Rating: 4.3/5

I loved Joanna Wallace's debut novel, "You'd Look Better as a Ghost" and she has followed it up with another wonderfully engaging read. The central character this time around is Beth, a now single mother of young children - having lost her husband to a former close friend. She is also still grieving the death of her best friend, who was killed a year earlier in what was deemed to be a tragic accident - though Beth remains unconvinced of this. Beth's relationships with her fellow school mums, who make up her social circle, has become increasingly fraught, which is not being helped by Beth's issues with alcohol, about which she is in denial.

Although this has a very different storyline to her first book, there are some markedly similar hallmarks stylistically. Once again, the story begins with a novel opening that sets the scene in vivid and intriguingly original fashion. The characterisation throughout is admirable with the author creating a whole cast of relatable characters, alongside the central protagonist, Beth. The dialogue is consistently of an impeccable standard and written in an entirely natural and convincing fashion. Although the mystery relating to the death of Charlotte (Beth's best friend) is always bubbling away beneath the surface, the narrative is primarily driven by the relationships Beth has with the other school mums and it is impossible not to be reminded to an extent of tv's "Motherland" series. The book is packed full of humorous content, even at times when it might seem somewhat inappropriate - but this merely adds to the impact and comedic effect. As in her debut, the author makes some very astute social observations, that should bring a smile of acknowledgement to the faces of most readers.

If I were to make any slight criticism (and it would only be a very slight one), then it would be that readers who haven't experienced parenthood may feel a little alienated by the subject matter at times. However, that small point aside, I would heartily recommend "The Dead Friend Project" and I am keen to see what Joanna Wallace offers up next.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

If there’s one thing you’ve got to admire about Beth, it’s her dogged persistence.

The other thing is quite possibly her devotion to her friend Charlotte who was hit by a car last year. Her death was ruled accidental as she was dressed like she was out for a run but that makes for a very short story, so when Beth discovers that Charlotte son was upstairs when she was hit, she’s convinced there’s something else afoot. Something that would make her friend, a devoted mother, leave her child alone at home.

This becomes Beth’s single, all-consuming focus, taking her away from her children (one of whom is very rude), the husband she’s still in love with who cheated on her and is now living with her friend, and her semblance of politeness and feigning interest in the “school gate mum” friendship circle she’s been left in.

One thing from which this investigation does not take Beth away however is her alcoholism. This book very clearly shows our heroine’s flaws right alongside a feature so many of us admire - her loyalty - and reveals more and more of her character to the reader as you go on. The plot however is not of such equal importance and there’s a relatively slow start to the book. An interesting if somewhat exasperating last 40 pages of the book however takes us to 3.5 stars, rounded down for pacing.

Thoroughly Entertaining..
When best friend Charlotte is killed, nothing seems to have gone right for Beth. When certain facts begin to come to light, Beth realises that Charlotte’s death may not have been an accident at all. It’s time to investigate. Immersive and wholly enjoyable mystery laced with a dark and delicious humour whilst being keenly observed, a well crafted cast of characters and an engaging narrative. Thoroughly entertaining.

Joanna Wallace manages to perfectly blend dark themes with buckets of humour, and set them against the ordinary ever-day situations we can all relate to. This skill makes reading her books a lot of fun.
I love a dual timeline and I adore an unreliable narrator and I got both of these in this book. Beth drinks...a lot...and this leads to a brilliantly skewed perception of what is happening and what she does. You can't trust anything you are being told and need to work out the truth from other clues and characters. Her interactions with the teenagers that hang around the end of her road were cringingly hilarious and definitely relatable in that way that I have been informed by friends of my behaviour or what I said after I had a glass or two too many!
The school gates is a rich environment for showcasing the worst traits of parents and Joanna captured this fantastically - not being a parent it always seems so exhausting engaging with school mums and Beth definitely felt this, with laugh out loud consequences at times. The writing of the child characters was spot-on too, always saying unexpected things at inopportune times that leave parents scrabbling.
Humour aside, there is a great mystery to be unravelled in the book and the timing of reveals is perfect to keep you turning pages. Beth is driven to the very edge trying to find out what happened to her friend in the time before her death and I really felt for her. The book shows the burden that mothers carry in society, the numerous plates they have to juggle all while being judged by pretty much everyone...even the school caretaker!

This was a laugh a minute, despite the main character's best friend's death. And the main character obviously had a drinking problem, which makes me somewhat uncomfortable for finding the book so very funny. But I wasn't laughing at her problems, but rather at her hilarious inner thoughts about her friends' ridiculous behaviour. The hi-vis vest scenario when traffic was being directed to the "orchard" was classic.

I'm in two minds about the ending. It's not how I would have chosen to end things, but I fully embraced it and it certainly left me thinking about the story long after I had read the last page.

