Kara Thomas has written some terrifically atmospheric YA thrillers set in white working class towns full of secrets and with this novel she successfully transitions to an adult mystery set in the same milieu.

When Samantha Newsom was 11, her parents, uncle, and baby sister were killed and then their house burned down. Now, more than two decades later, Sam has returned to Carney as another uncle had died of lung cancer. A state investigator has re-opened the unsolved case of her family’s murders and Sam gets drawn into doing some investigating of her own. As she digs deeper, her long-held assumption that it was a corrupt cop behind it all is challenged and she unearths the long-ignored disappearances of young women that may be linked.

The author masterfully draws Sam’s slippery reality as she returns to the dead-end small town peopled by those who grew up there and have stayed because there wasn’t an alternative and because that’s just what you do. These are grown-up versions of the author’s teen characters, particularly the young women, who have aimlessly gone with the prevailing winds, scraping by financially and emotionally, drifting into drugs, alcohol, or some other form of numbness.

The plot switches back and forth and as Sam peels back more layers, she lets light and air into the festering secrets that have lain hidden and she is able to get to the truth and return, changed, to her normal life.

Kara Thomas has long been one of my favorite YA authors and I’m pumped that she has accomplished the move to adult thrillers so triumphantly.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and Netgalley for the digital review copy.

I love Kara Thomas's YA books, so I was so excited to dig into her adult debut and I was not disappointed. This is a gritty, fast-paced thriller that delivers big time with intrigue galore. The ending was very satisfying and I highly recommend to anyone who's read her other books, or to new readers.

As a mother of young children I found this very hard to read in places.

I was excited to read this book as I had heard brilliant things about the author and knew it had been receiving some very good feedback online.

Unfortunately I found the story just sad overall, with too many characters to keep track of. It didn’t grip me and all in all I think my expectations were just a bit too high.

Kara Thomas writes great thriller/mysteries and I really enjoyed this one! It felt like a lot of characters to keep track of once the main character Samantha gets back to her home town. As she begins to investigate the long-ago murder of her family and disappearance of her baby sister, it becomes easier to connect people to their backstories and remember who plays what role. This was a fast read because I was really invested in the storyline and the ending felt satisfying without being predictable. I highly recommend this book and all of Kara Thomas' work. Thanks to Kara Thomas, Thomas & Mercer, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this read. I found this book would have been better if this was the authors second adult thriller. I just sense the want to fit into the adult thriller club. I did not find it to be a bad read but it seem to try to hard a bit. I give it a 3.5 rounded up to 4.

I enjoyed this book, but the number of characters and things going on was a little overwhelming. I really liked the character Sam and the setting of the book. The writing was for the most part fast-paced but drags a little in the middle. I overall enjoyed the book and would recommend it to thriller fans.

Out of the Ashes has an interesting mystery at its heart (the massacre of main character Samantha's family when she was a teenager), but it was unfortunately obscured by the multitude of grim storylines that cropped up as Samantha followed potential leads in her efforts to find out what really happened to her family. Too many characters to keep track of, too many red herrings as Samantha ran around chasing potential leads based on misapprehensions because other characters are withholding information, too many moments where she's in the car driving somewhere for some reason with not enough place-setting to help me understand where she is/where she's going. I forced myself to keep reading just so I could find out what happened to Samantha's family, and when the truth was revealed it was honestly a let-down.

Amazing thriller, I couldn't put it down!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

My first by this author and she can definitely build suspense! Samantha is a nurse who must return back for a short visit with her ill uncle, some mystery already starts with this storyline. Hometown where her family was murdered and never solved, a new state detective is looking into the case and gets Samantha wondering and questioning several characters in the town. Even her own family members at one point. I didn’t figure out the end and it threw me for a loop.

Excellent writing, builds well, flows well, weaves together superbly. Enjoyed the main character. Romance without trashy sex scene, clean language.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas Mercer for my advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

This has to be one of the most endearing yet frightening reads I have come across so far this month, dunno why I did not pick it up sooner!

