The New Girl

by Ingrid Alexandra

You’ve only just met.

But she already knows you so well.

When Rachel moves into the spare room in Mary’s flat in Sydney, everyone is quick to jump to the conclusion that there’s something strange about her. Everyone apart from Mary.

And when Rachel starts sleepwalking, the flatmates’ fears grow. But there’s something about the new girl that Mary can’t help but trust, and having recently escaped a toxic relationship, she needs the support.

Rachel becomes a friend and an ally, and Mary soon discovers that they have more in common than she ever could have imagined.

In fact, Rachel seems to know more about Mary than she knows about herself…

A twisty and unnerving psychological thriller, perfect for fans of Erin Kelly’s He Said, She Said and Laura Marshall’s Friend Request.

Genres: Thriller, Psychological Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Crime, Suspense

352 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 16, 2018

About the author

Ingrid Alexandra is based in London. She was mentored by the Guardian First Novel Award shortlisted and Nestle Prize winning author Daren King and her work has previously been long-listed for The Ampersand Prize.
THE NEW GIRL is her first psychological thriller novel.

Reviews

[Kylie D · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gripping thriller that sees our protagonist Mary on the run from an abusive relationship and living in a shared flat on Sydney's Northern Beaches.

Mary's parents disappeared when she was 15 years old and she soon found herself living with Mark, a man much older than herself, in Melbourne. The relationship, however, is toxic. Mary is often mentally abused, sometimes physically, and as a mechanism to cope turns to drink and drugs and often suffers from blackouts. Then one night Mary awakes with little memory of a party she and Mark attended, covered in blood and with just vague flashbacks of Mark holding a bloody brick. She goes on the run to Sydney, determined to get her life together and put Mark behind her forever.

Going to Sydney with her is her best friend Cat, and they soon move into a 4 bedroom apartment on the beach with a guy named Ben. To make ends meet the three advertise the 4th bedroom and a troubled girl, Rachel, moves in with them. Mary and Rachel soon click, sharing similar backgrounds, but soon it becomes clear that all is not as it seems, as Rachel knows more about Mary and what she's been through than she should.

Mary can't seem to get it together though. She's drinking excessively and still wakes up with no memories as to what she's been doing. She starts to get flashes of memory from the fateful party in Melbourne and struggles to put together the whole story. Rachel steps in to try to help her remember, and Mary tries to figure out who she can trust, when she can't even trust herself. What really happened that night? Is someone withholding secrets from her? And where does Rachel fit into the picture?

I raced through this book, trying to find answers and I must say I got Rachel's character totally wrong! An excellent thriller, riveting, chilling at times, and thoroughly entertaining. Recommended for all lovers of psychological fiction.

My thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Melissa (Mel’s Bookshelf) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars
She may live in the UK now, but we will still claim her as our own! Sydney's own Ingrid Alexandra is making a big name for herself as a best-selling thriller author, as her debut novel hits stores here is Australia next month! Out now in the UK, it is a complex, chilling and crazily-twisted read that I devoured in one sitting - glued to my chair!

Mary and her best friend Cat move from Melbourne to Sydney after Mary leaves an abusive relationship. They live in an eastern Sydney apartment by the beach with a flatmate, however they need extra funds and a new housemate so Rachel soon moves in. Everyone thinks there is something odd about her and Mary is the only one who really connects with her. But Rachel seems to know a lot about Mary. More than she should. What exactly is it that she is hiding?

I thought this was a great read! Twisted and chilling, it was impossible for me to put down! 

The writing was excellent! Gradually, small parts of information became clear as you went along, which built up some awesome tension, and it had some MAJOR twists and turns.

The characters were all really well imagined. You couldn't know who to trust, who was playing or being played. I love books that do that! No character was reliable and it left it open for anything to happen! There was drama, action, so many psychological twists and turns, and even a little romance!

The only problem I had was that the ending was a little TOO twisted. A little too out there. But I still enjoyed it. Those twists and turns, Man! They were something!

Would I recommend The New Girl?
Absolutely! Thriller fans will eat this one up. It was REALLY well imagined and well written and I have no doubt that we will be seeing much more from this talented Aussie author in the future!

*Thanks to Avon books and the author via Netgalley for a copy of The New Girl in exchange for my honest review.

For more reviews check out my
Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram

[Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, this one just didn't do it for me. Between timelines that didn't always make sense, unbelievable behaviour from certain characters, and an overwhelming desire to slap some sense into Mary, the main character, I struggled to enjoy this one.

