It’s rare that I DNF a book but the very opening of this book was so bizarre that I wasn’t even sure what to make of it. I kind of hated the narrator right from the start.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC. Just like most of the other reviews, it wasn’t great!! I gave up at the 40% mark. Not exciting and thrilling at all.

I’m a big fan of thrillers but this was a disappointment for me. I found the characters and narrators to be very complaint heavy and took away from the story. It was promising but unfortunately just didn’t hit the mark for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the chance to review this ARC.

Perfect Little Lives follows the main character Simone while she tries to get answers on what happened to her mother. The book hooked me instantly on the 2nd chapter, even if I thought the story was predictable it was still a good read. I did think some parts dragged on and it made the book seem longer than it was but, overall I thought the book had some funny moments and it was impactful some of the struggles faced and explained by Simone.

I was looking for a thriller and got a romance confused as a thriller. I struggled so hard to finish the book because I don’t like romance novels. If you’re into romance and want something with a bit of suspense, I’d recommend, but this one wasn’t for me at all.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for giving me an ARC of Perfect Little Lives in exchange for my honest review. I would give this book a solid 3.5/5 stars. I did like it, but it was certainly different than what I expected. This book is listed under “thriller”, “mystery”, “adult”, and “fiction” which I think all fit, however, adding “romance” to this list would really help this book reach the proper audience. I don’t read nor typically enjoy much romance, but actually didn’t mind how it was intertwined with this mystery-thriller. When I first picked up this book, I did think I was reading the wrong book at first because of the heavy romantic aspect over the first few pages. Definitely be prepared for some unexpected crudeness of some of the romance scenes throughout the entire book as well.

I was very excited to read this book. The plot of a daughter who would do anything to exonerate her father from wrongly being convicted of her mother’s murder sounded right up my alley. The narrator, Simone, was definitely not the most likeable character. It was hard to experience her being so judgmental at times when she is fighting against the unfair judgement her father received. However, her life was ripped away from her because of her mother’s murder and father’s conviction, so I could definitely empathize with some of those flaws. Two other qualms I had with this book were some of the very lengthy sentence construction and the reality of the investigation for Simone’s mother’s murder case. The wordiness made the book hard and slow to read/process at times and the “evidence” provided throughout the book was all very circumstantial (but, her father was convicted on way less evidence so I get it).

Things I did like in this book…
I overall did like the plot of this book. I appreciated the way the authors discussed race in relation to criminal cases and found their observations and commentary to be sharp as well. Once the pace of the book picked up around halfway or so through, it became much more engaging and quick to read. I also really liked the addition of the “diary” entries and the ambiguity of who wrote them - I think this supported the plot and twist quite well. I didn’t mind the twist of this book either - maybe you could say it was slightly predictable, but I think the authors did decent jobs of making you go back and forth on the ending a few times.

All in all, I enjoyed this read once I got farther in and would recommend checking it out if you like romance and murder. This book releases on December 5, 2023.

I found this suspenseful and intense thriller impossible to put down! I loved being along for the ride during Simone's investigation into her mother's murder. Simone is stubborn, tough, and full of heart which makes her very endearing. The twists were exciting and jaw dropping. An excellent read!

I enjoyed the Brown sisters’ previous book and the synopsis of this one was really intriguing so I was excited to pick it up! unfortunately this one fell a bit flat for me. the mystery aspect was forsaken for more of a romance plot, and I’m far from a prude but i didn’t need all these sex scenes. this would definitely benefit from being marketed as a dark romance instead of a mystery/thriller.

This story was interesting and the characters were well developed. However, parts of the writing felt repetitive and the transitions from scene to scene were really confusing. I found my self backtracking to try and figure out if this was a new scene, new character, etc. because it wasn’t clear.

I had to get past a few things while reading this (mainly, my whiteness) and read the story objectively when it's mentioned that white men in suits walk around like they own the world (perhaps not untrue), or when "white woman" is used almost as if it's an insult.

The story itself was entertaining enough, but Simone desperately grabbed hold of any idea she got into her head and had herself convinced multiple times what happened on very little proof. I didn't guess how the story ended or who actually killed Simone's mother though, and the same thing happened to me when I had a theory, it was wrong.

The writing jumped around a bit but the story was easy enough to follow. Thank you to the publisher (Harlequin Trade Publishing) and #netgalley for the chance to read this ARC, #perfectlittlelives publishing on Dec 5, 2023.

I stayed up until 2 AM to finish this book it was so juicy. I thought the plot and characters were interesting. I liked how the authors didn't shy away from showing the flaws their characters had as well. I did guess the killer, but I still found the book entertaining. I would recommend if you are looking for a fast paced read with elements of thrill, romance, and justice. Thank you to Amber and Danielle Brown and Harlequin Trade Publishing for allowing me to read this ARC.

