I read this book in one sitting, so it definitely scratches that fast-paced mystery thriller itch. Naomi is the type of character that you just want to yell “why are you doing that?” for most of the book. She’s trying to decide who she can believe, crossing professional and other ethical boundaries along the way. I definitely didn’t see the plot twists coming and as with most thrillers I wanted more from the ending, though with the way the epilogue was so brilliantly done, I don’t think there could be anything after that.
Naomi’s relationship with her husband, Leo, did not add much to the plot and there were definitely some other plot holes. I have to chalk that up to such a complicated storyline but at only 250 pages, it seems like adding a little length at some point wouldn’t have hurt.
While this was an entertaining read, it doesn’t stand out as exceptional. Fans of the genre will enjoy it.

I really enjoyed this book mostly because I had no idea where it was going. There was a lot of misleading twists and turns, a lot of theories and the story really had no clear end in sight. I think a lot of mystery/thriller/crime authors underestimate readers' abilities to figure out the ending but Jones did this one right.

Naomi wasn't my favorite narrator and I couldn't figure out if she was reliable or not... at the end, I would say she is pretty unreliable but it's with good reason. There's a reason she is keeping the secrets she is and it was a really interesting reveal.

In the same breath, I was really frustrated that no one believed Naomi. I was frustrated that she was thought to be the reason for Jacob going missing; there were so many other signs but it also did feel like someone was setting her up... or was she responsible? There was so much up in the air.

The ending was so unique and I loved that they set it up the way they did; it was interesting, gasp inducing and just different. It also gave you a really good understanding of the entire novel from start to finish.

Nothing is what it seems in The Blame Game and I think this would be a great thriller for first time readers who are trying to get into the genre. It isn't too gory or scary...it's mind altering and thrill inducing in the best way. It will keep your attention, send you on a wild goose chase and make you question everything.

I just dont think this author is for me. While I enjoyed this one much more then her others I just never feel satisfied.

Thank you Netgalley for my advance copy!

Y’all. This book was a-MAY-zing! I have read and loved everything that this author has done from her very first book and this was no different. We are so immersed with these characters that we the readers feel every lie as a personal attack. The red herrings throughout are mind-boggling and the twist is unbelievable.

This book started off strong but quickly became repetitive.Naomi brings problems upon herself by constantly keeping secrets and not telling the truth.

This was a quick read and had all sorts of twists and turns. I was intrigued by the plot & this cover! A psychologist who gets a little too close to her clients and too trusting turns into quite a whirlwind of a story! The ending to me felt a bit rushed though and I just couldn't connect with any of the characters. Anyone else feel the same about this one? I did give it a 3 stars because even though I had a hard time connecting with the story, I was still compelled to turn the page (or in this case, tap the screen) to see how it ended.

Thank you @netgalley for this e-arc.

Naomi is a psychologist who specializes in domestic abuse cases, who goes above and beyond to help her clients. She is counseling Anna, who has lost her son. She is also counseling Jacob, who has an abusive wife. When Naomi lets Jacob stay in an apartment that she and her husband own without telling her husband, it is the start of things going downhill. When Jacob goes missing, Naomi is the prime suspect.

This book has a lot of twists and turns to keep you guessing.

I enjoyed this fast-paced novel for the most part. Naomi’s character was a tad frustrating because she made terrible choices constantly. I was still invested in the mystery and wanted to know who was setting her up. I figured some of the twist out before the big reveal, but I was still somewhat surprised by the ending. With being just a little over 200 pages, I wish the author would have taken a little more time to flesh out the climax. Everything was saved for the epilogue at the end and it felt very rushed. I’ll try this author again.

My rating: 3.5/5 stars

Naomi is a phycologist that specializes in domestic abuse cases. As will eventually come out, she has personal experience with domestic violence. She is an American married to a Brit and practicing there. Her past made her flee her home and leave everything behind. Perhaps because of this, Naomi identifies maybe too much with some of her clients who are victims of domestic abuse.

What I liked about this book: It was a wild ride of a story line but it certainly kept me involved and intersected. This made up a little for the fact that I didn't find the main character very sympathetic, and she seemed to make a lot of really bad decisions for someone whose job it is to tell people how to do better in life. The author structured the story so Naomi really couldn't trust anyone, even her husband, and this made it interesting for the reader.

At the end the story turned solution turned out to be pretty crazy and convuluted, but I had a fun time getting there. I give the story 3.5 stars.

I don't think Sandie Jones will ever be able to out do The Other Woman, but this was the closet she had gotten. Naomi is a psychotherapist working with victims of domestic abuse. She has two main clients throughout the book, as well as troubles with her husband and information about her childhood. This was a quick read (mostly do to it only being approx 250 pages).

*Spoilers ahead*
I feel it was clear early on that Anna was Vanessa. However, I am still confused how she saw Vanessa get stabbed and yet she has no injuries. Also, I get that the sister/father storyline was in there to throw the character off and assume someone is to blame, but I feel it was left unresolved. I feel the author could have used a few more pages to explain the ending and have the epilogue have something to do with Naomi and her family.