I appreciated the quick, short chapters -- those are my favourite in a thriller novel and often help to keep things from being too convoluted for me. Unfortunately, though, I was still confused far too much of the time while reading this. I get that the reader is supposed to be disoriented to a point -- that's the main appeal to having an unreliable narrator -- but in this case it was just too much. I spent a lot of time flipping back through the pages thinking I must have missed something or misunderstood certain timelines.

I was really frustrated with some aspects that seemed contradictory in the story. Things like the fact that Mary and her friend were so afraid for Mary's safety after she left an abusive relationship that they moved cities to escape Mary's evil ex, but both of them kept their Facebook accounts active and updated (they just, you know, unfriended evil ex-bf).



As much as I rolled my eyes or spent time flipping back to see what was going on, I still found the writing style to be compelling enough and the plot interesting enough that I wanted to see how things turned out. So definitely not a good choice for me, but maybe a fun thriller for those who don't mind having to really suspend their disbelief and are ok with confusing timelines.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books UK for providing me with a DRC of this book.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5 stars. I'm addicted to psychological thrillers. The blurbs always draw me in, and they promise so much intrigue and creepiness and tempt me with secrets that I suddenly *must* know the answers to. Sometimes they live up to my expectations, but often I feel less than satisfied at the end, kind of like I've just eaten too much junk food. This was was decidedly on the junk food side for me. I was sucked in at first, but then it went downhill and I was skimming most of the second half. The ending was bonkers in a way that's sort of par for the course of you've read a lot of these books. So, this one was not for me, and I wouldn't really recommend it--but if you are a committed lover of psychological thrillers you might get more out of it than I did.

*I received a free pre-release copy of this ebook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Dash fan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3☆ Friendships and Trust

The New Girl is a thriller that makes you think about trusting new people and inviting them into your home.

Mary and Cat share a house together but they decide they need to get another lodger to help pay the rent.
In walks Rachel. She seems to be the perfect housemate. But Cat just feels that something isn't quiet right about her.
But is it just jealousy as Mary is her best friend and the saying goes.... two's company Threes a crowd! Or is it something more?

I had mixed feelings with this book.
At times I felt the plot was a little confusing and disjointed as the story jumped about a fair bit. There was plenty of twists.

The characters wasn't particularly likeable but I think that was the point you wasn't meant to.
There are some sensitive subjects which some readers may find difficult such as relationship abuse and mental health.

Overal The New Girl is a good read with good dose of twists. It just wasn't my usual suspenseful gritty dark thriller/mystery I usually read.


Thank you to Avon books for this copy which I reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

My Review is also on my Blog Website :-

https://dashfan81.blogspot.com/2018/0...

[Sarah Joint · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another "Girl" title with a mystery and female lead characters. There are fresh plot devices here, and it did end up surprising me. I was just a little confused about how it got to it's far-fetched conclusion, but I did enjoy reading it. I liked that it was set in Australia, it was a pleasant surprise. The beachy, warm-for-Christmas setting was exciting to me, because it's definitely the opposite of what I'm used to.

Mary is happy to share a flat with her best friend Cat and a friendly man named Ben, but they need another roommate. In comes Rachel, beautiful and kind but secretive and damaged. Mary immediately feels a connection with the other woman, but her friend Cat doesn't seem so thrilled with the new addition. Mary still feels a connection with her, even though she is a bit strange. Before long, Rachel is sleepwalking... further freaking out her roommates. Except for Mary.

The characters are all adults but very young, and make the common mistakes and lapses in judgement a lot of us make in our very early twenties. They are interesting to read about, and there's lots of twists in this story. At times it was really far-fetched, but it kept my attention. I won't give too much away in my review, especially because I've already seen a few with some spoilers. If the synopsis sounds interesting and you aren't put off by the "Girl", give it a shot.

I received a copy of this book from Net Galley and Avon Books UK, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

[ReadAlongWithSue ★⋆. ࿐࿔catching up · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75

There are references to abuse and mental health in this which may be triggers for some, however they do relate very much to the start. The story is a good one and the plot is very good.

The characters were well developed.

Sharing a home with someone isn’t always easy, even if they are family or friends.

In this instant these two need to be together in order to have affordable rent. Mary is odd though, the reader can sense this themselves although it’s not us living with her!

It’s a fascinating plot that was good and held my attention .

