The audiobook is full of surprises, with a captivating finale that neatly weaves everything together. The use of multiple narrators for the characters enhances the experience by offering unique perspectives and making it easier to engage with each character's point of view.

This one just didn't click for me. I've wanted to read something by Alex Finlay for awhile and was so excited to get an ARC audiobook copy from NetGalley. The book reads incredibly fast which is a perk, but I found it predictable and fairly forgettable. If you are looking for a quick read that you can digest and move on from, this one is great for that!

This was an exciting and suspenseful read where it took me a hot minute to catch on! In typical Finlay fashion, it was fast paced with short and exciting chapters and quite the puzzle to put together! It grabs you from the start when a young high school couple, Alison and Ryan are parked in their car, and one disappears and the other has no recollection of what happened. The case remains unsolved until five years later a clue emerges sparking a renewed interest in the case.
There are a slew of characters, settings and interwoven storylines that unravel with one interesting reveal after another! Although a quick read, it was one I had to pay attention to so not to miss any clues! I can’t say much more in fear of giving anything away, but if you’re an Alex Finlay fan, you won’t be disappointed. And if you haven’t read him yet, this would be a great one to start with!!
The audiobook is narrated by Helen Laser, John Pirhalla and Paul Dateh who did a fantastic job – never once was I confused as to which character’s voice I was listening to. The only time I rewound was because of the plot….did what I think just happen, happen? Yes it did!

When a missing girl's car is found 5 years later, the cold case of her disappearance has been reopened. This brings her boyfriend Ryan back into the investigation. 
This story jumps right into the mystery. There are three storylines going on and it took a while for me to figure out what they all had to do with each other. When the twist hit, I was loving how it all came together. 
I feel like this was one of Finlays best thrillers! I liked the character development and the unfolding of the mystery. 
This was a fun one!
As far as the audiobook, I thought the cast did fantastic bringing this story to life.

I consistently enjoy everything Alex Finlay writes, one of my favorite being Every Last Fear. I was thrilled to get to listen to If Something Happens to Me and once again he did not disappoint! Initially it bounces around a little bit making it a little confusing but I believe that is intentional because it all ties together in the end wonderfully.

This book really has all the elements someone might be looking for in a thriller: police investigations, missing persons, organized crime groups, and people on the run. If you are looking for a great story, though not one that will "keep you guessing", If Something Happens to Me is well written with fantastic characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in advance of publication.

📚 #BOOKREVIEW 📚
If Something Happens to Me
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / Pages: 336
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Audiobook Narrators: Helen Laser, John Pirhalla, Paul Dateh
Duration: 7 hours, 16 minutes
Release Date: May 28, 2024

Ryan was making out with his girlfriend in her car when some guy rips open the car door, smashes Ryan in the head leaving him for dead on the ground, and takes off with his girlfriend and the car. And no one has seen her since and no progress has been made on the case. Until five years later when the car is dredged up in a nearby lake and Ryan spots the kidnapper on a class trip to Italy.

OK, so that’s just the premise of the book. What happens before and after is so juicy and twisty! I loved how everything came together in big ah-ha moments. The narration on the audiobook was so good, I could easily see this playing out as a Netflix miniseries.

Thank you, @NetGalley, @Macmillan.Audio, and @AlexFinlayAuthor for my gifted copy. I loved it!

I loved the action, pace, and mystery of this one! It was such an easy to fly through thriller.

The suspense starts quickly when a girl is abducted from her car while parked on the side of the road with her boyfriend. The story fast forwards to 5 years later, when a car is found in a lake and a coded letter is uncovered. The letter is believed to be written by the girl who vanished and a detective seeks out the help of the previous boyfriend to solve the mystery.

I loved that this story has multiple fun settings and jumps around. It does take some mental focus to keep track of everything, but I liked the puzzle of it all.

I am grateful I was able to get a early kindle copy as well as an advanced listening copy so I could switch to audio while I drove around and did errands. 😆 I didn't want to put this down so shout out to @netgalley and @minotaur

The audio was great and had multiple narrators to read the various alternating POVs and all of them were excellent. I would definitely recommend this route if you're an audiobook fan!

This is a solid thriller. Just fast paced and pulled together well and basically perfect.
When Ryan and Ali are parking one night Ryan is hit over the head and wakes up to no car and no Ali. Haunted by that night and plagued by an unbelievable story of a man with missing fingers, Ryan can’t seems to get over Ali’s disappearance.
This story is beautifully twisted, eerie, and intense.
I recommend it 100%.
Thank you NetGalley for the AAC!

This was a fast-paced powerhouse of a thriller. There were a lot of characters to keep track of, but the author did a good job of making the them memorable. The dual timelines blend right into one another, and threw my brain for a loop, but was expertly done. I am eager to read more books by this author because he seems to be a master of psychological suspense! Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press( Minotaur Books) for access to this title.

When the book begins, we have two young teenage lovers, Allison and Ryan out at a lover's lane in Leavenworth Kansas. The night ends in tragedy with Allison believed to be dead and Ryan accused of killing her. Eventually, Allison's murder is linked to a serial killer and it seems the case is closed. Years later, Allison's father's vehicle is recovered from the lake and there are bodies inside- but neither one belongs to Allison. As a new deputy investigates, other characters emerge that make it clear that there is more to this case than originally thought.

