Let me first start out by saying I am a HUGE fan of Peter Swanson. You could tell me he wrote an ad for kitty litter and I would be reading it just because it is him. I am sure many of you agree with me on that one.

There has never been a time that a Peter Swanson book has disappointed me, Nine Lives, is no different.

Nine Lives, is a throwback ode to the famous "and then there were none" by Agatha Christie. Taking an old book and putting a fresh new spin on it was welcomed with open arms. The plot was engaging and kept you wanting more.

Was I able to anticipate a bit of what happened? Sure, but it did not ruin the book in the least bit.

I wouldn't categorize this book as a thriller but more a murder mystery. This book was filled with tons of characters and they were all so well done. When it came to character development, Swanson completely nailed it. There were characters you loved, and characters you loved to hate!

You have to pay close attention or you will miss something! This is a book that will have people talking for years to come. I was so engrossed with this book my neck hurt from not looking up for 5 hours. I highly recommend!

Nine strangers receive a list with their names on it in the mail. Nothing else, just a list of names on a single sheet of paper. None of the nine people know or have ever met the others on the list. They dismiss it as junk mail, a fluke - until very, very bad things begin happening to people on the list.

This was my first Peter Swanson book, and I don't think it will be my last. Nine Lives has a And Then There Were None vibes. His writing style kept me reading for hours and wanting to pick it back up when I had to do other things. He has a way of making you feel that you are in the story. This was very atmospheric read for me. I had a feeling of who the culprit was at the end but there was a part that still caught me off guard.

Overall this was a very enjoyable read and I cannot wait to pick up his other books.

**Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an ARC in exchange for an honest review**

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Chilling and unstoppable, this book just keeps on going - layering on the suspense, terror and more suspense, as nine characters are detailed, drawn and masterfully slipped into the swirling pond of our emotions, and we cannot help but learn - each of them has been chosen to die.

Nine names on a mysterious list, the author fiendishly orchestrating lives and loves and every-day worlds than ensure we will grow to care for many of them (and care about all of them), creating a story-line that is devilishly nail-biting, as nothing can be assumed, nothing at all, about who, if any one out of the bunch, will be left standing when all is said and done.

A comparison drawn by the author himself to Agatha Christie’s “And then there were none” is apt and fitting, and may or may not do this story justice. For this reader, the (double) twist ending, (which was unguessed), was both satisfying and a worthy end to this heart-racing ride.

I loved this book - the ominous pace that never lets up, refusing to pull any punches as the pages passed far too quickly for this reader in the quest to “know” and solve the mystery.

Highly recommended for readers of the dastardly, this book is both a treat and a trial - be forewarned - once you start reading, you will not be able to put it down.

A great big thank you to the publisher @HarperCollinsCa for a #Netgalley ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own. #booksofhcc #thrillerbooks #bookreview #greatreads

#NineLives @petermswanson

From the publisher: If you’re on the list, someone wants you dead.

Creepy yet oddly mesmerizing mystery with an unusual narrative style. Nine people are on a list that is mailed (or in one case, hand-delivered) to them. Then it becomes clear that someone is killing the nine people on the list. There is a lot of jumping around in point-of-view. We hear not just from the people on the list but from law enforcement and a hired killer. Some of the people on the list are not nice people. Some are. Two form a relationship because of the list. And then their points of view stop adding to the story as each is killed in turn.

It’s kind of a weird way to tell a tale, but it worked for me as a reader. The book pays homage to Agatha Christie’s classic mystery And Then There Were None. I’ve read it before but clearly need to read it again. There were characters I did not want to see die, and one that certainly deserved to die. How are they all connected? That is the main mystery of the book. I did not guess the identity of the murderer, or the act that set the plot in motion, although I did predict a final twist.

The author gets extra credit from me for a subtle allusion to T.S. Eliot’s Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock: he “watched the girls come and go, talking of Leonardo DiCaprio.” Ha!

Peter Swanson’s writing style really engages me, and I will return for other books by the author. I read an advance reader copy of Nine Lives from Netgalley. It is scheduled to be published on March 15, and the Galesburg Public Library will own it in various formats. The library owns several of Swanson’s other titles, including the excellent Eight Perfect Murders.

