Every single one of the characters in this book needs therapy horribly badly.

I don’t think we were supposed to really like or relate to any of them, so if that was the author’s intention…she did that perfectly.

I didn’t even feel bad for Phoebe. Every family had horrible parents…except maybe Becca?

Each character was supposed to be in their late 20s but they all still felt like they were in high school. Again, I’m not sure if that was because they were stunted by the trauma of what happened to them 10 years ago when they were actually IN high school. I’ll just assume that’s what it was and give the author the benefit of the doubt.

However, I didn’t expect the twist that came at the end. It definitely surprised me and I usually figure things out at least 50% of the way in, so the author did do a good job at keeping that under wraps. Looking back, I think there were plenty of clues alluding to the ending, but I just didn’t catch them.

The characters all have different levels of anxiety, trauma, grief, paranoia, ect. There’s death, secrets that ruined lives, drugs, drinking, manipulation, mental illness, and lots of different themes that can tear families and people apart when they aren’t dealt with in a healthy manner, and especially when you don’t have a good support system, which not many of the characters seemed to have.

I did enjoy the book. It kept me intrigued.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for allowing me to read this eARC.

Ashley Tate’s novel grabs you from the first sentence and doesn’t let go- I for one found it impossible to put down. Tate weaves an intense and excellently paced psychological thriller with a creative and well developed plot that I think readers should go into knowing as little about as possible. Reading this book is a true experience and one you won’t regret- a must read of this year for sure!

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!!

This book includes so many twists from lies that happened years before. I loved it, but the chapters of Wyatt were confusing once I got to the end. Overall great!

I was lucky enough to read an advanced copy of this through the author and what a ride it was! Lots of intrigue, multiple mysteries, and a great twist that will keep you guessing right until the end. This is a fabulous thriller debut and I look forward to seeing future works from Ashley Tate.

Thanks also to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Really enjoyed this. Twenty Seven Minutes had a great group dynamic of characters, plenty of small town secrets and an edgy feel to the writing that makes it very addictive.

I liked the way the social underneath of the town worked, a young girl as martyr and Saint in death when the reality, of course, is she was many layers of good and bad. As details and realities start to emerge it is utterly riveting.

The ending has plenty of surprises and this is a very human story. Recommended.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for this arc copy i liked this book alot i gave it 4 stars because at some points in the book i think it was dragged out longer then it needed to be but over all i was interested the whole time i was waiting for what was to come of the ending of the book which was also ok it didnt blow my mind . but i had a really good time with this book and i would recommended this book to a friend

Twenty-Seven Minutes is a story about finding the truth. 10 year after the death of Phoebe Dean, a town still grieving her loss- but what really happened that night? This book had a twist I really didn't see coming! It's a great read, definitely puts you through all the emotions. If you like a good mystery, you should check this one out!

I read a great deal of modern suspense thrillers and loved the premise/pitch on this one but I found it a very slow read for a thriller. I enjoy the dual timeline technique and multiple points of view and while this work employed both techniques I couldn’t find any way to anchor identify with a character or feel suspense. Work seemed to lack the necessary red herrings and cliff hangers to seam together the novel. I abandoned reading 60 pages in with a sense of confusion about what was happening or why all the points of view were included.

Ten years ago Phoebe was killed in a car accident. Her brother Grant was driving. It took him 27 minutes to call for help. If he had called sooner, Phoebe may have lived. What is Grant hiding? Why didn’t he call sooner? This has been on the minds of everyone in town for a decade.

This book was so poorly written it took me longer to finish than it really should have. The plot sounded great and I was excited to read it, but the execution was a wide miss. Not a single character is remotely relatable let alone even likeable. They are all written with superficial stereotypes and absolutely no substance. If you can’t connect with a character in a book you really don’t care what happens to them. And that’s where I was. I felt like the story just wasn’t all that believable.

I understand that the author is new to writing thrillers so I don’t want to be too harsh. But this is a genre with a lot of different books and authors out there as well as readers who, if they get bored with a book, will simply drop it and move on. I will never not finish an ARC if given one but this one was a hard one to complete.

There really were too many characters and POV’s in this book to keep track of with so many crossing storylines. I don’t think the author did a great job keeping everything separate. The use of alternate timeline was helpful but again with so many points of view in the present it just drug on forever. Had the ending been more satisfying we could call it a slow burn, but instead it just fizzled.

The final twist in the book I think will shock a lot of people and make their star rating higher. I actually did wonder if that was happening early on in the book because there were plenty of clues to it. If you aren’t someone who figures out twists easily in a book, you may really like the ending. I felt like with all the characters some endings were left untold and the twist wasn’t a big shock to me. Pretty unsatisfying.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Poisoned Pen Press for the advance reader copy. This is my honest review. 1.5/5⭐️, rounded to 2.

