I felt like this was the definition of “page turner” and read it up in one sitting. I just had to know what was happening!

Unfortunately this one just didn't work for me and I found myself feeling confused the majority of the book. I feel like Lily's celebrity position brought nothing to the story and I wanted there to be more behind Greer's motives and their relationship. I also had trouble keeping up with Smith's character in general and how it contributed to the plot. I really wanted to like this one, I just felt too confused with too little going on.

I think Her Perfect Life is Hank Phillippi Ryan's best book ever. From Lily, Cassie, Mr. Smith, and the rest of the cast to the secrets behind the "perfect" life, I didn't want to put this book down until I figured out everything.

If you enjoy suspense, thrillers, and/or mysteries, this book is calling your name. If you haven't read Hank, it's time. Just do it because you will be glad you did!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for an ARC at my request. All thoughts are my own.

I raced through Her Perfect Life to get to the end and I wasn’t disappointed! I loved the way the story unfolded, I loved the characters (and especially the relationship Lily has with Greer), and the ending was perfect. Ryan is amazing at ratching up the tension and creating suspense-- the way the scenes unfolded was fantastic, with a very visual, movie-like quality because of the vivid descriptions used.
An easy five stars to the sensational Hank Phillippi Ryan!

Cassie was the perfect big sister, and Lily Atwood adored her. Cassie was smart, kind, beautiful, and popular, and looked forward to having a wonderful time in college. Something happened that first semester: when she came home for the winter break, she was sad and broken, but would not say why. One day she just disappeared, shattering the lives of her mother and sister.
Lily grew up and had a successful career as an investigative journalist. She was a doting single mother to a lovely child, Rowen. She won Emmys, and everyone knew her name, and her face. To her assistant Greer she had the perfect life – the life Greer dearly wanted.
Lily was always looking for the next big story, and a man calling himself Mr. Smith handed her two juicy scoops. Then he threw her a bombshell. He said Cassie was still alive, and in danger, and needed her help. Lily became wary of his agenda: was he friend or foe?
Lily’s search for the truth leads her into a twisted labyrinth filled with deception and danger. Tension builds to almost unbearable heights. Bound to keep the reader turning pages well into the night. Highly recommended.

I wasn't sure what the main storyline was when I first started this book, but soon I realized I didn't care: I just wanted to know what happened--both what happened next and what had happened in the past. Kept me on my toes and turning pages.

Twists, turns, secrets, well-drawn characters drama, and dual storylines- all of my favorite things in one book. Definitely read this one- you won't be disappointed.

I love books by Hank Phillippi Ryan. I discovered her a few year ago and now eagerly await each new book. This book was no different. It focuses on Lily, a perfect single mother and journalist. She has two main secrets in her past that could derail her perfect life.

Each chapter is told from a different POV and I love that in books. I love the way the writing draws you in and I can picture the scenes in my head and the little details that appear to be completely separate come together at the end.

This book was so twisty! Just when you think that you have it all worked out, everything changes again. Fantastic read. I love it when a book continues to surprise you, right until the very end. The characters are not always likeable or trustworthy but that makes for a great story.

Lily Attwod appears to have the perfect life. She is happily the single mother to her little girl and has a blossoming career on TV as a reporter. There are Emmys on her shelf and she is much loved by her followers on Instagram. But when she was little, her older sister Cassie went missing from college. Over the years she has tried to find her without any luck, but now a source has a lead and Lily will do anything to find her. Along with her producer, she follows the clues and gets in deeper and deeper into the case.

Thanks to Forge Books and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read.

First let me say... WOW! Just WOW! This book is the best I've read by Hank Phillippi Ryan. I could not put it down. Rarely do I ever stay up past ten to read but I stayed up to almost one in the morning with this one. I did not want to put it down. I thought it was just great. A story that will have you turning the pages until the very end and leave you breathless...

A seven year old, Lily, loses her sister, Cassie. What could have happened. Was she really killed and then forgotten by everyone. Or was it more. Was there something more going on. Lily lives in the spotlight now but never stops looking. Every face. Every body. She has to check and see. Could it be Cassie. Could Cassie be alive. If Cassie did somehow survive how could she ever find her. Lily lives her live to perfection. She lives Her Perfect Life for her public. She's a journalist who has many followers who adore her. If she has any secrets that could make her look bad then they must be covered up. No one must ever know. There of course there is Lily's daughter Rowen who she keeps close. No one can get too close. She does not allow pictures or anything to surface. She lives to protect her daughter. I really did like Lily. And Rowen. And Cassie.

Then there is Greer. Lily's producer. Greer is somewhat jealous of Lily. She seems to like her yet have dark thoughts about her at the same time. When she has too she will do anything to protect Lily but will she at the same time turn her back on her? I personally did not like Greer. I found her to be a tad petty and silly. She was so gullible and very self centered. But she also seemed to care about Lily's daughter Cassie. Maybe when it benefited her? I just found her to be someone I would not have liked to have around. She was a bit nosy too. At times. Her biggest problem in my opinion was jealousy though. It almost got her more than she bargained for maybe. Or not.

