What a book! Loved this :) This was an easy to read thriller thaylt kept my attention all the way through! Lots of twists and surprises I didn't see coming. Very good, would recommend!

Is a school reunion something you’d go to? I must admit it’s not a get together I would look forward to..... especially 20 years later.

After 20 years we’re completely different people, there will have been a lot of change. I know I’ve changed a lot since my school days and this is what Carroll gets across in this book.

This book is all about how 7 people who were at high school together have changed. What has become of them since leaving and stepping out into the big wide world? When Katy plans a reunion we learn a lot has changed, young people can be very cruel and this cruelty all those years ago has dramatic consequences. Someone still bears a grudge. Someone has not forgiven. You’ll never guess who and Carroll keeps you guessing, you won’t find out whodunit until the very end.

As the reunion is shaping up and acceptances being received there’s something strange going on, making a few feel rather uncomfortable 😣 receiving malicious messages and the feeling that someone has been in their homes. Someone knows things about them they shouldn’t, their darkest secrets, making them second guess and question who can and cannot be trusted. Who is doing this, who knows about their personal details and how did they find out? Then someone gets hurt, real bad and the police are now involved.

Carroll has written a gripping and fast paced novel here, quick and easy to read. The way in which it is structured is very clever, told from each character’s point of view. She covers homophobia, homelessness, depression, chronic illness, bullying, cruelty, violence, drug use, alcoholism, stalking and dysfunctional relationships very well. It’s all very realistic and relatable. Introducing a puppy brings a family together, bringing a lot of joy.

Certain aspects that resonated with me included:

‘Now Grace cringes at the memory of that day. Her role in causing Melissa to be so uncharacteristically upset and therefore careless.’ ‘Thankfully, she is not the same person as she was back then. Is anyone?’

‘It didn’t occur to her that he might steal from his family, from his little sister. But isn’t that what drug addicts do? Lie, manipulate and thieve so they can get what they crave so badly? Now she feels stupid for not predicting that this might happen, and for not ensuring that Mia kept her money in a safer place.’

‘That means it has probably spread to the bones. At least stage 3. What’s frustrating is that smoking is becoming popular again, despite all the health warnings. Some people just don’t value their lives until it’s too late.’

Parts were emotionally painful 😣

If you haven’t read it yet, you should. 4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ from me. Not 5 as it didn’t blow me away, however I enjoyed it.

Thank you to the author, Netgalley and SerpentsTail/Profile Books for this ARC provided in exchange for this unbiased review.

They say that schooldays are the best days of your life but I think that depends on who you are and where you went to school! And it’s always interesting to speak to others about the past as everyone always remembers things slightly differently depending on “who” they were at school. It’s very easy to categorise students in a “Breakfast Club” manner but I suspect many of us probably fall in between those labels. I’m always fascinated by how we change once out in the adult world so as soon as I saw the blurb for Who We Were, I knew it was a book for me and I have to say that it didn’t disappoint!

When Katy decides to arrange a class reunion to celebrate 20 years of their class leaving school, it very quickly becomes obvious that someone isn’t as keen to meet up with their old classmates as others are. Katy is now a teacher herself and has undergone some physical transformations that have given her more self confidence but she still remembers her days as a shy and retiring wallflower. Her best friend Luke isn’t living the life he expected but returning to his home town will be quite an eye opener for him. Annabelle and Grace are still best friends although Grace is still in Annabelles shadow and in awe of her best friend even though Annabelle is having family problems. Melissa is a successful businesswoman but unhappy in her personal life whereas Zach is living his best life but still feels guilty about the teenager he once was. So with all these personal issues it’s no wonder that the reunion isn’t going to be as easily planned as Katy is expecting. But things go from bad to worse when nasty messages are sent out. Could it be Robbie who was bullied because of his epilepsy and is still suffering even now from those childhood memories? Once everyone is back together, secrets and lies collide in a shocking and disturbing storyline.

Who We Were is a gripping domestic style psychological thriller that challenges those “happy” school-day memories. There is a great mix of characters here, all of whom all well drawn and relatable in a realistically plotted storyline. I loved Katy especially as her new look masked the fact that she’s matured internally into a well adjusted, strong minded and self assured woman and that was far more important to me! And even though this is set in Australia, the narrative is relevant wherever you live or went to school as you will recognise yourself or others in the characters here.

If you’re a fan of Liane Moriarty then you will love B.M. Carroll. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am thrilled to have discovered a new author to me. Highly recommended.

Who We Were ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

Thanks to @viper.books for having me on the blog tour.

A KILLER TWENTY-YEAR REUNION.
AND YOU'RE INVITED...

