In the book One Of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole this book is about a woman who takes over A historical home conservatorship on an isolated island she suffers from multiple personalities and while on the island one of her personalities who hasn’t been around or aware shows up and doesn’t know what they’re doing there. On paper this sounds like a book I would love and probably had it not been written in first person it would’ve been easier to get into but from the beginning her personality speak for their self and talk about the other personalities as if they’re real people and I think that just confuse me and set up a constant disarray for my thought while reading the book. I usually really like this authors books and thought this one sounded so good and I see others liked it but I think the formatting for me was not so great. There was some really interesting parts in the book but my thoughts kept straying and I knew it wasn’t a book for me. I want to thank William Morrow for my free arc copy via NetGalley please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

A genre-bending gothic thriller centered around a woman with dissociative identity disorder serving as the caretaker at a gothic estate, when she finds herself trapped on the island with a murderer. Chilling!

What’s it about?

Kenetria Nash had a breakdown several years earlier that led to her losing her spot in the Masters of Arts historical preservationist graduate program at Benson College. As a young child, Kenetria experienced trauma that led her to develop dissociative identity disorder (DID) as a way to cope. This involves splitting into different selves who manage or take over different parts of her life or when certain triggers happen. Kenetria and her other “headmates” operate relatively collaboratively to manage her life. They keep a shared journal to update one another on what has been happening in Kenetria’s life while the others have been away.

The book opens with Ken (Kenetria, the host), who has been away for some time and has just awoken on a dock, waiting for transportation to Ken / Kenetria’s new job as a caretaker on a remote estate on Hudson River Island. She’s unfamiliar with the island, her alter Della evidently applied for the job while Ken was away. When Ken takes control of her body, she discover that Della has disappeared, unable to provide answers to why she applied for this job and what it may entail.

Ken has been looking for something stable and interesting since being removed from her graduate program, and this seems like a great opportunity. But when she arrives on Hudson River Island, she realizes that the house looks almost identical to the one she’s built in her mind to cohabitate with her other headmates. Is it a coincidence? Or is she unaware she’s been here before? Ken is warned not to spend a single night alone in the house. The island seems to have attracted it’s fair share of death over the years. Why do so many who visit here wind up dead?

A surprise visit from the home’s conservationist catches Ken off guard. Meanwhile a strong weather formation is rolling in, bringing battering winds and making it impossible to leave the island. The conservationist isn’t the only surprise guest that will be staying on the island with Ken, one of whom was the very person that triggered her breakdown. When someone is found dead, Ken is the prime suspect. She must work together with her other headmates to find out what happened and clear her name.

What did I think?

This is a dark and addictive thriller with a unique premise and expert execution. The different identities all have their own clear personalities and roles, and seeing their thoughts about one another and what is happening in the shared journal offers surprising levity. They’ve made the best of their situation, and they deliver it with a dry sarcasm and sharp wit that add to the experience. It feels at times like the reader is in the position of one of the headmates, trying to catch up on what the other kooky cast of identities have been up to.

I won’t lie that it is overwhelming at first as the reader is getting the hang of the various headmates that share Ken’s body. It quickly evens out, as it becomes clear that each plays a different role, has a unique personality, and even have different limitations (Ken’s vision is worse than the other, though the share the same eyeballs, for instance). The interactions between the headmates is balanced with the Agatha Christie-esque plot unfolding on the island.

Pulling off this type of story requires a high level of plotting, world building, and writing to execute. I thought Alyssa Cole nailed it. The book is gripping from start to finish, the structure and plot are unique, and the setting was well-developed and unsettling. The way the primary plot wove seamlessly with Ken’s struggles to leverage and integrate her identities was well-done and led to a gripping and heart-pounding story.

Ken is fairly advanced in her treatment of her disorder—she’s aware of the different parts of her occupying space in her life, she’s set up mechanisms to help manage an extremely difficult disorder, and she is mostly in a place of acceptance that this is the unique way her brain operates. She (like most in real life) developed this as a coping mechanism from extreme trauma. The identities allow her to manage which part of her may be best equipped to handle different situations, though it’s not a flawless system. In this story, we see Ken dealing with the presence of a new headmate. Ken doesn’t seem panicked by it, she seeks to understand who it is and why they emerged now.

Final Thoughts

This book is a winner, though it may not be for every reader. It’s a unique structure and narrative format that added layers to the story to wonderful effect. The dialogue among the headmates adds a lightness to a dark and twisted story. Since this is a novel style within the genre and a powerful and different approach to storytelling, this book may not appeal to readers who are looking for a straight psychological thriller. I think most readers will find it not only gripping, but thought-provoking as well. Themes of mental health are understandably present, but it also has a lot of subtext about race and class as well that can’t go unacknowledged.

