Wow! You Can Trust Me grips you right from the start. This is a story about Summer and Leo; the power of survival, female friendships, and how to trust your instincts when you feel something is not right. Poor and living by pickpocketing, Summer and Leo target a billionaire. But is he as good as he seems? You will fly right through the pages of this fast-paced thriller with unexpected twists. I can't wait to see what else comes from Wendy Heard. Just fantastic!

I really enjoyed Summer and Leo’s friendship. I loved how even though they both had been through so much, they brought out the best in each other. I inhaled this book! I couldn’t put it down and ended up staying up well into the night to finish it. Great wit, likable protagonists and a plot to keep you on the line make this a very enjoyable read!

“You Can Trust Me” is a thriller by Wendy Heard. In this book we follow two con women (for lack of a better term) Summer and Leo. Summer is someone you want in your corner looking out for you - she’s street smart, trusts her gut, and knows how to disappear if necessary. Leo is younger but feisty, strong, and smart enough to con, but also likes to have fun living life. This book took a little bit of time to get rolling, but once it got rolling, things did so in quite an interesting way. It’s a bit predictable, but it sure as heck was a lot of fun taking the ride.

This was a fast paced thriller that I pretty much read in one sitting. It centers on Summer and Leo, who are drifters living in Southern California and conning rich folks for money to survive. When Leo gets involved with a well known billionaire, it seems like she might have bitten off more than she can chew, and Summer has to infiltrate a private island to ensure her friend is safe.

The relationship between Leo and Summer was very well written, and I also enjoyed the chapters from their respective childhoods that gives a better view into their characters. They both felt very real and likable, even when they were doing not-so-nice things. While I liked the way both were able to think on their feet and get out of tricky situations, the 2nd half of the book was a tad fantastical and I do wish the reader got a little more background into why the villain did the things they did. Despite feeling like I was missing that, the action was exciting and I flew through the book to see how it all ended.

Overall, good read that I would recommend to those who like thrillers and also the bond of female friendships. You’ll have to suspend your disbelief a bit but it’s worth it in the long run. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely loved this book. It hooked me from the first page and I read it in less than 24 hours.

This thriller was so good! Fun, sexy, edge of your seat goodness. The moral of the story, as it so often is, don't fuck with female friendships.

Thank you to the publishers for the arc.

This book is described as a feminist thriller with a likeness to Mia & Lucia from The White Lotus. That alone piqued my interest. I really enjoyed the first half of this book. It was fun learning about Summer & Leo and seeing them con wealthy men. But then it went so far off the rails. The second half was truly a different book. It felt like author didn't think it was twisty enough and threw spaghetti at the wall to see what would stick.

What I liked; Dual POVs, themes of sisterhood & resiliency
What I didn't like; Outlandish second half. I'm okay was suspending some disbelief but the author went really far left and I just couldn't justify it

This book was pretty good but not a great mystery/thriller. The story that was written was good but I would have liked to see more of the pickpocketing and conning than what we were given. I didn’t love the last 25% of the book. I just wanted it to be different. However, the story itself was pretty good, perhaps could have used more detail and lead up to the more intense scenes; I felt they were over far too quickly. Overall, this book was perfectly fine.

Thanks NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for this ARC! This is my first Wendy Heard read, but will certainly not be my last! I loved this book! Summer and Leo are con-artists/thieves who hatch a plan to land a billionaire, Michael. Leo goes to Michael’s private island, where her plan to con him begins to go wrong. Many twists and turns will keep you on your toes in this book!

I was intrigued by this book right away but I was not prepared for just how good it would turn out to be. This is probably one of the best books I've read this year. Summer and Leo are best friends, they have an unconventional type friendship. They both live together in Summer's vehicle. Summer grew up off the gird, she doesn't even have a last name. Leo left home after her sister died and she hasn't been back since. To survive, they pick pocket and steal from the rich. Leo has her eyes set on a prize, Michael Forrester, a tech billionaire. Michael takes Leo to his private island, which turns out has no cell service. Leo was unable to let Summer know where she was going and Leo was hoping to score. Summer has a gut feeling that Leo was going to be on the island when she didn't hear from her so she tricks someone into bringing her to the island as a guest. Summer cannot find Leo anywhere, even the staff is claiming that she isn't there but Summer knows in her gut that Leo is there. What secrets will they find on the island and will anyone believe them?

I wish to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine Books, Bantam Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is an amazing mystery novel from the point of view of two young women involved in a very scary tale as the story unfolds for each of them. They are best friends, living out of a van and surviving by pick pocketing and other minor crimes. One night in a bar they meet a group of very wealthy businessmen and Leo goes off with one of them and disappears. Summer is desperate to find her. The police are no help and so Summer takes the matter into her own hands. They both end up on a private island off the coast of California. There are a lot of family dynamics in the telling of this story and the strength of friendships as well as a good old murder mystery. I highly recommend this one and know you will not put this one downs until you finish it. Who can you trust is threaded throughout the story and the title is perfect for this story. I loved all the characters.

