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Best Day Ever: A gripping psychological thriller with a twist you won’t see coming!
Kaira Rouda
‘Compelling’ Hello!‘ deliciously dark story shot through with black humour.’ Sunday MirrorA loving husband. The perfect killer?‘I wonder if Mia thinks I have a dark side. Most likely as far as she knows, I am just her dear loving husband.’Paul Strom has spent years building his perfect life: glittering career, beautiful wife, two healthy boys and a big house in the suburbs.But he also has his secrets. That’s why Paul has promised his wife a romantic weekend getaway. He proclaims this day, a warm Friday in May, will be the best day ever.Paul loves his wife, really, he does. But he also wants to get rid of her. And with every hour that passes, Paul ticks off another stage in his elaborately laid plan…Behind Closed Doors meets Liane Moriarty in this creepy, fast-paced psychological thriller with a twist you won’t see coming!
“I glance at my wife as she climbs into the passenger seat, and I am bursting with confidence. Today will be everything I’ve promised her…and more…”
Paul Strom has the perfect life: a glittering career as an advertising executive, a beautiful wife, two healthy boys and a big house in a wealthy suburb. And he’s the perfect husband: breadwinner, protector, provider. That’s why he’s planned a romantic weekend for his wife, Mia, at their lake house, just the two of them. And he’s promised today will be the best day ever.
But as Paul and Mia drive out of the city and toward the countryside, a spike of tension begins to wedge itself between them and doubts start to arise. How much do they trust each other? And how perfect is their marriage, or any marriage, really?
Forcing us to ask ourselves just how well we know those who are closest to us, Best Day Ever crackles with dark energy, spinning ever tighter toward its shocking conclusion. In the bestselling, page-turning vein of The Couple Next Door and The Dinner, Kaira Rouda weaves a gripping, tautly suspenseful tale of deception and betrayal dark enough to destroy a marriage…or a life.
Praise for Best Day Ever (#u6078627f-ce3c-5765-b4be-ba9afe501843)
“Riveting and provocative, Best Day Ever is a gripping suspense that plays with your mind and makes you wonder how well you truly know your spouse....You won’t be able to put this book down until its jaw-dropping ending. Absolutely brilliant!”
—Kerry Lonsdale, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Everything We Keep
“Deliciously diabolical and highly readable, Best Day Ever kept me flipping the pages with anticipation and fascination. Unputdownable!”
—A. J. Banner, USA TODAY bestselling author of The Twilight Wife
“Clever pacing and an unreliable and chillingly unrepentant narrator.”
—Kimberly McCreight, New York Times bestselling author of Reconstructing Amelia and The Outliers
“Kaira Rouda’s Best Day Ever is a breath of fresh air. Paul Strom’s narrative voice is irreverent, arrogant, and yet, utterly addicting. You’ll whip through the pages. Highly entertaining and truly surprising!”
—Kate Moretti, New York Times bestselling author of The Vanishing Year
“A creepy, spine-tingling and utterly addictive tale of domestic suspense.”
—Liz Fenton and Lisa Steinke, bestselling authors of The Good Widow
“This may well be the most entertaining read of your year.”
—Kathryn Craft, award-winning author of The Far End of Happy
KAIRA ROUDA is a bestselling, multiple-award-winning author of contemporary fiction. Her work has won numerous awards, including the Indie Excellence Award and Reader’s Choice Award.
The day that she found out that her new novel would be published by HarperCollins really was the best day ever, although she’s very glad that this one doesn’t come with a shocking twist.
She lives in Southern California with her family and is at work on her next novel. Connect with her on Facebook at Kaira Rouda Books, and on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram: @kairarouda (http://twitter.com/@kairarouda). For more, visit her website, www.kairarouda.com (http://www.kairarouda.com).
For my daughter,Avery Robinson Rouda.
Continue to write the stories that speak to your heart and never stop believing in your power to change the world for the better.
