Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“You can run, but they’re never far behind…”

🤯 This book was WILD! Wow, I’ve never read Lizzy’s books before now and I really am kicking myself. She is a fantastic writer, and her latest book was everything I love. Completely captivating, drenched in tension and beautifully written characters to love and to hate. Absolutely breathtaking – not sure I’ll ever be over this! I’m SO incredibly happy to be sharing my review of Be Mine!

About the book

Once, Beth was a different person, convinced she was living her dream life with the enigmatic wellness group, Elixir. But when that dream became a nightmare, she had no choice but to run, no matter what – or who – stood in her way.

Ten years later, exhausted and struggling with the pressures of motherhood, she receives a mysterious letter bearing only the infinity symbol, and knows immediately it is from them.

The past she’d run from has finally caught up with her, and the secrets she’s tried so hard to hide will soon be uncovered. Can she finally escape them for good, or will her freedom pay the ultimate price?

If wellness is the new religion, what happens when it’s taken too far?

The beginning

I could tell straight away that this was my kind of book and that I was going to rate it 5 stars. This very rarely happens when I read a book by a new-to-me author, but you know that feeling you get when you can just tell it’s going to be everything you love?! FABULOUS. From that intriguing prologue to meeting Beth, her partner, Adam, and their adorable daughter, Etta, I sank into the depths of this book and completely adored the direction it took. Lizzy’s writing is so stunning I couldn’t get enough of it! We learn a lot about Beth in those first few chapters, about the kind of person she is, that she has a past that we were about to dive into, that she is well and truly exhausted with the pressures of being a new mum. But her life is shaken up even more via a mysterious letter through her door bearing an infinity symbol, and she’d recognise that symbol anywhere. She has secrets, a past that she’d tried so hard to escape from. It seemed like it was catching up with her, and that was bad. The book instantly felt exciting and suspenseful and I couldn’t wait to see where things would go!

“I won’t let them do this to me. Let him do this to me. Not again. Make me paranoid. Make me question what is real, and what isn’t. Take what I know is right and twist it.”

The story is told through dual timelines, alternating between 2013 and 2023. After a bad breakup in London and, as we soon learn, a traumatic experience shortly afterwards, she sets her sights on California for a fresh start. She soon meets Marissa, a woman who completely captivates her. There was something about her, an aura that was confident, carefree. What was her secret? She discovers Marissa’s connection to Elixir, a wellness group with a difference. And that’s where her life changed. I loved finding out about Beth’s past, how she was first introduced to Elixir, what her time there entailed. But it was equally as intriguing seeing Beth’s reaction to the Elixir letter ten years later. Something went wrong back there. And now they knew where she lived. Were they watching her? Was someone tracking her whereabouts? Should she be worried? Elixir and the elusive Tate Larsen intrigued me so much. Why was he so important? And why was a meeting with this guy so special to these people? The two timelines worked so seamlessly together in telling Beth’s story.

The middle

Tate Larsen. This guy, man. From being such a mysterious, faceless guy who felt like more of a mirage than a real person, he soon became someone I was almost fearful of when we do meet him. This group of Elixir members, this cult , worship the ground he walks on, every single word that comes out of his mouth. His promises to change their lives. But the things Beth notices, that feeling she has that all isn’t what it seems had me completely gripped. There were, quite clearly, some big secrets. Elixir was so much more than a wellness group, and Beth was about to find out the hard way. I cannot begin to express just how much I loved Beth as a character. Her life is so layered, her past and her present colliding in the most unimaginable way. The author really captures the intensity of Beth’s thoughts, her worries, her fears. Just how much she needs to protect her daughter from them. The book quickly became so unnerving, chilling and so completely unpredictable. And my god was I obsessed with it. I was actually biting my nails reading parts of this book, and I never bite my nails! 😂

“My heart is in my throat. I know it is impossible, but I am sure I can feel the tattoo burning my wrist as I hold the paper out to him.”

Beth’s new friend, Mia, and her daughter, Astrid, seem to be the perfect excuse for herself and Etta to get out of the house more. Adam had told her she needed to meet other mothers, do some socialising. But over time, I felt there was more to Mia than what was on the surface. A potential abusive relationship, secrets of her own. Maybe a deeper reason why she had befriended Beth that day? The theme of motherhood and everything that comes with it is so perfectly portrayed, woven so beautifully throughout the book in all the right places. Beth’s fierce love for her daughter is so clear. The wall she’d put up to protect herself and her family starts to crumble, links to her past slowly slip through the cracks, sending a tsunami of bad memories, of intense fear back into her life. The people close to her suddenly seem to be hiding things of their own; secrets swirl around these characters and very quickly, it becomes hard to know who to trust. Everything felt so unnerving at this stage, so captivating, so incredibly anxiety-inducing. I was not prepared for where things were about to go!

The end

Every single chapter by this point ended in a cliffhanger, which made it literally impossible to put the book down. It was perfect. I think there were multiple times where I genuinely forgot to breathe I was that engrossed! Beth’s freedom was running out. She needed to come clean to Adam, to tell him the truth about her past, who she is, what she’d done. But a brick through the window is the final straw for them. It was too late. There was no where to run now. Oh my god, the tension here was off the scale. But then the twist hit. Everything clicked into place. And I was FLOORED with the shock. I couldn’t believe what I was reading! It was so, so clever and one of the best, most perfectly executed twists I’ve ever read. If you’ve already read this book, you’ll know exactly what I mean, and if you haven’t… just you wait! But it wasn’t over – far from it. We head back to California. Back to Elixir. Something I was fearful of, excited by and curious about in equal measure. There is such a brilliant build up to those final chapters and I couldn’t wait to see how this ended.

“But as we sit in silence, each of us contemplating the truths that have outed in this dank, dark night, something isn’t adding up. The pieces I have gathered are jumbled, don’t fit right.”

There were so many feelings rushing through me as everything slotted into place, as everything made sense; feelings of anger, of sadness, of horror. And it really surprised me which characters I was feeling all this for. The reveals here were off-the-scale good, and my eyes were completely glued to the pages until that final word. There was an unexpectedly empowering scene which really highlights the intensity of everything we’d discovered. When you see the bigger picture at this stage, it was something else entirely. So powerful. So horrific. What an ending! Not only that, but that final chapter was also perfect. My imagination was going off in all directions after that! God, I’m so genuinely sad that I’ve finished this book, and I am so envious of everyone who is about to read it for the first time. Definitely one of those books you wish you could read again with a fresh brain. If you love a thriller, if you love a cult theme, if you love a great twist, you need to read this. My first from Lizzy, but I’m rushing to buy everything else she’s written now! Incredible. A must-read!

Overall thoughts

Be Mine is such a dark, twisted, intense read and I absolutely inhaled it. From start to finished, I was completely mesmerised by Lizzy’s gorgeous writing as well as a toxic world of a cult-like wellness group striving for perfection. I adored such an unhinged plot, the perfectly crafted characters, the secrets, the lies. It was fascinating yet horrific, gripping and completely unpredictable. Beth’s dream of living well soon becomes a living nightmare. The dual timelines work so brilliantly in exploring her intense whirlwind of an experience, but all isn’t what it seems. And how long can she run for? There is SO much more to this book and you are in for SUCH a treat! I adored every single word of it and can’t wait for you all to experience it yourselves! A must-read!

Huge thanks to the author, Lizzy Barber, and the fabulous team at Datura Books for my special signed and numbered proof copy! You can grab your own copy of Be Mine right now over on Amazon or wherever you buy your books. Make sure you’re following Lizzy over on Instagram, Bluesky and X/Twitter for more updates!

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