TLDR: Anxiety inducing, emotionally charged with a little bit of teenage whininess; plot is solid; ending comes out of nowhere

I’m going to start this review off with a confession. I didn’t expect much from this book when I first started it. What I assumed I would be reading was a YA thriller. And, it is a YA thriller, but the plot of the book is definitely a horror in origin.

The book is told in two alternating points of view. One is from the girl who can’t remember who she is. From the start, the reader knows this girl is a victim, and every time something happens involving her, it is tremendously anxiety inducing. It is similar to watching a horror movie and yelling at the character on the screen to not open the door.

The other point of view we get is from Drew. Drew is a high school senior who’s girlfriend went missing five weeks ago. Everyone in his small town thinks Drew killed his girlfriend Lola, and Drew feels guilty about things that happened the last night he saw Lola. But, the reader is kept wondering what Drew has to feel guilty for.

The plot setup, the tone, the story-telling, and the characters in this book were all extremely well-done. The points of view of both the girl and Drew were emotionally drawing and impactful. My only hiccup with the characters is the way the teenage characters are shown to emotionally support the parents. This is a teenage farcical fantasy. This isn’t the first book I have seen this in, but it feels like a false representation of reality everytime i read it.

Other than that though, this was a solid gut-wrenching debut

4.5/5

I was completely sucked into this book. The characters were very well developed and the twists were mind blowing! Definitely would recommend!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. What an amazing YA thriller! The story kept me guessing and hooked until the very end. Looking forward to more from this author in the future

This book kept me turning the pages! I was sucked in right from the beginning, which is honestly the best thing I could ask for with a thriller. I can't wait to see what Lally writes next.

I am kicking myself for not picking this book up sooner! It will haunt me forever. The fact that this is a debut is even more mind-blowing! I listened to this and I will say that the narrators are both good. Drew's chapters were absolutely heartbreaking. The girl's chapters were heart pounding. You are on the edge of your seat, trying anxiously to piece together the same puzzle Mary is. You could not figure out what was happening but just knew it was not good. I won't spoil anything but the ending was shocking and painful. The epilogue in particular brought me to tears. This will be a thriller that I will not get out of my head anytime soon and you can bet I will be shoving this book into everyone's hands I can! Cannot wait to see what this author writes next!

A truly gripping YA thriller that will keep you turning page after page right until you reach the end of the book and are gasping for this author's next book.

I managed to guess where this book was going fairly early on however I think that is when you truly get to see how good an author's craft is because it takes a really talented author for the reader to know what the twist is going to be and still love it. This was such a propulsive story as I needed to know what was next for each of our characters. I also really enjoying picking up all of the subtle clues that this book laid out for us.

A missing girl, a town in suspicion, and two lives about to collide. When Lola vanishes after a heated argument with her boyfriend, Drew, the entire community turns on him. Accused of the unthinkable, Drew must navigate the suffocating small-town whispers while maintaining normalcy for the sake of appearances. All the while, a gnawing fear for Lola's safety consumes him.

Meanwhile, a young woman named “Mary” awakens in a disorienting haze, her past a complete blank. Found wandering by the side of the road, she's identified as Wayne's missing daughter. Though a sense of unease lingers as fragments of memories resurface, Mary attempts to acclimate to a life she doesn't remember.
Narrated through the alternating perspectives of Drew and Mary, this gripping thriller hooks you from the first page. Compelling characters, a supportive cast of friends, and a plot brimming with unforeseen twists keep you guessing until the very end. For the vast majority of the book, I clung to a theory, absolutely certain I'd cracked the case. The pacing, however, was masterful. Even with my (mistaken) belief, the story remained relentlessly captivating. And let me tell you, the actual twist? I never saw that coming!

Note: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

this was chilling, interesting, and lowkey really sad. I was gripped from the start and loved reading! will definitely add to my classroom library.

THAT'S NOT MY NAME by Megan Lally knows exactly what it's trying to do as a story about a local girl gone missing. Unfortunately, everything it's trying to do has already been done before, over and over again, and much better. I appreciate the themes that are in this book and that's its an approachable thriller for an older YA audience, but I didn't find anything remarkable about it. The writing was fast-paced and quick, and the suspense was definitely there, but ultimately it was just too cliche of a story for it to stand out in any meaningful way.

Loved this book!

I loved the dual POV. A girl wakes up in the forest with no memory of what happened. She’s picked up at the police station and told that her name is Mary. A boy named Drew is searching for his missing girlfriend Lola…who the (incompetent) investigator believes he killed. Split between these two perspectives, we see two stories unfold.

For 85% of the book, I was thoroughly convinced I knew the twist. Absolutely positive. The pacing throughout was excellent—even though I thought I knew what was happening, it was quick enough to hold my attention. And I’m glad it did, because did I actually guess the ending in advance? No. The twist was excellent. Absolutely heart-wrenching.

Read if you like: YA thrillers, YA suspense.