The twists and shock factor were written sensibly, albeit it was a bit slow at first. The build up was worth it though

Samantha Newsom’s family was murdered when she was thirteen years old, and their Catskills home was set fire in an unsolved homicide that left nothing but ashes. Sam returns to Carney, New York, where she was born and raised, 22 years later, under the shadow of a terrible catastrophe she will never forget or be able to forgive. Officials handled the evidence improperly, false allegations about her family were spread, the suspects provided no leads, and the investigation was closed. no more. Sam receives some good news from the case’s assigned investigator, Travis Meacham: a prisoner has come forward with a startling revelation. That evening, Sam’s infant sister, who was thought to have perished in the fire, was found outside. Not all of Sam’s preconceptions about the crime and her family are confirmed, though. Yet Carney keeps its mysteries to itself. Sam might not be able to survive the town this time.

I’m reading a book by a well-known author for the first time right now. Hence, I was torn between having too many high expectations and approaching the book naively. And I’m delighted I got to experience the excitement the narrative offered. Another novel that was able to let you feel the vibe of the area was this one. It had a small-town claustrophobia and seediness that was gritty, and filthy, and made you feel like you wanted to take a shower. Sam is one of the kind of strong female characters I love to read about. She is tenacious in her quest to learn what transpired on that night, 22 years ago.

The supporting players were good. Indeed, there were quite a few. I occasionally lost track of who was who, but I thought the author did a nice job of bringing their names to the reader’s attention when necessary. When you thought you understood what occurred in this novel, something else would appear and it would take a different turn. It had so many clever turns. This book will compel you to keep turning the pages because you share Sam’s desire for knowledge. Nobody renders the mysteries in Kara Thomas’ books more vivid or personal than she does. I like the book overall, and I’ll read more of her writing!

Sam left her small hometown of Carney as soon as she could. She's a nurse in NYC and doesn't talk to anyone except for her uncle. He has terminal cancer and Sam goes to him. He's leaving her his house, so she'll have to take care of all of it. Being in Carney brings up a lot of bad memories. When she was a teen, Sam's family was murdered. Her mom, dad, toddler sister, and an uncle. They were shot and the house was set on fire. The cops were a mess and didn't really try to solve it. Even though there was no evidence of her, they said her sister died and the fire just left nothing. While Sam's in Carney, a state investigator shows up. He's been looking at this cold case and wants to solve it. Meacham knows the cops messed things up. And the person most people think did it is a cop. He takes Sam to visit an inmate who swears he was at her uncle's that night. He said that a person was carrying a child out of the house before the fire. Sam wants to believe that her sister might be out there. So she spends more time in Carney that she wants. She starts questioning people from her past. More bad memories come out and Sam does some risky things.

There were some twists in the book. I really enjoyed the mystery and the pacing of the book. I love anything Kara Thomas writes, so I'm not surprised that her adult debut would be good.

I gave this book 5 stars. Lots of triggers in this one including suicide, sexual assaults, drugs, fire.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.

I can’t express in words how happy I was when I seen this approval sitting on my shelf! I’ve read, loved, enjoyed and devoured Thomas’ previous titles. So to say I was ecstatic to dive into her newest suspense is an understatement.

Out of the Ashes by Kara Thomas is a striking and a pleasantly plotted page-turner.
A thrilling, captivating, unpredictable and will consume your life until you've finished!
Deliciously twisty, heart-stoppingly tense and absolutely addicting, Out of the Ashes is a book that will have readers on the edge of their seats as they find themselves completely gripped by this amazing story.
An exciting read full of lies, secrets, and deadly truths in this new agonizing novel of suspense.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Samantha Newsome returns to the small town where she grew up, where if you don’t get out the dark and ugliness of never going anywhere is just too too prevalent. Yet return she must to put her uncle to rest and deal with what is left behind. What was never resolved is the mystery of what really happened the night her parents and baby sister died in a fire when she was only 13. Sam goes on a quest to find answers to what was a mishandled case that is topped off with the possibility that her baby sister was stolen away and could be alive. The cast of characters seems to have never left high school, even Sam’s behavior is juvenile. Her risk taking is dangerous and you wonder if she will survive. Yet when the last words her mother said to her after she misbehaved is stuck in her mind and going forward and solving what happened is the only thing Sam can do. Mystery and suspense abounds and the ending - just didn’t see it coming. Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the Arc.