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked up this book had no idea that it was set in Sydney and Melbourne so that was a nice surprise. This book was a very addictive and fast read, I was hooked straight away. A great new author to look out for

There is a lot happening in this story. Mary and her best friend Cat have moved to Sydney from Melbourne after Mary's end to a toxic relationship. It is her chance to start afresh but her anxiety is hindering her. When Rachel moves in Cat and her other friends think that she is a bit weird bu Mary finds a friend in her and starts to confide. The ending was definitely one that I did not see coming at all..

Thanks to Avon Books UK and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to read. All opinions are my own and are in no way biased

[Erica⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mary has had a tough few years. Her beloved parents vanished mysteriously when Mary was fifteen, and at seventeen, rudderless, vulnerable and still stricken with grief, she began a doomed relationship with a man ten years her senior. Mark drew Mary in with his compliments and charisma, but he soon became controlling and abusive, and his drinking and drug habits became habits of Mary’s too.

It was three hellish years before Mary felt brave enough to leave. One spring night, she finally packed her bags and crept out of the house, and weeks later found herself moving to Sydney with her best friend Cat, who was determined to give Mary a fresh start away from Melbourne and away from Mark.

Settling into her new life in Sydney, Mary is trying hard to move on. As advised by her therapist, she’s started keeping a diary and she’s drinking less. But despite her best efforts, Mary is still having nightmares about Mark, and disturbing flashbacks to a party they’d attended just before she left. Mary had been out of her mind on drugs and the night is mostly a blur, but she remembers blood on her clothes and on Mark’s – and she knows a man had been killed at that party, the murderer never found.

In a near-constant state of anxiety, Mary isn’t really thinking about making new friends, but everything changes when a new flat-mate moves in. Cat says from the start that there’s something strange about Rachel, but Mary finds a friend in the new girl. She and Rachel have so much in common – they’ve both escaped abusive relationships, for one thing – and the two girls soon grow close, with Mary confiding in Rachel secrets and thoughts she’s not even shared with Cat.

But as they grow closer, Mary realises that Rachel knows an awful lot about her – more, in fact, than Mary knows about herself. Is Rachel who she seems? Could she be connected, somehow, to Mary’s past, and can she truly be trusted? And how can Mary even trust herself, when she can’t seem to piece together the truth about that fateful night at the party?

Mary struggles to remember what really happened on the night of the party, and the random flashes of memory that strike when she’s least expecting them, this thriller is also a deeply absorbing exploration of the human mind, and the extent it will go to to protect us from pain and trauma.

Mary is a multi-layered and fascinating character, and her journal entries, interspersed throughout the novel, provide you with a deep and compelling insight into her thoughts, her worries and the traumatic experiences of her past.

[Hayley Richardson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Painfully predictable from the first chapter, this was a slow read because I just didn’t want to pick it up, however I refuse to leave a book unread. Nothing was new or surprising, genuinely one of the least favourite books I’ve read this year.

[Bandit · Rating 3 out of 5]

New Girl for a new month. A psychological thriller with female leads and the word Girl in the title. Now there’s something not even remotely original. But then again it’s what sells and here’s yet another author jumping on that ever so popular and frankly overpopulated bandwagon with her debut. The main plot driver is that the narrator is wildly unreliable and possibly quite bonkers, although just to what extend you’ll find out in the end. Or, if you’ve read this sort of thing before and/or possess even slight powers of deduction, pretty early in the game. The main protagonists here are all obscenely young, something like 20, just out of their teens enough to have this not be YA, but not mature enough yet to not make the stupidest mistakes and seriously terrible personal choices. And roommating situations especially seem to be something that positively reeks of youth, not too many adults would conceive of sharing their living space and essentially their life with a complete stranger. Hasn’t anyone seen Single White Female at least? Anyway, here’s a story about some roommates with a twist, sort of kind of. For all its faults it’s actually very readable, the snack food of literature if you will, and reasonably entertaining. It doesn’t particularly challenge the readers, but doesn’t really insult their intelligence either. Clocking in at exactly 180 minutes it was a perfectly adequate way to spend a morning and just barely satisfy a mystery thriller craving. And it’s Australian, so should technically count for international reading, although the location, outside of topsy turvy weather, doesn’t really that much of a difference in this case. Thanks Netgalley.

[Lee at ReadWriteWish · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good but at times it was somewhat confusing and, as a consequence, I’m confused as to how I feel about it.

