Faking Friends by Jane Fallon
Published: 11th January 2018
Publisher: Penguin
Pages: 448
Available in Paperback and on Kindle
Rating: 5/5
Blurb
Amy thought she knew everything there was to know about her best friend Melissa. Then again, Amy also thought she was on the verge of the wedding of her dreams to her long-distance fiancé.
Until she pays a surprise trip home to London. Jack is out, but it's clear another woman has been making herself at home in their flat.
There's something about her stuff that feels oddly familiar . . . and then it hits Amy. The Other Woman is Melissa.
Amy has lost her home, her fiancé and her best friend in one disastrous weekend - but instead of falling apart, she's determined to get her own back.
Piecing her life back together won't be half as fun as dismantling theirs, after all.
Review
Faking Friends is the latest twisty chick lit novel from
Jane Fallon exploring the effects of a toxic friendship. In this book we meet
best friends since childhood Amy and Mel, who’ve shared their hopes, dreams,
secrets and stood by each other for years, or so Amy thought. Amy has been
working away as an actress in New York leaving fiancé Jack alone in their
London flat. With Mel’s fortieth about to happen and Amy’s contract in New York
over she decides to make a surprise visit home. On entering the flat she shares
with Jack its immediately obvious to Amy that another woman has been there. Her
clothes and beauty products and are scattered all over the apartment and to top
it off the place is spotless, something Amy knows Jack is not capable of
managing himself.
When Amy works out that the other woman is Mel she decides not
to get upset but get even. All throughout their friendship Mel has taken what
she wanted and left Amy to pick up the pieces, but this time its different,
this time Mel is going to get what she deserves.
With the help of friends Kat and Greg, Amy manages to inflict
sneaky acts of revenge on Jack and Mel whilst finding herself a new flat, a new
job and a blossoming new romance. This is a great and addictive read full of
twists and turns as sometimes Amy’s revenge plans have a habit of back-firing.
Amy’s a very resilient character who is quite easily able to
pick up the pieces from this devastating news and move on with her life. I feel
a little sad for Jack really, as although he’s behaved badly Amy doesn’t even
seem to give him a second thought once she’s decided on her revenge plan, surely,
she must have had some regrets over all their years together.
Written mostly from the point of view of Amy it was
refreshing to finally get Mel’s take on things when about half way though her
voice is added to the narrative. This may come as a shock to some readers as
there is no indication of this in the book. But having read previous Jane
Fallon novels it was something I was expecting to happen and after a couple of
pages its pretty clear which character is narrating.
At times I did start to feel sorry for Mel (a little) but
then you turn the page and read more of the devious things she’s done in the
past and think she’s getting everything she deserves. Does Amy manage carry out
the ultimate revenge or does Mel get the last word as usual, read it for
yourself and find out.
From the author of Strictly Between Us and My Sweet Revenge,
Faking Friends is another fantastic not to be missed read from Jane Fallon.