I loved this novel, it was completely gripping and I had to know what happened to Charlotte. I loved the fact that you didn't know who to trust and the ending was inspired. Totally recommend

Beth is dealing with a lot right now. Still mourning her friend Charlotte who was killed in a car accident almost a year ago, shortly followed by her husband leaving her for another close friend, leaving her with 3 young children, it's been a tough year.

Back on the school run and the playground mums haven't changed much, making missing Charlotte even harder. But she still has the niggling feeling that something didn't make sense from the night if the accident, so taking advantage of some child-free time while they are with their dad, she starts investigating!

This was an entertaining read with Beth being a great character and easy to get behind while she tried to solve the mystery. The school mums were scarily accurate and if you have at any point done a school run, you will definitely be able to recognise most of them!

The story:
Beth is having a hard time. Her husband has left her for her former friend, her son has fallen off the climbing wall on the first day of school, and she can’t compete with the seemingly perfect other mothers at the school pick-up. And, oh yes — she thinks her best friend may have been murdered…

My thoughts:
I was excited to be given the chance to read “The Dead Friend Project” on NetGalley, having enjoyed the darkly humorous “You’d Look Better as a Ghost”; author Joanna Wallace’s debut novel, which was a five-star read for me last year.

In this novel we meet Beth — a woman teetering on the brink as she attempts to look after her three young children, plus dog, having been left by her husband for one of her own friends, on the day she finds out her best friend Charlotte has been killed in a tragic road accident.

Charlotte was said to be out on the road that night because she had gone out for a run — she was training for the marathon. But 18 months on, Beth learns that Charlotte had been alone in the house with her young son. Why would Charlotte — by all accounts a super-mum, who ran the PTA, dressed up as the Easter Bunny and still found time to buy personalised gifts for the teachers at the end of term — leave her child alone in the house to go running? Something doesn’t add up, and as Beth tries to uncover exactly what happened that night (fuelled by a large amount of wine), she starts to suspect that the death may not have been an accident at all.

As with the author’s first book, this story is both dark and laugh-out-loud hilarious. Beth’s attempts to question her friends about the night of Charlotte’s death are punctuated by passive aggressive comments about their children’s reading levels, and whether Beth can be trusted to provide gluten-free snacks at a play date.

Beth herself is a remarkably likeable character, considering she doesn’t seem to like herself very much, is far too reliant on wine, and is actually more hung up on competitive parenting than some of those she accuses of it. Beth’s suspicions fall on pretty much everyone at some point in the story, but she carries the reader along with her in the belief that something just isn’t right.

This was another superb read for me, and Joanna Wallace is fast becoming a go-to author for quirky and hilarious, but also intriguing and well-written mysteries. Highly recommended!

OMG, Joanna Wallace has hit it out of the park again. Beth’s life is in free fall - her best friend Charlotte was killed a year ago and on the same night her husband left her for her other best friend Jade. With three small children and the ‘perfect’ playground mums to cope with Beth is struggling until she suddenly realises that Charlotte‘s death wasn’t an accident and Beths life suddenly has focus as she attempts to find out what happened. I just love this novel and couldn’t put it down. The characterisation is spot-on and I laughed so much at the authors dark humour. The playground politics are surely played out in many schools around the country and I certainly met mothers just like these. No more spoilers but just run out and buy this novel. I’ve also been fortunate enough to listen to the audio of the novel and the narrator. Imogen Church is just brilliant and her narration and characterisation brings the novel to life. I can’t wait for more from this author and recommend her previous novel. You’d look better as a Ghost. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the Advanced, copy and audio of this novel in return for an honest review.

The Dead Friend Project is the second novel by British author, Joana Wallace. Beth was hit hard when her best friend Charlotte died in a road accident almost a year ago. And when, soon after that, she discovered that her husband was having an affair with her friend, Jade, she withdrew.

Now, she’s back at the school gate for the start of the new school year, discovering it’s same old, same old with the competitive, judgemental school mums. She does meet a new mum whose attitude is more like her own. Ana, her husband and two daughters have moved into the house where Charlotte lived. But then a comment about how Charlotte died seems completely out of character for the friend she still misses so much.

She starts asking some questions of those who were around at the time, and each tidbit she learns increases her doubt about the accidental nature of Charlotte’s death: ”She was training for a marathon. In the dark? After she’d run ten miles earlier that same day? And she was drinking wine. Her toddler was in the house. Why would she suddenly leave him and go out for a run? It doesn’t make sense.”

One evening when her children are with their father and her ex-good-friend, she sets out what she knows, aided by quite a lot of wine, and comes up with theories about what might have happened. The school mums, though, aren’t persuaded. Meanwhile, Beth is leaning more and more heavily on alcohol, to the concern of her friends and her ex.

