Carol Mason has written a compelling novel in this slow-burn, riveting work of fiction.

Lauren, a junior doctor, is an extremely intriguing character. She met Joe when she was in her final year of medical school but as Joe was married, with a thirteen-year-old daughter Grace and a son, Toby, aged three, there could not be anything between Lauren and him. But a year later, Joe is divorced.

Regularly displaying a cocktail of emotions, including frustration and bitterness I could really empathise with Lauren as she struggled with her blended family; her role as a step mum, and seemingly never being able to please anyone or get things right. As she also tried to manage a demanding career, she struggled with her new life. I was invested in Carol Mason's characters even though the majority were difficult to like. The story encompasses marriage, divorce, exes, and many blended family issues and I found it extremely insightful, helped along by the author's beautiful writing which has depth and substance. The ending was unexpected and I will definitely be reading more of Carol Mason's books in the future.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Amazon Publishing/ Lake Union via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

I don't think I've read anything else by Carol Mason, but if Between You and Me is anything to go on, I should!

Saying I enjoyed this book is complicated. I definitely liked Lauren and much like Lauren, I liked Joe, in the beginning. Between Joe and Meredith, I spent the book alternately yelling and wanting to smack them into some sort of awareness. Now that may sound like a bad thing, but isn't always. Without them being who they were, there wouldn't be any drama in this well-written domestic drama.

After a point though, even Lauren joined the should I smack you or yell at you squad, but overall this book was very good. It's a story line we've seen before - sweet woman marries a divorced dad with a few kids and lo and behold, dad has a huge blind spot. But this author takes that and moves somewhat behind it and in a good way.

If you haven't read Ms. Mason, I'd recommend remedying that and if you have, you'll want to pick this book up.

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

3.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

This was my first book by Carol Mason which was an enjoyable read. It’s a family drama about Lauren who becomes a stepmother to 2 young children. Lots of twists and turns in their lives to keep you reading. The ending wasn’t what I expected but I do like it.

Thanks to Carol Mason, Amazon publishing and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Between You And Me by @carolmasonauthor

Honestly, I really don’t know where to start and end my review. This was my first book by this author but it won’t be my last that I can assure you.
I only know that this book is unputdownable and I don’t know why this book called fiction cause trust me I almost cried at some point and I can simply simply relate my life. It felt like I’m reading me and my husband’s life… 😓🤷🏻‍♀️

This is a story of Lauren, newly registered doctor and her husband, Joe who once married and have two beautiful kids Grace and Toby.
Meredith his ex-wife always eyeing for a chance to accuse Lauren that how misfit she’s for the family.

This will be my favourite read from this year. The story is too emotional for me. First I thought it’ll be a thriller but it’s definitely not it’s touchy. More importantly, I never wanted this book to finish cause I wanted to read more what happened next with Lauren and Joe.

Few people will not get this book engaging cause I guess they never really been into that situation. They’ll find this book immature. Well, that’s their perspective. But I really enjoyed reading this.

Highly recommend to those mainly who married the person they loved and sacrificed but didn’t regret taking decision at hit of the moment.

Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

Thank you @netgalley and @lakeunionauthors for the #arc in exchange for an honest review.

Lauran falls in love with divorced dad of 2 Joe and goes from single life to mother of two. While I enjoyed the story overall I felt like something was missing. Lots of small plot twists that never felt wrapped up or completed. And the ending left me a bit perplexed.

Well written story about the trials and joys of being a step-mom. Loved this story. The charaters were very well developed and well written.
4 stars

Well written story about family relations. I found myself wanting to give advice to Lauren. It was easy also to relate to the step daughter having to deal with another woman coming into her fathers life and competing for his attention. It held my interest throughout and was an enjoyable read.

Between You and Me was a great read. It kept me engaged throughout. A step-mom isn’t easy job, neither is being the next wife. Especially if her husband isn’t all she thinks.

