Delusions? Sociopathic behavior? You have my attention. This one had me glued to the pages from the beginning. The timeline switched from Jane and Thalia’s college days to the present day, connecting the dots together to see why these two supposed best friends had a falling out. Jane and Thalia were both very unlikeable characters. Jane was obsessed with Thalia, and felt like she didn’t belong. Jane’s inner dialogue did make me laugh at times, because of how deranged her thought process was. Thalia.. I didn’t like her immediately. Something about her was very calculated. I also didn’t see what the appeal to her was, and why everyone gravitated towards her.

With Jane being such an unreliable character, I did question if things were really playing out as they did in her mind. This book was heavy on toxic relationships. Between the friends, as well as Jane’s marriage. There were several plot twists, but I think as the book went on, it was one too many twists I felt didn’t need to move the plot along. I did enjoy this one and couldn’t put it down, however I think a little too much was going on which made me change my rating.

Jane Morgan, like most of us, took an online assessment. Instead of finding out what type of cheese she was, she discovered that she was a sociopath. That explained her unease around others, her lack of friends, and her odd reactions to many situations. She has gone through her life knowing that she is an outsider. As a child of a single Chinese mother, Jane has been told that she has no chance to advance in society and should prepare herself for a life of low-paying service industry jobs. Jane refuses to accept this future and sets her sights on becoming a writer. Through hard work, she begins a graduate program at Oxford University. On her first day, she meets a fellow student named Thalia. This chance meeting will have a huge impact on Jane's life. She becomes obsessed with the beautiful and magnetic Thalia. They also become acquainted with another student, the fantastically wealthy Indonesian student Ani. When Ani's brother Ivan comes to visit, he also seems to become entranced by Thalia. Something terrible happens during their first year at Oxford, after which Thalia leaves and Jane loses contact with her. Six years later, Jane is unhappily married to Ted and has published two books that haven't attracted much attention. She happens to see that an author named Thalia Ashcroft is going to be appearing at a convention for suspense writers in NYC. Jane determines to do whatever she can to see Thalia again. Even when Ted invites himself along on the trip, she can't wait to see Thalia again. Thalia seems happy to see Jane as well and invites her to a writer's retreat taking place after the convention. When Jane goes to the retreat (because she can't miss any opportunity to be with Thalia again), she soon finds that Thalia may have ulterior motives for inviting her to come along.

I liked the way the book flashed back and forth between both time periods (present day and Oxford days) and viewpoints of Jane and Thalia. Jane is beyond annoying, and the obsession with Thalia was a bit much to take. I did wonder how she managed to get through any classes or assignments at Oxford when she seemed to spend all of her time there staring at Thalia with her mouth hanging open. Still, it was interesting to see what was behind the strange relationship of the two women and there were plenty of twists and turns along the way.

I’m Not Done with You Yet is the second of three unconnected books in 2023 by Jesse Q. Sutanto, and ping pongs back and forth between two times about twenty years apart, the first following Jane and Thalia as they make their way through graduate school at Oxford until a calamitous event throws their lives in disarray and the second the aftermath twenty years later, with Jane as a struggling mid list writer, and Thalia as an ascendant star, when their lives intertwine again. The first half of the book plods along, not really distinguishing itself, but pleasant enough, but the back half contains multiple reveals that are increasingly entertaining, even as they strain credulity. Intertwined is Jane’s struggle with self-acceptance and confidence, which serves the dual purpose of obfuscating certain developments of the story, and being a satisfying side-story. Jessie allows a couple of threads to drop in an otherwise satisfying story with a telenovela-esque second act that is delightfully feverish and overwrought.

An engaging and dark thriller filled with toxic friendships, sociopathy and murder. 


Y’all I love a good sociopath and Jesse Q. Sutanto puts us right in the mind of one dark and twisty puppet master in I’m Not Done With You Yet. Talk about toxic friendships and women behaving badly! I love spending time in a twisty mind.

Jane, Thalia and Annie have a disturbing friendship (can we even call it that?) filled with cat & mouse games, deadly secrets, deception, murderous deeds and the unfortunate men that get caught in their crosshairs.

Sutanto is known for her lighter cozy mysteries and this is definitely not that. This is a psychological thriller that will keep you guessing even as you relish in its deliciousness. If you are a fan of Hank Phillipi Ryan and JT Ellison this should be next on your reading list.

