Overall a wonderful thriller, with a nice pace throughout; a perfect read especially for this time of year. We know who the murderer is from the beginning, so the only mystery aspect is her motive. Granted, the motive was not very predictable (for me anyway), but I found myself cringing when we did find out the motive. It seemed like a lot of build-up for a mediocre motive reveal. She then meets a new neighbour and instantly dislikes her. She can’t pin point why, but she takes an immediate dislike to Alice.

The Book Club by C.J. Cooper – Melanie’s reads The Book Club by C.J. Cooper – Melanie’s reads

Lucy moved in the village in the Cotswolds some months earlier and is starting to feel she has made friends, with Tom, Maggie, and Rebecca. Then a newcomer moves into the house next door to Lucy. Though she seems pleasant enough there is something about the newcomer Alice that just seems a bit off. But Lucy’s other friends all think she’s fine. Then Alice comes up with the idea of a book club. But each book chosen seems to be relevant in a specific way to one of the members. As they read each book, secrets of people’s lives come to light. Lucy becomes more wary around Alice as time goes on. But what could Alice’s plan be and why?The writing itself was decent, but I found the changing perspectives and the jumping between past and present with no timestamps or clear indication of whose perspective we were getting unnecessarily confusing. None of the characters were particularly likeable, and I found myself not really caring about what happened to any of them. For a group of friends, they were nasty to each other, and they never communicated! I don’t think I have hated a character so much as I have in this book. It was written perfectly and I just couldn’t believe some of the stuff that was being done in the name of revenge. There is mistrust for all the characters and their secrets as soon as you start the book but you can't help but read it as you need to find out more! Alice slides her way into Lucy’s friendship group and soon suggests a weekly book club for the group.

The Book Club By C. J. Cooper | Used | 9781472129673 - Wob The Book Club By C. J. Cooper | Used | 9781472129673 - Wob

Some parts felt quite believable how an outsider can infiltrate a group of friends and cause friction and tension whilst looking quite innocent. Another thing - why Liz? Liz had sort of recognised her, but the way she said it was that she had a vendetta against Liz. It then turns out she doesn't. So why Liz? The fact that Alice was suspected early on dismissed all the ‘C’mon you must know’ and made the ‘proving it’ even betterThis book wasn’t written well at all but had a lot of potential to be great! It dragged on and was really flat, the execution and end was ok otherwise I’d of given a 1.5 (sorry!)