All She Ever Wanted

by Barbara Freethy

Customers who enjoy books by Nora Roberts, Carla Neggars and Karen Robards will enjoy this romantically suspenseful story of three best friends and a terrible, life-changing secret by #1 New York Times Bestseller Barbara Freethy.

From the back

She was their closest friend, or so they thought - until years later, when her secrets send them on a perilous search for the truth about who she really was ... and why she died ...

Ten years ago, during a party gone out of control, beautiful, vibrant Emily plummeted to her death, leaving her three best friends and sorority sisters - Natalie, Laura and Madison - devastated. None of them has ever forgotten that night - or the role each may have played in Emily's death, the guilt that has pursued them, and the loss they still suffer.

Now an unknown writer has rocketed onto bestseller lists with a novel that eerily mirrors their own story. Who is he? How does he know the intimate details of their lives? And why is he accusing...

Genres: Romance, Mystery, Fiction, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary, Suspense, Contemporary Romance

422 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Barbara's love of writing developed out of a love of reading. Growing up in an all-boy neighborhood, she spent quite a bit of time reading through her mother's large library, many of which were romantic novels. After graduating from the University of California at Santa Barbara, she went into Public Relations, but soon discovered that writing was her true passion.

Barbara was traditionally published for many years, then formed her own publishing company FOG CITY PUBLISHING in 2011 and has since sold over 10 million books! She has published 75 novels ranging from mystery thrillers to romantic suspense and contemporary romance.

Her book SUMMER SECRETS was a #1 New York Times bestseller! And twenty-five other novels have also appeared on the New York Times and USA Today Bestseller Lists. She is currently writing two ongoing series, a contemporary romance series set in Whisper Lake and a romantic suspense series: Off The Grid: FBI Series. She is also known for her bestselling Callaway Family Series, which offers up fourteen books and two novellas.

When Barbara isn't writing or publishing, which isn't very often these days, she is playing tennis, hanging out with friends and family in beautiful Lake Tahoe or reading books!

For a complete list of her books, visit her website!

Reviews

[Quirkybookwormkat · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh! I bought this on a Kindle deal. Never heard of the author before. Thought I'd give it a chance.
Are you kidding me? This book is more written for teenagers. Seriously. Who would have a large group of friends together at the same time solving a supposedly a murder from 10 yrs ago in a same area. Give me a break. It's more like what you would see on LifeTime channel. The story is so sappy, I couldn't stand it. All the characters were way too self absorbed with their own lives. Ugh! I couldn't even finish the ending. Sorry, not my style. Too unrealistic!!

[KJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

November 17, 2012: To hell with it. It's too childish and I feel like it was written for an elementary student. I started disk three and just couldn't take any more.

November 9, 2012: Oh boy. I feel like I'm 'reading' a book that was written for a 3rd grader. She writes in such a cliche manner. The opening starts with someone asking if she believes in magic and of course she doesn't and so on and so forth. Every character is a character that has been written about by a million other people. The insecure overweight lady. The woman who rose up from poverty to become a doctor. The family who is ridiculously unforgiving of someone who had absolutely nothing to do with the death of their daughter (as in, "You said you'd look out for her! She got drunk and fell to her death! Now I place the blame completely on you!" Gag.) I keep thinking about giving up on this one as I feel like I'm being talked down to but I am hoping it will go somewhere interesting. Not sure how much longer I'll make it.

[Irish Kay Racoma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really mysterious.
During the first chapter, I wasn't interested in finishing it at all. But as I read the next chapters, curiousity got into the picture. I won't stop reading. Chapter by chapter kept me asking who was it? At one chapter, it leads me to one character but the next leads me to another one.


Now I recommended it to my friends. Actually, the book is not with me anymore. It has been passed on by my circle of friends. It's an interesting book.

[Nenette · Rating 4 out of 5]

More often than not, the best reads can be had from the simplest of books....Simple plot, some conflicts, a dash of suspense, ordinary lives that anybody can relate to. I don't ask too much from the books I read. I don't look for highly intellectual stuff; I'd prefer to relax with a simple book after a long day at work.

This is one of those books...Very simple, yet all the ingredients for relaxation and entertainment are there. It may be branded as run of the mill, but aren't beautiful things often found in the ordinary?

I don't mean to spoil, but my one "off" comment is about the ending...Well, it's not that I wasn't happy that everything fell into place after all, but it was just too good to be true. On the other hand, maybe the characters needed that light at the end of the tunnel.

