It was.....ok. I couldn't even tell you why it was just ok, I'm just middle of the road on it. The pacing was really good but where was just something. I couldn't keep everything together when I first started but that was a me problem and not the book problem.

I think this is my favorite of Finlay’s novels to date. It starts out with a bang and mostly keeps the pace going throughout. The twists aren’t that surprising but honestly that didn’t lessen the enjoyment for me. This is a fun popcorn thriller that would be great to read by the pool with a glass of sangria.

On a roll with my NetGalley thrillers thanks to my kindle and baby girl playing independently 🥳

Loved how fast paced this was and with short chapters! I was a little confused on the premise the first half but the second half made up for it. Feels like it was written as a screen okay so if you love action movies this is for you.

This is my second Alex Finlay novel and I will keep reading them! I can’t bring myself to read Every Last Fear because I know the plot will scare me!
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#bookstagram #booklover #bookobsessed #thrillerbooks #netgalley #kindlebooks

I just read this, and I Really enjoyed this book, I read it in two sittings. I'd definitely recommend this to someone who enjoys thrillers

This book was a little chaotic in the beginning. It grabbed my attention but I wasn’t invested until about 25% in. The twists were interesting and there were ones that weren’t easily guessed. It was wrapped up nicely at the end but left me feeling a little off (perhaps from reading late at night). Overall, an interesting read and one that kept me up until 2am to finish.

I went into this one blind, and knowing nothing except a few of my friends liked other books by Finlay.
I could not put this down! It hooked me from the start and was a fast paced thriller. My only complaint was sometimes I found the transitions between timelines to be a bit convoluted, but that could totally have been me just not paying close enough attention.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my ARC eBook in exchange for my honest review.

WHO SHOULD READ IT:
Fans of the mystery and thriller genre. If you like 'Stand By Me' and stories that originate in secrets of a youthful friendship that their adult versions must come back together to deal with.

REVIEW:
'What Have We Done' by Alex Finlay is a fun mystery thriller. The action is well paced and keeps you page turning. This was a one day read for me!

The premise brings together a group of childhood friends who have largely lost touch. They all came together as young teenaged in a group home. Now, in present day, one is dead, and the rest are being targeted.

I enjoyed how the characters were written and the story was formatted. Though we bounce around to the various characters each is quite distinct. This includes chapters that follow the bad guys. I enjoyed this touch because sometimes it's nice to not have to always try to determine who they are. That being said, there are certainly enough twists and turns and parts to the story that seeing most of the bad guys early on is not a problem.

The story itself is interesting and the author drops plenty of bread crumbs fur the story to come together in a logical way. There are some twists and reveals (of course) and they are well placed and timed. Fans of the genre will certainly guess quite a few elements before the big reveal but if you are in it fit the ride then that is not a problem.

This book does add, in my opinion, add one too many twists, but that seems to be a hazard of the genre.

Overall, a great murder mystery action-packed thriller that you could easily pictorial on the big screen.

⭐⁣ OVERALL RATING:⭐⁣
⭐⭐⭐⭐ | Love it & Recommend - Great book, lots to love, well written, and I really liked it. However, I may have small problems with it. I will recommend and want to share with others.

❤️ ROMANCE RATING: ❤️
🤝 | No romance at all. Mentions of love between spouses and a teen askng for relationship advice from a parent.

🔥 STEAM RATING: 🔥
🧊 | No sexy stuff at all - Some nudity but not in a titilating manor.

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for access to this ARC in return for an unbiased and voluntary review.

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The novel, "What Have We Done," features Jenna, Donnie, and Nico as its main characters, with each of them narrating their own story. The plot follows them from the moment an attempt is made on their lives, through their quest to uncover the truth about their situation. The reader also gains insight into their past experiences at Savior House, which provides a deeper understanding of their characters. Of all the characters, Jenna stands out as a particularly impressive and strong female lead.

