Samantha Hayes is one of my favorite authors, so I was thrilled to receive an advanced readers copy. Because I loved her former books so much, I had extremely high expectations. But wow, did she deliver! I love a book that is told from multiple characters at different times and Hayes did such a great job of weaving together a suspenseful plot. What I loved most about the book was that when I thought the shocking ending was revealed, it wasn't, I will be telling everyone about this book!

By far, one of the best psych thrillers I have read in recent memory, and I have read some good ones. Everything from the characters to the plot to the twists is top-notch. Told in “then” and “now” chapters from multiple character POVs, the plot never really lags. The story centers on an extremely sensitive topic (no spoilers), and it is obvious that the author did her homework. The loss, helplessness, and resignation are all clear in the characters. It was a page-turner to figure out how the past and present would eventually collide (and boy, did it). I guessed a few of the twists but not the entirety of the biggest one. Definitely recommend this one! This review was written based on a digital copy of the book from Bookouture. For more reviews, please visit Fireflies and Free Kicks.

I just finished reading "The Engagement", by Samantha Hayes. Here are my thoughts. I LOVED this book. I read it in one day and couldn't put id down. It has excitement intrigue, conflict, lies, secrecy, and an overwhelming show of the love between parent and child.

This book is about a woman named Hannah who has a daughter named Belle. The two characters are very close and when Belle decides to return home from France Hannah decided to surprise her with an 18th birthday party. The surprise though is on Hannah when Belle brings with her a fiancee (Jack) who Hannah knows and has a past with. Jack has changed his name and his real motives revealed. Can Hannah and her husband Rob stop lying to each other long enough to get through to Belle and save her?...Read and find out.

What I liked about the book. The Epilogue. OHMYGOD! It was so good!!!! I had a feeling it was going to go that way but still...the final reveal was outstanding! Kudos to the author. What a stroke of genius! I also liked the fast pace of the story and how interconnected al the characters were. It was so well written. Thank You to NetGalley and BooKOuture for and advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

What I didn't like. I though the character of Belle was written to be a bit too stupic. Hello Girl! RED FLAG...RED FLAG! it took her a while to recognize the truth about Jack and was getting frustrated with her naivete.

This is definately a need-to-read =. I am quite sure it will thoroughly entertain.

Happy Reading

This was my first read from Samantha Hayes and I have mixed feelings. First, I'll start with the positive aspects, because I always prefer to look for the good in others' works before the areas that didn't work for me.
The writing is very good: the characters are well-detailed, there was a nice flow to the story that never left me struggling to finish, and the premise is intriguing.
I think where things went wrong for me is in the type of trope used - I'll try to explain without giving too much away. We've all read stories where the plot hinges on the secretive past of our protagonist - a secret so bad, so dark, that telling it to their loved ones is worse than the outcome of the villain's plan. In this case, though, I just couldn't believe that things would go this far before the protagonist would speak up. As a mother, and as a 40 year old woman, I can't imagine making the same kind of decisions as the protagonist in this story - which ruined the plausibility for me.
Overall, it's a quick read that I could see being popular with book clubs, simply because there are many topics/themes to explore further.

Thank you for the publisher and to NetGalley for the advance copy to read and review. All opinions are my own.

I was given the copy of the book in exchange for a honest review
9/10
Loved the book, I liked all the suspense around hannah and was confused as to how molly fit in the story but My god ! The twists were crazy!!!
What I didnt like was that how hannah kept telling rob how belle was 'her' child Only, when in reality she wasn't her child to begin with ! and how she tried to exclude rob, I was very irritated by that
But the plot was good and mysterious, I enjoyed it a lot !

As a thriller fan this was an amazing read to end the year with. The book keeps you guessing and starts with a punch. It takes you a while to guess where it's going which makes it way more interesting.

The book is told from 2 perspectives and is a bit of a slow burn. This however doesn't deter the reading experience as the story draws you in. Definitely recommend this one!

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for this eArc in exchange of my honest opinion.

Review of The Engagement by Samantha Hayes

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️,5/5

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for a review. The Engagement is out January 10th! 💌

This story kept me guessing and wanting more, it was so intense! Hannah’s story was so touching and the bond between mother and daughter was so special to read about. That being said, this one definitely kept me on the edge of my seat for a hot minute.

A story, filled with twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very last page. Definitely some twists in there I didn’t see coming.

