On the night of prom four months ago, high school golden boy Jerry drove his car into a tree and died. His girlfriend and passenger Charlotte survived, and has been having a hard time processing her feelings ever since. It isn’t just that she’s grieving his loss. Everyone around them thought that they were the perfect couple. But no one else knew the rage that Jerry had been hiding, or the pain that Charlotte had become so adept at concealing that sometimes she couldn’t even believe it was real herself:

QUOTE
Something shifted inside me. It was like those hidden 3D pictures. You couldn’t see the whole picture unless you looked at it in a certain way. Just because no one had seen that side of him didn’t mean it wasn’t real. It just depended on how you looked at him.

I thought I was supposed to keep his secrets, that that’s what you did for someone you loved.

[My therapist] Gemma said not to keep a secret that made me feel bad. Which sounded easy enough, except that I wasn’t sure telling the truth would make me feel any better. No matter what, I ended up feeling terrible.
END QUOTE

As Charlotte tries to pick up the pieces for her junior year, she attempts to rebuild the friendships that had fallen to the wayside over the course of her relationship with Jerry, as well as during the summer when she’d been recovering from her injuries. Ian and Lori have been her best friends since she was a little girl, but not even they were privy to the meanness that Jerry seemed to have kept for her alone. Opening up to them feels like an impossible task for her.

Meeting Nate, a fellow insomniac and trauma survivor who also happens to go to the same high school, helps her start feeling good about herself again. But just as she thinks she’s finally on the road to recovery, strange things begin to occur. Things move around in her room. Cold spots appear and disappear. And someone is sending her hateful messages. It takes all her courage to attempt to tell even Lori, her closest confidante:

QUOTE
“I just keep thinking…” I took a deep breath. “Jerry. Jerry would write a note like that.” Even thinking about it made me sick to my stomach. My knees went weak and I lowered myself into a chair.

“I guess he’d be pissed about you hanging out with Nate.” Lori frowned and then sat next to me.

“Am I crazy to even think it could be him?”

Lori shrugged. “Do you think it’s his ghost or something?”

I took a breath and reminded myself that thinking my dead boyfriend was sending me notes sounded a lot like paranoia. “Someone’s pranking me, that’s all.”
END QUOTE

Charlotte’s attempts to be hyper-rational about what’s happening to her are short-circuited by increasingly awful and creepy incidents. Her parents think she’s just malingering, while her friends have no clue as to the lengths Jerry would go to in order to ensure that she did what he wanted. But surely his need to control her wouldn’t, couldn’t possibly last beyond the grave?

This is a remarkably assured debut novel that highlights the trauma of abusive relationships, particularly in adolescence, and how strongly the effects can linger even after the relationship is over. Charlotte is a sympathetic, empathic everygirl who finds herself trapped by the world’s refusal to believe her. When she finally finds the courage to tell her story, and more importantly when she finally finds people who accept and understand her, it feels like vindication for every reader who’s ever been gaslit into thinking that they were overreacting in the face of genuine pain.

The mysteries at the heart of the novel – what really happened that fateful night and exactly who is stalking Charlotte now – are handled with just the right touch of the paranormal. Whether or not you believe in ghosts, Not Dead Enough deals movingly with what it takes to heal from past abuse and the shades of those who linger on in our memories, causing pain instead of evoking warmth and love. Tyffany D Neiheiser is definitely a writing talent to watch.

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨
3.5/5 STARS

Genre: YA contemporary mystery

The synopsis of a dead ex boyfriend haunting his girlfriend led me to believe this was going to be more of a paranormal horror. It is not.
This is more of a jealous teen/ stalker situation focused on abusive relationships. I didn’t love all the teen drama and was able to guess the stalker fairly easily. I did enjoy the ending with a touch of paranormal and the stalker reveal though.
If you want a ghost story, this isn’t it. If you like high school drama/stalkers/relationships then you will enjoy this book!
Thank you Penguin Teen for the ARC!