Chilling, dark, addictive, and twist-filled—this is a must-read for those looking to expand their horizons!

Thank you to William Morrow for my copy. Opinions are my own.

Rating 4.5
Wow, One of Us Knows was a wild ride. I'm still sitting here trying to process everything, but Cole introduces a story that will blow your mind. I enjoyed this story more than When No One is Watching because it discussed Dissociative identity disorder, which I don't see a lot in novels. If you are going to pick this one up, sit back and enjoy the many headmates in the system.

Kenetria wakes up and has no idea where she is or what is going on. An alarm rings off, informing her that she is starting a new job as a caretaker for a medieval castle. She suffers from dissociative identity disorder ("DID"). This suggests she has several personalities and is living in the same body. She has been dormant for six years and is receiving information from her inner world about what she has missed. And which of them applied for the position.
The moment they get to the island, everything feels odd. Ken knows nothing about the past or what to expect. When familiar figures from her past appear, things quickly spiral out of control. A dead body. Fingers start getting pointed at Kenetria, and they must work to discover the truth and escape this island. Will they make it out alive? Or will they perish on the island? I thought the premise of this book was unusual, the plot was entertaining, and the ending was satisfactory. However, I discovered that it lacked overall organization. I believe there could have been more emphasis on creating each distinct alter and Ken's character than a summary of their personalities or the blog posts they write. I wish there had been anecdotes from each of the alters' points of view regarding the main story so that I could better relate to them. It appears that this book attempted to develop a plot with a smart concept without establishing its depth.
I received this ARC from Netgalley and the publisher William Morrow. This is my honest opinion, and own words regarding this book. This was the first book by this author, and I found it enjoyable, I will be looking into her backlog as well.

This book is absolutely wild. It follows a Kenetria Nash who has dissociative identity disorder. Ken "wakes up" on the dock waiting to be taken to her new caretaker job of an old castle on an island. One of her alters applied for the job, but she can't talk to the one who did it because she's gone quiet (for now? forever? That's part of the tension). There are multiple perspectives in the book, all of them are Kenetria's alters. The author does a great job developing each of these distinct personalities and the role they play in the group.

There is suspense both in the external and internal world. I thought the internal suspense (which felt as concrete as the external) was very interesting and original. The external plot was incredibly trope driven and felt too extreme, which was very disappointing, but it didn't stop the book from being a wild page-turner.

Most readers are either going to love or hate this book primarily because of the voice of the primary narrator. Ken is self-destructive, crude, and she hates herself. She's definitely not a likeable character, but she is interesting and well-written, that just might not be a enough for some readers. The book is also very engaged with a Covid-world and the politics that go along with it. That will also be hit-or-miss with some readers. Again, I liked it, but it won't work for everyone.

I recommend this book for people looking for a suspenseful page-turner with complex characters, and wild twists and turns.

I wanted to like this book soooo bad. After reading the description on NetGalley, I was immediately intrigued. But once I got into the story, it confused me, made me bored at times, and ultimately just fell flat for me. I've never read a book by the author before, and I think I would still try some of her other work, but I personally would not recommend this one in particular.

The premise of the character having DID was super interesting to me and was pretty well done. And the themes of classism, race and privilege, etc. were also well executed; but dare I say that some of this story felt a little too political. With the alters and the constantly flip-flopping POV, it was just too hard for me to follow. I was intrigued more at the end when the story picked up a bit, but the beginning 50-60% of the book did too much. It had too much detail that felt slightly unnecessary, and weird humor that took away from the thriller aspect quite a bit.

Thank you so much, as always, to NetGalley and the author/publisher for providing this ARC for me to read and review!!

This was a quick, fun thriller. I will admit I struggled with the writing. When I think of this book, I don't remember the plot. My initial thought is the overuse of the F bomb. I don't mind cursing in books, but I feel like the author could have expanded the vocabulary a little. It's distracting when those words are used excessively.

Overall, the book had a great premise. I was locked in and interested majority of the book. The pace was good and I liked the ending!

