This Never Happened

by

Jessica Clem

Insane twists and breakneck pacing!

This Never Happened by Jessica Clem is a genuinely twisted psychological thriller, rife with toxic relationships, female rage, revenge, and betrayal. Sam has been a loner her entire life, always on the periphery of life and looking in, until she goes to college and meets Rebecca. Charismatic and magnetic, Rebecca draws friends in and bends them to her will, playing them until she tires of them and kicks them to the curb. But her toxic relationship with Sam endures through college until Sam, desperate to break free of her control, takes an out-of-state job upon graduation and then deliberately drifts away from their friendship. Ten years later, they meet again at their college reunion, and Sam, guilt-ridden over her cowardly abandonment and still fragile after the breakup of her last serious romance, commits to renewing their friendship. But when Rebecca excitedly introduces her to the new love in her life, Sam is shocked to discover he's the same man she broke up with two years earlier, and their chemistry with each other is as hot as it ever was. 

What a twisty page-turner! Messy relationships, secrets, lies, manipulation, revenge, and betrayal all combine for a riveting story that you won't want to put down. The plot proceeds at a fever pitch and never lets up. Sam is a likable but gullible patsy, and Rebecca, while mentally unstable, is a master manipulator who shows no regard for the people in her orbit as she works toward her goals. Her antics are extreme and hard to read at times, and I truly wished Sam would escape and refuse to be drawn back into her life. Dani was so fanatical in her devotion to Rebecca that every appearance of hers gave me the creeps. Adam and Sam's chemistry is off the charts, and they share some fairly explicit intimate adult moments that readers sensitive to such should be aware of before reading. The fallout from all the plotting and subterfuge was wild and made for an exciting "what just happened" resolution. 

I recommend THIS NEVER HAPPENED to readers of psychological and domestic thrillers. 

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy through RABT Book Tours and PR.