[Jennifer Hill · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm writing this review months after reading the book (seeing as I'm new to Goodreads) and I guess the most telling thing about this book is that I honestly couldn't remember what it was about. After reading the summary and some of the reviews from other readers I remember the book and my initial impression which was...at least it was free. I didn't care for any of the characters or their interactions with each other. I feel like it could have been a much better book than it was with some work.

[Arnis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vienaudzes, 19 gadīgās Emīlijas, kritiens no jumta ballītes laikā un momentāna nāve notikuma vietā izšķīra ne tikai četras (pēc traģiskā negadījuma vien trīs) draudzenes, bet arī to draudzības sfēriskajā burbulī iesaistītos, sākot ar Emīlijas brāli Cole, tā to kaimiņpuikām, dvīņubrāļiem Džošu un Dilanu. Desmit gadus vēlāk iznācis kriminālromāns Fallen Angel, kurā acīmredzami nomainīti vien vārdi, bet plus-mīnus saglabāta attiecīgā vakara notikumu sekvence, grib to vai ne, bet savedīs tos atpakaļ kopā, lai tiktu skaidrībā, kāpēc Emīlijas vēl īsti neuzsākusies dzīve aprāvās vien 19 gadu vecumā.

https://poseidons99.com/2024/11/23/ba...

[Sheila Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have not read anything by Barbara Freethy before. So, I decided to give one of her free books a chance. Before I finished the book, I was looking for other books by her. I'm usually pretty good about guessing who done it. Not the time! Even until the very end, I was wrong. That was a good thing; meaning I'll read more of her books. As for this particular book, I did enjoy it. I will recommend it to others.

[Melissa (Semi Hiatus Until After the Holidays) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly good mystery with some decent twists and turns. Book supposedly fiction, but mirrors a real life incident.

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Suspenseful and hard to put down. Plot is well written. It keeps you guessing as you try to solve the mystery. Love story is sweet, yet wrapped tightly into suspense of the plot.

[Jess Mannino · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is great read. Very mysterious and I did not see the end coming. A good story!

[Coco.V]

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[Booklover · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the book a lot,i just could'nt put it down the suspense held me tightly with the cute romance going in between the couples

Cole-Natalie-they met cause of Emily,she was Cole's sister and Natalie's BFF cum the sister she never had and vice versa and they met sparks flew and these two loved each other and Natalie accepted her feelings and confessed it but Cole panicked and he started avoiding her,giving her mixed signals which became a fighting issue between Emily-Natalie cause Emily thought Natalie is clinging on to her brother not letting him go and after a huge fight on terrace Emily falls off and she dies,Natalie is drunk she does'nt remembers anything and cause she had promised Emily's mother she will look out for her she feels guilty she failed which everyone takes it in wrong manner and think she has something to do with Emily's fall and death

Dylan-Madison-These two also meet cause of Emily,Madison is friend of Emily and Dylan is in love with her but does'nt tell her cause he does'nt wanna spoil their friendship and Madison has a thing for Dylan but he always thinks low of her and has made a opinion that Madison is cold and selfish and he always acts rude with her but inspite if all his rudeness and anger Madion stands up and gives it back to him,really liked Madison's character she is a strong woman

Laura-Drew-Laura is weak character with low confidence and self esteem cosntant negative talks from her parents sister and Drew makes her question and doubt herself,but when again Maddy-Natalie meet these 3 again get together to solve the mystery of that night Laura starts to think good of herself and feels confident

Really liked the potrayal of friendship bond and how a tragedy breaks the group and what impact it brings about in each character,Emily is the main character for me in the book cause when she was alive she made her friends see positive side of life and take decision and even after her death she was still the epicenter of each character lives and her death also brought about such a impact in relationships,my least favourite character was Drew

Suspense held me till the very end,as the went ahead with the story my suspect list grew but i was really surprised to read the killed and the mystery of her death,but enjoyed how each character suspect each other but still they come together and instead of fighting arguing they keep united and search the killer

It is a 5 star book,Emily paid the price of her action and decisions,all puzzles are solved and each couple comes out clean with why and what they were hiding

it was a good read for me,enjoyed it a lot
Recommend it

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was better than I expected, mostly because I have been reading a lot of bad books lately. I wouldn't say it was awesome. I felt like the personal relationships seemed a little forced, especially between the husband and wife in this book. Nevertheless, it kept my interest throughout and I wasn't compeletely disappointed with the ending.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I read this because it was a good reads recommendation. Boy was that recommendation off! This book was very childishly written, like it was meant for a 20-something. It was predictable and boring and the characters were trite and simple. This was like reading a Lifetime movie. Definitely not one of my favorites - I only finished it because of my personal, "must finish once started rule".

