This story is a locked room mystery. Well, actually an isolated island mystery. Everyone knows about Unknown Island. It's exclusive. It's free. And it will host curated groups of selected young influencers. At least, that's what the marketing and social media is saying.

When the first group arrives - ten people ranging in age from 16 to 20 - they find that everything isn't like the media blitz says. There's no staff; the rooms are not at all luxurious; there's no internet. The ten people also discover that they have been lured to the island where someone wants some sort of revenge on them. It seems that they were all involved in some sort of accident that resulted in death.

The guests are a mixed bag of people from a beauty blogger, to an environmentalist, to a hot young chef, to a DJ who might just be dealing some drugs. It doesn't take long before they start dying. The first death is a poisoning but a wide variety of methods are used. The chapters about the growing fear and growing number of deaths were exciting even though I didn't care for any of the characters.

Learning that there was one survivor who might or might not have planned the whole thing left an ambiguous ending that will linger in my memory. Fans of suspense will enjoy this story.

When 10 random social media influencers from all walks of life get chosen for a full week vacation on Unknown Island, it’s hard to turn it down. As they arrive, they realize the glamorous vacation they were promised is not at all what they are getting. Unknown Island seems to know their biggest secrets, and as they are revealed they begin to realize that it’s going to be hard to make it off the island alive.

Unknown Island is being marketed as an all new exclusive resort catering to influential guests that are under 21. It’s invite only and absolutely free! When the “First Ten” young guests arrive the internet is abuzz. Each of them are high profile influencers with huge social media followings for completely different things.

Oddly no one has ever met or spoken to anyone from Unknown Island, and when they get there, they discover they’re alone with no Wi-Fi, the set up staff leaves them stranded, and the conditions are bare bones at best. It quickly becomes clear these influencers were invited under false pretenses. Someone has an ulterior motive and they’re now trapped on the island with a killer.

Secrets are being kept and someone wants to force those secrets out, no matter the cost. So much for a fun and wild vacation.

Ok- I’ll be honest when I started reading this and saw it was about social media influencers I groaned. Reality TV & influencers drive me crazy. However, as a fan of the author’s other work I had to trust she knew what she was doing. So I continued and she didn’t disappoint!! I could not put this down.

This book was like Clue meets an Agatha Christie book but at the Fyre Festival! 😂 None of these characters are like-able, and I found myself rooting for no one, but they felt real. Real flaws, real pain, real guilt & real regret- and that’s what drew me in. That and the murder of course. I love a whodunnit. This one isn’t original, but the way the story unfolds is so fun and unique. Unique because it’s done in a way that is totally relevant to where we are today.

I had an easy time guessing who the culprit was, and I definitely had to suspend my disbelief, but none of that took away from the story. I was so engaged in what was happening and learning about each of our flawed characters. What a fun read. This book is sure to be a hit with YA audiences.

*Huge thank you to the author, Kate Williams, and Delacorte Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

This book was INSANE! So good, with characters you both love and hate. The details were fantastic and the pace was fast enough to keep the reader interested with almost no parts that lagged. The amount of detail that the murderer went through and put into the whole plot to kill off the characters is crazy and the twist at the end left me shocked. I can’t recommend this book enough, it’s definitely a must read!

This book was an amazing thriller/suspense novel. It will keep you second guessing the entire way through. I enjoyed reading from several different viewpoints and gaining an understanding of what they are experiencing. The perfect summer murder mystery read!

Never Coming Home was absolutely incredible and exceeded all expectations I had.
This would be an amazing movie or tv show.... type of thriller. And one I would most definitely binge watch.
I was blown away with the intensity and narration.
Kate M. Williams talent needs to be recognized!

I thought this was one of the most addicting, well-plotted thrillers I’ve ever read. It’s unique in its presentation, the characters are likable, and I found myself genuinely surprised by the ending. This novel showcases her brilliant writing abilities to their full extent.

There were so many twists and turns that even if I half-guessed one thing, it never played out the way I expected it to.
It was a high octane thrill ride from start to finish 

This book grabbed hold of me and would not let go! I was on the edge of my seat wondering
This was truly a great experience!

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Delacorte Press,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my platforms, blog, B&N and Waterstone closer to pub date.

I thoroughly enjoyed NEVER COMING HOME, but I have to admit I was a little disappointed in the ending. I get it, but, wow.

