Between Friends

by Jenny Harper

Love, secrets and loyalty are key themes of Jenny Harper's latest novel set in contemporary Edinburgh.

Marta, Carrie and Jane have been friends since they were at school. Now one is bringing up her family, another is desperately trying for children of her own, while the third is focused on her career – and each takes the support of the others as a given.

But when generous Marta bumps into old friend Tom at the height of the Edinburgh festival, she finds he's an actor out-of-luck. Her kind offer of temporary shelter sets in motion a tsunami of destruction. Marta’s marriage comes under threat. Timid Jane is haunted by the secret she has been hiding since she last saw Tom. And ambitious Carrie finds herself at the mercy of a man who can ruin her career.

Only by pulling together can the friends rid themselves of this menace. But is Tom too clever at sowing mistrust?

320 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 11, 2016

Reviews

[Elaine Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good holiday read!

[Joanna Lambert · Rating 5 out of 5]

BROOK COTTAGE BOOK TOURS PRESENT: BETWEEN FRIENDS BY JENNY HARPER 15 – 26 FEBRUARY, 2016
ASIDE ~ FEBRUARY 24, 2016 ~ JOLAMBERTWRITER ~ EDIT
BETWEEN FRIENDS
BY JENNY HARPER



27995726

Genre: Contemporary Women’s Fiction
Release Date: 11 February 2016
Publisher: Accent Press

They thought he belonged safely in the past. His return threatens everything.
Marta, Carrie and Jane have been friends since they were at school in Edinburgh. Now one is bringing up her family, another is desperately trying for children of her own, and the third is focused on her career – and each takes the support of the others as a given.
But when generous Marta offers out-of-luck actor Tom temporary shelter, her act of kindness sets in motion a tsunami of destruction. Marta’s marriage comes under threat. Timid Jane is haunted by the secret she has been hiding since she last saw Tom. And ambitious Carrie finds herself at the mercy of a man who can ruin her career.
Only by pulling together can the friends rid themselves of this menace. But is Tom too clever at sewing mistrust?

BUY LINKS
AMAZON UK
AMAZON US

MY REVIEW

Marta, Jane and Carrie. Three women who have been friends from school. They now live in the same city but have very different lives. One is the mother of three children, another a career woman and the third holding down a job in tourism while still hopeful of conceiving a child. The one thing which has held steady over the years is their strong bond of friendship…until the day Marta sees someone from long ago walk into the small cafe where she is having coffee. Actor Tom Vallely, a handsome, charismatic man who has just hit forty, has a shared history with all three women. Currently starring in an Edinburgh Fringe production he is in need of somewhere to stay. Kind hearted Marta offers him her spare room and invites him to a dinner party she has already arranged with Jane and Carrie. What Marta is unaware of is what happened between her two friends and Tom. Connections which they have both kept secret from her and each other over the years.Quite innocently she has just let a fox into the hen house…

Tom’s arrival is like a pebble being tossed into a pool. The ripples spread, affecting every aspect of the women’s’ lives. Marta is unaware of the nature of his history with her two friends. As they both desperately try to keep the past away from the present she finds Tom’s presence affecting her own relationship with husband Jake. Tom’s return inevitably forces secrets to the surface. He is quite the most unpleasant character I have ever met in a book. He’s arrogant, selfish and a bully. He is totally unscrupulous in his dealings with the three women – in his dealings with anyone actually! Breezing through life he takes advantage of his good looks not only to take what he wants but as a sexual predator using women and casting them aside once their usefulness is at an end. He trades on Carrie and Jane’s fear of discovery to get what he wants. It’s not until they find themselves in possession of something they can use against him that they begin to fight back. But before they can do that they have to open up and be completely honest with each other…

A great book, well rounded believable characters, I couldn’t put it down.

[Anne Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

The friendship between Marta, Carrie and Jane in this lovely book is quite mesmerising - fraught with all the ups and downs, positives and negatives, highs and lows, twists and turns that all relationships have. They are three very different characters, each one equally real and (mostly) equally likeable. I was particularly fond of Carrie, ambitious and self-sufficient, hard and brittle, living the life that she thinks she wants, only to discover that it may not be the life she wants after all - but moving on can be difficult. I don't have a maternal bone in my body, but if anyone was born to be a mother it's Marta - warm, loving, emotional, impulsive, and totally wonderful. And then there's Jane - the one who actually is a mother, but struggles with it for all sorts of heartbreaking reasons.

When Tom re-enters their world, their friendship begins to fall apart, and we watch in absolute fascination as the story plays out. He is a total monster - quite over the top really, but wonderfully drawn and totally believable - whose actions frequently had me gasping. The characterisation in this novel is absolutely excellent - this isn't a book you simply read, it's a book you feel, and when the friends hurt, you hurt too.