[Duzz · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Hannah Monise · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este livro é uma combinação perfeita entre romance e mistério. Terminei de lê-lo apaixonada pelo casal principal e totalmente surpresa com o desfecho!

Emily Parish foi morta há dez anos em um acidente numa festa da faculdade. Suas amigas, Natalie, Laura e Madison, ficaram desoladas e acabaram mudando suas vidas depois deste ocorrido. Agora, um livro que conta uma história muito parecida com a amizade das Quatro Fantásticas se torna um best-seller e insinua que a morte não tenha sido simplesmente um acidente, mas um assassinato. A dúvida de como esse autor saiba tanto da intimidade das amigas surge juntamente com segredos e a volta de amores. Uma ótima mistura que faz o leitor não querer largar o livro até terminá-lo.

O título, que insinua ser mais romance do que mistério e que eu estava tentando entender o porquê, é explicado quase ao final. A história toda me prendeu, tanto o lindo romance entre Natalie e Cole, quanto o mistério para saber quem era realmente o autor e por qual motivo ele escreveu no livro que a morte de Emily teria sido um assassinato, o que me deixou com uma pequena grande ansiedade.

A personagem principal do livro é Natalie, melhor amiga de Emily, ela é uma mulher bem madura e independente, que trabalha como médica e é apaixonada pela profissão; Laura é casada, mãe e dona de casa; Madison trabalha com relações públicas e é uma mulher bem atraente, assim como também, independente. Separadas após a morte da amiga, elas se reencontram e revivem, de certa forma, a grande amizade. Cole, irmão de Emily, também é um dos principais, um homem super ocupado, responsável pelo jornal da família e viciado em notícias, que não se deixa abalar por qualquer mulher. Outros personagens, como Dylan e Drew, que também participaram da vida das meninas na época da faculdade, tem muita importância na história, mas aparecem um pouco menos.

Natalie e Cole, que namoraram naquela época e tiveram um término não muito bem resolvido de namoro, acabam se esbarrando por coincidência no hospital em que ela trabalha e, assim, juntos vão atrás de muitas coisas para resolver toda a história, o que resulta na reaproximação e volta de sentimentos. As cenas entre eles e a descrição dos sentimentos são tão intensas que eu babava, me emocionava e suspirava em cada uma delas.

Quanto ao mistério, ele é muito bem escrito! Os personagens que a autora insinua ao começo do livro têm tudo para ser o assassino ou o autor, mas você se surpreende totalmente ao final, quando é revelado o culpado e o porquê de sua atitude. Principalmente porque junto com esse tal mistério, há também muitos segredos a serem descobertos.

Com uma escrita muito bem desenvolvida, este é um livro para ser devorado de forma intensa, principalmente pelos amantes de romance e mistério. A autora soube equilibrar muito bem esses dois gêneros, não deixando meloso ou misterioso demais. E sendo meus gêneros favoritos, eu simplesmente apreciei a leitura com muito prazer!

"Era difícil ficar ao lado dele, olhar para ele, escutar a sua voz. Tudo estava voltando: os sentimentos, o amor, o ódio, as emoções que ela tentara afogar em dez anos." (Página 31)

[Barb · Rating 5 out of 5]

From #1 New York Times Bestselling Author Barbara Freethy comes a romantic and suspenseful story of three best friends and a terrible, life-changing secret.
Emily was their closest friend, or so they thought -- until years later, when her secrets send them on a perilous search for the truth about who she really was ... and why she died ...
Ten years ago, during a party gone out of control, beautiful, vibrant Emily plummeted to her death, leaving her three best friends and sorority sisters -- Natalie, Laura and Madison -- devastated. None of them has ever forgotten that night, or the role each may have played in Emily's death, the guilt that has pursued them, and the loss they still suffer.
Now an unknown writer has rocketed onto bestseller lists with a novel that eerily mirrors their own story. Who is he? How does he know the intimate details of their lives? And why is he accusing one of them of murder? As they begin to unravel the startling truth about their friend, each will rediscover a love she lost long ago and uncover secrets that will forever change her life...
A romantic suspense that is hard to put down. You have to root for Natalie. Loved it.... 5 stars.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Four college roommates and sorority sisters. One dies. Ten years later a book is written and the survivors’ lives are turned upside down. Even though the book was supposedly a work of fiction.

