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How to Kill Your Best Friend
If you suspected your best friend, the person you were closest to in the whole world, was a murderer, what would you do? Would you confront her? Would you help keep her secret? Or would you begin to feel afraid? Most importantly, why don't you feel safe now that she's dead? From the author of The French Girl comes a novel full of secrets, suspense, and deadly twists.
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn have been inseparable since dominating their college swim team; swimming has always been an escape from their own problems, but now their shared passion has turned deadly. How can it be true that Lissa, the strongest swimmer they know, drowned? Granted, there is something strange about Kanu Cove, where Lissa was last seen, swimming off the coast of the fabulous island resort she owned with her husband.
Lissa’s closest friends gather at the resort to honor her life, but Georgie and Bron can’t seem to stop looking over their shoulders. Danger lurks beneath the surface of the crystal-clear water, and even their luxurious private villas can’t help them feel safe. As the weather turns ominous, trapping the funeral guests together on the island, nobody knows who they can trust. Lissa’s death was only the beginning....
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn have been inseparable since dominating their college swim team; swimming has always been an escape from their own problems, but now their shared passion has turned deadly. How can it be true that Lissa, the strongest swimmer they know, drowned? Granted, there is something strange about Kanu Cove, where Lissa was last seen, swimming off the coast of the fabulous island resort she owned with her husband.
Lissa’s closest friends gather at the resort to honor her life, but Georgie and Bron can’t seem to stop looking over their shoulders. Danger lurks beneath the surface of the crystal-clear water, and even their luxurious private villas can’t help them feel safe. As the weather turns ominous, trapping the funeral guests together on the island, nobody knows who they can trust. Lissa’s death was only the beginning....
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 17, 2021
289 people are currently reading
16461 people want to read
About the author
Lexie Elliott
5 books816 followersLexie Elliott has been writing for as long as she can remember, but she began to focus on it more seriously after she lost her banking job in 2009 due to the Global Financial Crisis. After some success in short story competitions, she began planning a novel. With two kids and a (new) job, it took some time for that novel to move from her head to the page, but the result was "The French Girl", which will be published by Berkley in February 2018 - available to pre-order now!
When she's not writing, Lexie can be found running, swimming or cycling whilst thinking about writing. In 2007 she swam the English Channel solo. She won't be doing that again. In 2015 she ran 100km, raising money for Alzheimer Scotland. She won't be doing that again either. But the odd triathlon or marathon isn't out of the question.
When she's not writing, Lexie can be found running, swimming or cycling whilst thinking about writing. In 2007 she swam the English Channel solo. She won't be doing that again. In 2015 she ran 100km, raising money for Alzheimer Scotland. She won't be doing that again either. But the odd triathlon or marathon isn't out of the question.
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September 19, 2021
How to Kill Your Best Friend by Lexie Elliott
If you want to kill your best friend, the research of methods to do so has been done for you. Just check the beginning of each chapter to get the dope (poison is one of the methods). Nothing is foolproof though and that's the problem.
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn have been a close trio since their college days although Bron knows Georgie and Lissa had a bond that even she couldn't penetrate. All three were and still are excellent swimmers, having competed in college. They are very close to several of the guys swimmers/polo players from their college years and the group meet up several times a year. But Georgie missed the last meetup, the one where Lissa, the strongest swimmer of the group, drowned. It doesn't make sense that such a thing could happen. Several months after the drowning, the rest of the group is meeting up on the island of the beautiful resort that Lissa owned with her husband.
We experience this story through the eyes of Georgie and Bron. No one is at ease, which is understandable since they are all meeting to remember their dead friend. Georgie and Bron have big secrets, known only to each of them. But so do Lissa's husband and the men of their group. Things begin to feel very dangerous when Georgie and Bron receive threatening messages. Not only that, Georgie starts getting emails from Lissa that had been caught in her work guarantee system and now she is sure that Lissa was up to no good before she died.
Everyone looks suspicious of something, Georgie and Bron have close calls with danger, the weather turns bad, and now they are all stranded on an island that has turned murderous. Who is the anonymous person narrating the passages at the beginning of each chapter? Unreliable narration is a very real possibility.
I enjoyed the mystery of this story very much, although this book holds some of the longest passages I've ever read. Also, so much focus on swimming slowed things down. We get lost in the thoughts of Georgie and Bron so often that they seemed to blend together at times. Still, this seems to be a very smart group, maybe too devious and clever for their own good. I really wasn't sure who did what until the very end and I liked the twists and turns my brain took, trying to "follow the money".
Published August 17, 2021
Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for this ARC.
If you want to kill your best friend, the research of methods to do so has been done for you. Just check the beginning of each chapter to get the dope (poison is one of the methods). Nothing is foolproof though and that's the problem.
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn have been a close trio since their college days although Bron knows Georgie and Lissa had a bond that even she couldn't penetrate. All three were and still are excellent swimmers, having competed in college. They are very close to several of the guys swimmers/polo players from their college years and the group meet up several times a year. But Georgie missed the last meetup, the one where Lissa, the strongest swimmer of the group, drowned. It doesn't make sense that such a thing could happen. Several months after the drowning, the rest of the group is meeting up on the island of the beautiful resort that Lissa owned with her husband.
We experience this story through the eyes of Georgie and Bron. No one is at ease, which is understandable since they are all meeting to remember their dead friend. Georgie and Bron have big secrets, known only to each of them. But so do Lissa's husband and the men of their group. Things begin to feel very dangerous when Georgie and Bron receive threatening messages. Not only that, Georgie starts getting emails from Lissa that had been caught in her work guarantee system and now she is sure that Lissa was up to no good before she died.
Everyone looks suspicious of something, Georgie and Bron have close calls with danger, the weather turns bad, and now they are all stranded on an island that has turned murderous. Who is the anonymous person narrating the passages at the beginning of each chapter? Unreliable narration is a very real possibility.
I enjoyed the mystery of this story very much, although this book holds some of the longest passages I've ever read. Also, so much focus on swimming slowed things down. We get lost in the thoughts of Georgie and Bron so often that they seemed to blend together at times. Still, this seems to be a very smart group, maybe too devious and clever for their own good. I really wasn't sure who did what until the very end and I liked the twists and turns my brain took, trying to "follow the money".
Published August 17, 2021
Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for this ARC.
January 16, 2025
Georgie, Lissa and Bronwyn have been Best Friends since their days together on their college swim team.
In the years following school, their friendship group, which includes a few male swimmers, have remained close, frequently taking swimming holidays together.
Lissa and her new husband recently purchased a beautiful island resort, somewhere in the South Pacific, and the group takes full advantage of the lovely waters there.
On their most recent holiday at the resort, Georgie chose not to attend. She's now living in New York and it would have been an extremely long trip. That's the excuse she gave at least. She did have some other reasons for not wanting to go.
It's on this occasion that Lissa, taking an unimaginable solo night swim in the dangerous waters of Kanu Cove, drowns. Her body assumed swept out to sea, is never recovered.
Fisherman in the area did spot the body at one point, but before they could recover her, she slid back under the dark surface.
![](https://media.giphy.com/media/MZpEKPlVEzQailNcQJ/giphy.gif?cid=ecf05e471p29xrnmm2niv6kte7gzev56qmh2p58y7y5wnjmj&rid=giphy.gif&ct=g"/><br%20/><br%20/>In%20order%20to%20honor%20Lissa)
Georgie is out of sorts from the very start. She arrives late, she didn't get the memo on the dress code for the memorial ceremony, and most importantly, she cannot believe that Lissa would have made that swim at night, alone, voluntarily.
Bronwyn is out of sorts as well, but for different reasons. She's receiving threatening messages, she's distracted, constantly looking over her shoulder, but why?
The group is set to stay at the floundering resort for a long weekend and a heck of a lot happens during that time.
There's creatures surfacing from the depths, mysterious occurrences, flared tempers, entirely too much booze and a storm of epic proportions. Will any of them get off the island alive?
