Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for the ARC of this audiobook for my honest review

The title is right. Assume nothing. I think I guessed absolutely nothing in this book till it was blatantly obvious. It was so good. I love the characters, the plot is so unique. I definitely recommend this ! I was shocked the whole way through.

This was a fun mystery read! Kat has been obsessed with Alik Lisser ever since he solved her mother’s murder. When he offers her the chance to see how he works, will the obsession grow or will the mystery deepen? I listened to the audiobook and the narrator did an amazing job of bringing the characters and story to life, so I would highly suggest the audiobook for this one!

My first Joshua Corin read (I love finding new authors) was this thriller – Assume Nothing – and I was stunned at what a superb story he crafted. The protagonist, Kat McCann, is a teenager who survived her mother’s murder by her father. Now, ten years later, she lives with her aunt and uncle in Boston. When she feels compelled to attend a presentation at Harvard by Alik Lisser, the famous Austrian criminologist who solved her mother’s murder and implicated her father, she becomes reacquainted with him. Kat’s troubles begin as she quickly learns that he is not the man she or the world thinks he is. Everyone around her is now in danger until she can find a way to implicate him for his evils that he has carefully guarded from everyone in the world – except her.
If you love a great old-fashioned mystery wrapped succinctly into a thrilling narrative, then Assume Nothing must go into your “to-be-read” pile. Corin has given us a wonderful page-turner that will leave you on the edge of your seat as you tread carefully along with Kat on her precarious journey. I highly recommend it!

I loved reading this book! The synopsis sounded really good, to have her mother's murder being solved by a famous detective who had his cases novelised-where her dad was the killer? Yeah, I had to read her story, and it was so good!

I could really see Kat as a person, with her anxiety about crowds, and her love of mystery books, including Carissa Miller, the author that wrote a story on the case of her parents. That her home life is awful because her uncle is abusive and a drunk, but since he's a cop, and it's the 90's, her and her aunt just have to live with it.

The dynamics between her and Alik where really interesting, because he wants her questioning things, to investigate. Her questions about her father's case, well, he wants her to ask those. Adding in this whole cast, an aunt who was Kat's mom's sister, Dev from the online group on fans of Carissa Miller, and a strange boy at school, this cast was so great, and I really enjoyed how they all dealt with the mystery.

This went in a wildly different direction then I thought that it would, with the case that she has to solve? Yeah, that was pretty shocking, and I really enjoyed watching as Kat deal with it. It really took her to her limits, but I loved how she dealt with it!

Loved reading this book, and I would love to read more by Joshua Corin!

Joshua Corin’s Assume Nothing delivers a unique and gripping thriller that hooks readers from the very beginning. The story plunges us into the world of Kat, whose mother’s death raises immediate questions and suspicions, setting the tone for a narrative full of twists and turns. Corin wastes no time in pulling the rug out from under the reader, with the first major twist arriving early on and signaling that nothing in this story is as it seems.

At its heart, the novel is a relentless exploration of survival. Kat’s journey is one of unraveling buried truths while navigating dangers that keep the reader constantly on edge. Corin’s ability to create suspense and maintain a high-stakes atmosphere is commendable, making the book difficult to put down.

That said, there are moments where the pacing feels uneven. Some sections of the story come across as scattered or drawn out, which slightly detracts from the otherwise tightly woven narrative. However, these lapses are forgivable, given the overall sense of intrigue and excitement the book provides.

In summary, Assume Nothing is a fun and unpredictable read that stands out in the thriller genre. While not without its flaws, its originality and fast-paced plot make it a memorable experience for readers seeking a story that keeps them guessing until the very end.

Thanks to Brilliance Audio & NetGalley for providing an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Somehow I missed that this is a YA thriller, but now that I've read it, it makes sense. It's (obviously) told from the POV of a teen, and does a good job of capturing the voice of a somewhat immature 16 year old. Possibly not a 16 year old in the '90s, but good enough for me.

Kat, whose mom was murdered when she was 6, and whose dad was found guilty of the crime and then later died in prison, now lives with her aunt & uncle in Dorchester, MA. She's a high schooler with few friends, owing to that her classmates are aware of her backstory and she has significant social anxiety - being in crowds is upsetting for her. She spends most of her time in a chat room dedicated to the work of Carissa Miller, a sort of Agatha Christie type whose own Poirot is a character called Adrian Lescher, based on real-life detective Alik Lisser, who just happens to be the world-renowned detective who solved Kat's mom's murder and sent Kat's dad to prison. Kat's mom's case was even dramatized by Miller in one of her books.

One of the other chat room denizens is Dev, who also lives in the area; when he sees that Alik Lisser is doing a public speaking event, he invites Kat to attend with him. They do so, and while Dev meets Alik after the show to get autographs, Kat hangs back, suddenly shy. To her shock, Lisser calls her at her aunt's house a day or two after the show and invites her (and her aunt) to spend her Christmas break with him in his house in England, ostensibly to discuss her mother's case and for her to ask any questions she might want. Kat is thrilled to be in the presence of her idol and to be away from her abusive uncle, but things take a turn and Kat's worldview is deeply changed after the visit. Plus, Dev doesn't believe she went, so she has to swipe a digital camera from the Photography class at school to provide proof ...

Others have mentioned that it's not very believable that a teen with social anxiety and 10 years of unaddressed trauma could comport herself in the manner necessary for the latter part of the story, and that's fair. Still, it's pretty satisfying to read anyway. My only complaint about it was that it seemed to come together VERY quickly after many many chapters of buildup.

Lauren Fortgang did a fine job of capturing the voice of a '90s teen; less good at approximating a Viennese or Southie accent (Kat's aunt mostly gives Brooklyn to my ears).

3.5 stars rounded up

I couldn’t get into it at all. The pacing felt off and I just wasn’t interested. I feel like thrillers need to grab attention right away. This one didn’t.
DNF

Decent, but some of the characterization did not ring true.



Review copy provided by publisher.

*Assume Nothing* by Joshua Corin presents an intriguing premise—a young woman, obsessed with the detective who solved her mother’s murder and implicated her father, delves into a new mystery that blurs the lines between truth and fiction. However, despite its compelling concept, the novel falters in execution. The story feels disjointed, jumping between timelines and perspectives in a way that disrupts the narrative flow and makes it difficult for readers to stay fully engaged. The complex layers of deception and revelation might have been more effective if they had been more tightly woven together, but instead, the plot sometimes feels muddled and confusing, leaving readers grasping for clarity.

Additionally, the audiobook experience of *Assume Nothing* suffers due to the narrator’s delivery, which fails to elevate the story’s tense atmosphere, and includes some odd, misplaced accent.

The pacing feels off, and the narrator’s tone often lacks the emotional depth required to convey the subtle nuances of the characters’ internal struggles. This can make it hard for listeners to connect with the protagonist, Kat McCann, who, despite her intriguing background, comes across as somewhat flat and unrelatable. The disjointed nature of the plot, coupled with a less-than-compelling narration, makes *Assume Nothing* a challenging read or listen, even for those drawn to psychological thrillers or mysteries.