I might have to give up on this author. This is the fourth book I've read by her and I've only liked one of them. The writing and plot was slow, boring and disjointed. It felt like random things were happening only to introduce characters that I didn't care about.

This was my second book I’ve read by Kara Thomas and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Samantha’s family perished in a fire twenty two years ago and now she is discovering all of the lies and truths that actually exist. I rated it 4 stars. Definitely kept me hooked!

Kara Thomas is a very popular YA thriller author, so I'm excited for her jump to adult crime-fiction. That being said, OUT OF THE ASHES is a bit too straightforward for me. I'm giving it a 3-star middle of the road type of rating as I felt that the narrative was a bit unoriginal. That being said, the ending is a tearjerker! I'm excited to see what this author has in store for readers next.

When she was thirteen years old, Samantha Newsom’s family was murdered and their Catskills farmhouse set ablaze in an unsolved crime that left nothing behind but ashes.

Twenty-two years later, Sam is pulled back to her hometown of Carney, New York, under the shadows of the grim tragedy she’s never forgotten or forgiven. Authorities mishandled the evidence, false rumors were seeded about her family, suspects yielded nothing, and the case went cold. Not anymore. Investigator Travis Meacham has been assigned to the case, and he has news for Sam: a prison inmate has come forward with a shocking admission. Sam’s baby sister, presumed dead in the fire, made it out of the house that night.

It’s not the only reveal that upends everything Sam thinks she knows about the crime and her family. But Carney protects its secrets. And this time, Sam might not be able to escape the town alive.

I've read other books by Kara Thomas, but I think this is the first one that isn't a YA thriller.
Sam's family was killed 22 years ago when their family home went up in flames. Now, a man claims that he saw someone leave the home with Sam's 20-month-old sister Lindsay. Sam goes back to her hometown to reconnect with her roots and see if she can find out exactly what happened the night her family was killed. She ends up finding out a lot more than she bargained for.

I thought this was a fast-paced psychological thriller. The author did a great job developing Sam's character; she had a lot of flaws, but was still pretty likeable. The author has a great writing style - she is descriptive, without being overly so; she made the story dark, but also added some humor and lightness; the twists were well-thought out and realistic. This is an author I enjoy reading!

Rating: 3.5 stars

It’s always interesting to see an author switch genres, especially when it fits the usual genre but ages up. It was nice to read another book by Kara Thomas and I thought that she did well outside of YA.

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Samantha Newsom. She didn’t have a rough childhood until her family is murdered and that is when her woes started. I can definitely understand why as well. For twenty-two years she has never forgotten and always wondered what if. I wouldn’t say that she was always tactful though when trying to solve the mystery and ask questions. There were times she folded her cards way too quickly and put herself in danger, even others too. I had a love/hate relationship with her because of it.

There are some minor characters that take a more prominent role but are also still there to help move the plot along and speculate who could be the murderer. Thomas was good at keeping me off the trail until it was time for the big finale. I really did have no clue and would have never guessed it.

Some of the plot twists were pretty intense and for a content warning the book does talk about rape in a past memory as well as mentioning it about other characters. I think that is the biggest one but there is also drugs and overdosing as well. One of the plot twists with a character was just real sad. Although, a lot of them are. Some characters just shouldn’t get that type of plotline!

Overall, I was pretty pleased with this book. It did take me a bit to get into but once I did I was flying through. If you have read her other books or enjoy Adult Mystery / Thrillers then definitely check this one out.