I really enjoyed this one! It was fast-paced with a twist I didn't see coming! I will definitely be reading more from this author

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Genre: 🔪 Thriller
Recommend:✅

“The Locked Ward” was a good thriller although it was slightly formulaic, formulas for thrillers work for a reason and Sarah Pekkanen never disappoints. The setting and story were original though inside the normal beats so it did keep me interesting! I finished it very quickly and did find myself needing to know what happened. And thank God for the epilogue because I needed a few loose ends tied up!

Georgia is a wealthy wedding planner who finds herself in a psych ward after being an accused of murdering her sister. She had only one person to reach out too, someone she is connecting too but never met, Mandy. She had to convince Mandy to help her while also continuing to keep up the facade that she is disassociated so she’s not sent to jail.

Parts of this one were a little wild and far fetched. But, overall, I liked it and would recommend it for a quick thriller read!

You’ll love this book if you love:
✅Sister Stories
✅Fucked Up Familes
✅Unreliable Narrators

“I guess when everything shatters, you try to hold onto whatever fragments remain.”

It’s hard to find time to read these days with a toddler and a newborn, so I was very excited that @StMartinsPress and @NetGalley provided me an advance copy of The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen (thank you!).

The story was enough to keep me interested, but I wasn’t overly invested. I struggled with this book because I didn’t really connect with the main characters at all.

The Locked Ward will be out August 5th, 2025.

Mandy had always believed she was an only child. Raised by loving adoptive parents, Mandy knows nothing about the existence of a twin until Georgia contacts her out of the blue, looking for Mandy’s help to prove that she is innocent of murder. Georgia is being held on a locked mental health ward pending assessment to determine her sanity and fitness to stand trial in the murder of her sister Annabelle. But Georgia has powerful enemies that want to see her locked away, so Mandy had better act quickly.

This is a fast-paced thriller with short chapters that alternates between reflections on Mandy and Georgia’s past and current events. There are red herrings which occasionally lead Mandy off the right trail, but she persists, and in the process, becomes much closer to her newfound sibling. The conclusion ties things together in a satisfying way. This is a solid thriller, and fans of Ruth Ware or Louise Candlish will enjoy this one.

A fast-paced psychological thriller mixed with complex family dynamics, The Locked Ward was absolutely captivating—I couldn’t put it down! From the very first chapter, Sarah Pekkanen’s writing had me completely hooked.

Told through dual POVs from Mandy and Georgia, alternating between past and present, the narrative strikes the perfect balance—revealing just enough to keep the tension high without ever giving too much away. One unexpected twist after another kept me guessing right until the very last page.

Sarah Pekkanen has once again proven herself a master of the thriller genre. She’s firmly secured her spot on my list of must-read authors! If you love gripping psychological thrillers, make sure The Locked Ward is on your radar when it releases on August 5, 2025.

Many thanks to #NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Sarah Pekkanen for the ARC. My opinions are my own and freely expressed.

#BookReview #PsychologicalThriller #SarahPekkanen #NetGalleyReads #StMartinsPress #ARCReview #TheLockedWard #MustReadThriller #BookstagramReviews

Sarah Pakkanen is a stand-out author in the thriller genre. I have found all the books I have read by her to be completely bingeable, engaging, and an overall fun time. The Locked Ward, her newest out on August 5th, hit just the same way.

Pick this one up if you like:

-Locked Psychiatric Ward setting
-Secret twins separated at birth
-Short, completely bingeable chapters
-Dual POV, one for each sister

I personally like to go into mystery and thrillers as blind as I can be, so I try to leave out as much about the story in my reviews as possible. But I will say, I really loved how we got to learn about each sister through their alternating POVs. I will say that that was the standout part of the story for me. We have one sister who is locked up for the suspected murder of her other sister and the other who she calls in to help unravel the story and prove her innocence. Honestly, the whole buildup in this story worked for me!

As an avid thriller reader, I can honestly say the buildup was great, but the ending and big reveal fell a little flat for me. While the story was tied up well, it just felt a little rushed and anticlimactic overall. I don’t want that to dissuade you from picking this one up, because I am still so glad I read it and continue to look forward to Sarah Pekkanen’s work.

I was looking forward to reading this book, as I have really enjoyed some of this author's past work. However, this one ended up not being a favorite of mine. Some of the things that I did enjoy was the setting of the "locked ward" and the element of twin sisters who didn't know one another. What I ended up not being fond of was how the story seemed to come just short of of being eerie and creepy by falling back on a political villain. So, while there were elements that I enjoyed, I found myself feeling disinterested by the ending after it seemed to fall a bit flat.

𝑾𝒆'𝒓𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒓𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔.

One sister is locked in a psych ward, accused of murdering the other. Why did this case make headlines when jealous siblings spiral out of control every day? Georgia Worthington was adopted as a newborn by a wealthy, prominent couple, and the media spun the narrative that she was insane with jealousy over her younger sister, the couple's biological child. Accounts of Georgia's outbursts and violent attacks upon her sibling were everywhere, and a jury has found her not guilty by reason of insanity, hence her confinement to a psych ward.