Lauren meets Joe on vacation. A swift courtship, a marriage, relocations. Trying to establish both professional and domestic problems , keeps Lauren at her wits ends. She is dealing with an ambivalent husband who clearly dentures to his ex wife in all matters of the children. She tries to see all sides and in the end finds herself retreating from the woman she was to someone she doesn’t recognize. The ending is worth the fare. Happy reading

The story is told from the perspective of Lauren, a hardworking woman who is training to be a Doctor when she meets – and marries Joe. He is a divorced father of two, and Lauren is drawn to him instantly.

Lauren’s relationship with Joe’s teenage daughter Grace, along with his ex wife Meredith is difficult – and that really is putting it mildly. Lauren is determined to be the best step mother she can possibly be to four year old Toby along with Grace, but she somehow never seems to get things right, and with Joe reluctant to take her side when she clashes with Grace, Lauren is quickly coming to realise that the happy life she pictured is far from the life she is actually living.

When Joe then starts retreating into himself, and leaving Lauren to struggle on her own, he is far from the dashing man she met back in California, and as the situations surrounding them escalate Lauren finds herself questioning whether she actually knows her husband at all…

Everything about this book was wonderful! The storyline itself is perfectly structured and has so much depth and detail throughout. Each of the characters have complex personalities, and each of them have flaws – as all humans do!. This made them all the more realistic and even relatable at times. I really felt for Lauren as she struggled to adjust to becoming a step mother to a reluctant teenager, and the constant power struggles that arose between herself and their mother Meredith.

A tense, suspenseful read that had me well and truly hooked. This is an absolute page turner that I urge you all to read!.

This was one of those maddening tales that kept me reading well into the night while greatly annoyed with ALL the characters. They each needed a few firm pinches and even a swat or two to the back of the head. Ms. Mason excels at creating curiously compelling yet vile characters I love to hate. Her well-textured and shrewdly paced storytelling lures me into an interwoven trail of storylines, each with an itchy web of nebulous veracity and questionable sincerity, and I just can’t help myself.

I think I read 90% of this book with a stomachache! Maybe it hit too close to home and emphasized how bad it could have been to be a step parent.

This is the story of Lauren, told by Lauren herself. Lauren is a doctor in training when she meets and marries Joe, a divorced father of 2. To say that Lauren’s relationship with Joe’s teenage daughter Grace and ex-wife Meredith are tricky would be the understatement of the year. I am so glad we handled things completely differently, but as a step parent it was all too easy to imagine everything Lauren was going through. I was literally appalled by how she was treated and although I did not agree with how she handled things, I could imagine some people would go down that path.

I enjoyed the style of writing and there was never a dull moment. I simply had to know what drama the next chapter would hold and if the characters would ever change. I didn’t particularly like many of the characters, but the story was good… except the end. Now there needs to be a sequel, only I am not sure I can handle reading another whole book with a stomachache. Perhaps a short story sequel would be better?

I would like to thank the author, the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a very engaging and enjoyable novel. It was a bit different than I expected but still kept me wondering what might happen next. It was a fascinating insight into a complicated family situation.

A good domestic thriller that held my attention until the end. Well developed characters, some you like, some not so much. Good summer beach read.

A quick read. At first I thought this book was a mystery, but when I started reading, I realised it was a book about family, relationships after divorce, dealing with a insta-family. I enjoyed the connection between Joe and Lauren, but this seemed to disappear after their marriage. The ending threw me... it sort of leaves it to the readers imagination.

I am not always a huge fan of slow-burn domestic fiction, but when you do it as well as Carol Mason does, it's hard not to enjoy! I knew immediately that I was going to like Between You and Me and despite the frustration I continually felt with Lauren, I was pleasantly surprised how much I loved this book. It is told all from Lauren's viewpoint and is filled with tons of family drama thanks to her marrying a man with an ex-wife and 2 kids. We watch as Lauren struggles to connect to the kids, especially the teenage daughter Grace, and her husband Joe is definitely not helpful in the slightest. I was so appalled for Lauren at the way Joe, his ex, and his daughter treated her, and I really wished she would grow a backbone and tell her husband off for his blindness and attitude. Clearly, I have no experience with being thrown into a ready-made family, as I am quite sure my way would not be everyone else's way. However, I just felt so bad for Lauren and it felt like she was being gaslighted nonstop.

