The Perfect Date by Julia Crouch Narrated by Sarah Durham was a brilliant audiobook that was full of twists and turns throughout which is a brilliant twisted whodunnit, that was full of suspense, drama, that will have you guessing till the very end which was fast paced which nice short chapters.

The narrator Sarah was brilliant for this book and kept it alive.

I highly recommend this book I loved it!

Big Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for my E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Easy read, lots of people to suspect, although I imagine most people will be able to spot the 'baddy'. However, would still reccommend this as an enjoyable way to escape for a bit.

Definitely a thriller for dog lovers! This book had a great setup, and I was intrigued for about the first quarter. The middle seemed to kind of drag a bit and became a little monotonous, but it was still a fun read. The ending was surprising, and was happy with how it wrapped up.

This was not for me. I couldn’t get into it at all. The writing was very stiff and under-developed. No nuance or suspense. Lacks depth and visualization. I got 20% of the way in and had to stop.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC!

This was a nice read as a palette cleanser between more dense books - a crime thriller that I'm sure will please most readers of the genre.

The premise is pretty unique - Caz and her dog, Joe, manage to find the guy she's been dating dead whilst on a walk...twice. First it happens in London, then in Brighton. The mystery continues on from there, and you can't help but feel like Caz must have the worst luck in the world.

I'll be entirely honest in that this was a solid, middle of the road read for me. It didn't do anything fantastic, but it also wasn't a chore to read. I read it in less than a day, and the writing was good enough to keep my attention for long periods of time. The story itself was pretty intriguing, and Joe the dog was the best character...even if he did seem to be a little too human sometimes.

I also really liked Damian, and I was sad he wasn't included much. His character couldve been fleshed out a bit more and he deserved it.

Caz, frankly, was an idiot of gigantic proportions. I disliked her the whole way through and did some major eye rolling at her decisions and thought processes. Boggles the mind that it took her over half the book to finally suspect that maybe she was the connection between the murders...like, come on. Two men you met on the same app in different areas of England both get murdered after going on a date with you? Never mind rose coloured glasses, she'd had rose laser surgery.

On top of that, she had a really annoying attitude towards Marcy and Mark. There were at least times when she recognised it and told herself off, but the amount of times she'd think 'this should've belonged to me'. Girl, it's been like 9 years...go to therapy. And get some friends, please.

I'd love to say I didn't figure out who it was, but I figured it out relatively early on so it wasn't a huge surprise. Still, it was a relatively enjoyable read if I ignored some of Caz's idiotic decisions.

Giving this book 3 1/2 stars. Caz recently returned home to care for her ailing mother. She established herself as a popular professional dog walker. One morning while walking dog, her dog, Joe, comes across the body of a deceased man. It turns out to be Harry, a man she met on a dating app. This would be quite a disturbing thing to find the man you are dating dead, except this is the SECOND TIME this has happened to Caz! Once is a coincidence, but twice is a bit of a pattern.

Now, one would think that this was enough of a mystery for one novel, but wait! Her friend, who she is house sitting for, has gone missing! But again, Caz doesn’t seem non plussed or concerned, which was infuriating at time!

I did feel that there were too many side characters involved in the story. Additionally, the plot just DRAGGED for the first half of the book. I was hoping that with discovering a dead body in the first chapter meant that this was a fast paced book, but alas, I was wrong.

Thank you NetGalley and Bookoture for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

First I want to thank NetGalley & Bookouture for allowing me access to the ARC of The Perfect Date.

WOW!!! This psychological thriller kept me on my toes until the very end. It kept me guessing from throughout the book and was a very easy page turner. I couldn’t put this book down!

People being killed, people vanishing and weird things happening from start to finish have you wondering who did it. When I finally got to the end my jaw was on the floor. Of course you suspect it’s this person or that one when reading the book, but to find out exactly who it is and their motive behind it was just crazy.

The Perfect Date by Julia Crouch is a gripping psychological thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats from beginning to end. The story revolves around Caz, a woman who has faced an unimaginable and horrifying situation - finding the lifeless body of a man she was dating, not once but twice. This nightmarish experience echoes a traumatic incident from her past when she discovered another man, she was involved with had met a similar fate.