I’ll start with the confusing blurb. I don’t think the book's blurb, nor its title now that I come to think about it, really represents the book’s content and plot. I was expecting a Single White Female type thriller but the new girl moving in and acting creepy is more of a sub plot. To be perfectly honest I think the book would have worked a hell of a lot better without the Rachel character altogether. 

The mystery plot was more to do with our lead, Mary, blocking out a lot of her memories. She starts to remember bits and pieces and realises she and her abusive ex boyfriend might know a little too much about the murder of a young man at a party. There is also the mystery of why she has such gaps in her memory and the mystery of her parents disappearance a few years earlier. 

The next thing I’ll mention that was confusing was the journal entries which are scattered throughout the book. They were really unnecessary and I didn’t think they added anything to the characterisation or plot. If anything, they bugged me immensely and caused confusion of the timeline. If Alexandra’s idea with the journal entries was to disorient the reader along with Mary, she succeeded.

Number three confusing award goes to every character in the book’s level of substance abuse. Mary downs drugs (illicit and prescription) and alcohol like they’re going out of fashion. But she’s not the only one. Everyone drinks copious amounts of alcohol. And even with the apparent gaps of memory that Mary can’t account for, and the drugs she’s been prescribed, no one seems to be dissuading her from her drinking habit at all. This is confusing.

The actual ending of the book was confusing. Not that I didn’t understand it but that it was written so confusingly. There’s an info dump (always an automatic mark down with me). There was a couple of twists, one which was glaringly obvious, but a couple which I didn’t see coming at all. And, I don’t know… Just the way it was all presented seemed really confusing and wrong. I think I again put it down to Rachel’s involvement. 

If I was editing the book I would have advised to dump Rachel and the journals and have Mary trying to solve the mysteries using alternate methods. It could have easily been done. Scenes from the point of view of Mary's best friend, Mary's ex, and Mary's potential new boyfriend could have been used instead.

It’s a shame because, as I said, there are some good things about this book. I know I loved the way Alexandra wrote tension in the ordinary. I mean, at one stage I was anxious over a magpie! 

I also liked the short chapters. The story moved along nicely for around 3/4's. It only became bogged down from the climactic scene (around the 75%) mark onwards. Also I must admit the climactic scene was pretty good.

And, as I said, there were some good twists. For most of the book I had no idea who was up to no good and why. Again, this might be why I’m so confused as to the ending which really didn’t do the rest of the book justice.

I think I'll settle on a 3 out of 5 

[Amanda - Mrs B's Book Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com

The New Girl is the debut novel from Sydney based author Ingrid Alexandra and the second novel I have enjoyed by this writer. The New Girl is a book filled with conjecture, trust issues, unpredictability and overwhelming tension. I consumed this one in just a few hours, as I was eager to reach the climax of this compelling psychological thriller.

The characters of The New Girl are deliciously complex with troubled backgrounds. When Rachel moves into Mary’s flat she is considered rather odd and hard to understand. Rachel’s shady background is further compounded by her sleeping episodes. Mary, her flat mate, is less judgmental of Rachel as she knows how it feels to be misunderstood. Despite the fear and anxiety that plagues her following an abusive relationship, Mary decides to place her trust in Rachel. As the support and friendship from Rachel flourishes, Mary realises that she has a natural connection to Rachel. Despite their initial differences Mary is nervous and apprehensive about the common ground they share. Why is this new girl so very similar to Mary?

For those who enjoy psychological thrillers The New Girl will appeal. This is my second outing with author Ingrid Alexandra, which directly followed Across the Water, Alexandra’s latest release. With a great deal of praise attached to the debut novel by this Sydney based author, I was keen to delve into the pages of The New Girl. It definitely delivered in the twist department.

The New Girl is formatted via a first person perspective and the narrative flips between the past and the present. We are also based in two of Australia’s key locations, Sydney and Melbourne. I enjoyed the fact that this psychological thriller was set on home soil. The form of narration adopted by Alexandra is layered, complex and unreliable. We know from the trauma which is gradually revealed as this story progresses that the central character has been plagued by issues of abuse and mental illness. It is clear that the lead has experienced a great deal of setbacks and pain. As a result we witness memory blocks, flashbacks and murky images from the past. It is hard to determine what is the truth and the reader is able to play an active role in deciphering these mixed signals.

