All hail, the thriller queen has entered the building.

Bea Fitzgerald, you are my spirit animal.

I have been reading thrillers on binge for the past month and I have to say I was about to take a break and switch it up until this book ended up in my greedy little paws.

Then Things Went Dark

This book is PERFECT for spooky season and has an edgy murder mystery surrounding a reality show. You might think you know who did it, but I promise you, you do not.

Check out this teaser :

Then Things Went Dark follows a cast of hot-headed contestants competing to prove themselves to an audience of millions...but with eyes following you everywhere, how can you hide your motive to kill?

The first episode is waiting...are you ready to watch?

No murder has ever had more witnesses…

Six people land on a desert island ready to make their reality show debut. The contestants are suitably glamorous and dramatic – and they're also hungry to prove themselves. The stakes are high and with millions of viewers watching, losing is not an option. But three weeks and eighteen episodes later, five of the six contestants sit in a Portuguese police station, and none of them are winners.

Because twelve million people were watching when Rhys Sutton died on camera, and someone must pay for the crime.

The best friend, the rival, the girlfriend, the lover, and the sworn enemy are left standing. And of course, no-one is talking. But how do you keep secrets when the world has been watching? Especially when, just a day before his murder, Rhys was the most hated man on television.

I am who I am I love reality tv.
There’s really something I love about a reality show turned thriller. This definitely nailed the concept!
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Thank you #sourcebooks and #NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review

In "Then Things Went Darkt," six contestants embark on a month-long challenge to become the most “Iconic” on a remote Portuguese island, but the game takes a dark turn when one is found dead—an incident millions witnessed via live stream. With detectives probing the scene, everyone becomes a suspect in this blend of reality TV and mystery.

The book, structured as episodic chapters interspersed with social media commentary and present-day interrogations, struggles to connect readers with its bland, caricature-like contestants. The shallow point system and superficial challenges undermine the stakes, leaving readers confused about the contest's purpose. While intended to evoke drama, the romantic subplot feels forced and unrealistic, veering into melodrama reminiscent of teenage angst.

Despite the intriguing premise, the execution falls flat, making it difficult to invest in any character or the unfolding tension. For those seeking light reading filled with superficial drama, this might suffice, but for others hoping for depth and nuance, it may lead to more frustration than satisfaction. .

I really enjoyed the reality tv storyline and plot to this novel, as I am a fan of reality tv shows myself. This novel is full of twists and turns, secrets, and thrills. I recommend this one.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, I just couldn't get into this book. I felt so bored and the characters were annoying. I feel like the writing wasn't the best either. I ended up not finishing this one since I couldn't get into it.

I hope others love this one.

Then Things Went Dark is a reality tv show locked mystery thriller set on a remote island off the coast of Portugal. When one of the contestants dies during an episode, the remaining cast members all become suspects who have something to hide because at the time of his death no one liked him and all wanted him dead.

I liked the uniqueness of how the story was presented in terms of episodes but I think there were too many side plots going on that it didn’t feel cohesive. The romance story line was rushed and a little over the top dramatic but I get that it’s reality tv so I let that slide.

I’m not a fan of reality tv shows so I gave this book a chance cause I really like locked room mysteries but I think this would definitely be an enjoyable read for someone who is

Thank you publishers and netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback

A solid tale! I loved the reality tv take and I LOVE a survival/abandoned vibe in my thrillers!! This was good and kept me entertained, but overall it did feel like it was missing something.

The concept of the book felt like it would have been better to watch on reality TV than to read. I just felt really bored as there wasn't a lot of substance in the words. It definitely went on too long and could have been cut shorter, but at the same time, I didn't feel a real connection to any of the characters in all that time.

Thank you to Netgalley, Bea Fitzgerald and Sourcebooks Landmark for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC to read and review!

Do you have a secret love of trashy reality TV? Especially reality gameshows, and true-crime whodunnit murder mysteries? Maybe it's not so secret and you wear it out there proudly. This is right along those lines. There's a lot happening and it's paced well to keep you turning pages till the end. I love the vibe and the characters in this book - or rather I loved to DISLIKE the characters. They're all flawed, they're all easy to dislike, even the victim.

