I Invited Her In by Adele Parks

☆☆☆☆
Kindle Edition, 432 pages
Expected publication: February 5th 2019 by HARLEQUIN - MIRA
About the Book:
When Mel receives an unexpected email from her oldest friend Abi, it brings back memories she thought she had buried forever. Their friendship belonged in the past. To those carefree days at university. But Abi is in trouble and needs Mel’s help, and she wants a place to stay. Just for a few days, while she sorts things out. It’s the least Mel can do. After all, friends look out for each other, don’t they?

Sometimes, Abi thought that Mel didn’t deserve everything she had, everything she took for granted.

I loved The Stranger In My Home and couldn't wait to read this. The book was a bit of a rollercoaster. It's an interesting and enjoyable read without dull or boring moments. I can't remember reading a thriller with that many turns and lies. As a reader you sit and stare at the pages and wonder what to believe. Adele Parks managed the navigation through this turbulence very well.

Ms. Parks is a master at creating tension and writing excellent characters, and I Invited Her In is no exception. So much creepiness, so many themes to talk about, so many well-written (some unlikeable) characters. The two narratives worked well for me, I loved delving into the psyche of each woman.

The author did amazing job of drip feeding the important information and the clues to the big reveal throughout the story through mini revels and through characters revealing things to one another and I am just in awe of the way she writes and the way she structures her novels. So clever and just so gripping. Just like her last novel, this one had me holding my breath and gasping at regular intervals throughout the book.

We have some classic unreliable narrators but we also have some characters who are much more difficult to work out and keep you intrigued right up until the last page. I wouldn't say I particularly warmed to any of the characters, but boy was I obsessed with finding out more about every single one of these characters, what made them tick and how they fitted into the story. They are people you know, people you recognise from everyday life, they are your neighbours! Characters we can all relate to is just something else which this author excels at!

To say this book was a thriller, there isn't a lot of gore or violence in it, there are definitely moments that make the reader uncomfortable and moments that lead you down a path you never saw coming. This is definitely a slow burn but the short chapters will mean you will continue to turn those pages way past your bedtime. Some of the ways things that seem trivial are connected to the story are just mind-blowing and I am just in awe of how cleverly written this novel is. It was refreshing to read a book that focuses on women and conversations two friends might really have.

Thank you NetGalley, HARLEQUIN - MIRA and Adele Parks for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

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