Then another mum dies, and Beth becomes convinced it’s linked to Charlotte’s death, and that both are revenge killings. Soon, her wild theories about possible witnesses and potential murderers, and her frank assessments of the school mums are alienating those who care most for her. But is she right?

The story is told over a dual timeline, with Beth occasionally recalling incidents in the lead-up to, and immediate aftermath of, Charlotte’s death. Beth’s inner monologue is often laugh-out-loud funny, although she can also be quite snarky. She claims to feel judged by other mums but, until it is pointed out, fails to recognise her many eyerolls as judgement of others. Her reliability as a narrator comes into question when the volume of her alcohol consumption is revealed.

Wallace’s depiction of the school-gate interactions radiates authenticity, and Beth’s and Ana’s questioning of their priorities is entirely valid: “everyone loves to judge the parent of a screaming child. You’ll be judged. Mostly by other parents. They love to judge, almost as much as they love to compete and everything becomes a competition once you have children.”

This is a tale with characters who will feel familiar to anyone with young children. There’s lots of dark humour, a plot with plenty of red herrings and a few twists, a major meltdown and an utterly wicked final chapter. Entertaining British crime fiction.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Profile Books.

Things for mother Beth are not going well. Not only has her husband left her and her friends are judging her but her best friend, Charlotte was recently killed after an accident. Soon Beth finds herself questioning if this was really an accident. Will she manage to find out?

This was a very entertaining read and I found I enjoyed this a lot more than this author’s previous novel. Straight away I was drawn into Beth’s crazy life and her group of ‘perfect’ friends, feeling able to relate, proving how well they were written. I loved that this didn’t take itself too seriously and there was lots of humour running throughout. I also enjoyed how it all came together and wasn’t what I was expecting. This definitely pleasantly surprised me, surpassing my expectations and I would recommend to those looking for a fun, cosy mystery full dark humour. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

This is the second book I've read by Joanna Wallace and I find her voice and characters so addictive. There's so much plot and so many twists to keep the reader guessing that there's never a good place to put it down! Inevitably, just like with her debut, I ended up devouring this in one sitting! Such a talented author and I will continue to keep my eyes peeled for her books forever more. If you like bold, problematic characters and twisty plots, I highly recommend!

Once again Joanna Wallace has given us an incredible read. Quite how she manages to blend dark sinister elements and side splitting humour is just a talent. The mystery of Beth’s best friend Charlotte’s death is at the centre of this story. Everyone believes it was an accident except Beth. She can’t accept that Charlotte would have behaved the way everyone claims she did the night of her death. So Beth sets out to prove that there’s been some mistake and it wasn’t accidental. But Beth’s life isn’t easy either since her husband’s ran off with her other best friend Jade. Then there are the other mums, so perfect in Beth’s eyes, and the new family who moved into Charlotte’s house. Still, in spite of all this, Beth is determined to find out the truth and so begins her new project. The school mums are just brilliant: anyone who’s spent time in the school playground will recognise them. The school politics are just hilarious. The mystery of what happened kept me guessing throughout, and just when I’d think I’d worked it out, in would come another twist. Such a clever book! I can’t wait for more from Joanna.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Serpent’s Tail, Viper Books for an arc in exchange for a review.

Wow, what a fantastic book this was- my first from Joanna Wallace and definitely won’t be my last. I absolutely loved Beth, she was so funny and the kind of school mum friend I would have loved to have when my boys were younger.

The book follows Beth as she navigates school run life after her friend Charlotte dies whilst also dealing with her husband leaving her for her best friend.

One day something is mentioned about Charlottes death on the playground which doesn’t add up to Beth. She then goes on a mission to find out what really happened to Charlotte with the help of wine, except she can’t quite work out what she has written under the influence.

This book will have you laughing and crying and also thinking you’ve worked out what’s happening to then be proved wrong! Highly recommend!

I absolutely loved this book so so much, I just love how Joanna has the talent to take dark themes and situations, then add in that wit and humour that makes you just love those characters. I would 110% recommend this if you love a thriller and dark humour. Definitely a must-read of 2024!

This was a great read! I had so much empathy for poor Beth – at times it felt as if I was reading about myself. So many things are covered – depression, alcoholism, affairs … the list goes on. OMG those school mums! Some you’ll quite like but some you’ll hate. There are some really sad and awful parts but there are some that just made me laugh out loud. The plot was interesting and unique and writing style was great. This is a book I can heartily recommend to anyone who likes a good murder mystery. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read it, I hope it’s a great success.

Throughout this story, you follow Beth as her life takes a turn for the worst. With the death of her best friend and her husband leaving her for one of her other friends, Beth's life goes from bad to worse. She plunges into a dark place full of obsession and addiction, taking hold of her.

