This was a a little hard to get through it was very predictable but being familiar with some of the locations it was neat to be like hey I know that place but the story it self was ok and the narration wasn't my favourite maybe this is one of those better in print type of books

One of the best thrillers I’ve read in awhile!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Genre: Mystery/ Thrillers
Warning: Lots if triggers (sexual assault, abuse, drugs, violence)

Summary: I feel like I can’t give out too many details because there are SO many twists in turns. Without giving too much away, I can say this: Paris is a mysterious women who has been accused of her older, wealthy, husband’s death. While the investigation ensues, so does an investigation on another women’s death 25 years prior.

Thoughts: There were so many surprising aspects of this book. As someone who reads lots of thrillers, I love when something unexpected happens! I highly recommend this audio version of the book. Carla does an amazing job with the narration!

Paris Peralta never wanted to be in the spotlight--and with good reason--but she was happily married to her much older, retired, famous comedian husband. Then Jimmy returned to the spotlight. And then Jimmy turned up dead in his own bathtub.

This twisty tale takes you through a long list of things people do in the dark and what motivates someone to do those things.

It has all the things you could want in a mystery: morally gray characters, questioning the reliability of your narrators, questions of identity, ambiguity as to whether or not a crime has actually been committed, history and backstory with additional crimes, interpersonal connections, motivation, and psychological and emotional background for the main characters.

Carla Vega brings this one to life in the audiobook. Her voice is well-suited to the mystery and characters of Things We Do in the Dark.

Please look up content and trigger warnings for this one. The author posts some at the beginning of the book.

I received an ALC of the book from Macmillan Audio and NetGalley. All review opinions are my own.

How many stars am I allowed to give this novel? I'm not sure there are enough. I loved the back and forth time lines it was like unraveling the yarn of a sweater or peeling an onion layer by layer. The narration by Carla Vega was phenomenal.


Thanks to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an ARC copy to review. You've definitely turned me on to a new author.

This was an interesting read! I flew through it and even though I guessed some of the twists I still didn’t want to stop listening because I had to know what really happened.

It starts with Paris Peralta being arrested for her celebrity husbands murder and as most accused murderers do, Paris has a dark and secret past.

One thing I liked but also didn’t was the different POV and time jumps. I think they made the story move quickly but also were kind of confusing at times and sometimes stayed too long. Like the jumps would take me out of the present story or we would stay away from one character for too long. And although some twists were predictable I still didn’t guess the whole thing correctly.

This is a popular book right now and as with most highly hyped books I can really see it being a love or hate it situation. I am definitely on team loved it!

Pubs 19 July 2022
4 Stars!

The story starts strong from the first page as Paris Perralta is being arrested for the murder of her comedian husband. She woke up next to his body and with police surrounding her. The story brings us to Drew, a crime-journalist-turned-crime-podcaster and his relationship with the "Ice Queen" Ruby Reyes who was arrested many years ago for killing her lover and is now being released. As we go on we start to see ways in which each of the characters stories are intertwined.

I enjoyed both the story and the narration. The narrator gave a separate voice to each character which I always love. The story was great too; I liked the chapters that provided backstory for Joey, Drew and Ruby. It made the current time chapters better to have that background. I thought the story was paced well and kept my interest throughout. Several 'twists' to keep things interesting and try to confuse the reader on who is genuine and who's up to no good. Ruby was such an unlikable character, she was well-written -- as were the other characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an early audio copy to listen and review!

Omg! Jennifer Hillier has done it again! Loved the twists & turns in this book! The narrator was great as well! 5 stars!

Paris Peralta is found on her bathroom floor with a straight razor in her hand and her celebrity husband dead in the bloody bathtub. After it is revealed that Charles Peralta recently changed his will, making Paris the beneficiary of the major portion of his multi-million dollar estate, Paris is arrested for murder.

