Oh. My. God!!!! I couldn’t stop reading this one!!! I kind of guessed what was really happening early on, but that did not take away from the shock, the twists, and all the emotions this one packed! The thrill and suspense of figuring out who was truthful, what was real and what wasn’t… it was a heck of a ride and I loved every minute of it!! Freida fans will love this one!!!

Oh my goodness, I devoured this book! The intriguing prologue immediately pulled me in.

While frustrated at times with Claire, I was totally invested and wanted to know where the story was going. I really appreciated her friend Sukhi.

Despite having a pretty good idea of what was going on, I love stories like this where the reader gets to sit back and see how events will unfold.

This was a 5 star read, for me, considering how engrossed I was and that I finishing this in one day! I truly hope the author writes more thrillers like this!

Thank you NetGalley, Callie Kazumi, and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the opportunity to read this in exchange for a candid review.

CLAIRE, DARLING… YOU DID NOT JUST DO THAT. 😭😭😭

3 stars! 🌟 Huge thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam for the eARC via Netgalley! 💌

This had me HOOKED… until the last 10% absolutely wrecked me (and not in a good way). But let’s talk about it.

Claire is living her best life—engaged to the perfect man, Noah, and thriving. That is, until she decides to surprise him with lunch at work… only to be told that Noah doesn’t even work there. 😨 WHAT. She calls him—no answer. Texts—ignored. Claire’s fiancé has disappeared off the face of the Earth, and when she tracks him down, she realizes the truth is even worse: Noah has a whole new life, new girlfriend, new everything. And Claire? She was never in the picture.

Now, Claire is determined to get answers, and what follows is a psychological spiral of obsession, love, and revenge. But as the layers of Claire’s past start unfolding, we start asking—who’s really the liar here?

Tropes:
✅ Unreliable Narrator
✅ Obsession
✅ Stalker Behavior
✅ Gaslighting
✅ Psychological Spiral
✅ Bingeable Writing
✅ "It Was All in Their Head" (hide spoiler) Twist
✅ Identity Crisis

WHAT I LIKED:
✔️ THE PREMISE – Ghosting? But make it unhinged psychological thriller? I WAS SOLD. The idea of your fiancé just vanishing and pretending you never existed?? NIGHTMARE FUEL.
✔️ TENSE & GRIPPING – The first 90% had me flipping pages like my life depended on it. The dual timelines, diary entries, and slow unraveling of Claire’s past? Chef’s kiss.
✔️ THE WRITING – Callie Kazumi knows how to build tension. Every chapter had me second-guessing what I thought I knew.

WHAT DIDN’T WORK:
✖️ CLAIRE IS A LOT. She’s obsessive, messy, and downright delusional at times. I LOVE a morally grey female lead, but I never fully connected with her.
✖️ THE PACING – Some sections dragged with excessive inner monologue. We got it, Claire, you’re spiraling!!
✖️ THAT ENDING.

⚠️ MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!!! ⚠️

Okay, let’s talk about it. We spend the WHOLE book building up this intense mystery, only for the final twist to be… Claire imagined it all. She had a mental illness and was delusional the entire time. EXCUSE ME?? 😩 I hate when thrillers pull the “it was all in their head” card. It’s frustrating, lazy, and turns what could’ve been an insane twist into a disappointing cop-out. The book had me, but the ending fumbled HARD.

But wait… if Claire imagined all of this, then why didn’t anyone check her call logs or texts?? She was texting Noah constantly. And when she gets arrested, wouldn’t the police have immediately checked her phone?? Like, wouldn’t it be OBVIOUS if the conversations were one-sided?? This entire situation was set up to be this huge, dramatic reveal, but the second you actually think about it, the logic collapses. WHAT WAS THIS. 😭 The book really tried to hit us with a shocking twist, but instead, it just felt like a last-minute, nonsensical mess.

FINAL THOUGHTS:
Would I recommend it? Maybe. If you love psychological thrillers and don’t mind an unreliable narrator who takes unreliable to a whole new level, you might enjoy this. But if you hate mental illness being used as a last-minute plot twist, skip it.

𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Read if you love:

✨Dual time lines
✨Part II plot twists
✨mommy dearest stories
✨wronged women
✨obsessive love
✨diary entries

Claire, Darling is an absolutely gripping psychological thriller! Callie Kazumi's debut into the literary world is a fantastic exploration of obsession and betrayal.

This is full of suspense and intrigue from beginning to end. I had a suspicion about what was really going on, but was still completely entertained, and that epilogue was one of the most surprising I've read in quite some time.

Although the pacing was a bit slow initially, once it gained momentum, I was hooked! The combination of flashbacks, diary entries, and present day kept the plot moving along nicely. All at once, you're finding out more about her past with her abusive mother,
learning about her relationship with Noah and seeing how everything is playing out in the current timeline.

This was one of those books that will totally mess with your mind and have you trusting absolutely no one. The lines between reality and delusion blur, making this a tense read. I definitely recommend this book for psychological thriller fans. It's a bingeworthy unputdownable book.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House publishing, and the author for this arc!