Who We Were is centred around the planning of a school reunion. Do you remember what you were like in secondary school? Part of the blog tour is to think back on my time in school. I really loved school and had a close friendship group of girls. Unfortunately drifted apart now, taking different routes in life. Apart from with my bestie from school of over 20 years. Don't worry I won't put you through a school photo 🤣

I really enjoyed this book. So cleverly crafted. Katy is planning a school reunion, told from multiple characters point of views. I was worried this would confuse me at the start as there are quite a few characters but I quickly became invested in each story and character. However, someone is meddling in their lives and plans. The reunion is closing in and an event that has bonded the group together comes to light.

This book will make you feel nostalgic towards your time in school and you will see so many relatable characters.

Someone is holding a grudge. Who is hiding secrets.

Gripping, nostalgic and pacey. A fantastic thriller read. 📚

Katy is planning the 20 year school reunion and is desperate to get the gang to attend. Each of her main circle start to receive yearbook messages that reveal secrets and threats about them. Are they in danger?
This was a fast paced read which I really enjoyed. The characters were brilliant. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Many thanks to Viper Books for my invite onto this blog tour/reunion. And, thank you for my gifted digital copy.

Do you remember your high school days? For the blog tour, we were asked to say a bit about Who We Were in school, and if we related to anyone in the book. I was the shy one out of our group, if you ask my friends though they would probably tell you different. But, there were definitely more outgoing and extroverted girls in my group. Despite doing all the bad things in school like smoking, skipping classes and under-age drinking (hopefully none of my family will read this). I still kept my head down and studied hard. You could say I was the cool kid with brains. At the time school obviously wasn't the best place to be, but we tolerated it. Now looking back though I only have fond memories, I'm still very close to the group of girls and we get together to reminisce about the good ole days.

Have we had a reunion though? No, we are very long over due one. Despite only leaving school a couple of years ago (heavy note of sarcasm) but, I doubt that I'd go anyway. Like I said I'm still close to the group I hung around with, so I know what we've got up to in life. Do I want to know what the rest of the year got up to. There's social media to check on stuff like that 😂

Right down to the nitty gritty of the review. I loved this book. It did bring back memories of school days. Carroll nailed the group dynamics of the cliche school gang to a tee. Each character had their own personality and a different take on how school life was. In each character you will undoubtedly recognise someone you remember from your school days, you may even be one of these characters yourself. (I was more of a Katy)

The storyline builds up mystery and suspense throughout. Culminating in an epic reveal. As the reader we don't even know who is behind the emails and notes, and we get to work with the information as the story unfolds.

Who We Were does deal with hard hitting topics of mental health, drug use and bullying. And, it does give you pause for thought about how your treatment of people may affect people not oh in the short term but in the long term too.

A fantastic psychological thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Fully gripping you in its mystery.

I love reunion stories and this one was amazing, I kept reading wanting to know what was going to happen next. At first it was a bit complicated with all the different POV's but it was more about my state of mind that because of the writing. Overall, one of the best of the genre I've read lately.

I didn’t enjoy this book as much as I thought I would, I wasn’t particularly keen on the characters. It’s well written, it just didn’t grab me like I thought it would, so I’m afraid it was a DNF from me.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.

Who We Were is a fabulous standalone thriller written under the name of B.M. Carroll and is a gripping novel about the power of childhood cruelty.

Katy Buckley is looking forward to attending her school reunion and catching up with her classmates, be they friend or foe, to prove that she is no longer the timid wallflower she once was. Annabel Moore was school captain; Grace McCrae was Annabel's best friend; Zach Latham, cruel though popular; Robbie McGrath, always a target; Jarrod Harris, Melissa Andrews, Luke Willis, all attended Macquarie High School and left twenty years ago. The reunion will see friends and enemies brought together, many for the first time in decades. But is anyone still bearing grudges?

Told from several viewpoints, the author's uncomplicated style meant there was no confusion with the storytelling. With an abundance of secrets and lies, the tension levels gradually cranked up as hidden feelings emerged, and old resentments fizzled up and frothed over. Lingering under the surface of this very readable thriller were some sensitive issues, such as mental illness and bullying.B.M. Carroll has created some richly drawn, authentic characters in this novel that are full of depth and substance .

All in all, Who We Were is a wonderful, engaging and classy novel and one I'm glad I've taken the time to read.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my request from Serpent's Tail/ Profile Books/ Viper via NetGalley and this review is my unbiased opinion.

This book will definitely evoke memories of your own experiences of school, whether you loved or hated it. The colourful mixture of characters within the novel are not only realistic but relatable. This book explores the effects of bullying and how it can eat away at you even in adult life, both from the perspective of victim and perpetrator.

I loved the structure of this book with the inserts from the original Yearbook, this allowed you to get to grips with the multiple characters in the novel very quickly. I loved the idea of a reunion 20 years on (I would personally hate this and probably wouldn't attend 😁); I was intrigued to see how each of the characters perceived themselves and their aspirations for the future, it was also great to hear about their own hangups as adults in regards to the reunion and to how their lives had in fact turned out. The pressure of living up to everyone's expectations and not appearing a failure is very true to life and made it a fascinating read.

