Wow, this book opened with a bang! A vandalized room and a body.

We are then introduced to the main character, Mary. She's in the middle of a divorce, and she's moving her son out of NYC to live in a smaller location, not far from the city. Mary never quite fit in with George, or his family and friends. In fact, she only had one true friend she connected with, Willa. But even Willa has ghosted her...until she sees her in the new area they live in. Then the twists begin.

I love how we get both Mary and Willa's POV. The story does jump from past and present often, but it didn't confuse me at all. The jumps felt like flashbacks and filled in details quite nicely. Just when you think you know how things will turn out, think again! Great read and great twists. Keep Your Friends Close is definitely worth the read.

Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the ARC. The opinions expressed are my own.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Group Putnam, GP Putnam Sons for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest thriller by a favorite, Leah Konen - 4.5 stars!

Newly separated from her wealthy husband and in the midst of a custody battle she's afraid she'll lose to his wealthy family, Mary is desperate for a friend. When she meets Willa at a playground, she finally feels like someone sees and cares about her. When she lets a secret fantasy slip after too many drinks on a night out and Willa ghosts her immediately afterwards, Mary just doesn't understand. Two months later, Mary is trying to move on and build a new life for her and her son in Upstate NY. On her first day there, she runs into Willa - but Willa is going by Annie now and pretends she doesn't know Mary. But when Mary's husband, George, is found dead in the same little town, Mary becomes a prime suspect. Who can she trust now?

This story drew me in right away. I felt for Mary - she just felt like she never quite fit in with her husband's wealthy family and she finally got tired of his controlling ways. She was a good mom - worried foremost about her son growing up watching how George treated her. But when she gets the courage to leave, George threatens to take Alex away - and he has all the money and power on his side. Told in the POV from both Mary and Willa, in past and present, the story is dribbled out so that you aren't sure who you can trust. Konen has once again created the perfect thriller to shine light on women's lives. Loved it!

📖- Keep Your Friends Close
✍🏼: Leah Konen

📆: February 20,2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

𝕊𝕨𝕚𝕡𝕖 𝕗𝕠𝕣 𝕤𝕪𝕟𝕠𝕡𝕤𝕚𝕤 ———> from Goodreads

Read if:
•You like margaritas 🍹
•You’ve dealt with a narcissist before
•You’ve been lied to by your best friend

𝕄𝕪 𝕥𝕙𝕠𝕦𝕘𝕙𝕥𝕤 💭

I LOVED the dual POV between Mary and Wila, it went from past to present. It was easy to follow through the transition of past/ present. It also made me crave a margarita really bad 🤣 I thought I had it figured out who done it but honestly I never saw the twist coming! Well done, Leah 👏🏼 And also, the hook 🪝 was amazing, my attention was grabbed right away. As for the discussion question, I was instantly drawn to Mary’s POV.

If you’re looking for a twisty, whodunnit, addictive book please do yourself a favor and grab this ✨gem✨

One million thank yous to @netgalley for this ARC digital copy. And @leahkonen for this beautiful masterpiece, it deserves all the 5 ⭐️’s.


#domesticthriller #leahkonen #thrillerbooks #whodunnit #bookreview #netgalley #bookstagram

Keep Your Friends Close, by Leah Konen

Short Take: Started strong, then dove into predictability.

(*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*)

Hello, my beloved Nerdlings! Today is one of the best holidays of the year - half-price candy day! Even though the Reese’s hearts kind of look like butts, and there’s a distressing amount of coconut hidden in those shiny red boxes, there’s still plenty to love. (But seriously, does anyone actually LIKE coconut? Or do sociopaths just pretend to enjoy it to inflict it upon the rest of us?)

And speaking of disappointment…

In Keep Your Friends Close, Mary’s at a very low point in her life when she meets Willa. She’s going through an ugly divorce from a very wealthy & powerful man (and basically his whole old-money family is making her life hell), and is terrified of losing custody of her three year old son, Alex. Willa is also married to a rich man and has a three year old son of her own, Jack Jr. The two of them immediately become best friends, until Willa suddenly ghosts Mary, and seemingly vanishes.

Two months later, Mary is starting to get her life in order. She’s moved out of the city and into Woodstock, and it seems like her ex is finally calming down and the divorce might be settled peacefully. But then Mary runs into Willa in Woodstock, but Willa’s name is Annie, and instead of Jack Jr., she’s pushing a stroller with a little girl named Poppy.

Oh, and some of Mary’s hateful ex-in-laws are hanging around as well. So it’s not entirely surprising when somebody ends up dead.

Duckies, the first part of this book grabbed me by the jibblies. And the big switcheroo at about the 35% mark actually had me thinking that this one might, MIGHT be worthy of a Gone Girl comparison. But unfortunately, once we found out the truth about Willa, it just wasn’t that interesting. It’s like the author decided to take a seriously great setup (for real, one of the better beginnings I’ve come across) and toss it into the Thriller Story Maker Template, stripping the second half of any bit of originality.

