I was so disappointed. The concept of this book was so interesting but that wasn't enough to save it for me. Maybe it was lost in translation?

DNF @ 6%.

I genuinely kept trying to restart this book, and I just can’t. I think maybe it’s just a me thing, but I’m very thrown off.

Regardless, I am SO thankful for the opportunity to try to review and read this e-arc from Sandra J. Paul and Skyscape (publisher) via Net Galley. ❤️

I love that you get both sides of the story between the "best" friends. I really believed Syl's version to be honest, because in both of their stories, Viola wasn't that good of a person.

And Love Hill is not really a town that makes you happy. You can't be yourself in this town, because the people who live there only trust themselves and they like to gossip when someone does something wrong in their eyes. It is a rich town so if you don't have a lot of money you won't get in there.

You could choose which side you started with first and in the middle is what really happened between the two friends.

I was very shocked when I started reading the middle part and I really thought this couldn't really have happened.

if you love crime scene books then I would recommend this book for you. And you really need to think twice sometimes of who had killed Syl.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and author for this arc.

Getting both sides of the coin is scary and can leave you wondering at all times . I love the way this was written , being able to choose who’s story or side you wanted to hear first , and go to believe ugh this was super cool !

I loved this one and I also love the cover please keep it and thank you for allowing me to read this book!!! I enjoyed it to the very last page I love how everything came together it was a page turner

An excellent read for any and all readers! Author comes at you with both barrels and knocks you out of your shoes! Great job fleshing out all the characters. I give this book FIVE stars! Definitely recommend!

A really interestingly written and structured book. I've never read a book where you can choose the structure of how you read it.
A book of two stories, there are always two. Perspectives and in this book we have both Violets and Syl's. But whose side of the story will you start with? One of them is killed, but who is to blame?
It was interesting to get both perspectives but I did at times find it slightly repetitive. At times it almost felt like a diary entry that you were reading.
However, there is a great plot twist at the end which ups the anty and keeps you really engaged all the way until the end.

Dead Girls Don’t Talk is a gripping psychological thriller that dives deep into the haunting secrets of a small town, and the chilling consequences of truth left untold. Sandra J. Paul masterfully crafts an atmospheric mystery, blending suspense, emotion, and unexpected twists into a fast-paced narrative that’s hard to put down.

The story revolves around a mysterious death and the unraveling of dark truths through the eyes of a protagonist who may—or may not—be reliable. Paul’s writing pulls you into a world where no one is quite what they seem, and silence becomes just as dangerous as any spoken word. With vivid descriptions and sharp dialogue, she keeps readers on edge, questioning every character’s motives.

What sets this book apart is its layered storytelling. It doesn’t just deliver thrills—it explores deeper themes like guilt, grief, and the complexities of human relationships. The pacing is tight, the characters are intriguing, and the final reveal is both satisfying and haunting.

If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers with an emotional edge, Dead Girls Don’t Talk will stay with you long after you’ve turned the last page.

Dead Girls Don’t Talk is a thrilling page-turner packed with unexpected twists. I loved the unique narrative structure where you can choose whose perspective to follow first—it added such a fresh dynamic to the story! The book is an easy read, full of suspense, and never lets up with one plot twist after another. It’s fast-paced, unpredictable, and kept me hooked from start to finish. A must-read for anyone who loves a good mystery!

Ohhhh where do I start? I loved this book! Two girls in different situations and different points of view. Which is the truth? I loved every second of this one! I'm a sucker for books that have two or more points of view throughout the book and this one was no exception! Had me thinking I knew, then knowing I didn't know, suspecting, and second guessing all the way through! It was all tied up neatly in a bow at the end. Definitely will be recommended from me to whoever will listen.

Dead Girls Don’t Talk has one of those concepts that immediately caught my attention: two girls, one dead and one missing, and two versions of the same twisted story. Told through dual POVs—Syl, the dead girl found behind the wheel of her best friend’s car, and Viola, the one who disappeared without a trace—the book gives readers the option to choose which side of the story they want to read first. That interactive structure alone had me intrigued, and I appreciated the author’s attempt to play with format and perspective.

At its core, this is a story about a complicated, messy friendship. Syl and Viola have a bond that toes the line between deep sisterhood and unhealthy obsession. They live in a small town where everyone has secrets, and both girls carry more emotional baggage than they let on. The unraveling of what led to that fatal night is slow and layered with misdirection, jealousy, and the fallout of being a teen girl in a place that doesn't give you room to breathe.

That said, the unique structure was a bit of a double-edged sword. While the dual narrative setup was fresh, it also made the story harder to follow than it needed to be—especially with the frequent jumps in time and perspective. I found the beginning a bit disorienting, and it took me a while to connect with either character. The emotional depth is there, but it sometimes got lost under the shifting timelines and occasionally flat dialogue. Once the story settled into its rhythm, I found myself more engaged, but it did take some patience to get there.

Still, Dead Girls Don’t Talk offers something different in the YA psychological thriller space. It plays with perception, loyalty, and how far people will go to protect—or destroy—each other. If you’re into unreliable narrators, dark coming-of-age stories, and don’t mind putting in a bit of effort to follow a nonlinear plot, this one may be worth a read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Skyscape for the advance reader’s copy!

4★

Wow! This was such an interesting read. It’s a story about the death of a girl, Syl, and her ex-best friend, Viola, who is the alleged culprit of said girls’ death. This is a book where half of it is written in the perspective of the dead girl, and the other half of the best friend.

