Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this awesome eARC.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. 😁 For a very enjoyable read!

In the realm of mystery and suspense, Stacie Grey’s “She Left” emerges as a compelling narrative that intertwines the past’s shadows with the present’s ominous uncertainties. The novel, set against the backdrop of a small California community still reeling from the echoes of a decades-old tragedy, is a masterful exploration of guilt, survival, and the relentless pursuit of truth.

The protagonist, Amy Brewer, is a survivor of the harrowing event known as the Memorial Day Massacre, where she narrowly escaped a fate that befell her friends. Twenty years later, the past refuses to remain buried, and Amy finds herself among ten individuals connected to that fateful night, all summoned to a remote cliffside house under the guise of a journalistic piece. As the storm rages and guests begin to meet untimely ends, Amy’s resolve is tested, and the reader is swept into a whirlwind of suspense.

Grey’s narrative is a homage to the classic whodunit, yet it stands on its own with a fresh voice that commands attention. The pacing is relentless, each chapter peeling back layers of the characters’ facades, revealing complex motivations and secrets that are as unpredictable as the storm outside the house. The setting itself becomes a character, the isolation and the cliff’s precipice mirroring the psychological precipice on which each character teeters.

The author’s background in biotech research lends authenticity to the scientific aspects of the story, while her passion for mysteries is evident in the meticulous crafting of the plot. The homage to Agatha Christie is palpable, yet “She Left” is not merely a reflection of the past but a beacon for the future of the genre.

“She Left” is a novel that will resonate with fans of tense, clever, and goosebump-inducing stories. It’s a book that demands to be read in one sitting, and even then, it may just compel you to start all over again, searching for the clues you might have missed the first time. Stacie Grey has indeed left her mark with this novel, and it is one that will not be easily forgotten.

Thanks to Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Two decades post her friend's demise, FBI agent Therese receives an intriguing invitation to revisit the scene of the crime, along with other connected individuals.My first book by Stacie Grey's work, this read leaned more towards cozy mystery than a thriller which was what I had expected. While the storytelling flowed smoothly, I found myself occasionally bogged down by lack luster details. Recommended for fans of cozy mysteries such as classic whodunits like Clue and Agatha Christie novels.

This book couldn’t hold my attention. This story started off promising and very quickly fell flat.
It was a story about how a small group of teens were killed years ago, only one at the gathering left early and was still alive. The entire story is based on a group of people related in some way to that event who are all gathered at a remote home for a weekend. The characters pointing fingers at each other the entire time.

Stranded at a secluded lodge, surrounded by the very individuals crucial to solving a cold case massacre – one of whom may be the perpetrator – our FBI agent protagonist confronts both her past and her future. As nefarious events unfold and seemingly suicidal deaths occur, the stage is set for a classic locked room mystery. While it doesn't necessarily redefine the genre, it's undeniably captivating.

The narrative unfurls in real-time, immersing you in the characters' palpable apprehension towards one another while peeling back layers of the past. As the truth behind the massacre gradually emerges, alliances shift and suspicions mount, leaving you constantly reassessing whom to trust. With its brisk pace and abundant intrigue, this is a novel I recommend.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #PoisonedPenPress for the book #SheLeft by #StacieGrey. This book is about a 20 year old murder that killed 5 people. Now, someone has orchestrated a get together at a house to find out who is responsible and people are starting to point fingers at each other. One by one, people start dying. Who had the most to gain? Who really killed them 20 years ago? I was on edge and trying to figure out the killer but was unsuccessful.

Amy was the sole survivor of a beach party massacre. Twenty years on, secrets will be revealed as a journalist tries to find out what really happened that night.

I enjoy locked room mysteries and this one was set up well. I ended up enjoying it but also felt it needed a little more oomph to get it over the line as come parts did tend to drag on a bit. There were quite a few characters, which at times I did get confused about.

This was a DNF. Another mysterious host invites ( insert number here) a group of people related to a specific tragedy. They are all led to a remote location which obviously has no place internet. They may or may not know each other.
I’m pretty much doing me with this, especially when the characters are flat. This is all that. It just didn’t grab me from the start and so I bailed.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for a honest opinion. I don’t usually give a star rating for something I haven’t finished but NetGalley requires that I do. Some people will like this so I’ll give it a 2.75

Thank you Poisoned Pen Press & Stacie Grey for this read!

