Good Audible narration with cast and SFX. Beautiful writing. Loved the ending. The mystery part was good, too, but I stayed for the FMC. Loved the friendships here as well.

It was poignant. It was an exploration of small towns, crime, family, and friendship. Loved the last paragraph as it evoked feelings in me about the small town I was born in but, fortunately, got out of. I love that town and go home from time to time, but I am glad I got out.

Can't wait to read more from this author!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-arc of this book in exchange for a genuine review. All opinions are mine.

Another gripping, psychological thriller that had me fully invested wanting to know whodunit in this shocking murder mystery set in a small town full of secrets and interesting people.

2.5⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the ARC copy of this one! Out everywhere now.

Unfortunately, I really just could not vibe with this one at all.
The POV for most of the story made it read juvenile to me, which I don't care much for.
I also predicted all the twists, which took a lot of the surprise out of the story.

It is a quick read at least, but at times it got a little confusing with the characters and timeline jumping. However that also could have been from it not really grabbing my attention very well.

As always, I suggest all books to everyone as they are different to all of us. Just because it wasn't for me doesn't mean someone else won't love it!

Many thanks for the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I tried a few times to pick it up but was not able to connect to the story. I encourage others to give it a try for themselves!

Definitely an original book.
Charlie is an original protagonist that you root for through the whole book! The book is set in a small town and what happens when people don’t leave it. The secrets and lies that are always there.

She’s an original protagonist that definitely entertains.
Fast paced read!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝘼 𝙥𝙪𝙡𝙨𝙚-𝙥𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡-𝙩𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙗𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙤𝙬𝙣𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡 𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙤𝙨𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙞𝙧𝙨.

This is my first Wendy Walker but won’t be my last. I really enjoyed this thriller with the small-town setting and interesting characters. The murder mystery part of this story had me so intrigued and invested in figuring out what was going to happen next.

It was so interesting trying to figure out if one of these coworkers murdered the boss, and I really enjoyed the way this book wrapped up. Charlie was such an interesting character I thought autism was well written in this.

I heard the audiobook of this had special effects and I’m so upset I didn’t read this via audio, but it’s all good - this was a fun read regardless.

I loved how eerie this small town was and all the secrets it withheld. I didn’t know which characters to believe in this, the suspense in this was amazing.

Overall, this was a satisfying and compelling thriller. I couldn’t put it down and had a fun time reading it, I can’t wait to read more from this author.

Thank you so much NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

Charlie Hudson, an autistic seventeen-year-old, is determined to leave Sawyer, PA, as soon as she graduates high school. In the meantime, she works as many hours as she can at a sandwich shop called The Triple S to save money for college. But when shop owner, Clay Cooper—a man both respected and feared in their small economically depressed town—is found dead, each member of his staff becomes a suspect in the perplexing case. Before she can go anywhere, Charlie must protect herself and her friends by uncovering the danger that is still lurking in their tightknit community.
Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone for giving me an advance copy.

Thank you Netgalley. Wendy Walker has become an auto read for me. This book was a little different than her last few. I found it a bit slower paced but just as fantastic!! Characters and story were great. Highly recommend

I love love love Wendy Walker! All is definitely not what it seems! Engaging, mysterious and such fun characters! Full of twists and turns and one heck of an ending! This book was so freaken good!

Love a good Wendy Walker book, I always know they are going to be fantastic. I really enjoyed this book. I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

While I quite enjoyed What Remains, this one fell a bit flat for me and I struggled to feel quite as invested. However, Walker is a capable and talented writer, and I will continue reading her books!

Charlie is a high school girl, working hard at a sandwich shop to pay for college. One night her boss is murdered and she hides under a table while it’s going down but she doesn’t see the killer’s face. As the police try to solve the case, secrets are uncovered about her boss and the shady businesses he ran. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

American Girl is a murder mystery centered around seventeen-year-old Charlie.. a sweet, smart and inquisitive young woman whom also happens to be autistic! The storyline is intriguing with a lot to unpack with secrets, blackmail, lies, red herrings and Charlie’s friends all being suspects (whom she’s very protective of) in the murder of her boss. I never fully knew which way the story was headed, who to trust or who had bad intentions, with one twist in particular being quite a shocker! I really enjoyed the suspense and loved Charlie’s character. That even though some were trying to take advantage/mislead Charlie, she uses her inner voice.. lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions.. for encouragement to stay on track. She is very perceptive in using tools in order to process life with a “see saw brain (as she calls it).” Another winner from Wendy Walker! 4 stars — Pub. 10/17/23

I received a NetGalley digital copy for review from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

I've recently discovered Wendy Walker and was delighted to see her new one show up in Netgalley. This one told from the perspective of a young autistic child

I have loved every Walker book. This one ventures off her regular course for me. I could never really stay the course for this one. I did not find the characters engaging and found the pace lagging.

American Girl is a whodunnit where every character has a motive. (Love this type of story!) The story is set in a small town sandwich shop and told by Charlie, an autistic teenager with loyalty to spare. We know from the beginning that she’s a witness to something involving her boss, and that she’s protecting the people she loves, we just don’t know who/why.
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I thought the first half was a little slow, but at the halfway mark things picked up and I flew through the rest! There was one twist that surprised me and one that didn’t. I thought some of the ending was a stretch, but I did like the who/why once it was revealed!
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A solid thriller by an author I really enjoy! Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the e-copy!

Wendy Walker is a literary genius as far as I am concerned. I feel as though I connected more with this book due to the fact that I have a 19 year old autistic son, but regardless this book was fantastic. I have read several books by Wendy and I feel like this is right up there with Emma In The Night. Everything about this book was amazing and I look forward to reading more of Wendy Walker in the future.

A page-turning novel about a small town business owner found dead and the teenage girl caught in the crosshairs.
Autistic 17 yr old Charlie Hudson is determined to leave Sawyer, PA as soon as she graduates from high school. Working as many hours as possible at the Triple S sandwich shop each member of the staff becomes a suspect when the owner is found dead. Charlie must protect herself and her friends by attempting to uncover the danger lurking in their small community.
Charlie is the perfect teenage heroine. She's smart, brave and quirky. I loved being in the mind of an autistic teen. She's fascinating!

Thank you to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishing house, and the author, for the complimentary copy of this book in return for a review, based upon my honest opinion.

This book was a pretty good one. I liked the main character, Charlie and premise of the book was interesting and had lots of twists and turns.

Charlie is 17, has autism and dreams of leaving her small town and getting to MIT. Charlie has a job at a sandwich shop, which allows her to save money ad the routine work comforts her. Charlie’s boss at the sandwich shop is found dead. She is seen on the the security cameras at the scene. Charlie is a good and loyal friend and she refuses to say anything about what she may or may not have seen or heard. Who was the killer and is Charlie at risk, or is she the suspect?

Very enjoyable read. I like the way this author writes and cannot wait for her next book.

I did not enjoy it as much as I thought i would! It was enjoyable but nothing really surrprised me! I wish it was a little shorter