Near perfect thriller, a twist I didn’t see coming! I’m definitely going to purchase and reread! Has the perfect amount of believability that makes YA thrillers so appealing as an adult reader.

Brooke, the golden girl, is blamed for the death of a classmate at her beach house. She is receiving anonymous phone calls, notes but tells no one. Then one night after a party, a car is following her and her friend Jen, home. This was gripping and scary.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a fantastic thrilling read, with an ending I didn't see coming. This is my second Megan Lally book and both have been great reads.

It's a high octane book that swaps between past and present as the story unravels. I loved hating many of the characters. I feel that when you have strong feelings towards a character the author has done their job right. There were a few plot holes that left me a little confused, but overall I really enjoyed the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5⭐
Genre ~ YA thriller
Setting ~ Oregon
Publication date ~ January 7, 2025
Publisher ~ Sourcefire Books
Est Page Count ~ 264 (32 chapters)
Audio length ~ 5 hours 45 minutes
Narrator ~ Justis Bolding
POV ~ single 1st, present tense
Featuring ~ now and then timeline, secrets, lies

A girl died at a party that Brooke hosted last summer at her family's lake house. Now, an unknown caller is calling an excessive amount of times a day and things are being done to her car. Who could it be and what do they know? The then timeline will slowly reveal what Brooke wishes could stay hidden forever.

This was full on high school drama with entitled meanness and snobbery. I was so mad at her for knocking the beach house that the party was hosted at. Hello, sand is literally the backyard! I'd rather have a small house on the beach than a big house on a lake, but maybe that's just me. There were also some OTT scenes, like when they were on the highway for instance. It's pretty much a one day plot, so the tension was high and the race was fast to the satisfying conclusion.

Overall, I didn't like it as much as her debut, but I was engaged enough to see how it would all play out. I hadn't seen the culprit coming so whoop whoop for that.

Side note ~ I'm not knocking them at all because they're super reliable, but I found it odd that Brooke drove a Subaru. She's a fancy pancy rich girl that got into Yale, so I'd expect her to drive something a little more high end based on her family dynamics.

Narration notes:
I did not listen to this one, but am just giving the info above for reference. I have listened to Justis before and if I remember correctly she'll sound age appropriate.


Notes as I was reading:
**the swearing is much less noticeable in book form**
Am I a swear prude? Is that even a thing? 😂
I listened to chapter 1 via TTS and the f word is used 5x, just in the 1st chapter! Pulled up my kindle copy and the total count is 139. The book is under 300 pages, so that does seem excessive.

I am not a big fan of swearing in my YA reads, but I put my thoughts on that matter aside while I read it because I waa super intrigued by the blurb and I loved That's Not My Name.

3.5⭐️ rounded up! - here are my thoughts…

First off, please don’t fall into the trap like I did, of loving an authors debut novel and then subconsciously comparing it to this one. I knew it would be a completely different book but still was bummed enough to feel bothered.

This book is TRUE YA (young adult). The characters truly act their age, which was so annoying even though it’s to be expected! It felt more YA than other books I’ve read. It made me soft DNF this.
Weeks later I decided to pick it back up just to see if I was really not going to finish. It weirdly picked up, and became so action packed I was on the edge of my seat. It felt like watching a movie I was so into it.

I ended up predicting who “No Caller ID” was and wasn’t exactly surprised how everything played out.

With all that being said, I ended up enjoying it! Would still recommend to other reads who like reading YA books and thrillers

Golden girl Brooke Goodwin is the daughter of the next judge and daughter to the school principal and has severe high expectations placed upon her. She always has to look good, behave perfectly, get good grades to appear to be the perfect daughter, student and friend. But 6 months ago something happened at her families lake house where her arch enemie (former bff) dies. It’s near the end of the year where everyone is getting accepted into Ivy League colleges and she doesn’t know if she’ll make it. She also isn’t as popular as she used to be because of the death of her former bestie. And someone has been harnessing her and threatening her. But she gets accepted to her college of choice, hoping to escape from all of it and goes to a party her friend begged her to go to. Things start to go downhill from there.

