4.2
The format really made this. Without giving anything away, it would have been hard to pull off at least one aspect of the conclusion had this been done differently, but it's actually quite clever.

This book had a very gen z and sort of funny twist at the end that saved its rating a little. This was told in four POV's through police interviews and because of this I didn't connect with any of the characters. One was really stupid and going on about Bigfoot the whole time. But overall it was a fun woodsy YA thriller

Salvation Creek. Bigfoot. Drinking. Tension. Five teenagers go camping at salvation creek where one of them goes missing. I really enjoyed this books. The way this story was written was unique to me. The chapters formed by interrogation questions, all answered by the different POV of the remaining four teens. Tell Me What Really Happened kept me on the edge of my seat with the love affairs, the conspiracy theories, the plot twists.

I thoroughly enjoyed Tell M What Really Happened! The interview style presentation is immersive, the quirky cast of characters kept me guessing, and the setting added a depth to the entire mystery.

As an avid fan of YA thrillers, especially ones centered abound a missing person, I can honestly attest that Tell Me What Really Happened is a wonderful addition to the genre. I was initially skeptical of the narrative format, given how original it was, but grew to love the way that Sedoti told the story exclusively through police interviews. I never felt confident as to if any of the protagonists were telling the truth, even about themselves, and it served the novel well. Not to spoil anything, but I do believe the ending was absolutely perfect, even if it deviates from genre norms.

This book was written in an interview style which I’ve never read before. Each chapter began with a question and 4 teenagers answered it about the night their friend went missing.
I kept going back and forth about what happened to Maylee or if any of the friends had something to do with it. I’m not sure if by the end I disliked Maylee or Petra more. The ending was surprising and kind of heartbreaking.
A fast paced YA thriller that has enough twists and secrets that you’ll fly through!

Thanks Netgalley for this ARC!
3.5⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Chelsea Sedoti for the ARC. I feel like this will make a killer (no pun intended) audio book!

This is a fast paced YA thriller. I loved the writing style of each person answering polite interview questions. The drama and unreliable narrators really keeps you on the edge of your seat.

I gave this 4 stars because I feel like the ending wrapped up a little too quickly and didn't give as much closure as I would hope for the remaining 4.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

This book is about five teens who go camping and only four come back. This book is told through first person police interviews.

I’ve never read a book that was written in this style of a police interrogation. I thought it was unique and I enjoyed reading the different points of view. This book was very face paced and I flew through it to find out what was going to happen. I just found it very predictable. The ending also didn’t come together for me in my opinion. I was kind of disappointed at the end.

Overall, I did enjoy reading this and I think that anyone who enjoys YA mystery/thrillers would probably like this book!

I think my students will like this mystery. It also explores racism, homophobia and the desire to be an influencer at all costs. Told in different voices as they re-create what happened on a camping trip where one of them disappears

Five students with various relationships go on an overnight camping trip. One of them is missing, possibly killed and we get four of their perspectives on what happened. An interesting way to tell the story. There was an attempt to deal with diversity. An African American boy, a white lesbian with a controversial father. Quick light escapist read.

Thank you netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for a honest review.

2.5
Tell Me Whar Really Happened is a ya thriller told in a format from a police interview giving by 4 teens (Petra--the best friend Nolan-- Petras step brother, John--the boyfriend, and Abigail--the secret ex girlfriend ) about the disappearance Maylee after they all went camping at Salvation Creek.

This book unfortunately was not it for me. The characters were not likeable and the ending was very anti climactic.

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars for a fun and fast paced read. The story is told in police interview format with each new chapter starting out with a question from the police and the characters giving their answers. The writing style is unique and engaging.

The story is based on the POV of 4 teens: Petra, the bff; John, the boyfriend, Abigail, the friend who lost touch; and Nolan, Petra's brother who is obsessed with Bigfoot. The four teens, along with their friend Maylee went on a camping trip around Salvation Creek, an area where others have mysteriously gone missing. And now their friend has vanished during the night and the police are trying to find out exactly what happened in the woods.

Overall, I enjoyed this story. Nolan's character annoyed me and I ended up skipping through some of his dialogue. The ending of the book fell a little flat for me and left me feeling a little unsatisfied.

Thanks to Netgalley and Source Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Five went out camping.

But only four came back.

Friends -

Petra, the overachiever, need to be in charge.
Her stepbrother, Nolan - the Bigfoot-obsessed and resident nerd
Abigail - the outcast who lives in a trailer park.
John - Maylee's boyfriend and suspect.
Maylee - the wannabe social influencer

Each one is burdened to tell their story, their version of events clouded and muddled over how their friend has been murdered. As each story is told, we get an inside look into who Maylee really was. She wanted to be a social influencer believing that she did not need a second option to be opened to her. No, she believed that influencing was the best way to go. So, she gathers up her group and sets them off to camp at Salvation Creek.

But Salvation Creek has stories of missing people, of a bipedal creature that is covered in hair, and bodies being found miles away from where they were originally.

Sprinkle this story with a bit of Agatha Christies's And Then There Were None and The Blair Witch Project (seriously these two would fit this book perfectly) and you have a tale spun with mystery and chills as each teen weaves their story from the integration room.

Who do you believe?

This story takes you on a wild ride that you will not be expecting. The characters tell you the events from their point of view and you need to piece it together on your own. Who is guilty? Was there really a Bigfoot stalking them? Or was one of them determined to end their friend's life?

