Great premise for a mystery. Such an intelligent character I thought the storyline would have been more intriguing.

Great story if you enjoy YA reads or are very young and enjoying beach reads. I’ll look for her second book because this author has good potential for my next mystery/suspense read.

Thank you NetGalley for the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

I’m giving this 2 stars because I felt this was very anticlimactic. There are some aspects I enjoyed. I always love a destination mystery, and the scarce mythology references. But it just didnt appeal to me like it should have and at some points felt repetitive.

The End of Things is about a couple who go to the Bahamas. When there they meet a single woman who they befriend. Soon she disappears. The traditional prove yourself innocent before something happens to you takes over the plot.
The plot slows down about half way through the book. I read to the end just to see if it was a big bang but it was actually rather strange.

The characters weren't fully developed and the plot needed tightened up. That said, I enjoyed the first part of the book and did want to know how it ended.

This was fantastic. I really enjoyed reading it. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC!

I found myself conflicted about this book. The main female character is portrayed as a successful contract lawyer, but she struggles significantly with her life outside of work. While the plot had the potential to become a gripping thriller, the inconsistent and often dragging pace failed to keep me on the edge of my seat.

The ending felt bland and left much to be desired. Additionally, the characters were generally unlikable, which made it difficult for me to invest in their fates. Despite these issues, I did finish the book, which is why I’m giving it 3 stars.

Sandra Chwialkowska’s debut, The Ends of Things, is an absolute page-turner that had me captivated from the very beginning! If you’re a fan of The White Lotus and Jeneva Rose’s You Shouldn’t Have Come Here, then buckle up because this book is a wild ride! 🚀

Laura Phillips is living the dream – or so it seems. Her romantic getaway with boyfriend Dave to the idyllic Pink Sands resort in Eleuthera sounds like paradise 🌺🍹. But things quickly take a mysterious turn when Laura meets Diana, a solo vacationer who seems to be hiding secrets of her own. The friendship between Laura and Diana adds layers of intrigue and suspense, making me wonder what secrets will be uncovered next! 😲

Chwialkowska masterfully weaves a tale of suspense and hidden truths. The setting is so vividly described, I could almost feel the warm sand between my toes and hear the waves crashing on the shore. 🏖️ But don’t be fooled by the beautiful backdrop – danger and deception lurk just beneath the surface!

The plot twists kept coming, each one more shocking than the last. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, Chwialkowska threw in another curveball that left me reeling. The tension builds to an explosive climax that had me flipping pages late into the night. 🌌💥

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I was so intrigued by this book since the description sounded great and the cover was fun, but I admit this was tough to get through. The plot had a lot of potential but this style of writing filled with rhetorical questions and very literal setting descriptions was not my favorite. As the book continued on I grew increasingly frustrated with the characters and where the plot was going. It could be a very quick, easy read if you're looking for that but this book was not for me.

I was so excited for this one, the premise seemed so intriguing. It truly had the perfect set up for a twisty thriller. Half of the book truly held my attention and was really interesting. Then, it just fell flat for me and the pace truly slowed down. It felt like it switched from a thriller to contemporary. The ending was anti-climactic and abrupt, just missing something for me.

As a debut book, this is pretty good. It kept me interested throughout as I needed to know the ending and it actually surprised me a bit.

Laura was always the “good girl”, she never had an adventurous spirit, so when her new boyfriend invited her to Eleuthera island for a quick vacation, she didn’t hesitate. But she quickly got caught up in another vacationer on the island as she couldn’t understand how a single woman would vacation alone at a romantic retreat. She and this woman had a few drinks together and went on a hike. After an argument, the woman disappears, and Laura’s life is forever changed in so many ways.

I liked this book, but I didn’t love it. The ending did surprise me, but not necessarily in a good way. It was abrupt and anti-climactic. I rate it 3 stars and I would recommend it to those who enjoy a good mystery. Thank you, NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for the eARC.

3.25 stars rounded to 3/5 stars overall. This book started off strong, with a mysterious woman on a remote island, and had all the makings of a twisty thriller - but about halfway through, the pace slowed down, the writing felt repetitive, and the plot got a bit stagnant. The resolution was not at all what I expected, and the very end of the book felt strange and forced, like we had changed genres altogether and delved into a contemporary fiction situation. Overall, a great set up for a book, but the execution and ending left me feeling confused and disappointed.
I received this book from NetGalley as an ARC, and this is my honest & voluntary review.

This book started off well but sadly, it quickly devolved. The main character, Laura, makes a series of dumb decisions and comes off as shallow and naive. The mystery of a missing guest she meets at a resort in Eleuthera had potential and didn’t pan out. I was disappointed.

