This was a fast paced propulsive thriller where everyone had something to hide - things that were worth killing for.

No one is who they say they are and everyone has a reason to murder

Jamie Lynn Hendrick's Their Double Lives was an absolute roller coaster. From beginning to end, through every timeline and POV, I had an absolute blast reading this one.

📚 PRE-PUBLICATION BOOK TOUR BOOK REVIEW 📚

Their Double Lives By Jaime Lynn Hendricks
Publication Date: May 20, 2025
Publisher: Penzler Publishers | Scarlet

📚MY RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Thank you to Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for inviting me to be a part of this book tour, and to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers | Scarlet for this #gifted e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

📚MY REVIEW:

I LOVE books with twists and turns that knock me sideways and leave me scrambling to pick my jaw up off the floor. Their Double Lives, Jaime Lynn Hendricks's upcoming release, did exactly that and left me absolutely gobsmacked.

Hendricks delivers one of the twistiest domestic thrillers I've read in recent memory! Utterly unputdownable, the story is centered around a premise of morally questionable plotlines. How far might someone go to save what they love? And how far might they go to avenge someone they loved? A detailed synopsis is too much to explain here and honestly, I think it's better not to know too much before you dive in yourself.

This book has alternating chapters from multiple POVs and is told in multiple timelines of Then and Now. The main characters' storylines traverse down pathways across time until they converge in ways that blew my mind because I just didn't see them coming.

There are a plethora of unlikeable characters, willing to do despicable things for the self-determined "right" reasons...and yet somehow, I found myself feeling empathy for most of them and cheering them on -- even though I knew it would be impossible for everyone to end up with a happy ending.

Again and again, Hendricks wove a tapestry of motivations and intentions within these characters that left my head spinning at every unexpected turn. And after this brilliantly twisty ride, I thought the ending was so supremely satisfying. Bravo. If you're a fan of twisty domestic thrillers that keep you wondering who the story's real "villain" is, be sure you get your hands on this book as soon as you can!

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Thank you so much for this ARC!

WOW, this is definitely my favorite Jaime Lynn Hendricks book now. So incredibly fun. Amazing characters, all so good that I looked forward to each person's point of view. This book was tense, sexy and full of mystery. Love when you're not sure who the bad guy is - such a fun ride.

Hey, may I do some screaming now?
Ok, thanks, then hear me out, hear me screaming here YOU DON’T WANT TO MISS THIS BOOK! YOU WANT TO READ THIS ONE, TRUST ME!

Did you know that it is possible to write a book where you (me, that is) somehow love *almost* all the characters? Even the most manipulative and evil ones? You read and you wonder and you find them relatable and you root for them all, and even though you know that there is absolutely no way on earth for this to end well for any of the involved ones, you still keep hoping that it somehow works out – or at least goes downhill in some super epic manner.
Oh, and downhill it goes. And goes bad. Good and bad at the same time, bad in a good way, good in a bad way. And yet, it all somehow happens in a very satisfying way.

And, to top off the list of the reasons why this book is an absolute must-read: its pub date is my birthday. It’s in May. I know it’s a long wait, I know. But it will be totally worth it.

Thank you Scarlet for the gifted digital ARC!

This is a fun, twisty, fast-paced popcorn thriller that is easy to binge in one sitting.

I would recommend this one to fans of:

-Dogs (IYKYK)
-Multiple narrators
-Characters keeping secrets
-Books with "everyone sucks here" vibes

I will continue to read anything and everything Jaime writes and I'm grateful I got my hands on a copy of this one so early!

Their Double Lives pub date: May 20.

Another binge-worthy thriller from Hendricks! This is one of those stories where it’s absolutely enjoyed best if you go into it blind. The characters are the perfect mix of morally grey and righteous. I loved the multiple POVs, the dual timelines, and how every new chapter kept me guessing. Revenge, murder, deception, this one has it all. I highly recommend adding Their Double Lives to your TBR!

Thank you to NetGalley, Penzler Publishers, and Scarlet for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love Jaime as a person and author and was so excited for this one! Their Double Lives has multiple POVs that always help draw me into a book! The characters are morally gray and seriously flawed! So, while not relatable, I enjoyed reading about them getting themselves into trouble! I would say this is a fun, bingeable, popcorn thriller, that’s Jamie’s fans will enjoy!

