Bella and Kate. Kate and Bella. From childhood they were bosom friends, Bella sensible and cautious, Kate gregarious and just a little dangerous.
Yet in spite of their intimacy, their trust is fragile. Men came into their lives and things changed: a black seed was set in the heart of their relationship. Over decades, acts of both cruelty and love ferment until one shocking event tests them more than ever. Neither will escape unscathed.
Reminiscent of Elena Ferrante and Sally Rooney, and for readers of Leila Slimani’s The Perfect Nanny and Ashley Audrain’s The Push, The Best Friend explores the darkest corners of female friendship, a place where loyalty and betrayal intersect with deadly consequences.
The Review
THE BEST FRIEND by Jessica Fellowes
Bella and Kate were best friends for life. At times, each other’s only friends. They were each other’s secret keepers and dream weavers and were always there to hold each other up and set each other straight.
But underneath that was the cruel criticism passed as helpful and the never-ending need to have more and be more.
Will insecurities lead to the destruction of their lifetime friendship or will their bond endure?
Only a lifetime will tell.
I don’t think readers will know where to put this book on their shelves.
This book, if you focus in, the book is written in an almost romantic style. I’m not talking about the genre or even structure. (Someone else can talk about the missing quotation marks) I’m speaking more about the turn of phrases and the word choices. There are many ways to say the same thing and this author appreciates the way things are said not just what is said.
Having said that, when you step back and look at the macro view I feel like there are some misfires that led to an overall confusing reading experience.
There is a wishy-washy quality to a specific and very integral piece of the storyline that drug on for a while and although it was wrapped up it felt like it was done poorly.
If it were marketed as literary fiction it would have been surprising but as a thriller, it was mediocre at best and unfortunately just a lot like the others.
THE BEST FRIEND…⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copies!
This one comes out next month September 13, 2022
