ARC Review: The Lock In by Phoebe Luckhurst

Synopsis:

Ellen and Alexa have survived hangovers, dodgy landlords and most of their twenties together.  But can they survive this?

While nursing The Hangover from Hell, a flooded kitchen leads best friends Ellen and Alexa, and hapless housemate Jack, into their attic to turn off the water supply.  But when Ben – Alexa’s date from the night before – walks in, the door slams, the handle breaks and all four are trapped.

Cue the Worst Ever morning-after-the-night-before.

As the hours tick by, Ellen nurses her sore head and watches as her best friend falls for this handsome stranger.  Only for a horrifying realization to hit. She is sure she knows Ben from somewhere.  Frantically searching her memories, Ellen pieces together exactly how they’ve met before.

Is Ben really who she thinks he is?  And, most importantly, what on earth is she going to do about it . . .

This is a hilarious story of housemates and hangovers and friendship and dating as four twenty-somethings discover what The Worst morning-after-the-night-before really looks like . . .

Review:

The Lock in grabbed my attention from the start.  It’s entertaining and funny and I really enjoyed the whole concept of the story.  I can relate to the unusual situation the flatmates found themselves in and I believe this could happen in reality, however I found it extremely frustrating they weren’t making more of an attempt to break out.  Personally I would have been frantically searching the attic for any manner to tool to help me break down the door, especially knowing the kitchen was filling with water. 

Written in the multiple points of view of the main characters, some background history and flashbacks are incorporated into each narrative and this additional information fleshed the characters out.  The characters are interesting and likeable, I loved their different personalities and quirkiness . I particularly liked Jack, he’s adorable, comical and I found his social awkwardness completely endearing and his Twitter texting hilarious. The MSN chat messaging back and forth between Ellen and Ben was a wonderful addition and it took me back in time and triggered memories I had completely forgotten about.  

The Lock In is light-hearted and enjoyable read with some great characters.  It is funny, well paced and engaging with a well executed plot.  I was a little disappointed nothing ground breaking happened while they were all locked in together, I feel more could have been made of the actual lock in.  However, I loved reading it, it’s a of fun and the perfect summer read.

Publisher:  Penguin Michael Joseph
Publication Date (UK):
eBook:  27.05.21
Hardback:  22.07.21
Format:  Hardback 
Page Count:  284
Genre:  Romantic Comedy/Contemporary Romance
Rating:  ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to the publisher for the gifted advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

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Happy reading!

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