How to Kill Your Best Friend is the second novel I have read from Lexie Elliott. I absolutely love her writing style.
While I did feel this was a bit of a slow burn, I didn't enjoy it any less because of that. I love the way Elliott builds her characters and the way she allows us to see inside their heads; learn about their pasts and motivations.
I generally enjoy competition tropes, or tropes where characters are members of a team or club. This definitely had that dynamic, even though the women are well past school age. There's still something about the interactions of people that compete, or train together, that I find so relatable.
It's like when you are in that kind of relationship with a group of people, it can feel like you are closer to them than anyone else in the world. There's an assumption that you know everything about each other, but everyone's keeping secrets, aren't they?
Additionally, I loved the setting. The close to abandoned resort. The fact that the characters were stuck there. No matter how uncomfortable they got, or how much they wanted to leave, that wasn't an option.
Secluded locations allow for the tension to really build and Elliott captured that claustrophobic feeling so well here. Especially towards the end, as the weather picked up, so did the stakes.
Overall, I thought this was a really well executed story. It was dramatic and tense, I had a lot of fun with it!
Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I am a huge Lexie Elliott fan and will continue to pick up anything else she writes.
In the years following school, their friendship group, which includes a few male swimmers, have remained close, frequently taking swimming holidays together.
Lissa and her new husband recently purchased a beautiful island resort, somewhere in the South Pacific, and the group takes full advantage of the lovely waters there.
On their most recent holiday at the resort, Georgie chose not to attend. She's now living in New York and it would have been an extremely long trip. That's the excuse she gave at least. She did have some other reasons for not wanting to go.
It's on this occasion that Lissa, taking an unimaginable solo night swim in the dangerous waters of Kanu Cove, drowns. Her body assumed swept out to sea, is never recovered.
Fisherman in the area did spot the body at one point, but before they could recover her, she slid back under the dark surface.
Georgie is out of sorts from the very start. She arrives late, she didn't get the memo on the dress code for the memorial ceremony, and most importantly, she cannot believe that Lissa would have made that swim at night, alone, voluntarily.
Bronwyn is out of sorts as well, but for different reasons. She's receiving threatening messages, she's distracted, constantly looking over her shoulder, but why?
The group is set to stay at the floundering resort for a long weekend and a heck of a lot happens during that time.
There's creatures surfacing from the depths, mysterious occurrences, flared tempers, entirely too much booze and a storm of epic proportions. Will any of them get off the island alive?
How to Kill Your Best Friend is the second novel I have read from Lexie Elliott. I absolutely love her writing style.
While I did feel this was a bit of a slow burn, I didn't enjoy it any less because of that. I love the way Elliott builds her characters and the way she allows us to see inside their heads; learn about their pasts and motivations.
I generally enjoy competition tropes, or tropes where characters are members of a team or club. This definitely had that dynamic, even though the women are well past school age. There's still something about the interactions of people that compete, or train together, that I find so relatable.
It's like when you are in that kind of relationship with a group of people, it can feel like you are closer to them than anyone else in the world. There's an assumption that you know everything about each other, but everyone's keeping secrets, aren't they?
Additionally, I loved the setting. The close to abandoned resort. The fact that the characters were stuck there. No matter how uncomfortable they got, or how much they wanted to leave, that wasn't an option.
Secluded locations allow for the tension to really build and Elliott captured that claustrophobic feeling so well here. Especially towards the end, as the weather picked up, so did the stakes.
Overall, I thought this was a really well executed story. It was dramatic and tense, I had a lot of fun with it!
Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I am a huge Lexie Elliott fan and will continue to pick up anything else she writes.
March 20, 2023
Pour yourself more wine, dunk your hand into your enormous pop corn bucket as you frantically flip your pages just like I’m doing now!
This book is filled with entertaining mind games, surprise, interesting twists you mostly never see them come and hit you in your face so hard! This is wild, wild ride, my friends!
Best swimmer friends gather to celebrate the loss of their friend Lissa who is drowned at Kanu Lake where is filled with mythical creatures like serpentine and the very same haunted place always likes to take and take!
Lissa was smart woman who knew very well how dangerous swimming at this place alone in the night and she’s too skillful swimmer not to get drowned but here we go! She’s dead , isn’t she?
We’re reading two best girlfriends’ narration: Georgie: living at the states, preoccupied, workaholic, cool business woman who was partners in crime with Lissa and Bronwyn seemed like the third wheel of their close connection. But it’s normal when three women form a special bond, always third one finds herself left behind when the other two share more intimate bound.
Bronwyn seems like domestic, protective, loyal mother, efficient accountant who chose to resume peaceful family life on the contrary of Georgie who has connection issues and she hesitates to put a name to her relationship with Adam.
Duncan is the also their other friend who went to same school with Lissa. And Jem is sad widower who already starts flirting with the hotel customers. It seems like he can deal with grief better than Lissa’ friends.
Georgie keeps questioning the death of Lissa because some pieces don’t fit properly and Bronwyn looks agitated, resented. She’s keeping secrets and getting verbal threats ( a threat blaming her about Lissa’s death written on the mirror with lipstick) and Georgie gets papers via courier tells her to follow the money. Does someone play games with them?
And the author starts throwing bombs into our laps because Lissa is not normal person: she may have borderline disorder and she can be really illogical, lethal punisher when things don’t suit her expectations. She can be really batshit crazy! I know Talking Head’s psycho killer start to blast in your head ( okay, it’s just me: because at the most agitated moments of the books I like to play theme songs in my head)
Could one of them kill her because she was way too much dangerous? Who tries to play mind games with them? Definitely, yes, but who?
It seems like the crystal clear water they swim or ultra luxurious villas they stay are not safe anymore. They get attacked at both places. Building high tension and claustrophobic atmosphere make you jumpy and push you turn pages a little faster.
The beginning of the book may be slow burn and the psychological character analysis slowly develops but especially the last third is epic action packed thriller feast and twisty conclusion is amazing.
I’m giving four satisfying, well developed characterization, web of lies, surprising, mysterious thriller stars!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
This book is filled with entertaining mind games, surprise, interesting twists you mostly never see them come and hit you in your face so hard! This is wild, wild ride, my friends!
Best swimmer friends gather to celebrate the loss of their friend Lissa who is drowned at Kanu Lake where is filled with mythical creatures like serpentine and the very same haunted place always likes to take and take!
Lissa was smart woman who knew very well how dangerous swimming at this place alone in the night and she’s too skillful swimmer not to get drowned but here we go! She’s dead , isn’t she?
We’re reading two best girlfriends’ narration: Georgie: living at the states, preoccupied, workaholic, cool business woman who was partners in crime with Lissa and Bronwyn seemed like the third wheel of their close connection. But it’s normal when three women form a special bond, always third one finds herself left behind when the other two share more intimate bound.
Bronwyn seems like domestic, protective, loyal mother, efficient accountant who chose to resume peaceful family life on the contrary of Georgie who has connection issues and she hesitates to put a name to her relationship with Adam.
Duncan is the also their other friend who went to same school with Lissa. And Jem is sad widower who already starts flirting with the hotel customers. It seems like he can deal with grief better than Lissa’ friends.
Georgie keeps questioning the death of Lissa because some pieces don’t fit properly and Bronwyn looks agitated, resented. She’s keeping secrets and getting verbal threats ( a threat blaming her about Lissa’s death written on the mirror with lipstick) and Georgie gets papers via courier tells her to follow the money. Does someone play games with them?
And the author starts throwing bombs into our laps because Lissa is not normal person: she may have borderline disorder and she can be really illogical, lethal punisher when things don’t suit her expectations. She can be really batshit crazy! I know Talking Head’s psycho killer start to blast in your head ( okay, it’s just me: because at the most agitated moments of the books I like to play theme songs in my head)
Could one of them kill her because she was way too much dangerous? Who tries to play mind games with them? Definitely, yes, but who?