Jane is a self-diagnosed psychopath who is a struggling writer and unhappy in her marriage. She sees an article about an upcoming book release that happens to be written by her friend Thalia whom she hasn't seen in 9 years. When Jane attended Oxford for her Masters degree, she met Thalia and immediately became obsessed, but after one night when something terrible happened, they went their separate ways. Now that Jane has found Thalia again, she attends the writers convention in order to reconnect but another terrible event happens and it makes Jane question the events from 9 years ago. Overall, an interesting mystery that delves into a friendship where you're not sure of the motives of either person or who is manipulating who. Readers who like books with unreliable narrators will enjoy this one.

I'm really unsure how I feel about this one. There were moments I really liked and others that I just didn't. My favorite character would have to be Thalia, even though she's quite unlikable, but she at least had a personality that was intriguing to me as a reader. I listened to the audiobook while following along in the egalley, and really enjoyed the different narrators in the audiobook. They did a great job!

*Thank you @prhaudio and @berkleypub for the #gifted audiobook and egalley in exchange for an honest review.*

Have you ever lived vicariously through a character? For those who have read this book, hear me out!

This story, about a woman who risked everything to save her college friend from a horrible night, becomes obsessively unhinged years later, when they reconnect. This story is the epitome of the cat and mouse game, the hunter becomes the hunted becoming the hunter again. There are twists galore, moments of frustration and secret glee, that had me relishing both Jane and Thalia, as their lives mingle in the most unhealthy way.

I lived for the drama of their friendship. Both characters are egomaniacs, certifiably nuts, but so likeable - despite their unlikability, I wanted to be their friend! Though, only in the fiction world. I would never stand for their nonsense in the real world. They acted upon their worst instincts and said things that I could only dream of vocalizing (I would never). Their inner dialogue left me screaming (and oddly satisfied) because I think we’ve all had similar thoughts… right? Some of us are just too polite to say it out loud.

What I love most about suspense stories is that there is always a fresh way to tell it. Suspense can surprise and in a dime a dozen stories out there, this read fresh, exciting and captivated me from beginning to end, so much so that after I read it in a day, I preordered a copy and immediately sent Jesse a DM. I probably sounded unhinged because I was foaming at the mouth with excitement coming down from the high of reading this story. I won't spare you the embarrassing fangirl details, but I wanted to let her know how much I loved this story and how entertaining this female friendship was to watch evolve. Easy five stars!

Special thanks to Berkeley Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC of this book.

Well who doesn't like a crazy, obsessed, low self esteem, nutcase of a woman once in a while? I certainly do and the character Jane wears it well. She is a seething monstrosity festering underneath her fake manner. She is in a crappy marriage to Tom who is an equally irritating man (to the reader, and of course Jane, too).!

The story goes back and forth, between the present and 9 years ago at Oxford University where she meets Thalia, in a creative writing class and they become best buds. Thalia is beautiful and outgoing, total opposites.. Then after "something" happens, and Thalia just goes totally off the grid for 9 years not to be found.

Jane ( who is a writer, but a middling one who makes hardly any money for her books which makes her more miserable and ) THEN of all things finds Thalia,doing the rounds and touring with a best-selling book, named A Most Pleasant Death, making plenty of cash off a story about something that happened nine years ago, between them which a pact was made never to be told..

And than Jane goes off the rails ker-azy! Good book. 3.7 stars

This book dragged somewhat in the beginning, but stick with it. You won't be sorry as a cat and mouse game ensues with some pretty wild things.

This was a fun and entertaining read! Jane was a hot mess and I LOVE unreliable narrators as well.. The twists in the book took me by surprised and the ending had my jaw dropping as well.

This book was absolutely wild.

Jane has believed herself to be a sociopath her entire life, after diagnosing herself with an online quiz as a teen. She struggles with meeting new people, and making connections until she meets Thalia in a graduate writing program, and the two quickly become "best friends," although it might be one sided. Jane's obsession with Thalia culminates in murder.

Thalia leaves campus after the first year and essentially disappears off the grid. She returns 9 years later as a NYT bestselling author, and Jane picks up right where she left off with her obsession. The only thing you know for sure in this book is when Thalia and Jane are together, people around them mysteriously end up dead. At its heart, the book focuses in on toxic female friendships, and the idea that they aren't always equal.

I will just say - holy unreliable narrator. You don't know who to believe, or who is the villain and who is the victim in the story. Just when you start to sympathize with someone, the story is flipped upside down.

I am not familiar enough with ASPD to be able to say for sure how well the author handles the topic, and if that is a trigger for you, you may want to skip this book. As mentioned, Jane is a self-diagnosed sociopath (or so she thinks) but there is reference to another character having ASPD.

Overall, this was a fast paced read that I could not put down. I hated but loved to hate all of the characters.

Jane is a struggling writer who is feeling trapped in her life. She longs for her days back at Oxford when she did a creative writing program and her best friend at the time, Thalia. The only thing is, she hasn't even spoken to Thalia in years, since one night ruined everything and changed their lives. But now she has the chance to see her as Thalia is attending a book convention. Jane is determined to go to the convention and find her way back into Thalia’s life.

This book was a wild ride! From the first page, I was on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen. I love an unreliable narrator, and this one was the most unreliable of them all. Not a single character was likable and that made it all the more fun and suspenseful. I don’t want to say too much and give anything away, but this book was entertaining from start to finish.

Thanks to Berkley Publishing for the advance copy. And thank you to @Berittalksbooks and @dg_reads for a fun buddy read!

To tell you the truth, women's suspense/thriller novels are not really my thing, but I LOVED Sutanto's Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers so much, I thought I'd give this a whirl. While Vera's story was packed with humor and good feelings, this one is dark. Very dark, filled with the slaughter of innocents, or if not innocents, men who didn't really deserve it. Unlike Vera, there's no humor here. None at all, and this vicious tale could really have used some comic relief.

I give the author credit - it's tough to write a book with an unlikable main character, and Sutanto chose to feature two, count 'em, TWO nasty women. (Really NASTY, not Trump nasty.) And, while this one held my interest and kept me guessing, I didn't really enjoy the read, so 3.5 stars, rounded down.

When your favorite cozy author (Dial A for Aunties duo, Vera Wong) reveals the depths of her dark mind…and appeals to your feminine rage…while also analyzing the inner workings of female friendship, you know you have a winning thriller of a novel.

𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐓𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲

𝙄’𝙢 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝘿𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙔𝙚𝙩
by Jesse Q. Sutanto
352 pages - you will read it in one sitting guaranteed

Jane’s life is a mess. Midlist writing career, marshmallow husband and a Bay Area mortgage that is straining their finances. She recalls her brighter memories at her Oxford MFA program with bf Thalia - her stunning friend who meant everything to her.
She seizes the opportunity to see Thalia again, at any cost.
This novel resonated with me on many levels while also being a dark and delicious psychological thriller with enough twists to keep me captive. I read it on one long road trip (less than a day).
If you gasp out loud that many times, and you can’t set the book down, you know it is good!

𝑅𝑒𝒶𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒾𝒻 𝓎𝑜𝓊
🌸love some savage feminine rage
🔀 enjoy twists and turns
💀 appreciate dark characters
😬 like stories that make you gasp out loud
💗 enjoy exploring the psychology of female friendship
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Thank you @netgalley @berkleypub for the opportunity to read this darkly delicious ARC in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to my favorite cozy author, but is she a cozy author? 😉💗

Jesse Q. Sutanto’s latest mystery/thriller, I’m Not Done with You Yet, is apparently not in her usual microgenre (humorous cozy mysteries). I’m Not Done with You Yet is filled with unlikable, questionable characters whose lack of normality affects the reliability of their narration. It takes some writing talent to fill your story with such characters and still create an enjoyable read.

The start is slow and a bit whiny, and that slow pace continues through the first two-thirds of the book as it focuses on Jane and her belief that she is a sociopath, that she has a horrible husband/marriage, and that her writing career is as lacking as she is. Jane’s obsession with Thalia and her own issues becomes repetitive, and it felt overplayed as if the author thought readers would not be sharp enough to pick up on the personalities. The plot pace and my interest picked up significantly in the third act of the book.

In the final act of the book, there are multiple, significant twists that I didn’t see coming. One of these twists was set up in the prologue to the story, which is told by an unnamed narrator, that segues into Jane’s present day story. The multiple players in this cat and mouse chase made the story much more interesting since the advantage shifts as facts are revealed. While none of the characters are particularly likeable, Jane was my favorite. The addition of Thalia’s POV in the last act of the story shed much light on the past and present for the characters, but I didn’t care for her voice.

