I found it challenging to get through the book, primarily due to its multiple timelines and a large cast of characters, which sometimes made it difficult to keep track of the unfolding story. While this particular style might not have been to my taste, I am open to exploring more of this author's work in the future, as I believe there might be other narratives or styles from her that could better align with my reading preferences.

There are a lot of characters to keep track of and not a likable one in the bunch. Usually I love these kinds of books, but not a fan of this one.

Wow, disturbing and dry. Couldn't get through the first 5 chapters. Not enjoyable. Would not recommend.

I'm not quite sure what I just listened to. I absolutely loved the cover of this book which is what drew me to it and had me wanting to read it. However, I found it extremely hard to follow and I don't think I still know what the book was about. It had so much going on it felt like too many story lines. The narrator was great! I may try this one again at a later date as I may have just not been ready for this book, I had to really listen and pay attention which seemed like work and not an enjoyable read. Thank you to the author and publisher for allowing me a free audio of this book!

A big thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC of What You Made Me Do!

What You Made Me Do is described as a gripping debut novel for fans of A.J. Finn and B.A. Paris. While I did find myself wrapped up in the plot at times, it was not majority of the book and certainly not anywhere comparable to B.A. Paris. For a debut novel, there was definitely captivating portions however by the end I was ready for it to be done and not dazzled by the big twist.

I listened to my copy as an audiobook and found the narrator to be engaging and able to transition well between characters and chapters. I ended up rating the book 2.5 stars and rounded up given the audio narrator. Overall, it wasn’t a bad book but I would not recommend it to anyone.

Title: What You Made Me Do
Author: Barbara Gayle Austin (narrated by Andi Arndt)
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Rating: 3 stars
Pub Date: August 20, 2024

📖 S Y N O P S I S 📖
After surviving a nightmarish childhood, Anneliese Bakker is on the mend and searching for her birth mother. But when she meets Willem, she falls madly in love and finally finds a safe place to land. Engaged and expecting her first child, she moves into the Veldkamp mansion on a stately, tree-lined avenue in Amsterdam. And yet, nothing about Willem’s family is as it seems. Instead of the loving home she has longed for her entire life, she’s confronted with a cold and hostile household.

Increasingly isolated, Anneliese is drawn to a creepy basement shrine to Louisa, Willem’s mother. Louisa Veldkamp was a legendary Dutch pianist who presumably drowned–but whose body has never been found. Though still revered by her fans, Louisa is a taboo subject in the family home. Haunted by her own demons, Anneliese must dig into the family’s past to untangle a dark web of secrets, inadvertently putting herself and her unborn child in grave danger.

Not knowing who to trust, Anneliese has to decide just how far she is willing to go to safeguard the family life she so desperately seeks.

💭 T H O U G H T S 💭
The audio narrative was great – good tone of voice for the nature of this book. As for the overall story, I’m not a fan of family drama mystery/thriller books, but the writing was okay. I was less thrilled and, more so, wondered what kind of family dynamics were going on in the Veldkamp household. Anneliese was a very deceptive and manipulative character…and yes, this story goes there (it’s very predictable).

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to listen to an Advanced Listener’s Copy (ALC) in exchange for my honest opinion/review.

⚠️CONTENT • WARNINGS⚠️
• abuse from parent
• suicide
• murder
• manipulative characters
• pregnant on purpose by lying/deception

I do like this book and it had an awesome twist, but I just didn't love this, its hard to put a finger on it, but the dtory seemed tad all over the place. Also a very Icky plot dealing with incest 🤢, so just fyi,

A woman sets out to find her biological mother, upon finding her, said mother does not want to have anything to do with her. Then she sets out to incorporate herself into said family, while keeping her identity secret; only to be thrown for a loop when she finally comes to the real TRUTH!

solid 3 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape for this ARC!! Beyond humbled
What You Made Me Do out Aug 20th 2024!

I was excited when I was granted access to this book. However, it was a hot mess. Between the different timelines, numerous characters, and the constant switching back and forth, it was a bit difficult to keep up with everything. This book would probably be easier to follow in print. Having said all that, it was okay. Since the premise was interesting, 3 stars seem fair since I think my main issue was the format.

Thank you Netgalley, Dreamscape Media and Barbara Gayle Austin for the audio Arc of What You Made Me Do.

What You Made Me Do is a multi POV psychological thriller which follows Louisa and and Annalissa, two seamlessly unrelated women and their daily lives. As the plot unfolds, we see the character building from both women, which you may or may not like/connect with/ likeable. I always feel that reading a POV of an unlikeable character interesting as it seems to provoke stronger emotions within me. Louisa really did that!
As the lives of these two women start to twist and collide, we see how the plot contains some great surprises.

The pace of the narrative, felt quite slow to begin with, The gives space for some great character building as well as the area this book is set in. The overall pace does pick up but i did find pockets of the storyline sputters a bit.

