Blame Game is a domestic suspense novel about a psychiatrist who specializes in domestic abuse and gets way too involved with her patients. Until it all turns on her. This book was creepy, stressful, twisted and frustrating in the miscommunications and misunderstandings. The kind of book where you yell “JUST TELL THE TRUTH” to the main character and yet you keep reading because you have to see how it all plays out.

⭐⭐⭐/5

• short, fast paced domestic suspense
• unlikable characters (I wanted to scream at the MC several times 😂)
• lots of secrets and lies

While the plot was overall entertaining, I felt like the characters weren't completely fleshed out. The epilogue helped save my rating for this one! If you're new to this author, I recommend starting with her debut, The Other Woman -- it's great!

🗣️ Thank you to @netgalley, @minotaurbooks and @macmillanaudio for the opportunity to read and review this book via gifted eARC and audiobook! All opinions are honest and my own.

Naomi is a psychologist specializes in domestic abuse. She, herself, has a traumatic past so she feels she understands her clients. This leads to her sometimes becoming overly involved in their lives. When she takes on client, Jacob, she has no idea this is the client that will upend her life.
While the plot was interesting and the book fast paced, I just couldn’t connect with main character, Naomi. I found myself annoyed and frustrated with her choices. Repeatedly. Is there anyone really that poor at making choices? Over and over again?
Overall, it was okay. If you’re looking for. Quick and easy read, you may enjoy this book.
** Hige thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

After loving The Guilt Trip I was super excited to read Sandie Jones’ newest book.
I was intrigued by the plot and it seemed like there was going to be some good drama and thrills but this wasn’t as great as I was hoping.

I didn’t think there was much character development and that is really important to me. I felt nothing for the main character…a therapist who makes bad choice after bad choice and gets too involved in a clients life can make a good read, but this was just too much and too over the top.
We did get some backstory on Naomi, but I felt like her storyline didn’t always connect to others in the book since there were always so many different things going on. I do with her past was played up more because that was the best part of the book for me!
I knew nothing about the husband except I didn’t like him and their relationship was odd from the start. Some friends were mentioned and there were unlikeable detectives, but all in all no one I felt super interested in.

I will say right at the very end there was a nice little twist, but I ended up with so many unanswered questions and I didn’t think everything was 100% resolved. I did find myself getting a little confused towards the end trying to connect the dots and it was a little far fetched,

Overall it was just ok, I enjoyed the beginning, and I did think the epilogue was pretty good, so it ended on a high note.

The Blame Game by Sandie Jones
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This book is about a psychologist named Naomi who specializes in domestic abuse. When she helps a client who wants to leave his abusive wife, Naomi thinks she’s doing the right thing. Then the client goes missing and the police seem to be asking HER all the questions.
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What I liked:
-Quite a few people to suspect throughout this story. I had theories galore on this and needed to know what was really going on.
-I liked learning all about Naomi’s back story and that things were gradually revealed.
-The epilogue was necessary and I needed that to tie everything together for me.
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What I didn’t like:
-Naomi kept making a lot of cringe-worthy decisions and I facepalmed a lot throughout this book.
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3.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 I liked it but didn’t love it.

“The Blame Game” by Sadie Jones
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Release Date: 8/16/22
Genre: Thriller

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! I finished this book in two days. While I did enjoy this one I figured out the main thrill early on, which is I unusual for me. I wanted something a little more unpredictable. There was a high sense of paranoia, which reminds me of watching Horror movies and telling the main actress not to do something. This book didn’t have the horror, but the MC did have paranoia and kept doing things I question.

This one missed the mark with me. I could not connect with the main character, Naomi. As a psychiatrist, I expected her actions to be much more thought out and measured, but I felt that she acted very erratically and let her emotions guide her. I felt that she kept digging a deeper and deeper hole for herself and it made me very frustrated. I felt that there were plot points that were just completely unnecessary.. I did enjoy the twists at the end and the lies and deceptions…I didn’t know who to trust!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martins Press, and Sandie Jones for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a fast paced thriller that kept me engaged until the end of the book. The ending went so far off the rails, I was left wondering what I had just read. I'll just say that this book wasn't a favorite - actually, not even a so-so book.

This was a super fast read. I was immediately interested in the storyline as it hooks you from the beginning. Ultimately though, it became a bit too outlandish for my taste. Naomi made some really questionable decisions that I just couldn’t get behind even knowing her past. There were too many moving parts and red herrings that were not needed. If you’re looking for a thriller that holds your attention then this might be for you!

Whereas the synopsis of this book was rather intriguing, here lately I find myself struggling with books where the MC weaves such an intricate web of lies, that could have been completely avoided, that he/she ends up making an unnecessary mess of their lives and others'. I really did not like Naomi (our MC) and was never able to connect or sympathize with her. Overall, I didn't really enjoy this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 rounded up.

This book was like swiss cheese, good but many holes. I started the book in the evening and decided to stay up late to finish it. It's a quick read. Probably not a great idea because I had dreams about the book. Naomi is a therapist and I'm not sure if she's very good. She has no boundaries and gets way too involved. I spent a good portion of the book shaking my head at her stupidity. She has a few clients who are going through domestic abuse. She's constantly lying to her husband. Then all the lies and no boundaries catch up with her.

I liked the book it kept me engaged but afterwards I felt confused and had a bunch of questions.

