Wow! I really like this book! Jennifer Hillier's writing style is absolutely gorgeous!

This is a twisty turny read that will keep you guessing until the very end. I LOVED to hate the character Ruby. Absolutely could not wait for more scenes that she was in because she was absolutely horrible but it really gave a well-rounded look of why the characters are the way they are.

Paris was easy to root for even though you're wondering what the heck happened to Jimmy! Definitely would recommend!

4.5

Thanks to the publisher, NetGalley and the author for the ARC!

Paris Peralta looks guilty when she's arrested in her own home covered in her husband's blood holding a straight razor. But Paris is more concerned that the publicity of her arrest will bring up the past she ran away from many years ago.

I will read anything Jennifer Hillier writes. She always come through with excellent thrillers. Things We Do in the Dark jumps between different points of view and different timelines split into 6 parts. While I was hanging onto every word in the beginning, things started to slow down during the next section that provided a lot of the background on Paris. I almost gave up on the book during this point, but I stuck it out and I'm so glad I did.

A big twist around the halfway mark got me right back in and it was hard to put down after that.

I think I feel about this book the same way that Megan Fox feels about Machine Gun Kelly - It is my twin flame. 🔥🔥 Even though it unsettled me at times, I couldn’t stay away from its light…or in this case, its dark.

Full transparency:
🔪 I have never been accused of murdering my wealthy husband
🍒 I have never worked at a strip club
and thankfully, I have never been a giver or a victim of child abuse.

BUT I felt this book on many levels and every time I was apart from it, it’s all I could think about. I am already calling it as the best thriller of 2022 and will be very surprised if something tops it for me.

A lot of writers are one trick ponies, but not Jennifer Hillier. No, she is a unicorn. Or what’s the one with the wings? A Pegasus? Well, whatever she is, she is made of magic. 🦄✨

I don’t remember the last time I was in a “one more chapter” bargain loop like I was with this gritty read. Laundry had to wait. Dishes? Nope. Dinner? Fine. But only if I can read while I eat.

I could not put it down. The suspense level of is perfection.

The story begins from the perspective of a woman named Paris, who is accused of killing her famous husband who is almost 30 years her senior. Things don’t look good for her and it’s quickly apparent that Paris has a lot of secrets.

Then, about 20% in, the story does a pivot and the perspective shifts to create a truly dynamic thriller with intricate layers and levels. It doesn’t give away its secrets all at once.

🎧 BOOK / REVIEW 🎧

This was such a lovely weekend, y'all. So much sunshine, time with friends and of course a good #book. I still get chills every time I get #bookmail - and think, how am I so darn lucky to get copies from my favorite authors like @jenniferhillierbooks before everyone else 🥺

#thingswedointhedark was deliciously wicked and sinister. I read this cover to cover in under 24 hours. I LOVED THIS BOOK. I read somewhere this is her favorite book to date, but its nearly impossible to beat #jarofhearts in my opinion (though a close second). This one will rip you apart for a lot of reasons and there are definitely trigger warnings like sexual assault and some graphic crime scene descriptions, but I strongly suggest you grab this ASAP. Thanks @minotaur_books and #shelfawareness for my copy - out 7/19/22! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: July 19, 2022
*TW: child physical and sexual abuse, drug use*
Brilliant Canadian thriller writer, Jennifer Hillier, returns with her new novel “Things We Do in the Dark”. I found Hillier by accident one day when I discovered “Creep”, was again pulled under her spell with “The Butcher” and was captivated by “Little Secrets”. There is no denying that I’d read Hillier’s grocery list, so it was a no-brainer that I would jump at the chance to read this one, too.
Paris Peralta is arrested after she is found covered in blood, holding a blade, while her husband bleeds out in the bathtub. Although her husband was a famous, televised comedian, Paris has been successful at staying out of the spotlight- until now. Now Paris not only has to worry about being tried and arrested for the murder of her husband but she also has to worry that someone from her past will recognize the girl she used to be, and make her pay. Unfortunately for Paris, someone does. “The Ice Queen”, Ruby Reyes, is being released from prison, after serving years for murdering her married lover, and she has the power to reveal Paris’ secrets to the whole world, unless Paris is willing to pay for it.
“Dark” is divided into sections; first, we hear from Paris as her husband is discovered dead and she is taken away from her home in handcuffs. Secondly, we are introduced to Drew Malcolm, whose podcast “Things We Do in the Dark” is focusing on the Ice Queen herself, Ruby Reyes, and slowly, we begin to see the connection between Paris and Ruby, and between Drew and Paris herself. The final two sections converge the storylines, and Paris’ identity and backstory are revealed, as well as the drama of her courtroom legal battle. Although all characters and storylines connect at the end, there does seem to be a bit of disjointed storytelling at the beginning, as the novel goes from one plotline (the murder, the legal trial) to another (Paris’ backstory, Ruby’s connection). It is definitely worth pushing through though, as Hillier makes a seamless connection, full of twists, turns and psychological mind games that will leave you breathless!
Paris is an intriguing character and although she was not exceptionally relatable, she was likable and I rooted for her from the start! The connection between Paris and Ruby was pretty easy to recognize right from the hop, although the ending had a nice twist that I didn’t expect!
“Things We Do in the Dark” is definitely a different type of novel than I was expecting but it was still entertaining, terrifying and gripping all at once. Hillier does psychological thrillers right, and “Dark” is no exception!