I really enjoyed this book (specifically listening to it). It flashes back and forth between current day investigation and the filming of the show. At the start it is hard to track who all of the characters are but once you get a sense of that, it’s easy to follow. Nothing totally shocking but enjoyable.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. The premise of this book sounded great but it fell very flat. The characters were just awful people and the story was confusing. I struggled to even finish

Sadly, the low Goodreads rating was right on this one. I had high hopes but it was tedious with really unlikeable characters and (at least in the advance copy) confusing formatting that made it hard to tell if I was reading the part that took before the murder or after. Were the italics confessionals or something else??? I slogged through to find out who did it but do not think it was worth the slog.

Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for access to this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

Interesting premise but I never felt immersed in my reading experience. Once again, I find myself on an outlier island- treading water, waiting to be rescued by another book.

The story- Six contestants on a desert island in the latest reality show and then one of them ends up dead. Which of their fellow castmates had the most desire to see them dead? As the police scramble to find the killer before the show finale is televised and suspects are questioned, each chapter takes readers through one of the episodes.

Listen, I don't consider myself a violent person. But when the deceased gets under my skin from the beginning, I cannot help but place my empathy with all those who know them.

In summary, it wasn't my cup of tea but don't allow my review to deter you.

Publication Date 27/08/24
Goodreads review 15/09/24

Six celebrities land on an island off of Portugal with camera capturing the entire thing. The book goes into how everyone comes with hopes but ends up miserable. The book goes back and forth with the island days and intertwined after it is all over. I enjoyed the whodunit aspect of the book and really did find myself wanting tomknow what happened and why.

This one just wasn't for me. I struggled to finish it and almost dnf. The premise was enticing but the execution was lacking.

OMG the ending ruined this story for me!

Six semi-celebrities compete on a remote island in a new reality series to win a half million dollars and a renewed celebrity status. Each contestant is harboring dark secrets, and past relationships. Tension rise, and a player dies after a fall from the cliff. Producers and detectives are forced to review footage from the show to understand how the bad-boy of the island ended up dead.

Every character in this book is despicable. The alternating narrative told from the police interviews to contestant day-off interactions that were "live' for viewers brings this story to its conclusion. The storytelling was a bit long, and the ending was anti-climatic.

Thank you Sourcebooks

I love a good reality tv show slash trapped on a desert island with a murderer thriller and this one was loads of fun. Contestants compete on live tv to win a reality show only to find themselves stuck with a killer and at the end of the show there is no winner among the survivors, only a handful of suspects. Perfect for fans of Ruth Ware and good on audio. This was entertaining, suspenseful and twisty - a perfect summer beach read by a new to me author. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital and audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Six people (who are iconic in their own ways) are gathered together on a desert island where they will be competing on a reality tv show all with the hopes of being seen. Three weeks later, five of the six contestants are being investigated for a possible murder.

THEN THINGS WENT DARK by Bea Fitzgerald was a drama-filled story for anyone who loves reality tv!

I really enjoyed the drama and tension within the first half of the book and also had a strong love to hate feeling for most of the characters (aside from the ones that really seemed to have no redeeming qualities lol).

Bea sets up the story in a way where the suspense is felt almost immediately and you get to slowly see where things start to unravel. I also really enjoyed the inclusion of fans reacting to the “episodes” at the end of each chapter - it really added to the world.

I do think this one was on the longer side and, beyond the halfway point, the pace really started to drag for me.

This was a fine end of summer read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Bland writing and boring characters. The scenario sounded like a good one. Unfortunately the execution didn't come together effectively. I've started and stopped this book 3 times. The last read, I made myself finish the book, with hope that it would get better. It didn't. The experience turned me off so much, I don't think I'll be interested in reading anything else by this author.

#THENTHINGSWENTDARK. #NETGALLEY. #BEAFITZGERALD

This book was dark and suspenseful. You had all your usual suspects you expect to see in a reality show.