I was very excited to be approved for an arc of Perfect Little Lives after loving Someone Had to Do It by twin sisters Amber and Danielle Brown. Their mystery books are thrilling and sexy. I just can't get enough of their books.
Title: Perfect Little Lives

Author: Amber and Danielle Brown

Publication Date: Dec 5, 2023

Publisher: Harlequin Trade Publishing/Graydon House

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 368

Content Warnings: nudity, sexual content, profanity, violence


› Dedication: "To everyone searching, be honest with yourself, answers are not always the truth."

› Simone is always focused on her flaws, both physical and mental. She works at a publisher and is a freelance book reviewer, wishing she could make a living writing her own books instead of editing other people's work. Her father is in jail for murdering her mother 10 years ago, a crime which he claims he did not commit. No one in her life knows about her father except her fiance, Reggie.

› Reggie is a lawyer and always focused on work. The sex is great, but Simone feels like they aren't close and don't talk about important things. He blows her off for a lunch date and BAM she runs into her childhood best friend, Hunter Bishop. Oh, I should add he's super cute, kind, and smart.

› Simone wants to return to their hometown to find new evidence so her father can have a new trial and Hunter is right there helping her every step of the way. Her relationship with Reggie is on the rocks as she becomes closer to Hunter. Simone is also trying to convince a true crime documentarian to delay making a film about her mother and father until she's able to discover the truth. Simone is about to reveal secrets that will ruin their Perfect Little Lives.

› I rate reviews similar to the CAWPILE method
I don't give a 0 rating for anything.
1-2 Really bad
3-4 Bad (F: Failed)
5 Mediocre (barely passed)
6-7 Good (C)
8-9 Really Good (B)
10 Outstanding (A)

› Characters: 8
› Atmosphere: 7
› Writing Style: 8
› Plot: 8
› Intrigue: 9
› Logic: 10
› Enjoyment: 9

Average 8.4

My Rating ★★★★

› Final Thoughts
• I suspected the killer early on, but there were a couple of twists I didn't see coming. Exciting and sexy, Perfect Little Lives is a tense and dark mystery. I feel like the blurb gives away too much, so I recommend going into this one without reading it.


Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is my second book by this author duo and I really liked it. I couldn’t imagine going through what she went through and how hopeless she must have felt for her dad. Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC

A soapy murder mystery/romance that would likely have been a much better read with a firm hand on the editing pen. Simone's father is in prison for killing her mother but she has never believed that he did it. Now she's convinced Hunter, her childhood friend, to look into the idea that his father, a respected judge, was the real killer. This causes problems in her relationship with her boyfriend Reggie as well as almost everyone else. There's also a question of whether racism played a role in the initial investigation. Lots of themes. Also, oddly, it's easy to tell that this was written by two different people- again something that could have been smoothed by another edit. Thanks to the publisher for the ArC. All of the above said (or rather, written), it is a page turner.

When she was younger, Simone's mother was murdered, and her father was convicted of the crime. In present day, she is being hounded by a true crime reporter, and this sparks her to find out what really happened to her mom.

I don't think the plot was horrible here, but the writing was really over the top in a bad way. It just felt unnecessarily descriptive in a weird way that detracted from the plot.

This one was a little all over the place for me, I think it needed to pick a lane and stick with it instead of toeing the line. At times it felt like I was reading a romance book with toxic drama and then others it felt like I was reading a good case suspense novel.

I have mixed feelings on this book. I really enjoy the author duo’s writing style and was interested in the story a majority of the time but I felt the character development wasn’t as strong as their first book and the mystery element was a little predictable. I also wasn’t a fan of the romances in this book and wasn’t compelled to root for either, though I do think the authors write about toxic/complicated relationships very well. Like with their first novel, I liked the social commentary and how it was woven into the story. And though this book wasn’t my favorite, I will continue to read from these authors and look forward to picking up their future books! I recommend this book for readers who like romantic suspense and social commentary.

*Thank you to the publisher Harlequin Trade Publishing and NetGalley for providing an eARC for review!*

This kept me on the edge of my seat the whole way through! I highly recommend this to any thriller book clubs out there!

I felt like this book was pretty genre-confused. Felt more like a twisted romance than a thriller.. The "twist" can hardly be classified as such as I saw it from a nile away. It was entertaining enough but honestly didn't stick out to me and I'll likely forget everything about it

Thank you to Net Galley and Graydon House for the ebook copy of this ARC.

This book had such an interesting premise. A woman, whose father has been in prison for most of her life for the murder of her mother and her last ditch effort to free him. Simone is sure her father is innocent. She believes the father of her childhood best friend and former neighbour is the murderer who had gotten away scott free. She is trying to build a case to get her dad out of prison and meanwhile a true crime documentarian is on her case and believes her dad is the true murderer.

This book had promise but it was only okay for me. At times it was hard to tell if the book was a spicy romance or a mystery. It was too long. I really liked the old diary entries from Simone’s mother before she was killed. I hoped for more around the documentary that was being made. Simone was a good detective and I enjoyed her sleuthing work.

If you like spice and mystery and don’t mind the overlap between genres, this could be for you.