He loves me. He trusts me. He shouldn’t.
Jay and I have only known each other a short while, but whenever I gaze into his deep green eyes I tell him he’s the one. His little house by the deep forest’s edge is perfect for the two of us – there’s no internet, no phone signal, and no neighbours. I’m about as far from my past as I could be. No one knows where we are, and I need to keep it that way.
He wants me to stay here where he can keep me safe from the outside world. I don’t question him, I won’t challenge him. I have him exactly where I want him. He has to think I’m the perfect girlfriend, far better than the one before. Because I know what he did.
All I have to do now is play my part and bide my time. So I tell myself Jay doesn’t have a clue who I really am. I’ve been so careful. Haven’t I?
A completely addictive psychological thriller packed with incredible twists you won’t see coming. Perfect for fans of The Housemaid, The Split, and The Serial Killer’s Wife.
Hayley Smith is married with three children and lives in a north Derbyshire village. She has worked as a graphic designer, youth worker and musician, and has been involved for many years in organising music festivals and gigs. She studied English Language and Creative Writing with the Open University and is an avid reader of psychological fiction. Having a penchant for all things alternative, she often dips into the counter-culture scene for writing inspiration, producing quirky rough-edged characters and dark, unpredictable twists, turns and moral dilemmas.
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My thoughts: this was very clever, it took me a while to work out what was going on and which characters to be wary of. Lauren is an unreliable narrator, there are lost moments and she doesn’t explain everything, even to herself (and by extension, the reader) so it took me a little chunk of the book to trust her. And odd things would throw me, her relationship with her sister, her mentions of Martin, her parents. What had gone on there? Slowly it’s all revealed, why she happily moved in with Jay after only knowing him a few weeks, the strange interludes, the reason she’s so cautious around his friends.
This is a story with lots of layers, carefully peeled away as it goes on, as Lauren decorates the cottage and as she follows Jay around town, digging into his secrets.
It’s very well done, clever and compelling. There’s an air of menace, especially when Lauren provokes Jay and tries to get to the truth a bit too hard. The rustic cottage in the woods might not be a haven if she’s not careful.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 
Wow, “The Perfect Girlfriend” sounds like a gripping psychological thriller! The secluded setting adds an intriguing element. Do you think Jay suspects anything about the protagonist’s past? How far would you go to keep a secret from someone you love? Are you a fan of thrillers with unexpected twists?
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