DAMN! What a twist- this was the perfect early summer read.

Summer and Leo are con-artists in LA. Summer is the pickpocketing queen while Leo’s speciality is the longer con. She seduces older men and sells gossip about them to magazines, gets gifts from them etc. Leo has set her sights on Michael Forrester- a self made billionaire- for her next con but quickly discovers she is in over her head. Her and Michael hit it off and head to his private island for the night. Unfortunately, when they get to the island Leo is informed that there is no cell service. She asks for a message to be sent to Summer and is relieved to her that Summer has responded for her to have a good time.

Meanwhile, Summer is out of her mind with worry. Leo has ghosted her. She realizes that Leo has been a little antsy recently but would she really up and leave her like that? We learn that Summer has no last name, is scared to get legalized and travel. Her mom abandoned her when she was 17. We also learn that Leo’s older sister died when she was younger. Summer & Leo have been together for 5 years now. Summer decides that she has to see Leo for herself to get answers on why she has left. Summer finds a way onto the island where she quickly realizes all is not as it seems. She is great at reading people and all of her internal alarm bells are going off.

I liked this story because it showed determination and the things that people will do for each other in extreme situations. Summer & Leo have become sisters through their time together, and Summer isn’t going to leave the island until she has answers.

I LOVED the twist at the end. I thought it might have been the direction the book was going in but when it was confirmed was impressed! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I will be reading more of Wendy’s books once I get through my never ending TBR list :)

I received a digital advance copy of You Can Trust Me by Wendy Heard via NetGalley. You Can Trust Me is scheduled for release on June 13, 2023.

You Can Trust Me follows Summer and Leo, two young women who share a nomadic life, moving around California in Summer’s Land Cruiser. Summer has spent her life as a pickpocket, and Leo has found her niche drawing in rich men and living off the resources they toss her way. Leo has just found her next catch, and is beginning to real him in. When he invites her to a weekend on his island, she accepts, imagining this is the start of the payout she has been working toward. Instead Leo goes missing and Summer sets out to find her missing friend.

This story is told from the points of view of the two women. Through their eyes, we learn about Michael and the other people around him on his island as well as about both women and the pasts that have led them to their current lives and Michael’s island. The two women are well-developed, having characteristics that clearly differentiate them from each other and help us understand how they work well together in their friendship. While we don’t get much of the backstories of the characters around them, the cast overall is believable.

There are two levels of mystery in this story. We are following Summer as she tries to solve Leo’s disappearance, and learning more about a death in Leo’s past. These two mysteries weave together, in a way that did not feel coincidental, but made sense in terms of cause and effect. While I did sort out the larger whole of the story before it was revealed, I was not disappointed in the way the story unfolded.

Slightly less successful for me was the setting. There are thoughts from Summer in particular around her love of California. As a reader not as familiar with California, I didn’t always see what Summer was seeing. Especially once we reach Michael’s island off the coast, the setting was not as clear for me as it could have been.

Overall, You Can Trust Me was a satisfying double mystery with two interesting women at its heart.

Oh. My. Word.

My grandmother read and reviewed this and, based on her review, I knew I'd love it. Thus book absolutely did not disappoint. Twists and turns galore and so much mystery! It keeps you guessing until the end and the conclusion is so so so satisfying!

This was an oddly heartwarming read. It's marketed as a thriller (and it is) but it's heavy on friendship, how far you will go for your relationships, and surviving emotionally even when it's the hardest. It did have a few gasp worthy twists, however I enjoyed the story about female friendship and the strong bond of non-related sisters. I will be posting a review to my bookstagram @readwithk8 here soon!

An easy, fast paced thriller, perfect for a beach read this summer! I would’ve liked a little more from this one, but worth a read after something heavy!

