WHAT HAVE WE DONE
Alex Finlay

Alex Finlay does it again. Walking the line between thriller and action, his books are high rev, low thought. This one is perhaps his most outrageous. There’s a cast of characters that will require you to think big and a plot that will require you to suspend disbelief and that’s all part of the fun in WHAT HAVE WE DONE, OUT NOW!

Jenna, Donnie, and Nico all went to the Savoir House group home as kids and twenty-five years later someone wants them all dead. As adults, they have nothing in common except for a traumatic past, a rocky and troubled present, and the secret that bonds them forever.

I noticed while reading how nondeclarative Finlay’s statements are in his writing. A lot of the sentences leave things up for interpretation and you the reader get to play mini detective, deciphering between what is and what might be.

Part of the fun is piecing together a story from the past and present. The other part of the fun is the characters. They are ridiculous in nature and larger than life. Even bigger than the story itself.

The narrators, Brittany Pressley, James Patrick Cronin, Jon Lindstrom, and Maggie Thompson did a fantastic job with this book, and I highly recommend the audiobook. They brought each character to life in an animated way and made my reading experience highly enjoyable.

I don’t know that I would have been as captivated reading on screen or with a physical copy.

I gave WHAT HAVE WE DONE four stars and I recommend it to readers looking to get wrapped up in a fictional story. Aren’t we all?

Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books, and Macmillan Audio for the advanced copies!

WHAT HAVE WE DONE…⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"Wealth can hide bad guys in plain sight."

From the first page What Have We Done by thriller author Alex Finlay starts with a bang, 5 gun shot bangs to be exact, and this fast pace thriller is off like horses at the racetrack.

As with most thriller reviews it's hard to give details without giving away the crazy twists and turns and connections that make this a fun often anxiety prone thriller.

At times it's a simple story. Five people are being targeted by an assassin or two; an aging rock star battling addiction, a reality TV producer with a gambling problem, a stay at home step mom, a judge and a tech millionaire. Within a few chapters one will be dead. Why? How are they connected? What did they do?

A full cast of narrators, Britney Pressley Jon Lindstrom (of General Hospital fame), James Patrick Cronin Maggie Thompson make this audiobook like a tense popcorn eating movie. Going between the book and the audiobook I appreciated how the writer took pulse pounding moments, like the Mom (Jenna) trying to out drive a killer, and write them so clear and precise that it felt like watching it happen instead of experiencing it through a novel.

My favorite character was Jenna who probably has the biggest and best badass secret and who gives this story a jaw dropping ending that made my palpitations have palpitations.

Some things were easy to figure out and the back story was a bit stereotypical but what this author does so well is tweak the mundane to make it a bit different, turn it sideways and give it a whole new look.

If you enjoy thrillers, Alex Finlay books, and wild crazy rides what are you waiting for? Don't make me ask what have you done if you not reading/listening to to What Have We Done?!

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

What I liked:
✨Bingeable: Suspense and action from the first chapter - very plot-driven
✨Dual Timelines - both timelines offered a mystery. I enjoyed the present-day mystery more than the past.
✨Great audio production: the full cast of narrators made it easy to follow the multi-POVs.

What more I wanted…
✨Character development: a small backstory introduced us to all the players in this mystery, but I longed for more detail, especially Jenna. In fact, please give me a whole book on Jenna’s back story!

Read this if....
✨love Alex Finlay's previous books
✨love female assassins or love a washed-up 80s rocker - both brilliantly represented by the narrators!
✨easy vacation read - short chapters, multiple POVs, lots of action

Although Finalys' last two books were wins for me, sadly this book was not. 

My biggest issue with this was that I was confused about what was going on. THere were 4 storylines going on at the same time and it was hard to keep it all straight. The narrator changing from male to female did help a little bit but over all, I was lost. 

Normally when I am reading something this convoluted, I would go back and reread but I really didn't have any interest in the storylines. The only one that was intriguing was Jenna's story.

This was a miss for me but I would definitely read more by this author, as I have loved his first two books.

Thank you St. Martin's Publishing Group influencer program for the #gifted eARC.

💭 𝘔𝘠 𝘛𝘏𝘖𝘜𝘎𝘏𝘛𝘚
I started this book completely blind and I am glad that I did. This mystery/thriller is action-packed and speculative! We have multiple POVs from morally grey adult characters that grew up together in a poorly run orphanage. Somebody is trying to off every one of these characters and the reader will be speculating who this "somebody" is throughout the entire book.
We also have some very disturbing backstories regarding these characters' childhood.

I appreciated the multiple POVs, short chapters, fast-paced action, and backstories of the characters. However, I could have done without reading about "the twins" backstories. It was only slightly interesting and unnecessary.

𝘖𝘝𝘌𝘙𝘈𝘓𝘓...
This would make a fantastic action movie or tv mini-series. If you enjoy getting that action-packed thrill, then this book is for you!
⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4/5 (CAWPILE 7.14)

Out now! [Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC as part of a giveaway win and an eARC in exchange for an honest review!]

