I’d give this 4 out of 5 stars. The book was intriguing but I absolutely hated the main characters. I get they’re 15 but they were so very immature and lacked common sense. Or maybe I should say they lacked street smarts. Other than that there was a bunch of mystery and adventure that made me want to keep reading. There was a random character that was never explained beyond him being spotted multiple times. That kind of confused me as to why he was even mentioned. The ending was realistic given the circumstances so I appreciated that. All in all I would recommend this.

I really struggled with this book as I think I am not the intended audience. It did ring a bit too juvenile for me and I did miss that it said young adult as I was just so excited about the plotline so I was a bit surprised at the writing and then I looked it up again and saw that it is marked as young adult.

I think young adults will like it, but it isn't hugely my thing.

Creepy fast read! Literally don't want to think about parents and the sketchy things they do! The character development is intriguing and overall the story is well done.

40/100 or 2.0 stars

The two POVs really blended together, despite the characters having the opposite reactions to everything that happens to them. They fell flat and and the conveniences for them to get to Edinburgh alone was a lot to look past, but it did not grip me and I was not invested in the story, so I did DNF at 21%. I would consider trying another book by Dahlin, as maybe it is just this plot that was not working for me. I can see how this would work well for the target audience and/or a younger or newer reader.

Der Klappentext von „If I Tell You“ versprach eine außergewöhnliche & packende Geschichte: Cameron und Lewis, zwei Teenager, die ein normales Leben in Kanada führen, sehen plötzlich, wie ihre Eltern vor den Augen der Nachbarschaft zwei Fremde ermorden. Durch diese brisante Ausgangslage wollte ich das Buch unbedingt lesen – doch leider konnte die Handlung die hohen Erwartungen nicht ganz erfüllen.

Das Konzept des Buches ist zweifellos faszinierend. Die Idee, wie zwei Teenager von einem ruhigen Leben plötzlich in ein Netz aus Gewalt und Geheimnissen gestoßen werden, bietet enormes Potenzial.

Leider fehlt der Geschichte ein klarer Fokus. Die Handlung entwickelt sich sehr schleppend, wodurch sich das Lesen oft wie ein zähes Durchkämpfen anfühlt. Immer wieder stellen sich die Protagonisten die gleichen Fragen, ohne dass sie dabei zu neuen Erkenntnissen kommen. Dadurch verliert die Geschichte schnell an Spannung, und selbst Momente, die eigentlich aufregend sein sollten, wirken eintönig.

💡
If I Tell You hat einen vielversprechenden Ausgangspunkt, konnte diesen jedoch nicht vollständig nutzen. Die zähe Erzählweise und der fehlende Spannungsbogen machen es schwer, sich mit den Charakteren und ihrer Situation zu verbinden. Es bleibt das Gefühl, dass das Buch viel Potenzial hatte, dieses jedoch nicht ausgeschöpft wurde. Wer Geduld mitbringt und ein Faible für langsam erzählte Geschichten hat, könnte hier vielleicht dennoch auf seine Kosten kommen. Für mich persönlich war es leider eher ermüdend als mitreißend.

I didn’t hate this book. Most of it I enjoyed well enough. But I had some issues with it that were relatively substantial.

The majority of my issues, admittedly, had to do with the very last chapter and the extremely sudden way the book wrapped, with a time jump that is sort of alluded to in the text but not called out in any kind of explicit way. At the end of the penultimate chapter the twins have decisions to make, and the book shows them making absolutely none of them. Even in the last chapter, what has actually happened is really only shown in very broad strokes. We can somewhat assume but do not 100% know where they live.

1. The title is dumb. No one ever says this or anything close to this at any point. It does not make sense to the plot, really. I hate it.

2. Loose ends. Some loose ends make sense to leave.
But there are some things that are sort of devastating, like the loss of the twins’ mutual best friend, that I didn’t think should just be left flapping in the wind forever.

3. Their names. The book makes a point of repeatedly telling the boys both that they basically do not have real identities, names, citizenships, etc. in the last chapter, they just keep referring to them as the same first names as before and have not told us anything about how they are (spoiler) still in the UK even though the UK, to borrow a phrase, hates them.

4. My biggest issue. Did they just… not get to see their parents at all, even for a visit at secure location while the dad was recuperating? And they just…
don’t get to see them again? What the actual f though? I thought that was a weird choice, to not have the reader never meet these people that the book is essentially about.

Lastly, I do get that the author is trying to set up the next book at the end, but babe, I am not fully convinced that I liked the way you closed this one out. So yeah, hold your horses, I am just not ready to jump back in yet, though I did really appreciate the opportunity to read the ARC and really enjoyed the local Scots (Maggs, Aisha, and Jamie), and well as the intrepid Padma.

Characters were likeable. An initially confusing and slow paced read, with an overall repetitive vibe. However was enjoyable.

If We Tell You is action packed from the very first page, the reader is thrown into the world of runaway protagonists Lewis and Cameron as they try to stay alive.