Summer & Leo are twenty-something drifters making their way through life and California—funded by their pickpocketing and conning skills. More sisters than just best friends, the pair promises nothing will ever come between them and their need for freedom—not their pasts, not their unknown futures, and especially not a man. When Leo hooks a billionaire on a night out, the two women see a way to breathe easy for a bit—until Leo goes radio silent, leaving Summer to drop everything and find her friend. You Can Trust Me follows the two women to a private island with secrets, betrayal, and a very real possibility that one—or both—of them may not return at all.

I really enjoyed the first half of this thriller. The author did a great job of fleshing out Summer and Leo and their separate pasts/relationship with each other. I felt myself cheering for each pickpocket attempt and con committed, because these women paid their dues for their hard pasts and deserved a future together. What lost me, though, began shortly after we arrived at the island. It soon felt too fantastical, almost like two separate stories (at one point one of the characters picks a lock with a piece of bread?) and felt too busy. Eventually, I felt like the subplots took over the main storyline and we lost a lot of the depth that the author spent the first part building. I enjoyed it enough and the author has a great writing style, but ultimately felt the “twists” took away from what could have made this book great.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. This book will be released June 13, 2033z

Suspenseful and fun.
Practically one-sitting read.
Great summer thriller.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I wrote haiku reviews but am happy to provide more feedback, if desired!

This was a great thriller with strong female leads. Summer and Leo have no one on earth but each other and live like nomads. They earn their money through pickpocketing — which Summer has been doing since she was 8 years old — and scamming rich men. Their latest victim is a tech billionaire that Leo finds. She is charmed by him and and the idea of what he can give her. The next thing Summer knows is that Leo is off to an island with the billionaire and she must find her and make sure she is safe. Leo would never leave her on purpose… right?

I rate this a 3.5 stars. The reason is because I very much enjoyed the beginning and found it realistic. Halfway through, it became unrealistic and lost some of my interest. However, I was invested enough in the characters to push through and see what would happen next.

“For everyone who was born restless, may you find joy (for you will never find peace).”

This opening quote claimed me instantly. I have a personal restlessness and felt seen. I knew I was in for a treat of a story.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Ballantine/Bantam for this ARC of You Can Trust Me by an author I enjoy, Wendy Heard.

The synopsis of two young, beautiful, nomadic after family tragedy, con-artists so excited me!
That was before the tense, thriller-hook of a billionaire and his private island as Leo’s mark and Summer’s heroism.

I loved the characterization of both protagonists, Leo and Summer, con-girl sister-soulmates.

Con-artist stories are a personal fantasy favorite of mine! I loved learning of Summer’s pickpocketing and Leo’s man-eating superpowers!
Never once did their alternative lifestyle on the road seem anything but the most delicious life of freedom and resource.

Their narratives are told in alternating POV chapters, a thriller-genre trope favorite of mine. The propulsive chapters whipped by.

I need more books like this in my life. Five stars!

I unfortunately found this book to be predictable. I did like the friendship between the two women and that it was fast paced. The story just read like a lot of other thrillers.

Summer and Leo are best friends, living a nomadic life and conning people out of their money as well as stealing. Summer was abandoned as a teenager, and Leo is running from her traumatic past. Leo has a tech billionaire as her next mark, and is invited to spend time with him at his private island. When she suddenly goes missing, Summer will stop at nothing to track down her friend.

This was quite a page turner! I was eager to see what would happen next. Summer and Leo shouldn’t be likable, but for some reason I couldn’t help but root for them. Some of the twists I was able to guess, but others were more surprising. Overall, it was an interesting concept for a mystery and thriller. I’d recommend it to those who enjoy books about missing people, cold cases, and cons.

Thank you to Wendy Heard, Random House- Ballantine, and Netgalley for sending me this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This is a solid 4 out of 5 stars. It was a fairly well written quick read. It’s a heartwarming, intense, and moving story about Summer and Leo who live out of their truck and pickpocket for a living. You learn more and more about them including deep secrets and past traumas. I made quite a few assumptions while reading through and found myself second guessing where I thought the story was going. I also found myself feeling anxious, disgusted, frustrated, happy, sad, and even giggling while reading. I was definitely amused and entertained! Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing the e-ARC for an honest review.

This is the best thriller I’ve read in a long time! So many twists I didn’t see coming. Devoured this in a day and everyone needs to have this on their TBR.

Young twenty-something friends Summer and Leo live a nomadic lifestyle, traveling around California and living off of what they can steal from others. After setting her sights on a new target, billionaire environmentalist Micahel, Leo suddenly disappears. Summer, worried about her friend’s uncharacteristic behavior, scams her way onto Michael’s private island only to discover that no one knows anything about Leo. Worried that Leo has outgrown their friendship, Summer tries to make the most of the situation until she can return to the mainland and resume the search for her friend. Soon, however, Summer realizes there’s a lot more happening on the island than just a party for rich investors.

This book is action packed and full of suspense. It is definitely not a highly believable story, but I didn’t care because I was too hooked on the mystery. I loved the friendship between Summer and Leo, these tough girls who would do anything for each other. 4 stars for pure entertainment.