The red herrings are obvious, the main character just isn’t that smart, and pretty much every man is a super-rich spoiled caricature. Finally, yes, carrying the bulk of the mental load is a real issue for women. But I swear on all that’s holy, listening to these women go on and on and ON about it made me feel like a henpecked husband. And I’m a husband-having wife.

Overall, a pretty good swing, but a definite miss.

The Nerd’s Rating: TWO HAPPY NEURONS (and a margarita the size of my head. Because I always want a margarita the size of my head and this book didn’t help with that.)

I was not wildly into this one and did not find myself excited to reach for it. I didn’t care for Mary at all.

Mary is going through a divorce and a custody battle and has moved and is in need of a friend. Enter Willa who is tons of fun and just what Mary needs to help her get through her troubles. Weird things and inconsistencies start adding up and Mary finds out that Willa is not who she says she is at all. This book was great and I couldn't stop reading to find out exactly what on earth was going on. Definitely worth the read.

A dual time line dual POV twisty tale that will keep you turning the pages. Mary and Willa meet when Mary is mourning the demise of her marriage and then again when they've both moved from the city. And now, George, Mary's ex is dead and she's the main suspect, Who is the more reliable narrator? What really happened? No spoilers from me. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Lots of secrets, lots of angst, and short chapters- it's a recipe for an entertaining read.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.
"Keep Your Friends Close" by Leah Konen was a twisty domestic suspense story that had interesting characters & a quick pace that held my attention.
I would definitely read another book by Ms. Konen.

this book was so good and it took me no time to get into it. I really enjoyed the storyline and the characters. This book had me on the edge of my seat a few times and I loved it. Highly recommend.

Mary finally makes a friend, tells her EVERYTHING and then is ghosted. Mary's husband ends up dead. Willa is seen in a different town but doesn't answer to "Willa" when Mary calls her name. Henry is an alcoholic that was married to Cass, who was Mary's bestie for a long time--but Mary lost that friendship. There are so many plot twists in this story and I did not see them coming. I would give this book 5 stars but Mary annoyed me with her repetitiveness. If I had to read one more page of how she was so happy to have a friend, how hard it was to make friends and how superficial the other women at the playground were...... so, 4 stars.
I received a complimentary digital ARC from NetGalley and the publishers. This review is my own words.

I’ve read many, many books and Leah Konen’s novels always stand out for her ability to have the most insane pacing. I love and hate the books she writes because I am beyond anxious the whole time I’m reading. Keep Your Friends Close is her newest, let me tell you- it does not disappoint!

Synopsis:

Isolated and embroiled in a custody battle, Mary is desperate for a friend. So when she meets the charming and enigmatic Willa at a Brooklyn playground, their connection feels fated. But during a margarita-fueled moms’ night out, Mary shares her darkest secret about her ex, George, and the next morning Willa simply disappears. No calls, no texts, nothing.

Two months later, Mary’s divorce is almost finalized, and she’s trying to build a new life for her son in upstate New York. On her first day in town, she runs into Willa . . . only Willa’s name is now Annie, and she’s got an entirely new family in tow. When George turns up dead and Mary becomes the prime suspect, she has no choice but to turn to her only friend in town: Willa.

As coincidences—and evidence—pile up, Mary begins to wonder whether Willa had something to do with George’s death. Is the woman a friend or a foe, a confidante or just a con? Mary must uncover the truth before she loses everything.

Out on Feb 20th!

Mary has left her wealthy and controlling husband and is now fighting to keep custody of their 2 year old son, Alex. Her husband, George, comes from a wealthy family and is used to always getting what he wants. She's convinced that he'll win the fight and that her son will be lost to her forever.

One day at the neighborhood playground Mary meets, Willa. Willa, so cool and confident. Mary can't believe that a woman as fascinating as Willa would ever want to be her friend but the two hit it off and soon they are spending their days together at the park with the kids and sipping margarita's in the evening all while spilling secrets to one another.

Then one day, after a drunken night, Willa stops responding. She won't answer her phone or respond to texts. Mary's been ghosted and she's absolutely devastated. Was it something she said?

Sad Mary decides it's time to leave Brooklyn behind and she makes her way further upstate. While she's drinking away her feelings at the bar she spots Willa. Her hair is brown now and shorter than before but without a doubt it's her. Yet, when Mary confronts her she claims she's never met her before and that her name is Annie and she now has a daughter. What happened to her son?

All these questions will be answered but will these answers be satisfying? Unfortunately not for me.

To start, Mary was too pathetic to ever root for. If she wasn't whining and crying about the unfairness of her life then she was whining and crying over the loss of Willa. A woman she only knew for two months. Heck, she didn't even know her last name. How can you be best friends with someone and not know there last name? As far as the unfairness of her life goes, yes, she was once married to a wealthy man and draped herself in designer this or that and now that she's left him she can no longer afford those luxuries. Don't worry though because there will be many bottles of wine for her to wallow in her self-pity with. Are we all feeling sorry for her yet? I'm certainly not.