This is a perfect read for fans of Agatha Christie’s “And Then There Were None”. Nine people receive a letter that lists just their names. They don’t know each other and, apparently, have nothing in common. They live all over the US and have a variety of occupations from an FBI agent to a wannabe actor. Eight of them receive the letter in the mail, one of them finds it on his daily walk just before he is murdered. Everything about it was thrilling. The plot holds together, the characters are engaging and there was nothing predictable about it. Nine people are sent a list, nine names on the list, then they start being killed. At the beginning, it’s confusing to have so many characters to deal with but the author does a great job of distinguishing them and creating distinctive personalities. Readers can’t easily figure out who the murderer was, until the end. You are continually wondering who the killer is, and why they have selected these apparently random people to be killed. Every page was full of excitement and surprisingly well developed characters. The uncertainty of not knowing who could die next, kept me on my toes the whole time. I enjoyed how Swanson allows the reader to play investigator, using the information that we slowly learn to narrow down a list of suspects to ultimately find who was responsible and why. Chapters count down from nine to none, lending a sense of urgency to the story as each lower number means another victim. Swanson did an extraordinary job at allowing the reader to be connected to the detective work by offering up multiple points of view. The characters were relatable and I found myself rooting for many of them, even though it was clear what was happening to them. The twist at the end made me audibly gasp and I loved the way it wrapped up. Best mystery I’ve read in a long time!

Peter Swanson is one of my favorite authors and I have read all of his books. Nine Lives was a fantastic read and will keep you on the edge of your seat. I literally didn't put it down until I finished. It was a quick read with many twists. I look forward to recommending this book when it's published in the Spring. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing a review copy in exchange for my opinion.

This was a propulsive thriller that kept me turning the pages. I didn't particularly care for the ending and "reveal." I would recommend it to someone looking for a quick, easy read.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the digital ARC.

Agatha Christie meets Muriel Spark in this Cobenesque thriller that keeps you guessing. I read it like candy.

Another excellent offering from Peter Swanson. A recommended purchase for collections where thrillers and his previous titles are popular.

So the premise for this was interesting until I realized this is the 2nd book in a couple months that I’ve read that was based on And Then There were None by Agatha Christie and I think this one definitely did better than the last one I read especially with having one of the detectives actually reading the novel while going to interview the sister of one of the people on the list. 9 people receive and list with their name plus eight other names on it and nothing else and they think nothing of it except one of the 9 who receive it is a FBI agent Jessica Winslow who does think it really weird. She starts trying to find the other people on the list when she finds that one of the names on the list has died and then they start getting picked off one by one. This was really interesting and there were chapters from each of the characters on the list and when they get murdered. I didn’t figure out who the killer was until they wanted me to so that was fun because I hate to figure it out too early. The reason for the killings sucked but there was a survivor at the end. So a good read and interesting way to make us care for the individuals on the list by giving us chapters dedicated to their pov and it kept you on the edge of your seat trying to figure out who is going to be next.

Thanks to William Morrow and Custom House and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book in e-book form. All opinions in this review are my own.

Wow! This was a great book to close out the first week of 2022.

I am a huge fan of Peter Swanson. This is his best book in quite some time. I loved all the references to Agatha Christie (be ready to add some of her mysteries to your tbr!).

It's a clever twist to (even as it directly references) And Then There Were None, but it's a fresh story all its own. A lot of characters (at least nine! ha!) with backstories and details. A little tough to keep straight, but it's definitely worth reading. A smart thriller that you won't be able to put down. It will be interesting to see if Swanson continues with the "number" theme (Eight Perfect Murders was a previous novel of his). Either way, I'm always eager to read whatever he produces.

Thank you, Netgalley, for my arc.

Author #PeterSwanson configures this title in a manner that makes it immensely readable. Classic mystery tropes are employed throughout, with multiple nods to #AgathaChristie 's #AndThenThereWereNone. Nine strangers receive a piece of copy paper with their names on it and nothing else in the mail. An FBI agent, Jessica Winslow's name appears on the list and she begins to attempt to locate the others on the list. When one of the other people who's name on the list is reported murdered in Kennewick, Maine, quickly followed by two other names being murdered. In a race to locate the murderer, as well as prevent her own murder, Jessica and the FBI attempt to solve the case. Thank you #NetGalley for allowing me to preview this enjoyable mystery.

Nine strangers each receive a letter in the mail and each envelope contains a single sheet of paper with nine names on it.

All of them are seemingly from different walks of life and have no connection but when one ends up dead the mystery begins. Who created the list and why were their names chosen and who killed them. So many questions left unknown.

Wow did I ever enjoy this one. It was my second book by the author and I thought this one was terrific. The chapters alternative between the nine names on the list and tells their story and experience. The chapters are relatively short which I always enjoy. The mystery was fantastic and the ending was a complete surprise. I strongly recommend you reading this one as soon as possible. This is definitely a 5 star read for me.