Loved this one, a true recommendation for lovers of thrillers with great storybuilding leading up to a very jaw-dropping finale.

The Engagement
I have a confession... I stayed up until 1am to finish this I'm usually an 'asleep by 10' sort of person, but I HAD to find out what happens.
The story is narrated mostly by Hannah, a mum with a past and Belle, her 18 year-old daughter who has just got engaged to a guy called Jack, seemingly twice her age. But Hannah knows different, because Hannah has met Jack before.
Hannah will do anything to stop the past from creeping up on her, but when it comes to a choice between keeping it hidden and saving her daughter, what can Hannah do?
I found there to be a lot of foreshadowing in The Engagement and I figured out the twist pretty early on. But I didn't know HOW it was going to happen which kept me hooked!
The second twist also became apparent after the subtle hints throughout the book, but when it came it was delivered in such an awesome way that it had me cheering for the character!
An awesome third read of 2023 and I will definitely be checking out other reads from @samanthahayes.author
The Engagement is available to buy in paperback on Amazon now or is included in kindleunlimited from 10th Jan.

Omg what a ride! The title had me hooked from the start, It was a slow burn but great twists. Definitely will read more from this author.

I loved this book, it’s so layered and not your typical psychological thriller. It touches on some hard topics, but sensitively written. I throughly enjoyed it!

The blurb really says nothing about how deep the story is, how real it feels and how many emotions it brings up when you read it. As the story progresses, it becomes a story of hurt, love, and the most unusual sisterhood.
The title - the engagement - well. When I read it, I couldn’t stop thinking how wrong the title is. How the story is not about any engagement. This is not a story about engagement. Not. At. All. Nowhere near it. Yes, there is a trace of it, but it really has nothing to do with the story and the plot. And then I read the last page. And. Ok, yeah. Makes sense.
Loved it. Loved it so much, even though at times it was hard to read.
The description of Cloisters - although hopefully a made-up story, with way too many similarities to what life actually is like in places like this – was a bittersweet heartbreak mixed with despair and love born in the weirdest place.
The book was an absolutely gripping read. Now I want to look up anything and everything this author has ever written.
All the time while reading it, I kept hoping that there is not really going to be any plot twists at the end. I felt like any plot twists (at least the ones I could think of) would ruin the story. Then one plot twist came – exactly the one I predicted, and I thought, ok, this is not so bad, yeah, I like it, so no more plot twists and the story will not get ruined. But then. Another plot twist and one more. Both were so unexpected and – they made the story even better.
Also, one more thing to add. Hannah, the main character, is the most awesome person. Somehow most who have been through hell and then get an ok life turn out to be the best people ever. Broken, but with a heart of gold and knows how to love and how to be a way more decent person than most not-so-broken people out there.

This book was a quick read mystery.. I did not like the basic foundation that the story developed from but it was an interesting read that had a few interesting twists at the end.

I liked the story.the narration was so good and the twist was woow loved it.Thanks Netgally for giving me the chance to read it

Wow! I have to say that this has to be one of Samantha Hayes best thrillers I've read. Unlike any other of her books, which I've always found to be slow burns to begin with, THE ENGAGEMENT had me hooked from the very first page. And I could NOT put it down. I ended up devouring it in one day, staying up into the wee hours just to see how it all panned out and if my suspicions were correct.

Hannah hasn't always had the life she now has with partner Rob and the lights of her life, her two daughters Belle and Amber. She has never revealed her past or its secrets to anyone and would be quite happy if she never had to think of those dark days ever again. However, she carries the reminders with her daily from which she can never really escape whilst at the same time, they also went some way to give her life she has today.

It's her daughter Belle's upcoming 18th birthday and Hannah and Rob have planned a surprise party for her, inviting friends and family, some of whom have travelled far and wide to be there. But Belle throws a spanner in the works when she's not on the flight she's meant to be on returning from France the day before the party, instead she has rescheduled her flight for the following day...unaware of the surprise party her parents have planned for her for the same day. When she arrives home barely in the nick of time, she has a surprise of her own...arriving at the party and introducing the much older man by her side as her fiance Jack. Hannah and Rob are speechless.

But for different reasons...