Overall super good, very very proud of myself for predicting the ending it took me a minute to really get into the story but once i did I couldn’t stop. I fully got sucked into the story and nothing could drag me away from my ipad. The side characters were the sweetest and charlottes parents absolutely enraged me until the end. Overall a very enjoyable book definitely would recommend if you need an addictive book! Definitely look at trigger warning it does deal with abusive relationships

Thank you penguin teen for the e-arc! All opinions are completely my own.

I think this started out strong and then it tanked. The pace was lackluster and so was the ending. I wish it stayed with the paranormal aspect.

A massive thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!! I really enjoyed this book; definitely something I will tell my friends about!

This book was actually a fun premise. However for me the execution was a bit off. Even after reading, I can barely remember what it was about and what happened so unfortunately I can't give an effective enough review.

3.5 Stars rounded up!

This would have been a four star read if I hadn't have been able to figure out who had done it as early as 20% into the book. I had some reservations from the memorial service early on, and it was just glaringly obvious what was happening. It didn't make me want to stop reading, but really made me wonder about the main character.

This book handles a lot of very heavy topics really well, including PTSD, Domestic Violence, and Suicide. So make sure if you have sensitivities to check trigger warnings.

I really liked the supernatural aspect of the book as well, and the cast of characters. I just think I would have liked it a bit more had I not been able to see the end coming from the beginning.

This exceeded my expectations 100%! I'm so excited to get it physically and reread and annotate it! It would be the perfect fall read so I'll definitely be doing my reread then!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read this book ahead of release date. HOLY COW I loved this book. I didn't know what I was walking into, but it exceeded every expectation that I had. It was fast-paced, truly thrilling and I honestly couldn't predict the ending. I loved every minute, and can't wait to read more of Ms. Neiheiser's works!!

A girl who bf dies in a tragic accident and not long after she starts receiving weird messages from him that only he knows… sounds good right?

This book focused on trauma recovery, domestic violence and stalking. There was a plot twist in this book I didn’t see coming (which I’m glad when I can’t figure things out in thrillers) but for some reason this book didn’t seem really thrilling to me. Yes, it’s weird that the MC is getting stalked by her ghost bf but I wasn’t scared or particular thrilled throughout the book. The writing was easy to digest but for me the plot moved kind of slow until the ending of course.

𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒏'𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉....

Special thanks to @penguinteen @vikingbooks @netgalley and @writer_tyffany for this #gifted ARC. 🙏🏻

👉🏼 swipe for synopsis ➡️

MY REVIEW::
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

⚠️ Trigger warnings ⚠️
- domestic abuse, PTSD, gaslighting, overdose, s□icide, driving under the influence

As you all know, I love going into a book blind. (I mean, I read the synopsis when I signed up for the book, but that was a while ago 🫣🤭) This book was so good! It has a supernatural aspect to it, but not in a super spooky or "overly used" type of way. Just the perfect amount to be like, is this really happening?!😱🧐

It deals with some real-life issues that can hit home for a lot of teens and families. It also shows how important it is for not just teens, but anyone to speak to someone when there's something going on. No one can help if they don't know!

Charlotte is a typical teenager just trying to make it through high school unscathed. She thinks she's found the boy of her dreams, but then things start happening - she doesn't think anyone will believe her. Throw in a TRAUMATIC car accident and losing said boyfriend.... oof - that could send anyone into a spiral.
Through many sleepless nights, she finds solace with a fellow night owl. She starts to open up about her concerns, but then some very weird stuff starts happening. Again.....who will believe her? Is the ghost of her former boyfriend coming back to teach her a lesson?

I don't read too many supernatural thrillers, but this one is definitely worth the pre-order people!

PUB DATE:
Jan 23, 2024

QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever had an "experience"?

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#thrillerbooks #suspensethriller #thrillerreader #thrillerlover #thrillerobsessed #bookrecs #bookreview #bookstagram #bookaholic #booklover #bookstagrammer #bookobsessed #bookworm #booksbooksbooks #booksofig #booksofinstagram #bookish #bookishfeatures #tbr #tbrpile #bookbuzz #mysteryandthrills #thrillerbooklovers #thrillerfriendsunite #notdeadenough #netgalley #tyffanyneiheiser #supernaturalthriller
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𝑵𝒐 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒓...𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈, 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒍𝒆𝒕 𝒈𝒐 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉.

