Alan (aka The Lone Librarian) Teder's Reviews > The Bad Friend

With Friends Like These...
Review of the Amazon Original Stories eBook (March 19, 2024), released simultaneously with the Audible Original audiobook.

This didn't feel at all in keeping with the suspense fiction in the other stories of the Never Tell collection. The suspense here was only from the questions: "which one of them is the bad friend?" and "is anything going to happen?" Eventually a supposed secret is revealed, but even the truth of that is questioned, so you are left in doubt at the end.

It is 2 stars only for the ambition of telling a lifetime over the course of 44 pages. Ellen and Tanya are young women at the beginning and are 70 something years old at the end. The story goes over their friendship, the boyfriends, their husbands, their children with the unresolved revelation coming towards the conclusion.

The Bad Friend is the sixth of six Amazon Original Stories eBooks/Audible Audio audiobooks released on March 19, 2024 as part of the Never Tell Collection of short stories which are promoted with the collective description:

"How well do you know people? How well do they know you? Six award-winning, bestselling authors of suspense explore the lingering threat of secrets and the inescapable fear that they can’t stay buried forever. No matter how dark the hiding place, the consequences of revealing the truth can bring out the worst in lovers, friends, family, and strangers."

Trivia and Links
Caroline Kepnes is the author of several novels, the most popular of which is You (You #1, 2014) which was also the basis for the Netflix TV series. Her most recent novel is For You and Only You (You #4, 2023).

You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Stories which are usually paired with their Audible Original narrations at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).