If you enjoy slow-burn mystery, A Small Affair is one to check out. The premise is certainly current, given the many ways a person's life can be changed by the media and social networks. This is a world where people aren't so much concerned with the truth as they are with the juicier rumors, and an ambitious woman can have everything ripped away because of that ambition. The story slowly picks up speed as the pages turn and the tension rises. I'll just go ahead and say that I didn't like anybody in this book, but I didn't have to. Like them or not, Flora Collins has done her job well because I still needed to see how it would all play out. I needed to know if Vera would get her life back. And no, I'm not answering either of those questions. You'll just have to see for yourself.

I really liked this story although I did not really like any of the main characters. I did like Quinn. I liked that Quinn was a decent person. I did not like how Vera was treated after the bad thing happened in the story. I liked that it took till the end of the story for me to figure out all the things that happened in the story. I received a copy of this book from the publisher for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

As Flora Collins' suspense novel A Small Affair opens, Vera has decided to get back on dating apps now that her work life has calmed down a little. She was in on the ground floor of a successful fashion designer, helping to build it from a small one person operation into a huge success in the New York fashion industry.

Vera's roommate Quinn chooses a great match for her- Tom is ten years older than Vera (37), handsome, a great job in tech, and a father of one child. They meet and hit it off right away, and Vera ends up spending the night.

One year later finds Vera living in her mother's guest bedroom in her hometown in Westchester, with no job after a tragedy that Vera was a part of, but not responsible for. But the tabloids did not see it that way, and Vera has been hounded out of the life she loved and into hiding. And two other people are dead- Tom and his wife.

Vera decides that she wants to learn more about Tom and his wife Odilie, and when Odilie's sister Page contacts Vera, she sees this as her opportunity.

The novel also shifts in time as we meet Odilie ten years ago and see how she and Tom met, through a young woman named Peri. Peri was everything that Odilie wasn't but wanted to be- she was beautiful, bold, unafraid, and she had gumption. Peri brought Odilie into her and Tom's world, a world filled with rich and powerful men. (Rich people- they're not like us.)

Vera and Quinn, along with Quinn's on-again, off-again life partner Sam, decide that if they discover what truly happened to Tom and Odilie, Vera can get her life back, and maybe Vera can get a book out of her story.

A Small Affair lures you into the story, much as Peri lures Odilie into a new life. The characters aren't necessarily likeable- Vera's lack of outward emotion causes people to call her cruel and cold. She is impatient and ambitious, a trait that in women is not considered attractive. Peri is manipulative and rude, and we don't know quite why she has attached herself to Odilie. Many people try to warn Odilie to stay away from Peri.

Social media plays a big part in the story- Vera's job requires her to shares her life on Instagram, she meets Tom on a dating app, and she is hounded on Twitter by people who don't know her. Vera stalks Odilie's Instagram account to get more information on who Odilie was. Being an influencer is a life goal for these people.

The final twist doesn't come until the very end and it's one I didn't see coming. I liked how the author just dropped it there. If you are a fan of Law & Order:SVU and White Lotus, you'll want to put A Small Affair on your reading list.

Thanks to Harlequin for putting me on their Fall 2022 Mystery & Thriller Blog Tour.

Vera’s life is ruined because the public blames her for the death of an ex and his wife. The book is dual timeline and multiple POV. I loved the beginning of the book and the unexpected ending. The middle was tougher to read because it was slower and I couldn’t see the connection to the larger story. Everything is revealed in time. Overall I enjoyed the story.

A Small Affair is the first book by Flora Collins that I have read. It started out pretty well, and I was intrigued by the premise, but I became less engaged as the story unfolded. I found it to be a bit slow paced and I would have liked more twists.

Ok this book surprised me in an unexpected but brilliant way! To be honest I wasn’t expecting much from it but this slow burn mystery knocked it out of the park. It was dark and juicy and did all the things right! Highly recommend!

thank you to netgalley for allowing me to read this before its official release in exchange for an honest review.
i love love LOVED this book. the characters were so carefully created and developed and all of them had depth and ugh. such a well written book that had me completely engaged from start to finish. also, love to see a black non binary character!!!!! (just a side character, but still so cool) i highly recommend this book, i promise its worth your time! i cant wait to check out other books from this author!!
5/5 stars, of course.

By the author of Nanny Dearest comes one of the best thriller/mysteries of its kind. About some rich and famous people who do bad things. Who use their money and power against women in sexual ways. Of course they are smart enough to make these women sign NDAs. It does not go into any detail about what happened but it's just there so you know it did.

This story is about a woman who's life is virtually turned upside down because of meeting a man and having three dates with him. Her life is ruined to the point of losing all her friends and her job. Being at the center of a murder suicide was not her choice by any means. But that is exactly what happened to Vera MacDonald after meeting Tom on a dating app. She went on exactly three dates with him but he certainly changed her world. Her life. Her everything. Not for the better either. He was a very rich man who owned his own company. How they met on this app comes into play near the end of this book and took me by surprise.

