WHERE YOU END has a haunting, hypnotic quality that left me wondering through the first half … who is who? Which twin is which? Who is telling the truth? And why on earth is Kat’s boyfriend so forgiving? (I don’t think that question is ever answered, BTW.)

I’m fascinated by cults, but this book had too many elements that seemed far fetched. It helps that WHERE YOU END is set in the late 60s and early 80s, otherwise some of the events would be completely implausible.

Around the point where the story began to come together, about two-thirds of the way through, I lost interest as things became repetitive. I did, however, appreciate the author’s exploration of sisterly connection and the concept of protection: how far would you go to protect the person you love most in the world? What world would you create for your loved one if you had a chance to start over fresh?

Thank you to Henry Holt & Company and NetGalley for the ARC of WHERE YOU END and the opportunity to give my honest feedback.

Made it to 15% before DNFing this one.

I think I’d have been able to keep going with an audiobook version because I do enjoy a readable thriller, which this is. But I wasn’t captured enough with the ebook.

This is about twin sisters after a car accident. One of them, Kat, has lost all her memories but those of her sister Jude. They’re very isolated, so you pretty quickly feel suspicious of Jude and don’t fully trust what she tells Kat. The book also starts to include flashbacks via Jude of the girls’ childhood. It’s clear that their past is messy, and more will be revealed as the story progresses in the present day as well.

At 15% I just found I didn’t care. With thrillers, I like to feel more intensity than I felt here. Again, if I was listening while driving or something, I think it’d be easy to keep going to satisfy my curiosity. But I don’t find myself invested enough to physically read it.

I think if Kat were a little less dopey and more reflective, more inquisitive, I’d like it more. I was rolling my eyes at her instead of caring about her. You can blame her behavior on the memory loss, so it’s not necessarily a flaw, but it wasn’t a good match for my taste.

There are moments that felt like they should be intense, but didn’t come across that way from Kat’s POV, like when she interacts with the person supposedly collecting signatures for a petition and gives away her address. I felt bored instead of engaged.

The twin language made me roll my eyes. I didn’t grow up with a twin, but with a very close sister, and that kind of thing never strikes me as true to life. It’s more a long history of inside jokes and random quotes than made up vocabulary that is difficult to pronounce. 😂

I think this is probably a decent thriller if you feel invested in Kat, so it’s worth a try.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.

Kat Bird wakes up from a coma and has lost all her memories except for the name and face of her twin sister, Jude. Amid the tragic, Jude can’t resist the opportunity to give her sister a new past. Kat has to figure out what was real life and what was a fiction her sister developed for her.

This book was so fun to go into completely blind and seeing the twist and turns. The character development in this book was intense and I really enjoyed the pacing of this book. It definitely keeps you in the story and ready to find out more. The flip between past and present really helps keep the reader addicted to the story and developed the story. This book will keep you on your toe and is great for those who love a good thriller.

I honestly didn't love this book. I really couldn't root for the main character Kat or her sister, Jude. I didn't like either character and didn't like the choices either of them made throughout the book. I thought that parts of the book dragged and I found myself not really caring how it ended.

Hands down, one of the best books I have read this year! Just enough mystery/twists/turns to keep you from being able to put this down, without being too complicated of a story. Brilliant writing, including a very believable plot line and just enough character development to get attached to everyone in the story. One of my favorite things about this book is how plausible this story was; I wasn’t rolling my eyes thinking it was too unrealistic. I was getting chill bumps. I would put this author on my top 5 list for this genre, which happens to be my most read genre.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ooooooph. I am straddling between 4.25 and 4.5, which would bump the star rating up to five. This was a heck of a book with a unique twist on the twin element.

Kat wakes up from a coma and knows nothing: not her name, not the year, nothing about the past, not how she ended up in the hospital. Nothing, that is, except her twin sister's face and name. Jude struggles to help her more-than-identical mirror twin cope with the complete loss of their life before. She takes on the role of caregiver and teacher full time in addition to cleaning houses for a living.

When she is home, she tells Kat about their trip to Europe after their mother died, where they met a lovely lady named Wen who they stayed with for a while before moving on to another city. She takes Kat to their childhood home. She shows her mementos from their past. But there are very few pictures. Jude tells Kat this is because it is unnerving - when Kat looks at Jude in pictures, she sees Jude in reverse, which is herself, and vice versa, so they don't like having their pictures taken.

Despite Jude imploring Kat not to wander too far from their apartment, Kat finds herself playing cards in the basement of a bar with a stranger named Sab. Sab has a history of his own, and they find that Kat may have anger issues, so he takes her with him to an anger management group.

Kat wants an unbiased view of who she was before the accident, so she speak with Wen, who agrees to send photos to Kat of them in Europe. But when the photos come, she starts to ask questions that perhaps Jude was not prepared for her to ask. She runs into people claiming to be strangers, but who are not. And what is Jude herself hiding?