As she looks at the older man by her daughter's side, Hannah is sure she recognises him. And his name isn't Jack. His is a face from her past that she thought she had escaped and he is a very dangerous man. And that is how she knows that their whirlwind courtship was no chance meeting. And it's not Belle he wants...but Hannah. But how can she tell her husband and her daughter the truth about him without revealing her past and all its secrets?

That's about all I can say without revealing spoilers because really there is so much to this story that will have your head on a swivel. I enjoyed the multiple perspectives and past and present timelines. I had worked out how the past factored into the present as it was fairly obvious to me but there was a final twist that I never saw coming until the final pages. And then it all fell into place seamlessly.

I'm always prepared for Samantha Hayes' thrillers as being slow burns because they generally are but I didn't find that with THE ENGAGEMENT. It was a wild ride from start to finish with a pace I could barely keep up with. I didn't start this book till fairly late in the day and didn't foresee finishing it till the following day, but it was so engrossing and absorbing that I couldn't put it down until I had pulled back every layer and uncovered every aspect to know how it all ended.

The story shines a light on a part of reality that many do not want to see or acknowledge. It is a dark place deep in the heart, yet on the edge, of society that most simply ignore and pretend its existence. But Hayes takes us to this very real part of society and its depths that is shocking and despicable filled with unsavoury characters with vile motives. She handles it perceptively with sensitivity and awareness, and with an ultimate sense of justice.

From the opening prologue to the final epilogue, THE ENGAGEMENT had me entirely "engaged" from beginning to end and has to be one of my favourites, if not my favourite, of Samantha Hayes' thrillers I've read to date. It was different but a thrilling nightmare from which I couldn't escape...in a good way!

A well deserved 5 stars!

I would like to thank #SamanthaHayes, #NetGalley and #Bookouture for an ARC of #TheEngagement in exchange for an honest review.

This review appears on my blog at https://stinathebookaholic.blogspot.com/.

Wow! This books just keeps on giving! I could not put this book down until I had finished the story.

The Engagement was strong in the beginning and the end, but in the middle it seemed like a bunch of filler of Hannah's past and her childish daughter, Belle. Some of the story was cringeworthy for different reasons, but I kept reading to see if the twist(s) would be worth it! The twists at the end did save the story overall, in my opinion. I'd give it 3.5 stars, rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me this ARC, in exchange for my honest opinion.

Gripping storyline from the get-go… Dual storyline. Told in the present day from the point of view of Hannah and Belle and Molly in the past. Great pace and I flew through it in 2 days. It’s definitely a page turner that keeps you guessing. Some likeable and dislike-able characters. Some great twists and turns throughout. Really enjoyed this one and the storyline…

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for the opportunity to read #TheEngagement

'The Engagement' is an intense read with many twists that pack a punch. I loved the premise - it is surely every parent's worse nightmare, and I enjoyed getting to know all the characters and seeing how they would handle events. Yes, some of the events are a bit ridiculous but that is part of the joy of the book. I was hooked by the book and wanted to keep reading it which is always a good sign. Overall this was a very intense thriller that is well worth a read.
Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for an advance copy.

A fairly quick read but nothing really new to this psychological thriller. I guessed who the MC was from the first flash back and even the final 'twist' wasn't that much of a surprise I'm afraid.

Publication Date: 10 Jan 2023

Top 3 words: Shocking, Immersive & Tense

What a way to start 2023 with a well-executed psychological thriller. Samantha Hayes' "The Engagement" involves Rob & Hannah, who organise a birthday party for their oldest daughter. Belle has brought herself back from France and is introducing Rob & Hannah to her fiance, Jack. Is Jack who he portrays himself to be? Is the tension between Rob & Hannah only limited to their daughter's suspicious relationship?

The Yaay's: Samantha Hayes is a talented writer with a narrative style that is concise and clear. Right from the first chapter, you can easily decipher the intentions/motives of the characters along with the family dynamics. The easter eggs are well placed throughout the trio-narratives of Molly, Hannah & Belle. The level of unease & tension is present throughout the book and gradually builds. While I could predict 25% of the ending, the twists and turns were shocking. A well-executed UNO reverse!

The Naay's: Some elements of the book were too far-fetched and the relevance diminished.

If you're a fan of suspense, thrillers & psychological thrillers, pick up this book. I know 2023 will be a year where I will try more of Samantha Hayes. Thank you, NetGalley & Bookouture, for giving me a review copy. This honest review is left voluntarily,