I really enjoyed the pace of this book and definitely recommend it to thriller fans. I do warn that the beginning was a tad confusing with many characters - be patient, it all comes together in the end!

Thank you Netgalley for approving my request for the audiobook of If Something Happens to Me.

This is my fourth book by this author. I didn’t love it as much as The Night Shift and Every Last Fear.
This book was short, fast paced read. I listened to it in one sitting, it kept my interest and the story had twists and turns. But it just didn’t make me feel invested in the story. It was just an okay book.

This was a multiple P.O.V mystery/thriller. It was absolutely captivating. I couldn't put it down.

I enjoyed the narrators and the way the author tied the multiple characters storylines together.

I highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio. I loved this thriller. There was a true mystery right from the very beginning and I was so surprised by all the twists the story took.

If Something Happens To Me by Alex Finlay

Thank you so much Minotaur Books, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the free audiobook and ARC. #MacAudio2024

Blurb:
If Something Happens To Me is told from several distinct, compelling characters whose paths intersect, detonating into a story of twist after pulse-pounding twist.

✨My thoughts:
If I wasn’t reading it, I was listening to it… but mostly listening to it because I had errands to run. Helen Laser, John Pirhalla, and Paul Dateh narrated the audiobook and it was GOOD. They collaboratively kept me on my toes, complimenting Alex Finlay’s writing in every way! Definitely a binge worthy read or listen (or both), these quick chapters plus the twists, will keep you invested and wanting more. This is a book I want to get a finished copy of to keep in my forever library. If Something Happens To Me is out 5/28/24 and you’ll want to get your hands on a copy.

Happy reading

3.5 stars

Thank you Netgalley, Alex Finlay, and Minotaur Books for an #ARC in return for an honest review! Read as an audio!

After reading two other books by this author and not being blown away, I decided to give this one a chance. And I did enjoy this one much more! This was decent and entertaining. The narration was done well and engaged. Short chapters so that makes this read go quickly which I always enjoy. There were any OMG moments or crazy things occurring in my opinion, but I cared enough for the characters and the thrill!

I think my main issue was that there were wayyyyy to many characters, subplots, and cities to keep track of. I like the mystery of it all but I also do not want to have too keep a web of information on the side just to read this book...

Read if you like:
- crime fiction
- puzzle-like
- popcorn thrillers
- action packed
- multiple POVs

This book had a lot of great qualities. First and foremost, right off the bat, I was CACKLING at the hilarious, not-subtle-at-all call out of the Adventures with Purpose YouTube channel. I'm a huge true-crime junkie (my dad was a detective for 24 years) so I knew all about the Kiely Rodni case when the dive team posted their "murder or accident" video, claiming she was a victim of foul play before any police investigation was done. Police ended up ruling it an accident. This book put a whole twist on the story, and explored an alternative narrative which I enjoyed overall.

That said, I know I'm probably in the minority here when I say that I felt overwhelmed with all of the moving parts. There were so many POVs and moving timelines, locations all over the world, and so many characters and changing identities that I simply couldn't keep up. I realized about 65-70% of the way in that I had absolutely no idea what was going on and had to stop. I'm sorry, I really wanted to like this one and it started off really well. It just lost me along the way. Maybe next time.

The narrators did great, there was no issue there!

Read Completed 5/3/24 | 3.5 stars
Thank you to Macmillan Audio for this early listening review copy! Macmillan Audio provided this audiobook for review and this did not affect my read or review process in any way. #MacAudio2024

EVERY LAST FEAR (2021) | 4 stars
THE NIGHT SHIFT (2022) | DNF
WHAT HAVE WE DONE (2023) | 1.75 stars

Alex Finlay has been super hit or miss for me lately so honestly, I didn't go into his one with high expectations and I think that helped my read a little bit. Alex Finlay still has a million POVs in the book, but these characters were much easier for me to connect with than some of his previous books, and they were just slightly less cliche, so that helped.

I don't normally like mob plot lines in psychological thrillers (not a spoiler - it's one of the POVs in the beginning), and I figured everything would tie back in that way because why else would you include it.... The ending wasn't super shocking and I easily picked up on some clues and twists throughout the way.

This wasn't ground-breaking for me, but I'm happy I still was engaged with the book and got to root for some characters. I wasn't ever bored and the pacing was good, keeping me wondering what was going to happen next and waiting for my guesses about the twists to be confirmed. It wasn't super believable in some ways, but I was here for the popcorn thriller entertainment factor and let it be what it was.

I'm glad I enjoyed this, even if it wasn't a new favorite. If I didn't like this read, I definitely wouldn't be reading more Alex Finlay, so there's hope yet!

