It isn't that you don't realize what's going to happen, it's that there is barely a misstep throughout. Compulsively readable and overwhelmingly compelling.

“She thought she had her life back. She was wrong.”

Personal review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

And the winner for unpredictable endings goes to Megan Lally! I thought I had guessed everything about this book and it’s plot - I was wrong. This book was emotional and gripping, dark and twisty, and completely took me by surprise in the end. A Jane Doe wakes up in a ditch with amnesia, taken to a local police station, and claimed by a man who says is her father. A young teen is accused of killing his girlfriend, but authorities can’t prove it- he searches for her daily. This dual point of view novel takes us through the emotional and dark road to their two paths meeting up, in the most unlikely of ways. Thank you @netgalley and @sourcebooks for this advanced copy in exchange for my honest review. This book publishes in December of 2023.

Synopsis: Shivering and bruised, a teen wakes up on the side of a dirt road with no memory of how she got there―or who she is. A passing officer takes her to the police station, and not long after, a frantic man arrives. He's been searching for her for hours. He has her school ID, her birth certificate, and even family photos.

He is her father. Her name is Mary. Or so he says.

When Lola slammed the car door and stormed off into the night, Drew thought they just needed some time to cool off. Except Lola disappeared, and the sheriff, his friends, and the whole town are convinced Drew murdered his girlfriend. Forget proving his innocence, he needs to find her before it's too late. The longer Lola is missing, the fewer leads there are to follow…and the more danger they both are in.

This thriller was extremely well done. It has everything you’re looking for dread, that unsettling feeling, and just enough mystery and suspense to keep you up all night reading. I read this in one sitting! While I figured out the ending early on, that didn’t keep me from enjoying the story. I really liked how this one was dual POV. I will be honest, Drew’s character wasn’t my favorite. I felt like he was written as a ‘typical’ teenager and not how a teenager actually is. That did take me out of the story at points but the more I read the more I got used to it. Overall, I would highly recommend this story especially to teenagers. They will appreciate the characters and the pacing will keep them engaged until the end.

Thank you so much for my gifted copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Great job on your debut novel, Megan Lally! This was such an interesting story and a super fast-paced read. I found myself immediately engaged and holding onto my seat needing to know what would happen next. There were several clues and hints as well as red herrings that kept me guessing until the final pages. With the different POVs and timelines, Lally did a great job keeping things clean and easy to follow. I enjoyed this story very much, and I think it’s a great YA thriller! Definitely one you should add to your shelf!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. In Washington City, Oregon, Lola had gone missing. She was last seen with her boyfriend, Drew. They were at the boat launch in his car. They had a fight and he broke up with her. She got angry and got out of his car to walk home alone. That was the last time she was seen. Because she was last seen with Drew, he was accused of her murder.

The sheriff, Roane, had his mind made up about Drew. As far as he was concerned, Drew was a murderer. Although Drew begged him to investigate, he wouldn't budge. So Drew took matters into his own hands. He and his friend Max and their friend Autumn, who was the sheriff's daughter, snuck into the sheriff's office and downloaded tips from the tip line. There was a woman, Melanie, who called in a tip about a girl she had seen that she thought was Lola. So the three of them drove two and a half hours to meet her. She told them everything she knew, including the fact that Lola and a man posing as her father had gone to a thrift store. So they went to the thrift store and spoke with the proprietor who told them that they had gone to Alton. So the three of them went to Alton. They decided they should go to the police department to get them to investigate. Most of the police were out of the office on a call about a man who had gone missing. But they were able to talk to an officer and to tell him their story. He chose to believe them but then officer Bowman came in. He had picked up a girl on the side of the road a few days earlier and her father had come to claim her saying her name was Mary. This was the girl Drew and his friends assumed was Lola. But officer Bowman felt certain that it was Mary. So when the two officers were talking Autumn was able to get the address for the man who had gone missing who ended up living next door to Mary and her father.

Drew took off to the address where he saw a man, Wayne, Mary's father, carrying a bundle over his shoulder. Shoulder. Drew was able to see that it was a girl wearing Lola's jacket. He saw Wayne take her into the basement, so the first chance he had he went to the basement. He found a girl there whose name was Madison but she looked just like Lola. Her ankle was chained to a pole and Drew found a tool to break the chain to set her free.

The rest of the book was about drew and Madison's conflict with Wayne. I thought the author did a fantastic job telling the story. And I was impressed with the way in which the characters were developed. I gave this book five stars.

thank you netgalley and sourcebooks for the advanced copy of this book. this was so good! the atmosphere and the characters really put depth into the book. i was on the edge of my seat the whole time with so many scenarios going on in my head. perfect pacing and just overall well written.

I've been behind in my books this year and have been struggling lately with finishing books and this book cured me. Read this in two nights and I loved it! A girl wakes up in a ditch on the side of the road and can't remember who she is or what happened to her. Let the guessing games begin. Who is she really? What happened to her? Highly recommend to anyone that loves a good mystery and thriller.

