I'm a big fan of thriller/mysteries, so I was excited to see this title. I think the pacing was great. I speed through this book, completing it within two days. Though the mystery was interesting, the characters prevented me from truly loving this book. I didn't connect with any of them and found all of them pretty unlikeable. There were moments toward the end of the book where we could see some of their vulnerabilities. I wish there would have been more of that throughout the story. While the story had an intriguing twist, there were some aspects of the events that felt very unbelievable. Also, it felt like the story of one of the characters dead-ended and I wish more would have been explained. All this aside, I would absolutely read another book by this author, and I think YA mystery readers will enjoy this one.

I'm glad I ended up giving this book a shot because I just do not get into books (or tv) that start off with doing the deed. But, I stuck it through and it was worth it. The book follows a mystery- who killed Victoria and Jess? Later, who kills the next person? Is it the Crestmonts? That's what our main girl Lauren sets to find out. So these kids are about 17/18 years old but honestly, you would think they would understand about needing concrete evidence to accuse someone. How many times did they do so? There? Four? I'll give it to the author though, I didn't expect who the killer was. Towards the end, there's a couple of chapters written from the characters pov and the drastic change in writing, like we are reading a psychopaths words. I know a book is good for me when I can't wait to get back to it. Honestly, mom was over the top with her relationship, prioritizing it over her daughter, which made me mad but don't we all know someone like this? The characters were all fine but I wish we got a bit more from Lauren. I never truly felt connected to her and perhaps it's because her guard is up almost the entire book. All in all, I really enjoyed this and will be picking it up when it comes out!

Would recommend for fans of…
⚽️ They Wish They Were Us
⚽️ The Agathas
⚽️ A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

As someone who reads a lot of crime fiction, I love throwing some YA thrillers into the mix as they’re typically a little lighter than adult fare, but are still full of juicy drama.

The One That Got Away With Murder is Trish Lundy’s YA debut and it follows Lauren, a teenage soccer player with a secret past who gets pulled into the orbit of two brothers who may have had something to do with their girlfriends’ mysterious death.

The story was great! While it matched other YA thrillers in terms of general ~vibes~, I found the plot to be very different from any other YA thriller I’ve read. I really enjoyed the edginess that coursed through the story – knowing that Lauren, along with the Crestmonts, had a secret was a great method of keeping the tension up in the story. You didn’t necessarily know who to root for, which also added a moral complexity to the story, without making it overly philosophical.

While I really enjoyed this book, it did feel like something was off with the pacing. For as tense and dramatic as the story was it felt oddly subdued throughout, almost as if there was no urgency to it. I also found the final reveal left a little something to be desired, but was overall happy with the way the story ended.

For some reason, YA thrillers just scream summer to me, and The One That Got Away With Murder is a perfect one to add to your beach bag! The One That Got Away With Murder is out now. Thanks to Henry Holt and Co. and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a great YA thriller! I thoroughly enjoyed this novel from start to finish. Lundy kept the anticipation up throughout the entire book and didn't let up until the very end. I kept going back and forth over who I thought could have committed the murders! This is an easy read with short chapters perfect for a YA audience or even middle-aged women like myself!

In "The One That Got Away with Murder" we meet Lauren who moved with her mom across the country after being blamed for starting a fire that disfigured her then-boyfriend Clint. Upon moving to Happy Valley PA she meets Robbie Crestmont, a boy with a dark past that everyone in town tries to avoid at all costs. Lauren is a soccer star and her new teammates warn her about Robbie and his brother and the stories surrounding their family--however she doesn't believe and listen to their concerns. What ensues is a rollercoaster of emotions and twists and turns that do not let up.

Overall I'd give this book a 4.5 star rating and would highly recommend to YA readers wanting to get into the thriller genre or those who are already familiar with these types of books.

Lastly, thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for granting me access to this novel in exchange for my honest review of this book.

