I loved Eight Perfect Strangers by Peter Swanson but I hated his next book Every Vow You Break. That meant that, while I was looking forward to picking up Nine Lives I was also somewhat dreading it. It usually takes me three books by an author before I can fully decide if this would be an author I will continue to read or if the author just isn't for me. With one book on each side of the spectrum needless to say a lot was riding on this book.

Overall I did end up enjoying Nine Lives. It definitely made up for the bad taste that Every Vow You Break left in my mouth. It was a quick read and it kept me guessing. I did somewhat guess part of the story due to all of the mentions of Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None" (my favorite book by here) but that didn't take away from my overall enjoyment. It was interesting trying to figure out the motive for why these nine random people were being targeted. The ending did seem a little lackluster for me but they can't all be jawdropping.

A big thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for letting me read this book.

Fantastic concept- 5 stars!
Nine random names on an anonymous list. Doesn't seem too interesting. No one recognizes a name but their own. But when listees start turning up dead, folks take notice. Are they really random victims, iif not what's the connection?

I thoroughly enjoyed Nine Lives and thought it to be a remarkably fleshed out mystery. More plot driven than character navigated, the story moved at a fast pace following multiple point of views. The reader is kept in the dark most the novel, the big reveal wasn't much of an omg plot twist but I thought it was a great wrap up to the entire story. Making the novel a cohesive and enjoyable thriller. I highly recommend to fans of Agatha Christie and all mystery/thriller loving readers. Publication date March 15th, 2022

Thank you to netgalley and William Morrow for an advanced digital readers copy to read and provide my honest opinion.

#NineLives:

He’d always wondered what was worse: to feel emptiness and not know what would make it go away, or to feel emptiness and know exactly what was missing.

I started this book around 7PM just wanting to get a feel for it. I stayed up all night and tore through it so quickly. It was pretty fast paced with short chapters, so between folding clothes I would steal pages and got through it so quickly.,

I am glad Swanson makes a nod to And Then There Were None, because that is honestly where my mind went. This became my favorite book since I was 8, so of course any resemblance to it, I’m stuck on the thought.

I loved that we got a list a people and their occupations early on in the book, because I flipped every 30-40 pages or so to keep track of people. A lot of the minor players in the major characters lives had similar names, and I got confused. However, the chapter starts with the list whenever someone dies, so if I saw it in the next page, I knew that person was a goner and I was mad. Some people I said good riddance to as they perished, others I was sad for.

While I enjoyed the story, I really didn’t enjoy the reasoning and explanation at the end. I was hoping for more of a backstory, instead of a 3 page reveal.

Overall, a solid Swanson book with a nod to some of the tried and true formulas in mystery. The buildup and read was amazing and I tore through this book in less than 24 hours. However, just wished more of a backstory/reveal to really solidify why. Thank you @wm for the gifted copy. Nine Lives is out 3/15!

*Phenomenal* book! I was captivated from start to finish, and was quite grouchy with anyone who dared interrupting my reading! I thought the pacing was perfect--addictingly perfect, and the characters well-written (without dragging out the fleshing of their backgrounds), and the twists and turns of the plot were great. Solid 5-star book!

Thanks to William Morrow & Custom House and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this outstanding title!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.!! The best Peter Swanson book since The Kind Worth Killing. With every new book by Swanson, I become immediately engaged! But with this one....I couldn't stop reading!

I loved this book! The use of several narrators, short chapters, and the book divided in parts kept me flipping pages and desperate to know what happened next.

I've read quite a few Swanson novels and I think this was my favorite. I was completely surprised by the outcome and loved trying to figure out the connections between each character. Things didn't play out the way I expected and I always like that.

The novel is about nine strangers who each receive a handwritten letter simply identifying nine names - one of which is themselves. An FBI agent is on the list and immediately raises a red flag when she Googles the names and learns that one recently died under suspicious circumstances. As the FBI works to identify and protect each of the nine individuals, the killer is also working to eliminate them one by one.

This book reminded me A LOT of John Marrs' writing style and voice with the multiple narrators and loose connections that are woven over time.

With the use of so many characters, it isn't surprising I was more connected to some storylines more than others. It also took me a bit to remember each individual - the introduction in the beginning briefly identifying each person on the list was definitely helpful. Some storylines I really enjoyed but the person was killed off pretty early which was disappointing but made for great reading!

If you like a fast paced suspense novel with multiple narrators this one is definitely for you!

Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for a copy of this excellent novel.