Thank you St. Martin's Press, Netgalley and Minotaur Books for this ARC!

Honestly, I think that if I wasn't in a reading slump when I read this one or if I did the audiobook I would have enjoyed this more. Naomi was just unlikable and once I dislike a character it's tough for me.

I've read Sandie Jones previous books and loved them so was looking forward to this one. Unfortunately, it was disappointing for me. I didn't like Naomi or her husband and it was hard to care what happened to them. Naomi seemed totally unethical in her job as well as her marriage. Her backstory wasn't revealed until so late that I had pretty much lost interest in it. The other characters were ho-hum and the ending a mish-mash.

I'll be looking forward to Jones' NEXT book and hope it compares with her first few.

The Blame Game is a fast-paced thriller that will have you wondering what to believe, even after you finish. Naomi is a psychologist who specializes in domestic abuse. She seemingly constantly crosses the line with her patients, which I tried to understand due to her traumatic background, but in the end, those dots are never really connected. I was really frustrated by Naomi because she kept making bizarre decisions and her thought processes made no sense to me. She didn’t really have any character development and I was struggling to root for her. I did not understand why she kept lying. Why did she immediately assume the worst of her husband?
By the end, I was still left with quite a few question marks regarding the plot.
Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lamentably, The Blame Game falls into a category that I'm beginning to see more and more - forgettable domestic thrillers that don't do anything different from 90% of the books in the genre. This book has the ingredients that you've seen before: a therapist with questionable ethics, a main character with a dark past, distrustful spouses, etc. But I had so many gripes with the execution of this story that I couldn't set aside – Naomi is an extremely unprincipled therapist and dishonest person in general, the police "investigation" of the missing persons case is a total joke, Naomi's backstory feels completely out of place, and most importantly, the ending of this book was so confusing that I had to go back and re-read it three times just to make sense of it (and even then...). Unfortunately, this book was a pass from me. (Thank you to Minotaur Books for the ARC via Netgalley.)

The Blame Game by Sandie Jones is a thriller about Naomi, a psychologist who specializes in domestic abuse and goes above and beyond to help her clients. She helps Jacob leave his abusive wife; but small things keeps happening, and she wonders if maybe she's in danger herself. This story had a lots of things going on, and I'm not sure the author did a good job wrapping all the different stories up. Thanks to NetGalley for the free digital review copy. All opinions are my own.

One of my fav go to authors! I enjoyed this book from beginning to end! I loved how there were so many connections and hidden parts that kept being brought up without it feeling like too much. Will continue to read books by this author!

The Blame Game
By: Sandie Jones

➡️swipe for Goodreads synopsis

This was a hard book for me to get into. I had a hard time believing that Naomi would get that invested in her clients/patients. I mean, to the extreme she takes it to? It was too much for me, and May have ruined the book for me.
Though the big twist was unexpected, the ride to get there was rough. A lot of paranoia and withheld information made it drawn out and a little crazy to read. Watching Naomi question her mental stability, through a large chunk of the book, was tedious. It definitely made it more of a psychological thriller, but not super thrilling.
I didn’t love this book. Which is hard for me because I have loved Sandie Jones in the past.

Naomi, a psychologist who specializes in domestic abuse, due to what happened to her family when she was a child just has routine meetings with a man known as Jacob. He has said that he is being abused by his wife. When all of a sudden no one can find Jacob things take a turn. One thing I have to ask is "Why does the husband never believe the wife in books?" I constantly question why every husband is immediately turned against their wives. At least Naomi is about to let things go the way it looks like it will go. She is going to fight! That is definitely an upside is the female character fighting for herself. Anyways this book has some lovely twists and turns and was a great read. I highly recommend it.

Great domestic psychological thriller that started off fast paced but slowed down a little towards the end. Until you get to the very end and then the twists really hit.
Good twists and turns and interesting characters.
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martins Press, Minotaur books, and the Author Sandie Jones for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you so much to @minotaurbooks for sending me a complimentary arc of The Blame Game to read and review close to publication. The Blame Game came out on August 16, 2022 - available now!

I haven't read any of this authors earlier books, and if I'm honest after this one, I'm not sure if I will (except The Other Woman because of my read all the Reese picks ongoing goal).

Naomi is a psychologist specializing in domestic abuse and often finds herself getting too close to her clients and overstepping professional boundaries (I added that last part). She allows a client to move into a flat that her and her husband own to get away from an abusive spouse and soon after he goes missing.

I'm getting pretty bored of women making poor decisions, keeping unnecessary secrets. There were so many times during this book that Naomi could have made any other decision, and there would have been a better outcome.

I had a lot of trouble keeping up with the different characters and what their histories were. I guessed the twist in this book very early, and none of it seemed realistic or possible.

If your looking for an easy read, and don't mind if the pieces don't really fit together or make sense... this is the book for you.