The novel deviated significantly from my expectations, initially lured in by the enticing premise of a daughter determined to clear her wrongly accused father's name. The potential for a gripping narrative was evident from the outset, but alas, the execution left much to be desired. The struggle to establish a coherent genre identity hindered the overall impact of the story, vacillating awkwardly between a dark romance and a domestic thriller.

Despite my initial enthusiasm for the compelling plotline, the narrative faltered in its attempt to find a balance between a gripping legal drama and a more intimate exploration of familial relationships. The inclusion of gratuitous sex scenes and the cringe-worthy love triangle detracted from the overarching suspense, diluting the potential for a truly immersive experience. Furthermore, the convoluted sentence structures, albeit possibly exacerbated by the fact that English is not my first language, added an additional layer of complexity that hindered the overall readability.

The protagonist, Simone, emerged as a particularly challenging character to connect with. Her incessant tendency to mirror the unjust judgments her father faced onto every individual she encountered painted her as an unsympathetic and hypocritical figure. The absence of concrete evidence in her claims mirrored the injustice her father experienced, but it also rendered her character less compelling and more difficult to root for.

The portrayal of an age gap between Simone and Hunter, beginning when she was nine and he was fifteen, introduced a nuanced layer that may be a matter of personal sensitivity. The undertones of a budding affection between the characters, while possibly subjective, added an uncomfortable element that left me questioning the dynamics presented in the story.

In conclusion, the novel, despite its promising premise, struggled with genre coherence, excessive romantic elements, and a protagonist whose characterization left much to be desired. The intricate balance required to navigate themes of justice, family dynamics, and romantic entanglements seemed elusive, ultimately hindering the full realization of the novel's potential.

I really struggled with this book. While I enjoy romance books, I am definitely a true thriller reader. This book was scattered and just didn't flow well. When it started I thought I was reading a spicy romance vs a thriller book.
Not at all what I expected.
Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this arc.

This book just wasn’t it for me. It seemed to be all over the place. I thought it was supposed to be a thriller but a lot of times it seemed like a toxic romance instead. I saw what as coming the whole time and it didn’t seem like a twist by any sense.

This was an excellent thriller that kept me guessing the whole time! It was unexpected and fresh. I would definitely recommend this book!

3.5 stars. This book wasn’t sure if it wanted to be a super spicy romance novel or a thriller. I suppose if you’re an equal fan of both you will really enjoy this book. I would prefer for my thrillers to be more of just a suspenseful page turner. However, minus all the spicy scenes the storyline was good and I found myself not being able to put the book down. There was tons of neighborhood drama, family drama, and betrayal. The killer was a bit predictable, but I still enjoyed reading how everything played out. Would recommend for those that enjoy a domestic thriller, especially if you also like romance.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing, Graydon House for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Perfect Little Lives follows Simone as she tries to unravel her mothers murder, trying to prove her dads innocence with the help of her childhood friend, Hunter.

I hate to say it but this book just didn’t do it for me. I’m not a fan of romance books but this romance especially seemed uninspired to me. The mystery aspect of it didn’t keep me wanting to know what happened. The twist felt predictable too, which doesn’t always ruin a book but I just wanted more here.

I would still give these authors another chance! This book specifically just didn’t do it for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Someone Had to Do It was one my favorite reads but this one was a lot different for me. The writing stye was very descriptive and made the story hard for me to get into. There was a too much romance for me and I wasn't invested. While this wasn't for me, I look forward to the Brown's next story and hope it's more along my line!

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. (Super light on the suspense) The failure to distinguish between what it was trying to do lost me unfortunately, but despite debating putting it down I did finish it. That always makes me think there’s something about the authors writing that kept me captivated so gotta give credit there. The suspense aspect fell flat for me as well as I found the twist to be predictable and easy to see coming. I did like the way the author discussed race in relation to criminal cases and found their observations and commentary to be sharp but overall this just wasn’t for me.

I would love to say this was the fun, gripping thriller it was advertised as, but the truth is much more mundane than that.

The very first chapter of the story begins with an admittedly sort of funny rant about women hating her body hair because of men and how the patriarchy sucks and she is such an anti-feminist for utilizing hair removal devices... blah, blah, blah... In case you're wondering, the rest of the book doesn't get a whole lot more interesting.

As a big fan of thrillers, this was a disappointment. I am not anti-feminist or pro-patriarchy. I just think Perfect Little Lives skirted a little too close to being named Annoying Little Complainers.

Perfect Little Lives is about a woman Simone trying to prove the innocence of her father in the murder of her mother. She enlists the help of her former neighbor Hunter who was her best friend growing up, a black family in a privileged almost all white neighborhood. He reveals that his father and Simone's mother had an extramarital affair.
This book isn't the usual psychological thriller that I usually read. There was far too much romance or sex scenes that really didn't enhance the plot.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Simone is an amazing character and super strong. I really liked her plus this plot was very original. I loved feeling like I could relate because of the book reviewing. I loved the descriptions of New York (my mother is from there) I do feel like the characters could have been fleshed out a bit more but it’s ok either way. I gave it a 4 out of 5

I thought I was going to enjoy this book. A woman is murdered and her husband is accused of it. Her daughter knows her dad is innocent and tries to prove it. Some weird sexual romance in this when I didn’t feel like it fit. Liked some of the story so that’s the 2 stars.

