Book Review: My Best Friend's Murder by Polly Phillips

 My Best Friend's Murder

by

Polly Phillips

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Australia

Publication date: 6th January 2021 

Genre: Mystery / Thriller

Pages: 355

RRP: $29.99AUD

Format read: paperback

Source: courtesy of the publisher

About the book

Bec and Izzy have been best friends their whole lives. They’ve been through a lot together –  from the death of Bec’s mother, the birth of Izzy’s daughter, they've been side by side for all the highs and lows life has thrown at them.

But there’s a darker side to their friendship, too – and Bec is about to reach breaking point.

Then Izzy is found broken and bloodied at the bottom of the stairs.
It could have been an accident – perhaps she fell – but if the police decide to look for a killer, then Bec is sure to be their prime suspect.

 

My review

 

Bec and Izzy have been friends since high school. They'd always been there for each other. Or had they?

 

Now in their 30's Bec is starting to realise that Izzy hasn't always been supportive of her and often she has been downright manipulative. When they were younger Bec was happy to let Izzy have the limelight. She was the beautiful one, everyone loved Izzy and she chose Bec to be her friend. However now she sees the friendship for what it is, one sided and toxic. But Izzy is her best friend and she can't let go. She needs Izzy's approval for everything.

"I'm like one of those old dogs that pine for the owner that beat them."

My Best Friend's Murder is a captivating story of toxic friendships, narcissism and gaslighting. Izzy is a master manipulator she has Bec second guessing everything she sees and hears. I  think we have all seen, or even been in, a toxic friendship at some time however these usually end with some sort of blow-up during the teen years or early twenties. Bec and Izzy were in their thirties and I was astounded they were still going on with all this game-play. However, I did find it quite entertaining!

The story is narrated in the first person by Bec and as with any first person narration we are only getting one side of the story.

The story starts with the friendship and the back and forward maliciousness with lots of background on both Bec and Izzy and I found this all quite fascinating reading. When Izzy is found near death at the bottom of the stairs the story turns to a mystery. Was she pushed or did she fall? The conclusion to this well-paced mystery took me by surprise.

My Best Friend's Murder is a cleverly-plotted narrative that astutely explores the complexity of toxic friendships, manipulation and revenge.

4/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

About the author

Credit: Polly Phillips

Polly Phillips currently lives in Australia, although she is originally from the UK. My Best Friend’s Murder won the Montegrappa Writing Prize at the Emirates Literature Festival in 2019. Polly has worked as a journalist in Australia, Dubai, Denmark and the UK. This is her debut novel.  

Challenges entered: Aussie author challenge #AussieAuthor21

                                 Cloak & Dagger challenge 

                                 Australian Women Writers Challenge #AWW2021