It seems like the crystal clear water they swim or ultra luxurious villas they stay are not safe anymore. They get attacked at both places. Building high tension and claustrophobic atmosphere make you jumpy and push you turn pages a little faster.
The beginning of the book may be slow burn and the psychological character analysis slowly develops but especially the last third is epic action packed thriller feast and twisty conclusion is amazing.
I’m giving four satisfying, well developed characterization, web of lies, surprising, mysterious thriller stars!
Special thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
February 11, 2021
3.5 ⭐️
There are many ways that you can kill your best friend, if necessary...
(Table of contents)
Method 1: Accident
Method 2: Poison
Method 3:Hire a Hit Man
Method 4: Electrocution
Method 5:Shooting
Method 6: Hit and Run
Method 7: Strangulation
Method 8:Drowning
“It’s not the murder that’s the problem, it’s the getting away with it”
🙄
Lissa, Georgie and Bronwyn have been inseparable since dominating on their college swim team.
But, now, Georgie and Bron are attending the memorial service for Lissa, the strongest swimmer of the three, drowned in Kanu Cove.
True-the Islanders warn of the strong current and the dangerous serpent, Kanu, who lives in the depths of the waters..
KANU TAKES WHO WANTS TAKEN
But, is there SOMETHING sinister lurking off shore?
Or is there SOMEONE sinister, strolling along the twisty, dimly lit pathways?
Bronwyn is known as WYSIWYG
Georgie is not as transparent.
(I just gave you a hint as to what
WYSIWYG means..)
Each chapter begins with the clever musings of an undisclosed narrator-on how you MIGHT be able to murder your best friend..
Then the POV’s of both Georgie and Bron alternate- and it’s up to the reader to figure out if someone has a secret worth killing for-who that is- and who would kill their best friend ?
This pace of this story is like a SLOW lazy crawl (swimmer’s term) and, and I felt like it took me longer than usual to read this...
I think it’s because there is NOT a lot of action, till the closing chapters...
Instead the revelations are revealed through many conversations and observations.
So, if you are looking for a fast paced thriller-this isn’t for you.
But, if you enjoy a mystery that unravels itself, a bit at a time, revealing a bit more with each METHOD of murder...than this one Is for you!
3.5 rounded down for the pace
Lexie Elliott's latest will be available on August 17th, 2021.
Thank You to Berkley for the ARC provided in exchange for a candid review!
Published to Edelweiss and Goodreads on February 10, 2021
Will publish to theblondelikesbookswordpress.com and Amazon closer to Publication date
There are many ways that you can kill your best friend, if necessary...
(Table of contents)
Method 1: Accident
Method 2: Poison
Method 3:Hire a Hit Man
Method 4: Electrocution
Method 5:Shooting
Method 6: Hit and Run
Method 7: Strangulation
Method 8:Drowning
“It’s not the murder that’s the problem, it’s the getting away with it”
🙄
Lissa, Georgie and Bronwyn have been inseparable since dominating on their college swim team.
But, now, Georgie and Bron are attending the memorial service for Lissa, the strongest swimmer of the three, drowned in Kanu Cove.
True-the Islanders warn of the strong current and the dangerous serpent, Kanu, who lives in the depths of the waters..
KANU TAKES WHO WANTS TAKEN
But, is there SOMETHING sinister lurking off shore?
Or is there SOMEONE sinister, strolling along the twisty, dimly lit pathways?
Bronwyn is known as WYSIWYG
Georgie is not as transparent.
(I just gave you a hint as to what
WYSIWYG means..)
Each chapter begins with the clever musings of an undisclosed narrator-on how you MIGHT be able to murder your best friend..
Then the POV’s of both Georgie and Bron alternate- and it’s up to the reader to figure out if someone has a secret worth killing for-who that is- and who would kill their best friend ?
This pace of this story is like a SLOW lazy crawl (swimmer’s term) and, and I felt like it took me longer than usual to read this...
I think it’s because there is NOT a lot of action, till the closing chapters...
Instead the revelations are revealed through many conversations and observations.
So, if you are looking for a fast paced thriller-this isn’t for you.
But, if you enjoy a mystery that unravels itself, a bit at a time, revealing a bit more with each METHOD of murder...than this one Is for you!
3.5 rounded down for the pace
Lexie Elliott's latest will be available on August 17th, 2021.
Thank You to Berkley for the ARC provided in exchange for a candid review!
Published to Edelweiss and Goodreads on February 10, 2021
Will publish to theblondelikesbookswordpress.com and Amazon closer to Publication date
August 20, 2021
How to Kill Your Best Friend by Lexie Elliott is a slow burning thriller. This thriller read is told from a dual perspective of two of the three best friends involved, Georgie and Bronwyn, alternating their points of view between each of the chapters. There’s also a list of methods for this madness of killing one’s best friend interspersed between some of the chapters such as opening with Method 1: Accident which will show murder is not always as easy as the books make it out to be!
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn were once the best of friends as they bonded in university over their shared love of swimming. The trio has now been split apart with the death of Lissa and Georgie and Bronwyn don’t know how to feel losing their best friend. The ladies have gathered at Kanu Lake to mourn their friend but Georgie cannot fathom how Lissa could have possibly drowned, the best swimmer among them. Things just do not feel right on the island despite the gorgeous surroundings or beautiful villas.
So I’m not always a huge fan of a slow burn thriller like I found in How to Kill Your Best Friend but this one was not so bad. Perhaps it was the fact the mystery was taking place in a luxurious vacation type of setting which I always adore or the creative format with the murder lists interspersed between the chapters but whatever it may be I did enjoy waiting for the action to unfold. It could definitely have used a bit less focus on the swimming in the middle though. The other thing that I found with this one was I was quite sure I knew what would happen and was just waiting to find out the specifics at the end. So combine the slower pace and what seemed easy to solve for me as an avid read I ended up giving this one three and a half stars overall.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn were once the best of friends as they bonded in university over their shared love of swimming. The trio has now been split apart with the death of Lissa and Georgie and Bronwyn don’t know how to feel losing their best friend. The ladies have gathered at Kanu Lake to mourn their friend but Georgie cannot fathom how Lissa could have possibly drowned, the best swimmer among them. Things just do not feel right on the island despite the gorgeous surroundings or beautiful villas.
So I’m not always a huge fan of a slow burn thriller like I found in How to Kill Your Best Friend but this one was not so bad. Perhaps it was the fact the mystery was taking place in a luxurious vacation type of setting which I always adore or the creative format with the murder lists interspersed between the chapters but whatever it may be I did enjoy waiting for the action to unfold. It could definitely have used a bit less focus on the swimming in the middle though. The other thing that I found with this one was I was quite sure I knew what would happen and was just waiting to find out the specifics at the end. So combine the slower pace and what seemed easy to solve for me as an avid read I ended up giving this one three and a half stars overall.
I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.
For more reviews please visit https://carriesbookreviews.com/
February 24, 2021
Exactly what so many have said....Disclaimer: I do not want to kill my best friend....
Now we have that out of the way....
Excellent edge-of-your-seat mystery/thriller beginning on an island and a storm coming, so it's a good thing they wait the storm out because it gets really good towards the end.
There were a lot of conversations with this group of friends that were swimming legends in college. They are gathering for a memorial to honor one of their friends that supposedly drowned. Lissa was an excellent swimmer so some found it almost impossible to believe she had drowned, but rumors abound about a possible murder or suicide.
At the beginning of each chapter, a method is given how to kill your best friend by an anonymous author. Then each chapter is told in alternating narrators, Bronwyn & Georgie. These two might have been Lissa's best friends, but they were a dysfunctional group..... full of lies and deception. They apparently have trust issues with one another.
There are many side stories going on which carries you through with each character’s view. Each character has something of their own to hide, so the atmosphere becomes sketchy when someone is watching them and leaving a trail of threatening notes. With another tragedy to contend to and near misses, it begins appealing to fear. With these toxic friends, walking through memories and scare tactics, you will not be disappointed with the ending.
Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC for my honest opinion and review.
Now we have that out of the way....
