Loved this book. So many twists and surprises. I didn't suspect what was happening and who was behind it. Recommend reading it.

Hannah is living a harried life - an unhappy marriage that she deals mostly with by drinking. When her college love turns up in town she is more than happy to meet him for a drink. Thomas brings back some of her wilder days however, and Hannah has a hard time turning down his requests. Through a series of flashbacks we are transported to their college days when a Dare game was their main obsession. Thomas disappeared for a reason however, and bringing back the Dare game is only opening a terrible can of worms. If you like a college reunion, Daring thrillers or just want a twisty story, Don't You Dare is for you! #Crookedlanebooks

This book was so captivating at the beginning. I love thrillers with an unreliable main character. The ending felt a bit rushed for me which is why I gave this 4/5. I will definitely be reading more of this author!

I just spent the past 10 minutes stalking Jessica Hamilton.

Don’t You Dare, is everything I never knew I needed.

I have always been a huge fan of college thrillers. I’m not sure it’s the nostalgia or the unrelenting mean girls that seem to appear within every college experience . Either way, I’m here for it.

This is not your run of the mill thriller. Narrated between past and present we follow along side Hannah (Henny).

Struggling within the walls of her home in a loveless marriage we see Hannah run straight into the arms of her old college flame, Thomas.

Now, here is where I tell you this book gets STEAMY and ohhh so hot . Ugh ok I just sounded like a menopausing cougar.

Anyway, back to the book.

This was a fast paced novel that came together for an explosive plot twist at the very end . I loved the “Then” chapters, that told the story leading up to a tragic event that led an indestructible friendship straight into chaos.

I’m on a roll but I’m not complaining … this is without a doubt a 5 star read and I am so excited to see what Jessica Hamilton comes out with next.

First I want to thank NetGalley for this ARC in turn for my honest review.

What a rollercoaster of a book! This book takes you through the POV Hannah and alternates from present to past. Hannah and her best friend Scarlett meet Thomas in college and they become an instant trio and develop a game of Dare. The book starts off with present day Hannah and how she is bordering on becoming an alcoholic due to events that have happened to her. It turns out her husband is really a jerk and basically making her stay in the marriage or he will take the kids from her. Then Thomas shows back up and it is proven that he was her first love and still is.

The book then goes into the past to provide details on what happened at college between Hannah, Scarlett and Thomas. The chapters go back and forth between present and past with just enough details that make you want to keep turning the pages to find out what happens next.

The plot twist at the end was not one I say coming. I thought I had it all figured out on who the "killer" was but I was completely wrong!

While I did go back and forth between liking Hannah and hating her based on her choices, she was interesting to read about. I did feel like Scarlett's role in the book was not really necessary at the end. But after reading the book, I do see where the author was going and needed her to show up and tie up some loose ends.

I recommend this book for anyone that likes physiological thrillers and want to have a quick read that keeps you guessing until the very end. Jessica Hamilton is a wonderful author and I will be looking up more books from her now.

DNF at 52%. I had a hard time getting into this one. I hated the characters for various reasons, and I really hate that it seemed like Hannah just kept making awful choices. Evan was horrible. Thomas was shady as heck. Scarlett seems like a sociopath. I feel like this was another unreliable narrator-type books, and I just couldn't go there. It also bugged me that Hannah hated being a SAHM so much and basically got drunk every night to deal with it? While ignoring the house? Why?

Thanks to Netgalley for the book to review.

I went into Don't You Dare expecting a thriller but it read more like a domestic drama with some romance, an albeit steamy one at that.

All the characters were unlikeable, and when I say all I'm including even the neighbors. They were all hypocrites and were all flawed. But it was like a train wreck you can't look away from, their lives were a mess and I couldn't stop reading into the drama.

I kept questioning everything. I didn't know who to trust, who was reliable and who had Hannah's best interests at heart, her husband, her childhood bestfriend or her college lover. One minute I think I had someone and something figured out and in the next chapter I was back to square one. I went through so many emotions reading this book and I'm still thinking about it after finishing it.

