sarah pekkanen

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

343 pages

ISBN: 9781250202031

Published: 3/3/20 by St. Martin’s Press

Genre: Mystery / Thriller

B&N | Amazon

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the early digital copy in exchange for an honest review!

Goodreads Synopsis:

You probably know someone like Shay Miller.
She wants to find love, but it eludes her.
She wants to be fulfilled, but her job is a dead end.
She wants to belong, but her life is so isolated.

You probably don’t know anyone like the Moore sisters.
They have an unbreakable circle of friends.
They live the most glamorous life.
They always get what they desire.

Shay thinks she wants their life.
But what they really want is hers

Review:

Trigger warnings: Suicide, rape, mention of panic attacks, killing of an animal, toxic familial relationships, alcoholism, body weight shaming, cancer / chemotherapy, manipulation, murder.

I read An Anonymous Girl by the same author duo, and I wasn’t a big fan. I had high hopes since it was considered a psychological thriller, but it ended up being more of a domestic thriller just without the chills and thrills. This one, however, was so much fun. This really was more on the psychological side, and had included more of a mystery.

You’re introduced to Shay, a single thirty-one-year-old statistics-loving woman. She has just been demoted at her market researching job and she can’t seem to find herself a man. She loves her best friend Sean, but he has a new girlfriend named Jody. She currently lives with Sean—and his girlfriend—YIKES! Shay takes the subway to work, but one day she witnesses a girl jump in front of the train, unexpectedly. That girls’ name was Amanda Evinger, a twenty-nine-year-old emergency room nurse, and she leaves her necklace behind. The moment Shay picks up the necklace is the moment her life changes…for the worst.

Meet Cassandra and Jane Moore, Stacey, Daphne, Beth, and Valerie. The unbreakable circle of friends. This aspect of the book reminded me of Bunny by Mona Awad, which I didn’t enjoy or understand at all, so I was hesitant to move forward. Thankfully this one didn’t confuse me like that one did.

This is a non-spoiler review, so I’m going to go into much more detail than that. Shay ends up getting involved with the circle of friends after going to Amanda’s memorial service (I believe) and chaos ensues. The group of girls actually threw me for a loop! They’re all pretty terrible, but there’s one in particular that I didn’t think anything about until things are being revealed. I was very happy with that. It also gets pretty dark as far as the reasons they have for their actions. Hence all of the trigger warnings at the beginning of my review.

I enjoyed how much I got to know the characters. I think the authors did a bang-up job with that. They all had their own personalities, and I never got them mixed up. The Moore sisters were like daylight and dark. It was a lot of fun to follow everyone around. I constantly wanted to scream at Shay because the reader finds out the plot twists before Shay does. She’s actually pretty dang gullible. That’s not to say that their actions are justifiable.

The one major point I didn’t like was how much the story jumped. I understand that it worked for the type of story, but it did take me out of the story a bit. Other than that, though, it was a ton of fun! I hope that you give it a try regardless of your opinion about their other novels. There are so many small details that went into this book, and I thought it was worth the read!

If you enjoyed this, then give it a like and follow my blog. Be respectful and happy reading!

I decided to pick two NetGalley books, two books I own, and two library books to read for the month of April. I’m trying to stick to my TBRs, and I hope that having this many options will help create the variety I need.

P.S.: Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the early digital copies that I have included.

NetGalley:

The Big Finish by Brooke Fossey

Goodreads blurb:

In a funny, insightful, and life-affirming debut, Brooke Fossey delivers an unflinching look at growing old, living large, and loving big, as told by a wise-cracking man who didn’t see any of it coming.

He Started It by Samantha Downing

Goodreads blurb:

Beth, Portia, and Eddie Morgan haven’t all been together in years. And for very good reasons—we’ll get to those later. But when their wealthy grandfather dies and leaves a cryptic final message in his wake, the siblings and their respective partners must come together for a cross-country road trip to fulfill his final wish and—more importantly—secure their inheritance.

Physical:

Network Effect (Murderbot Diaries #5) by Martha Wells

Goodreads blurb:

You know that feeling when you’re at work, and you’ve had enough of people, and then the boss walks in with yet another job that needs to be done right this second or the world will end, but all you want to do is go home and binge your favorite shows? And you’re a sentient murder machine programmed for destruction? Congratulations, you’re Murderbot.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Goodreads blurb:

When four classmates from a small Massachusetts college move to New York to make their way, they’re broke, adrift, and buoyed only by their friendship and ambition.

*My plan is to just continue on with this one. I don’t think I’ll finish it this month.

Library:

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks & Sarah Pekkanen

Goodreads blurb:

You probably know someone like Shay Miller. You probably don’t know anyone like the Moore sisters. Shay thinks she wants their life. But what they really want is hers.

The Honey-Don’t List by Christina Lauren

Goodreads blurb:

Carey Douglas has worked for home remodeling and design gurus Melissa and Rusty Tripp for nearly a decade. A country girl at heart, Carey started in their first store at sixteen, and—more than anyone would suspect—has helped them build an empire. With a new show and a book about to launch, the Tripps are on the verge of superstardom. There’s only one problem: America’s favorite couple can’t stand each other.

If you enjoyed this, then give it a like and follow my blog. Be respectful and happy reading!

Tag: sarah pekkanen