Excellent edge-of-your-seat mystery/thriller beginning on an island and a storm coming, so it's a good thing they wait the storm out because it gets really good towards the end.
There were a lot of conversations with this group of friends that were swimming legends in college. They are gathering for a memorial to honor one of their friends that supposedly drowned. Lissa was an excellent swimmer so some found it almost impossible to believe she had drowned, but rumors abound about a possible murder or suicide.
At the beginning of each chapter, a method is given how to kill your best friend by an anonymous author. Then each chapter is told in alternating narrators, Bronwyn & Georgie. These two might have been Lissa's best friends, but they were a dysfunctional group..... full of lies and deception. They apparently have trust issues with one another.
There are many side stories going on which carries you through with each character’s view. Each character has something of their own to hide, so the atmosphere becomes sketchy when someone is watching them and leaving a trail of threatening notes. With another tragedy to contend to and near misses, it begins appealing to fear. With these toxic friends, walking through memories and scare tactics, you will not be disappointed with the ending.
Thank you, NetGalley for this ARC for my honest opinion and review.
August 22, 2021
This is a well-written mystery-thriller about the death of one of a group of friends. Cleverly inserted throughout the book are various methods of potentially killing one's best friend. Whose ideas are these and why are they included? Who wants someone dead and why?
I figured out really quickly where this was going and there was nothing very surprising for me. The cast of characters is rather large, and we alternate between two points of view--that of Bronwyn and that of Georgie. Both women have things they are hiding--some things from each other and some things the two of them are hiding from the rest of the group.
When all is said and done I didn't really love the twists or the motives behind the various actions. I heard this is being made into a movie or series for HBO, and I think that might actually be a much better venue for this story. I spent so much of the time trying to figure out the connections between the various characters that seeing faces would really help to make things flow better. It's a very slow paced book, because from start to finish it only covers a couple of days and overall not much happens until the end. The slow set-up does make the book rather plodding for a while, it certainly would have benefitted from a "And Then There Were None" scenario or more clues and surprises unearthed along the way to keep it from being so predictable.
Not a terrible book, but nothing captivating either. It's a decent, well-written summer mystery if you're looking for something to pass the time.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
I figured out really quickly where this was going and there was nothing very surprising for me. The cast of characters is rather large, and we alternate between two points of view--that of Bronwyn and that of Georgie. Both women have things they are hiding--some things from each other and some things the two of them are hiding from the rest of the group.
When all is said and done I didn't really love the twists or the motives behind the various actions. I heard this is being made into a movie or series for HBO, and I think that might actually be a much better venue for this story. I spent so much of the time trying to figure out the connections between the various characters that seeing faces would really help to make things flow better. It's a very slow paced book, because from start to finish it only covers a couple of days and overall not much happens until the end. The slow set-up does make the book rather plodding for a while, it certainly would have benefitted from a "And Then There Were None" scenario or more clues and surprises unearthed along the way to keep it from being so predictable.
Not a terrible book, but nothing captivating either. It's a decent, well-written summer mystery if you're looking for something to pass the time.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
August 9, 2021
What makes for a better thriller than a destination wedding? Well, it has to be a gathering at an exotic resort for the memorial of an old college friend. Georgie and Bronwyn give us their perspectives on this reunion to mourn their best friend Lissa. Joining them there are the three remaining men from their swim team days at uni. There are many surprises to be had during their stay including emails that are released from fire wall quarantine that were written by the deceased. Strange messages appear on mirrors. And, there is a mythical sea serpent in the mix. Interspersed between chapters are interludes about methods that could be used to kill your best friend. Who is doing the research? You will have to read the book to find out. I found the pacing to be spot on and the anonymous plotting just the right additional ingredient. Take this one along on your next trip to the pool or the beach.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.
July 5, 2021
This was my first book from this author, but it will not be my last. She managed to take a few tropes that I love and combine them with some tropes that I usually side eye in this kind of mystery thriller, but the result was a story that I really enjoyed and an authorial voice that totally won me over. I particularly loved one of our POV characters, Georgie, and overall, this was a satisfying thriller with interesting themes around the undercurrents between close friends
September 10, 2021
Meh.
I was excited to read this since I really enjoyed Lexie Elliott's other two books, but it just didn't do it for me. There was nothing original here, rather it felt like a combination of The French Girl and The Missing Years crammed together into one book.
This book is told from the perspectives of Georgie and Bronwyn, and I honestly have to say I was confused through most of the narrative. There was so little distinction between the voices of these two characters, I kept having to go back and check if it was Georgie or Bronwyn I was reading. It was just a frustrating experience.
Additionally (a really small thing but it bothered me)-the sea serpent thing was weird.
If you're a fan of Elliott's other books definitely give a read and judge for yourself. There are several positive reviews for this one. It just wasn't for me.
I was excited to read this since I really enjoyed Lexie Elliott's other two books, but it just didn't do it for me. There was nothing original here, rather it felt like a combination of The French Girl and The Missing Years crammed together into one book.
This book is told from the perspectives of Georgie and Bronwyn, and I honestly have to say I was confused through most of the narrative. There was so little distinction between the voices of these two characters, I kept having to go back and check if it was Georgie or Bronwyn I was reading. It was just a frustrating experience.
Additionally (a really small thing but it bothered me)-the sea serpent thing was weird.
If you're a fan of Elliott's other books definitely give a read and judge for yourself. There are several positive reviews for this one. It just wasn't for me.
October 23, 2021
Lexie Elliot’s books are always so good! Absolutely loved The French Girl so I was excited to receive an advanced copy of How To Kill Your Best Friend. The synopsis had me intrigued and I jumped straight into it.
I love a good twisty thriller and this one had all the ingredients... a group of close friends, a secluded island resort and a storm heading their way. Georgie and Bronwyn have been friends since college where they were part of the swim team with Lissa. Now they are attending Lissas memorial service at the resort she ran with her second husband. How could a competitive swimmer drown? The 2 friends can’t believe it has happened and start questioning everything, but somebody wants them to stop. Trapped in a wild storm they have to work together to stay alive.
While I did pick a few of the twists in this one it was an enjoyable read that will keep you on the edge of your seat. This is out now. Thank you to Allen and Unwin for my copy of this book to read.
I love a good twisty thriller and this one had all the ingredients... a group of close friends, a secluded island resort and a storm heading their way. Georgie and Bronwyn have been friends since college where they were part of the swim team with Lissa. Now they are attending Lissas memorial service at the resort she ran with her second husband. How could a competitive swimmer drown? The 2 friends can’t believe it has happened and start questioning everything, but somebody wants them to stop. Trapped in a wild storm they have to work together to stay alive.
While I did pick a few of the twists in this one it was an enjoyable read that will keep you on the edge of your seat. This is out now. Thank you to Allen and Unwin for my copy of this book to read.
April 21, 2021
DISCLAIMER: I did not pick up this book because I wanted to kill my (nonexistent) best friend… I promise ;)
4.75/5 :)
Toxic friendships, lies, deaths (and almost-deaths,) this book has it all to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Told from Bron (Bronwyn) and Georgie’s perspective in separate first person pov. I really enjoyed seeing their different opinions and perspective on everyone and everything that has happened and seeing the similarities and differences in their thinking and logic.
I LOVED the different methods of killing your best friend put in there between chapters (not that I’ll ever use them,) and I thought that was a really creative idea and the way it connects with the events in the chapter before or after it was really clever as well. Also finding out who was writing it and why they were doing so adds to the mysteriousness of everything.
I was literally suspecting everyone in the beginning because I had no idea what to believe and who to trust. Although as the story progresses, I wasn’t sure what I was suspecting them of.
The burb said they were trapped on an island. So why did we find out they were (not really) stranded when the book is almost over?? Ok that’s an exaggeration but the blurb was a huge giveaway. And that was a disappointment for me.
Not knowing what would happen next and what danger awaits them in the future kept me intrigued. Some scenes were obviously going to happen, but it’s what happens after and how everything falls into place and (possibly) gets resolved that’s surprising.