The mystery behind who was sending the cruel notes was captivating and I started to mistrust everyone; I was desperate to find out who responsible for jeopardising the reunion. I became very much emotionally involved with the characters and the story line and must confess shed a few tears towards the end. This is a book that will evoke nostalgia, is a quick and easy read yet surprisingly deep and at times poignant.

Who We Were is the second standalone thriller to be written under the nom de plume BM Carroll and is a gripping novel about the power of childhood cruelty, and how it makes us the adults we become. "IT'S BEEN TWENTY YEARS...BUT ALL IS NOT FORGIVEN." Katy is not the shy schoolgirl she once was, and she's looking forward to showing her classmates who she's become. Annabel was the queen bee. But her fall from grace changed her life forever. Zach was cruel, but he thinks he's changed. Robbie was a target. And he never stood a chance. The reunion will bring together friends and enemies, many for the first time in decades. But someone is still holding a grudge. As secrets and lies abound with the tension expertly ratcheted up and the hidden feelings of the limited suspect pool beginning to unravel themselves, we see old resentments fizzle up and rise to the fore and characters start to take drastic measures. Revenge is sweet, or so they say...

This is a compulsive, pacey and deeply thought-provoking read that deals with a multitude of problems encountered by teens as they come-of-age. The group of long-term frenemies make up the bulk of the cast and they are written in such an engaging, believable and very intriguing fashion and they each appear to have huge egos. It's a thoroughly enjoyable, well-written tale with a plot that rapidly becomes addictive. You can very much see the ripple effect of past trauma and repressed memories as they impact lives despite being decades later. It's a simple tale told from varying points of view and although it isn't exactly brimming with originality it was well crafted. This is exactly the type of book you could use as escapism as it's fun, entertaining, straightforward in terms of plot and a compelling way to pass a couple of hours. Recommended. Many thanks to Viper for an ARC.

Do you have good memories from school? If the answer is no, this is a book which will give you a few ideas if you ever plan a reunion! Not all of them are safe or innocent, but remember that dreaming is free!
Jokes a part, this had been an interesting read, so many different characters, colourful and with quite interesting lives, makes the story addictive and twisted. I loved how the story is written and I really couldn’t put it down. The story is told between the different characters, showing the reader their point of view and thoughts; not all of them will be likeable, but it makes the story more real.
The story is about a school reunion, something that could be really sweet takes a deep turn when secrets are revealed and an assault occurs. The main question will be who is trying to boicot the meeting and why? As you can imagine no one is free of guilt, but it will be on your hands deciding who is worth the redemption or guilty as charged.
This had been an amazing read, but at the same time it made me remember not so happy memories; sadly I don’t think there’s any class without a bully or someone that is taken for a “looser”, but I would like to think that now the teachers are more advised and try to stop it. In my case, the teachers were part of the problem making one of my friends to leave the school at the last year.
As I said, this is an amazing read, twisted and surprising. Any book addict will love it, but, be prepared for a school revival, it will depend on you if the memories are good or bad.
Ready?

School days. Did you love them? Hate them? Would you want to go back to a 20 year reunion and meet the kids you chummed with now that they have grown up?

In Who We Were BM Carroll poses that very question and gived her readers an intense look into the lives of a core of classmates who are all being invited to attend their 20 year reunion. For most it brings back some unhappy memories from a time they were carefree and less aware of how their actions may be impacting on others. Facing up to those younger versions of themselves will cause unease and disruption to their lives.

The focus is mainly on one group of friends. The cooler kids, the pretty one, the sports star, the class clown but there are also some of the misfits in the mix too...the kid with epilepsy and mental health issues, the nerdy girl who seems too nice to be in the coolest set.

It is Katy, the carrot-haired nerd who is driving the reunion. She is now a popular teacher and still in regular  contact with a few of her school friends. Katy links the different family groups and her enthusiasm to reunite them keeps events rocking along for the first half of the book.

Other characters feature frequently with new chapters looking in on different family dramas. The author has captured all of their secret problems and tribulations really cleverly, enough that we know there are issues but in the main not too dramatic to have those dramas visible for outside parties to see.

The secrecy is important as a mysterious entity is sending spiteful emails to the schoolmates mocking their high school persona and how their lives turned out. They are using these secrets to expose inner fears or past trauma and upset the recipient.

Soon friends are drawing closer together but with a wariness and insecurity which suggests they don't really trust their old friends. Someone has a grudge and as events unfold it seems the risk of harm is increasing. Notes left on pillows, homes violated and family members threatened...as we get deeper into the lives of these people we become more invested in rooting for their safety and more worried about which of the group may be looking to harm others.