What’s super cool about this book is you can choose whose perspective to read first, and then read the other before moving on to the ending. I decided to go with Syl’s perspective first, and then Viola’s, which I think is the best way to read it.

This was an intriguing read and I sped through it. I didn’t wanna put it down. I was captivated by the start, especially with the story of how the friendship ended, and how one of them ended up dead.

Honestly, the ending was so shocking. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t that! There was plot twist after plot twist!

My only negative, is that I think the ending was a little bit rushed. I wanted to really see things play out afterwards, and it was not a huge revelation. I was dumbfounded by the actions of two specific characters, and how they made the other out to be the bad guy.

I was honestly conflicted by the very end on who I really believed, but overall, it was a fun and interesting read!

The set up of this book with the dual viewpoints is a home run. I loved the clear set up of the dual POVs. I couldn't devour this fast enough. The twists were diabolical. Enjoyed from front to back.

This was peak freak4freak friendship. Two best friends, one dead, another missing - two sides of the story. Sounds like the perfect setup for a mind-blowing read, right? And honestly, it was.

The book is split into Syl’s and Viola’s POVs, and you get to decide which one to read first—the dead girl’s version of events or the one who lived—super cool concept, had me hooked. The plot itself is solid, but the writing in the beginning felt kinda dry? It only started hitting when the vibe shifted to something more tense and gripping. After that, I was all in.

The constant timeline jumps were so confusing, I had to literally write down timestamps to keep track of what was happening when. But once I powered through that, the emotions started landing.

'Part Two' of Syl’s section, where she dives deep into her and Viola’s friendship (or how it began, at the very least), was chef’s kiss—the kind of bittersweet nostalgia that makes you want to text your childhood bestie ASAP 🥹

Plot twist after plot twist, tragedy after tragedy, and people keep dying 😭 this book does not let up. If you’re gonna pick this up, be prepared for it.

This was GOOD!! I loved the option it gave to choose who’s side of the story you could start with. I’ve not seen that before. The plot was there and I wasn’t expecting the ending but also I still didn’t trust V a lot .

I enjoyed this storyline and absolutely love the concept of a choose-your-own-adventure/choose-your-own-perspective book. I struggled to feel many aspects were believable though. For example, throwing in WhatsApp felt very random and out of touch with what conservative small town characters would do? Some of the dialogue felt very forced and unrealistic for how two teenagers who have a lot of shared history would interact. Overally, I did enjoy reading the book and it was a quick read. Many thanks to Skyscape and NetGalley for the advanced e-reader copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

An excellent read for any and all readers! Author comes at you with both barrels and knocks you out of your shoes! Great job fleshing out all the characters. I give this book FIVE stars! Definitely recommend!

There’s so much but so little going on here. A ton of ‘plot twists’ but nothing is fullllly fleshed out in my opinion. I understand that Viola is the villain but genuinely she is the WORST. Her one page ‘redemption’ was a fucking joke. The choose your own adventure aspect is interesting, but the only redeeming factor of this book.

Review also posted on goodreads.

2.75/5

I chose to read Syl's POV then Viola's POV, though it was an interesting option to read their parts in either order. Personally I found there to be too much repetition between the two POVs and not enough individual characterization. I would have appreciated more individual experiences for each girl to round out their motivations and decisions instead of repeating back the same scenes with barely any added internal character.

I found the scenes between Steve and Viola to sound more like a choppy interview rather than natural dialogue. It seemed too structured and their questions and answers alternating took me out of the narrative. The conversation between Annie and Syl flowed better and I was more immersed in their discussion.

Because of the amount of repetition between the two POVs, I found the second recounting of events (for me, from Viola's POV) to be unnecessary which is a bummer because I wanted to love the dual POVs. I wonder if I'd feel the same way if I'd switched the sequence and did Syl second?

Overall, I found the book anticlimactic and dull without a surprising twist or lasting story to recall back to. This wasn't a book for me.

Thanks to Skyscape and NetGalley for the ARC of this edition for my review.

A psychological thriller unlike any other, being available in a flipover edition that allows readers to choose which side of the book they want to read first. The concept itself is intriguing and makes for a riveting read where each side gradually reveals more about what really happened.

The novel follows two viewpoints—the Dead Girl and the Runner—unreliable narrators with something to hide. Their accounts don't quite coincide, and readers will have to piece together the truth themselves. The tension is nicely constructed, and the mystery of what went on in that car is compelling enough to keep the pages turning.

However, while the dual POV structure is an excellent hook, the execution doesn't entirely follow through. There are a few timeline and detail discrepancies that make the story feel disjointed in places, and the characters' motivations could have been explored more deeply. Instead of reading like two completely different stories, the tales too often read like they were merely filling in missing details rather than actively contradicting or clashing with each other.

The mood is assisted by the location—Harbour Hill, a small conservative town full of secrets—although the novel doesn't quite reach its potential. The conclusion, although attempting to be a shocking surprise, was somewhat of an anticlimax and left a few loose ends that could have been tied up better.

Overall, Dead Girls Don't Talk is a fast and fun read with a truly intriguing concept, but the execution doesn't entirely match up to its promise. If you enjoy thrillers with unreliable narrators and an unconventional narrative technique, it's worth checking out—just don't expect perfection.