AUDIOBOOK THOUGHTS: I was happy to see Helen Laser as a narrator because I've enjoyed her performance and her voice lately! I thought all of the narrators did a nice job and covered the voices really well. There were two other narrators, both male -- John Pirhalla, Paul Dateh -- and I thought they had nice performances as well! There were multiple male POVs so I think they did a really good job making all of those characters feel different enough that I wasn't confused. I forgot how many narrators there were and while the voices weren't wildly different, I would have believed there were more to cover all of the POVs. I would happily recommend this as an audiobook for someone who was interested.

Title: If Something Happens to Me
Author: Alex Finlay
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 3.00
Pub Date: May 28, 2024

I received complimentary eARC and ALC from Minotaur Books, a division of St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted

T H R E E • W O R D S

Twisty • Complex • Cinematic

📖 S Y N O P S I S

For the past five years, Ryan Richardson has relived that terrible night. The car door ripping open. The crushing blow to the head. The hands yanking him from the vehicle. His girlfriend Ali’s piercing scream as she is taken.

With no trace of Ali or the car, a cloud of suspicion hangs over Ryan. But with no proof and a good lawyer, he’s never charged, though that doesn’t matter to the podcasters and internet trolls. Now, Ryan has changed his last name, and entered law school. He's put his past behind him.

Until, on a summer trip abroad to Italy with his law-school classmates, Ryan gets a call from his father: Ali's car has finally been found, submerged in a lake in his hometown. Inside are two dead men and a cryptic note with five words written on the envelope in Ali’s handwriting: If something happens to me…

Then, halfway around the world, the unthinkable happens: Ryan sees the man who has haunted his dreams since that night.

As Ryan races from the rolling hills of Tuscany, to a rural village in the UK, to the glittering streets of Paris in search of the truth, he has no idea that his salvation may lie with a young sheriff’s deputy in Kansas working her first case, and a mobster in Philadelphia who’s experienced tragedy of his own.

💭 T H O U G H T S

I cannot recall exactly what prompted me to request Alex Finlay's upcoming release, If Something Happens to Me on NetGalley. Yet, here I am having read my first from this author and not exactly sure how I am feeling.

Told through several distinct voices and spanning continents, I was kept on my toes through short chapters with cliffhanger endings. The pacing was what I'd expect from a popcorn thriller. However, there is a lot going on, and I definitely needed to keep up with the digital copy in order to keep track of people, places and time periods. The cryptic note was a buzz word for me, however, it played a minimal part of the plot. This was disappointing because I felt misled.

The audiobook is very well done. With a multi-cast narration, each voice is distinct enough to differentiate between the various characters. I did have a bit of an issue keeping track of time and place, which I rectified by tandem reading with the ebook.

It is safe to say that thrillers have not been working for me recently and the same can be said for If Something Happens to Me. At times, I was confused and drawn out of the story. I think it was more of a me issue; it was quite possibly a mistake to pick up a thriller when trying to get out of a slump. While it didn't work for me, I could easily see this one being turned into a movie and think it will be a hit with thriller readers this summer.

📚 R E A D • I F • Y O U • L I K E
• fast paced thrillers
• short chapters
• plots spanning multiple continents

⚠️ CW: death, child death, murder, suicide, torture, gun violence, violence, self-harm, bullying, terminal illness, kidnapping, drug use, overdose, cursing

This was such a wild ride.

The narration was told from multiple perspectives. At first, we didn’t know how the multiple different people connected, but it all comes together nicely at the end! I like the way the stories all connected and how it connected with Allison’s disappearance.

There was a lot of action in this story line which was great. There weren’t a whole lot of twists, but it was a great crime thriller. I particularly liked the end. Without giving a spoiler, I like who Ryan seemed to end up with.

The narration was great! I listened at 1.75x and it was perfect. The voices were clear and distinguishable.

All in all, a great listen!

Rating: 4.5 ⭐️
Pub Date: May 28, 2024
How I Read It: 📱 🎧

Synopsis
Ryan and Ali are at “Lover’s Lane,” sitting in Ali’s car, when all of a sudden, Ryan is yanked out of the car and knocked out. He wakes up and Ali and the car are gone. That was five years ago and Ryan has since changed his last name, is in law school, and has tried to move on, but when he is met by a stranger, on a summer trip to Italy, who turns out to be the pinkyless man, and his father calls him to tell him Ali’s car has been found, everything changes. He also discovers there’s a note from Ali that reads in code, “If something happens to me….” Ryan needs to find out what happened now more than ever.

My Thoughts
This story hooked me from the beginning, and I love that the book was a quick read because I needed to know what happened! I couldn’t put this one down. The characters were all pretty much likable, and the story kept my attention the whole way through. There were a few characters and timelines, but the narration was good, so the multiple characters and timelines wasn’t a problem. The twists and turns had me on a journey I never saw coming.

Final Thoughts
I liked this book a lot! If you like fast-paced thrillers, this would be a good book to pick up. I do feel like the ending was a little rushed for me, which was why I deducted a half star, otherwise, it would have been a five star read for me!

❗️Of Note
📝 Brutal Murders
📝 Mobsters

Themes:
🔪 Thriller

Ratings
Characters: 5 ⭐️
Pace: 4.5 ⭐️
Enjoyability: 5 ⭐️
Narrator: 5 ⭐️

Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!