Vera is a very confident young woman who loves her job. She loves her roommate, Quinn, also. Not in a romantic way. Quinn is gay. He will do anything for Vera. They are that close. Almost no secrets. I liked Quinn. He was maybe the most open and honest character in this twisted story. I liked Vera but for someone who exuded so much confidence she came across as weak where her mother, who I detested, and Tom were concerned. Also she could be a bit mean. Though I really didn't blame her for some things she said or did.

Tom I liked to hate. He was really a jerk in so many ways. The way he used people and treated his wife was awful. Not that it went into a lot of detail about his marriage. Just enough to make me despise him. He was a liar certainly. He didn't seem to have feelings for most women before meeting Vera. Before he even met his wife, Odilie, he was seeing Peri. Peri brought Tom out of his shell completely. She gave him things to help him build up his business. Build up his self-esteem. But at what cost. He was just not a likable character.

Odilie who is married to Tom is not a strong woman by any means. She was best friends with Peri but stabbed her in the back so to speak. She did a few things that she was not suppose to do. But she was the wife in this story and Tom did her wrong. With the wrong person too.... I absolutely loved how this story wrapped up. I did not see it coming at all and I usually figure these things out. Who would have thought it.... Had me scratching my head for sure and this was not exactly a whodunnit. I mean you know who the guilty party is from the start. But still there are some things that you won't know until the end and to me it was mind blowing. No clue at all that this was coming. But trying to imagine it gave me chills.

This book is told in three parts. By three characters. Vera, Odilie, and Tom.. Vera is in the now. Odilie is ten years previous and Tom is one and a half years ago. The epilogue sums things up fairly well also. Lets you know how things went for Vera, Quinn and for Peri. I like when a book gives me closure. This one did that. I enjoyed this book immensely and will look for more by this author.

Thank you #NetGalley, #FloraCollins and #HarlequinTradedPublishingMIRA for this ARC. This is my own true thoughts about this book.

5 big stars. Almost 4 but that ending definitely bumped it up another star. Read this one.

Review links coming the 18th and 27th. Eighteenth for blogtour and 27th for Amazon post.

Just finished A Small Affair and I'm exhausted from the intensity of this story! WOW! This is a tale of how the evils of social media can sneak into one's life and change the trajectory, maybe forever. Vera, strong feminist that she is, goes on a date with still married Tom, only to discover that he is only separated from his wife and little girl. She doesn't really like him, and the next thing we know is about a year and half later, both Tom and his wife are dead. and Vera has been fired from her job, and is a social pariah.

This book is very well written, and the characters are very well developed. I read it in record time - there was never a dull moment. The ending was surprising and disturbing. I liked it!

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review A Small Affair.

This was just okay. A woman gets blamed for the murder of her (married to someone else) partner and she immediately becomes a suspect. She becomes obsessed with clearing her name. This was good- I liked the premise, but I couldn’t connect with the writing.

Did you hear that buzz?

It’s bookstagram talking about Flora Collins' new book, A Small Affair, and I can guarantee you, it’s worth all the hype.

I always get nervous requesting an ARC on Netgalley, the publishers instantly transform into these bookish fairies, either granting your wish or having you crying for a week.

I wasn’t rejected. My bookish dreams came true and I received my most anticipated book.

Well, you know me, I dropped my plans (nap and too hot to handle) and began reading…

The thing about the books Collins' writes is that she can make you feel things you didn’t think were possible.

These characters jump from the pages and stand right before you, so much so that you can smell the sickly sweat as it drops across their brow. Your pulse will race just when you think you have it all figured out but then you’ll be clutching your chest as something pops right out of left field at you.

There was way too many WTF moments to count. At one point I grabbed my dogs paw and white knuckled it for the better half of the ending .

Flora Collins always makes me doubt the human race and how low people can stoop. I have hated fictional characters with such passion that I can actually get myself worked up.

A Small Affair is sure to break the internet, and I am here for it!

Vera's life is turned upside down when her lover Tom and his wife Odile are found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning. Or was it? Told in three parts- Vera's relationship with Tom, Odile's take on things, and the aftermath, this is tale of lies and betrayal. Vera, who is unlikable, met Tom on a dating app and he lied to her- lied about still being married among other things, When he and Odile die, fingers point at Vera, who leaves her job and life and moves back in with her mother (also unlikable) until Odile's sister invites her to the memorial service. This does take some unexpected turns so no spoilers from me but know that you might find everyone just, well, not quite despicable but close. Collins has a good storytelling style and a way of keeping you reading even when you think you're going to put it down. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. A good read.

