*I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for my honest review.*

Two women living seemingly parallel lives - successful career women in very new marriages - who never meet face to face are both in danger from their husbands. I enjoyed how the stories unfolded bit by bit and how the situations both wives were in were shown in flashbacks. The set up for both women was infuriating in how easy it is for men, or anyone, to take control over a person.

This was a strong debut and I will be adding Murphy to my list of authors to follow.

Wow, this was a debut?!? 𝕃𝕆𝕍𝔼𝔻!!!!!

Be aware, before you open this book, it may be triggering to survivors of domestic violence. I normally don’t include trigger warnings, but this one was necessary.

𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒𝒹:
*strong character development. I was rooting so hard for both of the MC’s by the end that it was hard to stay in my chair.
*taboo subject matter, but the author didn’t glamorize it. You felt like you could really understand what the MC’s were dealing with.
*the sisterhood factor. Women uplifting and helping each other, even if they are complete strangers (we need more of that these days).

𝒲𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼 𝒹𝒾𝒹𝓃’𝓉 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒:
*the husbands. Duh.

Thank you to NetGalley, Minotaur Books and Nora Murphy for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. THE FAVOR is available now.

I love a win finding a hidden gem emerging in the writing world! The quality of writing was superb and had me engrossed page after page! There are a lot of different books out there that have the element of domestic abuse incorporated, but let's get real.... it is a prominent problem in the real world, and reading about it either fact or fiction keeps it from being hidden because it isn't going away. This is a book that does give the women of the story empowerment to their characters and focus to them empowering themselves to not stay trapped. Leah and McKenna women who could be friends if they ever had their lives intertwine but are just living very similar lives never as anything more than existing in a world full of people not knowing one another from the next stranger on the street until ....Leah happens to notice McKenna and sees herself in this woman, living almost the same idyllic life with so many secrets under the surface. Leah wanting to help herself and McKenna turns into an obsession and Leah starts to "observe" McKenna driving through her neighborhood and watching her life unfold just as Leah's does at home. That is just the start to this intriguing, compulsive, and clever story that unravels a little at a time! The Author's Note gives resources and information about domestic violence that helps to resonate with the book and how aligned with factual domestic violence this book was written from. Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the gifted copy, I look forward to reading whatever Nora Murphy has next! I give it 4.5 stars!

Wow! This one was highly entertaining & would it be weird if I said satisfying?

Leah & McKenna lead similar lives. They live in the same neighborhood. Each has recently lost or quit their careers to be stay at home wives. Each has an abusive husband. After Leah becomes infatuated with McKenna she decides do to her a favor.

I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. I had to know what was going to happen next & how it would end. I was rooting for Leah & McKenna the entire story.
I also greatly appreciated the way the author brought light to the many differnt forms of domestic abuse. If I'm being honest, I'd never heard or knew the term of financial abuse until reading The Favor.

I highly recommend this one!

The Favor is a marvelous debut! Extremely enjoyable, fast paced and unputdownable. 5 star read that I definitely recommend.

I really liked this one. The twist was good and the reading was smooth. I really enjoyed the writing and I will be looking at other books from this author.

I enjoyed this one but I wanted more. I thought it was a thriller but it ended up being a domestic drama. I would try another book by this author and would recommend this one if you like domestic dramas.

What happens when you meet someone like you... and you want to save them from the same things you're going through?

Leah and McKenna are living very similar lives - both had jobs that they loved, both fell in love with charming, charismatic men, both got married and moved to the 'burbs, both stopped working. Both live picture perfect lives, at least that's what it seems on the outside.

But Leah and McKenna have a dirty secret, and when Leah spots McKenna at a liquor store one day, she can't help but be drawn to her.

Thus begins a favor that McKenna didn't ask for, but one she knows she needs to replay.

Will our detective find the link between these two women? And if he does, what will he do with this information?

This is one book you're definitely going to want to read.

