Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and Trish Lundy for providing a digital ARC of this novel through NetGalley!

I wanted to give 3.5 starts.
This was a great YA read. I was fully engulfed in the characters and consistently trying to figure out the twist! I was super frustrated with Lauren at some points and wanted to shake her to stop her from making bad decisions. It definitely brought me back to my high school experience as a senior on a Varsity team. The ending made me happy and I really appreciated the closure that happened in multiple ways.

I don't think you'll be disappointed to read Lauren's story and I think you will enjoy the mystery!

Publication Date 4/16/24
#netgalley #theonethatgotawaywithmurder

The One That Got Away With Murder by Trish Lundy

Thank you to @netgalley, @macmillianusa, and @trishlundy for the opportunity to read this #advancedreadercopy in exchange for my #honestbookreview. This YA thriller will be out April 16 so preorder now!

This kept me on the edge of my seat! This is one of those books where you keep thinking you’ve got it all figured out and nope, no you don’t! It has the feel of Pretty Little Liars meets A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder in the best way. We have some deeply flawed but still lovable characters and great character growth on top of an alluring, mysterious storyline. I highly recommend this for someone looking for a complex, well-rounded thriller!

TWs: dr*gging, alcohol and drug ab*se, b*llying, st*lking, more

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ - 4.5/5

"The One Who Got Away With Murder" captivated me from start to finish with its intriguing plot and suspenseful twists. As the story unfolds, we follow a high school girl trying to escape her past, only to find herself entangled in a web of secrets and danger.

The dynamic between the characters, especially the romance, kept me on the edge of my seat. It reminded me of the thrill I got from watching Pretty Little Liars, with its constant guessing games and unexpected revelations.

What impressed me most was the author's ability to keep me guessing until the very end. Despite my best efforts, I couldn't figure out the culprit, and I love when a book keeps me guessing like that.

Overall, this was just a fun time that kept me entertained and guessing until the final page. If you're a fan of suspenseful mysteries with a touch of romance, this book is definitely worth picking up.

This was a quick and easy to binge YA thriller. I would say as far as YA goes, this leans toward the more mature and dark content wise. Check trigger warnings.

Lauren and her mom move to a new town after Lauren survived a fire that left her outcasted and traumatized. But what role did Lauren play in this fire that caused her whole community to shun her? Lauren’s mom is navigating single parent life and is in a happy long distance relationship, so sees this as an opportunity for a fresh start for her and her daughter.

Lauren quickly connects with Robbie Crestwood. He and his brother Trevor are rich, privileged, and both have girlfriends who died of suspicious causes. Lauren’s teammates warn her to stay away, but when Lauren goes away with Robbie for one last weekend before she ends it, she uncovers incriminating evidence and can’t let it go.

This book is pretty fast paced and kept me turning the pages quickly. I would say the pacing was a bit uneven, things move along more slowly for a bit and then at the end things unfold almost a smidge too quickly. There are a lot of twists and suspicious characters that will keep you guessing. And while the ending was not terribly hard to predict, I found it satisfying nonetheless. So many thrillers take you down wildly unrealistic paths and this one was refreshing in its simplicity. The characters were immature and made many questionable life choices, but being high school students this made sense! Some of their activities and habits felt a little more mature than I envision for teens, but maybe I’m just too detached from the age group at this point? (Say it isn’t so!)

Overall a strong debut novel by this author! I would pick up future work from her!

Thank you @netgalley, Henry Holt & Co BYR & Macmillan, and the author for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

Total Rating: 3.75 stars
Method: Kindle / electronic copy

From the first chapter of this book, I was immediately pulled in and immersed in this world. No one, not even our lead character, is completely reliable. Each character does different things throughout the book that cause you to doubt them and their motivations, leading to me being completely on the edge of my seat and staying up way too late at night trying to read just one more chapter to see where the mystery was going. I loved every second of this, honestly.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of the good girls guide to murder series, though I wouldn't go in expecting a carbon copy (that would be boring anyway, wouldn't it?). I mean more in the sense of a good mystery that constantly twists and turns throughout the story so that you never 100% know who the guilty party is, or what's going to come next.

You're probably wondering after this glowing review why it didn't end up five stars and that would be the ending. It just felt like it was a bit too rushed. Once everything is revealed it feels like the story takes off and almost races to the finish line. And there were a few things I wanted to be more explained and to spend more time settling into before saying goodbye to these characters.

Thank you to Macmillan Children's Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I thought this was well crafted, with unique twists and although it took me a little bit to get into it, it was a great read! One to add to your list.

