Girls’ Night Out by Liz Fenton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Out July 24th!
So, I had been hearing about this book everywhere. Tons of people on my various book-related social media groups were raving about Girls’ Night Out. So of course I had to read it too! I must say I’m not in Camp Knocked-It-Out-Of-The-Park. But I am in Camp That-Was-Pretty-Good.
Premise of the book: Natalie, Ashley, and their friend Lauren came to Mexico on a girls vacation, in an attempt to rekindle their dwindling friendships. But, will they be able to overcome their pasts? When a charming local inserts himself in their getaway, all bets are off.
The beginning of the story reminded me of a non-comedy version of The Hangover (minus Bradley Cooper… unfortunate), with Natalie waking up on the beach having no recollection of what happened the night before, only to find that her best friend Ashley is missing.
The book jumps back and forth in time between the days leading up to Ashley’s disappearance and the events after, eventually revealing the happenings of “that night.” Unfortunately, I can’t say any of the events in the book were truly shocking or unexpected. The elements that seemed like they were supposed to be unpredictable seemed extremely obvious, and overall the ending was a bit underwhelming.
But don’t get me wrong. This makes it seem like I didn’t like the book at all, but I did. The story kept me interested despite my lack of surprise, and I felt the panic in the girls as they searched for their friend. The three main characters were relatable (almost gave me a Sex and the City vibe), although they bickered almost the entire length of the story (kind of like that time Miranda told Big he was crazy to get married and Carrie found out… Eek!).
I wish the book hadn’t been so hyped up for me, because I ended up expecting much more in my head than what was delivered. If I had just picked it up off the shelf and read it with no expectations, I probably would have enjoyed it more. But overall, bravo to Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke for putting forth an entertaining read!
-This book was gifted to me in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Liz Fenton, Lisa Steinke, and Lake Union Publishing for giving me the opportunity to review.-