I read this book in two days!

Sandra does a great job creating characters that you can get invested in knowing and understanding.
The ending did leave me wanting more, but overall, really well done! Twists and anticipation throughout the book.

My feelings about this book are mixed. I liked it enough to want to finish and I wanted to know what happened to the characters, even though I felt that the ending was bit flat. I did not feel like any of the characters acted like people do in real life. Laura and Dave are both a bit off, and I didn’t see them as a good fit, although Laura did grow on me. Diana—the woman they meet at their resort—is quite baffling. The descriptions of Eleuthera are marvelous, and it was a quick read, but it fell short overall. Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I found this novel to be quite engrossing.
One starts it thinking it’s going to be a typical psychological thriller, but while using the same pacing, and obvious set ups and character types, it slowly becomes something else.
The narrator infuriated me, but a flawed narrator is an interesting one sometimes, and by the end I felt sticking with it until the surprising end was worth it. And it did take me all of two days to read!! Guess it got me hooked! Overall fun.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

She thought she had the perfect life, until she met a stranger in paradise! Good book! This book had suspense, intrigue, action, mystery, murder, and some crazy twists and turns! The story was interesting! Good characters. I would recommend reading this book! Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

Thank you, NetGalley and Saint Martin’s press/Minotaur Books for this ARC. Let me start off by saying this book was a great example of a who done it novel. It starts out slow, but gains momentum throughout the book. It’s based on the premise of what happens to Kate’s sister Phoebe as she traveled alone on a road trip through the Australian Outback. Katie begins a quest to find out what happened to her sister. I love the use of “social media” and the eerie atmospheric setting. The story had multiple POV’s, which blended nicely throughout the book. There was some nice twists and turns , and I was entertained throughout the entire book! I will definitely be reading more from this author, and I highly recommend this book to all ! Thank you!

Laura goes with her boyfriend to the Pink Sands resorts on vacation and while she’s there she meets a weird woman named Diana who asks her weird questions. And she tells her her deepest secrets and then eventually when they’re both together hanging out and walking on the cliff she disappears and Laura has to report to the police that her friend is missing.

This book was short but a page turner and you don’t find out till the end what happened to the woman. I also feel like the ending story between her and Chloe was random and made it seem like there was going to be another sequel.

A fast paced, page turner - but ultimately disappointing.

As we’re promised a thriller in the ilk of White Lotus, I was drawn in and to be honest it does feel very much like a made for screen story.

I devoured this book up until the midpoint. I loved the relationship being tested between Laura and Dave, Laura’s obsession with Diana the stranger, the potential of dastardliness of the resort's owner. It was set up for so much. But the ending, disappointing, lacklustre, and flat.

Rated 3 stars, because it was an enjoyable read. With a deeper substantive plot it could have been brilliant.

Thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing or an ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

This book was unexpected. Based on the description, I assumed I was reading a mystery/thriller…and it had those elements but the story was much bigger than that.

Well written, but with just barely enough detail, emotion and intrigue. Some parts felt a little flat, particularly the dialogue, but the main character’s inner thoughts and experienced carried the story.

📚 Book Review 📚

Title: The Ends of Things
Author: Sandra Chwialkowska
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I’m not even sure how I’m supposed to review this book…🤔

To start, this was a major page-turner for me and I needed to know how it would all pan out. But now that I’ve finished…..huh?! That’s how it ends?! I’m dumbfounded and definitely scratching my head with this one.

This story follows newly dating couple Laura and Dave, who take a brief trip to an all-inclusive resort in the Bahamas. They are both lawyers working for the same firm and need a few days of rest and relaxation. Except…that’s the last thing they end up finding when Laura becomes a little too focused on a fellow female resort guest who’s vacationing alone.

On a positive note, this was really suspenseful and I had a hard time putting it down. Had I had the opportunity, I most likely would have read it in one sitting. I had no idea where it was headed or who could be trusted- the exact recipe for my perfect book.

On the other hand…WTF? That’s the ending? And that’s what was going on the whole time, and why? I rated this book 4/5 stars simply based on me truly enjoying it and it being such a gripping story. But how it all came together was a big disappointment for me. Not at all what I had expected- keeping it from being a 5-star rating.

My only other true “complaint” is that this is one of those books with a booksmart successful career women who is a total dolt in regular life. A woman with zero common sense who can’t make a good rational decision if her life depended on it. These types of female main characters make my eyes roll right out of my head.

If you pick this one up, keep in mind it will be going in a very odd direction that you don’t see coming - at all!

*Thank you @netgalley and @blackstonepublishing for this advanced copy. This novel doesn’t hit bookstores until 1/14/25!

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