Despite not liking each characters actions, I was still hoping for a different ending and was disappointed with the one I got. For it to end the way it did, the conflict should have been introduced and explored more in the beginning, it felt rushed and unjustified and then everything got wrapped up in a neat little bow which just left a sour taste in my mouth.

All in all, this was a rollercoaster of a book that I couldn't put down, it kept me engaged the entire time and it was written very well, especially the timeline, it flowed going from Hannah's college years to the present. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

3.75 stars

Thank you Netgalley, Crooked Lane and Jessica Hamilton for the opportunity to read Don't You Dare.

This honestly felt a little like a Colleen Hoover book, which for me at least, is a compliment. It was more of a drama with a bit of mystery. While it wasn't what I expected and the game they were playing seemed a little immature for thirty something's, I still found myself really enjoying this. I mostly figured out the reveals but it didn't draw away from thrill of this. The ending still turned out brilliant with alot of emotion involved. Four Stars.

Thank you Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC.

When Hannah and Scarlett meet Thomas in college—the chemistry is instantaneous. They grow closer while playing the Daring Game, where each dare is riskier than the last. As the trio grows closer and jealousy develops, Scarlett dares Thomas one final time—a dare that ends in tragedy. When Thomas gets expelled from school and leaves without a trace, it seems like the Daring Game has finally ended.

Well well well, another new author to me and I am already a fan of Jessica Hamilton. Told from alternating POV's this had me hooked from the beginning. Nothing like a story with characters you don't really like but can't get enough of. Be warned there is a lot of sexual activity in this book but it did not put me off, really this is just part of this particular story and encompasses what is happening between these three friends.

I thought I had it all worked out and then along comes the final chapter, nope did not pick this one. These are the kind of books I like that keep you guessing and very much captivated my interest. If you are looking for a fast paced thriller and you have some time on your hands (mainly as once you pick it up you will want to finish it) I am sure you will be taken in with this book. Highly recommended.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy of the book in exchange for an honest unbiased review.

Not quite sure how to classify this book -- not quite a thriller, not really a romance. Regardless, I enjoyed it. Some of the plot twists seemed familiar, but the author did well to keep me engaged and interested in the story line.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Truth or dare without the truth. A game I would never want to play.
What a wicked twist on the childhood game. A quick and twisty read that I enjoyed.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

Already posted to Goodreads.
Will post to Amazon and Barnes and Noble on day of publication.

Oh my gosh! I am a huge fan of this book! Jessica Hamilton knocks it way out of the park. Non stop action. I read this in one day and could not bear to put it down. I will definitely be chasing more by this author. This was well written and expertly told. Just the perfect storm. Non stop tension, twists and turns. And jaw dropping reveals.
Highly recommend
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

I was expecting Don't You Dare to play out as a thriller, but in some ways it read much more like a slow burn romance. The book's main character, Hannah, is living a boring life with a husband she doesn't seem to love and two children that she barely acknowledges. Suddenly, her college flame, Thomas, rolls into town and she can't help but fall back into old habits. The book is separated into two timelines. The first is Hannah's present day life. The second is Hannah's college life with her best friend, Scarlett, and her first love, Thomas. In the college timeline, the reader learns that Hannah and her friends were obsessed with daring each other into strange situations. This daring game starts to interfere in Hannah's present life as well, but not to the extent that would really matter. What follows is the story of Hannah and Thomas rekindling their romance. Nothing thrilling occurs for the first 200+ pages of the book. To make matters worse, the ending (which reads like a big reveal) was not developed enough throughout the story to offer the reader a viable payoff. I'd recommend this more as a domestic drama, but not as a thriller.

Sometimes daring game can get out of control and ruin the lives of innocent people forever by making them pay more than they can ever imagine!

Well, I loved this book! This is unputdownable, addictive, extremely hot, heart throbbing psychological thriller meets erotic romance! There are lots of saucy love making scenes (including threesomes) The angsty love story hooks you up ! Betrayal, obsession, web of lies, tragedies blended into the mystery adroitly.

Especially unfinished love story between Thomas and Hannah a.k.a Henry ( named from nervous chicken character from a book) was heart wrenching! It truly affected me more than last Colho novel I’ve recently read!

The mystery kept me on my toes and twists were well developed. My only hesitation was the ending. In my opinion, one of the characters didn’t get what he/ she deserved! It wasn’t fair! And that pissed me off! ( when you read, you’ll understand what I mean)

But overall: this was tempting, moving, surprising page turner I highly enjoyed.

Here’s a quick recap of the plot;

Hannah: at the age of 36, with two daughters, a whining husband who is watching her every move like a hawk, trapped in a unhappy marriage as stay at home mom after a tragedy took her last piece of hope she kept!

She locked herself in her home, hiding behind the fictional worlds of the books, drinking a lot, stalking her influencer college friend Scarlett who is traveling around the world and sharing her polished posts.

One day she finds a letter at the post box. Thankfully it is not from Netflix’s Watcher character, it’s from Thomas: her first love, her college sweetheart, her life source! He dares to meet her at the same place they played games when they were college. She has no idea that meeting with him will open up the can of worms from her secret past and she finds herself in a relationship with her ex lover.

As both of them start getting threatening messages, they realize somebody is watching them and the same person knows their secret past and their new relationship! But who and why? How far that person can go?

Hannah has no idea who she can trust. After 16 years, Thomas’ sudden comeback shook to the core and the consequences of tragic daring game they’ve played in the past force them confront the real truth: what had really happened 16 years ago? There’s so much at the stake. She can lose her little girls, her peaceful life! She has to face with her past to save her future!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions .

Don’t you dare


A child’s game gone horribly wrong in this break neck speed paced novel of love, loss, revenge and redemption.

Hannah and Evan have been married for 14 years. They met in college. However 16 years in her past Hannah is carrying a terrible secret. A college dare amongst best friends gone horribly wrong. The best friend trio split into the winds running from a tragic accident they staged. Hannah now is in a seemingly perfect life, however the cracks are starting to show, and karma has returned for a brutal visit.

Told in alternating sections of the present and 16 years past, this is a non-stop terror ride when one of the trio shows up and happens to be Hannah’s old flame. The past has come calling and boy do the sparks fly.

Highly recommended for people who like mystery/ thrillers and cat and mouse games. There are sections of sexual situations that could make some readers uncomfortable, but I found it added to the tension built steadily through the novel.

This is one I will be recommending when released in May of 2023! Go ahead and put this one on your radar for reading … I dare you!

Thank you to #NetGalley, #JessicaHamilton, and the publisher #CrookedLaneBooks for extending me an ARC of this pulse pounding thriller in exchange for my honest opinions.

My full review will be posted to all my social media sites, blogs and retail sites upon release day.

When best friends Hannah and Scarlett meet Thomas in college the chemistry is instantaneous. They grow closer while playing the Daring Game, where each dare is riskier than the last. As the trio's friendship begins to cross boundaries between the platonic and the illicit, jealousy and secrets quickly develop. As tensions between the three grow, so do the stakes in the Daring Game, resulting in tragedy with Scarlett's final dare to Thomas. When Thomas gets expelled from school and leaves without a trace, it seems like the Daring Game has finally ended.
Sixteen years later, Hannah is unhappy in marriage and in life. That is, of course, until she gets a mysterious letter about the Daring Game from none other than Thomas himself. With Scarlett out of the picture, and a renewal of the dangerous game, the sparks begin to fly between them once more. Until the day Hannah and Thomas are called to the secret meeting place of the Daring Game, where they're welcomed by a single dare “to tell the truth."
Someone else has joined the game and knows about their affair, going as far as leaving a cryptic message in Hannah's house: Don't You Dare. Hannah's list of suspects is long: Could it be her nosy neighbor, Libby, who has a few secrets of her own? Or did her husband plan this as revenge for the torrid affair? Is Scarlett back and ready to play again?
The truth may set Hannah free but only if she dares to risk everything she knows and loves.
Really enjoyable read and totally recommend
Thank you NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books
I just reviewed Don't You Dare by Jessica Hamilton. #DontYouDare #NetGalley