At first, this book was a little confusing, but only at the very beginning. Soon the story started to make sense and, bizarre as it was, I loved this novel. Kenetria, aka. Ken, is afflicted by dissociative identity disorder, most commonly known as multiple personality. Some of her alters are always there and others are mysterious, but they have their own voice and it’s very easy to know who’s saying or doing what. The internal dialogues and interactions are funny and poignant and dynamic. They read like a close-knit family with issues, and I grew to know and like each one. Ken wakes up after a long time to discover that one of her alters, who’s missing, took a job as caretaker of a creepy castle on an island. She has to piece together what’s going on, with the help of her remaining alters, who then also start going missing. So we get two mysteries, what’s happening to her other personalities (can they even be killed?) and what on earth is going on with the island. The plot is very well thought out, how each alter’s strengths and weaknesses affect Ken’s plight, and how everything turns out in the real world. There may be a ghost. I loved the descriptions of both castles, the real one and the inside place where the alters live. I do have a pet peeve, which is that I’m not a fan of fiction referencing the pandemic we had to live through. COVID features heavily here, but in a way that made sense and didn’t bother me. It also has a heavy political content which, again, I rather not have intrude on my reading choices but, again, didn’t bother me. This book is a lot of fun and I truly enjoyed it.
I chose to read this book and all opinions in this review are my own and completely unbiased. Thank you, #NetGalley/#William Morrow.

I have read a few of Alyssa Cole’s novels and some were hits and other misses. This one was totally so confusing. I acknowledge the intent of the author; however, the story was too trying for me and just did not work. I did manage to complete this book with all its different POVs jumping around the story and too wanted to love this storytelling but alas, it was just not for me in the end.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an eARC of this book via NetGalley and William Morrow. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Rating: 2/5 Stars
Publishing: April 16, 2024
Pages: 352

What would you do when you regain consciousness and have no idea what you’ve done for the past six years?

Such is the conundrum facing Kenetria Nash when she comes to on a riverside dock wearing an ill-fitting suit, with luggage at her feet and a message on her phone indicating that she is about to start a new job. What makes things even more challenging is the fact that Ken has Dissociative Identity Disorder, where different personalities inhabit a single body, Ken and the other personalities, whom she calls her headmates, co-exist as a system (they call themselves the Bad Day System), with different headmates “fronting” or taking control depending upon the circumstances. Once the reader gets a handle on what exactly DID is and how Ken and her headmates run their body, the mystery can begin. Turns out Ken, who had been the dominant front for most of her 37 years, went dormant six years ago and other headmates, predominantly the prim and orderly Della, have had to take over. Since Ken had pretty much detonated her life before going dormant, violently attacking her boyfriend’s father and getting kicked out of the highly prestigious graduate program in which she was enrolled, life for the Bad Day System was not in a good place; factor in COVID and being evicted from their apartment with no job, no money, and no direction, and the headmates are in a tough spot. Someone, presumably Della (who herself has now gone dormant) has accepted a job as caretaker for a historic home on an island on the Hudson River, and even as Ken reads through the online journal kept by the Bad Day headmates to catch up on what has been going on, a boat is approaching to take Ken to the island to start the new job. The job is of a type that had appealed to Ken back in the day, and comes with free lodging (which she definitely needs) as well as a small stipend (money also needed), so in some ways its the perfect answer to her problems. The clause that the job only becomes official after she spends one night on the island? That’s a little weird. The vibes only get worse as she approaches the island to discover that the house on Kavanaugh Island is an exact replica of the “house” that she and her head mates “inhabit” in her head. The groundskeeper is hostile, a major storm is incoming….but then the really bad stuff kicks in. Can Ken and her headmates combine forces to not only figure out what is going on, but find a way to survive it?
As characters go, Ken is pretty much a hot mess….quick to anger, continually poised to kick butt when needed (and even if not needed)….and at odds with her headmates whom she pretty much abandoned six years earlier. She doesn’t have much faith that she is what the system needs to function well, and in the completely bizarre situation in which she now finds herself (with only limited data as to how and why she is there) she is definitely at a disadvantage. So many mysteries going on here….why did Ken go dormant, and why is she suddenly back? Who are the different headmates, what is their purpose in being, and how did they come about? In fact, what triggered DID in Ken to begin with? And what exactly is going on with the castle on Kavanaugh Island? With scandals in its past and a link to Ken’s ex-boyfriend in the present, there is a lot going on to say the least. And in the realm of unreliable narrators, an individual with DID is definitely a new twist on the trope. It took me a chapter or two to fully understand the concept of the system and the headmates who comprise it, but from that point on it was full speed ahead. An intriguing and engrossing thriller with a unique premise at its core, I thoroughly enjoyed the read and highly recommend it. Readers of Cate Quinn, Wendy Corsi Staub and Alafair Burke should grab a copy of One Of Us Knows and put it on the top of their TBR stack. Many thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow Paperbacks for allowing me access to an early copy of this great read.