But just when I thought everything had ended, something else popped up. And I was definitely not expecting that.
QUOTES COLLECTION 🥺
【IN SHORT; A very intriguing story with dynamic characters.】
02/11/21
━━━━━━━━━━━༻༻❁༺༺━━━━━━━━━━━
POV: you’re Georigie and you just arrived late to your best friend’s funeral wearing black while everyone else is already seated (and staring while you make your “grand entrance”) and all wearing white… feel that second hand embarrassment yet?
━━━━━━━━━━━༻༻❁༺༺━━━━━━━━━━━
Judging from this quote from the very first page, I like this book already :)
02/05/21
4.75/5 :)
The universe takes a perverse joy in making sure our secrets don’t stay secret for long.
Toxic friendships, lies, deaths (and almost-deaths,) this book has it all to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Told from Bron (Bronwyn) and Georgie’s perspective in separate first person pov. I really enjoyed seeing their different opinions and perspective on everyone and everything that has happened and seeing the similarities and differences in their thinking and logic.
We’re talking about killing Lissa here. Specifically, me killing Lissa. Me feeling forced to kill Lissa. Only now she’s already dead.
I LOVED the different methods of killing your best friend put in there between chapters (not that I’ll ever use them,) and I thought that was a really creative idea and the way it connects with the events in the chapter before or after it was really clever as well. Also finding out who was writing it and why they were doing so adds to the mysteriousness of everything.
I was literally suspecting everyone in the beginning because I had no idea what to believe and who to trust. Although as the story progresses, I wasn’t sure what I was suspecting them of.
The burb said they were trapped on an island. So why did we find out they were (not really) stranded when the book is almost over?? Ok that’s an exaggeration but the blurb was a huge giveaway. And that was a disappointment for me.
Not knowing what would happen next and what danger awaits them in the future kept me intrigued. Some scenes were obviously going to happen, but it’s what happens after and how everything falls into place and (possibly) gets resolved that’s surprising.
I fall silent, tears running down my cheeks though I’m not sobbing. I stand in the kitchen, watching her leave. Her back is ramrod straight once again, and she doesn’t look back. She never looks back.
But just when I thought everything had ended, something else popped up. And I was definitely not expecting that.
QUOTES COLLECTION 🥺
【IN SHORT; A very intriguing story with dynamic characters.】
02/11/21
━━━━━━━━━━━༻༻❁༺༺━━━━━━━━━━━
POV: you’re Georigie and you just arrived late to your best friend’s funeral wearing black while everyone else is already seated (and staring while you make your “grand entrance”) and all wearing white… feel that second hand embarrassment yet?
━━━━━━━━━━━༻༻❁༺༺━━━━━━━━━━━
It’s just like they say: it’s not the murder that’s the problem, it’s getting away with it.
No, wait. The murder is a problem too.
Judging from this quote from the very first page, I like this book already :)
02/05/21
September 28, 2021
I really should have known better than to read
How to Kill Your Best Friend.
I read the author's first novel, The French Girl and it bored the gourd out of me.
I didn't read her second book because I wasn't interested in being bored.
However, I liked the title of this book and decided to give it a chance.
Ha! Shows what I know!
The saying should be amended to: Don't judge a book by it's title.
Because this was a total SNOREEE-FEST.
** Minor spoilers ahead: Don't worry - nothing really happens **
This is filled with the author's trademarks; long, long-winded descriptive paragraphs that go on for half a page, unlikable, one dimensional characters, people sleeping around, nothing happening in the first 250 pages minus the cliche tropes of creepy messages, weird noises, an attack....ho hum.
The only good part was the mysterious sea serpent. And it barely made an appearance. I kept waiting for it to gobble up some of these adults behaving badly.
Spoiler alert: it does not.
I skimmed the last 50 pages because....why not? I couldn't get any more bored.
Then, I got to the end and I was proven wrong.
Don't care who did what to whom and why.
I will not be reading the author's next book.
I read the author's first novel, The French Girl and it bored the gourd out of me.
I didn't read her second book because I wasn't interested in being bored.
However, I liked the title of this book and decided to give it a chance.
Ha! Shows what I know!
The saying should be amended to: Don't judge a book by it's title.
Because this was a total SNOREEE-FEST.
** Minor spoilers ahead: Don't worry - nothing really happens **
This is filled with the author's trademarks; long, long-winded descriptive paragraphs that go on for half a page, unlikable, one dimensional characters, people sleeping around, nothing happening in the first 250 pages minus the cliche tropes of creepy messages, weird noises, an attack....ho hum.
The only good part was the mysterious sea serpent. And it barely made an appearance. I kept waiting for it to gobble up some of these adults behaving badly.
Spoiler alert: it does not.
I skimmed the last 50 pages because....why not? I couldn't get any more bored.
Then, I got to the end and I was proven wrong.
Don't care who did what to whom and why.
I will not be reading the author's next book.
August 4, 2021
All of us psychos who spend our free time reading mystery/thriller novels have at least at one point in our lives asked ourselves how easy it would be to kill someone. Is it as easy as the books make out, or would you be caught red-handed in only a couple of days? I really did enjoy the witty short segments of How to Kill Your Best Friend where a mysterious narrator overviews different methods of murder and how effective they are. Sadly, the actual story didn't live up to the short blurbs and I found myself bored at many times.
Definitely feels like it walks the line of being a YA novel and an adult novel at some points, creating a drastic tone difference between some chapters. I appreciated the whodunit aspect and returning some forms of the classic formula but the mystery wasn't engaging enough for me to keep a close note of all the clues and suspicions.
In the end I decided that I wanted more of the snarky anonymous best-friend killer, but you can still find enjoyment out of the murder mystery aspect.
Definitely feels like it walks the line of being a YA novel and an adult novel at some points, creating a drastic tone difference between some chapters. I appreciated the whodunit aspect and returning some forms of the classic formula but the mystery wasn't engaging enough for me to keep a close note of all the clues and suspicions.
In the end I decided that I wanted more of the snarky anonymous best-friend killer, but you can still find enjoyment out of the murder mystery aspect.
April 25, 2021
A very well done story. Well thought out and was a pleasure to read!
I admit it started a bit slow for me, I set the book down a few days. After reading the synopsis again, my attention was drawn back. Once I picked it up again, I found the book at that point to be quickly gaining steam! And to my delight, the story came to have a strong intensity, compelling me to the end and needing to find out the truth. I will definitely be looking for more reads by this author.
*Thank you to Berkley via Edelweiss+ for providing the advance digital reader copy*
I admit it started a bit slow for me, I set the book down a few days. After reading the synopsis again, my attention was drawn back. Once I picked it up again, I found the book at that point to be quickly gaining steam! And to my delight, the story came to have a strong intensity, compelling me to the end and needing to find out the truth. I will definitely be looking for more reads by this author.
*Thank you to Berkley via Edelweiss+ for providing the advance digital reader copy*
February 4, 2022
This book reminded me of the Agatha Christy book and then there were none.
June 15, 2022
What an entertaining and engrossing thriller! The chapters alternate between the main story focused on a group of friends attending a memorial in a tropical high-end resort gone terrifying, and an unknown character analyzing different ways of killing your best friend and how to get a way with it.
This is my second time reading Lexi Elliott (first time was The French Girl, also a mystery involving a group of friends), and I enjoyed the characters and plot of this book so much more.
Many thanks for the e-copy of the book received from a Goodreads giveaway.
This is my second time reading Lexi Elliott (first time was The French Girl, also a mystery involving a group of friends), and I enjoyed the characters and plot of this book so much more.
Many thanks for the e-copy of the book received from a Goodreads giveaway.
June 4, 2021
I received a copy of this title via NetGalley. It does not impact my review.
This is a good example on why you shouldn’t decide to read a book based on the title alone. I thought this would be fun and mysterious, but it was incredibly slow paced and a bit of a chore to get through.
