I found this to be a good thriller read which held my interest throughout, it was full of suspense plenty of twists with good characters and I can definitely recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins (OMC) for allowing me to read this excellent book.

This was waayy better than I thought it was going to be even if the final conclusion was a tad bit predictable. However, this did not take away from the rest of the story about 4 friends that reunite on a remote island for a much needed vacation and some fun. When the drinks start flowing, so do unresolved resentments and jealousies. Then a tragedy occurs. What really drew them to this island? Did one of the friends set a death trap?

If you want to know the deets, you better read this. Definitely recommended and may purchase at publishing for my kindle to re-read again.

Thanks to Netgalley, Rakie Bennett and HarperCollins UK, One More Chapter, One More Chapter for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 10/8/21

The Weekend Escape starts off as a group of friends reunite after ten years for a weekend getaway. No one, well, almost no one, was planning on murder. You will feel the suspense building as the remaining friends try to find out who among them is the killer.

I loved the fact that, to quote a writing tip I learned eons ago, the sheriff was shot in the first beginning (basically there was a hook very quickly in the beginning that reeled me in, wanting to read the book). I greatly enjoy authors who do that well - and this was very well done. This book follows a number of characters, but the majority of the story is told from just one person’s viewpoint. Something I enjoyed was the fact that the slow secrets and issues were peeled away as like from an onion - layer upon layer upon layer - creating a great build-up. Although I figured out who was doing what, I still found it a very interesting. Two of the characters (Val and Marne) I really enjoyed learning more about. Like Val, I too enjoy research and probably know a bit more about things a bit off the beaten path. Unlike Marne, I have no interest in being a bird researcher, but reading about her learning on the job and DIY skills were rather enjoyable. Great thriller (and quick read!) and a really fun ride. 3.75 stars, rounded up to 4.

“It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend…”—William Blake

It’s been 10 years since that fateful day on the beach when seven friends became six…when one of their own died. Time passes and friendships wane…until the self-proclaimed leader of the group reaches out and rallies them to spend a weekend together on a remote island where they can reconnect and once again have an adventurous retreat. They say confession is good for the soul, but what these six friends discover is that it can also prove to be deadly…

Full of drama and twists, "The Weekend Escape" is a wickedly entertaining mystery! Would recommend and look forward to reading more from this author!



**I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own. **

A good thriller with the fact a group of friends meet for a reunion on a deserted island. Laced with lies, deception and the past leaves you wanting to read more.

Agatha Christie's classic, Ten Little Indians has to be one of the most influential novels ever written as it gave birth to one of the most prominent staples of the mystery genre, the locked-room-mystery tale. From its publication onwards, there has been a vast number of authors who adopted the same plot premise in order to develop their own stories of murder and mayhem taking place in a confined space. The sad truth is that only few of them succeeded in re-creating the haunting atmosphere of the original while the majority remained in shallow waters simply copycatting some of the tropes that deemed Christie's book as a masterpiece.

The Weekend Escape, Rakie Bennett's debut novel, falls in the latter category as it feels that the author has compiled an array of cliches in her attempt to form a nail-biting story which is supposed to keep the reader on edge, guessing and speculating about the possible culprit and their motivation. The book fails to score points in almost every crucial aspect such as suspense building, characterization, and plot intricacy while the writing style per se is so simple that is reminiscent of an essay written by a first-grade student of English. The ending is horribly predictable even from the first 50 pages or so and the mystery is totally absent throughout the novel.

Lyndsey, Amanda, Val, Juliet, Sonia, and Bobbie are the main characters in the story, six high-school friends who reunite in order to rekindle their relationships that have been hibernating since their graduation from high school. Their weekend trip to the secluded Shell Island in the northwest of England involves a variety of outdoors activities like abseiling, rock climbing, and so on. But as they arrive to the island strange things begin to happen. Amanda gets injured during the abseiling from the local lighthouse tower and the group quickly discovers that the rope has been tampered with. With Amanda incapacitated and with a storm brewing on the outside, the six friends will begin to clash with each other as well-buried secrets come to the surface and threaten to disrupt their bonds.

