"The School Reunion" by Shalini Boland is a psychological thriller exploring themes of revenge, bullying, hidden secrets, and lies.

The story follows Chloe Flynn, a divorcee with a complicated past, Dean Bradley, a single dad and a building contractor whose business went south, and a third unknown party. The narrative unfolds through their perspectives. While Chloe and Dean's stories take place in the present, the third protagonist's tale is revealed through a series of flashbacks. There are other minor characters that you will discover as you read.

Chloe Flynn is still recovering from a broken marriage, and her mother's harsh criticism doesn't help. She works as a low-level bank employee, and her life seems to be in a rut. When she receives an invitation to her high school reunion in her email, it appears to be the perfect opportunity to turn her life around. After some hesitation, she decides to attend, hoping to reconnect with old friends, especially a classmate she had a crush on. However, someone doesn't want her there, as she starts receiving threatening emails warning her to stay away.

On the other scale, we meet Dean Bradley, a single father raising a five-year-old on his own. He has been cheated in a business deal and is struggling with financial issues. While sorting through his late mother's affairs, he stumbles upon a terrible secret that sets him on a path of revenge.

The story is primarily told from the first-person perspective and alternates between the three main protagonists. The storylines start out separately, and the plot thickens when they overlap.

Overall, I liked the book, but it took a while to grow on me. It starts off slowly, building momentum toward the reunion. There is a lengthy exposition, setting the scene, introducing the characters, and providing background information about them before diving into the main action. The plot only begins to pick up speed around the middle of the book, particularly at the reunion.

Shalini Boland creates compelling characters and dynamics that allow for a deeper exploration of their personalities. The writing is rich in detail, too rich at times, enabling readers to vividly picture each character, location, and scene. I found Dean likable, while my opinion of Chloe oscillated back and forth. Some plot twists were predictable, but others took me by surprise.

While the book didn't keep me on the edge of my seat or captivate me, it was still an enjoyable read. The ending was fantastic, more than making up for the slow start. Consequently, I rate the book 3.5 out of 5 stars. I recommend the book to readers who enjoy twisted slow-burn novels with character-drive plots.

* Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc. All opinions are my own.

A school reunion is on at a posh school that Chloe used to attend.

The evening doesnt go to plan though and with lots of twists and turns we find out what really happened 15 years ago.

A great read that kept me reading

Thanks to net galley and the publishers for this copy

4 stars

When Chloe is invited to a school reunion, she sees it as the perfect opportunity to wipe the slate clean and maybe even reconnect with a man she fancied back in school. Then someone starts emailing her warning her not to attend, and on the night of the reunion it becomes clear that someone has a plan... A brilliant thriller with secrets, twists and turns and a shocking ending. Loved it!

Basically to sum up my review, the amount of times “it’s unbelievable but…” was said, it’s not a way to cover up the fact that it was in fact, not believable and would never happen. The plot line of a character wanting to kill another and almost succeeding but then they both just drop it? Yeah, no.

This storyline was pretty weak. It’s been done before & wasn’t that entertaining.

The 2 stars are for the twist at the end. It wasn’t bad. It did end abruptly, but it gave it a twinge of uniqueness.

All in all, this wasn’t for me. I found myself skimming and skipping paragraphs. The characters were horrible and obnoxious. All of them. They ALL acted like middle schoolers. Abi locking Chloe in the bathroom because she wanted to talk to a guy? What? Chloe’s mom and her commentary? Horrible dialogue.

Again, not for me.

The ending of this story was unbelievably good! The twist was incredible, I did not see it coming at all. But for the me the rest of the book was just okay. You know something mysterious is brewing in the background, it just takes a long time to get there.
Chloe is not where she thought she would be in life. She's recently divorced, she's working a dead end job, and she doesn't have any close friends. When she gets an email saying that there will be a high school reunion in a few weeks, Chloe is on the fence about going. Finally she decides that life is going to be what she makes it and going to the reunion might be fun. She reconnects with some of her old friends and she even meets someone at the reunion. But deep dark secrets always find their way out. What is Chloe hiding? What will happen when people find out what she's done?

WHATT that ending!! Wow. The book read as a 4 star read for me but that dark and twisted ending bumped it up to 5 stars. I am forever a Shalini Boland fan, she truly never disappoints!

I a big fan of this Author and very much enjoyed as normal an addictive and very twisty read.Chloe is now Divorced from Ben. she has a boring Job in a Bank. and then she gets an email for her school reunion. and another email to stay away. Dean is struggling bringing his son up alone as his wife left him. he struggling with his mums death and his business not so good a client would not pay up. how this story comes together is just brilliant another addictive read from the Queen of psychological books

Amazing book so many different angles to go in this one!!! Would defo reccomend million percent !!!! Awesome author:)

Shalini Boland is one of my favourite authors, so I was super excited to read this new book.
Wow, it certainly didn’t disappoint! What a fantastic book.
It’s everything you want from a good thriller; it’s fast paced, has intriguing characters and plenty of twists.
The ending was outstanding.
It’s definitely more than worthy of 5 stars.

I always enjoy Shalini Boland novels, fast paced stories full of suspense that are real page turners. “The School Reunion” is another book that fits that description and is an excellent quick read. Divorcee Chloe Flynn is a woman is struggling both mentally and financially. So when she receives an unexpected invitation to her school reunion she has mixed feelings about whether to attend. Living a life that bears no resemblance to her teenage dreams she wonders whether she could open a door to a new start.

Changing her mid at the last moment Chloe decides to return to her elite private school for the reunion but can not ever imagine what is about to happen.