This is my first novel by this author and I loved it. The premise of the story is that nine individuals receive the same list of nine names and one by one, those on the list are being murdered. I believe it is an ode to an Agatha Christie story And Then There Were None. I really enjoyed getting a glimpse into the lives of the nine as well as their perspective on their situation waiting to see if another on the list will be killed. Easy and enjoyable read.

Quick read...not his usual twisty tale but still enjoyable. 9 people are on a list that do not know each other and they begin being killed one by one...what is the connection? I did not notice until mid way that the "chapters" are actually counting backwards and coming to an end once a name is "crossed off" the list. It is initially difficult to keep track of the numerous characters. Good thing there is a list of people to start the novel. The backgrounds of each person on the list, what they feel about the list is part of the this straight forward not very twisty mystery. And It All comes together in the end.
I do enjoy this author but prefer more twists in my mysteries. Thank you for the preview.

I really enjoyed this one! After loving Before She Knew Him a few years ago, I figured this one would be a hit for me as well. It was. I loved the mystery behind the list and maybe I’m dumb, but I was surprised by the reveal. When everything clicked into place, I gasped. The way that the book was structured was fascinating. I loved that the different parts counted down as the different lives ended. I also loved that we were given a cast of characters at the front to flip back to in case we got confused by all nine of the people on the list. The way the different stories intersected and eventually ended was well done. And, of course, as a big fan of the Queen of Mystery, I adored all of the Agatha Christie references.

Nine Lives is a clever homage to Agatha Christie. The tone of the book reminded me of those great Christie and Hitchcock books I used to inhale when I first started reading mysteries, a little old fashioned sounding, with the hint of a solution just beyond my reach. I also loved all the literary references sprinkled throughout the book, especially the poetry lines. As the story advanced in short chapters headed by a countdown, I realized what we were being set up for, and I found myself wanting to learn more about the characters and how they were connected. I knew with enough information, I could figure out the ending. Of course, that was not to be as Swanson hid the solution until the end, which made for a very enjoyable read.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow and Custom House for an advance reader's copy.

Nine Lives is a homage to my favorite Agatha Christie book, And Then There Were None. Nine strangers living in different cities across the U.S. each receive a list with the same nine names, including their own, with no explanation. They don’t seem to have anything in common and include people from a variety of professions including nurse, singer/songwriter, college professor, and FBI agent. One is a clearly despicable person, but most seem like flawed but nice people. Many of the recipients ignore the letter...until people on the list start dying.

I loved this book and highly recommend it! I was so impressed by the excellent writing, memorable characters, and intricate plotting of this book. I was engaged in the story from the very beginning and didn’t want to put it down. It's like a classic mystery but with contemporary situations and storytelling. There are a lot of characters in the book, but I quickly got to know each of them and didn’t have any problems keeping track of them. The only downside is I really grew to like most of them, but in light of the book’s premise, I was pretty sure they wouldn’t all survive. As the story progressed, I started putting together some of the clues as to the identity of the murderer and the motive. However, I was shocked by a couple of big reveals at the end and loved being surprised.

This is the first book I've read by Swanson and now that I’ve read one, I will definitely be reading others. Mystery fans, especially those who enjoyed Christie’s And Then There Were None, should enjoy the book as much as I did. Thank you to NetGalley, William Morrow, and Scene of the Crime Early Reads for this ebook. An advance copy was provided to me at no cost, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

I have read several of this author's books and liked all of them quite a bit. This one, however, didn't work for me. It was a smooth and easy read but it lacked depth despite a promising premise.

A list of nine names is sent out to the people on the list. People on the list are suddenly killed. Nothing really leads up to their murders, they are just wiped out in the wink of an eye. While we learn a little about the individuals marked for murder we don't learn much and what little we do isn't terribly interesting. There really isn't much more to the story than that - nine people on a list, nine people to be murdered. The big reveal isn't very big at all. I think there could have been so much more to this story than there was leaving me disappointed. I also missed any connection meant to Agatha Christie as I haven't read any of her books (I know, how can that be!).

I will give credit to the author for making it relatively easy for the reader to remember the nine names without having to keep going back to see who is who.

Many thanks to Net Galley for allowing me to read an advance copy.

I've enjoyed some of Swanson's books in the past, even his most recent release before this, but this one was a let-down. I found it fairly boring, with thinly drawn, verging-on-caricaturish characters (that English professor particularly rankled, being an ex-English-prof myself), and I didn't LIKE any of them or find myself rooting for any of them. I know that might be part of the point in such a by-the-numbers 'homage' to Christie, but I feel like Swanson already did that--and better--in 8 Perfect Murders, so I'm not sure how this isn't just a tepid re-tread of a re-tread.