Paris is frantic. She didn’t kill her husband, but she does have long-hidden secrets. For one thing, her real name isn’t Paris, it’s Joelle, daughter of the infamous Ice Queen, Ruby Reyes. Ruby was convicted of the murder of her married lover twenty-five years ago and is about to be released from prison. Ruby, who will never win mother of the year awards, knows several of Paris’ secrets and is attempting to blackmail her daughter.

Drew is a true-crime podcaster with over three million followers. At one time, he knew Joelle fairly well and was one of her roommates. After a woman was killed in a fire in the apartment they shared, Drew identified Joelle’s body by a unique tattoo. He’s mourned her senseless death for years. Drew knows that Ruby is being released and begins research on her as a subject for an episode of his podcast. He has no idea what he’s about to discover.

Things We Do in the Dark is a complex, twisted tale of abuse and triumph. I listened to the audio edition, narrated by Carla Vega. I was absolutely riveted – and lost several hours of sleep – listening to it in the middle of the night. She did a fantastic job portraying Ruby’s cruel voice. The author wrote believable characters, even Ruby. There are way too many real people who are that hateful to their children and foster children.

The novel is much more multi-layered than I’ve described, because I don’t want to give too much away. This is not a novel for the faint-of-heart. It is about child abuse, pedophilia and murder. It is also a novel about one woman who did whatever she needed to do to survive.

My Rating 4.5 Stars, A-

Jennifer Hiller is an author that I will always automatically want to read, and this new novel did not disappoint. When Paris Peralta is found by police with her husbands dead body, she is automatically suspect number one in his death. With all the media attention surrounding her in the investigation, ghosts from her past start to pay attention and threaten her beyond just one murder charge.

I really enjoyed that this book was a lot more than what you can gleam from the book blurb. Without giving any spoilers, I enjoyed the multiple parts in this book, and narration from an unexpected character. While I was able to guess one of the twists pretty early on, I still really liked how this book kept things moving at a great pace, and also kept you guessing. I listened to the audiobook version, and thought the narrator did a wonderful job, she had a lovely tone and great pacing. While this novel doesn't top "Jar of Hearts" for me, this is a must read for anyone who loves thrillers, and of course for any loyal Hiller fans.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, MacMillan Audio for an advanced audiobook copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I love how Jennifer Hiller weaves her stories. This is the second book I've read by this author and I wasn't disappointed. Throughout the book you aren't sure how reliable the narrator is and if she is to be trusted. Did she kill her husband? I also really enjoyed how all of the loose ends are tied up at the end and I really felt like justice was served. If you are a fan of psychological thrillers, I would highly recommend this book.

4.25-4.5 stars

Whew, okay. I was expecting a fun and twisty thriller, which I got, but there was also a lot more depth to the story than I had anticipated. Sensitive issues (child abuse, racism, violence, other types of trauma) are handled with care, and there’s some intriguing character growth. It is a mystery or thriller in some senses, but I didn’t really find the typical surprise elements to be too shocking; nevertheless, the plot was enthralling the whole way, and the writer is clearly very talented at crafting complex narratives with lots of little pieces that ultimately tie together. Again, it was not exactly what I was expecting, which was, as it turns out, a pleasant surprise. I can’t wait to check out other books from the author.

Paris Peralta has found herself in jail accused of murdering her famous husband. But this is not the first time she’s come face to face with murder…

Okay so this was a no for me. Everything was served up on a platter. Very predictable. Very drawn out. Lots of child abuse and neglect.

You might like this book of you like:
- age gap relationships
- slow burn mysteries
- second chances

I don’t like posting books I didn’t like but also I feel bad when someone says, “You didn’t like it either? Why didn’t you tell me?!” 😆🤦🏻‍♀️ So here we are.

This one comes out July 19 if you are interested. Thanks Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to give my honest review.

Thank you MacMillan audio, Jennifer Hillier, and Netgalley for this audio in exchange for an honest review. The narration was well done. Loved the plot. There were several twists and the ending was awesome. A strong 🌟🌟🌟🌟 star from me!

