This twisted thriller had me guessing from beginning to end, and the gripping story kept me reading long past my bedtime. Columbia Jones is a bestselling author, on tour with her latest book. She is accustomed to adding twists to her plots but no one expected her to end up dead in her bed at the end of the tour. What an unexpected twist! With little to go on in order to investigate her death, Detective Sutcliffe is a dogged and determined investigator who follows the few clues he has to uncover secrets from her past that probably led to her demise. Her daughter Darian is mystified and to who would want to kill her mother and even more stymied by the mysteries of a new will and people named in it that she doesn’t even know. The plot is so twisted that it’s like riding a roller coaster at breakneck speed and then coming to a death-defying curve that has you biting your nails in anticipation and dread of what will be exposed next. This is a propulsive thriller with the author’s signature style of crisp writing and painstaking details that added to the believability of the story. I was totally immersed in the family drama and the mystery as the book switched points of view between various characters and locations. The characters were realistically flawed with complicated personalities adding to their realism. This is a clever page-turner with some intense intrigue and plenty of sub-plots masterfully woven together into one gritty and sharply written novel.

Wow! A very bad thing indeed! This was very twisty and dark! Some of these characters are not what they seem. Others don’t even know who they are! This was a good, thrilling story with a not-so-neatly wrapped up ending. Thoroughly enjoyed!

Thrillers aren’t usually for me - the ending can 100% make or break them, and rarely do I come away satisfied - but I truly liked this one. Fast-paced and twisty, with themes of loyalty, legacy, and family (and many more which I would love to include, but I will avoid spoilers!). I will just say I was continuously surprised by the turn of events through the final chapter. While I think it may have been a bit more complex then necessary, there were several well-developed characters with fascinating backgrounds whom I to grew to care for. I enjoyed the unique format with multiple POVs mixed with in the draft of a short story. I could totally see this novel becoming a successful movie.

I hate to say I DNF this one, because I usually LOVE JT Ellison books….I just could not get into this one. The beginning was hard for me to even pay attention, so I may try this one again in the future. As I said, I love this author so I definitely will heck out her next book!

A celebrated author Columbia Jones dies on the last day of the book tour. Her death starts a chain of sinister events for Columbia's daughter Darian, Riley a journalist writing her story and Kira, a big fan. A big secret from Columbia's past is gradually revealed.

This was such an exciting story. It's told by several alternating pov's, and also past and present narrative, which I liked. I was eager to know what the secret was, so I kept turning pages late into the night. There were several good twists and the ending was quite unexpected. At 446 pages the book felt a little too long and there was some unnecessary repetition, but all in all I really enjoyed it.

Don't let this big book (495 pages) scare you. It is a fast read with short chapters told in multiple POV's. Famous author Columbia Jones has been murdered and there are multiple suspects. Each has a secret but the biggest secret was kept by Columbia. This book has so many twists and turns and each secret is slowly revealed to keep you guessing. I love when an author gives me an OMG moment and J.T. Ellison has succeeded with a great ending.

Thank you to @thrillerchick @amazonpublishing, Netgalley and @otrpr for the #gifted book and this is my honest opinion.

J.T. Ellison has never done me wrong, and I really enjoyed this new one. It's a well-layered mystery with a lot of characters and suspects, and a twisty story within a story. The pacing of this is really strong, and there are enough consistently new facts and elements to the story that it keeps moving. Devoted readers of the author's books will find some crumbs of previous stories, and as always, I can't wait for what she does next.

So dark but oh so good! Tense, stressful, unpredictable….a drama-filled thriller! I enjoyed reading A Very Bad Thing! J.T. Ellison places her readers on the edge of their seats and firmly nails them there for the duration of the story.

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the opportunity to read this exciting ARC.

This was my first JT Ellison read, and i can't wait to read more. A book about an author (I love this trope so much) who is not quite who she seems to be. (I'll be real here, I kept envisioning JR Ward as Columbia Jones, lol. I have no idea why) I enjoyed how the story was told in a way that some things were easily predicted and others kept you guessing... until the very danged end. Did it feel overly long? A little bit but once it got rolling, I didn't want to stop reading.

Columbia Jones is on the final night of her latest book tour when she collapses during a reading, after seeing a man stand up in the crowd - a man she seems to recognize. The next morning, she is found dead, lying in a pool of blood. Darian, her daughter and publicist, is in shock. The police have no leads to go on. Then, details about Columbia's past begin to emerge, painting her as a murderer and a fake. Soon, everything Darian knew about her mother is thrown into question. If all of these allegations are true, then there are a plethora of people who potentially wanted her mother dead. As the body count continues to rise, Darian has no idea how to tell who to trust in this cat and mouse game.

This book was so good. At first, when I saw the length of the book, I was a little daunted. I am not a fan of really long books, but to be honest, there was so much action and suspense in this book, the time just melted away as I read. There were so many moving parts, so many questions that needed answers to, that I didn't want to put the book down. The story was told in the viewpoint of the various key players, as well as going back in time to tell some of Columbia's past. I loved the way the book ended on a big reveal as well, going out with a bang. If you are a fan of psychological thrillers then this needs to be at the top of your TBR pile. You are going to love it!

A Very Bad Thing by J.T. Ellison is another stealer thriller.
Great book, captured my attention right from the beginning. Interesting characters and lots of twists.
This book was such an interesting premise! I was second guessing myself at every turn.
JT Ellison does it again and reminds us why they’re the best in the game!

Thank You NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the eARC.

This book got me right out of my reading slump. Loved the multi POVs and the character development throughout. I predicted the killer BUT did not predict the epilogue twist. Really fun. This makes 2/2 for my reading success with Ellison's novels. Will continue to read her work moving forward!