This book was narrated by Andi Arndt. I have listened to some books she has narrated before and I really enjoy listening to her voice,

4 stars

I listened to the audiobook and loved the narrator. The premise of the book sounded interesting but the execution was too many plot lines and it was so slow. I’m sure this will be a favorite for some but this wasn’t the book for me.

What You Made Me Do by Barbara Gale Austin and narrated by Andi Arntd is a book about Louisa Henrik they’re twin boys William and Garrion, and Louisa‘s stepsister Katia. There is way too much for me to give a summary of this book just know it is an awesome book Louisa is a narcissist she is abusive to her son William but dotes on autistic garion. Louisa is a famous classical pianist and shee even had a famous song on the radio. The book spans 24 years starting in the year 2000 and in 2010 she goes missing. In another POV we meet Annalissa, She grows up knowing she is adopted but when she becomes an adult she searches for her birth mother. When these to POV’s come together it is under deceit and intrigue but when the truth comes out this is when everything comes out. What a thrilling read this is. It is a long book but so good and the narrator does an awesome job reading it. This is a book I definitely recommend.#NetGalley, #DreamscapeMedia, #BarbaraGayleAustin, #AndiArdt, #WhatYouMadeMeDo,

I listened to the audiobook version of this book. For the most part it was intriguing. There were a few things that were very cringe worthy, but the story itself pulled the reader in.

Thank you to the author and publisher, and to Netgalley, for giving me early access to the book in exchange for an honest review.

Um cringe worthy reading for sure. Lots of twists, and so many things happening at once. This book kept me reading fast because I really wanted to find out what in the world was going on, but also kind of felt gross after this one. You will just have to read it to see what I mean!! Thank you NetGalley for the arc!!

Just finished a twisty read that kept me guessing till the end! 📚✨ Annaleise's search for her birth mother takes a wild turn when she falls for Willem, who might be connected to her past in more ways than one. As secrets unravel and tensions rise, the suspense is real, but I was left wanting just a *bit* more from the ending. Still, that twist though! 😲

The audiobook narrator, Andi Arndt, was fantastic—each character had a distinct voice, making it super easy to follow. 🎧 I’d definitely pick up another listen with her at the helm.

What did I just listen to? My thoughts are kind of all over the map on this one. I was intrigued by the book's description and was eager to listen when I was granted an audio ARC. This book had my attention from the beginning; however, very shortly into the book, I struggled to keep the plot lines, timelines, and characters/relations to one another straight. Once I got a grasp on those things, I was pretty engaged until I realized there is definitely an ick factor to this book, and knowing that made it hard for me to want to finish. I did complete it, and while I enjoyed the author's overall storytelling and a few of the twists, I was left feeling gross and unsatisfied with the way the book wrapped up. I didn't really hate the book nor did I enjoy it. I think the author has promise, but this was a miss for me.

A consistent positive was the wonderful narration by Andi Arndt.

Since this book was definitely a below average read for me, I'm giving it 2 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Barbara Gayle Austin for this audiobook ARC. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed the writing style of the book but I felt the time hoping and so many different points of view a little confusing. I also thought I was getting a different kind of book from the blurb to what I actually got.
Good narrator

This book bounces back and forth between present time and the past. At first, it was a little difficult to follow along with and it started off kind of slow. It then took off and held my attention thanks to its cleverly crafted twists and turns that kept me guessing until the very end. The complex relationships kept me engaged, but the ending left me feeling a bit unsettled which is why I’m giving this book 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to receive and review this ARC.

The prologue for this book had me hyped! I thought we were in for a super fun thriller but instead it spiraled into a bunch of confusing side plots with so many POV’s and lots of time hopping. I hope that the actual published audiobook has the chapters labeled with the characters names and dates so it’s easy to reference when needed. I do, however, feel like the last few hours got more interesting. If not for the last sentence in the prologue and a need to know who it was, I probably wouldn’t have finished this one. I think it would be easier to follow in physical form.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an early copy of this book!

3.5 ⭐️ Rounded up
This one was hard for me to decide on the rating. There were so many characters it was a little hard to keep up for about half the book. There was some ick for me personally but I won’t elaborate because of spoilers.

It was also a little slow paced for my liking of a “thriller” but overall it was an okay read for me.

Publish date 8/20/24
Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately I struggled really hard with this one. The description sounded like we were going to be jumping into a woman who gets her dream like and finds out it's all a creepy facade. That should have been a great story that grabs you from the beginning but instead we start with a lot of stuff about the whole preforming/concert pianist situation which was REALLY boring. Then we moved on to the search for her birth mother which was also REALLY boring. It just took a long time to get where it was going. It was very character focused rather than having events that move the plot forward and since I didn't like the char acters it was a bit of a slog for me. I do love the cover though. 10/10. Would definitely buy it at the book store based on that alone.