Book Review — How to Kill Your Best Friend by Lexie Elliott

I received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group. This review is voluntary and thoughts are my own.

Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up to 4/5 on Goodreads)

Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Fiction

If you suspected your best friend, the person you were closest to in the whole world, was a murderer, what would you do? Would you confront her? Would you help keep her secret? Or would you begin to feel afraid? Most importantly, why don’t you feel safe now that she’s dead? From the author of The French Girl comes a novel full of secrets, suspense, and deadly twists.

Georgie, Lissa, and Bronwyn have been inseparable since dominating their college swim team; swimming has always been an escape from their own problems, but now their shared passion has turned deadly. How can it be true that Lissa, the strongest swimmer they know, drowned? Granted, there is something strange about Kanu Cove, where Lissa was last seen, swimming off the coast of the fabulous island resort she owned with her husband.

Lissa’s closest friends gather at the resort to honor her life, but Georgie and Bron can’t seem to stop looking over their shoulders. Danger lurks beneath the surface of the crystal-clear water, and even their luxurious private villas can’t help them feel safe. As the weather turns ominous, trapping the funeral guests together on the island, nobody knows who they can trust. Lissa’s death was only the beginning….

_{via Goodreads}

Imagine you’re on your way to a gorgeous island resort called Kanu Cove to be reunited with some of your closest friends— all but one that is, because you’re on your way to this island a little earlier than expected to attend your best friend’s funeral.

Each section starts off with “way to kill your best friend.” At first, these seemed to cut the flow of the novel because the tone was so different from the main story and it wasn’t always clear how or even if the “how to kill” intros fit the chapter(s) that followed. This ambiguity lends itself well to the mystery surrounding the death of Lissa despite being a distraction to me. It seems clear to Lissa’s best friend, Georgie, that Lissa did not complete suicide and the readers get to tag along as more and more questions arise and it seems that some of the friends’ lives are also at risk.

As the story progresses more is revealed about the tangled web of Georgie, Lissa, and other close friend, Bronwyn’s friendship. Ultimately leading to the question, how much would you do for a friend? Although, the author flips this question on it’s head. There are a couple red herrings, island folklore, infidelity, and jealousy. A pretty quick and thrilling read.