I'm blown away that this was a debut. Part ghost story and part thriller with an exploration into trauma and abuse at the hands of those we love, you get a stunning portrayal of a teen relationship gone wrong.

Charlotte survived the car accident that killed her boyfriend Jerry and seriously injured another student. Her parents praise her for strong she is and take turns driving her to her weekly therapy sessions. They think she's just working through the trauma of the accident, but they don't know what really happened that night...and they also don't know that the boy they praised as a fine gentleman was hurting their daughter.

Some readers may not like the paranormal element, but I loved it. Charlotte begins receiving texts from Jerry. Her room has cold spots, the cat won't come in anymore, and her laptop has a mind of its own, showing random pictures of Jerry and playing 'their song'. None of it makes any sense, and Charlotte is desperate to find a logical answer because if there isn't one, then Jerry is making good on his ominous promise that he would never let her go.

What I really appreciated about this book was that it wasn't preachy and heavy handed. Most of what Charlotte learned about her abusive relationship with Jerry came from her therapist, and it was written in such a way that I think others who are in similar situations will be able to see it. As a high school English teacher, I will definitely be purchasing some copies for my classroom library. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group/Viking Books for this early copy. This title will publish January 23, 2024.

This YA thriller's concept of the main character being literally haunted by her dead boyfriend intrigued me, & while it was very readable, the execution wasn't as hard-hitting as I wanted. 

Charlotte & Jerry were the inseparable golden couple, until a car accident on prom night. 6 months later Charlotte's still reeling from Jerry's death. Everyone sympathizes, but she doesn't know how to explain that actually, Jerry was abusive, & part of her is relieved. Until suddenly, he might not be gone after all. There are cold spots in her room, her things are being moved, & she finds mementos of Jerry in places they shouldn't be. Of course he wouldn't let something like death stop his obsession.
 
Charlotte worries she's imagining things as part of her PTSD, & her gaslighting parents don't help that theory. But then things harder to disprove start happening. Things with witnesses & dangerous consequences. Charlotte starts to wonder, does she have a ghost for a stalker? Or a ghost AND a stalker?

This felt more like an exploration of trauma recovery than a thriller, but then the resolution of that storyline wasn't as deeply explored as I expected. I identified the big twist very early on, to the point that I wondered if it was a red herring because it was so obvious. It was not. & when it was finally revealed I still had questions.

I had to set the book down when Charlotte's mom started waxing poetic about how romantic the end of "Romeo and Juliet" was. Ma'am, they literally k*lled themselves. Maybe don't romanticize that 1. ever 2. 6 months after your daughter's boyfriend died? Also, she thought it was better than "Hamlet", which is just objectively wrong.

I did like Charlotte, & also really liked Nate, her love interest. He was sweet without being cliche, & their communication felt realistic in its good & bad parts. I appreciated the ghost twist at the end & the nuances explored of grief & abusive relationships, but overall this didn't quite go deep enough into either thriller or emotional territory to be memorable for me. Thank you to Penguin Teen & the author for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

👻Not Dead Enough👻
Author: Tyffany D. Neiheiser
Pub Date: January 23, 2024

Thank you @penguinteen for the #gifted copy of this e-arc!

Charlotte is a high school girl who had survived a car accident with her boyfriend Jerry. Jerry unfortunately did not make it and Charlotte is stuck dealing with the aftermath and emotions of losing him. However as time goes on she realizes what she and Jerry had was not normal in a relationship and she struggles to come to terms with that. Thankfully her parents sent her to a therapist to deal with her PTSD and she is finally able to come to terms with what really was going on. As she starts to get better strange things happen to her. She finds notes, things in her room are moved and she is convinced someone is following her. She is in a race against time to make sure she finds who is harassing her or if she’s going crazy….because what she thinks is someone is coming to her from beyond the grave!