A 2024 YA fave right here! I know it is categorized as YA but, it reads more like a true adult thriller to me. I love a well written dual POV and was completely captivated the whole time!

Great character development and it kept me guessing all the way to the very end!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing team for this free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

An incredibly woven story, full of carefully crafted threads and deeply emotional writing. I was enthralled the whole way through, and finished the book extremely impressed by the author's sense for plot and emotional impact. A very dark and heartfelt story that will stick with you.

I’m not sure how I feel about this one still. I liked it while I was reading it but I found it very forgettable. I did really like the characters and the story line.

This book was good! Very fast paced, gripping thriller about a a boyfriend looking for his missing girlfriend with dual pov of a girl who wakes up not knowing who she is… I won’t get into more as I think it is best to go in blind. Just trust me when I say you won’t regret picking this up! It is a YA thriller but still pretty dark. I wasn’t in love with the beginning and the writing seemed pretty weak at first but I got sucked in immediately and finished this in one day.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this book. I found this book to be interesting all the way through. It was fairly clear early on the connection between the two main characters (the chapters were divided by each character's perspective). One was Mary and the other was Drew. We get to know fairly quickly where things are headed, but it's a good mystery as to how and why things ended up the way they did. Who is Mary? Is that her real name? Why can't she remember herself, her name, her face and this person named Wayne that says he's her father? Then there's Drew, whose girlfriend Lola disappeared one night after they had a fight. Everyone thinks Drew had something to do with her disappearance and he's treated accordingly. But with the help of Lola's best friend and his own cousin, he will stop at nothing to get to the bottom of what happened to her. Very interesting!

Kind of slow and plodding for a thriller type novel. This is a story about stranger abduction, after all. Yet it fails to keep the right level of tension. There's a slow reveal of truths that is vaguely interesting but ultimately a bit flat. The changing perspective adds interest at first but the two plot lines don't mesh well.

When Lola disappears following a fight with her boyfriend, the whole town turns on him. They think Drew hurt her, or worse - killed her. While fighting to clear his name, Drew has to go to school, family dinners, and do all the mundane things of life. He can't stop thinking about Lola and what happened to her.

"Mary" was found in a ditch by the road and taken to the police station. Unfortunately, she doesn't remember who she is or where she came from. When Wayne comes in looking for his daughter, Mary matches the description. After researching all of his forms of ID and pictures, the officer lets Mary go home with him. At first, she feels weird because she does not remember anything. Slowly, she starts to feel at home with Wayne... until some memories start coming back and it makes her question everything.

Told in alternating views of Mary & Drew, this is a thriller from the beginning. Great characters, great friends, and a great stiory with lots of twists & turns.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This awesome thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat as you try to figure out the who done it before the clock runs out. This one had me tearing through the pages and ignoring my responsibilities because I could not put it down

That's Not My Name leads readers on a thrilling ride through two points-of-view. A teen girl wakes up by the side of the road, bruised and battered. After getting picked up by a local police officer and taken to the small station, she struggles to remember who is she and what happened to her that lead to her ending up in a ditch. A man claiming to be be her father shows up with all the proper identification and she leaves with him, despite a nagging doubt in her gut.

Drew desperately wants to find his missing friend, Lola. Unfortunately, his efforts are hampered by the fact that most of the town, including the investigating sheriff thinks he murdered her. With the help of his best friend, and Lola's best friend, they sneak evidence past the sheriff in an effort to find her. One tip sends them on a road trip searching for answers.

The two stories come together in a shocking, action-packed finale that leaves the characters, and the reader, stunned and surprised. Lally has created a compelling, page-turning story full of questions needing answers. Both the girl and Drew make for compelling, sympathetic characters with plenty of interesting, and sometimes irritating secondary characters. The tension builds quickly for both the girl and Drew. Although it builds slower for the girl while Drew is in trouble from the first page of his story. A page-turning thrill ride for young adult readers. The ending provided a surprise twist that I did not see coming. As far as content goes there are no sexual situations, but plenty of violence and swearing.

5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was completely engrossed by 'That's Not my Name,' a gripping thriller that had me on the edge of my seat! Megan Lally's debut Young Adult novel truly stands out. Her storytelling skills are exceptional, and I eagerly look forward to her future works.

With unexpected twists and turns in every chapter, this book kept me guessing from start to finish. If circumstances had allowed, I would have devoured it in a single sitting!

The story begins with a teenager waking up bruised and disoriented on the side of a dirt road, with no memory of who she is or where she's from. Fortunately, a local officer comes to her aid, but things take a strange turn when a man claiming to be her father suddenly appears. Initially relieved, Mary soon begins to question her identity as doubts creep in.

Meanwhile, Drew finds himself ostracized and accused by the town following the disappearance of his girlfriend, Lola. Determined to clear his name, he teams up with Autumn and Max to search for Lola and gather evidence of his innocence.