3.75ish stars

This one was pretty good. It followed some fairly predictable patterns of the genre while still managing to put a bit of a fresh twist on the overall story. I believe it was my first book from this writer, but I’ll be looking out for others in the future.

Nine years ago, Charlie was a witness in a horrifying event dubbed “Scarlet Christmas” at her grad school. She fled the scene, tried to put the past behind her and now has a successful life. One of her classmates decides to make a film about that night and Charlie is afraid of what will be revealed and will make certain nothing can destroy the new life she has built. Some good parts, but overall fell a little flat for me. Title and cover definitely draw you in.

I loved this! Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is a fantastic audiobook and wonderful psychological thriller about a woman trying to uncover her memories from a brutal mass murder at her journalism school 10 years before. The plot really gets going in the second half as her memories are coming closer to the surface and I really enjoyed how captivatingly the story flowed! A really great read!

This book was well written and an excellent read. I was intrigued from the start. I would recommend this title to anyone that likes a good twist.

This book just wasn’t for me. I was really excited to dive in after reading the synopsis. I found it very slow to start and it didn’t keep me engaged. There was an exciting twist toward the middle that caught me totally off guard. But then the last quarter of the book puttered along to an ending that just fell flat. I founds parts of this book a bit confusing, perhaps because my mind kept drifting off to a different place. This book isn’t bad. But I wouldn’t recommend it.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the arc.

Another solid debut!

Charlie Colbert has reinvented herself after living though the tragic events of nine years ago when three of her friends died in what was dubbed “Scarlett Christmas”. She has no recollection of what happened and through the help of her psychiatrist she tries to piece together what transpired. Even more now that there is a movie coming out about that fateful night … something Charlie is attempting to stop.

This started off really strong, I loved the unreliable narrator and the duel POV. While it fell a little flat at the 3/4 mark, Hollander came home strong with a fantastic ending. Like with most thrillers, there is a little suspension of belief required, but overall it’s a compelling, entertaining story. I can’t wait to see what this author brings out next.

Huge thanks to @littlebrown @macmillan.audio and @netgalley for both ALC and e-Arc 💌

This mystery hooked me rather quickly and I didn’t expect the many twists and turns the author put in the second half of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel with its dual timeline that switched from Charlie’s college days to the present. Charlie’s character was very interesting, intriguing and relatable. The narrator really did fantastic work with this book - creating distinct, but not distracting voices for the different characters. She really added so much to the story.

Thank you NetGalley & Macmillan for allowing me to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Reflections of Scarlet attempts to unravel a complex web of intrigue and trauma surrounding protagonist Charlie Colbert's flight from a harrowing event at her prestigious graduate school. However, despite its ambitious premise, the book falls flat, leaving readers with a sense of dissatisfaction and disinterest.

The writing in Reflections of Scarlet may be technically proficient, but it fails to captivate or engage the reader. The narrative meanders aimlessly, lacking the tension and suspense necessary to hold interest. Rather than drawing readers in with its mystery, the story feels tedious and uninspired, with characters who fail to evoke empathy or intrigue.

One of the book's greatest missteps lies in its handling of sensitive subject matter, particularly its portrayal of school shootings. In an era marked by pervasive gun violence, the decision to center the plot around such a theme feels tone-deaf and exploitative. Instead of fostering meaningful discussion or introspection, the narrative comes across as gratuitous and insensitive, trivializing the very real trauma experienced by survivors of such tragedies.

Furthermore, the attempted incorporation of mixed media elements, including flashbacks and present-day reflections, only serves to muddy the narrative waters further. Rather than enhancing the storytelling, these disjointed elements disrupt the flow of the plot, leaving readers feeling disconnected and disoriented.

In the end, "Reflections of Scarlet" fails to deliver on its promise, offering up a lackluster and forgettable reading experience. Despite the author's evident talent, the execution falls short, resulting in a narrative that struggles to leave a lasting impression.

Thank you NetGalley and Jenny Hollander for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dark academia, dual timelines, repressed memories and a mystery - this combo made for one heck of an awesome debut novel!

Nine years after a horrific event referred to as "The Scarlet Christmas", a movie is being made about the tragedy and Charlie, after repressing her memories of the event is being forced to try to remember in order to protect herself. She's got a high-level, visible job and is engaged to Tripp, a member of a very wealthy and well known family. As Charlie's memories start coming back and as she makes some shocking discoveries and connections - things begin getting complicated.