As many others have pointed out, this is a slow burn thriller. It's told in 3 parts. The first part is told in alternating timelines from Vera's pov. Here we get a look at Vera's relationship with Tom and her life in the year following the scandal. The latter pov is featured in all 3 parts. We soon get some insight into Odilie and her life 10 years prior and how she met Tom and transformed her life completely. The last part gives a look at Odilie and Tom 1.5 years prior.

There were a few twists that you don't really see coming. There are also a few details that are a little unnecessary. I didnt find Vera likeable at all. We get it, you're hot and confident, great! Even after her "downfall" she didn't become anymore humble.

I also couldn't understand why she got so completely blacklisted from the fashion industry.

Overall, I did enjoy this book. I liked the twists and felt like things really picked up midway through part 2. Get through Part 1 and you'll have a very enjoyable thriller!

A Small Affair by Flora Collins is the first book I've read by this author.

The writing was fine, and the story was good; unfortunately, for me, it was a slow burn, and the ending seemed to drag. I also did not like the "one year ago," "1.5 years ago," and the present-day timeline. This type of genre trope is getting old.

Even though I did not really like this book, I will check out other books by this author.

#ASmallAffair #NetGalley @HarlequinBooks

NYC To A T. I've been trying to think about what to say about this book for four days and I've got... nothing. There isn't anything overly technically wrong here (the time and perspective jumps can be jarring at times, maybe, but that's about it), and it is in fact a mostly engaging story - you're going to want to know what happened, and then you're going to want to know how and why it happened. On both of these points, Collins gets rather explosive. Overall though this book just has the feel of an utterly pretentious New York... witch... who can't see beyond her Upper West Side aspirations. Certainly for the characters, and maybe Collins herself was simply being a solid conduit of these characters. If you like tales of that particular yuppie New York world, eh, you're probably going to LOVE this book. And again, even if that isn't overly your thing, this is still a good book. But if you're more of a Southern Suburbanite/ hillbilly type who remembers with fondness the old Pecos Salsa commercials with their "*NEW YORK CITY?!?!?!?!?* tagline... this is NYC to a T from that perspective. So know that going in. Recommended.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review
Vera meets an older man on a dating app. He is married or separated or so he says. Days later her life is changed when the husband and wife are found dead, she is blamed for the deaths. Her life tumbles, she must overcome her self. Pity to find out the truth about their deaths.

This is by far one of the most unique books I have read this year, and I can’t really define it. But I’m not sure it needs to be defined. Vera has had her life turned upside down, but it takes a long time for the event that caused that to be revealed – and even longer for the truth behind the event to come to light. She is a tough character to like, which makes reader involvement a conundrum: can you feel sorry for a character’s circumstances while disliking the character? And she’s not even the most twisted character in the book. There are several layers to the plot, and just when you think you have something figured out, there’s another piece of the collage to put in place (yes, that’s a purposeful reference). The end wrapped up a bit too neat for how gonzo the rest of the book was. But it was still really, really good. For more details, please visit Fireflies and Free Kicks. This review was written based on a digital copy of the book from Harlequin Trade Publishing.

Vera is desperately trying to get her life back after an affair gone wrong ruined her life. The man she was dating was killed along side of his wife and her life blows up along with it. She's determined to get her job back and move on but things don't go her way. She gets wrapped up in finding out what really went wrong in her affair and that there was more to the story. This should have been an interesting read but it was just not fun. There is not a single likable thing about any of the characters in this book. It made it very difficult for you to even care what happens to Vera or anyone else. The plot was interesting enough but nothing unique.

Is it possible to love a story and book even though each character is a terrible person? With this book, out DECEMBER 27, the answer is yes.

In A SMALL AFFAIR, almost every character was extremely complex. I found most of them to be unlikable. They were the absolute worst and I loved every single second of it. This doesn’t apply to my girl Vera. Vera is uncompromising, driven, ambitious, confidently strong willed, authoritative, and cutthroat. Some might find her alienating, I really enjoyed seeing a powerful female character who doesn’t fall into the hysterical woman trap that plagues a lot of thrillers.

I finished this book in about 24 hours. The story was incredible. I was engrossed with the plot, which gave me The Undoing vibes. Once I started I HAD to know how the book was going to end. With it set in the world of the upper elite mixed with true crime, I was hooked from the being.

The structure of the book and story was well done as well. Having three different POVs from multiple characters made me fully understand each of the character. The nonlinear timeline with those perspectives was also an amazing touch and was part of what made the story so engaging.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much @netgalley, @htpbooks for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. And thank you @floracollins_author for such an incredible book! Remember, this stunning thriller comes out DECEMBER 27th.

This wasn't my favorite, but I am a picky reader. I think other readers will enjoy it, and this is an obvious addition to the collection.