This is a YA thriller, which will hit its target audience perfectly. While reading you do forget how young the protagonists are, and when their age is mentioned it feels like a slap, that they are enduring all of this stress and trauma. Yet on the other hand it is enjoyable watching them in London and Edinburgh for the first time, experiencing the people, culture and beauty of the cities.

If We Tell You is easy to read, fast paced and exciting. Targeted to the younger bracket of the YA audience, it is easy to follow and to process what isn't said.

This book was a great read! The story had a great pace and the characters were well developed. It was very easy to get sucked into the story and in just a few sittings, I was done reading the book!

If We Tell You - Nicola Dahlin

All it took was one moment during a family barbeque for Cameron and Lewis’s lives to change.

After killing two uninvited guests, their parents take off in a haste, leaving them with many unanswered questions, and very little instruction.
The twins follow the little bit of instruction they have which leads them to a small hotel in Edinburgh, one that their parents previously had a connection to. To be inconspicuous, they pretend there's only one of them, one of them staying hidden at all times.
As the truth starts to come out piece by piece, the twins learn of their parents' dark past that forced them to change their identities and to start over.
When the twins begin to feel like someone is on to them, they are driven to the finish line to find their parents and the whole truth before someone else catches them first.
It’s been a few months since I finished this book, and I found I was easily able to remember the details and how the story played out. For me, that's a win. That means the book was worth remembering. I didn’t know what to expect and felt as though I may have picked up a YA book, but the story had enough dark twists and turns that it kept me turning the pages. This one came out in October, and if you happen to see it on the shelves, I think it’s definitely worth grabbing yourself a copy and diving in. 4 stars out of 5 on this one!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Loved it! Such a good read. I feel like YA books can be a hit or miss for the most part. This one was definitely a hit and enjoyable.

While I did like the story for the most part, I do think I didn't have a great connection with the twins and so I didn't find myself as invested as I would have liked. Also, I didn't like that I could only access this story through the app and not my kindle. (Not the authors fault, just stating)

This was actually quite good. It is YA in the sense that the characters are twin 15 year olds, so it is told through their viewpoint. The plot itself is pretty intriguing. Perhaps it's a bit easy to deduce what is ultimately happening, but that takes nothing away from the story. It was fun and interesting to watch this unfold and refreshing to see a viewpoint/characters I wouldn't normally read. I think teens would absolutely love this book, and this old fart did too!!

While the idea of this book sounded like a lot of fun, it just didn't do it for me. I think some of my students may like it, so I didn't give it a single star, but that's the only reason why I gave it two. I didn't care much about the characters and the story just kind of flopped for me. Hard to finish.

So I get what this book was trying to do but it just didn’t work. The story doesn’t allow you to fully connect with the twins before you are thrust into the story. While I am a fan of fast paced stories there needs to be a connection established with the characters so that you care about their journey. That’s what I struggled with for the most part. I never cared about the characters so it just felt like they were going through motions. They didn’t seem to discover answers but instead had them told by other characters. I just lost interest after a while. So, while it was an intriguing premise the actual execution of the story was lacking. 2.5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc

Borrowed a physical copy from the library after having problems accessing the ebook. This was an interesting read. Enjoyed the characters. Sometimes I found the different situations and the way handled was too extreme. However, it didn't stop my enjoyment of the book. Looking forward to the next book by Nicola.

#NETGALLEY
#IFWETELLYOU
#NICOLADAHLIN

This book starts with a bang and from that moment, you're drawn in by the mysterious lives of Cameron and Lewis and their parents. Cameron and Lewis have been living a normal life in Canada but their world is turned upside down when men with guns invade their summer BBQ. Their parents given them a big containing passports and tell them to get to the airport. But when they arrive there, not only are their parents absent, but the passports aren't even in their names. Who are Cameron and Lewis really and who are their parents. But most importantly, why are people after them. Cameron and Lewis escape to Scotland and try to uncover the clues to where there parents are now and what has triggered these events.
I really enjoyed this story and I feel like the ending was setting things up for a sequel, which is exciting and I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for it. I love mysteries and this book is full of them. I think it will grip readers who also enjoy trying to solve a puzzle. Some of the content is a bit mature so this is probably better for a secondary library rather than a primary one. It's great fun.

This was definitely a suspenseful read. There a plenty of twists and turns that keep me reading way past my bedtime. Reading from two perspectives was a great experience. It felt like I was reading a great action film. This story definitely needs a sequel, I would love to see how these characters grow.

My only criticism is that there were a few moments when I had to stop to figure out who was speaking so there was some confusion there

If we tell you was a very interesting story.
Twin brothers are forced to run away and fend for themselves while uncovering the truth about their parents. While they do people are also trying to hunt the boys down, can they discover the truth before it’s too late?
I did enjoy this story however it did take a very long time for things to start unravelling. It was a slow build up but I thoroughly enjoyed how things worked out in the end! And the characters were very lovable and interesting. Thanks to NetGalley and Kids Can Press for the arc!

If We Tell You is about twin siblings Cameron and Lewis Larsen. The book was quite good, I really enjoyed it.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC