When Good Friends Go Bad

by Ellie Campbell

All through school tomboy Jen, snobby Georgina, hippy Meg and gentle Rowan were inseparable. But when a childish prank turned bad their friendship was torn apart. Twelve years later Rowan organized a reunion dinner and all did not go well. Rowan never appeared; Georgina's shocking secret was revealed; Meg behaved outrageously; and Jen finally decided it was time to move on. And that's just what she did for the following ten years...Until now, when in the midst of her divorce Jen receives a desperate call from Meg. On a personal mission to track down Rowan, Meg manages to convince Georgina and Jen to put aside their differences and help her. But none of them even begin to imagine the extent to which their loyalties will be tested as their past finally catches up with them.

• ISBN10: 0099519992
• ISBN13: 9780099519997
• Publish Date: 30 July 2009
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 1 March 2014
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Cornerstone
• Imprint: Arrow Books Ltd
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 480
• Language: English

Reviews

[Leah]

When Good Friends Go Bad is writing duo Ellie Campbell’s (Lorraine Campbell & Pam Burks) second book. Meg, Jen, Georgina and Rowan were inseparable friends until a childhood prank tore them apart.

Ten years later Rowan calls for her friends to meet her for dinner but she doesn’t show up. Not only that but Meg behaves embarrassingly, Georgina’s secret comes out and Jen decides she’s finally had enough.

Twelve more years go by and Meg manages to convince both Jen & Georgina to help find Rowan…


When Good Friends Go Bad was an outstanding book. I absolutely loved the plot and found it quite unique. The best thing for me was the writing, although it was written by two people you would never know the writing was seamless and flowed easily. Not only that but it was incredibly well written and Pam & Lorraine managed to keep all of the plots up in the air with relative ease.

Of the four friends I liked Jennifer best. Most of the chapters were about her and I thought she was a fabulous character. I found Georgina a bit snobby but ultimately I thought she was a genuinely nice person. Even though Meg did a lot of bad things, I found that I also liked her, too. Rowan, while mentioned, is not featured in the book at all until the last quarter of the book and it made her quite a mysterious character. Who was this person the friends were trying to track down and why on Earth did she seem to fall off the radar?

I quite liked Georgina’s husband Aiden until the last quarter of the book, too. I really thought he had changed but when it all came out he was just a rat through and through. Once a cheater, always a cheater! Jennifer’s best friend Helen was a great friend throughout the book even though Jen puts her off about going places and Helen feels her nose is out of joint once Jen gets back into her friendship with Georgina and Meg. I loved Ollie, Jen’s (ex) husband. Meg’s son was rarely mentioned but who his father was was always there in the background. I figured it out just before it was revealed and wasn’t too shocked!

The plot really takes off once the three friends get hold of something solid about Rowan. From then on it’s one huge rollercoaster of a ride which had me rushing to finish the book. I also loved all the means the friends used to try and track Rowan down, going to her old hometown, going to a reunion at their old school, until eventually all of their hard work paid off. Rowan’s story completely shocked me and it took me a few minutes to register exactly who it was that had made Rowan the way she was. That was a really good curveball from Pam & Lorraine! Really came out of nowhere, too.

When Good Friends Go Bad really was a fabulous novel and I wholly recommend you read it. It deals with a lot of things which really does test the friendship of the four and even though it’s almost 500 pages, I found myself flying through the book!

Rating: 5/5

I’d like to thank Random House for sending me a copy to review!