Kim's dog needs surgery, but being a waitress, there's no way she can afford it. Soon, a burner phone is left on her doorstep, and when she answers it, the person on the other end tells her he will pay for the surgery if she does one thing. Is she capable of murdering someone to save her dog?
It turns out that the target is her high school boyfriend. She finds herself unable to go through with it, but when his fiance dies instead, she realises that someone is playing games. And she wants no part of it.

This was such a great story. The stories all came together so well, filled with twists, most of which I didn't see coming. Each character in the story was flawed, with their own reasons for doing whatever it was they were doing, some more justified than others. It was great reading from each characters POV, but the stress I felt reading each one making their plans had me wanting to climb in and just tell everyone what was going on.
A great read, and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Another great novel by Hendricks! It’s full of lies, deceit and so much of “who done it”. I never truly knew where this story was going. I also loved the background of doing all of this to save her dog . Great novel! I can’t wait for the next.

So many characters, so many double lives! Everything seems straightforward as we meet Kim, Anthony and PJ. Ron and Carla too, seem normal enough. But as the story goes on, it becomes evident that everyone is hiding something. And as the reveals begin, I know you will be excited as I was. With dual timelines, short chapters and a creative and original story, it was so very hard to put this one down once I started. I'm deliberately keeping this review vague because the less you know about the book, the better. If you love twisty thrillers, you will need to pick this one up. 

All the stars for this beauty!

Wicked and addictive. This is a story that DEMANDS to be consumed in one sitting.

This is my favorite Jaime Lynn Hendricks book yet. For fans of bingeable popcorn thrillers this is for you. There is only one character that I can guarantee you will cheer for – Murphy the rescued Goldendoodle. From the beginning to the end, it’s impossible to pick a side. Layers of scheming, chaos and betrayal will keep the pages turning.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzler Publishing for providing this book, with my honest review below.

I love a good surprise and Their Double Lives was exactly that in that I went in not quite knowing what to expect but anticipating a mob tale or romance thinly veiled under a mystery. But I was delighted to get two women’s perspectives (and more) in this satisfying mystery that absolutely would not let me go as the puzzle I was solving (because you’re that engaged and brought along by the author) got more enjoyable.

Firstly, we have Kim who will do anything to save her puppy’s life (to which I agree, though unlike Kim I may have just slipped the poison to my high school ex). Then we have PJ, the bubbly fiancée who is not at all what she seems and ends up dead - instead of the real target. As we learn what brought PJ to current day and how Kim is dealing with the fall out we are presented the most entertaining mystery that has an ending that I had hoped for, but the journey getting there was too good to end so soon!

Absolutely pick this up, you’ll have so much fun. No one is completely as they appear and nothing happens exactly as you’d expect, but everything you’ll have hoped for will ultimately happen (including a HEA for the puppy, the most important part).

This was a fun read! I found it super bingeable, entertaining, and easy to read. There are plenty of characters you will love to hate and a few you will just love! I love when the bad guys get their just deserts, and I’m always on board for main characters who will do anything for their animals! 4.5⭐️s rounded down.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers for an ARC of this novel.

Loved this book! Couldn’t put it down. It is full of betrayal, deceptions, twists and turns. One of Jamie Lynn Hendricks best.

As a dog lover I fully support the FMC and her dedication to do *anything* to save her dog's life. Me too Kim, me too. I inhaled this book because Jaime knows how to make them juicy! Each character we met had their own treasure box of secrets and I loved watching the trainwreck unfold. Seeing the characters and their stories all come together at the end was perfection and let's just say, always trust a woman who puts her dog first.

Shout-out to the real Kim Valva who had the main character named after her!

What would you do to protect your dog? Commit a crime? Well that is what is presented to Kim...a crime for money to help her dog get the surgery he needs to survive.

Their Double Lives by Jaime Lynn Hendricks is an absolute whirlwind of twists, secrets, and moral dilemmas that had me hooked from the start. Kim Valva, a struggling waitress, faces an impossible choice: commit a crime to save her beloved dog or walk away from the chance to save him and change her life. But when things don’t go as planned, she finds herself caught in a web of deceit and danger that only gets more shocking with each page.