Does Jude have a good reason to lie about these trivial things to Kat? What justification could she possibly have. But things are not what they seem and soon the twins must face their past in an all too present way.

This book was mesmerizing. I kept thinking I had Jude down, but by the time I realized what was happening, it was too late to go back and think whether I saw it coming or not. There's a lot of hurt in this book. The Goodreads page says it is based on true events, although for the life of me I cannot find the event it is based on.

There is also a part in the book where Sab and Kat are at Sab's anger management group meeting and he talks about his brother, who has a drug problem, and stole from him. He had paid for his rehab once, but when his brother ODd again, Sab went and spent all his savings in Atlantic City. He said that his brother's sickness made him sick. He started having panic attacks and got an ulcer.

This hit deep in a way I was not prepared for, and I had to put the book down and just cry and cry.

The character development was intense. You have Kat and Jude (among others) on one side and you have these other characters (King Bash, the RonDon, Verona) on another side. The evil is clear but the author still does an extraordinary, uncanny job with making them all very human in a way that we don't want to see bad guys. It's easier to see a villain as a complete villain, a complete manifestation of evil. But that's not always, in fact it's usually not the case.

This is the first book by this author that I have read, but I am definitely impressed enough to pick up more.

I really enjoyed the author's use of time jumping and description. It further solidifies the uneasy feeling this booth gives you as the main character tries to piece her life back together with her twin.

Kat is involved in a horrific car accident with a horrible head injury. When she finally wakes up, all she remembers is her "mirror" twin Jude. Kat slowly starts piecing things back together with Jude filling in many of the blanks. What she starts to remember, though, is something Jude has been trying to protect her from. This was a wild ride and very well done. I would definitely read more from this author.

Did you miss me?

I spent the weekend in Salem, MA to catch the whole “spooky season” vibe and man oh man 10 out 10, recommend you do the same.

My trip was almost as fab as this book right here, Where You End.

I mean hellloooo?!?! Did you see this cover! It’s absolutely stunning and super creepy.

With my book in tow, I found a nice tree to sit under to dig in!

Me oh My! Does this book deliver!!!

Over and Over and Over, again.

This book checks all my boxes and is sure to be a contender for book of the year.

Check out this teaser :

From bestselling nonfiction author Abbott Kahler comes a spellbinding fiction debut: an unusual form of amnesia upends the lives of identical twins, forcing them to face the indelible, dangerous shadow of the past.

When Kat Bird wakes up from a coma, she sees her mirror image: Jude, her twin sister. Jude’s face and name are the only memories Kat has from before her accident. As Kat tries to make sense of things, she believes Jude will provide all the answers to her most pressing questions:

Who am I?
Where am I?
What actually happened?

Amid this tragedy, Jude sees an irresistible opportunity: she can give her sister a brand-new past, one worlds away from the lives they actually led. She spins tales of an idyllic childhood, exotic travels, and a bright future.

But if everything was so perfect, who are the mysterious people following Kat? And what explains her uncontrollable flashes of violent anger, which begin to jeopardize a sweet new romance?

Duped by the one person she trusted, Kat must try to untangle fact from fiction. Yet as she pulls at the threads of Jude’s elaborate tapestry, she has no idea of the catastrophe she’s inviting. At stake is not just the twins’ relationship, but their very survival.

Intensely creepy and beautifully written, Abbott Kahler’s Where You End is an unforgettable tale of intrigue, revenge, and the quest for redemption.

I wanted to like this book so much more than I did, but ultimately it just didn't work for me. Very twisty and vague in the way that literary fiction tends to be when the story involves a deeply traumatizing experience for the main character. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

This book was really not for me. The premise was set up well but I did not enjoy the direction of the plots and I had a hard time feeling invested in the characters. Definitely would not recommend unfortunately!

From bestselling nonfiction author Abbott Kahler comes a spellbinding fiction debut inspired by true events: an unusual form of amnesia upends the lives of identical twins, forcing them to face the indelible, dangerous shadow of the past.

Really interesting ideas but the execution left a little to be desired. Still, I enjoyed it.

WHERE YOU END by Abbott Kahler was a thrill ride for me. I loved everything about this book.

When Kat Bird comes to after a horrific car accident, the only thing she recognizes is her 22 year old mirror twin sister, Jude. She has no memory of their past, where they lived, what they did, what she thought as an individual, nothing.

When Jude brings her home from the hospital she starts filling in the blanks about so much but also holds so much back. We see glimpses of those parts of their lives that Jude is keeping from her, and I wonder if that wasn’t as bad as the accident. Kat wants to make contact with someone who knew her ‘before’. So Jude hooks her up with Wen who also discreetly fills in some blanks. Or does she?