Contents
Cover (#u60609a2b-c708-5bbe-a776-3cb156881e74)
Back Cover Text (#uc00dc0e9-a288-514b-8b7c-ca23629d133e)
Praise for Best Day Ever (#u0bdbad5a-ad08-5112-8307-49a63dadfe0c)
About the Author (#u8c822d7d-c73b-5824-bde2-be8ff65813ce)
Title Page (#u02ff444a-48cf-5a54-aa8f-83648b62efed)
Dedication (#ubb236f7e-a8e7-5c64-82e8-3d6dc6ab9d06)
Morning 9:00 a.m. (#uf0823820-df9e-5c50-a6c8-3708dc05b471)
Chapter 1 (#u40771f4d-9019-5dd6-885c-487be75d11b7)
10:30 a.m. (#u0690c917-e773-5993-baec-7a76709ef564)
Chapter 2 (#u85794ae3-9882-5395-a5a9-7360a0dd4a0d)
11:00 a.m. (#u730c459a-3863-513e-99e7-96db36c52534)
Chapter 3 (#u852d08b9-1b93-5f6a-b80b-d1a75784994e)
11:30 a.m. (#uad8c95e4-2d4a-57ef-8512-6b9723229a83)
Chapter 4 (#u863a2101-9f12-50d5-80ee-0e1e403a61b6)
Noon (#u484d0400-ddd8-52ce-961a-3709a201a897)
Chapter 5 (#u37648e3e-37c7-56a4-ab7e-b5a6354ff765)
12:30 p.m. (#ud761db53-e881-5294-8f2f-3fb5979ef54b)
Chapter 6 (#ubaf233ba-ef9f-5771-bc9b-928a599a3629)
2:00 p.m. (#ub796b80b-e3c5-5e56-824f-5ac5910a20b9)
Chapter 7 (#u435ca396-cbeb-5626-a736-d5c7b479190d)
4:00 p.m. (#u7bca7726-5681-55a9-a8b3-ec7c0be0aa44)
Chapter 8 (#u528a4aa2-3e84-51d0-bdb4-3c7eaabd790f)
5:00 p.m. (#ub5d419bd-3005-534a-b579-59b2cf6d1c7e)
Chapter 9 (#u914a6369-b796-5f74-bbb6-2763afa98755)
5:30 p.m. (#u2f4bf173-0b42-537d-91a0-f1f2be31de44)
Chapter 10 (#u470b0df8-307b-5568-acba-42bf277d2f59)
6:15 p.m. (#u85eb7f62-8f93-540d-b275-b90a262bd71d)
Chapter 11 (#u4f76a6d3-e95b-54c7-8cdf-bf57d89171f9)
7:30 p.m. (#u076f498d-c564-554c-9fce-e92984816104)
Chapter 12 (#u3b7beaf1-134c-5cd4-931f-28b4f48ddaaf)
8:00 p.m. (#u48d5fb13-e341-5420-9df6-c115c302ac31)
Chapter 13 (#ub2cf754a-067d-58d2-8756-b29d8875d8c0)
8:15 p.m. (#u014f7f4c-a5e7-55d0-92b7-2b3e698ea913)
Chapter 14 (#ua69971b4-4d69-54d1-a985-ff651b9a4198)
8:45 p.m. (#u80d12830-d1a5-5066-843b-5163bec31a99)
Chapter 15 (#ua9eaaf85-4a5b-5755-87d7-9fb839f0262d)
9:00 p.m. (#u525bf01b-7529-55ff-84c2-adc362456f31)
Chapter 16 (#u134f8e42-7c3f-5804-af58-5443ad7fa21d)
9:15 p.m. (#uc4be1499-197b-5062-b76f-7cd12c70c477)
Chapter 17 (#u6158d26b-3004-5244-8b90-27190fdf8279)
9:30 p.m. (#u9cbf6132-eb79-5121-8233-3e3ce699bbf8)
Chapter 18 (#u007120d6-ae68-5c70-8231-f41eefb23903)
10:00 p.m. (#u060cf769-495c-523e-a677-9e04c84f9240)
Chapter 19 (#u1a975121-4531-5695-ab4c-8a1dee6b398a)
10:30 p.m. (#ub6ae7309-da7a-5c5b-86e3-4d46f68b8ca7)
Chapter 20 (#u71899f12-3652-5644-add8-8669f55c2617)
11:00 p.m. (#u7eb78c90-0134-5f34-98fd-8489fcaedde8)
Chapter 21 (#u010255c5-5467-501c-b37c-1f5d5098219a)
11:30 p.m. (#u0ae30064-301c-5d1b-ae04-79c13255a810)
Chapter 22 (#u854ada52-1258-5f86-a07e-984aa99fd655)
12:00 a.m. (#u52d4ba91-9c8a-542f-af1d-8bcb51460ddf)
Chapter 23 (#u790bf39c-454a-5525-aabd-a238cc1fdb70)
12:15 a.m. (#ubc42a46a-071b-5832-bb22-16ceebb6684c)
Chapter 24 (#u06c36b69-d885-52ac-92dc-82619ec8dfac)
12:20 a.m. (#u134326bf-a75f-5a52-819b-412d5a8f4ee6)
Chapter 25 (#u43127429-c7a7-5a51-898b-d451efe9556d)
12:25 a.m. (#u68b27cdf-1c0f-50ec-981e-e2289cfaec0c)
Chapter 26 (#u1c513d05-677f-509a-8408-24e0b4dd6248)
12:35 a.m. (#u4d5460e1-b699-553c-96d9-3aa617450bbd)
Chapter 27 (#u931aaa3c-a703-58e4-a878-1d2dbd00e377)
1:00 a.m. (#u480d338a-40d8-551d-8c7b-56a79b5bd27e)
Chapter 28 (#u34175081-c022-50f4-bd2d-224b1ede79a3)
1:45 a.m. (#uff210159-1c09-503e-af30-c398f25f4de4)
Chapter 29 (#u5c679cbd-972c-5b74-8250-93d326b2f708)
2:45 a.m. (#u15332b11-fd20-544f-b9d2-f4dc11876318)
Chapter 30 (#u9b62e6fe-a5ab-5b77-b2de-46c4d80f8565)
4:45 a.m. (#uf54168ae-98a3-5479-8de2-c225115f6542)
Chapter 31 (#uf6a692b5-4175-5b5c-a4b3-9468a04432d6)
One Year Later (#u4593cd97-a011-55d8-8821-99aca40c2558)
Epilogue (#u14fd6ef3-b99f-5d13-9fb2-ea77ffc7e32a)
Paul Strom’s Playlist for The Best Day Ever (#u21d6a938-2e61-51c9-9f4d-9ab2ef82d6d0)
Author Note (#u1f7c68b5-f209-5312-99db-8b217979cad4)
Acknowledgments (#u54699843-8c3c-5a33-a2b0-12029d2eb732)
Reader’s Group Discussion Questions (#ua264d5ec-4ba2-5fd0-8c2b-95ef473ffc0f)
Copyright (#u41d18563-fe78-5d6e-8339-47b55309b07d)