Twenty-Seven Minutes
Ashley Tate
Pub Date: Jan, 30 2024
Poisioned Pen
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
Pros - captivating plot. However, most of the action occurs in the last ten percent of the book which is ridiculous.
Cons - Multiple Point of views - it took awhile to learn about the characters. Because of the pacing it lost its impact.
This book was gory and had vivid imagery of death. I cannot recommend this book.
3 stars

Brilliant book told in multiple POV. The characters felt like people you know keeping you invested in the story. I kept trying to figure out what really happened, but this is not a predictable plot! The prologue was one of the best openings I’ve read. Highly recommend this book!

will be frank; the title and synopsis of the book Twenty-Seven Minutes caught my attention the moment I came across it. For a long time, I have been stuck in a rut of historical non-fiction and science fiction titles, so the opportunity to read and review and upcoming thriller was a welcome break. The premise of Twenty-Seven Minutes focuses on the death of a high school student, Phoebe and the turmoil that has plagued two survivors and the town for nearly a decade. As the title implies, Phoebe’s death occurs because her brother, Grant waits Twenty-Seven Minutes before phoning for help (not a spoiler). A decision that ultimately costs Phoebe her life. With that information noted early on, the central plot of the books builds around a 10-year memorial for Phoebe and a forthcoming decision to remove the bridge after a second accident occurs there.

The rest of the book should have focused on what transpired during Twenty-Seven Minutes, but instead it jumps back and forth between several characters (Wyatt, June, Becca, and Grant) who had varying levels of involvement in the crash, either directly, or indirectly. And while the author does a good job of alternating between characters and flashbacks without causing the reader any confusion, I was often left wondering why the story focused instead on providing so much backstory to characters who all seemed miserable.

As a reader, I struggled to relate to any of the characters, who dealt with varying levels of anxiety, paranoia, and flashbacks throughout the story. These negative attributes did not paint any of the character in a positive or relatable way. To the author’s credit, she did keep the mystery of the story a true mystery until the very end. However, as a reader, I typically enjoy context clues or flashbacks that hint at the outcome of the story. I found that very few, if any, existed here. The opinion of this attempt at maintaining a true mystery may vary by reader.

Ultimately, I gave this book 3 stars, although it was closer to 3.25. I’d classify this as an enjoyable summer or weekend read. Easy to pick up, easy to put down.

Twenty-Seven Minutes was such a grippy and thrilling thriller. It left me on the edge of my sit the whole damn time. I wanted to try and guess the end of the book but could never get it.

Thank you for the ARC!
The book did start off kind of slow and i had a hard time getting into the story. I kept with it and the story did start to develop and get more interesting. I do like the characters and how it ended!

This book was such a rollercoaster of emotions. I really liked the plot and story telling of this book. Definitely recommend!! The ending was such a twist I did not see coming!

hank you Net Galleyfor the advanced reader copy of this book that will be released in early, 2024.

This story takes place in a small town. A ten year old accident that killed a young girl still encompasses the town and its people. The story is told in a dual timeline with several characters and backstories. At first I thought it was a little hard to keep track of the different characters and their relationships. That seemed to clear up some as the story develops. This book encompasses grief, lies, and heartbreak with an unusual twist at the end.

Easily one of the best books I've read, especially in this genre. Ashley Tate, I can't wait to read more from you!

These characters became a part of me. The ending hurt. I thought I pegged the ending early on - second guessed myself as the book unfurled - and ended up being correct the first time, but desperately wishing I hadn't been (in the best way).

Each character felt 3D - flawed, imperfect, and with good bits and bad bits. I wanted to hug each of them at different times. I wanted to yell at them, too, at times. Your goal was to have your readers feel grief and loss? I felt them. The loss of every one of these characters as they were unearthed and transformed into different people. I felt them.

100% recommend. And this is a DEBUT book?!

Okay, so at first I was struggling to keep wanting to read this because of a few characters in the book, they were driving me nuts! But I’m glad I stuck it out because the ending was everything! The plot twist in this was absolutely written beautifully, I gasped, I sat here shook and I even started to cry a little at the end!

This book was definitely amazing!

Thank you netgalley and publisher for the opportunity to review this book!

27 minutes
A small town mourns the death of a young girl. For 10 years , the town folks wonder why it took her brother 27 minutes to call for help. The secret he kept for those 10 years have tortured this young man. Finally , the truth comes out during the twists and turns of this thriller!

Synopsis sounded great and I was excited to read it. It started out slow and going back and forth to past and present got confusing. I honestly could not figure out how June fit into the story! Wasn’t a fan of the writing style, it just seemed to drag with too many descriptive words. Ending was better but I expected more. Was a decent book but not my favorite. Thank you to NetGalley, Ashley Tate and Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.