Nora Murphy’s THE FAVOR pulled me into the story from the start. Two women who don’t know each other but are so similar it’s eerie. Strangers stuck in their lives that become linked by one impulsive act. How did it get to that point? How did two well-educated professional women get into the situation. Well-written and well-paced, Murphy’s debut kept me reading from beginning to end and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.
Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy. All opinions are my own and freely given.
#TheFavor #NoraMurphy #StMartinsPress #debutauthor

Do you really ever know what goes on in someone else's home? When two complete strangers, who have parallel lives, meet. Leah watches from afar and knows all too well what McKenna is going through. The Favor explores the just how far women will go when pushed to the brink. This is a good read, even if a bit slow at times, but overall solid.

Ohhhh wow I read this book in one afternoon!!!!!!!! This book kept me reading until the last page. It is a riveting story that will spell bind you from page one and not let go until the last.

Leah and McKenna live similar lives, although they have never met. Recognizing the similarities between them, Leah begins to follow McKenna, wanting to help her in anyway she can. A split decision makes them entangled in one another's lives.

This book was really entertaining and full of suspense that I flew through in two sittings. There is an alternating timeline between the past, where we learn about how each woman ended up marrying the monsters they now call their husbands, and the present, during the nightmare they are each living. Big trigger warning for domestic abuse, both physical and psychological and gaslighting! I listened to it on audio and think that the narrators did a great job with all three POVs. The biggest complaint about the book that I had was that during the POV of the detective, he kept talking about his partner, and how much he missed them after they had an injury on the job... It just seemed unnecessary to the narrative, and made him feel a bit creepy and obsessive in my opinion. I feel like his POV could have been left out all together and I would have enjoyed the story a bit more.

Definitely didn't feel like a debut, and I'm intrigued to see what the author comes up with next.

This is not a simple favor like borrowing some milk. Oh no, this is much more. These two women have never met but live parallel lives suffering under the hands of domestic violence.
.
Fast paced this tale spins out of control as two women try to escape from their abuses with their lives intact.

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

Leah and McKenna are living similar lives although the two have never actually met. Both women are facing the same problems and when their paths cross, they each recognize that fact. This one got off to a slow start, but I was holding my breath and crossing my fingers by the end. It didn't grab me quickly, but once it did, it didn't let go. It has a lot in common with a classic thriller, but telling you which one would spoil the plot.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and Noram Murphy for the ARC of her debut novel, "The Favor". My opinions are my own and done voluntarily.

wow, just wow! This did not read as a debut novel. It was beautifully written, wonderful world building and wonderful characters that suck you into their stories and lives. It felt real. It was a total page turner, and you just want more.

Two Women: Leah and McKenna, well educated, successful in their professional lives and married to awful men. But neither know the other, until one day. when one becomes obsessed with the other and then they take matters into their own hands to help the other get away from their monster of a husband.

This was a whirlwind ride; it was a quick read and I read it in 2 days. I really love multiple POVs, and this was done well. At times I felt like I was confused but I got back on track quickly. easily a 4-star read. it is very typical of a good thriller, and I can't wait to see what else Nora Murphy writes next!

This book was so good — disturbing, but addictive. The author created two sympathetic characters in Leah and McKenna, and portrayed their struggle realistically. It could happen to anyone, and "just leaving" isn't a safe or easy solution. Enter: the favor.

I loved the writing style. The subject of abuse is usually one I don't enjoy but the writing hooked me from the start. Sort of gave me Strangers On A Train or Girl On The Train vibes. The pacing was great. It was a fast read. It was very gripping and fast. I highly recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher. This was one of those books that make you cringe as you flip pages. You want to just have them run in different directions. It was really good. I really enjoyed this read.

The Favor, Nora Murphy's debut, is a taut, fast-paced read that has a twist early on that sets our characters on a collision course. Leah and McKenna, professional woman living in an affluent DC suburb, are strangers. who happen to live parallel lives. Leah, a lawyer, knows what goes on inside a home can be much scarier than outside. When she is on a walk one night and witnesses something inside McKenna's home that seems all too familiar she decides to help McKenna. The women are no longer strangers and the favor may be too high a price to pay. Told from both women's perspectives, this has been one of my favorite debuts this year. The chapters and action are fast paced and the backstory to both Leah and McKenna are pieced together until a horrific picture is completed. I look forward to future releases by Nora Murphy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I could not put this one down and read it in one sitting! My first read by Nora Murphy and am looking forward to many more!!