Be prepared to have every designer label dropped in this book which I always find irksome.

Willa is a typical cliche. Gorgeous, confident, smart, funny, wealthy - but she isn't who we think she is. Are you shocked? I wasn't.

I admit that I read 75% of this book yesterday so Konen did keep me interested enough to continue. I did want to see how this story played out. It was upon finishing this today that I realized all the things that bothered me.

I get that Konen was trying to get us to sympathize with these ladies but it completely failed. Poor pretty girls meet rich white men and then can't believe their life isn't perfect because the men are assholes. Surprise, surprise. Been there, done that in about a million other books.

And what is with the detective in high heels? In a profession in which you are on your feet all day, often at crime scenes, one would think they'd don more practical footwear. Take my advice and ditch the Louboutin's for some Skechers and you'll thank me for it.

Nothing about this story is surprising, nothing about it feels fresh, and the ending was beyond ridiculous so unless these kinds of stories are totally your thing then I'd say save your time and skip this. 2 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group - Putnam for my complimentary copy.

First read by Leah Konen showed me what I've been missing! Twisty domestic suspense can be a hard order these days, but this is successful, with interesting characters that make great suspects, a quick pace, and a setting that shows some of the darker bits of the wealthy alongside the "perks".

If you’re in the mood for broody, Keep Your Friends Close is definitely murdery with a bunch of suspense. Twisty, easy and a fast read, it was a memorable book.

Mary is in the middle of a divorce and custody battle, and while trying to navigate her new life she befriends Willa. It seems like Willa and her little one are just what Mary and her 2-yr old son need. But is it? Mary will soon find that not everything is what it seems. So many lies and no one to trust.

Lots of twists and turns will keep you engaged and entertained. A few things seemed a little hard to believe, but overall a good story.

Oh this book!!! This is one of those bingeable, fun, fast paced thrillers! I absolutely devoured this book and loved every second! I completely resonated with the MC as a mom, especially a boy mom. Mary is strong willed and determined to be there for her young son and isn’t willing to let her husband treat her poorly, setting a precedent for their impressionable son. So when she decides to leave him and all his money, he makes it nearly impossible. Then she meets Willa at the park. Their friendship helps Mary get through her tough separation, but she could have no idea how much it will impact her future! I love reading about how the wealthy use money to manipulate and get what they want. The power of females and their impenetrable friendships is a strong theme and runs through this book. What women do to protect one another and what they’re willing to risk for friendship is truly fascinating. This book was so addicting! I read it in one day and avoided all responsibilities until I unearthed all the dirty secrets! I had a couple suspicions, but could never have predicted the full outcome!! Truly a great, fun thriller!

Mary is in the middle of a divorce from her husband George and friendless, when she meets Willa at a park.
Mary has her son with her and Willa has a young child as well. They talk and find all that they have in common and a deep friendship blossoms,
When Willa, all of a sudden, stops responding to texts and calls, Mary has no idea what happened but does not linger as her life begins to implode around her.
the plot twists and turns very unexpectedly and quite chillingly at times.
when Willa shows up again, in Mary's town and pretends to not know who Mary is, everything takes off in a wild
ride of intrigue, suspicions and murder,
The characters were a little less than strong for me and the plot was not pulling.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this. This one had a bunch of drama and I really thought I knew what was going on, but I truly did not!! 4 stars!

The plot in this book was so GOOD! We get into the story and I feel so damn bad for Mary, a woman battling an up and coming divorce with her husband who is hella rich and also making sure she gets custody of her child. In this tough time she meets Willa and Jack Jr. at the park, and Mary confides in this woman and she finally has a friend. She has been feeling alone since her sister in law Cassandra left the family after a bad divorce too. But we end finding out that Willa isn't who she seems, and she's actually close to someone who Mary really loved as a best friend, her only ally in this horrible family who is trying to make her life miserable.

Mary is visiting a town she really likes for her new beginning with her son, but her soon to be ex follows her to try to reconcile, but BOOM he ends up dead instead, who killed him??? Already its pretty obvious, but this book has so many layers, its a huge "who done it" type of suspense. And all of these characters have WILD secrets, the end was like always in these situations, rushed. I felt the book dragged a little and I wanted it to get to the point already, who killed Mary's husband!!!!!!!!

Anyway we get out answers, the ending is pretty bad ass, the least favored character in this book ended up being my favorite, lol

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my review!

Title: Keep Your Friends Close

Author: Leah Konen


Rating: 3.5

Brief Summary: Follows a woman who befriends a woman who suddenly dissapears and turns up as a different woman:

Pub Date: February 20, 2024

What I Enjoyed: This book was very dramatic and kept me guessing. I had multiple ideas for how it would end.

What I Disliked: I thought the book was a little long



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