What a surprise read this book was. It was not what I was expecting at all. A mix of contemporary fiction, humour, and murder mystery.
I loved this story. It's full of sarcasm, wit, and dark humour, which I totally got and enjoyed very much. At times, it felt like I was reading bits of myself in this book, so relatable in parts. I lost count of the times I laughed out loud. All that aside, underneath that, it tackles some real heavy issues surrounding obsession, alcoholism, depression and self-worth. You feel every bit of Beth's turmoil and emotions. They hit hard. I just wanted to reach out and help her.
The playground mum clique was spot on, every playground has them, and they do exist. You're either going to love or hate the ending. I, for one, loved it! It was an OMG! moment for me.

All on all, this is a compelling, emotional roller-coaster of a read. I finished this in two short sittings. It fully immersed me into Beth's little world and didn't let go. I haven't read a book in this style of writing before. It was so well written and refreshing for me.
Add this to your summer reading lists.

Thank you, Netgalley and Viper Books.

3.25*

I had heard amazing things about Joanna Wallace's debut, You'd Look Better As a Ghost, so I knew, after seeing the premise of The Dead Friend Project, that I really wanted to read it. Overall, I'm glad I read it but I didn't love it like I hoped I would.

In this humour led, mystery style contemporary fiction story we meet Beth, a struggling mum of young children. Her husband left her for a close friend, she feels that she doesn't match up to the other mums on the school run, and her best friend - Charlotte, was killed in a road traffic accident with too many loose ends for it to have been accidental in Beth's alcohol addled mind.

What follows is a story of a woman spiralling ever downwards into alcoholism and despair whilst her friends and family watch on, unable (or unwilling) to help as she sets off on a single person mission to solve the mystery of Charlotte's death.

I'll admit, I'm not a mum so I've not encountered the school run types which make up the character tropes we see here and so they come across for most of the novel as unfunny and pretty one dimensional. That is aside of Ana, who I loved and Emily, who gets her redemption at the end! I also struggled Beth's issues with alcohol. I'm sure they were trying to be handled realistically and sensitively, especially towards the end, but they were repetitive and for the most part read like 'Wine Mom' memes that are all over social media, and the attempts to make them humorous felt a little uncomfortable to me. There was also generally a lack of empathy from other characters, not helped by how dramatic Beth is throughout the book which made for uncomfortable reading

The humour though, when it worked, worked well, and I'm sure for parents the exhausting merry go round of children, activities and play dates rings so true and adds to the experience of the story - The reveal for why one of the characters unfortunately died was awful and so funny at the same time that I can absolutely see it happening in many a home.

I was fortunate enough to get the eBook and Audiobook for this and despite my misgivings about elements of the story, found that it absolutely flew by and I basically read it in one sitting. The audiobook is well produced and Imogen Church makes for an incredibly effective narrator. I think that is what saved the reading experience for me. She truly captured the pace and style of the narrative and did so many different voices so well that each one had an identity and personality that came to life and she captured the breathless exuberance of youth brilliantly.

This is a fast paced story that fits the mania of Beth's mission and has almost cosy mystery elements to it. I identified in Beth traits I've seen in many other people who have substance use problems and so the ending, whilst frustrating in many ways also felt realistic.

Definitely a hit and miss book for me but it hasn't put me off trying Joanna Wallace's first book which I think may suit me better as I really enjoyed the humour when it landed and I did like the writing style. I just think the setting wasn't right for me but I think fans of Jane Fallon or those with children or who do the school run will delight in the character tropes, conversations and sense of identity seen in the characters here.

Thank you to NetGalley and Serpent's Tail / Viper / Profile Books | Viper for a digital review copy of "The Dead Friend Project" and Profile Books Audio | Viper for a review copy of the Audiobook, both in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

This was a great read- a mix of a murder mystery, womens fiction and crime! If you're familiar with the school gate mum cliques, this book will resonate with you and you will find yourself laughing, groaning and eye-rolling at all the usual characters. It's set around a group of mum's, one of whom dies, and her best friend who sets about getting to the bottom of what really happened. It is quite emotionally dark at times, with alcoholism and affairs involved, but it is mostly an easy enjoyable read which will keep you guessing.

I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review. This review is based entirely on my own thoughts and feelings.

Overall rating : 4*
Writing skill : 4*
Plot: 4*
Pace: 4*
Characters: 4*
Humor: 4*

There are not many books I devour in a day, but as I had both the ebook and audio versions of this book I flew through it. Having read 'You'd Look Better as a Ghost' last year I knew I was going to like this book. The author creates great (yet maybe infuriating) characters in which she put them in comical situations. I tell you, if I ever come across a mum like Emily im not only moving schools but counties.
A cozy mystery that will have you smiling and questioning all the main characters right until the very end. A super fun time.