This was a great locked room thriller. I enjoyed the one by one aspect and thr fact that everyone's trustworthiness was questionable.

This book was quite fast paced and from the very first chapter I had to continue to read until I found out the truth. I ended up reading this in 2 sittings and felt it was a solid read.

3.5/5

Amy Brewer survived the unthinkable - she was the sole survivor in The Memorial Day Massacre. Twenty years later, ten people with connections to the crime have been invited to a remote cliffside house by a journalist looking to do a story on the murders. But the group quickly learns the event is not what it seems. As a storm closes in and guests begin to die, now an FBI agent Amy realizes there is someone in the house who knows more than they admit about what happened that night long ago and they will stop at nothing to protect their secrets.

Using a back and forth method, we slowly learn more and more about all of our guests leaving us with more questions than answers. At times some of the arguments and conversations were slightly clunky and a little disjointed, but never dragged on too much to make it slow. As for characters, they all bled in together, as most tend to do during these styles of thriller but I did find myself not enjoying any of them enough to actually root for any of them. Once we hit the mid way point, the pace picked up and kept a good speed through until the end.
 
She left is a medium to quick paced locked in thriller, exciting enough to leave chills up your spine and have you watching over your shoulder. Thank you to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, Poisoned Pen Press and Stacie Grey for an advanced copy in both audio and ebook formats. She Left is set for release May 14th, 2024.

"Twenty years ago, she survived. This time she may not be so lucky.

On the night that changed everything, Amy Brewer walked out of a house party, trudging angrily away from the friends who made her feel like she didn't belong. Within the next hour, all five of those friends would be dead.

The Memorial Day Massacre, as it came to be called, rocked their small California community and Amy - the girl who had walked away just in time - couldn't escape the media circus...or the guilt.

Twenty years later, ten people with connections to the crime have been invited to a remote cliffside house by a journalist looking to do a story on the murders. But the group quickly learns the event is not what it seems. As a storm closes in and guests begin to die, Amy realizes there is someone in the house who knows more than they admit about what happened that night long ago... and they will stop at nothing to protect their secrets."

Murder reunion! The only kind of reunion I'm all for!

Pretty classic locked room, whodunnit mystery. Being that there were so many characters, I would’ve liked to learn more about them as individuals rather than just as suspects. Same goes for the victims. All in all, not bad, just not enough suspense for my taste though.

3.5/5

This was a pretty good locked in style book.
Therese (Amy from the beginning) is the sole survivor in an attack that killed 5 of her friends. She’s tried to distance herself from the tragedy in her adult life. She get invited to a weekend away by a journalist doing a story on the tragedy.

Multiple people having to do the with the case get stuck in a house and people keep dying. The other people need to figure out who the killer is.

The middle felt slow to me. I did like how the book had difference perspectives sprinkled throughout of everybody on the house. The ending was good and moved quickly to tie everything up.

If you are a fan of the locked in style books. This is definitely worth the read

Enjoyable, smart thriller about a woman who left a house party and the friends that stayed were killed. 20 years later, she's invited to a meeting with a reporter with others who are related to the friends that were killed. When she arrives, they all realize they have been lured there under false pretenses, and can't leave.

Excellent beginning and ending. The middle dragged a little, and the characters could have been fleshed out a little more.

Thank you Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!

Good book! Good storyline! This book had suspense, intrigue, action, great mystery, murder, a great who done it and some crazy twists and turns! The storyline was very interesting and had me glued to my kindle! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!
Twenty years ago, she survived. This time she may not be so lucky. On the night that changed everything, Amy Brewer walked out of a house party, trudging angrily away from the friends who made her feel like she didn't belong. Within the next hour, all five of those friends would be dead. The Memorial Day Massacre, as it came to be called, rocked their small California community and Amy, the girl who had walked away just in time, couldn't escape the media circus, or the guilt. Twenty years later, ten people with connections to the crime have been invited to a remote cliffside house by a journalist looking to do a story on the murders. But the group quickly learns the event is not what it seems. As a storm closes in and guests begin to die, Amy realizes there is someone in the house who knows more than they admit about what happened that night long ago… and they will stop at nothing to protect their secrets!