The story is full of surprising plot twists that kept me engaged throughout. I was unable to predict who the culprit was or the motive behind the assassination attempt. As the story draws to a close, the suspense intensifies, and I found myself on the edge of my seat, eagerly anticipating the resolution.

Thank you to @netgalley and @Stmartinspress for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to @macmillian.audio for a free download of the audiobook.

Five former foster kids are targeted in a series of murder attempts that brings them back to the group home they all came from. They have a secret they thought they buried 25 years ago that may have been discovered.

This was my first book by this author, and I would consider reading another. They story itself didn’t WOW me, but the audio kept me engaged enough to finish.

3.5 stars – Rounding to 4 for Goodreads

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This was my first Alex Finlay book, and it delivered! What Have We Done is a fast paced mystery thriller with some quirky and troubled characters. When attempts are made on their lives, Jenna, Donnie and Nico quickly realize someone is trying to eliminate the group who bonded when living together in a youth group home for teens. What they don't know is who or why. While racing to evade the killer, the characters also reflect on their pasts and the troubles that still haunt them.
This was a quick read. It was fast paced with several twists along the way and some characters to really like, and some not so much. The only con for me was, there were a lot of characters to keep track of and shade was being misdirected to a lot of them convoluting the story somewhat.
I know the author's other books are highly recommended, so I look forward to reading them as well.

I really enjoyed the author’s two previous suspense novels, however this one just wasn’t for me. I felt there was too much going on and too many characters to keep up with. I look forward to reading more by this author though as he’s a fantastic popcorn thriller writer.

When 5 former housemates are targeted in a series of assassination attempts that draw them all back to the group home they group up in, they begin to wonder if their 25 year old buried secret has been discovered. When one of them, Ben, is murdered, the rest of them begin to question if any of them are really safe and if they can even trust each other.

Told in 3 parts, What Have We Done will have you gasping and guessing at every turn!

I read Alex Finlay's other books but this one was my least favorite. It felt like too many POVs. I did like the short chapters but overall I didn't really buy into the story because it felt too scattered.

What Have We Done by Alex Finlay is a psychological thriller.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher St. Martin’s Press - Minotaur Books and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Savior House, in the town of Chestertown was a group home for teens without parents.  It was an abusive atmosphere, and eventually shut down, but not before kids went missing, and someone died. 

Twenty-five years later. five of the friends that stuck up for each other at the Home, are in trouble.  Someone knows what they did, and are coming after them.

Donnie's rock-star career may be at an end, and it won't even be the alcohol that does it.

Jenna is a wife and mother.  Her past is coming back to haunt her family.

Nico is a successful television director, but has always had a gambling problem. Now he's in worse trouble.

Arty became a tech wizard.  Someone wants him dead.

Benny ended up being a judge.  That didn't save him.

The group will have to return to the nightmare that was their childhood, and try to figure out who is targeting them before they are all dead.


My Opinions:
The plot was quite good, with a number of twists.

The story is told from the perspectives of Jenna, Nico and Donnie, and in this way we learn the back-story of what happened at Savior House.  This was very  well done, bringing out bits of information as needed.  It really added to the mystery.

Unfortunately, the only character I liked was Jenna, so it was sometimes hard to care about any of the others.  Then there was Casey and Haley, who were a little over-the-top.  They were missing so much back-story that I kept wondering where they came from.

However, as earlier stated the plot was good, there were plenty of twists, it was fast-paced, and there was plenty of action.  Occasionally it got a little wordy.

I think I liked his other books a little more, but this was worth reading, and I will definitely be watching for more by this talented author.

This book was not what I was expecting from an Alex Finlay novel. That said, it wasn't bad - just different. Much like an action movie, WHWD packed an adrenaline punch without the subtle character and plot development of past AF novels. I think WHWD has a different audience than previous AF books, and I sure hope it finds it's audience because it's a fun book.

Published March 6, 2023 - available now! Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin Press/Minotaur Books for the advanced copy.