Alexandra’s characters are carefully realised and well imagined. With the focus being on Mary’s narration, the reader soon is suspicious of this unreliable narrator. Themes of abuse, domestic issues, loss, difficult relationships, family strains, anxiety, confusion, truth, lies, stress, tension and paranoia surround the characters of The New Girl. The New Girl is a book that really makes you guess, second guess and even triple guess the characters of this tale. I appreciated the rich focus on the psychology of the mind in regards to the impact of traumatic events dictating personal responses. Alexandra presents some well masked characters, with plenty of secrets and interesting aspects of their lives to unpick. It was a fantastic journey to the end of The New Girl and I do admit to re-reading the finale, as I was completely taken aback!

A novel that you can consume in one swift gulp, The New Girl by Ingrid Alexandra offers up plenty of tension, suspense, drama, dubious events, untrustworthy characters and a solid interrogation of the reliability of the human mind when placed under duress. Boost your thriller pile with this debut from Ingrid Alexandra.

The New Girl is book #133 of the 2020 Australian Women Writers Challenge

[Shirley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The New Girl started of really well, it was quite a gripping read at times but towards the end it sort of lost the way and got quite confusing.

[Elaine · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for a Kindle arc of The New Girl.

I need to make better choices in my life, starting with the books I choose on NetGalley.

The New Girl suffers from many debut errors, namely ridiculous avalanche of crap going on that the reader is unable to suspend disbelief for.

** Minor spoilers ahead **

The premise is not original:

Mary and her BFF Cat and roomie, Ben, are looking for a new roommate. In walks Rachel. She and Mary hit it off because they are both from similar backgrounds.

Mary is trying to get her life back together after escaping from an abusive boyfriend. Rachel's presence seems to help except she seems to know an awful lot about Mary. Why?

The why is actually silly and dumb.

The rest is just plain ridiculous.

Mary is a P.I.T.A. No, its not her fault. Its the author's fault. Naturally, she is an unreliable narrator, and an alcoholic. Actually, everyone in the book drinks to excess. Is this what millennials do?

I don't know what's worse, starting almost every chapter with Mary waking up from a nightmare or sensing something in the dark or describing Mary as a twit.

There are multiple subplots running through this contrived plot; the death of Mary's parents, her abusive boyfriend, the murder he may or may not have committed, Mary's intent to seek justice for a dead man, her muddied thoughts about her past and future.

And Rachel. Sigh.

Rachel is neither diabolical or a twisted, witty villain. She's just a sad, jealous little snowflake.

Boooo, not booo-urns.

The ending ends with a death, and a final showdown between Rachel and Mary, with the former spouting expositional detail to explain how it all went down.

Then, POW! readers are told the shocking twist, non-twist about Mary, which I figured out. The good ol' Sybil defense, which is not a twist, its lazy.

The only person who used a variation of this subterfuge to decent effect was the late, but always great Ms. V.C. Andrews in My Sweet Audrina.

Its as if the author kept thinking of various obstacles to throw in Mary's path and decided, 'What the heck? I'll just throw in the whole kitchen sink."

There are no interesting or redeeming characters to root for; nothing original or fascinating about the premise; it is neither dark or darkly comedic, or suspenseful or the slightest bit thrilling.

Oh, wait, there was one good thing about this book: short chapters.

[Julie Parks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Instead of a review because it's impossible to describe how I felt about the book without giving anything of the plot away, I wanted to say this:(minus the dog in the picture)

I think this for me takes the cake of all the books that completely throw you off what's coming from their synopsis. To say this was nothing I'd expected would be an understatement.

It felt like a pyramid of twists build (as in written) only to be continuously explained throughout the book. And that is to say, my mind hurt trying to follow as opposed to enjoying a thrilling read.

Also, it's hard to describe this story not using the words disturbing, far-fetched and misleading. I could translate that misleading to boring if I had a bad day.

In the end, I don't know how I feel about the reveal or even the plot itself, it's just SO NOT the roommate mystery I'd expected. And, sadly, it reads more or less chick-lit style whenever any dialogue comes in.

That cover really lured me in this time!

