I was intrigued by the premise of this book. However, I was disappointed to find it to be too similar to many books I've read recently, the character development fell pretty flat and the story moved slow at times. Also, I found the dialogue to be rather juvenile. The narrator did a fine job bringing the characters to life. Overall, this one just didn't work for me. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Bookouture Audio for an ALC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #BookoutureAudio for the ARC #TheWeekendAway by #MirandaSmith. This book is about trust or non trust and kept me guessing till the end. Relationships and pure evil are all around you. Highly recommend.

Thank you to Bookouture and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ of 5

This is not your average locked room mystery, as the mystery unfolds a year later after the anchoring event.

A full ensemble, Sienna the twin sister grieving the “accidental “ death of her sister Samantha. Colby, Samantha’s boyfriend, Harper; the childhood friend, Nessa; the college friend, Jackson, another college friend. All of them have gathered to memorialize Samantha’s death 1 year later in a remote Tennessee cabin rented from Cole a loner. However, sienna has stumbled upon a diary Samantha has hidden and knows everyone is holding onto secrets. As sienna hopes to discover the circumstances of her sisters death, she must struggle against both human nature and Mother Nature in this gripping thriller. Sienna realizes “uniqueness is not weakness “.

I know a book is delivering when I can’t wait to get back to it and this one does just that. Characters are well developed, motivations are revealed bit by enticing bit. There is a slight drag in the middle; only slight but soon recovers nicely. The plot is not too unbelievable as I find in some.

Definitely will recommend to my reader groups and friends.

The Weekend Away caught my attention from the very beginning. As a reader of thrillers and suspense, this was right up my alley. Just when I thought I knew what was going on, it took me in a different direction. I love that! This was a book that was very hard to put down. The narrator did a great job and made this book enjoyable. The way that the author build up the characters, made it easy to keep track of who was who. There was closure in the ending. But, I would’ve liked a little bit more information in that closure. However, if it was the intention of the author to have the reader be a part in the ending by coming to a conclusion that satisfied them, then I know how I would’ve handled it.

This was my first book by Miranda Smith. I enjoyed it very much and look forward to reading more from her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen to the advanced copy of The Weekend Away.

Very good suspense filled book. I was a slow burn but kept me intrigued the whole time. The audiobook narrator was great and helped to live the story along. I just wish the ending was longer and we could see how she ended up rather than planning for the future.

When someone you love dies, a part of you dies with them. Although twins are two different people they also share something special too and I think it might be even be more devastating for them.

It's no wonder Sienna has loads of questions. A whole bunch of different scenario's flash through her mind and she is convinced she can find answers or even the culprit among her sister's friends. 

So she joins them on a weekend away, determined to get to the truth. Easier said than done, because they all seem to lie. Sienna has a secret weapon though and she won't hesitate to use it to unravel the truth. 

The deeper she digs, the more she feels threatened. And then the culprit is forced to show their true colors, desperately trying to keep their secrets hidden. Things are really starting to heat up...

This book had me guessing until the end. It was impossible for me to point my finger in any direction. They could all be guilty or none of them. My brain was clearly to mushy to figure this one out.

Least favorite character has to be Colby. I would have loved to give him a piece of my mind. 

A very good story. Once again it seems like money rules the world. 5 stars

Thank you

Great suspense, a twisty plot that kept me guessing, and a narrator that kept my ear buds in. The big surprise for me is that the love between twin sisters and the pain one felt for the others death was so well done that I found myself teary several times. A thriller with all the feels!

The Weekend Away is the perfect book to read over the course of a weekend! I loved the setting in this book. There is something about cabins in the woods, the feeling of being trapped alone with others, in a tense setting that gets me every single time! Miranda Smith has crafted another gripping, hard to put down and shocking book that had me on the edge of my seat, trying to get to the bottom of things right along with Sienna! This book (and audiobook) was addictive, atmospheric and full of secrets and lies.

Sienna’s twin sister Samantha sent her a message letting her know that she needed her. The next day Sienna received word that her twin sister was dead. Sienna knew that her sister's death was suspicious and is determined to prove that Samantha's death was no accident. When she finds her sister's hidden journal, she knows that she is on the right path.

A weekend away to discuss the loss of her sister has been planned by her friends. Sienna agrees to go along and is shocked to learn some hard truths about her sister's friends.