Even though the Weekend Escape starts strong with the protagonist, Lyndsey, being in the hospital and interrogated by the police officers about the events in the island that led to the death of her friends, the novel quickly deteriorates to a tedious read as the first half features little action while the dialogues that are supposed to develop the characters seem artificial and pretentious. Perhaps it would be more interesting if the author chose to adopt a double timeline narrative and the reader had the chance to observe the group's relationship dynamics in the past while witnessing the change in their characters in the present. In any case, the novel's format doesn't allow the reader to appreciate the protagonists and correctly assess them.

I have to admit that I was extremely disappointed by the final result and in the end I couldn't help but think that I wasted my time on this one. There is a ton of similar novels out there that beg to differ but the lack of originality and craft renders them a mush that, sadly, dominates today's mystery genre. I truly hope that there are talented authors out there who have the necessary skills to create innovative stories, writing outside the box and respecting the readers. I want to thank Netgalley and the publisher for inviting me to read this title in exchange of an honest review.

This is my first reading of this author.

Rakie Bennett has written THE WEEKEND ESCAPE, a story of six friends on an adventure weekend of climbing, abseiling and walking, read on to find out what happened on Shell Island, an uninhabited island off the north east coast of England. The story is told over three days and is about lies, secrets, friendship, betrayal and jealousy.

The writing is full of snappy & witty dialogue, which will enthral readers but unfortunately, for me, it had the opposite affect in the form of annoyance and in parts, my concentration was distracted instead of '' pulling me into'' the story. The beginning of the novel kept me intrigued, the middle not so much and the ending....well ????

I would recommend this novel and give a 4 star rating.

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADVANCED COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW.

I love a vacation gone wrong book and this did not disappoint.
Six friends; Lyndsey, Sonia, Bobbie, Amanda, Juliet, and Val travel to a nearby island to spend a weekend climbing and camping together - an opportunity to connect and revisit their college years and participate in their outdoor hobbies together.

From the start, things are questionable to the point of dangerous. It's not long before a rope breaks and someone is in danger. The rustic cabins are even more rustic than advertised. Someone seems to be targeting them...but why?

The writing in this novel set the scenes perfectly. You will feel that you are on this island and your opportunities for rescue are slowly running out. The characters are complex and all have secrets to hide. If you like locked room mysteries, vacations gone wrong or thrillers set in interesting venues like an unpopulated island then this is the book for you! Thank you to NetGalley and One More Chapter for the ARC in exchange for a fair review #NetGalley #TheWeekendEscape

The Weekend Escape was your typical "and then there were none" premise. A group of old friends go to an island for a little "reunion" and someone seems to be picking them off one by one. The book held my interest and was a quick decent read. I was pretty sure I knew who the killer was the whole time but it didn't ruin the book or anything. The end wrapped everything up nicely, but on the literal last few sentences it opens up a bit of a cliffhanger. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good mystery and isn't expecting anything too heavy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for a honest review.

One More Chapter.... Y'all made my dang month here with this amazing upcoming release! 😍

I knew The Weekend Escape by Rakie Bennett was going to be outta this world!
Obsessed with this compulsive, unputdownable thriller! I raced to the end and was NOT disappointed.
Once I jumped in, I was totally in and barely stopped to finish..
The characters are complex and wonderful. The whole atmosphere of the book was great! I love every little thing about the book....
The flow of the story was continuous and I truly did not want to put this down as it was an addicting read.
I can't wait to see what else Bennett comes up with next!
Five amazing stars for this outstanding story!

Thanks again NetGalley, Publisher and Author for the chance to read and review this amazing book!
I'll post to my Social media platforms closer to pub date!

This book started off well but I really wish this was better executed. The plot has been done so many times already and in a much better fashion too. The twists were predictable and the big reveal was no surprise.

A group of six head out to a deserted island for an adventure weekend. Not all make it back alive. From the outset we see the characters are plunged into a dreadful experience…but they have to work out who’s behind it.
The story began well and I found the atmosphere suitably claustrophobic. The accident that befalls one of the group at the start was enough to set the pulse racing, and could have been explained, but we quickly work out that there’s more to it.
The group of characters were, purportedly, a group of school-friends who’d rather lost their way and were trying to reconnect. The reality fell rather short for me. They were a disparate group, with little other than the past linking them, and there was little to suggest they would find their way to restoring old friendships after this. Some we got to know more than others, but you couldn’t trust what anyone said. It was clear things were being hidden, mainly from other characters, but it led to me feeling things were happening for little purpose and all felt a little lacklustre.
There’s a tense final section as the characters put two and two together. By this time, they’d thrown so much metaphorical mud at each other that something had to stick. It was pretty clear who was behind it and why, and really - given where they were and the things at her disposal - she should have done a better job.
Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read this before publication.