I was super into the premise of this one, the whole off the grid nomad life style combined with a grifter was super interesting and I was immediately drawn to both Summer and Leo as characters. The fast pacing didn’t hurt either, it definitely kept my attention and I was so invested I finished in just a few sittings. It’s an ideal read if you want a thriller that dabbles in darkness but is mostly light, definitely a juicy popcorn style read perfect for the summer. It does get a little wild in terms of believability but I had fun with it overall.

When a book sucks me in right from the first chapter, I know it's going to be a good one. You Can Trust Me did just that. I was so completely immersed in the story and binged it from start to finish. Told from the dual POVs of Summer and Leo, and alternating timelines over the course of a couple of weeks (the timeline is really just opposite days) for most of the book until the end when the timing lines up. This is one of those books that would be super easy to spoil, so I'm not going to say much more except READ THIS BOOK. It's such a great, binge-able read and the perfect book to read this summer.

Thank you Ballantine Books and NetGalley for this fabulous eARC!

I was hooked instantly!!! This story was so unique and not at all what I've been reading lately, but I LOVED it. Will be purchasing a copy for my library!

I was super excited to start her newest novel. And she freaking killed it.

You Can Trust Me by Wendy Heard is a well crafted, intriguing read that has great character development, suspense and story-telling.

I enjoyed the writing style. She kept me engaged and wanting to do nothing but flip the pages.
Summer and Leo's story I couldn't tear away from. The different POVs, both in the past and present really set the stage and kept me interested and engaged.
I enjoyed their story from beginning to end. And the suspense was wonderfully rendered and unrelenting! While I did find some of it to be a little predictable it still was such a fun read.
Sharp, intelligent and compelling Wendy has created another fantastic story.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Random House, Ballantine & Bantam for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and RandomHouse Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

In true thriller fashion, this book was easy to devour quickly so I could find out what happened in the end. Summer and Leo are friends who live off the grid. When their newest scheme lands them on the private island of a billionaire heartthrob, things quickly turn when one of the girls goes missing. This book gave me Glass Onion vibes, but failed to really capture that “who done it” goal. In the end, it was a bit too predictable for me.

How does some live from one pickpocket to the next? That is the only life Summer has ever known. Abandoned by her mother at a young age, she has found a way to live off her good looks at pickpocketing skills. Never striving for more. Her one anchor being her friend, Leo, who is like a sister to her. But things go sideways real fast when Leo meets her match in the con game.

When Summer's texts go unanswered, panic sets in. Desperate to find her friend, Summer worms her way into a business group that includes the last man she saw with Leo, billionaire Michael Forrester. This lands her on an island near Catalina, where cellphones are taken upon arrival. Always a big warning sign.

The story is told from Summer and Leo's POVs, both in the past and present. It is through these POVs that we learn more about how these ladies fell into these lives, and whether they have enough in them to fight back against an obviously dangerous man. I'll admit, I had my doubts about Summer, but she is resourceful and her history of lying/faking her way through life seems to help her.

While parts of the story aren't very believable, the plot is still an entertaining one. And I always like a good story about the underdog. If you are a fan of remote themed thrillers, check this one out.

Fast paced page turning thriller. Summer prides herself on being skilled at pickpocketing from the time she was young. Her mother left her to fend for herself as a teenager. She took Leo under her wing when she met her as a hungry and homeless young girl. The two became the closest to family that either of them has. Leo is eager to score big and uses her charm to win over billionaire Michael Forrester. He invites her to his private island for a work event. Leo anticipates it will be an opportunity to walk away with photos to sell to the paparazzi and expensive jewelry. But instead, Leo disappears. Summer decides she has no choice but to find Leo and what really happened.

I loved the characters and was very invested on what was happening. The chemistry between Leo and Summer was palpable. The story was fast paced and I enjoyed the twists and turns. A really enjoyable locked room thriller.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This wasn’t a book I would have normally requested, but when I was given a chance to read an ARC, I decided to give it a try.

The main characters are a couple of con artists. Summer is the abandoned child of a sixties free spirit who doesn’t know her birthday or even her last name. To survive, she becomes a very proficient pick pocket . Leo is a younger girl, living on the streets, that Summer takes under her wing.