This was ambitious storytelling and I would strongly recommend you read the prologue to understand how the system works. It is critical to understand each personality, their function, and we find out about the creation. The hard part of writing this review is not being able to go into detail how the importance of the house, the system, and how they are connected. Every detail matters. This reads as a psychological thriller because we don't know who is out to hurt the system. The last 10 chapters are so intense because things clicked into place and was heart-wrenching. I can't wait to be able to talk about this book in more detail once it's released.

Locked room mysteries are one of my favorite troupes, and I'm always fascinated by characters with Dissociative Identity Disorder. Add to that Alyssa Cole's previous novel 'When No One Is Watching' being one of my favorite reads in 2022, and this book should have been a slam dunk. But I'm finding it really hard to rate. The things I liked and disliked about this book equaled out, making it an okay but not great read.

What I liked: Kenetria Nash is a fascinating character, as are all her alters. I was sucked into the inner world they had created. It was so intricate and detailed. I wanted to know what had happened in Ken's past to create such a split in her personality. I wish this had been a character study rather than a thriller as the thriller part lost me a bit.

What I didn't like: Unfortunately, the inner world was much more detailed and interesting than the outer world. The whole locked-room aspect didn't work for me because it was so over the top it became camp (and I don't think it intended to be campy). I know this is fiction and it doesn't have to be believable, but I wanted it to at least be somewhere in that realm because Cole did such a wonderful job with her research and depiction of DID. Also, there was a lot of COVID talk. I know it's historically relevant, but it's still so fresh and I read to escape reality not dwell on it.

While this read was mediocre for me, I still encourage you to read it if you find the premise interesting. You may have a different experience from mine! Either way, I'm still interested in reading more books by Alyssa Cole in the future, as she is clearly a talented writer.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was more or less just intrigued by this author and didn’t really know anything going into this one… what I found was a really interesting story including dissociative personality disorder. I don’t know what kinds of research this author has done, but Cole was definitely caring of these identities!

Ken has this diagnosis. It has derailed her promising career, but when the opportunity to become the caretaker of a historic house, it calls to something in Kenetria’s historical preservationist heart. She and the other identities within her have a second chance.

There is something strange going on about how and why she got the position, and when someone from her past comes back into her life to stir things up, Ken and her alters need to protect themselves against accusations of murder.

This is an incredibly bare bones summarization of this story. There is so much nuance and depth. There were times when I was confused, but the way this was written was really riveting.

Lastly, I absolutely LOVED the other identities and the way the inner mind network is structured. Ken is such a strong person, but the others all bring something completely different to the story.

This was a RIDE , y'all. Really putting the phrase "I contain multitudes" to work.

-----------------------------------
Disclaimer: I'm normally squiffy on thrillers making use of mental illnesses as part of the twist or reveal or casting judgmental light on a segment of the population that already struggles to get care. I think what worked for me about this story is that you know from the outset about her illness, how she's managing multiple identities, and it's not used to paint her as lesser/broken/damaged/dangerous nor where the twists and thrills are derived from. But I am not OwnVoices and hope they would be able to attest to the accuracy/quality of the novel and its subject matter.
-----------------------------------

Writing:
This is a book that is intentionally challenging and asks a lot of the reader. While technically the whole book is told from one person, it's actually multi POV because of all the different personalities in the system. Sometimes they are fronting, co-piloting, or even have all of their interaction fully contained within their inner world. Coming from predominantly SFF, this is a breeze; but I imagine a lot of folks who stick to Contemporary/Thrillers will find that aspect difficult.

Like the first book I read from her this also says "A Thriller" on the cover, though like her other book it could -should?- honestly also be classified as a Horror. Ymmv. i do think her craft improved in this one and I'm not sure if it's the media I've been exposed to in the interim, or a testament to her writing, but I found this story -while still over the top- was much more believable.

Characters:
I really loved each of the POVs and their distinct voices. There was a single chapter where I had to flip back and verify if it was Solomon or Ken, but other than that they were all very distinct and easy to tell apart. I won't spoil the relationship dynamics, but I also really enjoyed these and watching how different characters interact with each other.

As someone who is terminally online myself, I loved Empress most and only wish she could speak up more often. :P Please, Alyssa Cole, tell us what happens to Souta and his goblin wife!!

Plot/Themes:
If you're familiar with When No One is Watching by the author, then you will see similar themes come up-- about race and class, privilege and unjust systems, thinly masked prejudice. Honestly there were a lot of moments in this that reminded me of some of my favourite horror movies ("Get Out" and "Ready or Not" among others) and homages to classics like And Then There Were None but in a manner that made it feel fresh and new.

