March Reads – Goodreads Challenge Special

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Every year I set myself the Goodreads Reading Challenge, but this winter I decided to go a step further and try to complete some of the extra seasonal challenges, too. It’s the perfect excuse to pick up books that have been sitting on my TBR for far too long, mix up the genres a little, and hopefully discover a few new favourites along the way. For my March Reads, I’ve chosen a mix of contemporary fiction, thrillers, and a couple of hugely popular titles that I've seen recommended for years. Here’s what I’ll be reading to help tick off those winter challenge prompts. Daisy Jones and The Six – Taylor Jenkins Reid Buy on Amazon | Buy on Kobo Blurb Set in the 1970s Los Angeles rock scene, this novel follows the meteoric rise of the fictional band Daisy Jones & The Six. Through a series of interviews, the band members recount their journey from obscurity to global fame—and the dramatic events that led to their sudden breakup at the height of their success. Told in an oral history ...

Book Review: Friend Request by Laura Marshall

Today's review is a thriller set to be released in the UK on 27th July this year. Firstly, as always, thank you to NetGalley for the advance reader copy. Friend Request by Laura Marshall is described as "a pulse-pounding psychological thriller for fans of The Girl on the Train, I See You and The Darkest Secret" (Amazon) and 'A read-it-in-one-sitting thriller... Twisty and gripping but always relatable, Friend Request is the ultimate it-could-happen-to-you read' (Erin Kelly).

I was hooked from the moment I saw the blurb...


Maria wants to be friends.
But Maria is dead.
Isn't she?

When Louise Williams receives a message from someone left long in the past, her heart nearly stops.

Maria Weston wants to be friends on Facebook.

Maria Weston has been missing for over twenty-five years. She was last seen the night of a school leavers' party, and the world believes her to be dead. Particularly Louise, who has lived her adult life with a terrible secret.

As Maria's messages start to escalate, Louise forces herself to reconnect with the old friends she once tried so hard to impress. Trying to piece together exactly what happened that night, she soon discovers there's much she didn't know. The only certainty is that Maria Weston disappeared that night, never to be heard from again - until now. . .

Friend Request is a true 'read in one sitting' novel. Totally unputdownable! I love thrillers of this nature, especially ones that are as unpredictable as this. Guessing the ending of a thriller always disappoints me, but there was not a chance of that happening here. Told through the narrative of the main protagonist Louise, through her current situation and her past, we go on a journey back to high school to try to unpick the events that have lead to that unexpected friend request.

The novel is fresh and current, and as a thirty-something myself, I experienced profound bouts of nostalgia about my own friendship groups in high school. Louise's character really resonated with me, so much so that I often found myself nodding along in agreement with her throughout. It is well written, has great character depth and fantastic structure. The plot is brilliant and kept me guessing until the end.

I am very much looking forward to reading more from Laura Marshall, and I hope that Friend Request goes on to be one of the bestsellers of the summer.

Rachael xo

You can pre-order Friend Request here

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