The story is told in alternating points of view between Georgie and Bronwyn, with a few anonymous pages thrown in. The anonymous POV pages describe the various ways in which you might kill your best friend, which I wanted to like, but ultimately found kind of pointless. The chapters from Georgie and Bron weren’t much better. There were tedious amounts of detail and nothing happened for long stretches of time. I predicted pretty much every single twist, except for one surprise right at the end.
Overall, I found How to Kill Your Best Friend disappointing. The very slow pace and unlikable characters kept me from ever getting that invested in the story. I wish there had been more time spent exploring Lissa’s past and her relationships instead of just one or two stories and vague references to her unstable behavior. The only reason I’m giving this two stars instead of one is because it did manage to surprise me once at the end.
Overall Rating (out of 5): 2 Stars
This is a good example on why you shouldn’t decide to read a book based on the title alone. I thought this would be fun and mysterious, but it was incredibly slow paced and a bit of a chore to get through.
The story is told in alternating points of view between Georgie and Bronwyn, with a few anonymous pages thrown in. The anonymous POV pages describe the various ways in which you might kill your best friend, which I wanted to like, but ultimately found kind of pointless. The chapters from Georgie and Bron weren’t much better. There were tedious amounts of detail and nothing happened for long stretches of time. I predicted pretty much every single twist, except for one surprise right at the end.
Overall, I found How to Kill Your Best Friend disappointing. The very slow pace and unlikable characters kept me from ever getting that invested in the story. I wish there had been more time spent exploring Lissa’s past and her relationships instead of just one or two stories and vague references to her unstable behavior. The only reason I’m giving this two stars instead of one is because it did manage to surprise me once at the end.
Overall Rating (out of 5): 2 Stars
August 18, 2021
How could Lissa have drowned?
She was a champion swimmer and knew not to swim in Kanu Cove in the dark, but she is gone.
We meet Georgie and Bronwyn at Lissa’s memorial service, but something is wrong.
Bronwyn received a note on the mirror in her villa that said she was at fault for Lissa’s death, and Georgie received a heavy packet of papers with only the words FOLLOW THE MONEY on every page.
Bronwyn was nervous, and Georgie had no clue what her message meant.
As we spend the days on the resort island, things seem to get more dangerous for everyone, and everyone seems to be acting a little strangely.
Who can anyone trust? Who can we the reader trust as we try to figure out what’s going on?
As you read, your head will be going back and forth between what’s going on, what really happened, and what is up with the characters.
And…to add to the confusion, there is an unidentified person talking about ways to kill someone.
I actually didn’t like the characters so they all were suspects in my mind.
The story line was a little mixed up and slow, but it worked out in the end because of Ms. Elliott’s writing style and creativity. 3/5
This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
She was a champion swimmer and knew not to swim in Kanu Cove in the dark, but she is gone.
We meet Georgie and Bronwyn at Lissa’s memorial service, but something is wrong.
Bronwyn received a note on the mirror in her villa that said she was at fault for Lissa’s death, and Georgie received a heavy packet of papers with only the words FOLLOW THE MONEY on every page.
Bronwyn was nervous, and Georgie had no clue what her message meant.
As we spend the days on the resort island, things seem to get more dangerous for everyone, and everyone seems to be acting a little strangely.
Who can anyone trust? Who can we the reader trust as we try to figure out what’s going on?
As you read, your head will be going back and forth between what’s going on, what really happened, and what is up with the characters.
And…to add to the confusion, there is an unidentified person talking about ways to kill someone.
I actually didn’t like the characters so they all were suspects in my mind.
The story line was a little mixed up and slow, but it worked out in the end because of Ms. Elliott’s writing style and creativity. 3/5
This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
August 30, 2021
I really wanted to love this one, but unfortunately the writing just wasn't for me.
The premise sounded so interesting. A group of friends with deep dark secrets revisiting the island where their best mate died? Count me in! I loved how this book showed the darker side of friendship, and how you accept people despite all their flaws out of loyalty.
However I found myself getting confused at multiple points - both at the plot and the character's bizarre behaviour.
First off, it took a long while before I could work out how the main characters were all linked. Having spoken to other friends who have read this book, I realised I was not alone in this. Sure the main few are friends, but when countless side character names came up I honestly had no clue for a long time how they were related to the core four. It also didn't help that the POVs where both really similarly written.
I also couldn't understand so much of what they did. Why would you want to swim in waters where your friend died? Why does Jem seem to be carrying on totally as normal, like he didn't lose his wife? Why would you not get help for a friend who's clearly severely mentally ill?
Even the final twist which promised to be huge could be seen from early into the book, so sadly this just left me feeling disappointed. I wanted more drama, without the farfetched plot and consistently vague dialogue.
The premise sounded so interesting. A group of friends with deep dark secrets revisiting the island where their best mate died? Count me in! I loved how this book showed the darker side of friendship, and how you accept people despite all their flaws out of loyalty.
However I found myself getting confused at multiple points - both at the plot and the character's bizarre behaviour.
First off, it took a long while before I could work out how the main characters were all linked. Having spoken to other friends who have read this book, I realised I was not alone in this. Sure the main few are friends, but when countless side character names came up I honestly had no clue for a long time how they were related to the core four. It also didn't help that the POVs where both really similarly written.
I also couldn't understand so much of what they did. Why would you want to swim in waters where your friend died? Why does Jem seem to be carrying on totally as normal, like he didn't lose his wife? Why would you not get help for a friend who's clearly severely mentally ill?
Even the final twist which promised to be huge could be seen from early into the book, so sadly this just left me feeling disappointed. I wanted more drama, without the farfetched plot and consistently vague dialogue.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 27, 2021
You know when you see a cover and synopsis and highly anticipate that you are going to love it? Well I did this and to be honest I was left disappointed. Sometimes you can read 5 star reads and then compare it to that and I think thats what happened with my review.
I was just not into the book till at least 3/4 of the way through, I felt it dragged on as in a slow burn.
The thing that frustrated me the most was the constant changing chapters between Georgie and Bronwyn. They were very similar characters so I felt like I just didnt connect with them.
The other part was the sea monster. I was like what the heck? It made no sense and was unbelievable .
Just remember everyone has different opinions of books so I know other people will really like this book. I liked it but I didnt love it.
I was just not into the book till at least 3/4 of the way through, I felt it dragged on as in a slow burn.
The thing that frustrated me the most was the constant changing chapters between Georgie and Bronwyn. They were very similar characters so I felt like I just didnt connect with them.
The other part was the sea monster. I was like what the heck? It made no sense and was unbelievable .
Just remember everyone has different opinions of books so I know other people will really like this book. I liked it but I didnt love it.
September 2, 2021
How to Kill You Best Friend is a compelling thriller full of secrets, suspense, deadly twists and about-turns which asks: what would you do if you suspected your best friend, the person you cared about the most in the world, was a murderer? Would you go up against her? Would you be willing to assist her in keeping her secret? Or would you become frightened? And more importantly, why don't you feel safe now that she's dead and gone? Georgie Ayers, Lissa Kateb, and Bronwyn Miller have been inseparable since dominating their competitive college swim team; swimming has always been an escape from their own problems, but now their shared passion has turned deadly. How can it be true that Lissa, the strongest swimmer they know, drowned 3 months ago? Granted, there is something strange about Kanu Cove, where Lissa was last seen, swimming off the coast of the opulent and luxurious island resort in Southeast Asia she and her husband, Jem, co-owned. Lissa's closest friends gather at the resort to honour and celebrate her short life, but Georgie and Bron can't seem to stop looking over their shoulders. Danger lurks beneath the surface of the crystal-clear water and even their extravagant private villas can't help make them feel safe and secure.