Wow. Wow. Wow. What a ride!

6 friends set out on a weekend trip on an island to climb and do other adventurous things. It starts off with Amanda getting hurt while doing their first climb & they soon realize the rope looked like it’s been cut. After, it’s very clear to the group that someone is hell bent on making their weekend away disastrous & deadly. Everyone in the group is a suspect. Who can they trust? Is there someone else on the island?

Ok, I had to hide under the covers a bit for this one. But no really, how creepy! I did have a guess on who the “bad guy” was, but it was still so chilling! All of the characters had their own distinct personalities and quite frankly none were exactly likeable, but it just worked for the story! Can we also just talk about the ending? Uhhh…YES! Love the way it ended with no definitive answers, or did it?

10/10 recommend. This book had me enthralled. I will read more by this author. I wish I could forget this one & reread!

Six friends reunite on the deserted Shell Island for a fun weekend. But it is anything but fun for Lyndsey, Sonia, Bobbie, Amanda, Juliet and Val. First someone gets injured, then another friend goes missing. To top it off, a bad storm is brewing and their bunkhouse is in horrible condition. They can't even radio for help. One by one, things are discovered about each one of the friends and it seems that everyone has a secret to tell.

This was a fantastic book by Rakie Bennett. The premise for this story caught my attention and I devoured it rather quickly. If you like an eerie setting, a fast paced story, and a brilliant ending…then check this one out! I look forward to reading the next book from this author.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This review will be posted to my Instagram Blog (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

This story features six adventurous young women who especially share an enjoyment of climbing. Though it's been over 10 years since they all climbed together, they have gathered for a weekend island retreat to do just that. From the start, the book reminded me a lot of the movie The Descent, except instead of extreme sports enthusiasts/spelunkers, this group of ladies likes to climb. And right off the bat their troubles start when abseiling down the island's lighthouse the final member of their group falls to the ground when the rope snaps. Or was it cut? And if so, by whom? Things quickly go from bad to worse as the weather turns steadily worse, one of the group becomes ill and seems to be hallucinating (or is she), and the cabin they're staying in turns out to be way more rustic than they anticipated. Then, one of their group is found dead, and accusations and mistrust abound. Was it one of the women? Or the lone warden who lives and works on the island? Or is there someone else hiding in the rocks and the trees?
While this appears to be just the second novel by Rakie Bennett the prose felt like that of a seasoned author. From the get-go the tension builds and builds, and the plot keeps you guessing at who's responsible for the misdeeds as secrets come out and friendships are strained. Though I did figure out the culprit before the big reveal, Bennett still managed to keep me wondering for sure, as there were a few definite possibilities. I was riveted throughout the story, my only contention being I wanted to know already who dun' it just because the tension was solid all the way through. 4.5/5*

This was a very enjoyable, fast-paced And Then There Were None mystery/thriller. Seven women on an island cut-off from the outside world—is one of them the murderer or is it an outsider? Lots of secrets, action and twists. You will enjoy it!

Right from the off this book got going, and kept up the pace.

Six friends off on an adventure weekend on an uninhabited island (apart from a seasonal bird warden).

It appears that none of the group apart from the leader wants to be there and they all have their little secrets.

It tells very like And Then There We’re None by Christie, and by a third of the way through it became apparent who the culprit was, but this in no way spoilt the story. It was full of action, fast paced and the characters were well developed, though I personally wouldn’t have gone away with any of them!

If there is any constructive criticism it is that some of the narrative was repetitive, but still a very good book.

Thank you NetGalley.

"The Weekend Escape" is perfect for those who want a thriller that will keep you in the edge of your seat. The riveting tale of estranged friends tells a story of deception and lies all the way to the very end.

What happens when you put six women together on a deserted island? Are these girlfriends really friends? When push comes to shove, who will turn on one another first?

The Weekend Escape, delivers! If you are looking for a fast paced thriller you are going to want to pre-order this book! I absolutely loved the way Rakie Bennett, narrated this novel. The first chapter gives you a tease as to what happened and then goes backwards to tell you how they all got to that point.

The Weekend Escape is full of twists and turns and you will not see the ending coming. This book is not predictable in the least and captivated my attention early on .