Happy Pub Week to Where You End by Abbott Kahler! 🐰

Did I have any idea what was happening? Absolutely not. Was I anxiously pacing around my house while reading? Yes. Did I have an overwhelming sense of unease from page 1? Also, yes. Did I love every minute of it? 100% yes!

This was certifiably creepy and mysteriously thrilling. I went in completely blind and I’m so glad I did because…wow…what a rollercoaster! If you are looking for a psychological thriller full of suspense that will have you checking over your shoulder - this is the one!!

DNF at 30%

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but the set up is just all over the place. We go back and forth in different time periods, different point of views, nothing really makes sense. Which I suppose is the point of the book, but it isn't interesting enough to get me hooked. I think we could have sped through more of the background and gotten into the main point of the story by now. From other reviews it sounds like it picks up after 50%.

The year is 1983 and Kat Bird wakes up from a coma after a terrible accident. The only face she remembers is that of her twin sister Jude. They are mirror twins, even more similar than identical twins- according to Jude. And Jude is all Kat has to rely on to fill in all of her missing memories.

Kat begins noticing strange people following her, and starts to doubt some of the larger than life stories Jude tells her about their lives before the car crash. This story is creepy, confusing, and very unsettling.

I personally would have liked a little more clarity in the final quarter, but I can also rationalize it as an intentional decision by the author. I also wanted one final twist, but the big twist at around 80% was fairly shocking.

I think this is a good choice if you like character driven mysteries and if you like strange novels like Bunny by Mona Awad.

If you’re going to give me a cult book, GIVE ME A CULT BOOK. I was so disappointed when this didn’t delve into the cult much. That disappointment may have hindered my overall experience. I feel like everything was just glossed over and nothing really went into depth. I wasn’t connected with the characters.

The narration was fantastic, however!

I was really invested in this story initially but it lost some steam for me midway through. I liked the unreliable characters but did find it a bit confusing on audio as perspectives changed. The cultiness was done really well and it nailed the uncomfortable creepy vibes.
Thank yo so much to Macmillan Audio for the ALC of this one.

I have to admit I was attracted to this book initially by the cover art. It is eerie and interesting and got my attention straight away.

The story, however, did not hold my attention all the way through. For me, this story started off a bit slow. Around the half way point it did start to pick up its pace and get more interesting, but it was around this same time that it started to become a bit confusing. It alternates between past and present timelines, and also changes between the two twins/narrators. After a while I found myself giving up on trying to fully follow what was going on, and whether we were in the past or present.

I also didn’t feel a strong connection to the two main characters. I found them to be hard to understand, motivation wise, and I just didn’t feel a sense of relatability with them. Their “twin language” felt a little silly to me personally. Maybe that’s just me. I can’t quite put my finger on why.

I will say, however, that this book is rather unique. I have read a few books involving twins, but none with mirror twins, and none with any sort of plot even remotely similar to this one.

I didn’t find this book particularly twisty in that everything that happened I essentially assumed would happen, so nothing really surprised me. I almost want to call this something other than a thriller as it didn’t quite feel like a thriller for me until the end. I guess mystery, maybe, is fair, but really it just felt more in the category of fiction.

I do love a good unreliable narrator, and throughout the story there was a distinct sense that neither twin could be fully trusted. I really enjoyed this aspect of the book. Overall, I did find the concept interesting.

Overall I am going with a rating of 2.5 stars, rounded up to 3.

Thank you to Net Galley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC.

This book took a while longer to get through for me.. it was very slow placed.
I would have enjoyed this alot more if it would have just been straight through instead of jumping timelines.

Where you end is a cultish mindf*ck story about twins sisters that were groomed by a cult group.
All of the kids in the group do some crazy stuff.. Check trigger warnings, there is a little bit of child exploitation.
It doesn't go into much detail but they "got to take pictures" as a "reward"

*I still want to know what happened to their dad, idk if i missed that or if it even says.

Thank you to NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for the advanced audio book.

Where You End
By: Abbott Kahler
Narrated by: Megan Tusing, Samantha Desz
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Release date: 01-16-24

The narrators of this book has great. I love how they embodied each character. As for the story, it started off good and then became a bit confusing. Overall, it was a good story.

Two sisters. A cult. An accident. A coma, Lies.

That is Where You End in a nutshell. It had a good beginning and a good ending. I kept finding my mind wandering for most of the middle. It was one of those books that would start to show some promise and then start dragging again for a while. I thought it sounded perfect for me but I think it could do with some editing in hte middle.

I went into this book blind and I am glad that I did. Kat had an accident and when she finally wakes up from her accident she sees her mirror image Jude (Her twin). Kat does not remember anything and relies on Jude to tell her about her past and who she was. However, Kat begins to believe that Jude is not quite as truthful as she originally thought. Kat begins spiraling to discover her past and goes into a cult society to discover what happened to her and try to regain her memories. Jude must save Kat from the past and save herself from all the threats of the past.
This story was increasingly creepy and good however, this book did take a bit of time to become invested in and then also it was kind of confusing with the jumping timeline but towards the end, it all came into view and was worth the read! The past was definitely really twisted! There probably should have been some kind of trigger warnings because it will not be for everyone. This is a twisted dark psychological thriller that does have a cult in and it's insane how people just join in on the cult and don't think a second thing about it. They had a game with the kids involved in the cult where they were all dressed up as different animals and they were putting these kids against each other and getting each other to cut off part of their costumes and rewarded the player with the most pieces. Talk about a cutthroat society!
I was given the audiobook by Macmillan Audio and Netgalley to listen to and review! The narrator did an amazing job and kept me interested with the listen! Worth the listen!