This book began strong and never let up. I loved having both the book and audiobook of The Weekend Away. This made for a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. As I mentioned, this book grabbed my attention from the very beginning, and I had a hard time putting it down. I was drawn into the plot, the mystery of what happened the night Samantha died, and the possibility that one or more of her friends may know more than they are saying.

I enjoyed how quickly things changed when Sienna began questioning those there. I love tension in books, and I loved how the tension mounted in this book over the course of their stay at the cabin. This became a real page turner for me. I did my best to try to get to the bottom of things, but Miranda Smith is very clever and shocked me with the reveal. If you have not read Miranda Smith before, what are you waiting for?

I love her books. Every book I have read by her has been well written, addictive, and shocking. This book was no exception!

Atmospheric, tense, well written, dramatic, and entertaining!

I enjoyed this book overall. However I often wondered where is this going?
My sister died. Her friends lied. And now I’m going to learn the truth…

A year ago, my twin sister Samantha left me a message: I need you.

A day later, she was dead. I always knew it was suspicious, but no one would listen.

But I’ve just found her journal, tucked into a hidden space in the window seat of our childhood bedroom. It shows who her best friends really are: the fraud. The liar. The cheat. The crush.

Now, they’re all together on a weekend away, in a beautiful wood-panelled cabin in the mountain. And I’m going too. One of them killed her, and I’m going to prove it.

But am I ready for the answers I’m seeking? Because I soon realize that my sister had dark secrets too…

And when fire breaks out on the mountain, leaving us trapped, I must decide: what will I risk to get justice for Samantha? Because finding the truth might cost me my life…

I LOVED THIS AUDIOBOOK! I finished it within two days because it kept me on my toes so much. I love a good thriller, and it was even more interesting to me as someone that lives in Kentucky and visits the Smoky Mountain area often. I can honestly say that it wasn't predictable at all, which I loved. I will certainly be looking for more books from this author!

This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I felt as if I were in every scene that was taking place. That's how much of a fantastic job the narrator did. I loved the aspect of Sienna finding her sister's diary full of secrets about people in her life. This prompted Sienna to go on the cabin trip to honor Samantha's memory with Sammie's friends. She wanted to find out the truth of what happened to her sister. The plot was super interesting and kept me engaged the entire time. I did not expect what I learned at the end of the book. Miranda Smith is a great writer to keep me on my toes the entire book! Read if you like cabin in the woods, secrets, backstabbing/betrayal, unsolved mysteries, and twin stories. Such a great read/listen!

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

Madeline Pell does a wonderful job with the narration on this book as always! She’s clear and so easy to listen to for hours on end! The story is about a woman who goes on a weekend trip with as group of her twin sisters friends after she died under unusual circumstances. She found her diary and all of the friends have secrets that could be possible motives. It was an interesting take on trying to solve a murder, and I really enjoyed all the complex characters and their secrets. I would definitely recommend to anyone who likes psychological thrillers and mysteries!

The Weekend Away is a psychological thriller involving twin sisters. Sienna’s twin sister Samantha falls from a balcony and is found dead. It is presumed an accident. Sienna has always believed that there is more to the story. She is invited on a trip to a secluded cabin with her sister’s friends around the 1 year anniversary of her death. She agrees in hopes of finding more information on what truly happened. Using Samantha's journal that includes secrets about all of her friends, Sienna sets out to confront and find out the truth.
Told primarily from Sienna’s POV, with flashbacks from Samantha and also interspersed the cabin owner Troy, with this is a gripping thriller with twists and turns that you don’t expect.
I was not expecting the final twist. This was a great story with compelling characters. An easy read that I finished over two days.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this audiobook in exchange for my honest opinion.

As a twin myself, Sienna already had my sympathy. Sienna's successful twin sister Samantha died nearly a year ago from a tragic fall and since then, she's moved back home and is working at the family dry cleaning business. The whole family is in shambles.

That's when she gets a phone call from Jackson, one of Samantha's best friends whom she was also in business with. Samantha had a tight circle of friends that Sienna wasn't a part of so she's surprised when Jackson invites her on a weekend getaway to celebrate Samantha's life.

She reluctantly decides to go after stumbling upon some writings from Samantha that reveal a lot of reasons to be suspicious of these people who shared a business with her sister. With friends like them, who needs enemies? Sienna is going to get to the bottom of this one way or another..

This is Smith's best work so far, in my opinion! With the backdrop of the Smoky Mountains and memories of the 2016 wildfires, the tone was set for a locked chalet thriller, but this almost crossed into horror territory. It was very dark and a really good mystery.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to listen and review. The narration was great.