If you like thrillers you NEED to read this.

The pacing, the characters, the plot, everything is perfect.

I honestly don’t know what to do with myself after this one. So fun, couldn’t put it down and read it in a day.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the ARC of "That's Not My Name" in exchange for an honest review.
Everything you'd ever want in a suspense thriller is jammed into this whirlwind read. A character placed in ever increasing, excruciating jeopardy, a wrongly accused boy racing to rescue his missing girlfriend, for which the sheriff and entire town holds him responsible. And urgent parallel storylines that compel you to feverishly zip through the pages at record speed until (as you knew they would) converge into a breathless finale.
Not to mention a gasp out loud twist on top of everything else piled in here.
I'm wary of going into plot details, because it's best to plunge into a book like this with only a slight glimpse of its basic set-up. First, a teen is girl found injured and unconscious in a roadside ditch, then stricken with amnesia when she awakens. Her distraught father rushes to her side, equipped with valid, conclusive proof she is in fact his daughter Mary. In a nearby town, tormented teen Drew had inexplicably let his girlfriend Lola walk home on a remote road. So it stands to reason that her disappearance now renders him a prime suspect and town pariah.
All that's left for me to say......the suspense generated as these two separate stories race to collide dials up to unbearable levels. And I'd advise that no one start reading it in the evening unless they plan to stay up the rest of the night to finish it. And that's what I'd call a description of a 5 star thriller to go way high on your TBR list.

This one grabbed my attention from the very beginning and kept it for the entire book. The alternating perspectives between the young woman who lost her memory and Drew, a young man whose girlfriend is missing, enhance the suspense and intensity of the novel. I enjoyed this one immensely! Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

This book is really great! I was pulled in from page one, quickly invested in the characters, and needed to know how the story progressed. The thrill did not leave me through the end of the book. I finished reading it two days ago and I keep thinking about it. It is super well written, with an expertly mapped out mystery that's equally easy to follow and complex enough that you don't have all the answers in chapter one. I highly suggest it!

Well definitely finished this in one setting and loved it. Lost identity and a big race to find out the truth. I loved everything about this book And I was really surprised with the ending good surprised though. I liked the character development as well I kind of just rooted for everyone so much.

This book is such a tense, quick read! I love the unreliable narrator aspect with the character who lost her memory. The more she learns about herself, the more things we begin to doubt. I also love the dual POV and that it shows us the other side of the story with the boyfriend who has become a suspect. The back and forth between these two main characters made me absolutely soar through these pages. Everything came together for such a satisfying ending. READ IT!!!

I can't wait to read Lally's next books!

That's Not My Name, by Megan Lally, is a well-written YA thriller that will have you guessing until the end. I thought I had it figured out early on and was mistaken. Don't discount this one because it is YA. It held my interest from beginning to end! Thanks, NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC ebook to read and review.

I’m torn between a 4.5⭐️ and 5⭐️! I loved this!

This is probably one of the best YA thrillers I’ve ever read. It was a fast paced and short read, but packed enough thrill and suspense into the short book. The twist was great, and one of those that makes you question how you didn’t see if coming! This book wrapped up great too, so if you need closure at the end of books, this is for you!

Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for this ARC! This comes out on December 26th!

I couldn't believe that this twisty thriller was a debut! It's tightly plotted and unexpected. Premise: a young woman disappears, and her boyfriend is the prime suspect. The police in their small town focus on him so much that they ignore other clues and don't fully investigate the disappearance...so the boyfriend and a group of plucky other teams embark on a mission to find her and solve the case. Scooby Doo jokes aside, this novel is dark in all of the best ways. Highly recommend.

I enjoyed this mystery/thriller! The slow pace that “Mary”’s “father” reveals himself was sweat inducing. I enjoyed the ending and the reveal of just how evil he was. Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for the advanced copy of this book!

This is an absolutely amazing thriller. A young girl goes missing and her boyfriend accused of killing her never stops searching for her.
A young girl is found, wounded, bleeding and has no memory of who she is.
Who took this girl and why. Is she the missing girl?
The hunt for her draws to a dramatic climax.
The end will leave you breathless.

Thank you #NetGalley #SourcebooksFire #ThatsNotMyName for this ARc

This one in particular is really short read, but very well paced, and an enjoyable, thrilling ride. This was my first thriller from this author, but they did an amazing job, and I would love to read more from them!

This captivating and skillfully crafted book is a must-read, filled with emotional intensity and suspense that keeps you engrossed.

While I initially intended to rate it four stars, the epilogue centered around Drew profoundly moved me, evoking unexpected tears.

Consequently, I decided to raise my rating to 4.5 stars, impressed by the author's poignant storytelling. I eagerly anticipate delving into more of the author's works in the coming days.