Quick and enjoyable read!
A story of a young girl and her mother starting over in a new town after a traumatic event at her old school. Lauren joins in the soccer team and falls for one of the rich,popular guys who is also a prime suspect in the murder of his previous girlfriend.
As Lauren becomes more and more involved in her school and the lives of her friends, she gets involved in the mysteries surrounding everyone. There is a killer preying on the teens in this town, but who is it?
The plot isn't the most believable, but I was pleased by the twist at the end. A twist that I didn't guess.
I would rate this 3.5 stars.

This book was a fun read! I enjoyed the mystery and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time reading it. I devoured it pretty fast and loved every page. I really didn't know who the killer was the entire time and I love when a book keeps me guessing.

Really interesting cold case YA mystery/thriller!!

Summer for me apparently means I binge a bunch of YA mystery books and I’m not mad about it at all!

This one kept my interest to the very end, and although I figured out the whodunnit aspect I still was really engaged and excited to see it all unfold!

I’d definitely recommend this to people who like a solid younger mystery with YA themes, less gore, but lots of intrigue!

This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. The suspense was unreal! Every time I thought I knew who the killer was...there a new twist thrown in there. Never ever would I have guessed that was who was behind it all!!

THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY WITH MURDER
Trish Lundy @trishlundy

This was an incredibly enjoyable read. I identified with the experiences the kids were going through… I mean aside from murder and all.

Although I’m a multi-book reader I found myself grabbing this one more often because I was fully engrossed with the storyline. Then while creating the playlist I reread it. (I’m not a rereader.) Definitely recommend.

Thank you to Henry Holt and Turn the Page Tours for including me and my gifted copy. All thoughts are my own.

1⭐️

The way I feel so saddened right now for having to DNF this at 25% breaks my heart. Ever since I spotted this on Goodreads, in January, I was so excited for its release. And when I saw that it was up for an ARC option, I JUST HAD TO REQUEST IT!!! And I was beyond excited when I was granted a copy!!! Unfortunately, at the end of chapter 13, I couldn’t see myself continuing forward. 😔😔😔.

The premise of this book is very interesting. It’s the execution alongside the background drama that ruined things for me. When it comes to YA murder mysteries/thrillers, I am VERY picky on which ones I read. And I tend to lose interest when I have to read about “unnecessary bullying,” “females not supporting each other,” “blackmail over just having a simple conversation,” and the worst “knowing your friend is doing wrong and treating someone wrong but you sit back, watch it, and say ABSOLUTELY nothing.” All of these irks are what takes place within this book (I skimmed through to the end) and I cannot put myself through it. I read to escape the real world. Not to read the real world within the work of “fiction.”

Although this didn’t work for me, I am 100% sure that several others will come to enjoy, maybe even love, this book. Plus, the chapters are really short and the book is very fast-packed. Because I couldn’t enjoy this, I am afraid that this where I end my journey with reading any future works by Trish Lundy. I do wish her nothing but the best.

Side Note: Any book that I DNF, I automatically rate a one star…

Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt Books for Young Readers for granting my request for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of this book in exchange for my honest and personal opinion!!!

This is a YA thriller that can easily be adapted into new adult categories.
It's not the greatest thriller of all time but it was highly entertaining and if I was a young adult reader I would have ate this shit up!

Like I previously mentioned this is definitely written for the older YA audience as it has a very mature writing style and themes. It's very sex positive. Keep that in mind if recommending to readers. There are also some scenes depicting drug use (weed/coke/heroin) and alcohol use as well as bullying and of course the murders.

The killer wasn't too hard to figure out if you watch true crime TV because they definitely fit the most basic of predator descriptions. But maybe the was the point because there was a lot of red herrings.

I liked the writing style and was entertained throughout so I rated it as if I was the intended audience.

Thank you to the publisher for an advanced copy!

This book was very good. I kept changing who the person was that committed the crime! The suspense throughout was really intense and i personally love books like that. I personally didn’t give it 5 stars because of parts were a bit dragged out.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this arc. This story was a bit slow to start but it was a great story.