So many questions and you won't know the answer until the very end. It will be a jaw-dropping moment. This book was great fun to read. I enjoyed the characters. They were well-fleshed out and their personalities really shined during their interviews.

Trust me when I say you will devour this book quickly. You won't be able to put it down and you will try to find clues as to who would be behind it all.


Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me a chance to read this digital copy and allow me the chance to offer my honest opinion on the piece.

☆☆.75

"Tell Me What Really Happened" is a YA mystery novel told through police interviews. Readers follow the perspectives of four teenagers as they try to navigate the disappearance of Maylee. There's Preta, Maylee's best friend, and her brother, Nolan, John, Maylee's boyfriend, and Abigail, the girl who was more of an acquaintance to Maylee. The five set off on a camping trip to the woods of Salvation Creek, an area known for its strange disappearances. They aren't expecting to come back with one less member, though.

"You know what's unfair? We have this whole system to give people who are accused of crimes the means to protect themselves. Yet as soon as someone actually takes advantage of those means--like by getting a lawyer--they immediately look guilty."

I would recommend this book to fans of "Five Survive" by Holly Jackson, as they share similar elements. The format of this book was unique and fun to follow, it made reading much easier and faster as well. While I was intrigued by this novel, I was ultimately let down. This book was fairly predictable and nothing revealed was ever shocking to me; I think I could have guessed what happened without even reading it. The characters were also very unlikeable, and at times, I was frustrated reading because of how boring their personalities were. There are so many books about the popular, pretty girl going missing and having unimaginable secrets. This book had a really unique format, but unfortunately, that is the only remarkable thing about it.

3.5 stars

This was a really neat read! Four teenagers are interrogated after the fifth goes missing during a camping trip in a forest where girls are known to have gone missing. The story is told entirely through first person police interviews which keeps the plot moving while allowing for unique perspectives on one overarching event. The four teenagers were very well written - each have very distinct personalities and points of view. It was interesting to see how their personalities influenced the facts they recalled or which parts of the trip caught their attention. The mystery thickens as the teens recount the 24 hours leading up to their friend’s disappearance and I had fun guessing who the culprit(s) might be.

The ending, however, fell flat for me. I think the author left plenty of breadcrumbs throughout the story for the ending/reveal to make complete sense, I just wish a different choice had been made. I feel it plays into some already dangerous stereotypes that the intended audience may not have the ability to critically analyze. Since this could apply to any of the characters in the book, I don’t see it as a spoiler.

Overall, this was a very cleverly written mystery! I think readers will find the characters relatable and the story bingeworthy.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Setting: Pacific Northwest
Rep: queer FMC; Black MMC

I picked this up a while back and finally got round to finishing it as it didn't grip me the first time around. While I like the style of writing it like police interview transcripts, it does make it hard to get to know and differentiate the characters and it makes for some awkward dialogue when things need revealing that wouldn't necessarily be revealed by a teen in an interview. But overall it was a decent mystery.

Five people go, camping, one is missing, all four remaining have different stories, what is true? What is a lie? How could four different people see four different things!
Maylee, Petra, Nolan, John and Abigail go camping… The only thing most of them have in common is Maylee.
This book is told from the police investigation, and the questions they all answer… I really liked the format, I liked the characters, I could not put this book down.

This is the first book I have red by this author, and it definitely won’t be my last.

Tell me what really happened is a story is told 100% in a police interview format. Where each chapter is a new question from the police and the four teens give their answers. Mallie is missing from a camping trip with her friends, police are trying to determine where she is and if foul play is involved. The interviewees are Petra, Mallies bff high strung type A personality. John, Mallies boyfriend and sidestepper of questions. Nolan, Petra's brother and crypto's enthusiast. Lastly Abigail the new friend. Overall i really enjoyed the format of this book. I thought it was really unique and fun. It made the chapters and story fly by. For the most part this is pretty fast paced, there were some spots in the middle that dragged on a bit for me.
I liked the majority of the story, except the ending of the book for me fell a bit flat. It didn't quite make a lot of sense and just wasn't as satisfying as I hoped.

Thank you to SOURCEBOOKS Fire, Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this digital arc

I love books with a murder mystery set in the woods. They can be read at anytime of year, and always be creepy. 5 friends go on a camping trip, and only 4 return. What happened to Maylee, and why? This book was told by the returning 4 in police interviews, which was a cool way to tell the story. I loved watching the pieces come together, and I didn't know what really happened until the final pages. A great thriller for YA, but adults can also read and be sucked into. Thanks to Netgalley for a free copy in exchange for an unbiased review.

I absolutely loved this! Not only did I fly through this book (unheard of for me), but it also kept me on the edge of my toes the whole time. I had my suspicions of who it was, but definitely did not expect it to actually be a chain of events. I found it so so intriguing!

I also loved the concept of how far influencers would go for fame (shown through Maylee); so interesting to see and also thought provoking.

The way that Chelsea Sedoti talked about race through the way John had been treated by both police and peers alike, as well as his town was so sad to see yet also a complete eye opener. I was shocked to see how Andy's mum immediately tried to blame John for driving, and then how she gave a half baked apology after when she had already done the damage. Wow! This definitely opened my eyes a bit more!

Overall this book is one of my favourite reads of the year (and I think of all time). It was so well written!