Movements to expand human potential were a trend in the USA in the 1970s. Groups like EST (now rebranded as The Landmark Forum) and other new religious movements promoted self improvement via indoctrination into a group with strict rules and beliefs.

Where You End is a work of fiction that draws inspiration from these groups and describes a new religious movement called The Plan. The book’s protagonists create The Plan to improve their own lives, and they exploit their own children while convincing themselves that they are raising their kids to be better, stronger, and smarter adults.

Told in alternating timelines, the novel describes what the kids raised in this cult suffered through and what they turned out like as adults. I was fascinated by every chapter that was about the main theme of the inner workings of The Plan and what happened to it over the decades.

The book tries to do too much in my opinion, and throws in main characters who are not just twins but a rare type called mirror twins. Further complicating things, Kat has a rare type of amnesia and relies on her mirror twin Jude to tell her what her life was like. The first 40 percent of the story moved slowly as Kat navigated daily life.

In the end, the story left a bunch of loose ends. I have several unanswered questions and would have liked the author to have wrapped up all the various plot lines she started.

I’m rating Where You End 3.5 stars and I always round up. I listened to the audiobook and found the narration to be very good.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me a free digital audio arc for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This might be the most unique thriller I’ve ever read. I enjoyed majority of the box and the overall story. My only criticism is that I wish that it was shorter and a little less confusing. The last 25% of this book was great!
The narrators, Megan Tusing and Samantha Desz, were fantastic!! Their voice’s definitely helped keep my interest the entire book.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the audio arc!

This book was a slow burn for me. It took me a while to get into it and at times I was confused about what was going on. So this is about twin sisters and one gets into a car accident and loses her memory. The sister then tells her memories about herself but the memories are not real, they are made up. The plot was good and I like how it came together in the end. I like that you find out why her sister made up those memories. There was a moment when I was going to abandon it and not finish, but I’m glad I did.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co.

I rate "Where You End" by Abbott Kahler 3 out of 5 stars. Despite my desire to love it, the book fell short of fully capturing my interest.

Kahler's narrative had potential, but I found myself struggling to connect with the story. While the unexpected twist added intrigue, it wasn't enough to compensate for the overall challenge in sustaining my engagement. The book, unfortunately, left me wanting more depth and connection to the characters or plot.

In essence, "Where You End" offers moments of intrigue, but it lacked the sustained allure that would have elevated it to a higher rating.

Looking forward to other books from this author.

I love when a thriller removed the option of just googling the answer. Add in amnesia, lies, and two timelines telling contradicting stories? I am so there.

When Kat Bird wakes up in the hospital, she has no memories at all except the memory of her twin sister, Jude’s, face. Kat must rely entirely on Jude to relearn her past, but the more she learns the more things don’t add up and the less Kat is sure of who she can trust.

This was twisty and dark and had so many elements that I absolutely loved. I did find myself wishing that it was just a little bit creepie; I wanted to feel chills as I moved through the story.

There was a huge twist just before the end of the book that had my jaw on the floor. With only a little bit of the book left to go, at that point I was expecting the conclusion to be truly spectacular. Unfortunately the ending did not blow me away in the way that I was hoping after that last big twist and fell a little flat.

Overall, this was still a really good book that I thoroughly enjoyed. I rated this 3.5 stars, but rounded up to 4 stars for the 5 star rating system.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily.

Rounded up from 3.9⭐️ Once the story got going I found this such an addictive read. Kat wakes up from a coma with no memory. Luckily she has a twin sister to fill her in. The book alternates between Kat’s experiences after the coma and twin sister Jude’s experiences before the coma

Suffice to say once this got going, I couldn’t stop! It’s a slower pace than I usually like but actually it worked and the buildup was intense… I knew what was going on, but I wanted more tea and I couldn’t get there fast enough

I struggled a little with the writing style. Perhaps because it’s suspense, it’s vague and we don’t get a clear picture of what’s truly going on, mirroring the confusion the characters feel. However, I got a bit tired of it and would have loved to fully understand the full depths of this cult

Like many people, cults fascinate me, so the flashbacks gripped me, but I would have liked a deeper understanding of the why’s and how’s

Although this story centers around the twins, I felt distanced from them and I didn’t love that. The connections didn’t feel deep and I was left feeling unsatisfied with the relationships which largely felt unresolved

There’s a YA feel to this book, not just because of the twins ages (22) but because of the inexplicit writing style. Again, things were hinted at and there’s a lack of clarity and a sense of unreality

Overall, a great fiction debut and I’m excited to read more from Kahler in the future

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for access to this arc in exchange for my honest review

Wow, what a good audiobook!! I really enjoyed this audiobook. It was very engaging and kept my attention and the twists kept me on edge. Just when I thought that I knew what was going on, I really didn't. Then came the ending. What a ride.

Thanks NetGalley for this opportunity to read and review!

Adding another to my “religious trauma metaphor” list with this one—when rebuilding your life out of a cult, it’s impossible to just “start fresh” or with a blank slate, as much as some want you to believe. Your previous life affects and informs every part of you—even if you don’t remember it.

Loved this book and also loved that the twists I was positive I “saw” coming didn’t come to fruition.

Where You End sounded so intriguing and spooky, one might say... I was captivated by the story in the first portion, but about mid-way, I started losing interest due to the repetition, I didn't like either FMC, and I was left more confused than not. Will I read this again? Likely not. Should you? Sure, why not? This is only my opinion and who is to say you won't like it.

This was such a weird, creepy storyline. I was kind of confused some of the times when they animals and what was real and what was a lie.