The story line is so all over the place that I didn't know if I was reading a thriller, or a romance, or a messy thrown together mix of both. I STRUGGLED to get through this book as an ARC. The story line was so messy, the wording was blah, and the characters were half developed. I would have DNF this book had I not done it as an ARC. The format was awful, the spacing errors were awful, I know it’s an ARC but it made it very difficult to read.

"Perfect Little Lives" by Amber and Danielle Brown is an engaging read, offering a mix of drama, murder mystery, and romance. The storyline is fun and entertaining, but I found it somewhat predictable. While I enjoyed the book, I could anticipate the ending, which took away some of the suspense. The collaboration between Amber and Danielle Brown is impressive, and I look forward to their future works. If you're a fan of light mystery/thrillers, you'll likely find this book enjoyable, though it may not offer many surprises for seasoned readers in the genre.

I wanted to like this one! Not what I expected. Too much sex - grooming??? Thought I would like that it was written by 2 authors but it was quite clearly written by two different people. Left me wanting more!! Tough to finish. Wish I had a better review to share...

Perfect Little Lives was simply... weird... I'm normally not one to bat an eye at strong opening lines, concepts, and themes, but I was instantly turned off when I started reading this book. It was trying for a shock grab that simply didn't land for me.

The theme of the book was also ambiguous... was it a thriller? a mystery? a romance? Also, highly dysfunctional romance plots just don't do it for me, I hate reading about people being... well... stupid for no reason. There are ways to incorporate sex/spice into books without completely diverging from the main plot. The bizarre relationship between Simone, Hunter, and Simone's boyfriend was just... unnecessary in my opinion. If you're going for a love triangle at least try to be a bit unique and make it polyamorous and dynamic.

It made me wonder, does Simone actually want to prove her father innocent or was that just a framing device for her sexcapades? Also like... where is the proof that her dad is innocent? It's almost like the main plot was just an afterthought.

Also, the original friendship with Hunter and Simone was just... odd... The age gap at that age is weird and with the sexual implications feels grossly inappropriate. I wouldn't go so far as to say it normalized grooming but it at the very least was super ick.

I received an advanced copy from Netgalley and this is my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for my copy of Perfect Little Lives!

This was not what I expected it to be. When I first read the plot, I was sold because I love these types of things. The wrong person is in prison and his daughter will do anything to exonerate him. Amazing plot. But this one fell through for me. It can't decide if it wants to be a dark romance or a domestic thriller. There's too many unnecessary $3x scenes, the love triangle is just cringe and some of the sentence construction was making my head hurt. English is not my first language so that probably is the culprit but I don't know. Some of the sentences are too long.

Simone is also very unlikeable. Her dad is wrongly judged and that's what she did with every single person she encountered. Her claims is basically things she thought of with no concrete evidence like it happened with her dad. She's such a hypocrite and just not nice. Also, that age gap when she's 9 and Hunter is 15. I don't know if I'm just sensitive or what but it kind of bothered me. There's definitely some undertones of liking each other. Might just be me.

I definitely did not enjoy this one and it kind of made me sad because it seemed really promising. Oh, well. Definitely not for me.

This book is written by two authors, and it was sadly one where the writing style felt like there were two authors. I really just struggled with the writing in general. It was an odd combination of sentences raning from very long, to very short. I counted one sentence that took up three lines with my size 1 font kindle, and it was over 50 words, with one comma. That’s just too long. Then there was the odd mash up of genres. I love books that cross genres, especially romantic thrillers, but this one didn’t work for me the way I wanted it to and I never could put a finger on what genres were trying to be portrayed. I also struggled with the characters. Simone is the main character and while I don’t mind unlikeable characters, I do struggle with naïve characters and Simone is very naïve. While she did experience some growth over the course of the book, her character was pretty unredeemable.

I think that with some editing this book would have read a lot better and been easier to handle. I do think that this book is also mis labeled genre wise and hope the publisher can fix that. Labeling this as a dark romance would help reach the target audience better.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

A little more spicy than suspense but still a decent read. I enjoyed the book overall but was not expecting the darkness of the romance.

Perfect Little Lives is a thriller about a woman who is determined to prove her father's innocence in her mother's death. When Simone was a child, her father was convicted of her mother's murder... The problem is, Simone knows he is innocent. Now ten years later, she sets out to clear her father's name and release him from prison... But the murderer is still out there, and Simone is certain it is someone who is still close by.

This was a lovely, slow-burn read with interesting character development. It takes its time, but it is worth it as the complexities of the characters help feed the narrative as it picks up and propels you toward the end! Reading the insights into the life of a Black girl/woman contending with racism and prejudice is clearly founded on the authors' experiences, and I loved the fact that they felt safe enough to share some of those vulnerabilities with the reader.

This feels equal parts romance and murder mystery, which checks two big boxes for lovers of those genres. I really enjoyed watching Simone grow and get more in touch with what she knew she deserved. The ending had my heart pounding! Although I guessed the rough sketch and narrowed it down to two suspects, I wasn't sure which way it was going to go. I still think ONE of the romantic interests deserves a massive throat punch, though.

Thank you to NetGalley and the authors at Graydon House for giving me the opportunity to review an e-ARC.