Thoughts:
I learned recently that a young adult rating is given due to the age of the characters in the book, not the content. That’s news to me and I mention it here because the themes in this book may not be suitable for all “teen” readers. Physical abuse, emotional abuse, gaslighting are themes in this book so please read up on it beforehand if recommended to a younger audience.

This book is fast paced and I would classify this as a young adult mystery vs thriller. At times it was a little repetitive however I think the purpose was to create so much doubt around what Charlotte was really seeing. I think the author did a nice job approaching some difficult topics and made it clear that you should always speak up when you see or experience an abusive relationship. I felt like Charlotte was a relatable character and I found myself feeling bad for her and the predicament she was in, including with her parents. I would definitely check out another book by this author and appreciate as always the chance to have read it!

Definitely trigger warnings for abuse but I enjoyed this story. The main character goes through so much after losing her abusive boyfriend in a car accident. She has a stalker and is also trying to deal with the after affects of the accident. This one definitely is on the dark side but was a page turner I couldn't put down.

A stunning look at what happens when a victim of domestic violence loses said person. I went in expecting a ghost story, but ultimately it ended up being more of a psychological thriller. Which is great, and this was so well done, especially when taking into account the MC's psyche and grief vs relief. Unfortunately I'm not a HUGE fan of real-world scenarios in books, so that's why I can only give this three stars. But this is an entirely personal preference and has nothing to do with the writing itself, which was 5/5 stars.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

The idea of a girl's dead boyfriend haunting her hooked me right away.

Charlotte's putting the pieces of her life back together after Jerry's drunk driving death. She's seeing a therapist, dealing with her insomnia by texting a classmate, Nate, and starting to see her friends again. But one big secret seems to be keeping her from fully healing: no one knows Jerry was hurting her.

Charlotte's determined to keep it that way, until weird things start to convince her that Jerry might not be fully gone. Mementos that she'd boxed up start showing up in unexpected places. Her room goes supernaturally cold at times. And someone's stalking her and texting her from Jerry's old phone, claiming to be him. When they start threatening her, Charlotte finally begins to open up to the people in her life. But the threats keep her unsure of who she can really trust.

This is a page-turner. Once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. It has a great cast of characters, too, all of whom could be potential suspects. There's Ian, Charlotte's platonic best friend, who has her back no matter what. Nate, the quirky insomniac who knows how to make her laugh. Brittany, who might have been flirting with Jerry. Gabe, the boy Charlotte dumped for Jerry, who hopes it's his chance to win her back. Lori, who resents Charlotte for disappearing after Jerry's death and is mourning the breakup of her own relationship. Sandy, Jerry's hurting, angry little sister. Or could it be the ghost of Jerry, coming back to keep his promise to never let her go? With all of the twists and turns, this book kept me guessing who the stalker could be!

Combining paranormal aspects with Charlotte's PTSD from an abusive relationship created an interesting psychological thriller that speaks to the fear of not being safe in your own home.

This book, overall, felt very realistic. The depictions of trauma, PTSD, and anxiety felt spot on to me and came close to my heart. Charlotte’s character felt very real and fleshed out well. The pacing was also fast which made the book more enjoyable. However, the time jump at the end kind of confused me. 4 stars!

This book was great! With the ways the author described Charolettes PTSD and anxiety really felt real to me and when the panic attacks were being described i was like wow, this is 100% accurate (with the panic attacks I’ve suffered from). The book being a slow burn really adds to the paranoia of who the stalker could be.

I really enjoyed Nate’s character because I feel like I was able to relate to him in the sense of being “weird”. I wasn’t a big fan of Lori at any part of the book because of how she made everything about herself. Ian was also a sweet character and I love how supportive he was for Charlotte.

I’ve never read a book like this before it is genuinely so unique and fresh I loved it so much! The only thing that I would’ve appreciated more was if we would’ve had a bit more information what happened before the time jump at the end! Other than that the book was flawless!!