This book has a lot of twists in it. A lot of things to keep you turning the pages to find out what happened. What happened to Cassie. What was going on twenty some odd years ago. Lily always hoped that Cassie was alive and that one day they would be reunited. Lily also lived with a few fears. One being Rowen's dad coming into the picture. What kind of secrets lie in that story?

I throughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. It made me hold my breath a lot and shed a lot of tears. It was told in a way that made you feel the things that were happening. It has all the things you need and desire in a good thriller/mystery. All things are answered. You won't be left hanging. I thought it was very well written and told with a lot of feeling. It is basically The Perfect Story... Kudos to Ms Ryan on a job well done. It's told from three prospectives. Lily. Greer. Cassie. In the present and the past. You'll get to know each of these characters and a few more. Some others I truly did not like or throughly trust. I was right.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #HankPhillippiRyan, #Macmillion-Tor/Forge books for this ARC. This is my own true feelings about this book. Well done.

5/5 HUGE stars and the highest recommend possible. You don't want to miss this one.

On sale Sept 14th of this year.

I love how fast paced this was for me! I enjoyed this storyline and felt it was unpredictable. Overall this was a great read and would recommend it to my friends!

Lily is a big time reporter with the picture perfect life. She has a daughter that she tries to keep out of the spotlight and a sister that disappeared years ago. When an anonymous source starts giving her stories that boost her career but then starts telling her own secrets.

Told between Lily, her producer Greer and her sister Cassie. Greer was the least likable character but Lily came in second. I thought they were both self centered. Cassie was just here in the background.

I really wanted to like this book and the actual story line was good, but it just didn’t do anything for me. I had to make myself push through.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced copy.

Lily is a famous news reporter. Greer is her producer. Lily has a sister, Cassie, who disappeared years ago. Greer resents not being recognized for her hard work and agrees to meet with detective Banning to gather information on Lily and Cassie. Greer goes missing, resulting in Lily agreeing to meet with the detective, Banning is good at playing the women against each other and even involves the father of Lily’s daughter and long-lost Cassie to get what he wants. There is a lot going on in this story, but I felt it took too long to reveal Banning’s intention and revel what had happened to Cassie and why. Chapters alternated between past and present as well as chapters from the point of view of Lily, Greer, and Cassie. Sometimes is seemed disjointed.

Hank P. Ryan does it again with Her Perfect Life. She's created a domestic mystery that's two-fold and intertwines a timeline of the past with the present. Forgiveness, redemption, and revenge are soaked in the bones of the characters Lily, Cassie, Greer, Sam, and the mysterious Banning.

Readers get to see the fine details of Lily Atwood's privileged life as a TV reporter and single mother. She has a full-time au pair to care for her daughter Rowen. She can live without financial worries in her house and pay for the nanny and private school. But the only reason Lily's life seems so perfect on the glossy exterior is because of her producer Greer and because she keeps everything about her past and personal life secret.

As her producer, Greer has more than one job. She has to wrangle the stories, interviews, and research while at the same time being Lily's servant for just about any chore. Yet, they are not friends. That becomes clear and it's a hard truth Greer has to swallow. If Lily were to decide that Greer was getting too nosy, too personal -- she could be out on her ass looking for a new job. Greer is just as much of an investigative reporter though and her boss is hiding things that could ruin their livelihoods. It's a relationship that's difficult to define. Playing a personal assistant but credited as a TV producer, Greer deserves better. Along comes this man first calling himself Smith then changes to Banning, who blackmails her into helping his alleged client, Sam Prescott.

In today's world would it really blow up the reputations of Greer and Lily if the paternity of Lily's child were suddenly known? What about if Lily's sister who disappeared 20 years ago, Cassie, ended up being responsible for someone's death? Where would the public place Lily? Someone to look up to as a person that rose to the top given her history or as a bitch related to a possible drug-dealing murderer?

The consequences of everyone's decisions over twenty years is what makes Her Perfect Life such a prime example of human behavior for today's audiences. It reminds me of the line in the first Sam Raimi Spider-Man movie when the Green Goblin says, "The one thing they love more than a hero is to see a hero fail, fall, die trying." That's how we treat our celebrities and author Ryan would know since she is one just like Lily Atwood.

After every character is manipulated to doubt people they trust and their own decisions at every single turn, makes the payoff of the foreshadowing that it will be all right so satisfying. Lily finally puts pieces together in a way that fits and she gets to reveal what's really been going on and why. It's a climax where the key characters are all confused except for Lily. Even the villain can't believe what's happening.

The hashtag within the book #HerPerfectLife is among a few that Lily has seen in reference to her. None of those people who believe it's perfect know that every single day, she struggles with insecurity, bitterness, and tension that worms through her core. Use the hashtag when talking about the book too.

"The detective tapped his pen against his notebook. It made a pocking sound, like a clock ticking out his thoughts."

Fluid prose that comingles the poetically descriptive with straight-forward action like expert dance partners is one of Ryan's many talents.

Summary:
Her Perfect Life continues to build Ryan's catalog with a compound of characters and intertwining plots.

Rating: 5 stars

Another award winning book for Hank! Chilling, fast paced, and compulsively readable. Ryan’s voice is so distinct