This audiobook kept me rapt wanting to know how everything played out. The ending isn't the one I thought it was going to be and the story kept me guessing the whole time. The narration was great and kept me engaged.

Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is part mystery, part psychological thriller and an all out great book.

I’m 90% sure I didn’t read a synopsis for Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead and instead went solely off the title. Which for the most part served me well.

It has a few of the things we all love: dual timelines, college setting, an MC you can’t trust that wasn’t done in your typical fashion. There were a lot of twists to this I never saw coming. While they were surprising they didn’t feel as if they came out of left field.

One aspect that at first I didn’t get while reading it was how Charlie went from 0 to 60 pretty quickly. But after finishing and thinking about the book, I get it. As much as someone whose never been in that situation can.

As a former journalism student, I really loved the college aspect we got. Even if most was centered around the friend group. Seeing how their lives ended up and the analysis of how Scarlett Christmas was portrayed in the media was as fascinating as it was disappointing when you realize it still happens to this day.

This was a great read on audio and I’d definitely check out more books by this author!

GLUED. I was glued to this audiobook! I've seen reviews that the pacing is too fast (and alternatively, that it was too slow? Make it make sense), but for me that was a welcome reprieve from the slow burn style that might be more traditionally utilized with this kind of storyline. I liked that it kept me guessing, the twists, and the way it wrapped up as well. The audiobook narration is perfect for the story. Solid recommend, all the way around!

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to review this title.

(Rounded up to 5 from 4.5)

Survivor of a college library massacre, now hiding out with a rich fiancee and journalism role, the main character isn't treading a ton of new ground. The pacing is a bit slow for a thriller and the information is somewhat contradictory -- one minute she's the only one who knows anything, and the next there are multiple people participating in a documentary. Still entertaining for a breezy read.

The narrator was okay. It was hard to distinguish between each character because the voice didn’t change all to much. I think this book would have been better to read physically than to listen. There was to much dialogue or texting to really follow through with what was going on. The story line itself had potential too but it just fell flat for me.

Thanks NetGalley!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the ALC of "Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead" by Jenny Hollander. This was my first listen/read by this author. I liked the narration but got a little lost in the characters. There were a few twists that I found confusing, even after a rewind to re-listen. It was really hard for me to believe the lack of contact between two close friends. I appreciated the premise, I just wasn't hooked with the execution.

Nine years ago Charlie Colbert was the victim of a terrible tragedy. She has blocked out most of the memory of that night but when an old friend starts drudging up the past she becomes desperate to remember. As she slowly starts to recover her memories, Charlie is left wondering if she really was a victim…

Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead is a gripping slow burn psychological thriller. The beginning if the book grabbed my attention. The premise was interesting and so were the characters.

It was a bit hard to keep the past and present timeline straight and parts of the story got a little confusing. For example, one of the twists happened way too fast with hardly any build up and I had to rewind the audio a few times to figure out what was going on.

While there were a few problems, the story is engaging and I didn’t want to turn it off!

I really loved this book. It was a little different than just regular amnesia or blackout stories. I loved the title and that it was actually used as a line in the book.
I enjoyed the narrator; they have given each character their own voice. I do think she could have slowed her pace a bit.

I didn't dislike this book, but it is another book that falls under being categorized in the wrong genre. This isn't a thriller or suspenseful. There is a little mystery and a few twists, but nothing exciting. With this plot, the book could have been really suspenseful and could have been so much more than it was. This isn't a fair review for the narrator because as I sit here, I can't really remember much about the narration. I'm going to take that as I liked it because I can't think back of anything that didn't work with me while telling the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC! This was certainly interesting and different from what I had expected. It moved very slowly in the beginning and I’m not sure if thriller was the right genre for the book, more like obscure lit fic.

This wasn’t my cup of tea, but it was unique and different which I appreciated!

Unfortunately, I didn't get to finish this book as it was archived prior to my completing it. However, I did enjoy the third of it I did get read.

It has an interesting premise, and a very unreliable narrator. As the sole survivor and only witness to a horrific mass murder, which happen nearly a decade before, our narrator, Charlie, has never spoken about the events of that night and she doesn't plan on talking about it now. She just wants to continue to live her life and go back to then. However, old friends and foes force her to confront her past.

I love the what really happened aspect of this book. The whole book we are wondering what really happened on that campus. But I never expected how things really happened.