As the weather turns ominous, trapping the funeral guests together on the island, nobody knows who they can trust. The two women soon find themselves questioning the circumstances around Lissa’s death. It now seems as though her passing was only the beginning. This is a complex, intriguing, suspense-laden page-turner that is a character-driven psychological thriller. It delves into the past - the darker, more toxic side of friendship and will have you questioning everything you think you know. It revolves around tangled relationships, shifting perceptions, changing alliances and the memories—and people—that haunt us. Told from the first-person perspectives of Georgie and Bronwyn, this compulsive and wickedly twisty mystery involving a rumoured sea serpent, embezzlement and questions about the suspicious death of Lissa’s first husband, Graeme, who perished during anaphylaxis when he could not locate his EpiPen and devious, murderous games will have you glued to the pages from the very beginning. It's engrossing, unnerving and revelation follows revelation, with the pace increasing as the mysteries pile up, leaving you genuinely shocked at the end. An immersive, riveting and entertaining thriller about the cost of loyalty, growing apart and the unconditional support we often give to friends. Highly recommended.
As the weather turns ominous, trapping the funeral guests together on the island, nobody knows who they can trust. The two women soon find themselves questioning the circumstances around Lissa’s death. It now seems as though her passing was only the beginning. This is a complex, intriguing, suspense-laden page-turner that is a character-driven psychological thriller. It delves into the past - the darker, more toxic side of friendship and will have you questioning everything you think you know. It revolves around tangled relationships, shifting perceptions, changing alliances and the memories—and people—that haunt us. Told from the first-person perspectives of Georgie and Bronwyn, this compulsive and wickedly twisty mystery involving a rumoured sea serpent, embezzlement and questions about the suspicious death of Lissa’s first husband, Graeme, who perished during anaphylaxis when he could not locate his EpiPen and devious, murderous games will have you glued to the pages from the very beginning. It's engrossing, unnerving and revelation follows revelation, with the pace increasing as the mysteries pile up, leaving you genuinely shocked at the end. An immersive, riveting and entertaining thriller about the cost of loyalty, growing apart and the unconditional support we often give to friends. Highly recommended.
August 16, 2021
Enticing title, isn’t it?
As author Lexie Elliott lists ways to kill your best friend and the pros and cons of each, she presents a mystery about university swim team members who reunite at an island resort for the memorial service of a group member who disappeared while swimming at night. After the service, they catch up with each other as they try to understand why a strong swimmer like Lissa would put herself at risk in the open waters near the resort she owned with her husband. Soon the remote location, ominous messages, and their own secrets are exposed, as fellow swimmers Georgie and Bron try to figure out what’s going on before something terrible happens to them.
The story is told through narrators Georgie and Bron, who bring different perspectives and knowledge that gives readers a better idea of what has been happening and why. Georgie is an executive who had distanced herself from the group by moving to New York and avoiding social gatherings with the others. Bronwyn tried to live as an ideal British housewife and mother whose past shows that it could be easier said than done at times.
It’s easy to list some of the classic tropes Elliott uses to tell her tale, but that leaves out the unique flavor she adds with her own twists. The story includes long-kept secrets, toxic relationships, romance, and local folktales to deliver a fun vacation story that deftly ties up loose ends. One jaw-dropping resolution is unexpected yet fits completely within the story presented. It’s an enjoyable journey that’s great vacation reading - well, maybe not if you’re staying at a secluded resort with friends.
Elliott identifies who has been considering killing their best friend and which option could have been a choice for this mystery. But if you’re thinking about killing your own best friend, make sure you read all of the Cons shown for each option. I suggest reading this fun book instead and living vicariously through the characters instead of carrying out your own plot.
As author Lexie Elliott lists ways to kill your best friend and the pros and cons of each, she presents a mystery about university swim team members who reunite at an island resort for the memorial service of a group member who disappeared while swimming at night. After the service, they catch up with each other as they try to understand why a strong swimmer like Lissa would put herself at risk in the open waters near the resort she owned with her husband. Soon the remote location, ominous messages, and their own secrets are exposed, as fellow swimmers Georgie and Bron try to figure out what’s going on before something terrible happens to them.
The story is told through narrators Georgie and Bron, who bring different perspectives and knowledge that gives readers a better idea of what has been happening and why. Georgie is an executive who had distanced herself from the group by moving to New York and avoiding social gatherings with the others. Bronwyn tried to live as an ideal British housewife and mother whose past shows that it could be easier said than done at times.
It’s easy to list some of the classic tropes Elliott uses to tell her tale, but that leaves out the unique flavor she adds with her own twists. The story includes long-kept secrets, toxic relationships, romance, and local folktales to deliver a fun vacation story that deftly ties up loose ends. One jaw-dropping resolution is unexpected yet fits completely within the story presented. It’s an enjoyable journey that’s great vacation reading - well, maybe not if you’re staying at a secluded resort with friends.
Elliott identifies who has been considering killing their best friend and which option could have been a choice for this mystery. But if you’re thinking about killing your own best friend, make sure you read all of the Cons shown for each option. I suggest reading this fun book instead and living vicariously through the characters instead of carrying out your own plot.
September 6, 2021
Georgie, Lissa and Bronwyn were very close friends during their college years. They were known for being on the swim team back then. Lissa had been the best swimmer. So, it’s a shock when they learn she died by drowning at her husband’s island resort.
Georgie and Bronwyn are quite suspicious of the circumstances behind Lissa’s death, but they go to the resort to honor their friend’s passing. They are faced with bad weather and a sinister feeling during their stay on the island. They start to dig around for answers, but all they keep getting are more questions and secrets that are better off staying buried.
For some reason the title and cover made me think this was more chick lit and a light mystery, but that’s not the case. It’s a tense drama that kept me wondering until the end. There were a few slow spots in the middle, but overall it was an engrossing read for me. I didn’t always like the characters but I couldn’t help wondering what was happening. I had no idea who to trust.
The book is told in alternating POVs between Bronwyn and Georgie. I always enjoy alternating POVs as it gives the reader more of an idea of the character's motivation. I think it's a great and interesting technique.
It’s the first book I’ve read by this author. I’ll be checking out her backlist. I do enjoy books that keep you guessing until the end.
FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed a free Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Georgie and Bronwyn are quite suspicious of the circumstances behind Lissa’s death, but they go to the resort to honor their friend’s passing. They are faced with bad weather and a sinister feeling during their stay on the island. They start to dig around for answers, but all they keep getting are more questions and secrets that are better off staying buried.
For some reason the title and cover made me think this was more chick lit and a light mystery, but that’s not the case. It’s a tense drama that kept me wondering until the end. There were a few slow spots in the middle, but overall it was an engrossing read for me. I didn’t always like the characters but I couldn’t help wondering what was happening. I had no idea who to trust.
The book is told in alternating POVs between Bronwyn and Georgie. I always enjoy alternating POVs as it gives the reader more of an idea of the character's motivation. I think it's a great and interesting technique.
It’s the first book I’ve read by this author. I’ll be checking out her backlist. I do enjoy books that keep you guessing until the end.
FTC Disclosure: I voluntarily reviewed a free Advance Reader Copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Want to read
February 16, 2021This title is just perfect!!
When you procrastinate committing murder, you know something's wrong... 🌝
When you procrastinate committing murder, you know something's wrong... 🌝
September 4, 2021
Firstly thank you to First Reads for my advanced copy.
I loved the premise of this book, friends bought together and a mystery slowly unravels.
BUT I honestly was disappointed by the delivery. The pace was slow and events took far too long to occur, the twists were predictable and the ending done by other authors many times.
That being said, the book was well written, the characters relatable and the setting definitely had me craving for a holiday.
I found the swimming references a bit too heavily inserted (and wasn't surprised to find out the author is a swimmer)
Maybe I've been spoilt by reading the "group of friends trapped with a potential killer" genre over and over again, I don't know but this one just lacked something for me.
I did enjoy the little chapter openers about how best to kill your best friend though and maybe if the wit of these had carried through more the book would have been a better read for me.
A solid 3 star read but nothing more.
I loved the premise of this book, friends bought together and a mystery slowly unravels.
BUT I honestly was disappointed by the delivery. The pace was slow and events took far too long to occur, the twists were predictable and the ending done by other authors many times.