Thanks to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review== however, my request was approved after publication and I already read this novel! I did this one as a a hybrid listen/kindle read. It kept me turning pages as I was trying to figure out what was happening. I don't want to write too much more- its hard to talk about this book without giving away important information!

This book was a little different but in a way that I like. It's hard to describe this book and not give away important information because I think it is one of those books that you should go into blind. I felt for Claire because she was just out there living the good life and decided to take her man some lunch. She was then told once she got there that he didn't work there, and when she tried to get in contact with him to see what was going. He just straight up put the white sheet over his head and bounced didn't even say "BOO" or nothing just ghosted her. It was only after that all this stuff became unraveled and turned into one of those what the heck is happening!! situations. I really liked it and it kept my attention. #ClaireDarling #NetGalley #randomhousepublishing #arcreader #thrillergal #bookstagram
50s

I love this fast paced and interesting story. Claire grew up with a narcissistic mother. Once she leaves home she meets Noah and they become engaged. But is he faithful? Is he really her fiancée? I don’t want to give anything away so I’ll just say I highly recommend this tale!

Claire’s story in this novel is one that promises emotional depth but ultimately left me dissatisfied. I went in expecting a raw exploration of betrayal and trauma, and while I could feel for Claire—abandoned by her fiancé who’d been living a secret double life, all while wrestling with the lingering wounds from her toxic mother—the execution fell flat. The premise hooked me, but the reality of reading it was a struggle.
The writing veered into cringe-worthy territory, making it tough to stay immersed. Every page felt like wading through awkward dialogue and overdone drama, which might have been intentional given the unlikeable cast of characters. I’ll give credit where it’s due: the author clearly meant for them to be insufferable, and that came through loud and clear. Still, hating everyone didn’t make the experience any more enjoyable—it just amplified the slog. On top of that, the pacing crawled at a snail’s pace, with little excitement to keep me engaged. I knew what I was signing up for, or at least I thought I did, but this book managed to both meet and miss my expectations in all the wrong ways. It’s a pass for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Dive right in for a twisty, fun read that has just enough intrigue to keep you turning the pages.

*Claire, Darling* is a gripping psychological thriller that unravels the shocking secrets hidden beneath the surface of an ordinary relationship. The story follows Claire, who takes lunch to her fiancé, Noah, only to discover that he no longer works there—and, even more disturbingly, she can no longer reach him. As Claire digs deeper into Noah’s life, she uncovers unsettling truths that shake her to her core.

One of the novel’s standout features is the way Claire’s story is woven through flashbacks to her past, particularly her complex relationship with her mother. These glimpses into her upbringing add emotional depth and context to her unraveling present, making the story both intimate and suspenseful.

Kazumi masterfully builds tension, keeping readers on edge as Claire pieces together the truth. With its psychological depth, unexpected twists, and atmospheric storytelling, *Claire, Darling* is a must-read for fans of character-driven suspense novels.

A fast past book. If this is her first book she is going to go far. A book that is hard to put down once you start reading it. Thrills around every corner a real page turner.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book as an ARC.
What a great book! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this author's debut novel and what am amazing job she did! I could not put this book down! I finished it in one day and couldn't wait to find out how it would all end...of course my guesses were all wrong. Not to give anything away but there are some great twists in this story! The development of the characters was excellent and the descriptions made me feel like I was in the story with the protagonist.
I am definitely looking forward to more books from this author! A 5 🌟 read for me!

Claire, darling is an impressive debut by Kazumi. A fast-paced psychological thriller, the novel starts follows Claire, a pr assistant who has finally found love with Noah, her fiancé she can’t wait to start a life with. However, Claire goes to meet him for lunch one day and he doesn’t show and she calls the office and finds he doesn’t work there anymore. He has blocked her on all social media and on his phone. As Claire begins to spiral, she flashes back to incidents as child where her mother would make her feel unwanted and unlovable. Claire thought she was over that trauma, but as she unravels, how far will she go to protect her life with Noah?

I won’t reveal too much about the plot as it slowly reveals itself to keep the reader turning the pages. I enjoy a good potentially unreliable narrator and Claire fits that bill perfectly here. I am glad I picked up this book and found it to be a fun read that I couldn’t put down. Well-done!

Thanks to the publisher for providing the arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a great debut novel. The plot and story line start pretty quick in the book. You get the feeling as you read and get immersed in the story that the narrator may not be reliable.

Claire goes to take her finance lunch at his work for their anniversary and finds out he left the company months ago and didn’t tell her. He then ignored all her calls, texts, and emails. He essentially ghosts her. But did he really??????

As you read, you want to believe Claire and the author does a great job of making you go back and forth contemplating if you believe her or not. I loved the diary entries and the memories sprinkled throughout the book. You feel bad for Claire for how horrible her mom was (again if you trust what Claire is telling you) and find out that Noah is not a saint himself.

I really enjoyed this book and by the end figured out where the author was going with this. The twist at the very end was good and makes you question every about Claire from the beginning. What do you believe and do you trust Claire???? You have to read to find out. :)

Thank you to Netgalley, Callie Kazumi, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book. This review is my own thoughts and opinions.

