I have been able to read early copies of Sandie Jones’ latest releases and was excited to be approved for both the E-ARC and the Audiobook for this book.

I struggled with the audio of this book but I feel that it was because my focus wasn’t completely there. There were many characters that appeared at once and I had a hard time keeping them straight. Once I switched to the physical edition as was able to read it, I was fine. This was no fault of the narrator of the audio edition and strictly my own lack of attention.

The storyline was interesting as it dealt with adult topics that some may not want to read about. The characters did come off as a bit immature and obnoxious and this was not my favorite read from Sandie Jones. By no means was this a bad book, it had its twists and turns and startling conclusion.

The Guilt Trip tells the story of a group of friends who travel to Portugal for a destination wedding. It’s told in third person from the point of view of Rachel. The group includes Rachel, her husband Jack, her best friend Paige and her husband Noah, Jack’s brother and soon to be groom Will and Will’s bride-to-be Ali. There is history between multiple characters that create tension from the very beginning of the trip. Rachel and Noah were college friends and were on the verge of becoming more before circumstances diverted them. Allie used to work with Jack before abruptly leaving the company and going to work for a competitor. I liked how each of the characters were introduced in a way that made the reader have a certain opinion about them (rightly so). And as the story progresses, motivations are revealed layer by layer. The story constantly has the reader trying to figure out the behaviors of the characters. The big incident at the end is shocking, but you think you know what happened and why. It’s obvious, isn’t it? And even if that’s what really happened, this would be a pretty good book. But it gets better. No spoilers here. The themes in this story are not original (infidelity, jealousy, dishonesty), but they’re addressed realistically. I always enjoy a story that makes me ask myself, “What would I do if I were in this situation?” What if I was Rachel? Or Ali? The one thing that irritated me a bit was the multiple use of the phrases “his jaw involuntarily spasmed”, or variations of blood running cold or letting go of held breath. For eff’s sake, please try to find other ways of conveying anger, shock, etc. Other than that, I enjoyed Jones’ writing style and I will read other books by her.

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing the audio arc of The Guilt Trip by Sandie Jones, narrated by Clare Corbett in exchange for my honest review.

The Guilt Trip follows six friends as they travel to Portugal for a destination wedding. Our MC, Rachel, and her husband Jack. Jack’s younger brother Will and his fiance Ali, and Rachel’s friend from college Noah and his wife Paige. Three couples, a beautiful setting, a wedding, and lots of secrets, what could possibly go wrong?

Everything!

From the start, the trip is doomed when Ali discovers her passport isn’t in her bag. Paige, Rachel’s BFF and Noah’s wife, is obviously threatened by or jealous of Ali. There’s tension between Jack and Noah. Will is giddy to be marrying the love of his wife. Ali is excited to get married and start her life with Will, but her “tell it like it is” attitude is rubbing everyone the wrong way. The connections between non-couples create soap opera-ish drama that would make most people run for the hills. Rumors fly, tensions build, suspicions run wild, and no one knows what to believe. When confrontations begin nothing is what it seems.

I found the MC, Rachel, tough to cheer for or get behind because she hides her true feelings for everyone. It’s not until the very end that we finally get the truth from her, even though it’s obvious from the start. There are a number of twists throughout The Guilt Trip, for a while I thought the story was just about Rachel’s guilt, but once the twists started I realized what was really going on. For me, the final twist was hard to accept, even with the evidence provided.

In the end, you may question, can you really believe the people in your life? I’m on the fence with this one, I had to push myself to finish because I never became invested. I will recommend it to people who enjoy suspense books.

For me, narrator Clare Corbett made this book for me. I thought she captured each character perfectly and I really enjoyed her voice work.

Three couples on a trip to Portugal, where everyone is keeping secrets. The narrator of this book was fabulous and I was really drawn in while traveling myself. Jones is a master at making me uncomfortable and anxious, in the best way. I never really knew who to trust or what was really going on. Ali was the epitome of a hot mess but you just know there’s more going on than it seems. Unfortunately, all the characters are pretty unlikeable and doing some awful things, so it made it difficult to really care about them. The ending was bonkers but I definitely enjoyed getting to the end.

I don’t love Domestic Suspense. It’s always light on murder & heavy on the drama. But there’s something about Sandie Jones’ writing that pulls me in every time. It is a bit predictable and over-the-top but I still had fun with this destination wedding from hell!

Thanks so much to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an advanced listeners copy in exchange for an honest review!