I really enjoyed this one. The pacing was fast as the clues piled up. I liked the author’s writing style which led to a smooth transfer from past to present and back. I also liked that it was all that ‘jawn’ and the shout out to Philly where I live so I could picture the areas in the book. I do have to admit that I thought ‘the plan’ in Philly was a different group also around during that time which, unfortunately ended in disaster. I did learn a bit about the power of the mind so that’s a good thing. This one kept me riveted. I was surprised learn that it was a debut. A job well done.

I have to say I’m not sure if I enjoyed this book or not. The idea is fascinating and I really wanted to like it but it was confusing on a lot of parts and that took me out of the story.
If you like twisty, mind bending, culty books where you aren't sure who is telling the truth, this is the book for you.
I would definitely be willing to give this author another try but I’m just not sure about this one.

"Where You End" is a riveting mystery novel that will keep you reading until the very end. This tale explores the lives of identical twins and the unbreakable bonds they share. Their bond is shattered when one of the twins is involved in a life changing accident that causes her to lose her entire memory, including the memory of their traumatic past, with the other twin trying to pick of the pieces of their past, while at the same time protecting her sister. What unfolds is a distressing narrative, with one twin trying to reclaim her identity and the other trying to protect her from her past.

The author maintains a high level of suspense throughout the story, with twists and turns that are both shocking and scandalous. "Where You End" is a gripping mystery that delves into identity, family secrets, and the consequences of telling lies and keeping secrets from the ones you love.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early copy of this book. Where You End by Abbott Kahler will be released on January 16th, 2024.

The premise of this book absolutely had me hooked - I was so excited when I was approved for it! But, unfortunately, the book missed the mark. The writing was fine - I would probably pick up another book from this author - but I found my attention wavering throughout a lot of the book. It happens sometimes, it just means it wasn't the book for me. I'm rating it at 3 stars because the book wasn't bad, it just didn't keep me interested.

Being a twin myself, you’d think I’d read more books about people like myself but I haven’t. I was intrigued by the amnesia trope of it, with Kat only remembering her sister’s face and name. Ultimately, the book fell a bit flat in my opinion. The jumping back and forth between the POV and timelines was too much for me and I was just confused about certain things. I wish they had gone into more detail on the cult the girls were in as well.

Thanks as always to NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you netgallery and Abbott Kahler for the ARC review of this book.

4.5/5⭐
Genre: Thriller

Mirror twins; twin pairing in which the twins are matched as if they're looking into a mirror.

Who am I?
Where am I?
What actually happened?

Meet Katherine bird. Woken up from a coma she sees her mirror self, her twin; Judith Bird. Judes face and name is all that Kat knows.

Relearning her self; Kat must trust Jude with her past and present. Jude's tells a tale of two shelter girls who have just come back from a vacation in Europe. With a father who has disappeared and a mother who died in a car accident, these two girls who were well loved and cared for navigate their lives in a mystery of who is Kat? ... and what did the Bird sisters do?

--
I had a ride with this one. Kat and Jude bird were very mysterious people. As Kat was learning herself, I felt as if I was Kat the whole time. I trusted all the information that was given to me.

The story goes back and forth from present to past. Insight on their lives as children, before he accident and current time. Everything that came.otnof Jude's mouth I believed. I was that trusting and again felt like I was Kat.

Around the 200 page mark is when the book really hit me and I started questioning things. Everything I question. Everything I thought I knew was wrong. I took notes reading this book, trying to guess information and it wasn't until around 270 pages that it finally fit together and I was wrong the whole time.

Thrillers stories are stories that are a huge hit or miss for me. Most being very predictable. If your looking for a story to keep you on your toes, you come to the right book.

Thank you Henry holt and company and net galley for the e arc. Where You End tells the story of two young twins finding themselves in a situation where a bad car accident leaves one of them comatose and having lost a majority of her memories. As Kat attempts to re piece the fragments of her life and who she is, she starts to uncover disturbing details that hint to her that she is being lied to by the one person she trusts, her twin Jude. This novel is told in dual timelines, one being them as children in the 70s and them in their early twenties after the accident in the 80s. I thought this novel was just okay. It gets pretty dark at times as this book does contain content about cults, pedophilia, and child abuse. I love dual timelines but I’m not a fan of the cult trope, so I think that’s why I didn’t like it as much. I did enjoy the revenge aspect but I was hoping for a bit more from the ending. Overall a decent thriller/mystery.

Mirror twins, Katherine and Judith, are as close as siblings can be until a horrendous car accident crushes Kat’s head leaving her with amnesia and no memory of her past, with the exception of her twin sister. At the age of 22, the sisters are living together and working hard to piece back Katherine’s childhood memories. As more things become clear for Kat, even more become fuzzy and confused. Could her sister be lying to her about a mythical past that never happened? If so, what is she hiding, and why?

JoyReaderGirl1 graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Abbott Kahler, and Publisher Henry Holt and Company for this advanced reader’s copy (ARC) for review.