The novel delves into Caz's complicated life, unraveling a web of secrets and complex relationships. Her past entanglements and her present connections create a suspenseful backdrop that keeps the reader guessing throughout the story.
Crouch's writing style is nothing short of excellent, as she skillfully crafts a narrative that is both compelling and chilling. The way she weaves together the events in Caz's life, interconnecting her past and present, is masterful. The reader is drawn into Caz's world, experiencing her fear, paranoia, and desperation as she confronts the gruesome discoveries.
One of the standout elements of The Perfect Date is the unpredictability of the plot. The novel keeps you guessing about the identity of the murderer and their motives, creating a sense of unease and tension that lingers throughout the book. The psychological aspects of the thriller are well-executed, and the character development is impressive.
Crouch expertly explores the theme of guilt and the weight of one's past actions. As Caz grapples with the idea that she might be connected to these horrific deaths, the novel delves into the complexity of her character and the moral dilemmas she faces.

Overall, The Perfect Date is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers. Julia Crouch's storytelling prowess and her ability to create a genuinely suspenseful atmosphere make this novel an enthralling and thrilling read. If you're looking for a book that will keep you glued to its pages, this is undoubtedly one to consider. It's a tale of intrigue, secrets, and the haunting question of whether the past can truly be escaped.

thoroughly enjoyed this little thriller I was lucky enough to read an ARC of through #NetGalley.

Had my mind constantly racing trying to figure out who the killer was! So many good twists in this book!

In a crowded market, Julia Crouch's work stands out for its plotting and genuine care for its characters. There's no such thing as a perfect date, but this is an excellent read

I thoroughly enjoyed this little thriller I was lucky enough to read an ARC of through #NetGalley.

Had my mind constantly racing trying to figure out who the killer was! So many good twists in this book!

Wow. I didn’t want to put this down, I found it captivating as I was eager to find out who the murderer was. Granted, I managed to figure out who it was about halfway through the book, but I still wasn’t 100% until the big reveal. There were plenty of twists and turns to keep me guessing.
While I found the main character, Caz, to be quite frustrating at times, and a little ignorant to other people’s struggles, a lot of the side characters - and the dogs - made up for her shortcomings.
All in all, a great read that kept me captivated.

I love this author and have thoroughly enjoyed all of her books. And this one was just absolutely wonderful. Brilliant from start to finish. Loved it.

Why this book is called the perfect date and why this is the tagline made absolutely no sense whatsoever. Like the first chapter mentions the main characters "perfect" man who she went on one or two dates with who ends up dead. I kept reading cause I was interested to know who killed her so called perfect man but it kinda got boring because the story dragged on with nothing new being added to it. The person who ends up being the killer had their back story was revealed at the end so there isn't really the opportunity for the reader to guess who it was and I like to guess so for me it really wasn't that fun. I think the book premise had potential but the execution let it down because the title and tagline have nothing to do with the story and I feel bamboozled.

I loved the concept of the book but I felt it was too much build up which made it difficult for me to want to carry on reading. The ending was quite predictable for me and often books in this genre leave me really shocked.
Would have preferred to learn more about some of the more likeable characters such as Damien.

A little predictable in places and I was waiting for the main character to catch on! An enjoyable read.

I was excited to read this book, the title and the description of the book made it seem like it was going to be interesting. I quickly found that it was a slow read. I really want to like this book but I just couldn’t get into it.

Thank you NetGalley, Julia and bookouture for the ARC!

Initially I thought this book was gonna be a wash but I GOT SO INTO IT. So many twists and turns and I couldn’t stop until I’d finished. The ending was slightly anticlimactic as I could tell where it was going but I still loved it

I loved this book! It was a nail bitter the entire read! I wanted to finish this at once and not wait! Thriller. Suspense. Exciting!

The Perfect Date is a mystery. The title seemed off after completing the book. It didn’t have anything to do with a “perfect date”. Odd. Anyway, the relationship between characters was not developed well. Why would Caz housesit for an ex friend who stole her boyfriend? Didn’t make sense. Or how Mark would come into the story and all the sudden be on great terms with Caz and they hook up, for Mark to leave the storyline.
The entire book was a mess for me. The fact that Caz told so many people about the crazy story of a finger/ dead bodies and not one went to the police is too far out there to me. The last couple of chapters were a bit suspenseful I will say on a positive note.