Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda
Published by Graydon House on August 21, 2018
Genres: Mystery, Suspense, Thrillers
Pages: 368
Format: Paperback
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Paul Strom has the perfect life: a glittering career as an advertising executive, a beautiful wife, two healthy boys and a big house in a wealthy suburb. And he’s the perfect husband: breadwinner, protector, provider. That’s why he’s planned a romantic weekend for his wife, Mia, at their lake house, just the two of them. And he’s promised today will be the best day ever. But as Paul and Mia drive out of the city and toward the countryside, a spike of tension begins to wedge itself between them and doubts start to arise. How much do they trust each other? And how perfect is their marriage, or any marriage, really? Forcing us to ask ourselves just how well we know those who are closest to us, Best Day Ever crackles with dark energy, spinning ever tighter toward its shocking conclusion. In the vein of The Couple Next Door, Kaira Rouda weaves a gripping, tautly suspenseful tale of deception and betrayal dark enough to destroy a marriage…or a life.
Today’s post is about the book, Best Day Ever by Kaira Rouda. I received this book quite some time ago but unfortunately, it got lost in the “TBR” stack of books in my closet (To Be Read). I had read another of Kaira Rouda’s books – The Goodbye Year – back in April of 2016 as part of the April Showers Blog Tour (see review HERE).
I loved the way the front of the book looked and I loved the story on the backside of the book, so I have no idea how this book got buried. I can assure you that once I started reading Best Day Ever, I could barely put it down until I had read the complete story.
I glance at my wife as she climbs into the passenger
seat, and I am bursting with confidence.
Today will be everything I’ve promised her
….and more…..
Paul Strom and his wife, Mia are en route to their lake house outside Columbus, Ohio for a romantic weekend. Paul is striving for the weekend to be the “best day ever” but it is almost immediately apparent to readers that Paul isn’t a good guy and it’s not going to be the “best day ever“.
The book is broken up into 24 hours and Ms. Rouda set the pacing perfectly. The story is told from Paul’s point of view and it is quickly obvious that Paul is….. well…… a crazy person. Readers are exposed to his thoughts and actions and we realize that The main character, Paul, just happens to be a crazy person. The book is set in his point of view so you’re reading his thoughts and actions and observations. What you slowly start to realize is that Paul is a narcissistic woman hater who is also a sociopath and a criminal.
Paul and Mia are trying to recapture the magic of when they first met with this weekend trip. They want to feel the way they felt back when Paul was a fast moving executive at an advertising agency where Mia was a young copywriter. When they met, Paul knew that Mia found him irresistible. He wanted her and he got her and it was just like that.
Best Day Ever explores the idea of how well we really know our spouses. It also looks into the idea of how quickly a fragile trust can be broken down. The author provides readers with lots of twists and turns in this plot. Because I’ve probably read nearly 100 books in the last 8 months, I felt that this plot seemed familiar to some of the other stories I’ve read but no worries there because Rouda really amped up the tension in this story slowly but surely to the point where I was scratching my head trying to figure out how everything would come together at the end.
To share anything more of the story would be a spoiler. Suffice it to say that the story is not as it seems at the beginning and you will be surprised with the ending. That’s the best I can tell you.
Warning folks: I was not intending to read this whole book in one sitting but I couldn’t help myself and I quickly consumed this book cover to cover – be sure you block out time for this read because once you start you’re not going to want to stop.
Kaira Rouda is a USA TODAY bestselling, multiple award-winning author of contemporary fiction exploring what goes on behind closed doors of seemingly perfect lives. Her novels include BEST DAY EVER, ALL THE DIFFERENCE, HERE, HOME, HOPE, IN THE MIROR and THE GOODBYE YEAR.
Her modern romance novels are set on beaches, including the Indigo Island series and the Laguna Beach series, also its own Kindle World.
She lives in Southern California with her family and is at work on her next novel. Connect with her on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest: @KairaRouda; and on Facebook at Kaira Rouda Books. For more please visit KairaRouda.com.
I received a copy of this book from Get Red PR in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to provide a positive review and this affected neither my opinion of the book, nor the content of my review!! Thank you Get Red PR!
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