Claire, Darling is the ultimate in unreliable narrator thrillers. From the beginning, Claire's relationship with Noah seems to be too good to be true, and when he ghosts her, you just know that something is just wrong here! As the truth is revealed, Claire's version of events becomes more suspect, as does Noah's, and I just didn't know what to believe. This debut novel is one heck of a wild ride, and is a tough one to put down.

Claire is a character that is easy to feel empathy for, abused by her mother, bullied at school, and now her fiance has left with no warning and she is learning that he had a double life. Who wouldn't be acting a little unhinged? Noah seemed like the perfect boyfriend, but as we learn of his lies he becomes less perfect and more villain. Callie Kazumi has written a story that makes readers anxiously keep turning pages, hoping to learn the truth. The ending was not what I expected, and it left me feeling just a little disappointed and let down. Overall, however, this was a terrific and suspenseful novel, and I highly recommend it, especially for those who love an unreliable narrator.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Ballantine for the digital ARC of Claire, Darling by Callie Kazumi. The opinions in this review are my own.

This was so entertaining, I LOVE an unreliable narrator! I never knew what to believe. It dragged a little in the middle, but it was worth it. This will make a great book club pick!

Claire and Noah just celebrated their anniversary the night before so Claire decides to surprise Noah with his favorite lunch at his workplace and finds out he hasn't worked there for several months. She doesn't understand why he wouldn't have told her about this major decision so she calls him immediately but he won't take her calls and then Noah never comes home to their apartment that evening or every day afterward. Claire is beside herself. with misery so she secretly follows him and discovers he is leading a double life with a beautiful woman that Claire had no idea of him ever cheating on her and now he won't even see her if only to give closure to the relationship and happiness that Claire thought would be her forever life.

Claire can still hear her mother's hurtful words saying she would never find a man to love and take care of her. She is just devastated, hardly able to function but her wonderful friend (Suhki) from work won't let her wallow and drown in her sorrow so she helps Claire get back.on her feet to take the next steps to getting on with her life without Noah although Claire isn't willing yet to give up on her relationship as she would be happy to forgive Noah everything if he would just come back home to her.



What a wonderfully fun and twisted psychological thriller this book was to read! The writing was fast-paced with well developed characters and flowed smoothly when transitioning from past to present. I was very surprised to find this was a debut book because the storytelling and writing was very, very good. I also enjoyed the different little twists which made this book stand out from other novels with similar storylines and the unexpected twist at the end of the story made reading "Claire Darling" a real.treat.

I am looking forward to reading more books in the future from 'Calorie Kazumi' and I definitely recommend this book to everyone who enjoys dark but fun, psychological thrillers!

I want to thank the publisher "RANDOM HOUSE PUBLISHING - BALLANTINE" for the opportunity to read this digital copy and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given a rating of 4 SHARP AND TWISTED 🌟🌟🌟🌟 STARS!!

Compelling Psychological Thriller, Almost Perfect

Lately, I’ve been so busy that I forgot how enjoyable getting lost in a good book can be. This one reminded me. With my background in psychology, it felt like diving into a fictional case study that kept me hooked.
Claire’s life takes a devastating turn when she discovers that her fiancé, Noah, has been living a double life with another woman. This revelation sends her spiraling into a search for answers, forcing her to confront a traumatic past shaped by her manipulative mother. As Claire’s obsession grows, she becomes tangled in a dangerous web of deceit, where the lines between reality and delusion blur. Kazumi expertly weaves themes of love, betrayal, and unresolved trauma into a gripping narrative that keeps readers on edge until the final page.
I devoured this book in a single day—I just couldn’t put it down!

The mystery kept me guessing, and the twists had me second-guessing every theory I came up with. The characters were well-developed, and the pacing was fast, making it an engaging read. However, I gave it 3 stars because the “unreliable narrator” trope, which is central to the plot, felt underwhelming. It’s a device that’s been overused in recent thrillers, and this version didn’t bring much new to the table. That said, the mini-twists at the end helped redeem it, adding extra layers of surprise.

One thing that stood out was how well Kazumi handled the flashback scenes. Claire’s relationship with her mother was given a strong foundation, showing a realistic portrayal of how childhood trauma can impact mental and emotional well-being in adulthood. It was done with sensitivity and depth.
Despite its flaws, this book was a wild ride, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching everything unfold. For those who have experienced trauma, though, a trigger warning might be appreciated.

This was a great book! I really enjoyed reading it. I look forward to reading more from this author. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy,

Claire Darling is certainly a page turner. Claire, engaged to Noah, decides to bring her fiancé lunch on their first anniversary only to find out that he has not been employed there for many months. Her many attempts to contact him fail and she becomes obsessive about tracking him down learning that he has another girlfriend. As a reader I waffled between thinking their relationship only existed in her mind but then again was he playing head games with her.
Claire’s childhood definitely played a role, as did Noah’s family. There are so many threads in this thriller - abusive childhood, murder, trial, obsession, sleuthing - each adding to the surprising conclusion. This was a one session book as I was unable to put it down.
Many many thanks to Callie Kazumi, Bantam, and NetGalley for affording me the opportunity to read an arc of this thriller, published on March 11th. This one is special so don’t miss out on it. Three and a half stars.