The pacing of this book was perfectly written even though sometimes authors struggle when adding in past and present chapters—this was PERFECT.

The main character though…. Man I just hated her. I couldn’t put myself in her shoes (besides the car chase part bc whew I felt those emotions). I really couldn’t stand Brooke. But that’s the whole point of the book so still WELL DONE.

It was a slow burn to me! Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this in exchange for an honest review!!

Finished in less than 24 hours! Great read!

There are two timelines and each is just as exciting as the other. Super quick and constantly entertaining! Did not see the twist coming until shortly before it was revealed.

This would make an excellent movie!

Thank you to NetGalley, Megan Lally, and Sourcebooks Fire for this ARC!

Fans of YA fiction will likely enjoy this roller coaster ride of a story. The book features many familiar elements of high school thrillers including friendship, betrayal, murder, and a twisty plot. Other significant familiar elements include girl drama, nasty pranks, blackmail, and heart pounding car chases.

Although I found the characters interesting, none of them were particularly redeemable people. In fact, the main characters were pretty much pretentious, self righteous, and in some cases, evil. That made it difficult to connect with them and ultimately the story. However, I was still compelled to read to the end to find out what happened. I should note that there are a diverse array of characters, so the book is likely to appeal to a range of readers.

The plot is organized in an alternating format among characters. This allows for plot revelations that the reader knows and other characters do not. I found this to be a great way to counteract the false narratives of the main character whose real thoughts and deeds are only revealed at the end. It also contributed to the build up of suspense. I did feel there was a major plot flaw at the end of the book.,Since the protagonist's true actions, aren't revealed to her best friend ( and the best friend's boyfriend) until the last few pages, it doesn't make sense that that friend would betray her long before this point in the story. If these actions are realistic , then the best friend is as evil as the protagonist. Maybe I just missed something.

There is significant profanity in the book. I know this is how teens talk. It just seemed too much. But then I am not the target audience for this book. Probably most teens would not be bothered.

There isn't a particularly redeeming message in this book beyond how bad choices can lead to devastating consequences. This is probably a good message for teens. It just seems like at least one character should have exemplified or acknowledged this theme.

Megan Lally is the queen of twisty thrillers. This is the story of good girl Brooke, who is doing everything right to get into the college of her dreams -- except there's one incident from last year that haunts her. Told in alternating timelines, we learn about Brooke's ex-best friend Claire, and the havoc they wreaked on one another's lives. It all builds up to in the past, the night something happened to Claire, and in the present, someone tracking Brooke down to find out the truth -- even if it kills her. There were so many twists and turns in this book I genuinely didn't know who to trust or what had happened, and the final reveal was such a shock. A fast, thrilling ride.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this book since it was my first from Megan Lally, but I swear I zipped through it so fast and now it's a day later, and I'm still in awe of how it got to me.

Brooke Goodwin is almost perfect. She's attractive, comes from an affluent family, is a star student who was just accepted into Yale and is finally getting attention from Dylan, her longtime crush. But perfection comes with a cost, and Brooke is constantly expected to make no mistakes in every aspect of her life. But there was that pesky lake party before where someone died and Brooke can't live it down.

This story alternates between the present day, and before, the night of the party where Brooke's former friend and now nemesis, Claire Heck, manages to die. Brooke has tried to move on with her life, but someone keeps calling her from a blocked number. Then they slashed her tires. And now...they want Brooke to confess her sins.

This story is fast-paced and an easy read. It is marketed towards YA, and I think this book is appropriate for the YA crowd. There were times when I wanted to yell at the characters because, as an adult, I knew they were making a terrible decision. But as teenagers, their actions and motives work. It was refreshing to read a YA book where the characters acted appropriately for their age in terms of decision-making, maturity, values, etc.

This story had a pretty big twist at the end. I partially guessed it but I was not confident at all, so I consider that as still keeping me guessing. The ending was also really interesting because we start to see the characters differently and who is a villain and who is a victim becomes blurry. I kept thinking about this story after I was done and I was still in awe today at how cleverly the author made me feel so many conflicting emotions.