I read almost half the book before switching to the audio which is on Kindle Unlimited along with the eBook. Moira Quirk narrates, and I have to say that she made me like Lauren a lot more once I got to put a voice to the character. The ending also helped me like her a heck of a lot more, and there were even a couple of surprises in Between You and Me that I wasn't expecting. There is a TON of tension in this book and it really helped keep the pacing up and it made me not want to put it down. I had to know what would happen next with the kids, and how this whole mess would end. It is certainly a messy thing to be the second woman in a child's life especially when they aren't looking for another mom, and I do understand why Lauren just wanted things to run smoothly and not rock the boat. If you like domestic dramas that have a focus on step relationships, Between You and Me is an excellent choice!

Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

I was hooked on this book from the beginning. I really felt bad for Lauren and all that she had to endure from her family. The book was filled with family drama and had many different twists and turns. I would definitely recommend to others.

Between you and Me is the first novel I have reviewed by Carol Mason and I was intrigued by the choice of title, as it seemed secretive to me and appropriate, as it's what you say when you don't want a secret to get out.

The novel is multi-layered, and has different themes. There's marriage, divorce ex-wives stepchildren, as well as trying to juggle a career and build a new life.

Lauren and Joe meet by the pool in California. She's a doctor and he's a divorced businessman and has two kids: Toby, aged 4 and Grace who is a teenager. Then, there's Meredith, Joe's wife...

I can't resist a family drama, and this is certainly mysterious and twisty. I was gripped by it.

Thanks to Carol Mason, Lake Union Publishing and Rachel's Random Resources for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

5 stars

“It’s complicated.” That’s how Joe Johnson describes his status to Lauren Matheson when they first meet in California. Fast forward several months later - Joe has been divorced, he and Lauren are married, they live in London and they share custody of Joe’s children, fourteen year old Grace and four year old Toby. Guess what? It’s still complicated.

Joe has a demanding position in finance and Lauren has just begun her career as a physician. Work separates them during the week and the little time they have together is shared with (ruined by, depending on perspective) Grace and Toby. Here’s Lauren’s challenge. Will Grace and Toby grow to love her? Will she learn to deal with Meredith, Joe’s demanding ex-wife? Is Joe on her side? And does she care?

Between You and Me is a love story full of family drama. I wanted Lauren and Joe to resolve their problems. I wanted Meredith to move to Siberia. I wanted Grace to grow up and I wanted Toby to stay small. Did I get what I wanted? You’ll have to read Between You and Me to find out and I know you’ll love it as much as I did. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Publishing UK and Carol Mason for this ARC.

I started this book with high expectations for what I thought I was about to read.
Lauren, is in her late 20’s and pursuing a career as a doctor, which involves long hours and high stress.
After a friends wedding in Santa Monica, Lauren meets Joe, a mysterious older man. They click immediately, but it’s complicated....

Fast forward to some time later, back in London, we find Lauren and Joe married.
With Joe, come the added extras of Meredith, his ex-wife, and their two children, Grace and Toby.
Can Lauren find her place in this blended family or will the pressure be too much for Lauren and Joe’s marriage to withstand?

This book was well written and captured some very life like snaps of the ups and downs of being a step parent.
Carol Mason creates some very real and believable characters. Unfortunately, what I struggled with, was being able to like any of them. Despite being drawn into the story, and really wanting to see just desserts served on those who had it coming, I just couldn't take to any of them. I’m sure other readers will feel differently, but as much as I wanted to, I just couldn't Warm to them.
While i’m being a negative Nelly, I wasn’t massively keen on the ending of this book. I can only hope there will be more to come from this family, because I didn't feel that the story was tied up neatly.

There was a lot to say in favour of this book, and although it wasn’t a big hit for me, I would encourage other readers to give it a go, because that’s the beauty of books, what one person struggles with another will find to be a great read.

With thanks to #Netgalley and
#Amazonpublishinguk for an ARC of #BetweenYouAndMe in return for an honest review.
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