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Jenna, Donnie, and Nico are all adults leading very different lives—but they remain tied together thanks to their actions in an abusive group home when they were teenagers…and those choices may now be back to haunt them.

Finlay’s previous novel THE NIGHT SHIFT was a top thriller for me in 2022, so I was really looking forward to this one, and unfortunately I just didn’t enjoy it as much as I’d hoped or expected. I’ll start off with the good: this was super fast-paced and had a ton of action, with short chapters that made it easy to keep flying through. Finlay is an engaging writer and that remained true here—the characters were fairly interesting and the prose was crisp and easy to read. Overall, while I wasn’t enthralled, it was a relatively fun read, especially towards the end.

On the other hand, I found the plot to ultimately be pretty lacking—it was hard to follow in the first half, and once it clicked into place it ended up feeling very predictable. There were also some plot holes that I won’t get into due to spoilers, but I found it hard to suspend my disbelief enough to get past them.

All of this said, I’m also not much of a spy/action thriller fan, and that is how I’d primarily characterize this novel. If you’re a fan of those vibes, there’s a good chance you’ll enjoy this a LOT more than I did!

Recommended if you like: spy thrillers; action movies; sins-of-the-past trope (no idea if this is a thing but it’s what I call it)

CW: Blood/violence/death/torture/murder; mentions of pedophilia/trafficking; addiction

Jenna, Donnie, and Nico had a troubled childhood growing up in Savior House, a group home for orphans. They formed a strong bond due to the abuse they endured, but when Savior House is shut down because girls start to go missing, they lose touch for decades... until someone shows up and tries to kill them all 25 years later. Jenna, Donnie, and Nico all reunite in order to fight the monsters that have arisen from their past in action-packed and, at times, humorous thriller.

Unfortunately, it was just a bit too action-packed for me. I was hooked at the beginning, but then I slowly began to lose interest. I felt that the character development was lacking and I'm not huge on action/assassin thrillers. I was much more interested in the backstory of Savior House and what happened to them as children. (In fact, I would most certainly read a prequel!) From reading other reviews, this seems to be an outlier for Alex Finlay, so I do plan to give his other works a read.

I listened to the audiobook, which was a wonderful experience because Jenna, Donnie, and Nico were all voiced by different narrators and it worked really well. Thank you NetGalley for the advanced listener's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Savior House was a group home in Pennsylvania where children were left. The house wasn't a happy carefree place. The children were abused.
Years later the lives of five of the children are in danger. It appears someone is trying to kill off five of the kids.
Someone is trying to pick off each of the five individually.
A very good thriller.

While this book had an intriguing beginning, the plot just felt too convoluted. I wish there had been more character-building. Jenna was really the only character that I cared about, and I think this was because we spent more time with her at the beginning of the story. I didn't care very much about the twist because I hadn't "gotten to know" Artemis, Donnie, or Nico.
Because the details of their lives seemed similar, I had a hard time keeping Donnie and Nico's stories straight.
Finally, this felt more like an action movie than a novel. Reading the continuous action sequences got tiring.

Review of What Have We Done by Alex Finlay

Another winner from one of my favorite authors. I really loved this fast paced thriller with multiple POVs and timelines and I flew through it. I really enjoyed discussing it as a part of #2023NetGalleyChallenge buddy read. I will say that it is probably my least fave of the three by this author but it was still a very solid read for me without major complaints. I thought the ending was missing something snd it didn’t blow me away but I loved all of the characters.

Quick synopsis: Jenna, Donnie, and Nico are three old friends with a common past that is catching up to them. They all have secrets and vices in their current adult lives when they are reunited when it becomes clear someone is trying to kill them. A fourth friend was actually killed. They were teenagers together in a group home from which several girls disappeared. Now they have to figure out how wants to hurt them and put an end to it once and for all.

Thank you to @netgalley and @minotaur_books for the advanced copy. It’s out now!

What Have We Done by Alex Finlay had me on the edge of my seat from the first page. I love this author and he has written some amazing books. This one is a little different from his others but still delivers everything we want from the author. This was a fast paced thriller that never dragged. I enjoyed the pace and the twists! I feel I knew what was going to happen at the beginning but I kept reading and getting pulled in. If anything, it teaches us what we do as children can always come back to haunt us. Looking forward to Finlay's next book!

What I liked:
Super short and quick reading chapters
Multiple POVs
Dual timelines (present/past through flashbacks)
Action packed and fast moving storyline

I enjoyed the story- how it was fast paced and kept you engaged but I felt some disconnect from it. It was missing something but I’m not sure what. I was a little more than halfway through the book when I figured out something wasn’t as it seemed and then I figured it out. Do I think this was better than The Night Shift, no but its far better than Every Last Fear so this ranks solidly at #2 in my rankings of his books.


Thank you @minotaurbooks @stmartinspress and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

I've read both of Alex Finlay's prior books and enjoyed them, though Every Last Fear was the standout there. This one has an entirely different tone, I wouldn't have guessed it was the same author. It's more of an emphasis on action than character development, which is fine is you're looking for a fast-paced thrilled. This one requires you to buy in to some out of the ordinary concepts. Entertaining read.