The Guilt Trip was an interesting story line, filled with deep secrets between a group of friends. I liked the setting of Portugal for the wedding. The main character Rachel was infuriating because she failed to figure out what had been right in front of her for so long. And poor Allie, how they all made her out to be a villain to cover up the lies they were telling. There was a lot of drama packed into this story. Listening to it was a little confusing at points. The first half of the book was slow going and hard to get into. And by the time of the climax at the end it just fell flat and rushed for me. Like the build up should have made the end more exciting. The narrator really didn’t help for me. I didn’t like how she read it, and maybe that contributed to why I didn’t like the book as much as I thought I would. Maybe a physical copy would have been different. I feel like it had a lot of potential but just couldn’t get there for me as a reader. Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan audio for the advanced audio in exchange for an honest review!

The Guilt Trip
Author, Sandie Jones
Publisher: Minotaur books
Pub date: August 3, 2021
Audiobook: Macmillan Audio
Narrator, Clare Corbett

~ They went away as friends. They came back as suspects. ~

Thank you @netgalley and @macmillan.audio for the opportunity to listen to Clare Corbett fantastically narrate Sandie Jones's latest novel! A 5 star narration!

This suspenseful drama is filled with secrets, lies, deception, and infidelity. It was initially difficult to figure out who belongs with whom.. but narrator, Clare Corbett does such an excellent job giving each character a distinct voice, that I was able to quickly piece everyone together.

Rachel and Jack have been married for twenty years and have a son, Josh. Paige and Noah are also married, but Noah and Rachel were friends in college and have a shared past. Paige and Rachel are now best friends. And Will, Jack's brother, and Ali are getting married and having a destination wedding in Portugal. The three couples are all traveling to a gorgeous clifftop villa and looking forward to a time to relax and celebrate together.

Ali, the newcomer, thrown in with these five friends who have known each other for years, is seemingly sweet, but Rachel and Paige can't quite figure out if Ali is a genuine and good enough woman for Will to be walking down the aisle with any second now.. There are just a few things about her that don't make sense.

Rachel discovers a shocking secret about Ali and suddenly everything that she once thought was true, slowly begins to unravel in the most dramatic ways.

Did you ever see that hilarious Friends episode.. "but they don't know that we know that they know.." ?? There was a lot of drama back and forth and it made me think of that episode, although this drama isn't funny..

Friendships and marriages are threatened throughout the entire wedding weekend... And Wow, I did not see that ending coming! It was over the top unbelievable, but entertaining and perfectly narrated.

The Guilt Trip

Wow, what an amazing fast paced mystery this book was. I think it was the fastest I’ve gotten through a book in awhile! I was so drawn to it and couldn’t wait to return to it over the two days that I read it! I will definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a good mystery. It’s full of suspense, lies and betrayal!

Three couples head to Portugal for a destination wedding. Jack and Rachel, Noah and Paige have known each other for over twenty years. Will is Jack’s brother and the one getting married to Ali. Ali gets mixed reviews from the group before the trip, but while on it, the others find her assertion into their lives as troublesome! They all left as friends but this trip will change their lives forever and how they view their relationships with one another.

This book has some great plot twists. Clearly Jones wants us to see one person as the instigator when really it is another. I was so happy I was correct in my prediction thanks to well placed foreshadowing.

I definitely want to go back and read some of her other books to see what I have been missing!

Don’t miss this book out 8/3! You won’t

Three couples Rachel and Jack, Paige and Noah and Ali and Will are off to Portugal for Ali and Will’s destination wedding. As they are settling in at a gorgeous Villa on a cliffs edge overlooking beautiful beaches below for what is suppose to be a weekend of fun assumptions start to be made and trouble starts to be had. As the wedding weekend unfolds secrets are told and friendships and marriages start to crumble. Who is telling the truth and who is lying?

This book is marketed as a thriller which I have to disagree with, it was more just a domestic drama. As a whole this novel just didn’t work for me. I did not care for any of the characters, they were relatable and were very unlikeable. There was so much miscommunication and assumptions being made with no one willing to just get to the bottom of things that I found myself just frustrated throughout the whole book. The last 10 % of the book lost me and I was left feeling confused as I didn’t quite understand what really happened.

This was the first novel I read from SandieJones and while it didn’t wow me, I have The Other Women sitting on my bookshelf that I will still give a try. Thank you Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for this ARC. Title is released August 3, 2021.

4.5 stars. If you read suspense books frequently, you may figure out some of the plot before it is revealed, but I am still a newer fan of the genre. From the very beginning, I found myself invested in the story line and unable to stop listening (who needs sleep anyway?). What is intended to be a beautiful destination wedding weekend turns into a shocking matter of life and death. This was the first book I have read by Sandie Jones, and I look forward to reading more.

I had a really fun time with this one! It was fast-paced, psychological, and engaging. I couldn't help but be invested in the uncertainty, the secrets, surrounding all the characters. However, the ending lacked impact, hence why I gave it 3 stars.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Minotaur Books, and St. Martin's Press for the ARC.