This story has great suspense and mystery all wrapped up in a few stories of love. The plot twists are engaging and the flow of the stories works. This is a multi-dimensional book with several stories that all merit top billing. The characters seem like real people living normal, if sometimes large, lives. I really enjoyed this book. In fact, romantic suspense is one of my new favorite genres, and Barbara Freethy leads the way with her wonderful stories!

[Brandi Sartin lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far all of Barbara's book have been great.
This is a book about 4 college roommates that became good friends. While they were at school one of the friends get pushed or fall off the roof of their sorority house. 2 of the friends leave campus while one stays. 10 years go by and a book get published and it's is basically about them and stuff that happened while they were at college-some true some not true. They are trying to figure out who is behind the book and to find out the truth of what happened that night that their friend was pushed off the roof.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great who done it! Four college friends who become sorority sisters their sophomore year but one of the sisters died after falling off the roof during a drinking party and her death was ruled an accident. Ten years later, someone wrote a book about the event but intertwined the story with fiction and accused one of the friends of murdering Emily. Now it was up to all the people involved to find out who wrote the book and why he hated Natalie so much that he was sure she had killed her best friend. Great story

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story starts with the main character Natalie. She starts to hear a story that sounds quite familiar to her being shared by someone that she doesn’t know. Turns out someone decided to get creative. And from there it becomes a reunion and a race to solve the mystery of who is the author. And how how much of what the author is saying is truth vs fiction.

I enjoyed reading this, enough that I finished it in a day. The pace was good, I liked the characters. And I’m always a sucker for a romance.

[Cathy Egan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of 4 girls who met in college and became best friends. Natalie, Laura and Madison are trying to solve the mystery of who the author might be and why he would write a story about Emily's death10 years later. One of the 3 has been implicated as a "murderer". Natalie and Cole, Emily's brother, have reunited to clear her name and find out who wrote the book. Lots of twists and turns, and good characters, kept me interested in figuring out the mystery. I always enjoy when I don't figure out who the culprit is right away, =)

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I obviously have read a newer edition of the book than all of the 1 and 2 star reviews from several years ago because I thought the book was fantastic and not 'juvenile' at all. There was great suspense in trying to determine who wrote the book, enjoyable (and not so enjoyable) characters, and it was well edited for the most part (which I am finding to be rarer and rarer these days!). I will definitely be adding Ms. Freethy to my authors to watch and read!

[Isabela · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want a book to take you breath away, this is not it.
The plot feed our imagination, leading us to think following the narrative. Could not prevent the end, because the imperative information was only feed to the readers in the last chapters, which tourned out to be a little cliche. Could have been more explored. Recommend only if you want cheesy romance with an end you can figure it out once you have the facts.

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Page Turner

I flew through this story. I didn’t guess who wrote the novel of the girls and I loved the twist that the story took to show who did. Vivid story and great job of creating intricate lives and paths of the college friends and family over a 10 year time span. The romance is there for all the characters but not as the driving focus of the story. Well written and engaging I could not put this story down.

[Lucy Appadoo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story between Natalie and Cole, combined with the story of two other couples. It was a story about complex relationships, a college incident from ten years prior, and a fictional book that mirrored the real-life past of Natalie and her old friends. The plot had a lot of suspense and mystery and followed a well-thought-out puzzle which led to all the pieces finally coming together at the end. Greatly recommended!

[Yames Bond · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

The first time I write those initials! I liked the plot (reminded me about Pretty Little Liars) but then, it was very unreal.
The characters were very childish. They were friends for 18 months and everything they eat, hear, say is linked to the dead friend?
For example, when Laura brings Chinese food, ice-cream and wine to Natalie’s apartment. “The three most important meals according to Emily” or something like that… that was the moment I knew I couldn’t go on. It was too absurd

[Donna Weber ( Recuperating from Surgery) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 Although a bit more romance than I normally read, this was just the type of entertaining who done it/ suspenseful type book I needed right now.

(Spoiler) With many red herrings thrown in to keep you guessing, it is a bit out of the blue when the real killer's character gets short shrift, making the ending a bit anticlimactic.

[Lynne Capehart · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a spellbinder!

Another of Barbara Freethy's books that was hard to put down. I loved Natalie. I was so proud of Laura. And Madison was an interesting, if not particularly likeable, character. Emily's character development was also interesting to watch. Amazing how a dead character could grow throughout the book. I highly recommend this book.

[Patricia Sherman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Author

Barbara 's books never fail to amaze me. This is another of her great works. I loved this book, it kept me reading to the very end. I have enjoyed all her books, but this one was so touching. I know it makes college friends everywhere remember those few true friends.