I loved Jennifer Hillier's book Little Secrets and looked forward to reading an ARC of her latest novel, Things We Do In The Dark. This novel is highly recommended. I loved it! Hillier's writing is stellar and her plotting is exceptional. I'm officially a fan.

Throughout the story, I rooted for main character, Paris Peralta, who survives a childhood of violence and abuse from a sadistic mother and finally finds happiness with an older man who happens to be a famous comedian. The juxtaposition between a horrific childhood and marriage to a comedic genius was irony that wasn't lost on me. Of course, since Things We Do In The Dark is a thriller; drama, tragedy, and suspense soon follow.

Many thanks to St Martin's Press Minotaur Books and NetGalley for providing an ARC to read and review. This review will be posted to Bayside Book Reviews website and Instagram page on release day. https://baysidebookreviews.com/ *NetGalley Top Reviewer.

Little Secrets was the first book I read by Jennifer and was excited when I was approved for electronic ARC by NetGalley and Minotaur books.

Covered in blood with a straight razor, Paris is the immediate suspect of the murder of her famous comedian husband who’s much older than her. Paris doesn’t like being in limelight, and she has her own reasons. She has her own past that she doesn’t wish to dig but this trial can make it difficult. This story has six parts, and each part reveals a new story that I’m sure readers will enjoy reading. It’s a dark thriller and I enjoyed reading it as much as I loved reading Little Secrets.

I am a big fan of Jennifer Hillier! This book helped me get out of my reading (with my eyes) rut! I loved this book, but not as much Jar of Hearts and Little Secrets,

This book was absolutely incredible! I’m a huge fan of Jennifer Hillier and this book did not disappoint. It was thrilling and face paced. I’m a huge fan of a dual timeline and this book was just so interesting. I couldn’t put it down

This was a bit of a disappointment for me. Loved her previous book Little Secrets. I really also loved how this story started out, but when it went to the past for the backstory it just really fizzled out for me.

Paris comes out of a trance with the police asking her to put down the weapon. In her hand is a razor blade. And in the tub next to her is her dead husband. Her husband is an older wealthy famous comedian, and many have been skeptical of their relationship. Paris also has her own secrets to keep hidden.

It was easy to figure out who killed her husband as there were only 3 choices of suspects. And the end tied up waaaaaay too neatly in the last two chapters in my opinion. Started off strong, but was a slog to finish.

This was a good page turning mystery, bouncing between characters and timelines. I will say this wasn’t as dark or shocking as Jar of Hearts, but I do think fans of the author will still enjoy it. I figured out the “twist” very early on but I think that’s to be expected. The ending definitely made it for me, I was concerned where it would go but liked where it ended up. I recommend for fans of Samantha Downing’s He Started It. Gave me very similar vibes.

After reading and loving Little Secrets, I was so excited to get an early copy of Jennifer Hillier’s newest release, Things We Do in the Dark. All that to say… I was a bit let down with this one. I was able to guess every twist along the way, and I really didn’t connect with the characters at all. I found myself really enjoying part 1, but after that, the book went downhill for me. The flashbacks were confusing, and flip flopping between characters and timeframes left me lost. Unfortunately, I found myself wanting to DNF by the 40% mark. I pushed through, and while I didn’t love the story, I really did appreciate the ethnic representation, which you don’t see often in thrillers these days!

(I received an advance copy from Netgalley).

The wife of a well-known comedian is suspected of his murder, but as her past is revealed, the truth comes to light.

The pacing of <u>Things We Do in the Dark</u> took off at lightning speed. I was immediately drawn in by Paris and her character and the accusations cast against her. But this all changed by Part 2, when Drew's perspective was introduced. Suddenly, this novel dragged and dragged. It devolved from a fast paced thriller to a tiresome romantic drama that was equally predictable and redundant. I will admit I went into this with high hopes, as I have heard lots of positive reviews about Hillier's other novels (specifically <u>Jar of Hearts</u>) but this did not satisfy me whatsoever.