I finally just read The Half Sister in June and didn't love it. I also didn't love this one. Which is disappointing because I loved her first 2! I gave The Other Woman 4 stars and The First Mistake 5 stars! I don't know if I'm just not into these domestic thrillers anymore or what. I will keep trying because her most recent are by no means awful or bad. Just not quite as good. Maybe I just think she should've gone where my head went instead of where her head went. lol. I want it my way! Whatever.

This book is a destination wedding gone wrong. No likable characters but definitely a beautiful setting, Portugal! And I love the cover! I'm not big on themed covers where even though the books are unrelated, there's a theme. Like Riley Sager's bookcovers. You see one, you KNOW it's Sager. Or Stephanie Perkins' 2 horror novels. Or Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen's bookcovers, though it looks like The Golden Couple is decidedly breaking that mold. I like covers that actually show parts of the story. And this one does.

But speaking of story, I just didn't care for it. I guess there's only so many ways you can go in a domestic thriller but I felt it was weak. So not my favorite but I think I did like it more than The Half Sister. The narration was great!

I listened to the audio version of this book, and boy was that an excellent idea! The narrator was fantastic and the storyline kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. And the ending? What did I just read?? I did not see that coming at all! I’ve read all of Sandie Jones’s books and enjoyed every single one. I can’t wait to read what comes next!

The Guilt Trip is another domestic thriller by Sandie Jones. A destination wedding at a beautiful Portuguese villa, two couples and the bride and groom are in for an exciting weekend and not with just wedding events! This story is filled with friendships, secrets, lies, betrayal and marital infertility. The drama and jealousy, especially related to the one who got away will keep you on your toes! Along with all that Jones throws in a murder to stir the pot and you are not putting this one down until you figure out who is responsible! I found the ending somewhat easy to figure out but still unexpected and explosive and I was looking for more! I recommend this one to all Sandie Jones fans!

This was an audiobook for me and I found it easy to listen to! The narrator Clare Corbet did a nice job making me feel like I was right there with the other characters! Thank you NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, Minotaur Books and Sandie Jones for an audio book in exchange for an honest review.

#theguilttrip #sandiejones #minotaurbooks #macmillanaudio. #netgalley #arc

This is my first time reading a book by Sandie Jones and it has left me curious enough to look for more by this author. Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I got sucked into the drama between the three different couples, and I definitely was left guessing until the very end.

My rating is 3 and half stars out of five.

I think Jones did a phenomenal job with the unreliable narrator in Rachel. I definitely was not sure whether I could trust her or not. I really enjoyed the first 3/4 of the book. Towards the end, I felt like the story got a little messy and complex. It was hard to keep track of what was going on. I felt like the ending was a bit overly dramatic for my preference which is why I am not awarding it the full 4 stars.

The narration of the audiobook was really well done. I liked how she went from character to character changing her voice so I could tell who was speaking. Especially with the women. I would definitely listen to another book read by this narrator again.

My reviews for this audiobook can be found on goodread and instagram.

This had me guessing until the end as to who did what. I loved the way you were inside of Rachel's head to hear her "paranoid" thoughts or were they? 5 friends on a trip of a lifetime to see two of them get married but what secrets are they hiding that will turn the nuptials on it's head? Who won't make it back alive turning this dream trip into a nightmare?

Everyone of them has secrets And everyone is guilty of keeping them but who will lose it all because of them?

Such an emotionally twisty book! Loved how everyone was full of secrets hiding them from each other but they come out to haunt all 5 of them. What a group of friends!

I didn’t see the end coming although I guessed some aspects of this. It was a really good solid entertaining mystery.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for an ALC in exchange for my honest opinion.
I enjoyed the narrator and listened to this book over a short period of time. I had trouble keeping track of the characters in the beginning, and I forgot who the couples were, but that became clear, at least to me, by the middle. The ending is rather abrupt and unbelievable, which left me wanting something else or more details - either way, I finished it and felt quite ambivalent about the whole thing. I'm glad I listened to it, though, as I liked the narrator!

This book was definitely interesting - it was more of a family drama than an actual mystery. It was fast-paced and the narrator did a great job portraying all the different characters. I really enjoyed her performance. The story overall was not my favorite one by this author, but I still enjoyed it. I think the ending was probably what made me not like it as well as some of her others. Three stars for the story and four stars for the narrator.

This was right up my alley. Suspenseful, relationship drama, missed opportunities and things that are not at all as they seem! I had fun trying to figure out what was going on the whole book and while I was able to guess some of it, there was still a good twist at the end.

Secrets, lies, and a destination wedding will forever change the lives of three couples. The relationships among the six are complicated-Rachel and Noah have been best friends since college. Rachel is married to Jack and Noah is married to Paige, Rachel’s best friend, and they are off to celebrate the marriage of Jack’s brother Will to Ali. Who used to work for Jack. While the middle of the book is a bit bogged down with misunderstandings and vague communication that strain credulity, I found the ending tidy and satisfying.