It's a novel with big themes - love, friendship, honesty, standards of right and wrong, loyalty, forgiveness, retribution - but it's also an excellent story that has you gripped throughout as you explore the characters, their relationships and their lives past and present. The author writes quite wonderfully - an easy flowing style that draws you in, and keeps you reading. She really is a very gifted story teller. And there are images in this book that will stay with me for a long while - some funny, some shocking, some totally heartbreaking.

I plan to read more by Jenny Harper - I really enjoyed this one, and I'm rather kicking myself that I haven't discovered her before.

[Alison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book goes to show that you can be friends for years but still have secrets that will rock the relationships to the core and all trust can be ripped apart.

Three ladies, Marta, Carrie and Jane met at school, nothing spectacular about any of them just your normal women living life to the best of their ability. All at fairly different stages, one married with three kids, one the aspiring career woman and one longing for a baby.

They all live in Edinburgh and seem to take each other for granted until the fateful day that Marta bumps into Tom, a blast from the past who seems to be down on his luck so she invites him to stay in the spare room for a while. It slowly unravels that all the women have a connection to Tom unbeknown to the others .. how far can he play them, what havoc can he wreak and will he succeed in ruining potentially all of them.

This is easy to read, plods along at a steady pace, the characters are well written but I’m not sure I would want to be friends with any of them. It’s a fascinating look at how love and friendship if treated correctly can indeed be a wonderful support if you work together as one force instead of pulling apart.

Thanks to the author and Brook Cottage Books for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Linda Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Marta invites aspiring actor and old friend Tom to stay for a week, little does she realise what an impact it will make on so many lives.

I really enjoyed reading Between Friends. I thought the characters were believable and well rounded, although I thoroughly detested Tom from the beginning and he brought out very negative reactions in me as a reader to the point where I would have liked to meet him and slap his face! I found the way Jenny Harper uncovered the back stories of Carrie, Jane and Marta very skilful so that I felt I knew them well and I cared about what happened to them.

The setting of Edinburgh worked extremely effectively so that while there was continuity of place for the action, there was also a variety of setting to engage the reader. Reading ‘Between Friends‘ has made me want to visit the city for myself.

The plot romps along and I enjoyed the twists and turns along the way. There are also some big themes entertainingly explored such as friendship, loyalty, love and relationships of all kinds, including those within families and marriages. It would spoil the plot to reveal too much more about some of the issues raised in reading Between Friends, but all three women have their own demons to face too.

Between Friends is a highly well written and thoroughly entertaining read.
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[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marta, Carrie and Jane have been friends for so long they no longer have any secrets. That is until Marta runs into an old friend. That one act of reintroducing the old friend will flip their worlds on end. Marta’s marriage starts to implode, Jane’s secret weighs on her so much that escape looks promising and Carrie falls back into old ways that turn self destructive. This one man attempts to tear their worlds apart. Can the three friends band together to repair their lives or will they let this horrible guy from the past destroy them?

This was a very entertaining read. The complex relationships and lives of the three friends was both relatable and realistic. The reader will go on an emotional roller coaster as the three women discover each others secrets. Jenny Harper does an excellent job illustrating the female friendship. She also did a phenomenal painting Tom as a real villain. He was someone you could truly know and have had a relationship with. If you are looking for a good friend book you will want to pick this up. The story weaves easily through the three women’s lives, relationships and loves. This is the perfect book for any woman.

[Rosie Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Between Friends is a contemporary Women's fiction read set in Edinburgh. Three friends; Marta, Jane and Carrie have been friends for a long time. When an old flame comes to Edinburgh for the arts festival their friendship is tested to the limits.

Jane is married to Jake, he's currently unemployed, she'd like a baby. Carrie is a career women and likes to be in control of her relationships. Jane is married to Neal and has three children and a busy chaotic life, yet all this is turned upside down when Marta invites Tom to a surprise dinner and offers him a place to stay.

Tom is Jane's ex and he's Carrie's ex and he's about to cause a rift for Marta too. Old wounds are opened, new wounds are made and Tom believes he can carry on as he pleases while others suffer.
I enjoyed how each women worked through her insecurities and found the strength to pull together in the end.

This is a book about the strength of relationships, with a feel good ending.

[Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was initially drawn to this contemporary novel of three female friends who find themselves back in Edinburgh, as it's a city I know well. However, I quickly became engrossed in each of the women's dilemmas meaning I flew through chapters, keen to find out more about the secrets, loyalty and love which would ultimately pull them closer or drive them apart. Another great read by Jenny Harper.

[Marge]

It was OK. Wanted to slap the three main characters faces a few times for their stupidity but kept on reading.

[J.B (Debbie) · Rating 4 out of 5]

review to follow

[Andrea Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it! Brilliant storyline & a real page turner! I need to check out the rest of her books!