3.5 rounded up to 4 stars. The plot to this story was solid. It's a locked room mystery with people who keep ending up dead. It was a little difficult to fully enjoy because the characters were not well developed. I felt like I was just reading names rather than reading about people. I would have liked to have known more about each character. We really only see details about our main character, yet the story involved many characters. If you like a locked room thriller mystery then I think you will enjoy this.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
Amy Brewer didn’t know that her life would be forever changed when she first entered that house party with her friends Memorial weekend. She may have walked away, but she was the only one. That terrible night now known as The Memorial Day Massacre. 20 years have passed and Amy now going by a new name is suddenly invited to a mountain lodge memorial service with nine others who have connections to that fateful
Memorial night. However, the weekend takes a far less peaceful turn as guests one by one are found dead. Trapped in the secluded location can Amy really cheat death twice and find the killer before she’s the next victim.

She Left is a classic whodunit locked room
murder mystery/thriller. The plot is pretty standard for this trope as it’s set in a completely secluded location, no cell service, a missing host, a terrible storm forcing all occupants stay indoors, and a group of individuals all connected to one another that need to find the killer amongst them before it’s too late. Now there’s alot of characters in this book with the reader having essentially two crimes and victim pools to keep track of with the present situation and the killings 20 years ago. While I can understand the need for so many characters as then there more possible suspects it however made for quite some difficulty keeping track of everyone. While the setting had all the set ups of being incredibly creppy it did feel lacking in suspense as this only seemed present when each body was found. Overall, the book was enjoyable but ultimately did not offer up anything I have not already read from this type of sub genre. With that being said, I do think that this would be a good intro for anyone wanting to get into room mysteries or thrillers.

She Left comes out May 14th, 2024.

Thank you again NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I wanted to love this book and the first few chapters were amazing but unfortunately after that it fell flat for me. There were to many characters and how they were related to other characters that it got confusing and made me lose interest. I never formed attachment to any of the characters because it was hard to keep them straight. The ending was a letdown and felt very anticlimactic.

first of all, I would like to say thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen for providing me with an Advanced Copy of this book!

this book follows Amy who walks out of a house party, within an hour of her leaving all 5 of her friends are dead. 20 years later, 10 people who had connections to the crime have been invited to a remote location to find out who this killer is. the guests were left to race against the clock to figure out the killer and uncover all of the lies and secrets each other are hiding. there are a lot of back-and-forth arguments and accusations.

this book is a closed-circle mystery with everyone trapped inside of the house trying to figure out who is responsible, however, this book missed the mark for me. the writing style was very enjoyable but the characters felt bland and flat for me. the introduction and the ending of this book were executed beautifully however the middle felt rushed with too many characters but also slow within the storyline and plot. around the halfway mark I was confused and started to lose interest in the mystery.

this may be the perfect read for someone who is new to mystery and closed-circle thrillers but this one unfortunately would not be something i added to my regular recommendations.

Twenty years ago, Amy walked away from a party with her friends after a bullying incident. The five friends who stayed were killed that night in a brutal incident, and questions about the killer have gone unanswered for years. Now at the twenty year point, someone gathers a group of ten people with connections to the case for an interview- but they aren’t really here for an interview.

A locked room mystery with plenty of characters, She Left has a great premise. It is told mostly from Amy’s POV with vignettes from each of the other supporting characters. I was invested at the beginning of the book, but started to lose interest when the huge cast of characters was introduced and I just couldn’t keep them straight. They weren’t distinct enough for any of them to stand out for me, and I kept forgetting who was who and how they were tied to one of the victims.

The tone also felt slightly off for me. When a character was found dead, it was like no one really cared or felt more scared about the position they were in. It didn’t have the usual creepy and sinister vibes for a locked room thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own,

Locked room mysteries are my favorite trope, but I truly hated this book. Liked the main character, didn’t know anything about the supporting characters, and was totally not invested. Only finished because it was a quick read, but didn’t care by the end.