Be careful who you fall for...Running away from her own past Lauren just moved to Happy Valley and is already in the center of a murder mystery. Hoping to start fresh in a new place with her mom and her mom’s new boyfriend she can’t seem to shake the bad memories and trauma she so wished to leave behind. Making matters worse she starts hooking up with Robbie Cresmont who was recently accused of murder. A few girls on the soccer team try warning her about the Cresmont’s. Struggling to accept the truth of who Robbie might be Lauren begins doing some digging of her own.

This was such a fun, fast-paced, will have you on the edge of your seat page-turner. So many twists and turns you don’t know who to believe. The thrill of finding out who was behind the murders was such a wild ride until it was revealed. The author played the characters against each other so well I was for sure we had at least 4 potential suspects. But just when you think you know you’re so wrong.

I thought the twist with who the killer actually was made no sense. Clever maybe even a little jaw dropping cause it wasn’t expected. But the killer’s overall purpose for doing it didn’t fit the narrative. It felt unrealistic and made me feel like they did entirely too much just to kill someone.

Overall, I enjoyed it for the most part. The characters are complex each with secrets of their own making them all seem a little suspicious. The author successfully creates a perfect web of drama, mystery, and suspense that spiraled out of control by the end. If you’re looking for a YA high school murder mystery this is it. Special thanks to the author & @henryholtbooks for my gifted copy‼️

"The One That Got Away With Murder" by Trish Lundy presents a mystery with potential, especially for its target audience of younger readers, given its high school setting. However, there were some unnecessary elements, particularly in the early chapters, which just felt like too much and did not add any real depth to the story. It also did not build suspense or support the main mystery in any meaningful way, so it didn't capture my attention (and actually did the opposite).

The slow start was a drawback for me; it took more than twenty percent of the book for the story to really grab my attention. Additionally, the backstory didn't feel seamlessly integrated into the narrative, which hindered the flow of the plot.That being said, once the story picked up, it was entertaining enough to keep me engaged. While it may resonate more with a younger audience, I believe some streamlining would have enhanced its appeal.

I liked the story, characters, and thought the plot was interesting. The twist got me. This is probably best for older teens. Thanks for the advanced copy to review!

I actually got a physical arc alongside this e-book and it was a treat to turn those pages!

Because, this book was a definite page turner. Just when you think you know whodunit, you are shocked with another clue.

The plot has the high school drama, betrayals, teen angst, secrets and friendships galore.

I hope you will enjoy it too!

Thank you #NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co. for giving me the opportunity to read this!

The One That Got Away With Murder is an intriguing YA mystery thriller. The story follows Lauren as she tries to solve the murders in her town before she becomes the next victim.

I thought this was a well written debut novel, though it read a bit too young for my taste. Of course, I’m definitely way older than the target audience, and I think teens and younger adults will enjoy this book.

The main character made some really questionable decisions, in my opinion, and the ending was not my favorite. I did like the tense atmosphere and I enjoyed trying to figure out who committed the murders.

I would recommend this book to fans of YA murder mysteries, such as A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder or The Cheerleaders.

A perfectly fine YA mystery that is definitely a little more YA than I would have liked. It was good but not exactly deep.

This is exactly what I want from a YA thriller: fast paced, engaging, some drama but not too much, and a few good twists.

Lundy grips the readers right away with not just one, but two mysteries to solve. There's the one about the Crestmont boys and their dead girlfriends, but Lauren also has ~something~ in her past that she's running from, which has caused her and her mom to move at the beginning of her Senior year and puts her just far enough outside normal high school social circles to make her the perfect detective on the Crestmont case.

It's hard to believe this is a debut novel, I can't wait to see what Lundy writes next!

My only hang up about this book is that there's a little too much sex for me to feel comfortable directly recommending this to the teenage readers I know at my library, but that won't stop me from putting it where they can find it themselves!