This book started strong, and I was immersed in the suspense and sense of foreboding. The main characters were complex and compelling. The story was told from various points of view, and the chapters jumped back and forth in time to reveal clues to the mystery, but the twists and outcomes were often over-the-top and, I thought, overdone. As the story progressed, I found myself skimming but kept reading until the end. This was a story of altered appearance and persona, unknown origins, surprising connections, coverups, lies, and murder with no apparent early motive.

The predominant characters were the beloved author Columbia Jones and her daughter Darian, who was in her late 20s and served as publicist and tour organizer. Riley is an ambitious young reporter who is puzzled as to why she was chosen to follow Columbia on her book tour and write her memoir. Also, Kira is a huge, devoted fan of Columbia and a bakery owner. Male characters played supporting roles, except a detective, who had a more predominant role.

Columbia Jones was present for her last stop on the book tour, signing copies of her latest book and engaging with the audience. The setting was Denver, Colorada, and she was a top best seller, adored by all her enthusiastic fans. 'Ivory Lady' is her most recent book, and it will be made into a movie by Speilberg and bring her greater celebrity and fame. During her presentation, a man stands up in the audience, and upon seeing him, Columbia collapses into a faint. Who was this mysterious man? She was rushed to the hospital, and the diagnosis was jet lag and altitude sickness and returned safely to her hotel.

Riley enters Columbia's room for a scheduled interview appointment the next morning. She is shocked and alarmed to find the famed author lying in a pool of blood. As she is kneeling over her, Darian enters and is convinced that Riley murdered her mother. Detective Sutcliffe believes some clues do not make sense, and his first reaction is that Columbia committed suicide. Riley is questioned about her role in the killing. Riley witnessed a verbal argument between Columbia and Darian the night before Columbia's body was found. Darian was telling her mother that a stalker was jeopardizing her life. It looked as if no one had a motive to kill Columbia, as everyone loved and respected her. Now, Riley believes some unknown person is targeting her, and she is in danger.

As details of Columbia's dark, secret past emerge, we learn of her 'Bad Thing', and it becomes apparent that there are several suspects who wanted her dead. The plot becomes too long with some repetition and could have been more effective if shortened. Plenty of red herrings and twists, and some reveals are head-spinning. We learn how Columbia reconstructed her life story and the startling connections between the characters, Columbia, and each other. More characters are added, and some die. Who is the killer?

Darian, Riley, and Kira are among those invited for the reading of Columbia's will. What do they learn?

This is an ideal story for people who love a twisted, complicated mystery, where it is almost impossible to guess the reason for Columbia's death and the guilty party. Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC and for introducing me to a new-to-me, exciting thriller writer. It will be published on November 1st.

I’m a longtime fan of the authors books and love her brand of suspense. She always writes books that are clever and well developed and this was no exception. It actually may have been a little too well thought out for me, it was way too long and by the last quarter I was just ready for it to end. There’s a lot going on here and several points of view, I can see why the author crafted things this way but it lost me at points and I found it to be convoluted. I did like how unhinged parts of this was and I enjoyed some of the over the top reveals, so there was plenty for me to like but overall it was doing too much and too much of it felt like a slog for me.

I love a good thriller. This book was very well written. Great characters, great plot, lots of twists and turns. Highly recommend! Thank you for the opportunity to read this arc.

Famous author, Columbia Jones, is found dead in her hotel room after getting spooked and fainting at an author event. Riley Carrington, a journalist hired by Columbia to write a story on her is the one to find Columbia. Riley is immediately accused of murder by Darian, Columbia's daughter. But soon Riley is being targeted, too.

This is a good thriller, but there are a few things that bothered me. One: There are way too many points of view. Seven! With that and the back story and book chapters, it was a lot to keep track of. Two: This story is just too long. It's almost 500 pages. It could definitely be 100 pages or so less. Third: The reveal at the end. Meh.

Thank you to Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Very Bad Thing is a thrilling ride that kept captivated from beginning to end! Columbia Jones, a celebrated author known as the "Queen of the Word," seems to have it all—until her dark past comes crashing down during a dream book tour.

Told through multiple perspectives, this entertaining, fast-paced story features well-timed twists and lots of secrets. Yes, it gets a little crazy at times, but that only adds to the excitement!

If you’re looking for an addictive page-turner with rich characters and a plot that keeps you guessing, this is it!

I received a gifted copy of this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Tomas & Mercer for this ARC of “A Very Bad Thing” by J.T. Ellison

This was a fantastic twisty psychological thriller that delivers. I couldn’t put it down!

3.5/5 stars

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of A Very Bad Thing in exchange for my honest review.

After a slow start, the suspense built towards a pretty decent ending, but this book was way too long at 446 pages. Could have easily been 50 pages shorter.

Still enjoyable. Just took me while to get through it.

Really hard to rate this one, because honestly, if it wasn't a Netgalley read I probably would have DNF'd it. For the first 30% I was so bored, as it was soooo slow. I mean someone was murdered and it was still slow.

I really think this book would have been better told from just one person's POV. I think the different POV's were actually detrimental to the story and made it more obvious who wasn't the killer. Riley's POV in particular was annoying. The pace did eventually pick up and get kind of interesting but by then I had already sort of mentally checked out and started to think about what I could read next to redeem this mediocre book. There was so much description that felt unnecessary. I like books heavy on dialogue and that definitely wasn't this book. There is a mention of lasagna being someone's favorite and later lasagna is served again and I thought maybe this is a connection and it wasn't, just repetition and too much info that doesn't add anything to the story.

There's maybe a slight twist at the end but I was just really over it all by then. It took me almost 10 days to finish this when typically it takes me 5 days tops to finish a book so that should tell you about my willingness to pick this up every day.