I enjoyed this latest offering from author Shalini Boland who once again produces a winner.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The School Reunion is a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat, gripping thriller. Chloe hates her life - she is divorced, friendless, and bored. When she receives an invitation to her school reunion, she contemplates whether going is a good idea. She decides that maybe this will be her chance to start afresh. Dean is a struggling single dad, who has just had a horrible setback at his job. In order to protect his son, Dean must make some difficult choices. Just how Chloe and Dean's stories connect was super fun to read. Let's just say that the reunion is a lot more drama-filled than what anyone expected. While I did find certain aspects of the book pretty predictable, I still had a great time reading it. The School Reunion is a fast read with lots of twists and surprises (again, some more predictable than others). A lot of books I've read lately have had really drawn out ends. The School Reunion is not one of them. The ending was fast-paced and surprisingly satisfying. I'll definitely be recommending The School Reunion to anyone looking for an exciting, page-turning thriller.

A newly divorced Chloe steps out of her comfort zone and attends her school reunion to rekindle old relationships. However, after reuniting with friends, secrets are revealed that she wishes would stay in her past.

This book was a miss for me. I was so excited to read it based on the description, but I found it to be slow when I thought it would be fast-paced and I also thought the plot was very far-fetched, unrealistic, and underdeveloped. Despite this, I did enjoy the fact that the story was told with a dual narrative and I liked the setting of the school reunion. Overall, this book just wasn’t for me, but I think it could be enjoyed by readers who are able to overlook believability in thrillers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Whoa I did not see that coming at all! Chloe is really down on her luck after a divorce. Her ex is very happy with his new wife and twins. She decides to attend a school reunion, although school was terrible for her. She was bullied and does not want to see a lot of her classmates. She eventually follows through with going and connects with a couple old friends on line before the reunion.

Dean is even more down on his luck. His wife left him to raise their son alone. His mother just died. A bully refuses to pay him the money he is owed.

How will these two connect at the reunion? Is there a connection between them already?? Who was really bullied and who did the bullying? Did not see the ending coming at all. Another great thriller by Shalini.

Another great thriller by Shalini Boland! Full of secrets and plenty of suspense. I read this book in one day-could not put it down. The ending was unexpected- I hope there is a sequel! I thought the chapters in italics was someone else throughout the entire book! I was confused for awhile until the very end. Love this authors writing style! Thank you to NetGalley, Shalini Borland and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read and review this ARC. Definitely recommend!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"The School Reunion" is a thrilling and mysterious book about a woman who goes to her school reunion hoping to meet her old crush. Meanwhile Dean goes to the reunion for another reason, revenge. It's a story with lots of plot twists near the end tht you will not see coming. It had me hooked from the get go due to the blurb and I have read many books by the author, Shalini Boland. It's another fantastic book by the author and I'd highly recommend you to read it if you love a good thriller/mystery/fiction

I read this book over two days whilst sitting in the sun in Zante.
A thoroughly enjoyable read though parts of it did momentarily confuse me slightly. I guess some would call them twists.
The book did hold my attention and the ends were neatly tied up.
This author is one of my go to authors and I've always enjoyed everything I've read by her. Whilst this wasn't one of my favourites it was a nice, juicy sunbed read. Thanks to the author and publisher for the chance to read this early copy.

The School Reunion was a quick read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Chloe is invited to her high school reunion, but is reluctant to go. After careful consideration, she figures that it could be the catalyst to the fresh start she desperately desires.
I thought I'd figured out what would come next, and wasn't prepared for the twists that followed.Nothing is as it seems!
The beginning was a bit slow for me, however, the ending more than makes up for it.

Thank you, NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the copy of The School Reunion.

An invitation arrives in her inbox for the fifteen year high school reunion. Chloe hemmed and hawed over going, but in the end the decision was made to go so she could see her old crush. She was banking on this reunion to be the fresh start after her divorce. Instead of happy thoughts Chloe starts getting threats from someone demanding she not attend the reunion. Going would be a bad idea. The idea of seeing Nathan is enough reason for her to risk the threats and attend anyway.
…
Shalini Boland writes an intriguing story about a school reunion that doesn’t quite end up how Chloe imagined. The story is told from three points of view. Readers follow Chloe a woman who is divorced and ready to start a new life and hoping to connect with her school crush. Readers follow Dean a single dad who recently moved into his childhood home with his five tear old son. Readers also follow a mystery character whose life doesn’t seem to hold any relevance until it does.
…
Chloe’s character was living a comfortable lifestyle yet not living the dream life. Her job at the bank was mediocre. Her apartment was nice but small. Her relationship with her mother could be better. What she really wanted was a husband, a family, and a life with a man who loved her.
…
Dean was stuck in life not knowing how he was going to be able to support him and his son when a business dealing went wrong. Dean needed to sort out this business deal before his finances took a nose dive. Then he came across some disturbing news that changed the course of his life.
…
I appreciated the twist of events at the end. The way everything unfolded was spectacular. Although the journey wasn’t as entertaining as I hoped. It was a clever plot design and the content was fresh and original. It just didn’t captivate or call my attention through its entirety.

A brilliant fast paced thriller. Interesting story line which had me speeding through to understand what was happening. Plenty of twists and characters which were not always who you thought they were? As for the ending well i did not see that coming.

My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my copy.

I am a huge fan of Shalini Boland and was excited to receive an ARC of The School Reunion. While it took me 1/4 of the book to really get in to it, once I did, I was hooked. The characters are complex, the storyline original, and the ending was surprising. Like all books from this author, I cannot say enough good things!