Loved this book! Dual timelines, college setting, and extreme dares!!!! Fans of Riley Sager and One of us is Next, this book is a must read! This is a fast pace book, and I read this book in a day. This book is about a trio of friends that meet in college and start daring each other. The dares increasingly get more dangerous. We start to see a love triangle forming, and jealousy ensues. Fast forward, Hannah is unhappy in her marriage and Thomas re-enters her life. Sparks start to fly, but before long, someone is sending them dares and aren’t afraid to let them know they know their secrets. Hannah wants to discover who it is, but she has a long list of suspects. I definitely recommend this book!

** spoiler alert **

This was amazing. I don’t think I even skimmed one page in this. I read it almost in one sitting because I had to see what had happened. The only reason I put it down was because it was 4 am and I needed to sleep.
Hannah is unhappily living her ‘meh’ life in the suburbs with two daughters and her husband.
Out of the blue, a letter arrives challenging her to play a game she hasn’t played since college.
Her life goes on a roller coaster ride, revealing secrets and putting people in danger.

I was drawn in right away by Hannah. Her life with Evan and their daughter and her shock at the unexpected piece of mail. Her connection with Thomas and irritation with her nose neighbor Libby. I totally get her aversion to people and social situations.

The scene setting was fantastic. I could see Libby running by Hannah’s home every day and easily imagined her spying on all her neighbors. The descriptions of the people in the settings stuck with me more than the settings themselves, especially the first scene in the woods when Thomas shows Hannah a house.

Hannah was walloped by the tree of life and she didn’t really develop the right skills for dealing with trauma. She was a borderline alcoholic and justified her actions too easily. Her daughters often felt like afterthoughts. And I honestly couldn’t tell if she even liked them sometimes.

Evan initially seemed like a loving husband who was emotionally drained by his wife’s struggle with their shared trauma. But, Evan was just a dick. He would have been a great match for Scarlett actually.

Scarlett is kind of the boogeywoman under the bed. The things we learn about her make her seem like evil incarnate, but underneath I suspect she is a very lonely, hurt person. And hurt people, hurt people. Not that it justifies some of the things she did to get back at Hannah for, well, for falling in love basically. Maybe Scarlett is actually in love with Hannah? At least that’s how it appeared to me. That would have been a good twist.

Thomas is that guy. We all have one in our past. The one who hung the moon for us in our youth. Who we never really got over as we grew up. I was pulling for Thomas and Hannah to get back together, out in the open. But then his weirdo stalker tendencies were revealed. Is not hard to empathize with him, Hannah was his one and he didn’t want to let her get away again. He went about it in such a creepy way though.

Libby is the quintessential suburban wife who knows everyone's business and has opinions about nearly everything. I was kind of hoping she and Evan would get together because they deserved each other.

I ummed and ahhed about who I thought the bad guy was. I feel like this had the potential to go a lot darker, and more dangerous but it was still a gripping read. The ending felt too rushed and I had trouble keeping track of who was where and what was happening.

I received a copy from the publisher and all opinions are my own. I definitely recommend this book.

Don’t You Dare is a thrilling page turner about a group of three college friends that played a very dangerous game of “Dare”. We get dual timelines, one present and one from the past where we discover the true relationships between these three friends. The present focuses on Hannah and how her life turned out not so perfectly. The past starts to threaten her current life when college friend Thomas comes back into the picture and they pick up the “Dare” game again. This book contains cheating and some sexual situations. The book is full of unlikeable characters so you never really know who you can trust. This is a fast moving book with no true slow parts. The end feels a little rushed, but had me guessing until the last chapter. Excellent, sexy thriller and very easy to finish in one sitting!

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for sending this book for review considerations. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my advance copy!

This book was so captivating at the beginning. I am a sucker for a thriller with an unreliable main character. The ending felt a bit rushed for me which is why I five this 4/5 ⭐️ I will definitely be reading more of this author!