By the time we reached the endgame I had suspected all the characters and I would point the finger of blame at someone new every three or four pages.

Who We Were is an engaging drama which I could easily envisage as a tv adaptation. The characters are well depicted, given a depth and reality which made me want to read more about them. Good fun was had with this book.

If you looked the other way, should you be punished?

Twenty years after they went their separate ways, friends and enemies are coming together for their school reunion. Katy, who is desperate to show that she's no longer the shy wallflower. Annabel, who ruled the school until a spectacular fall from grace. Zach, popular and cruel, but who says he's a changed man.

And Robbie, always the victim, who never stood a chance. As the reunion nears, a terrible event that binds the group together will resurface. Because someone is still holding a grudge, and will stop at nothing to reveal their darkest secrets...

This book was awesome. A fast paced thriller that keeps you guessing until the end. Several times I thought I knew who the perpetrator was only to be proven wrong.
The book is told from the perspective of several characters who are realistic and relatable. I loved reading how they were together as friends at school and how their actions had repercussions 20 years later.

I love a thriller and this book was fantastic! The plot was very addictive, the characters were engaging and overall it was a real page turner.

The plot is set around a school reunion which Katy is organizing. She is keen to show everyone how much she has changed, however not everyone is equally excited and some may even be out to seek revenge.

Overall very well written, great plot and an addictive read. One to watch out for this year.

Katy decides to organise a school reunion after twenty years and asks those attending to fill in a profile for an up to date year book. It seems fun until a number of the ex-classmates including Katy, Annabel, Grace, Zack, and Jarrod receive communications from an anonymous source detailing secrets they wouldn't want the others to know. When one of them is physically attacked, the stakes are raised as one of them is holding a deadly grudge.

I enjoyed this one quite a lot. The story is told from several points of view but the reader doesn't lose track of who is who. I thought the author did a good job of showing the rivalries and cliques that exist amongst classmates, and still exist years later. There were one or two nicely done red herrings and the ending was in keeping with the rest of the book. I recommend this if you like contemporary suspense.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers, Viper/Serpent's Tail/Profile Books, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Who We Were is a fast paced thriller that keeps you wanting to read on every time you reach the end of a chapter. With the book split written from the viewpoint of multiple characters the author builds the background story of their teenage years, together with exploring their present day relationships. As a reader of the same age as the characters it made me realise why I have always avoided school reunions!

At points in the book I thought I had worked out who the culprit was, but B.M Carroll kept me guessing until the end and it turns out I was wrong! Who We Were has been the perfect novel to read during the lockdown and enabled me to become engrossed in a different world for a few hours. Great escapism! If you like Lucy Foley's books you will love Who We Were.

"It's happening. Their shallow lives will be blown apart. And they'll be sorry. Finally."

High school drama at its best; this compelling thriller is Dawson’s Creek with a deadly twist.

It’s twenty years since Annabel, Grace, Melissa, Katy, Luke, Zach and Robbie left Macquarie High and went their separate ways. Their favourite memories, worst moments, hopes and dreams were recorded in their high school yearbook, a lasting reminder of who they were at that moment in time. With their twenty year reunion approaching, Katy thinks it would be fun to create an updated yearbook, an idea that soon turns sinister when someone begins to send distressing, personal messages to some of the group. How does this person know their deepest secrets? As the day of the reunion draws closer, it becomes clear that someone is holding a grudge and looking for revenge. But who? And why?

I flew through this book in just a day. Impossible to predict or put down, I couldn’t figure out who was behind the messages and had to keep reading until I knew the answer. Under the surface of this readable thriller, is a book that deals with some sensitive and hard-hitting issues, such as bullying, drug use and mental illness. The flashbacks to their school years also address how cruel and callous teenagers can be and the long lasting effects that can have. The author writes about these issues with sensitivity and has created richly drawn, authentic characters that are full of depth. I was completely immersed and invested in their lives, particularly Robbie’s heartbreaking story and Annabel’s struggles with her teenage son.

Running parallel to the drama of the character’s personal lives is something much darker and more ominous. At first it seems like it is just a cruel prank, but as the story goes on it is clear that they could be in real danger. Everyone is a suspect: wives and husbands, life-long friends, new lovers. How do you protect yourself from a threat when you don’t know who they are or what they want? The tension and fear radiated from the pages and I was on tenterhooks as we approached the dramatic climax.

Emotionally-charged, dramatic, twisty and surprising, this riveting thriller keeps you on your toes from start to finish.

A fast pace read, the chapters are short and a different characters story is told which kept it interesting. Robbie's story was done very sensitively.

This book was so addictive. I couldnt put it down. It felt connected to the characters , loved the fact it was written by an Australian. It was very realistic for me.