One of the Girls opens with a prologue and Lucy Clarke tells us then that someone dies on a hen’s* weekend before introducing us to the six – quite disparate – women who’ve journeyed to a remote luxurious villa on a Greek island.

We learn all of the women have secrets and some have hidden agendas… and though I expected this to be predictable in how it plays out, it’s actually far from that.

One of the Girls
by Lucy Clarke
Published by HarperCollins
on 28/06/2022
Source: Harper Collins
Genres: Thriller / Suspense
ISBN: 0008462380
Pages: 448

Goodreads

The six of us arrived on that beautiful Greek island dreaming of sun-drenched beaches and blood orange sunsets, ready to lose ourselves in the wild freedom of a weekend away with friends.

On the first night we swam under a blanket of stars.

On the second night the games began on our clifftop terrace.

On the third night the idyll cracked, secrets and lies whispering on the breeze.

And by the final night there was a body on the rocks below . . .

The bride-to-be (Lexi) we learn was once a party-girl and has surprised even herself by settling down. Her two oldest best friends are with her – one vying for top spot as if still in high school – as well as more recent friends and acquaintances. As is probably expected, she’s the common denominator, with several of the guests not having previously met. We learn Lexi’s charismatic and several of the women comment on feeling lucky to be in her orbit .

Clarke alternates narrators so we hear from all of the women and she manages to give all believable and individual ‘voices’ so I found it quite interesting that we see situations from several points of view. We know what some think of the others and how they themselves feel about their place in the group.

Ostensibly this is about secrets and lies being uncovered, about those with hidden agendas and all of that being revealed amidst an alcohol-fuelled and intense weekend away.

It’s deeper than that though, with many of the secrets kept in place to hide feared inadequacies and judgement. It was also interesting to see the disparity between the bride-to-be’s former life (as party girl who travelled the world as a back-up dancer) and the person she is (zen yoga instructor) today. Lexie herself realises this but it’s more obvious in how she’s viewed by old vs new friends and the expectations they have of her.

This would be a good bookclub selection as readers will relate to some of the characters more than others, and because many of us probably also have friends or family from different stages of our lives and sometimes ponder how those different lives and selves intersect.

One of the Girls by Lucy Clarke was published in Australia by Harper Collins and is now available.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for review purposes. 

* I know some say ‘hen’ weekend but that’s just wrong. Like ‘math’ and ‘legos’. #AustralianEnglish