That being said, the book was well written, the characters relatable and the setting definitely had me craving for a holiday.
I found the swimming references a bit too heavily inserted (and wasn't surprised to find out the author is a swimmer)
Maybe I've been spoilt by reading the "group of friends trapped with a potential killer" genre over and over again, I don't know but this one just lacked something for me.
I did enjoy the little chapter openers about how best to kill your best friend though and maybe if the wit of these had carried through more the book would have been a better read for me.
A solid 3 star read but nothing more.
November 17, 2021
Review published in: https://diagnosisbookaholic.blogspot....
3,5 ⭐️
This was the second book I read by Lexie Elliott and, although I liked both, I was left with the feeling that they could have been much more.
I was immediately drawn to How to kill your best friend because of the title (not that I plan to kill any friend) and the cover. Look at those colors! Gorgeous!
Lissa, Georgie and Bronwyn have been best friends since they were together in their college swim team. Now, years later, Georgie and Bron are attending the memorial service for Lissa, who drowned in the resort she was running along her husband. She was the strongest swimmer so, how could she drown? Is there any truth in the local myths that say a serpent lives in the waters of Kanu Cove?
The chapters alternate Georgie and Bronwyn’s POV and each chapter opens with an undisclosed narrator trying to choose between different methods to kill their best friend. After all, killing is easy, the problem is getting away with it. Who is talking? Who is the intended victim? These were my favorite parts and I changed my mind several times about who this unknown narrator could be.
All the characters are hiding some secrets and at times it was a bit hard to keep track of who knew what. The pacing was a bit slow for the most part but I found actually preferred that part to the last third, when everything picked up. Some scenes in the water really creeped me out (not a fan of open waters) and just thinking about that creature lurking there gives me chills.
The resolution was not so surprising as it has been done before, and it was a bit drawn. There were a couple of really long chapters towards the end that I found pretty boring. When everything seemed said and done there was a last twist I did not foresee at all.
The atmosphere was really well done and the writing was good, but I could not connect with any of the characters, so that was a bit disappointing.
Thanks to Edelweiss and Berkley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
3,5 ⭐️
This was the second book I read by Lexie Elliott and, although I liked both, I was left with the feeling that they could have been much more.
I was immediately drawn to How to kill your best friend because of the title (not that I plan to kill any friend) and the cover. Look at those colors! Gorgeous!
Lissa, Georgie and Bronwyn have been best friends since they were together in their college swim team. Now, years later, Georgie and Bron are attending the memorial service for Lissa, who drowned in the resort she was running along her husband. She was the strongest swimmer so, how could she drown? Is there any truth in the local myths that say a serpent lives in the waters of Kanu Cove?
The chapters alternate Georgie and Bronwyn’s POV and each chapter opens with an undisclosed narrator trying to choose between different methods to kill their best friend. After all, killing is easy, the problem is getting away with it. Who is talking? Who is the intended victim? These were my favorite parts and I changed my mind several times about who this unknown narrator could be.
All the characters are hiding some secrets and at times it was a bit hard to keep track of who knew what. The pacing was a bit slow for the most part but I found actually preferred that part to the last third, when everything picked up. Some scenes in the water really creeped me out (not a fan of open waters) and just thinking about that creature lurking there gives me chills.
The resolution was not so surprising as it has been done before, and it was a bit drawn. There were a couple of really long chapters towards the end that I found pretty boring. When everything seemed said and done there was a last twist I did not foresee at all.
The atmosphere was really well done and the writing was good, but I could not connect with any of the characters, so that was a bit disappointing.
Thanks to Edelweiss and Berkley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 15, 2021
Ummmm.......
With this title, how could you NOT be intrigued?! Y'all know your partners that see you reading all those thrillers and horror are a little bit afraid of you. 😉 Unfortunately, for me, the story didn't quite work.
Resort, GOOD. Reunion of friends, GOOD. Celebration of life. NICE. And then about a quarter through.... a... monster/serpent in the water? WHAT. I legitimately had no idea what was going on and at that point, couldn't figure out why or what this would mean. But color me intrigued and so I continue to turn the pages. To be quite honest, I didn't like where the serpent part of the story went. I don't think we would've lost anything if it wasn't included. And admittedly, I don't mind suspending reality and you certainly need to with this storyline but I found myself side eyeing a few things along the way. I also figured out the "who" within the early chapters (GO ME!✌) but really wished I had been wrong. Ah well, win some, lose some!
The author does keep you on your toes. Everyone is a suspect and, as always, secrets start to surface and strange things start happening around the resort. The story is fairly slow paced and I found myself wanting more of the snarky narrator who popped in occasionally talking about various ways to kill people.
I think reviews are going to be all over the place with this one, and personally these kinds of books, whether they end up working for me or not, are my favorite... I love seeing which side I'm gonna land on. So, if this book sounds intriguing, don't let this review deter you. Elliott can definitely write and I enjoy her writing style alot.
With this title, how could you NOT be intrigued?! Y'all know your partners that see you reading all those thrillers and horror are a little bit afraid of you. 😉 Unfortunately, for me, the story didn't quite work.
Resort, GOOD. Reunion of friends, GOOD. Celebration of life. NICE. And then about a quarter through.... a... monster/serpent in the water? WHAT. I legitimately had no idea what was going on and at that point, couldn't figure out why or what this would mean. But color me intrigued and so I continue to turn the pages. To be quite honest, I didn't like where the serpent part of the story went. I don't think we would've lost anything if it wasn't included. And admittedly, I don't mind suspending reality and you certainly need to with this storyline but I found myself side eyeing a few things along the way. I also figured out the "who" within the early chapters (GO ME!✌) but really wished I had been wrong. Ah well, win some, lose some!
The author does keep you on your toes. Everyone is a suspect and, as always, secrets start to surface and strange things start happening around the resort. The story is fairly slow paced and I found myself wanting more of the snarky narrator who popped in occasionally talking about various ways to kill people.
I think reviews are going to be all over the place with this one, and personally these kinds of books, whether they end up working for me or not, are my favorite... I love seeing which side I'm gonna land on. So, if this book sounds intriguing, don't let this review deter you. Elliott can definitely write and I enjoy her writing style alot.
October 27, 2021
I had to DNF this one about a third of the way through. Y'all, I have to say this--swimming is boring. There. It's out of me. Here's a book about some friends (swimmers, who met on a swim team and always swim swim swim when they hang out together) and they're at a resort (where people swim!) and one of them died (whilst swimming) and one of them thinks she needs to figure out why, and some of them sleep together but I honestly could not distinguish any of the male characters in the book since they all appear to be white British dudes who are about the same age? No offense to white British dudes who are about the same age but I think the only way to tell them apart really was to remember what position they took in the group's swimming formation, and YOU GUYS I JUST DO NOT LIKE SWIMMING I'M SORRY!
So anyway, I'm sure there's a twist here but I never got to it.
So anyway, I'm sure there's a twist here but I never got to it.
September 11, 2021
"It's not hard to commit murder, is it? It's the getting away with it that's difficult."
2.5 stars rounded up. This is my second book by this author and I'm not sure why, but I just can't seem to connect and love her stories. This is the perfect book for me, I should have been hanging on every word, racing through the chapters. I wish I knew why, but I struggled. I've been stumbling through this one for days - and I'm finally done. I guessed the twist early on so I just had to ride it out. I loved Georgie and the lore of the island. I loved the island setting - and Jem and Adam. I wish I knew what was keeping me from really being pulled in and enjoying the ride.
2.5 stars rounded up. This is my second book by this author and I'm not sure why, but I just can't seem to connect and love her stories. This is the perfect book for me, I should have been hanging on every word, racing through the chapters. I wish I knew why, but I struggled. I've been stumbling through this one for days - and I'm finally done. I guessed the twist early on so I just had to ride it out. I loved Georgie and the lore of the island. I loved the island setting - and Jem and Adam. I wish I knew what was keeping me from really being pulled in and enjoying the ride.
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