Twin sisters Cassie and Lenora live as close to off the grid as they can get without *actually* being off the grid. Cassie runs a successful true crime YouTube channel and Lenora is a ghost writer...and agoraphobic. Both women appreciate living on a remote and isolated campground that is far from prying eyes, especially after the trauma and turmoil of their childhood. When a family comes to stay at the campground for a quick woodsy getaway, their teenage daughter goes missing which brings swarms of police and search parties to the campground. Both Cassie and Lenora do what they can to help the search efforts, and when the girl’s body is found, each sister must navigate their own trauma, explore their own suspicions, and stay fiercely loyal to one another.

This debut thriller took me by surprise. It’s gripping, fast-paced, and perfect for a summer read. The interwoven storylines of past and present, as well as the alternating POVs between Cassie and Lenora make it easy to jump to conclusions and make your own assumptions about what really happened to the young girl and what exactly happened in Cassie and Lenora’s past, but the big reveal will probably prove all your assumptions wrong.

I enjoyed this bike and the twists. Two sisters isolate themselves most of the time and the reader finds out why as they read the book. I liked the story and guessing who you could trust.

When She Was Me by Marlee Bush begins at the cover - it's gorgeous and atmospheric, definitely one you will want to pick up. This one hits all the bells in psychological thriller land - twins, isolation, cabins, unreliable memories. Great debut with a satisfying pay off.

Two sisters rent a cabin in the woods to escape from something unknown. The sisters are twins and inseparable. Something happened in their past that they are hiding from.

When a camper goes missing Cassie and Lenora want to investigate and piece together what happened.

This book is good for people that like a slow burn mystery about sisters and true crime podcasts.

I wasn’t a fan because i thought the plot moved to slow but a lot of people will probably enjoy it.

Thank you to netgalley for a copy of this arc.

Twins scares the shit out of me, and When She Was Me is only another reason why that is. This was creepy!

When She Was Me" by Marlee Bush is a riveting thriller that will enthrall readers seeking a suspenseful and intricately woven narrative about twin sisters entangled in a web of dark secrets. Perfect for fans of atmospheric and suspenseful storytelling with dual timelines, this novel delves deep into family dynamics and explores the shadows of human nature. This 3.5-star book review captures the essence of the story, offering a balanced assessment with a tone that reflects its compelling nature.

This debut was psychological thriller was absolutely amazing, and I could not put it down the way. The characters are depicted in this book really had me captivated and enthralled the whole time. I was reading if you were looking for something that’s different and out of the box a little bit than what you normally read for a psychological thriller, I would definitely highly recommend this book

When She Was Me
Marlee Bush
4⭐️

Pub Date: 5/7/2024

This book just gripped me from the beginning. There were so many things going on, so many questions and mysteries that it was compelling to read. I did think that it started out real slow. The author dragged out the mystery and I wish it was faster. It does pick up so be patient. There's two timelines, the present and "then". What's interesting about this is that I assumed and expected one thing from the "then" timeline but nothing was ever divulged clearly. No names, hard to tell who's doing what. It added to my curiosity. I was in a completely different mindset and then it turned a quick 180 at the end. This one is a suspense/Thriller but there's also a somewhat horror feel to it which heightens the experience. The sisters' relationships were toxic, from each other and with other people. The ending tied up well with a bow.

I'd say I enjoyed this book. I thought it was a good debut novel! It made me go back and re-read things as there were plenty of "what the heck" and "what's going on" ans "who did what" in this book, in a really good way.

This is a great debut novel by Marlee Bush and I look forward to her next endeavor. I enjoyed the remote campground setting in Tennessee. This psychological thriller kept me thoroughly engaged with its odd twin sister characters. The twisted ending was a total shock! Themes of trauma, dysfunctional family, and obsession.

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced digital copy of the book.

Thank to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC! Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy this one. I’m an avid thriller reader and found myself getting wary of the writing and didn’t find myself invested in the story. I acknowledge that this may just not be a book for me, and that’s okay!

I absolutely loved this twisted thriller. It's a slow burn with multiple POVs and then/now timelines that tell such a suspenseful story. I really enjoyed how I would think I knew what was about to happen, but then something happens that makes you question everything. I literally gasped at one point in the end, surprised by how things wrapped up in such a twisted way. Such a fantastic read!!

Very twisty and crazy. Though repetitive at times, the end did not disappoint. Kudos to the author for such debut.

This personally just wasn’t it for me. I prefer fast-paced psychological thrillers and while I thought there were intriguing characteristics within the characters I found myself struggling to continue to finish.