Thank you Netgalley for the copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Caitlyn Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

This story is based around Mary; she flees to a new city with her childhood best friend after escaping the hands of her abusive boyfriend.
When they start a search for a new roommate, Rachel comes along. Mary seems to have a fast connection with the “new girl” Rachel. But Mary’s best friend begins to worry about this new closeness.
Deception lurks at every turn and we are gifted with another unreliable narrator.
My interest was piqued from the beginning but quickly waned. If this book wasn’t so short I would have stopped reading and looking back, I wish I had. The whole story seemed disjointed and the big twist was mediocre. There wasn’t enough depth to any character to get fully invested in any of them. This book just wasn’t for me.
Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5 Hmm... this may be the book that represents the straw that broke the camel's back. I've read so many psychological thrillers with far too many of them containing the word "Girl" in the title. Therefore, if you're going to put yourself out there and follow that trend, you need to have an original idea- or at least make your book exciting and fun to read. In this, I got neither. Sorry to be so harsh.

[Erin Alessandrini · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Net Galley and Publisher for this ARC!

The New Girl just didn't cut it for me. As an avid reader and lover of psychological suspense and thrillers, this fell short of my expectations. I found the characters very unlikable, and not even to the point where you can deal with it. Too drawn out.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this book a new girl name Rachel moves into a spare bedroom of the flat when Mary lives. This new girl seems strange and everyone is weary of her, except for Mary. This new girl Rachel seems to have a lot of things in common with Mary  where they grew up, etc and Rachel seems to know quite a lot about Mary. Is this strange? How does this new girl know so much about Mary?

This book for me started off a bit slow but began to pick up the pace. It was interesting to read all of the twists and turns in the book, as the story unfolded and began to answer some of the questions that keep you guessing. A great psychological thriller and it has a great twist near the end, which quite what I had expected which I really enjoyed.

Exploring the depths the human mind will go to, to protect you from trauma, betrayal, and hurt. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon Books UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Liz Barnsley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The New Girl is a pacy, highly readable psychological thriller, that takes on all the most popular tropes of the genre and mixes them up into an addictive unpredictable read.

Mary has left her abuser behind and is trying to make a new life for herself with the help of her best friend. However a new flat mate and haunting memory issues seem sure to thwart her.

I enjoyed The New Girl very much, apart from the fact that it involved one of my most hated cliches- that of an unreliable narrator who drinks and pops pills thereby making them unreliable. It really has been done to death and every time Mary swigged from her wine glass I growled to myself. Having said that, Ingrid Alexander manages to bring enough differences to that theme to make it more impacting, building the peripheral characters around it to create an excellent mystery element.

Overall The New Girl does exactly what it says on the tin- gives you a creative thriller that makes you second guess yourself up until the truth is revealed. So if that's what you love, you'll love this.

Personally I'd like to see less alcohol and more creativity in these things but that is subjective and I still banged through the novel in two quick sittings, this is a genuine page turner.

Recommended for fans of the genre.

[Anissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one gets points for completely surprising me in the end. Wow and also whoa. I will not spoil this one but I will say that there are unreliable narrators (and I love them) but this story doubled down on that and flipped that upside down. I was stressed out for Mary throughout most of the story. I liked it but part of me was giving the side-eye at the end wondering if the author had just pulled the resolution out of a bag of crazy just because she could. This took many turns and kept me turning pages like a fiend so it was very good in that respect. I also give the story credit for tackling some very serious issues. I appreciated that tonally and think the author's skill shone quite well there.

Recommended and I'd definitely read another by the author.

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Docela hustá knížka, vlastně dost depresivní, ale zajímavá. Je to něco jinýho než normálně čtu. Líbilo se mi, že kniha plynule šla dál, takže jsem se nenudila, taky mě potěšilo, že i když hlavní postava má poškozenou paměť, je to na konci smysluplně odůvodněno. Vlastně nevim, proč tomu nedám plný hodnocení, asi protože jsem po dočtení nebyla sad, že příběh skončil.

PS: já vim, že to bylo na knižní štafetu, ale seženu nějakou jinou knihu, slibuju🙏🙏

[Jenn Adams · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just "okay." Most of the time I thought that Mary/Rachel were the same person, like a split personality type of thing. That ended up not exactly being the case. The journal to present tense writing kept the pace of the novel moving nicely, but I didn't feel like everything aligned; some things were mentioned in the journal that were going on at the same as the present tense, so it got confusing. I found the end to be extremely rushed, which was disappointing because Mary's personality was finally just revealed, which was a huge plot twist! The author should've spent more time on the ending and not rushed it so much.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

*thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins Australia and Ingrid Alexandra for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

3 stars.