Together, they do well, until they target a tech billionaire with a private island and Leo, after visiting the island, disappears.

A slick thriller and a fast, fun read.

Simplicity is sometimes all a story needs to be and this thriller has that in excess. It’s a fun little book with great characters that aren’t too dumb and a plot that makes the reader want to keep going late into the night.

This was my first read from Wendy Heard. I would call this a non- traditional, character focused suspense. It wasn’t overly focused on huge twists or a majorly convoluted plot, which I think was a nice change of pace from thrillers that have gone too far in that direction.

I thought Summer and Leo were both strong, dynamic characters that were well developed and that the suspense built nicely around their separate experiences once they got to the island.

I did find the biggest plot twist to be VERY predictable, and I thought that the reasoning and psychological aspect behind the how/ why to not be entirely fleshed out or explained in a way that would have been more satisfying after all the lead up to it.

That being said, I loved the concept and thought it was a good, fast paced read and unique for this genre!

This book was fast, fun, and sexy! I loooove female con artist tropes! And these were some strong badasses. The twist was definitely predictable and the reality was outlandish.... but honestly? It was fun. I love Wendy Heard's writing!

Summer and Leo are two young women with trauma filled pasts who have found each other and truly rely on one another. With no home base or jobs, the two make their way through the world (California) by picking pockets or trying to pull long cons.

When I started reading, I was pulled in and kept at it. However once the island is the main setting, it went downhill.

The good - engaging and fun

The not-good - wildly implausible



Thank you to Bantam and NetGalley for the DRC

You Can Trust Me

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was such a solid thriller. I requested it based on the premise that one friend is mysteriously missing after going on a date with a guy. It was full of intrigue, and I really enjoyed the lack of an unreliable narrator trope. The island setting was really fun too!

You Can Trust Me comes out next month and is a great summer thriller read for those that enjoy the genre. Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC!

I really enjoyed this compelling thriller. Summer and Leo are more than best friends, they're chosen sisters. I loved their relationship and how loyal they are. They live a nomadic lifestyle, on their own terms. But it takes money to survive and they use their looks and pickpocketing skills to get by. Summer picks pockets, Leo prefers to go after a rich man and get gifts and/or blackmail material.

Leo has a billionaire on the hook and it seems like it's going to be an easy score. She's even enjoying her time with him. He comes across as humble and kind. Summer is expecting Leo to come back after her date and when she doesn't, she starts to worry. She knows Leo was getting restless but she wouldn't abandon Sumner without a proper goodbye... right?

Summer can't just assume she chose to leave. So she hooks up with one of the man's investors who is going to his private island for an event. She intends to either find Leo there or question the man. Leo could've become swept up into a new life or things aren't what they seem.

The story is told from both points of view. But Summer's is a day ahead so as she's investigating, you slowly learn what happened to Leo. The reveals are perfectly placed and keep you feeling tense and desperate to know what happened. There's no way off the island and everyone there is so secretive and suspicious.

I highly recommend reading You Can Trust Me. It's a perfect summer read.

Thank you Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam and NetGalley

I do not like books that have plots where you can't use or have your cell phone...that was the first strike against this book. The second strike was how easily these supposed street-smart women trusted these men. The third strike was how these supposed smart tech giants were so easily swayed by the women, there was just a lack of intelligence all around. It just got worse from there so I stopped counting the strikes after that.

Not only was the plot too far-fetched for me but the book also has a really weird timeline bouncing back and forth in the same chapter and between multiple characters. The characters are all shallow and unlikeable, I didn't care what happened to any of them. The storyline and the characters lacked depth and plausibility, it was just too convoluted for my liking and the twist was easily figured out.

I have seen many high ratings and reviews for this and I guess it would be okay for some as a beach read just for fun. I read it in a single sitting because it is a short book but I found it bordered on the absurd.