I would absolutely recommend this book if you love a fast-paced thriller, with drama, and high-stakes at every turn. This was my first book from Megan Lally but it will not be my last.

3.5⭐️

This was quick and suspenseful, but it left me wanting a little more. Full of characters you love to hate and so much stress! Some parts a little unbelievable but overall another good thriller by Megan Lally.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire foe the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Megan Lally is becoming an instant buy author for me. She grabs the readers attention from the first line. This book was incredible and worth the read. It was captivating and kept you on your toes the whole time. I did not see Jena being a part of what happened.

3.5⭐️

I thoroughly enjoyed the author's debut novel, and I believe her sophomore effort demonstrates significant potential. However, it ultimately did not resonate with me as strongly as I had hoped.

The narrative is structured in a dual timeline, which adds to the overall storytelling. I found the beginning and the conclusion to be particularly captivating; however, the middle section felt somewhat sluggish, leading me to skim through portions of the text and struggle to retain what I had read.

On a positive note, the ending took me by surprise, presenting an outcome that I did not anticipate but ultimately appreciated. I admire the creative choices the author has made in both of her novels thus far, and I look forward to seeing how her writing continues to evolve in future works. I plan to keep reading anything she publishes.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for this advanced reader copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

This book unfortunately frustrated me beyond words, the characters were horrible, the plot was jumping all over the place and some scenarios I really couldn’t get behind. We’re presented with our main character - an overachieving girl, too damaged by her parents disinterest in anything in her life. Then we saw her interactions with another bored teenage girl that apparently played around with people for fun and then got mad when faced with consequences. A fake friend that I have no idea what was thinking or doing half the time and honestly I don’t care to figure out. Some random dudes that literally did nothing and had no personality for even a second. None of these characters were even believable, it was like reading about 2D cartoon people with no emotions or development besides drinking and fighting. I felt nothing for the characters, I wished them all to disappear by the end of the book. Not even one was likeable!!

2 stars for the entertainment as this was an entertaining albeit frustrating book to read.

Such a great read! I was completely hooked and could not spit it down. This book literally had me on the edge of my seat. The plot was good, the characters were great.

A fast paced thriller with an more than one axe to grind! The story felt like it went zero to sixty from page one and left me grappling to figure out what had happened in the past to cause the FMC to be so uptight. While the plot spoon feeds you clues some of them aren’t as obvious as others, so if you’re not paying attention you won’t see the final reveal coming. If you’re in the market for a good mystery with lots of twists and turns (no pun intended 😉) I highly recommend adding this one to your list!

Thanks to NetGalley & Sourcebooks Fire for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really fun and twisty thriller! I have to admit that I didn’t see the twists coming, and I really enjoyed unraveling them. Binged in 1 sitting.

I liked this more than the author’s debut novel That’s Not My Name. I enjoyed the dual timeline intertwining between the present and past that slowly reveals why the main character Brooke is in her current situation. There was lots of action throughout and the story overall was fast paced. I particularly enjoyed the teenage drama involving jealousy, frenemies and lots of plain old fighting. I appreciated that the story included unlikeable characters and some changed in ways that made me see them differently as the story progressed. I enjoyed the plot twists and the ending left me very satisfied. I’m eagerly awaiting this author’s next release!

Megan Lally has done it again! After reading two of her amazing thrillers 'That's Not My Name' and now her second book 'No Place Left to Hide', I'm officially a Megan Lally fan! This book took me by surprise near the end and had a few jaw droppers! My face near the end was like 😱🤯😭🫣. This thriller book has got it all: a mysterious stalker, terrifying car chase, mean girls, revenge, a dual timeline between the past and present, etc.
The main character Brooke works hard to get good grades and maintain a good image, to keep up with her family legacy-six generations of lawyers and judges. She has to work especially hard to keep up her good image after "the incident" happened. There's a dual timeline of her currently dealing with a stalker and then of the past when the incident happened. As you read you slowly get more and more pieces to the story of what happened that night. And near the end some shocking secrets will become revealed! I was so thrilled that I got to read the book early from Netgallery! Put this book on your TBR list if you love a good thriller! Release date is on January 7th!