The characters were well developed throughout the book, adding more about their lives as the story moved forward. The idea of being invited to an exclusive island for an all-expense paid vacation seems a little too good to be true, but this group of teenage internet influencers took advantage of their social media presence as an exciting way to build their following.

This book reminded me of Agatha Christies' book TEN LITTLE INDIANS, and the TV shows Survivor, and The Mole.

Never Coming Home by Kate Williams is a YA murder mystery where ten influencers are invited to Unknown Island for a soft opening. When the influencers arrive on the island, nothing is as expected and they start getting picked off one by one.

After reading the summary of this book, I knew I would like it, but I wasn’t prepared for how much I would love it! Never Coming Home had me hooked from the very first sentence and I found it so hard to put down. This was a great retelling of Agatha Christie’s And Then There We’re None, but made relevant by relating to the current generation. The characters were all intriguing and the mystery was great. I can’t remember reading a book that I liked this much in a long time! If you are in the fence about this book, I would definitely say to give it a chance, you won’t regret it!

I love Agatha Christie's AND THEN THERE WERE NONE. The red herrings, the rhymes, and the guessing who done it! This is a modern update using web influencers. I liked it. The person responsible surprised me. I don't understand the why and the how. So many questions in my head. A tropical island is a great spot, but it was so shabby. The letters were fine, but it would have come across much better on the screen. It was how they made their livings. A classic tale.
I received this book for an honest opinion. Thanks, NetGalley!

I tore through this book in a day and had a lot of fun reading it. I’m familiar with its roots in Agatha Christie, but haven’t read that particular book, so am approaching it from a non-comparative perspective (as I suspect most teen readers, who likely haven’t read Christie either, will). A more modern take would be if the movie Clue was part of the Saw franchise, and also set at Fyre Festival.
The premise of NEVER COMING HOME, a group of young social media influencers invited to an exclusive island resort for a vacation that quickly goes sideways when the island and resort are unstaffed, understocked, and very clearly not as advertised. Thing immediately get worse after the welcome breakfast when it’s revealed that everyone there has been invited not to sunbathe, party, and build their brands, but to pay the price for getting away with murder.
At first, I worried about keeping the ten(!) main characters from overlapping in my head, but that didn’t turn out to be a problem, and I was able to easily follow the different subplots, character backgrounds, and foreshadowing. The plot hooked me early on and kept me turning the pages, and though some of the characters’ actions and decisions seemed a bit far-fetched, the story made up for that with plenty of tension, gore, and fun plot twists. I enjoyed the timeliness of the underlying message, as well: the risks inherent to being chronically online; the unhealthy obsession with social media personas; the casual absence of privacy and online anonymity; and the damage keyboard warriors can do to the real people behind the viral posts. I also enjoyed that the characters were portrayed in a way that invites reader sympathy for their plights and the tragic paths they took to end up on the island, while making it very clear that they’re reaping the consequences of their online (and real life) actions.
Thanks to #NetGalley and Random House for the early read!

Never Coming Home is an okay book with an almost wholly unoriginal premise. Agatha Christie did it first, and did it best. If they have read Christie's book, the reader will likely quickly figure out not only the killer, but the primary target, and the motive. Even if they haven't read it, there is one line near the beginning of Williams' book that pretty much answers all those questions.
I didn't hate the book. The modern twist was interesting, but not interesting enough to attract me to this author's future work.

4.5 stars - This is one of the best AND THEN THERE WERE NONE retellings I've encountered, and I loved the incorporation of the influencer element as the basis for the themes and the murderousness. This was squarely aimed at me and what I love in mystery thriller - loved it!

From the author of The Babysitter Coven series jump on board for a fantastic beach read. Throwing in the social media phenomenon of influencers and an exclusive resort for ten elite ones chosen to experience Unknown Island for themselves, along with a murder….well it’s a combo for success.

What we soon find out is that everyone there was invited for a reason and it’s not a good one. Each influencer has some type of secret they are hiding, one that someone would kill for. People start dying one by one and who can you trust. We grow to get to know each person and their background, their strengths and weaknesses. Each one is flawed in their own way but you can’t help but have sympathy for them. But which one of them is crazy enough to have planned this all out? The final reveal is wildly genius and I promise you will not have guessed it.

This was a really down to earth, realistic telling of the social media generation and a great retelling of an Agatha Christie classic. It’s definitely worth a read. I hope to see more books in this style by this author.

This is what you would classify as a " book of the times" .

We are currently living in a world where influencers make more money than physicians and politicians. So what better plot than to put a bunch of privileged influencers on a deserted island. This book is jam packed with unlikeable characters and I loved every ounce of it.

This was a riveting, mind bending, psychological thriller that kept me engaged the entire book. There were no "slow periods" or any kind of repetitiveness. This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time and I quickly became addicted to "one more chapter" . I ended up devouring this in one sitting. I could not get enough.

This book is definitely going to be a favorite of mine and I can not wait to see what Kate M. Williams comes out with next. I have become a true fan.

Unknown Island is the hottest thing on social media: a luxury resort that caters exclusively to up-and-coming under-21s, carefully matched to ensure brilliant content. Best of all, everything is free. The first ten attendees arrive to find it really is too good to be true. The place is a dump, with no wifi, staff, or way off the island. And then they start dying. It turns out each of these bright young things has a dark secret, and someone wants to make them pay. Yep, it's And Then There Were None with influencers. A gruesome thriller with some decent points about the price of fame.

And Then There Were None with a modern twist.

Ten social media influencers are invited to an exclusive vacation on a remote island. How were they selected? And why does the screen in lounge show weird comments about what is happening next?

No one gets what they expect......who will survive.

Good pacing. Interesting characters. Left me wondering who "did it".

Thank you Random Teen Canada for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Never Coming Home is like if, And Then There Were None took place at the Fyre Festival.
10 influencers are picked to go on a magical all expense paid promotional trip to this beautiful island. Once they get there they realize it's not what was advertised. The 10 influencers soon realize that their deepest secrets have come to light and they're being punished by Unknown Island.

Never Coming Home was such a fun read! I came into this book having zero expectations and I once I picked it up I could not put it down. I always struggle when theirs a lot of characters but once you learn who is who its very easy to follow the story.

This book was so eerie and creepy, I was reading at night and at some points I was even getting a little freaked out. Check the trigger warnings for this book because it does get quite gory. Overall this was a really fun book that I couldn't put down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Never Coming Home is about 10 elite influencers who range from having thousands of followers to millions who are chosen to spend a week long "vacation" at Unknown Island - beautiful, tropical, white sandy beaches, all expenses paid. Supposedly. Literally, an hour or so into arriving at the island, someone dies. And then another. And then another. Is the murderer one of these 10 influencers? Is it someone else who is hiding someone on Unknown Island?

Wow, this book drew me in from the beginning! I am not a GenZ but I am a Millennial who is very familiar with social media platforms and social media influencers. I will say I had a hard time following all the characters at the beginning because there were so many. And the sections would switch fairly quickly between characters. It was insightful to get to know what they were all thinking but it was just a lot. The beginning of the book gives you a rundown of who everyone is, their social media following and what they do but because there were so many, it was hard to remember.

Once I got to know the characters more and remember their names, it was easier to follow. I will say this book ended and I still had A LOT of questions - which I didn't quite enjoy. I get ending a book of some kind of mystery but there were really big questions that were never answered. But, overall, I really did enjoy this book and I kept wanting to read to find out who the killer was!

Thanks again to NetGalley and Random House Children's for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

In this updated version of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, Ms. Williams does a good job of updating the premise to entice today’s readers. It was a fun read and kept the reader guessing who was killing everyone. However, there are better retellings of this classic mystery. The characters were not developed enough to really care about any of them.


I received an ARC ebook from NetGalley and the publisher, Random House Children, in exchange for an honest review.

In Never Coming Home, there are ten people invited to an unknown island. No one knows who owns it, but it's going to be free. It's remote and there isn't anything else around. The people range in age from 16 to early 20's. Each of them has a fairly large social media presence, but some are much smaller than others. That seemed a little odd because this first group of ten were to be the influencers. None of them really had anything in common. Or so they thought. After breakfast, the group is given an envelope that tells them that they are all murderers. After talking, they all realized that the person that set this up had different names. There was only one person there to welcome them and he wasn't supposed to run anything. The "woman" was supposed to be there, but was running late. But no one was coming. There was no way to leave the island and people start dying quickly. The people there realize that it must be one of them. So who can they trust and how are they doing it? No one can access the internet or have any phone coverage. But there is a board with the island's social media page and it's been updating with photos and little clues.

The pacing of this one was good. I thought I knew who it was early, then thought I was wrong, but ended up being right. So it was pretty fun to read. The deaths were kind of brutal, but I liked the idea of this.

I gave this book 4 stars.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.