Things We Do In The Dark-

Jennifer Hillier’s novels are compelling, addictive, and original, a powerful thriller trio. From the opening line of this novel I could tell I was going to love it.

I’ve been mulling it over trying to figure out what makes her books so great, and my consensus is that she writes the perfect amount of characterization and background detail to truly make the stories come to life. Sometimes thrillers can feel like a caricature of reality and that makes them lose some of the momentum.

Ever since reading The Night Swim (another great thriller,) I’ve always enjoyed novels that have a true crime podcast element, which this book did as well. It’s a great mix of family drama, celebrity life, and suspense all wrapped into one.

Synoposis: When Paris Peralta is arrested in her own bathroom—covered in blood, holding a straight razor, her celebrity husband dead in the bathtub behind her—she knows she'll be charged with murder. But as bad as this looks, it's not what worries her the most. With the unwanted media attention now surrounding her, it's only a matter of time before someone from her long hidden past recognizes her and destroys the new life she's worked so hard to build, along with any chance of a future.

Also the ARC they sent actually glowed in the dark, cannot let this A+ packaging go unnoticed, I love a good theme and the book kept glowing on my nightstand for several weeks haha. Put it on your summer reading list for when it releases on 7/19! Thanks @minotaurbooks for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

All the stars from me!!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Things We Do in the Dark!

If you plan to ready any thrillers this year, let it be this one. Jennifer did such an amazing job with this book. I was a big fan of "Little Secrets" and "Jar of Hearts" but this one has to be my absolute favorite out of the three.

This thriller was very exciting from beginning to end. It had my attention from the start....but once that first twice hit at about 50%, I was ALL IN for the remainder of the book. Everything was so perfectly placed and hit all the right places.

I cannot wait to get a physical copy to keep on my shelf.

5 Hearts Recommended Read
SJ, Romance Junkies

Jennifer Hillier writes psychological thrillers like no one else, and her latest novel, THINGS WE DO IN THE DARK, is exceptional! When Paris Peralta is accused of murdering her celebrity husband, a well of secrets and lies come to light as the surprise killer is slowly revealed.

The character development in THINGS WE DO IN THE DARK is so perfectly unveiled, with flashbacks to the past revealed slowly but not too slowly that they affect the quick pacing of this diabolically twisted story. There's murder, blackmail, suspicion, and more murder. But who has done it and why?

Paris's upbringing has its own issues, but the love she had for her now deceased husband feels real, and the complex relationships in the story build for a big reveal at the end that is both surprising, sad, yet satisfying.

With ties to a past love, Paris's mother being a convicted criminal, and Paris's attempt to live a normal life, the story spirals until it settles, then spirals again, keeping the reader in a state of suspense that demands you keep reading until the very end.

I can't suggest this book highly enough! For a fantastic psychological thriller that keeps you guessing as well as reading far into the night, pick up THING WE DO IN THE DARK.

This was a really interesting book and not what I expected, I feel like the cover is incredibly misleading but maybe that is the purpose. I really enjoyed the past and present & multiple narrators POV, and felt moved by Joey and Paris' stories. I would highly suggest a trigger warning as the core content is deeply disturbing and I read a lot of thrillers with similar messaging, perhaps Hillier's storytelling is just that good.

The dynamics of the novel and how secrets are revealed was really interesting and I appreciate that it wasn't held close to the chest the entire time and you felt like you had time to sit with the reveal.

The twist at the end and the full reveal of how Paris' husband died was insane and intense and not what I expected. It was a great novel and probably one of my favorite's so far this year.

Sadly I didn’t love this book as much as I loved jar of hearts by this author.
This one moved very slow and was very predictable. It did touch on very important topics such as abuse, rape, and much more but it just fell flat for me.

So let me start by saying thank you to Jennifer Hillier and publishers for letting me read this advanced copy!!

I’m a huge Jennifer Hillier fan but I had a hard time finishing this one.

Loved the title! The story started with being introduced to Paris who is being arrested for the murder of her husband who is a famous comedian. Her lawyer is also her husbands best friend. Then we get introduced to Joey whose mother is in jail for killing a man. For most of the story from here is a man who knew Joey trying to find her.

This story wrapped in a good way but the story together just didn’t flow for me. It took me a long time to finish this. Usually her books takes me 2 days at most.

Still a great read ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to the publisher for my review copy. All opinions are my own.

Jennifer, I'm a fan. To be sure. My favorite Jennifer Hillier has been Jar of Hearts....Things We Do in the Dark...might be nudging that title into second place.

I really enjoyed it. The set up was well done. The characters. Very robust. Overall...the twists and turns were well done and to be honest....somewhat believable.

I really enjoyed this one. Grab it.