I must admit I am a bit behind. This was my first read by this author. Nine Lives was an intriguing mystery from the start. An ominous letter comes in the mail with nine names. What could it possibly mean? A little reminder of an Agatha Christie novel. Then a body on the beach…. But when the second body is of a man in the suburbs, on his daily run, both names on the lists, turns up, the excitement begins. It certainly captures the interest of the FBI agent, Jessica Winslow, who is also on the list. Will Jessica be able to uncover who, what, and why before another is killed? This is an intricate mystery with many twist and turns until the end. Looking forward to the next book by Peter Swanson. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a capturing read, that is easy to enjoy from start to finish. Thank you Net Galley, Scene of the Crime, and Harper Collins for the advanced copy to read!

This one is all about holding grudges and revenge and WHEW it's a doozy! Nine random people receive a list with nine names on it, theirs included. They each start dying one by one - but why? The layout of this book was interesting. Each section contains chapters from nine different lives, and the sections get shorter and shorter as each person is murdered. It makes for a unique and intense read.

As I was reading I knew that one of the nine people had to be the killer. But I honestly didn't figure it out until the big reveal. Once the reader is provided with the backstory, we learn just how dangerous grudges can be.

Thank you, @williammorrowbooks for my early #partner copy through the Crime Early Read Program! This one publishes on March 15, add it to your TBR.

One of my BFF's from college introduced me to this website. I signed up, became and member and had the chance to read Nine Lives. This book held my attention from the beginning through the end. The book pulled me in and kept me reading as I tried to figure out why what was happening was happening. The author did a get job of tying everything together at the end. Loved the ending!!!!

Peter Swanson has always been an author that I can count on to throw me for a loop. Even when I know he's going to throw me for a loop (and am on the lookout for loops I could be thrown into), he still catches me off guard. And that continues with his newest mystery thriller NINE LIVES, a twist on a AND THEN THERE WERE NONE kind of story involving nine people who receive a list with their names on it... and who are marked for death. I found myself enjoying the mystery and found it to be pretty well constructed and told, Swanson revealing each revelation in his own good time, and was caught by surprise a good number of times. We see each person on the list get their copy, and then get picked off one by one, and slowly get hints as to what connects them and who could be next, the suspense building as we just wait for it to be their finite and matter of fact end. The only downside of this is that with all these people it's hard to get to know them, and many of them are pretty tropey. On top of that, the motive is pretty standard and well worn, and while I liked the journey itself by the end of it all it feels pretty paint by numbers.

Overall NINE LIVES is still entertaining and did surprise me, but it felt undercooked and kind of bland in other ways.

This was a fun faced paced murder mystery. I enjoyed the characters and trying to figure out how they were all connected. This book had me guessing the who and why throughout the entire time. I really enjoyed it.
Many thanks to Peter Swanson, William Morrow and Netgalley for the e-arc.

4 List Avoidance Stars

There’s a mysterious list of 9 names, seemingly random, people of different ages and all over the country – do they have anything in common? How did their names get on this list? The lists are mailed to each person on the list, except for the first one which is hand-delivered and found clutched in a dead man’s hand.

There’s even an FBI agent, Jessica, on the list and I had high hopes she would get to the bottom of things. It would seem that someone is methodically murdering each person on the list.

This fast-paced tale kept me glued to my e-book as I got to know each character and wondered if this was their unlucky day. Even under police protection, the murderer somehow found each victim.

I really was nowhere close to guessing on this one and I must say that the why of this one didn’t seem especially fair, but is life or murder ever fair? This one was entertaining and has some tie-ins to Agatha Christie.

What might you speculate if you received a list with nine names on it and one of them was yours? None of the other names look familiar to you and then you are made aware that this list may put your life in danger. This is the premise of Nine Lives by Peter Swanson.

This is a fast-paced thriller with short chapters. There is a character chart at the beginning of the book which was very helpful when you have just a little time to learn about each character. The chapters count down as people are eliminated from the list, literally.

I have avoided reading Eight Perfect Murders by this author because I have been told that it spoils many other books. This one spoils And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie so if you have any plans on reading that one, it should be completed before this book. I did enjoy the many literary references throughout to books that characters were reading.

I would have appreciated more clues throughout the story rather than being handed the reason in an all in one fashion. I also found myself trying to put Linwood Barclay’s Find You First out of my mind while reading this one as it has a similar trope.

Overall, I enjoyed this one and will happily read more of Swanson’s books as I did enjoy the writing and character building.

Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Nine Lives publishes March 15, 2022.