I did not put a detailed synopsis because I went in blind and I am so glad I did! The story unfolds through multiple POVs and alternates between past and present with those characters. This story unfolds so well and keeps the pace fast and the suspense high—I devoured it in two sittings! As a dog lover, I felt for Kim’s desperate situation. Jaime Lynn Hendricks is an auto-read author for me; her books never miss.

Thanks so much to Penzler Publishers, the author, and NetGalley for my early copy. This one hits shelves on May 20, 2025—don’t miss it!

Doing everything for the sake of your dog—even becoming a killer—might remind you of a John Wick movie, but trust me, this book is nothing like that. And no, it’s not the plot of Ballerina either, because the potential killer here is a woman! This is one of those addictive books that, once you start, you simply can’t put down. You’ll find yourself flipping the pages faster and faster, eager to discover what happens next. Will karma take its toll, or will the bad guys get away? It’s a highly entertaining, twist-filled game that will keep you guessing.

Their Double Lives is a fast-paced, deliciously twisty mystery filled with unreliable and morally gray characters. The story alternates between the past and present, starting at a New Jersey country club where we meet the main players. Kim, a waitress by night and graphic designer by day, works hard to make ends meet and care for her dog, the one thing keeping her going. One day, she receives a mysterious envelope at her apartment door containing a burner phone and an offer she can’t refuse: the money she desperately needs for her dog’s surgery, in exchange for slipping a pill into a customer’s drink to kill them.

At first, this seems unthinkable. But when you’re alone, with no one else to rely on, you might be tempted to cross the line to save the one being that’s never betrayed you—your pet. Kim reluctantly accepts the offer, but two things catch her completely off guard. First, her target is Tony Fiore—now known as Anthony Fuller—a high school boyfriend she dumped due to his criminal record. And second, even though she aborts her mission at the last second, Anthony’s fiancée, PJ, drops dead that same night. What Kim doesn’t know is that PJ had plans to kill Anthony, too. Yes, the plot thickens into a tangled web of crazy schemes.

As Anthony grieves over PJ’s body, Kim scrambles to dispose of the poison she was sent to use, and police begin questioning the club’s patrons. Among them are Anthony’s boss, Ron Boswell, and Ron’s over-the-top wife, Carla, who acts like she’s stepped straight out of Real Housewives of New Jersey.

From there, the story alternates between multiple perspectives and timelines as Kim continues receiving envelopes from the mysterious stranger targeting Anthony. Why did PJ plan to kill her fiancé? Was she a simple gold digger, or was she hiding more sinister secrets? Who actually killed PJ? And who is the stranger pulling the strings? This book is a labyrinth of twists and revelations as we uncover who the true villain—or villanelle—really is.

Overall: This is a perfect popcorn read—fast-paced, twisty, and utterly unputdownable! Jaime Lynn Hendricks once again proves she’s a must-read author. I highly recommend this to anyone seeking a fun, suspenseful mystery with plenty of surprises.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers/Scarlet for providing this addictive mystery in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Another binge worthy read from Jaime Lynn Hendricks. Once you pick this book up it s so hard to put down, you have been warned!!

I really do not know how to talk about this book without spoilers. The less you know the better for this one. You want all the shocks, you want all the gasp out loud twists. You don’t want to know who the villains are and who you can trust. All I will say is that I loved Kim. A woman who will do anything for her dog, Murphy. That is my kind of person. My parents had a dog called Murphy who is no longer with us so it was lovely to think about him while reading this book.

Just read this book. If you have read this author before you will know that you are in for a treat, a wild ride that will keep you guessing. I stayed up late to finish it and I am not mad about losing sleep.

Thanks so much to Penzler Publishers and Thriller Book Lovers The Pulse for my early copy of this book. I just had to read it straight away. Publishes on May 20th.

this was a great book!! It was full of lots of twists and turns, lots of emotions, and it really was like a rollercoaster. I think the pacing was good, the characters and motives were good, and the thrilling parts really did make you tense while reading.


Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complimentary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!