Have you ever had couple friends that seem too good to be true? Or maybe it’s not even your couple friend, but people you know who are friends with each other and the dynamic seems slightly off. And it’s probably not, but it might be?
So nosey, right? But I swear I do know people like this where the wife seems maybe a little too flirty with the friend’s husband. Or the husband has wandering eyes. And it’s probably nothing. And it’s probably none of my business. But you totally know what I’m talking about, right?
In The Swap, Robyn Harding tells the tale of one such set of friends, oh and also the psychotic SWF teenager that lingers around the fringe of it all.
From the Publisher:
Low Morrison is not your average teen. You could blame her hippie parents or her looming height or her dreary, isolated hometown on an island in the Pacific Northwest. But whatever the reason, Low just doesn’t fit in—and neither does Freya, an ethereal beauty and once-famous social media influencer who now owns the local pottery studio.
After signing up for a class, Low quickly falls under Freya’s spell. And Freya, buoyed by Low’s adoration, is compelled to share her darkest secrets and deepest desires. Finally, both feel a sense of belonging…that is, until Jamie walks through the studio door. Desperate for a baby, she and her husband have moved to the island hoping that the healthy environment will result in a pregnancy. Freya and Jamie become fast friends, as do their husbands, leaving Low alone once again.
Then one night, after a boozy dinner party, Freya suggests swapping partners. It should have been a harmless fling between consenting adults, one night of debauchery that they would put behind them, but instead, it upends their lives. And provides Low the perfect opportunity to unleash her growing resentment.
Robyn Harding brings her acclaimed storytelling, lauded as “fast-paced, thrilling, gut-wrenching” by Taylor Jenkins Reid, New York Times bestselling author of Daisy Jones & The Six, to this dark and suspenseful thriller for fans of Megan Miranda and Lisa Jewell.
My Review:
The Swap was just so good. Freya never wants to have children and is somewhat of a free-spirited, tortured-soul artist who has recently moved to the beachy island after running from a scandal caused by her previous life as a social media celebrity.
Low, an awkward, gangly teen girl with no support at home immediately wants to be close to Freya. At first she takes art lessons from her, then slowly she gets closer and closer until we realize what a crazy SWF freak she really is.
Enter Jamie, an unlikely friend for Freya. She is desperate to have children and has yet to conceive. The two women form a friendship, Freya convinces Jamie to hire Low at her boutique and thus begins a seriously messed up love triangle. It’s mostly platonic, and also very strange.
Low gets jealous of the friendship, Freya pushes Jamie too far and the resulting drama is worthy of a season of Desperate Housewives. It’s so good. You can’t miss this one.
Special thanks to Gallery Books and Netgalley for an advanced e-galley of this book in exchange for my honest review. This one is out June 23–so snap up your copy to enjoy as you socially distance this summer.
Women in Trouble Book Blog 
Leave a Reply