Overall:
There's a moment around 80 pages into the review copy that I have that made me pause, totally unpredicted and wildly caught off guard, and immediately get hella invested. It's rare that a book can do that to me, especially a thriller.

This book more than accomplished what it set out to do: I was thrilled.

One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole is a wonderfully-crafted, tense, and absorbing story.
Had me gripped from the start, lots of suspense, and a lot of plots and twists in the story to keep you turning the pages until the very end. I finished this within 24hrs. It’s that good!
She is a brilliant writer and I cannot wait to read more from her.
I am so thrilled to have been able to read this advanced reader’s copy!
Alyssa Cole does it again bringing us this highly suspenseful, spine-tingling tale!

Thank You NetGalley and William Morrow for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for this advance reader’s copy, in exchange for an honest review. This review will also be posted to Goodreads.com, and RaisedOnReading.com.
I don’t know that I’ve ever been as confused by a book’s Prologue as I was after reading the one in “One of Us Knows.” And unfortunately, it didn’t get much better after that.
Right out of the gate, terminology germane to the storyline is put out there without a reference point. Inner world: Outer life. DID. Dormant. Castle. Bad Day System. What do these words mean in the context of the story?
It took me three chapters to begin to understand the narrator was someone with multiple personalities (dissociative identity disorder), and that one or more of those personalities was narrating sections or complete chapters. Which really got confusing when internal conversations among multiple personalities are taking place at the same time. And by then, the book had almost completely lost me.
I can appreciate the challenge in writing about a character with this condition, especially from a first-person perspective. But as the reader I need to know more about each of these personalities. What’s their backstory? More importantly, what’s the backstory for the person lugging around all these personalities in her head? How did she come to be this way? That doesn’t come through in the writing.
This may be a flaw within me, but whether it’s a book or a film or a TV program, if you don’t catch me early, you’re not likely to catch me at all. And while I always prefer to finish what I start, I put this one down about midway through.
And not likely to actively follow this author.

Oh yes, I was so excited to be granted early access to an Alyssa Cole book! This was such a crazy ride - the main character actually has many personalities. I have never read anything quite like this, so it was intense to follow along with the many personalities, their dialogue, etc. So on the one hand we have the various personalities as a storyline, and on the other hand we have the main plot of the historic home and the subsequent murder mystery. It really takes a lot of talent to have so many different personalities inside one person, make those personalities intriguing, and keep the pace moving in a way that is understandable. I really appreciated this unique approach to a murder mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

One of us knows by Alyssa Cole

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this Arc!

This book is based on a woman with an obvious personality disorders and the story dives in to two separate stories in one book. Phew, even saying that was confusing.

When I first started I thought this was a body morphing book about one person going from one body to another and then I soon realized it was about a woman who suffers from split personalities.

This book follows Ken or kenetria who is looking for stability after she is let go from her university program and soon after searching for a new home as well. While she receives an invite to be a caretaker at a secluded castle (that she didn’t remember applying for) this book really gets messy when the other habitants of her head show up…. While the exciting new adventure for her future starts ….so does the jumping around of the story to follow the multiple characters in her head as well!

This book was original and clever but sometimes hard to follow.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this arc!

Oh my god! This is written in multiple POV, so if that’s not your thing, avoid this one. I had a little trouble at first keeping up with everyone and who they were; but once I got introduced to each of them better, I figured it out quickly! I honestly don’t believe I’ve read anything else by this author, but after reading this, I’m going to make sure I change that! It had kind of a slow start for me, but by the middle I was hooked! This book kept me guessing and the more I read, the more I knew I needed to keep reading until the very end!
Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The protagonist, Kenetria (Ken) Nash, suffers from dissociative identity disorder (DID). Her seven “headmates” coexist within her, each with distinct personalities. When Ken awakens after six dormant years, she finds herself at an old estate on an abandoned Hudson River island. The eerie familiarity of the house, resembling the inner castle where her headmates reside, sets the stage for a truly strange and unsettling tale. As Ken grapples with her various selves, she faces both external and internal.

Alyssa Cole’s ambitious storytelling shines in this twisty, psychological gothic thriller. I cannot imagine the amount of research that must have gone into learning about DID. I really enjoyed the inner dialogues between the multiple dissociative headmates, and getting to watch the general daily struggle Ken is going through. Add in the eerie "what is actually going on?!" vibe, and I couldn't put it down. I don't want to give too much away in this review, as the best part of reading this book is being left in the darkly and slowly having piece revealed to you. This was fascinating to me, and unlike any other book I've read before.