For the most part this was a good story. It had enough mystery and thrills to keep me interested. I felt the ending wasn't a huge revelation but I think that is because for me this book got rather personal. I have a lot in common with two of the characters in this so by half way through I'd already guessed one of the big twists that was revealed to readers by the end. It also for that reason, made it a hard read in parts. I tried to put that aside though when thinking about how to rate this. It was a good story. I didn't find it boring and with all books in this genre, I ask myself one question. Does it keep me guessing? And yes, again, for the most part it does. I feel that if I didn't have the personal connections to this then I probably wouldn't have figured out parts of it prematurely. Looking at this from the perspective that if I didn't work things out, I would have been questing right until the end and would have been surprised by it.

I liked all the characters. I did doubt them all at times and that's what makes me like this book. The not knowing what is really going to happen with each character and who is being honest or a fake. Having all the pieces fallen into place at the end, again for me was predictable, but I still enjoyed reading it and having the author write it all the way she did. I wasn't disappointed with this and I would recommend it. It's not a huge intense thriller but it's still worth reading.

[Kirsty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Granted, I only read the first 5% of Ingrid Alexandra's The New Girl, but what I did read I found utterly banal, both in terms of its writing and characters. The first chapter did not pull me in at all, and neither did the prologue; both are things which I expect when reading a psychological thriller. The plot sounded promising enough, but I wasn't willing to struggle through.

[Steve · Rating 1 out of 5]

Afraid to say this wasnt my bag at all.

Got to about a third of the way through and skipped to the last chapter just to see how it ended.

Too slow moving for me and found myself having to keep going back to remind myself what had happened.

[Kelda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brilliant. Did not guess the ending. Very enjoyable to read.

[Cassie’s Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was quite different the whole time your reading it your wondering what’s the truth.. Mary’s parents disappeared when she was 15 years old. She’s soon found herself living with Mark. Mark was quite older than Mary they live in Melbourne. The whole relationship is toxic full of alcohol and drugs and Mark physically and psychologically abusing Mary. Mary suffers from blackouts after all the abuse. One night Mary after a hard night of partying with Mark, she wakes up with little memory of the party she’s covered in blood and with just vague flashbacks of Mark holding a bloody brick. She packs up her things the next day after Mark passes out and she runs back to Sydney to her Aunt she’s determined to get her life back on track away from Mark. Mary’s friend offers a refuge after Mark shows up at Mary’s aunts house banging on the door and threatening her. She decides to move to Sydney with her best friend Cat to a 4 bedroom apartment on beach with a guy named Ben . To makes ends meet they advertise the 4th bedroom, and a troubled girl Rachel moves in with them. Mary and Rachel click sharing similar backgrounds with abuse. Soon it becomes very clear that all is not what it seems with Rachel. Rachel seems to know more about Mary and what she’s been though than she should, to makes matter worse Rachel sleep walks and tries to attack Mary. Mary is drinking and excessively and still wakes up with no memories from the fateful party in Melbourne and struggles to put together the whole story. Rachel steps in to try to help her remember as Mary tries to figure out who she can trust when she can’t trust herself and where does Rachel fit in all of this... I finished this book in a day! I just wanted to know what Mary’s story was and who was hiding things from her! I recommend to any readers who love psychological fiction. Thanks to netgalley for my advanced copy! This book

[Lonnie · Rating 1 out of 5]

As someone who has Dissociative identity disorder, I am tired of the presumption that everyone with this disorder (or one of their alters) has killed someone or done something dreadful and can't remember.
D.I.D is activated as a defence mechanism to protect against severe chronic psychological and/or sexual trauma that has been done to a person as a child. The trauma is done TO the person with D.I.D, not done BY them. It seems that in films and books it is used in a dramatic and unrealistic way to get away with crimes and murder.
There is so much stigma attached to this disorder already, I wish people would understand that it is a terribly confusing and isolating mental health problem that requires extensive treatment and support, not something to be used as entertainment. If you are going to use D.I.D in a book at least treat it respectfully and portray it in an authentic way.

https://www.sane.org/the-sane-blog/my...

Research undertaken by the University of Melbourne found that ‘pervasive negative portrayals can have harmful effects, perpetuating the stigma associated with mental illness and reducing the likelihood that those with mental illness will seek help.’

And when it comes to DID, movies and TV rarely provide an accurate portrayal. Symptoms are frequently sensationalised, exaggerated or just plain wrong.

Movies and TV shows that misrepresent DID spread inaccurate information about a real illness and stigmatise the people living with it. Stigma discourages people from seeking help and isolates them socially.
0 minutes ago · delete