The newest from Sandie Jones. I love her writing style!
We have a psychological thriller with an ending I did not see coming!
I enjoyed this one, but was left with numerous questions.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley, St. Martin's Press / Minotaur Books, and Sandie Jones for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is my first Sandie Jones novel and I enjoyed her writing and the fast paced story and it definitely made for a quick read, but I'm honestly a little confused still at the ending. It almost felt too rushed and too quick...I had a hard time connecting with any of the characters but especially our main character Naomi, and found myself getting so frustrated with her at times. I understand she wanted to help her patients as much as she could but she just let herself get wayyyy too involved! The epilogue at the end was honestly the best part for me but like I said before, I'm still a little confused as to what happened...

I will be checking out Sandie Jones other novels because I really did enjoy her writing, but while this wasn't my favorite book, I do think it's a good book to take to the beach or on vacation if you're wanting a quick, fast paced story that you can fly through!

3 star read for me.

I was on the edge of my seat for the majority of this thriller. EVERYONE at one point was the bad guy/gal in my eyes and the plot made sure you couldn’t figure out who to blame for everything.

Naomi is a psychologist specializing in domestic abuse and will literally do anything to help her clients. Even if that means giving them places to live in their rental homes or offering up her own home.

Naomi has a dark past, just like everyone who comes to visit her. Between her, her husband and her clients, they really all could be to blame for literally everything out of the ordinary happening lately.

Naomi, a psychologist with a habit of getting dangerously invested in the lives of her clients, gets caught in the middle of an investigation when one of them goes missing. While being stuck at the center of it all, the case starts to also bring forth old memories and secrets from her past.
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This was the first book I’ve read by Sandie Jones, and I was pretty impressed! I found this book to be a page-turner, which also made for a quick read that I was able to get through in one day.

As I was reading, I had no idea where this story was gonna go haha I had so many theories, but they were all wrong.😅 So I was definitely kept on my toes. Up until the end, I was second guessing everything about every character. Who’s good/bad? Who do I believe? Who can I trust? I think this is a testament to the skillful writing of Jones, and it’s something I really enjoy in thrillers. I would have liked a little more detail for the ending, rather than tying it all up in the epilogue, but overall I still found the conclusion to be satisfying and neatly put together.

I definitely recommend giving it this one a go! It’s a nice, easy/fast read and may be especially good for getting you out of a reading slump if you’re in one.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book!📖💙

Right out of the gate we meet super paranoid, flustered MC Naomi and you think, oh great another, is she crazy, is she not? kind of book.

Fast paced, but maybe a bit too quick. It felt like the characters lacked depth and the whole story just feels rushed. You never really connect to any of the characters and it all feels a bit choppy.

Epilogue is interesting, I guess.

Solid three stars because it kept me interested enough to keep reading and finished it in a few hours. Not my favorite Jones book, but I will be back for her next one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The synopsis of this book was intriguing. A psychiatrist who is ready to cross the line to help her patients? Count me in! That being said, there was lack of character development. I couldn’t connect with the main character at all. There were a lot of plot holes and just lots of unbelievable occurrences. This one was not my cup of tea.

Naomi is a UK-based therapist specializing in helping victims of domestic violence. In her own life, Naomi is married to Leon, a man who initially swept her off her feet, and she still feels content and loved in their relationship.

Originally from New York, it has taken Naomi a long time to get to this place. Having been raised in a violent home, her mother ultimately having been killed by her father, Naomi has worked hard to move past that. Regardless, of how far she gets however, it will always impact her life. It provides the prism through which she views the world.

Because of her past, Naomi frequently finds herself becoming overly invested in her client's lives. She can't help it. It's a compulsion. For example, she currently has a client, Jacob, who has decided to leave his abusive wife. Having an empty flat available, Naomi offers it to Jacob as a temporary safe haven.

When Jacob goes missing, Naomi is concerned that his wife may have found him, but the police think otherwise. Before she knows it, Naomi is neck deep in a criminal investigation and she is the main suspect. Even her once loyal husband seems to believe she is guilty.

Naomi believes she is being framed and that her past may finally have come back to get her. Can she find Jacob and clear her name before it's too late?

Y'all, The Blame Game was such a wild, and at times confusing, ride. I enjoyed this audiobook so much. Once I started with this story, I could not put it down. I was all over the place with this. I had so many theories. I was getting so frustrated with Naomi, but for me, that was a huge part of the fun.

I haven't been this frustrated with a main character since [book:Behind Closed Doors|29437949], but again, in a way that was pure fun. If I could have reached through the pages and shaken the shit out of this woman, I would have.

If Sandie Jones goal was to mess with my mind, she 100% succeeded. Was this ridiculously dramatic, confusing, frustrating and over-the-top? Yes. Did it also leave me with that devious little grin on my face at the very end that I cherish so incredibly much? Yesssss. Did I love the overall experience!? Absolutely, yesssssss.

I thought the narrator nailed the performance of this story. She definitely kept me at the edge of my seat. The combination of the intensity of the story mixed with the intensity of the delivery was just so well done.

Thank you to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I have enjoyed Jones work in the past, but this one is definitely a standout for me!

I love beach reads, but, for them to work for me, they need to be quick, not have a huge cast of characters to keep track of, and be twisty and entertaining. Sandie Jones’ The Blame Game checks all the boxes. I spent one blissful afternoon caught up in the dumpster fire that is Naomi’s life, and watching it burn was riveting.

Thanks for the opportunity to review! Link to 8/14/2022 Instagram post:

https://www.instagram.com/p/ChP9xEOr2_p/

Thank you Netgalley and St Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for an early copy. The following comments and review are my opinion. Naomi has not had a good early childhood, perhaps this is the reason she has become a psychologist. The need to help others through their past or present is a force that pushes her boundaries. But in Naomi’s case she oversteps these professional boundaries with two of her clients. As reality blurs, Naomi no longer can believe what is true. While the evidence and blame piles up, it can only mean danger for Naomi. A tense thriller with a terrific epilogue.