This was an okay mystery/thriller novel. The premise is what got my attention initially but the book didn’t really draw me in like I thought it would. It was very action-packed so it gave the thrill but it missed the mark everywhere else. The first 30% of the book dragged a bit for me. There were a consistent flow of events with lots of twist but I wasn’t really invested.

The novel is mainly told from the perspective of three MC’s Jenna, Donnie, and Nico. In their early childhood days while living in a group home a crime was committed and they swore never to speak of it again. Now that they’re adults and have gone their separate ways the past has comeback to haunt them all.

Of the three I found Jenna’s character to be the most intriguing. You can tell the author put more thought into Jenna and most of her chapters involved the action. Her past was a little exaggerated gotta read the book to see what I mean. In reality the entire storyline would’ve probably been better had it focused on one single character. I didn’t really care for Donnie or Nico much.

There were also a lot of chapters but they’re very short so the pacing was fairly decent. Not gonna lie I had a feeling the ending would disappoint me a bit. I knew the reasoning behind everything would be something simple. The book just had too much going on. It was entertaining trying to uncover the truth until I actually found out the truth.

Overall, the book was decent nothing I would gush over. I wish the author had given more detail on the character’s backstory then maybe I would’ve enjoyed it more. But if you’re into action-packed thrillers then it may be for you. Special thanks to the author, @minotaurbooks, & @netgalley for my advanced copy!!!

Overall, this book fell flat to me. While the writing was creative and descriptive, it was confusing -- especially via audiobook. There were so many characters with little to no character development. I think it would have been helpful to hear more of their backstory before jumping into the present day drama.

I would recommend to those that enjoy heavy plots and thrillers, but tell those that prefer character-development (me!) to stay away!

What Have We Done was a quick read for me. The beginning started off strong, the pacing was alright, the reveal at the end surprised me somewhat, but didn't knock my socks off exactly. I enjoyed the book (and the characters) enough to finish it, however, I had to consult my notes to remind myself what it was about before writing this review, even though I had finished it only a few days before.
Definitely not Alex Finlay's strongest work, but also not the worst book I have ever read. Pretty "mid" as my teens would say, so 3 stars seems appropriate overall.

One sentence summary:
A group who spent their childhoods in a home for parentless teens are reunited when they realize they’re being hunted down one by one, and they realize the only way to survive is to revisit their shared past and a dark secret they’d hoped to keep buried.

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This is a high-octane page-turner that does not let up! I finished it in 48 hours ONLY because stupid adulting errands got in the way. Hate it when that happens…

Fans of Finlay’s last two – Every Last Fear and The Night Shift – will see this as a departure, but only of sorts. You can still rely on a story told from multiple POVs that contains lots of threads – if the standard thriller is a 500 piece puzzle, his are more like a 10,000 piece puzzles. The difference here is that instead of being a slow burn, the pacing is Red Bull fast, the plotting more Action Jackson. In fact, the book has more of a James Patterson feel to it, with a dash of Orphan X.

I love flawed, tormented characters, so the backstory of these once-parentless teens spending their formative years in a dysfunctional home for orphans appealed to me. I especially liked that each of them has gone to be very successful in their own way while still grappling with the demons of a traumatic past.

This came out March 7 (yes, I’m behind on my reviews, y’all).

I highly recommend it for any thriller fans, but especially those who love James Patterson, Harlan Coben or Gregg Hurwitz.

Three adults reunite in this Stephen King-esq novel about childhood secrets and the lives they’ve lived leading up to this point. Jenna, Donny and Nico grew up together in a group home that was disbanded when girls started going missing. Now, as adults, someone is coming after them.

This book was borderline boring. The tag reads “edge of your seat thriller” and “gut wrenching coming of age story”. Neither of these I found to be true. I found the characters to be one-dimensional and immature at times and their development was suppressed. I was not gripping the pages waiting for the shoe to drop. I was not thrilled to move on to the next chapter. I was not shocked at the very vanilla twist. I gave this 3 stars because it was a fast paced read with a well written dialogue and structure. This was a very tame (almost YA) psychological thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book