The author uses her own experiences as a writer, a Jakarta resident and an Oxford University graduate to provide some of the details in the story. The characters together were a unique blend that I appreciated. Overall, an interesting read for a lazy day by the pool.

After I was delighted by VERA WONG’S UNSOLICITED ADVICE FOR MURDERERS earlier this year, I knew I had to pick up the latest release from Jessie Q Sutanto. I’M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET is a much darker novel. It is less delight-filled and more revenge-fueled than the beloved Vera. Nobody is going to capture your heart here.

The story follows the friendship between aspiring authors Jane and Thalia who become estranged after a tragic event at Oxford. Years later, they are reconnected when Thalia’s book about their toxic relationship is published.

There are some twists and turns along this way, but your enjoyment will be boosted if you expect a slow burn suspense rather than a past-faced thriller.

READ THIS IF:
You enjoy tales of toxic friendship and obsession
Books set in the publishing industry interest you
Unlikeable characters are your jam

RATING: 4/5 stars
PUB DATE: 8/22/23

Many thanks to Berkley pub for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been a huge fan of @jesseqsutanto since I read Dial A For Aunties when she had me cracking up but she has completely thrown me for a loop by writing the most delicious psychological thriller that I could not put down. I’m Not Done With Yet is a dark twisted thriller about a group of friends with secrets, obsessions, mental health disorders and highly unreliable, unlikeable characters. The characters met at an MFA program at Oxford years ago and are thrown into present day when one of them has become a bestselling author and the other is languishing. Everyone has internal monologues that contradicts the others. No one can be trusted. Every single character was different than I originally thought. It was absolutely brilliant in its execution to completely thrown me off course and surprise me in every possible way. It really reiterated what an incredibly talented author she is that she can have such a wide range of genres and excel at all of them.

Jesse Q. Sutanto is so incredible versatile! She cranks out books like few other people in the industry.I was really excited to pick up her adult thriller debut that came out this week–I’m Not Done with You Yet.

Jane is a midlist writer who is very… mid. She’s unsatisfied in her marriage to Ted, who she believes isn’t supporting her writing career like an adoring husband should. She can only really remember one person and one time in her life where she did feel understood–a summer spent at a Creative Writing program at Oxford, with Thalia. She hasn’t seen or heard from Thalia in years, no matter how hard she’s tried to find her. Their time together was cut short when someone they knew turned up dead.

But when Thalia’s name pops up on the New York Times Bestseller list, Jane is desperate to reconnect with her. She knows if she can just track her down, she might revive her flatllining career.

It’s told almost exclusively through Jane’s POV, but when we start to get slices of Thalia’s POV, the story takes some weird and wild turns. Jane is frustrating and irritating as a character, but despite the flaws, you can’t help but root for her. The story has a great take on mental health, and kind of makes you zoom out on the bigger picutre of your own life.

If you read Yellowface or The Writing Retreat and enjoyed, give this one a shot!

Thanks to Berkley and BeritTalksBooks for the gifted review copy.

I could have easily finished this book in one day. I'm still evaluating how I feel about these characters - and where to start. Told via several POV, dual timeline - I just became consumed by this story. Read well beyond my bedtime - and on vacation with children. I needed sleep - but this book would not let me go.
Jane self-diagnoses herself as a psychopath. Who doesn't? She refrains from social situations, seeking to limit herself to triggers. Her self-esteem and identity are intertwined - with her acerbic single mother's voice downgrading her decisions.
Thalia befriends her right away - and so it begins.
I loved it - so many surprises, guesses and gah the characters. The unreliable main character. So enjoyable, creative and fresh.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 stars

A wild, juicy story about two women and their toxic friendship. Jane is a struggling, midlist author trapped in dull marriage and strapped with a hefty mortgage. When she sees that her best friend in college, Thalia, is now a bestselling author attending a book convention, she becomes determined to reunite. Jane and Thalia share a secret and Jane refuses to be pushed aside again.

I love an unhinged story about two women on the verge and this one delivers. Both women are fascinating and frustrating and hilarious. I couldn’t wait to see how it all wrapped up. I can’t wait to see what Sutanto writes next!

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.