This book is pretty addicting, once I pick it up it’s really hard to put it down and it kept me up until dawn. I couldn’t stop cause I need to know the identity of the culprit and the big reveal really surprised me at the end.

I really enjoy my time following the main character – Lauren and her friends as they tries to discover the truth about the murder mystery happening in Happy Valley.
Lauren has a dark past she didn’t want anyone to know in the first place which made her struggle at first, but once they started to trust her the investigation is pretty interesting to follow.

For a debut novel, this is a pretty good written story and I would’ve liked it more if Lauren’s background story was told something that happened in the past instead of telling what happened piece by piece throughout the story, which sometimes pull me out of the main story – the murder mystery in Happy Valley.

Other than that, I was able to enjoy this YA thriller that comes with a satisfying ending and one culprit that I didn’t see coming at all.
I would keep an eye out for the next book by this author in the future!

Thank you to Turn the Page Tour, Netgalley, author and publisher for giving me an e-ARC of the book and for having me on this book tour. I’m leaving this review voluntarily!

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: alcohol, drug use, fire injury, suicide, smoking, sexual content, eating disorder, murder

This dark and suspenseful mystery takes place in the quaint yet eerie setting of Happy Valley, where Lauren and her mother have relocated to help escape from her troubled past. As they settle into their new life, Lauren forms begins a relationship with Robbie Crestmont, unaware of his dark family's history. As each secret is revealed, Lauren finds herself struggling to know who is telling the truth and who is lying.

Throughout the book, there are reoccurring themes of trauma, resilience, and the complexities of human nature. While the narrative tackles heavy subject matter, it does so with a sense of empathy and healing. That being said, it's essential to note that the novel confronts challenging themes, and readers should approach it with caution. I would encourage any reader to view the content warnings from the author before reading. In the end, this book is a compelling YA psychological thriller that keeps readers on the edge of their seats.

Thank you to Trish Lundy, NetGalley, and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group Publishing for an advanced eBook in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
High school senior Lauren moves to a new town to escape some drama that happened at her previous school. When she gets involved with Robbie, she quickly finds out that his previous girlfriend died…and so did the previous girlfriend of Robbie’s brother, Trevor. Needless to say their family has its’ own drama that Lauren quickly finds herself involved in. This book is a debut for the author and is in the ‘YA’ genre. I can definitely see my daughters enjoying this book and the twists and turns that come along with the storyline.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC. #booksbyashleynicole

Thank you so much to Macmillan for the advance copy of this book!

What a stellar debut for Trish Lundy!

This book had everything you could want in a YA Thriller. There was a smidge of romance, complicated friendship and of course death.
There were a lot of characters in this which did find the beginning hard to keep track of but as you go on in the book it came easier to track.

Lauren herself has her own secrets which we got tidbits about throughout the book until the reveal happens. I felt bad for her at times as she made this big change from moving across the country, her mom is in this new relationship and is just trying to survive being a teenager. As a new student in the school, somehow Lauren gets wrapped up in trying to figure out the mystery of who killed a student at her school. And it all came back to a boy she met and started hooking up with because the rumor has it that, "Every girl the Crestmonts date winds up dead."

Majority of the characters were unreliable so that made the journey of the story very fun. I thought the pacing of the book was pretty good and kept moving. I don't want to give away all that happens in this book but I will say I was not completely surprised by the revelations at the end and I wish I could say why it didn't surprise me but what fun would that be!

I do recommend giving this one a read! It was an addicting story & I'm looking forward to reading the author's future work.

PS - As a Pennsylvanian who lives around 3 hours away from Penn State, I absolutely love that this took place in Happy Valley!

The One That Got Away With Murder by Trish Lundy is quite the story. In trying to escape her destruction past, Lauren walks right into a similarly destructive present!
What I loved about this thriller is that I really didn’t know who it was until we all knew who it was!
This book comes out in April, but I got the chance to read it early thanks to @netgalley
#ilovetoread #yaliterature #advancedreaderscopy

I enjoyed this YA Murder Mystery!!

I was engaged from the start of the book; I like that they made us wait until the end to know why Lauren started the fire that changed her life and she had to move from California to Pennsylvania.

I thought I had figured out who killed Jess, Vic, and Trevor but they got me there.

There were so many twists and turns that kept me guessing and pointing fingers at everyone.

I honestly didn’t expect that ending I didn’t see that coming. I suspected the murderer right as it was revealed.

I was happy that Lauren got her second chance after all!

Overall, it was an excellent book and a fast-paced read.

"My second chance gave me everything I thought I never deserved. Including the person right in front of me"

"It was you all along."

Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for this ARC!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Trish Lundy for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The One That Got Away with Murder coming out April 16, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I thought this was a really good debut novel. I loved that Lauren was a complex character with a darker past. It made things more interesting. She had a complicated relationship with her mom. The plot was intriguing and I thought most of the characters were really good. I enjoyed the writing. I think the only thing was the ending was a little predictable. I’ve read a lot of murder mysteries. I thought the climax was resolved a little too quickly. There wasn’t much of a struggle and things were wrapped up. I would’ve liked to see a little more struggle and resolve.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys YA murder mysteries!

Robbie and Trevor Crestmont have a dark history of lethal encounters with their ex-girlfriends. Wealthy and attractive, the Crestmont brothers seem untouchable, shielded from consequences even as suspicions mount in Happy Valley. First, soccer sensation Victoria Moreno, Robbie's ex, tragically drowned at their lakeside retreat. Then, a year later, Trevor's girlfriend perished from a dubious overdose.

While the book began with promise, my interest waned as it progressed. Several characters proved unlikeable, and even their attempts at redemption fell flat for me. Some actions felt exaggerated or unrealistic for teenagers. As the plot twist and killer were unveiled, I found myself skimming to reach the conclusion.

Many thanks to NetGalley, MacMillan Children's Publishing Group, and Trish Laundry for providing this e-ARC.

I don’t typically lean YA, even though I love a good mystery/thriller I stick to NA w/ open door…. That said I REALLY enjoyed this book, the plot was amazing and I did NOT see the twist coming and I normally can call one from the first half of the book!

This is a GREAT YA book and I’d recommend for a wide range of readers.

There’s a lot of character growth for the two leads. There were so many points where I just couldn’t put it down. I enjoyed the break from romance driven plots and 10/10 recommended!!

I didn’t know what to expect from this book since it’s the author’s debut novel.

As a YA book, it was a bit too spicy for me. It literally begins with the main character hooking up with a boy she wants no relationship with. Yes, I know and understand how teenagers work, but it doesn’t need to be in their face all the time. It was gratuitous and unnecessary. Just my opinion.

Anyway, it turns out that our main character has moved to a new school, but we don’t really know why for a very long time (it is revealed in bits and pieces).

She joins the soccer team and learns about the guy she’s been hooking up with through her teammates.

That leads to the mystery part of the story. It was very reminiscent of One of Us is Lying or A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. Same type of amateur teen sleuth story.

The writing was good and it was entertaining. I just felt like I had read it before. The end was no surprise for me, but I can see why some would think it was a twist. I still don’t really understand WHY, though. Overall, not a bad debut!

A very fast paced YA case of who dunnit. I really enjoyed it because it was a quick read. It is a standalone and ties all loose ends.

There are some serious issues brought up but all of it I definitely feel possible in a high school realm.

Thank you to Netgalley and Trish Lundy for the ARC. I will say at some points I felt lost because there was a need for a chapter break or a section break with lines or something. It would jump from being in a house to just being at school all of a sudden.

I loved this book so much! I loved the characters and the plot and I didn’t see the ending coming which is fantastic! I can’t wait to read more by this author

The One That Got Away with Murder by Trish Lundy is a debut young adult thriller novel. With this being a young adult thriller it’s certainly on the darker side and probably geared towards to more mature readers the young adult genre with things like drinking, smoking, drug use, sex, eating disorders, suicide and of course murder to name a few.

Lauren O’Brian is the new girl in town after her mother choses to move them across country and away from Lauren’s troublesome past in California. Lauren’s mother has a new boyfriend and Lauren is happy for her but only requests that they wait until Lauren is out of the house to officially move in together.

After moving to her new town Lauren met Robbie Cresmont and has begun a secret affair with him. Robbie volunteers at the same hospital Lauren’s mom works at so she has been meeting up with him there. When words gets out at school though Lauren learns the Cresmont boys have a very dark and dangerous reputation some even saying they have murdered their exes.

The One That Got Away with Murder by Trish Lundy was a solid debut thriller novel but for me it wasn’t without some flaws too. I think the pacing was the biggest thing I noticed with this one with it sometimes crawling along but then when you get to the end it seemed to wrap up really really quickly. The story is one that is typically found in this genre so it wasn’t an overly surprising ending to me being an avid reader but that said I would still rate this one at three and a half stars and give the author another try if she writes more in the future.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

This book packs a punch, especially with the twists and turns that I didn't see coming.

When Lauren moves to a new town, she quickly gets involved with the wrong people, 2 brothers known for their homicidal tendencies. As she works through what is wrong in this town, be ready for some surprises!

Out April 16, 2024!

Thank you, Netgalley and Publisher, for this Arc!