After going back and forth after a couple of months I’ve decided to move on!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
In addition to reading this I also listened to the audiobook as well.
This was a great thriller. I loved the sisters and the mystery surrounding them. The atmosphere of living in the cabin in the woods of a campground is as perfect. Then we have the weird new owner and the disappearances.
Great book. Held my interest the entire time.

Ⓑⓞⓞⓚ Ⓡⓔⓥⓘⓔⓦ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝕎𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕊𝕙𝕖 𝕎𝕒𝕤 𝕄𝕖
𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝗲 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗵
Psychological Thriller
400 pages

Sʜᴏᴿᴛ Sʏɴᴏᴘsɪs
Twin sisters live in an isolated campground. Something odd is happening with these women, and the past holds the secrets that explain it all.

Mʸ Tᴴᴼᵁᴳᴴᵀs
When She Was Me is told from multiple points of view, coming from the twins and an unknown voice. That unknown voice teased me throughout the whole story as snippets of the past are unglued. It kept me on edge as I tried to figure out who it was.

The setting has a mysterious vibe as the twins dwell in this remote camp in the forest, rarely leaving.

Cassie and Lenora, the twins, are such interesting characters. Both seem a bit strange, one more than the other. Their living situation is odd at best. The way they go about life is hermit-like. They are hard to describe. The story is definitely character-driven.

The story moves a bit slowly at times, but the ending makes everything worthwhile. This is a well-written and original story coming from a debut author.

💕Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing this ebook for me to read and review.

Ugh. I hate to not finish a book when I’ve somehow managed to read over half of it but I can’t force myself to go on with this one any longer.

Beyond painfully boring! With every chapter, I thought to myself “This has to be the one something happens, right!?” and it just never did. Nothing happens. Ever. You will spend, at least 54% of this book, either inside the heads of or in conversation with two of the blandest characters I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading about.

I really enjoyed the first couple of chapters. There was potential for a very entertaining and creepy thriller but something happened. Maybe it gets better, but it’s not worth it to me to find out.

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Thank you to the publisher the ARC! Though it wasn’t for me, I am grateful for the opportunity!

This was a good debut of a well-paced thriller. I enjoyed the twists and turns the author created here. Having the two sister's narrate helped create intirgue and the desire to keep turning pages. I did find some of the time jumps to be a bit confusing. However, the twists were placed in the perfect spots to keep me wanting to listen. I thought the one narrator did a great job of creating distinction between the two sisters. Her voices and tone changes made it easy for me to keep track of whose POV I was in while listening.

Twin sisters Cassie and Lenora have been inseparable since birth. Living in a remote cabin on an isolated campground, they are able to stay clear of prying eyes and true crime junkies.

When a teenage girl in the neighbouring cabin goes missing, the memories of their own past comes rushing back along with the understanding that happy families aren’t all they appear to be.

This is a great fast paced thriller that definitely had me hooked from the beginning. The dual timeline and the alternating points of view from Cassie and Lenora were done really well and definitely added to the intrigue.

While I thought the setup was done really well, it did seem like the story was trying to do too much and it got a little confusing especially towards the end but it was still a fun read and I’m glad I was given the chance to review this book.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press, NetGalley and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was okay and interesting at times. Overall I didnt fully enjoy the book and felt like it dragged on at times. The characters werent very likeable and it was hard to get into the book with not loving the characters. I was really hoping for more but it didnt hit the mark for me.

This was an interesting thriller and a little confusing, but the overall point is that sisters protect sisters and that no matter how terrible your family is. The book is set in the middle of nowhere in what used to be a popular camping ground, but over the years became forgotten about and a couple of the cabins were rented out permanently. One of them to identical twins Cassie and Leonora. The twins years ago suffered tragedy when their parents snapped and were killed. Cassie was always the strong one and Leonora faded away and became more reliant on Cassie and ended up suffering agoraphobia. Cassie, on the other hand, turned herself into a true crime video junkie and is popular on Youtube. What happens though when a family visiting has a teenage daughter who goes missing and turns up dead? Who killed her and what happens when Cassie thinks that her sister is hiding the truth of what happened there? But if Leonora didn't kill her, then who else did and is there another killer on the mountain and in an area that is secluded and away from the rest of the world? This was a little confusing to read and the ending I felt with Sarah's truth unraveling was a bit rushed. If you love thrillers with an isolated cabin in the woods feel and identical twins, then check out Marlee Bush's 2024 release "When She Was Me".