This was a really fast paced story but also a little out there at times. The overall premise was interesting but there were so many extreme and unbelievable aspects to the story that it read like a bad action movie at times. The pacing of this also felt off. In the middle, even though there was lots of action, it felt repetitive and boring. Then at the end, everything picked up and there was just so much happening. I felt that the ending wasn't explained in as much detail or depth as I would have liked.

This story is told from three different perspectives but since there was constant action there was very little room for character development and growth. This left me feeling unconnected from the characters. Throughout the story there would be a time jumps mid chapter or sometimes mid paragraph. This switch was very jarring and made it difficult to keep track of timeline.

Overall this was a quick read but difficult to get invested in for numerous reasons.

𝘈 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘺-𝘢𝘵-𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘵. 𝘈 𝘩𝘢𝘴-𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘬𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘵. 𝘈 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘛𝘝 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢 𝘥𝘦𝘣𝘵. 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴. 𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘵.

Jenna, Donnie, and Nico all grew up at Savior House, a group home for parentless teens. After the disappearance of several children, the home was shut down, and these friends were separated. When one of their other friends ends up murdered and strange things keep happening to them, the realize that someone is trying to kill then. But who wants to keep the secrets of their past buried?

I enjoyed this cat-and-mouse thriller. The book is told from all three characters’ points of view, and we get a glimpse of their past along with the craziness of the present. I found the parts told in the present to be fast-paced and exciting. I was so intrigued to see where this story was going. I would have liked more of a backstory in the past to understand the motivations of the killer better, and I felt like the ending was a bit disappointing.

Although this wasn’t my favorite book by Finlay, I still enjoyed it and think that others will too.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for advanced copies in exchange for my honest review.

I liked this well enough, it was a little far fetched but a decent thriller. For me it felt a little cliched and had maybe more action than I would usually like. I will try another of their books though, I’ve heard great things.

Absolutely one of the best books I have read this year! This book goes back and forth between Nico, Donnie, and Jenna, with flashbacks from 25 years before when they were in a group home together. With mysterious missing girls, secrets, and something they all can’t believe they did when they were young, I could not put this book down! I had no idea how it was going to end and was in complete shock when I got to the end.. I am so thankful I received an advance copy of this book through NetGalley! I would definitely recommend this book!

Someone is trying to kill Jenna, Donnie and Nico. These three were best friends and they share a terrible past at the Savior House children’s home. They were separated when the home closed because of missing kids. Now, they are thrown together out of necessity to save each other. This is a reunion no one wanted.

This story started strong and intense. The only reason for the 4 star review is I hated the villains. Yes, yes I know that is the plan. But, I found these villains just a bit stupid and their past a bit too coincidental. Now, this is a minor issue because the main characters make up for it! I loved Jenna! She is a force of nature!

This story has quite a few characters. I usually don’t enjoy books with so many characters. But this book kept each and every one unique, they all had a rough past, but they all are different. And I totally related to all of them.

I loved all the narrators. I really believe this is the reason I had no trouble with all the characters. This is a an audio production at its finest.

Need a good thriller with a big secret…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

What Have We Done is the second book I’ve read from Alex Finlay. This thriller dives into troubled pasts, secrets, friendship, and revenge. Three former friends, who were once residents of a group home for parentless teens, are reunited after 25 years due to someone trying to kill them. Despite their accomplished but troubled lives, they must confront their shared past and revisit the trauma they endured in order to survive and uncover the secret behind the attempts on their lives. I enjoyed the multiple perspectives in this book! Jenna’s viewpoint stood out to me the most, but I also appreciated the humor and insights from Donnie and Nico’s perspectives. This is one of those thrillers that I found to be wildly entertaining and completely different from Alex Finlay’s last book, The Night Shift. However, I’d recommend going in know that the book may not be entirely realistic. The twists kept me guessing until around 70% of the way through the book and even then, the journey to discover who the culprit kept me second-guessing myself and I couldn’t guess any of the smaller mysteries to the subplot which made it an enjoyable read. The ending, particularly the epilogue, felt a bit too neatly resolved, but it didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment of the book. This was a solid four stars for me. I’d recommend picking this up if you’re looking for an action-packed and entertaining thriller!

Alex Finlay is one of my favorite thriller authors and tomorrow, he comes out with WHAT HAVE WE DONE, an enticing, original, edge of your seat story about three individuals who couldn’t be more different, linked to one dead person with a connection to their unfortunate past.
 
why my nose was in this book:
I was gripped by the multiple POVs, past and present, sometimes within multiple POVs, there is a stronger voice that I gravitate toward, but all three were equally strong and kept my attention

I loved the fast pace, even though I wanted desperately to savor the story, I found myself flipping through the pages, staying up until the wee hours, needing to know what happened next

The cover art on all his books is gorgeous, as is all of his covers
 
If you haven’t read EVERY LAST YEAR or THE NIGHT SHIFT, I highly recommend that you check them out too, they’re two of my all time favorites and I’m sure they will be yours too!