This audio book follows twin sister sienna a year on from the accidental death of her sister. Her sisters friends invite her on a trip to celebrate her diaters life. At first she is hesitant but then she finds her sister journal and tgat disrant voice on her head convinces her yo serk the answers to what really happened to her sister and did her friends have an input.
I teally enjoyed the narrating. I could distinguish between characters amd ot sounded like the barrator was invested in the story and getting emotion in the worlds especially as it was told mainly through the journal and sienna's pov.
It was well faced full of twists. A listen that hooked me. Thank-you netgallery publisher and author and narrator for a solid highly recommended 5 star listen

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for an advanced copy of The Weekend Away!

“My sister died. Her friends lied. And now I’m going to learn the truth…”

This was a good story. The characters didn’t seem as three dimensional to me as I had hoped for. I enjoyed Sienna’s character as well as Sammy when she had her diary read in her perspective, however, I greatly disliked the 4 friends (even though that was most likely the point). I did find there were some disconnects where you had to suspend your disbelief a bit on certain events — but it was interesting to me nonetheless. I enjoyed the diary readings and the somewhat closed door mystery aspect but wanted more creepy cabin in the woods.

I’d like to also give a round of applause to the narrator of this audiobook. She was clear and crisp and thus easy to understand. I think she did a great job differentiating each character’s voices and quirks well.

Synopsis: It's been a year since Sienna lost her twin sister Samantha in a tragic accident. But Sienna is not entirely convinced that it was an accident. And when she stumbles upon Samantha's diary, filled with secrets and dirt on all of her friends, Sienna wonders if any of those secrets were worth killing over. When she is invited on a one year death anniversary memorial trip with her sister's friends, she uses it as the perfect opportunity to try and figure out what might have really happened.

My thoughts: I listened to this Advanced Listening Copy on Netgalley from Bookouture Audio (thank you!), and finished it in a little over a day. The story sucks you right in from the start and I actually had to take a break from another book I was reading to finish this one first. It has it all; frenemies, secluded cabin in the Smokies, whodunnit vibes, and twists and turns with chilling reveals. Some of the characters made frustratingly dumb decisions that made me want to yell at them lol, but overall this was a good story!

My rating: 4/5
Pub Day: Oct 4

Firstly, thank you to @Bolindaaudio and @netgalley for the audio ARC of The Weekend Away by Miranda Smith.

Six friends. Three days. One killer.

We follow Sienna as she searches for answers about her twin sister, Samantha’s death. She takes her twin’s place on a weekend away with Samantha’s closest friends and colleagues after discovering her late sister’s diary full of secrets about each of them.

Let me just say this audio is so so good. So easy to listen to, the narration is so clear that I was able to fully comprehend the story on 2x speed which I find is usually a little too fast for me. The voice actor was perfect and despite there being a number of characters, she made each voice distinct and incredibly engaging. I couldn’t quit listening until I got to the end.

On to the actual story, the set up isn’t very unique but I enjoyed the unraveling of secrets. I found Sienna incredibly stupid, she put herself in countless dangerous situations and tackled things with zero tact - because of this, the stakes lowered immensely for me. I feel the characters could have been much more fleshed out; the twist - if you can call it that - could have been much more interesting (I had a couple of theories that would have been better imo); and the conveniences in the story just left everything feeling a bit weak.

I think if you don’t often read thrillers this will be a good time but if you are looking for something a little more unique this may not be the right one to pick up. I definitely consumed this story very quickly and it held my interest for the duration, it’s just a pretty mediocre thriller for me.

Thank you, NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for this advance copy in exchange for my review!

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the mystery surrounding Sam’s death and Sienna’s quest to uncover the truth. The final twist and ending were fantastic.

I’ve enjoyed this authors books in the past but this one wasn’t for me. I found it to be fairly similar to many other reads out there and some I’ve read only recently. I was hoping it would play out differently but unfortunately it didn’t go that way. It’s told from 2 different points of view which I do find interesting. To be honest I was a little bored throughout and didn’t find it really engaged me. I did like Sienna & Troy as characters but found the rest really unlikeable. I liked the diary aspect of the storyline. It was a slow burn but picked up somewhat for the last 1/4 but the outcome was only ok. Unfortunately this one wasn’t for me.

2.5/5 🌟🌟/🌟

Thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture Audio for the opportunity to listen and review #TheWeekendAway