Georgia wants to talk to just one person--her biological twin sister Mandy, who had no idea of Georgia's existence. Before you roll your eyes at the familiar trope, let me tell you that it absolutely worked for this plot! Is Mandy uncovering the true mastermind behind this murder, or is she playing a dangerous game with someone who is a master of deception?

The older I get, the longer my list of irrational fears becomes, and being wrongfully committed to a psych ward has made my list within the last few years. The research the author did was evident, and she does not rely on stereotypes of mental illness to further her plot. This was a meticulous, well-crafted thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed. Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the early copy. At the time this review was written, this title was expected to publish on August 5, 2025.

I have been a long time fan of Sarah’s writing and The Locked Ward was no exception. I love the dual POV between the two sisters: Georgia, who is accused of murder and Mandy, who tries to find out who’s responsible while also learning secrets from her past. With high society players involved and the stakes being even higher, can Mandy figure out what really happened or is Georgia spinning a twisty tale of deceit? I was hooked from the start and couldn’t stop myself from flying through the short chapters. The Locked Ward comes out on Aug 5 2025 - mark your calendars!!

Another twisty mystery from Sarah Pekkanen. I always enjoy her books, and I think any fan of this genre will agree. While not necessarily my favorite of hers, it was still entertaining with some shocking moments.

Thank you to Netgally and St. Martin’s Press for the advanced copy

3.5 stars.

This had me hooked from the very beginning. The second I read the synopsis I had to start reading right away. And while this is great, going between the twins and showing us each of their lives, - the mystery at the end fell a little flat and anti-climatic. Overall it was a good, fast paced, fun read.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, SMP Early Readers, NetGalley and Sarah Pekkanen for access to this e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of this book was so interesting and it didn’t disappoint. This is not the first book I’ve read by this author and I’ve really become a fan! I loved the psychological aspect of this as someone who works in mental health and thought it was well written with lots of great twists and turns! Overall, another fantastic read from Sarah Pekkanen.

Thank you so much for this ARC! Sarah Pekkanen is an auto request author for me. This premise was SO good and totally caught my attention.

I loved the story told between the two sisters - one fighting for her life and the other assisting in the unraveling of the murder and her past. Mandy's story was so enjoyable to read and I really felt for her as she learned about her parents and the history of how her and Georgia were separated. Georgia was an interesting person and had to play it smart in the hospital.

The big reveal fell a bit flat for me. It was fairly obvious throughout. The killer was also a disappointment to me.

While this was not my favorite Pekkanen book, I am still a forever fan!

Oh. My. Freaking. GOSH!!! Pekkanen has outdone herself, which I didn’t think was possible after House of Glass! I have loved her for years and years but my goodness she just keeps writing better and better novels! I loved the alternating POV between Georgia and Mandy and I loved the unique twist of her using second person perspective on Georgia’s chapters to highlight her state of mind. Absolutely brilliant! I was so caught up in trying to get ahead of one massive twist that I totally missed the big whammy! (Don’t even bother trying to guess what it is…)
This book is definitely going on my list of books to recommend! Beyond brilliance!

“The Locked Ward” by Sarah Pekkanen delves into the psychological complexities of Georgia Worthington, a young woman confined to a mental institution after being accused of murdering her sister. Adopted into a prominent and wealthy family at birth, Georgia finds herself entangled in a web of suspicion as the biological daughter of the family is found dead, and she is at the scene covered in her blood. Her desperate plea for assistance leads her to reconnect with her twin sister, Amanda, whom she was separated from at birth. Amanda doesn’t even know she had a twin, let along one accused of murder. She feels strangely drawn to her new sister, but are Georgia’s intentions as pure as she claims they are?

I worked in a psych unit and I really appreciated how accurate this novel is. It can be really frustrating to read an inaccurate novel but this book really delivered and Sarah Pekkanen definitely did her research! I devoured this book within 24 hours of starting it. I recommend this novel for fans of Sarah Pekkanen’s previous works and enthusiasts of psychological thrillers in general.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this novel. “The Locked Ward” by Sarah Pekkanen will be published on 8/5/2025.

Sarah Pekkanen writes such good thrillers. I like her slow burn style. This was pretty good, I enjoyed it for the most part! 3.5 stars!

All in all, the plot of this one was entertaining. I have a few stylistic questions, like why each characters story was told from a different storytelling perspective, but I still enjoyed this story. I’m a bit burnt out on thrillers constantly including twins as a twist so it was refreshing to see them used in a different way. The reveal was definitely not something I had considered so I think the author pulled those strings effectively and didn’t leave too many loose threads.

This reminded me of a Frieda McFadden book and I enjoyed it! I thought it was fast paced and there were times when I didn't want to put it down. I did feel like parts of it were predictable, but I did enjoy it overall! Thank you NetGalley! 4 stars!

I was INTO this one. Omg. I thought the storyline was so good and I couldn’t put it down!! Very eager to keep reading- the ending was so good!

A fast paced exciting thriller!

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