This thriller was told in six parts with multiple POVs and definitely kept me thinking ahead. I'd agree with some other reviews that some "twists and turns" were easily guessed but that did not ruin this story for me.

Paris was found holding a bloody razor just feet from her dead husband's body. While trying to grieve the death of her husband she works to be proven not guilty. Because she wouldn't kill her husband, right?

Each secret, lie, and intense story told from the past made me point the finger at someone new.

Was SO good. I was rooting for the main character the entire time. Lots of content warnings and really appreciated the warning on the copyright page. Would’ve been five stars but I needed an epilogue because of who I am as a person. 🤓

To say the book was twisty is an understatement. This book was more twisty then a country back road! A few of seasoned readers will predict the big twists, but everyone will be surprised and shocked. I feel like I needed to unload about the horrendous mother and the terrible situations that Joey was put in through her childhood. As a mother, this book hit so much harder.
But the book wasn’t just about sexual abuse and trauma. There is a high profile murder that could potentially unearth secrets that need to be kept hidden. Everything got very suspenseful after Joelle was charged with murder.
As an audiobook, I loved it. The narrator was believable and had a very heart felt voice. I couldn’t stop listening!

I am a big fan of Jennifer Hillier's writing and this was a well written book as always. This book however was more of a slow burn murder mystery.. If your anticipating a fast paced book in the vain of Jar of Hearts or Little Secrets I will forewarn you that this one is not one. I did find this one to be a bit more character driven and a bit slower and more predictable to me. That's not to say that I did not find the story interesting. - I did - This is not my favorite Hillier novel. I did think the story may have drug out just a bit and I did figure out quite a few of the twists of the book and it took me longer than normal to get this book read. I'll go middle of the road with my rating and give this one 3 stars. I do think that Carla Vega did a good job with the narration of the audiobook..

A murder of a rich man. His wife, the lead suspect. A marriage of seemingly convience. The other suspects hiding in plain sight. The dark world of gangs and strip clubs. A mother and daughter relationship gone wrong. A true crime podcaster investigating. Finding unexpected answers. Childhood affecting adulthood. Questions answered sparking new questions. All this and more can be found in this psychological thriller. The audio of this book is good but found it to be somewhat monotone. I was thrilled to receive an advanced copy from NetGalley and the publisher for an honest review.

This is the story of Paris, Peralta who is accused of murdering her famous, aging husband/comedian Jimmy Peralta. It’s told from 3 POVs - Paris, Drew Malcolm, a podcaster of Things We Do in the Dark and Joey Reyes a young girl who becomes a stripper. Joey’s mom, Ruby, has been jailed for murder of a former lover and is blackmailing Paris for another murder. Yes, there is a lot going on here, and the plot revolves around how these characters are connected and how the 3 murders transpired.

The strengths of this thriller are the unraveling of this convoluted story, as well as the character development and portrayal of the lives of Joey and Paris.

However, readers should be aware that the story falls more in the realm of mystery than thriller. This was not a problem for me, as I enjoyed getting to know the characters. The twists, however, were not too unexpected, which was disappointing. The ending fell a bit rushed and far-fetched for me, although I’m sure others would disagree.

Be aware that the story includes strippers, drugs, child abuse, rape and incest.

It’s a solid read if you enjoy mysteries and don’t mind some disconcerting topics. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Thank you to NetGalley for this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I received an audiobook of the aRC:

The story: amazing. I really thought I had it figured out, but the joke was on me. I loved the two competing stories throughout the book and figuring out how it all tied to the ending. The idea of "Things we do in the dark" being an investigative podcast is extremely time-appropriate, and I love all of the investigating that went on by Drew to allow the readers to see how everything connects.

the narration: also amazing. I was always very clear on which story i was hearing about, as well as which character was speaking, and i found the pacing and tone to be great reflections of what was going on in the story.