QUICK TAKE: another solid Swanson entry, this one about 9 people who all have the same thing in common: their name is on a list of people that are being killed off. Investigators race to track down the killer before it's too late. I liked this one, though I wish the backstory was fleshed out a little bit more and interwoven throughout the story (rather than an exposition dump at the end).

And Then There Were None is by far one of my most favourite Agatha Christie novels, so this contemporary homage to the concept definitely hooked me in! Nine people from across America all receive an identical note in the mail: a list of their names. None of them know the others, and none of them could think of a reason why anyone would hold a grudge against them. Yet, one by one, the people on the list end up getting killed. And the FBI is frantically trying to track down the killer before the next victim.


It's a classic set-up for a thriller, and Swanson does a great job in introducing us to his large cast of characters. He gives us just enough detail to make us care whether a character lives or dies (one person in particular made me actively wishing the killer would move them up the list), without overwhelming us with so much detail we can no longer keep the characters straight.

I had a particular soft spot for two of the characters -- a musician who was inspired by the list to write a love song, and an English teacher who lived with her two cats -- and I absolutely love how the random experience of both being on a murder list led them to find, and semi-fall for, each other. I also must give kudos to Swanson in setting up one of the people on the list, an FBI agent, as the super obvious primary point of view character, only to prove me wrong partway through. While the novel does track the investigation into the series of murders, we mostly see it unfold through the eyes of the characters on the list more than through the FBI agents investigating the deaths. This adds to the classic, Christie-ish feel of the mystery, and just as we root for the characters on the island in And Then There Were None, we also can't help but root for the various ordinary people who are trying to outrun their fates.

It's a testament to Swanson's characterization that some of the deaths made me truly sad. Even with characters who appeared for only a couple of chapters, I could feel the loss of their passing. The murderer's motivation was as convoluted and personal as anything out of Christie, and while part of me figures I really should have seen that reveal coming, I applaud the author for keeping me genuinely in the dark until the final two names. 

The novel isn't perfect -- the overt references to And Then There Were None got a bit too repetitive after a while, and a last minute reveal, while making the ending semi-happy, seemed totally random and unwarranted. But overall, it's a lovely read, and I'd recommend it for fans of classic whodunnits. 

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Thank you to Harper Collins Canada for an e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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This book will go live on my blog on Jan 13, 2022, at 8 am ET.

Peter Swanson has written some of my favorite thriller and suspense books. Nine Lives, his latest, falls under this genre. While it started a little slow, it picked up speed a little over halfway through. Then it moved so quickly that I was surprised when I finished the book!
Nine random people receive a list with their names and eight others. There is no explanation or clues as to who it is from or the significance of those names. One by one, each person is murdered, even when under police surveillance. Who is behind this and why? And while we’re on the subject of murders with numbers in them, you can rest assured that there are plenty of references to Agatha Christie.
At first, I was confused because many of the characters seemed similar, and I could not keep them straight. However, as soon as some of the minor characters were done away with, it was easier to track who was who.
Whether or not you’re a diehard Peter Swanson fan, this will be a satisfying read. It kept me guessing right through to the very end.

I really wanted to read this book because I loved Peter Swanson's last book Eight Perfect Murders. This one was similar, an Agatha Christie like mystery story (inspired by Christie's Ten Little Indians). If you are looking for a fast paced thriller, this is probably not the book for you! But if you are looking for a good old fashioned mystery that slowly unravels into an unpredictable, satisfying conclusion, you will love this book! The way Swanson pulls all the clues together at the end is what changed this from a three star to a four star book for me. Recommended.

This book was very fast pace and was nice to read in one sitting. The author did a great job of bouncing between multiple perspectives without overwhelming the reader. Since there were multiple narrators the chapters felt fast and kept the momentum of the story going. I was surprised by the killer. I would recommend this to anyone who wants a quick who did it murder mystery.

I enjoyed this book and was impressed with how the author played with timing and perspective to lead up to a big reveal, which seems to be a specialty of Swanson's. Very nice sendup of And Then There Were None, although if you're looking for something wholly original this probably isn't it.

This story started off strong and kept me engaged right up to the last few chapters. The end fell completely apart and I was disappointed.

Peter Swanson has been hit-or-miss with me in the past, but the books of his that I love, I love enough to keep coming back for more. And when I read the synopsis for Nine Lives, I knew this would be one more tally in the "love" column. It definitely lived up to my assumptions. Why did nine strangers receive a list with their name on it? Why have the people on that list begun to die in mysterious circumstances? Who will be next? For FBI agent Jessica Winslow, whose name appears on the list, time is running out to find out what these nine people have in common and who could wish them dead. This one is fun and fast-paced, and I highly recommend it for readers who enjoyed Swanson's previous novel, Eight Perfect Murders.