The Weekend Away by Sarah Alderson Blog Tour

When you think of a weekend away I bet you're thinking perhaps a child free time to relax and unwind (I know I would) but that's not quite what you get when you delve into Sarah Alderson's latest novel ...

Orla and Kate have been best friends forever. Together they’ve faced it all – be it Orla’s struggles as a new mother or Kate’s messy divorce. And whatever else happens in their lives, they can always look forward to their annual weekend away.

This year, they’re off to Lisbon: the perfect flat, the perfect view, the perfect itinerary. And what better way to kick things off in style than with the perfect night out?

But when Orla wakes up the next morning, Kate is gone. Brushed off by the police and with only a fuzzy memory of the night’s events, Orla is her friend’s only hope. As she frantically retraces their steps, Orla makes a series of shattering discoveries that threaten everything she holds dear. Because while Lisbon holds the secret of what happened that night, the truth may lie closer to home…

When Orla goes away with her best friend for the weekend she's struggling. She's recently had a baby, who she doesn't want to be away from but after not letting herself let loose for quite some time she's also excited to spend some time with her closest friend.

But as the booze is poured and illegal substances are added into the mix, Orla becomes increasingly uncomfortable with the situation she's found herself in. This getaway is more hard work than the relaxing break she had in mind.

Things go from bad to worse when she awakes from an eventful night out, hungover, Orla begins to panic when she can't find Kate anywhere.

Is she missing or just out shopping? With the night before a blurry memory, Orla now faces the task of finding out where her friend is and just what happened the previous evening.

Two friends go on holiday. Only one comes back.

If you loved The Holiday, get ready for your new obsession…

Now I struggled  to review this novel.

I felt like I had a bit of a love/hate relationship with this book.  It's not that I disliked it - in fact by the end I was eager to find out the who's, what's and where's. 

Let me try and explain ...

The Weekend Away had a slower start than I would like. Written from Orla's point of view, as the story progressed I did find myself turning the pages at a rapid rate however with that said I was rather frustrated at times with how it was written. 

I'm not sure how I can describe my annoyance, I guess it just felt like it didn't flow, I think maybe some of my frustrations were more because I couldn't empathise with the characters and the things Orla said at times just came across as a bit inconsistent.

A twisty holiday read for fans of The Holiday and Date Night.

The ending really saves the book, honestly you won't see it coming! It could even lead to a second novel if the author decided to extend the story further.

Over all The Weekend Away is a dark and edgy thriller, filled with twist and turns that will lead you down various paths. 

A slightly simpler crime-thriller for those perhaps looking to dip their toe into the genre.

For more thoughts on this novel check out the rest of the blog tour.