This thriller was written as if the author was anticipating it being made into a movie. The juxtaposition of time and the gruesomeness of the details are attracting to individuals desiring to have their pulse quicken and heart race - this the novel does admirably. I had trouble with the motivation of the characters and connecting with them. I could watch them on a surface level like a video but not any deeper.

This is a thriller you need for these nice weather days at the park coming up. It kept me on he edge of my seat as we flash back and forth from past to present to find out what really happened. The end will leave you stunned.

Not with the majority on this one, a little too gruesome for me.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced readers copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I enjoyed this book very much.
This was the 1st book that I read from this author and I would love to read other books by her.
I thought it was a dark, intriguing and suspenseful thiller with a lot of jaw dropping twists in it.
I would highly recommend this book to others.

Good read! Some disturbing material but well done. Kept me turning pages & wanting more. Characters well developed and some twists along the way. I liked the ending!

I'm going to have to say I am in the minority on this one. I thought the story started out strong but then I had a hard time pushing myself to keep going. I'm not sure if it was the rather generic writing or the flat characters. I wasn't able to pull anything out of the characters except what was presented through their actions. There didn't seem to be any motivation for their actions, or maybe it was a lack of emotion behind their actions. For example, the MC does this truly horrific thing but I have no idea why. Not wanting to get in trouble for something will really only take you so far in your actions as most people have very definite limits to their bad behavior. When you want to take a character past that line I need some kind of explanation or impetus for it. Without that depth it made the acts feel sensational on the author's part. Without it I was left a bit flat.

The first hint that something is not quite right in Geo's testimony at the trial of her former lover, serial killer Calvin. As she leaves the stand, he grabs her hand and pressed a note in it which reads only "You're welcome". Uh oh! I enjoyed all the descriptive characters in the story, but this is truly a gruesome murder case. Lots of twists and turns, made it hard to put down!

I really enjoyed this book. It moved at a great pace and all the characters were extremely well developed. I like when authors don't go overboard on making the bad guys bad, when they are able to create villains who are still portrayed as human. I look forward to reading more from this author and highly recommend this book!

Could not get past 2 chapters. The characters were not interesting or likeable. The plot may have been good but the first few chapters did not draw me in so I don't care.

Only read about 100 pages and too many F and GD words for me so not continuing.

Wow! This book has been excellent! Definitely a page turner that will keep you reading well into the night. The characters are realistic and full of life; they each have quirks and set backs, successes and grave mistakes. I strongly recommend this book to all thriller/mystery lovers!

Geo appears to be a woman who has it all. She is educated, articulate, has a successful career and will soon be getting married. When she is arrested during a company meeting, she doesn't seem at all surprised since she has anticipated this day since she was 16. The story alternates between the past and the present as we learn the facts surrounding the heinous crime her then high school boyfriend Calvin committed with Geo's assistance.
Geo is sentenced to 5 years in prison and initially, it is rough and unpleasant. After being released she goes back to her childhood home to live with her father. No one in the community is glad to see her, with the exception of her old friend Kaiser who is now a detective(and the one who arrested Geo). When more bodies are discovered, the manner of death leads many to believe that Calvin( who escaped from prison) is responsible. Figuring out what happened in the past as well as what was going on now kept me on the edge of my seat and flipping pages. No spoilers here, so if you like dark, twisted tales, you will want to read Jar of Hearts.
This is a tragic story about how teenage actions and decisions led to the loss of a life. While Geo somehow managed to move past Calvin and their crime, inside she was always waiting to be caught and punished. As present events unfolded, I just kept hoping she could forgive her younger self and move toward a brighter future. This was disturbing in many ways because of the subject matter, however, it was a gripping tale and it flowed without slowing down for a minute. This is the first book I have read by this author and it won't be my last.
Thank you, Jennifer Hillier, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the complimentary digital ARC.

Jennifer Hillier's Goodreads bio says she writes about "dark, twisty people who do dark, twisty things." That pretty much sums up Jar of Hearts. At its core Jar of Hearts is a good old fashioned murder mystery-but as the saying goes "the devil is in the details." And the details are horrifying-fourteen years ago Angela Wong never returned home from a party, leaving her friends bewildered and her parents heartbroken. But Angela's best friend Georgina "Geo" knew what happened to Angela-but said nothing until Angela's dismembered body is found mere yards from Geo's house. By this time Georgina is VP of a pharmaceutical company and is engaged to the CEO. In exchange for her testimony against Angela's killer (who is also Geo's ex boyfriend, Calvin), Geo receives five years in prison as an accomplice to the crime. Calvin is sentenced to life in prison, but he escapes and has remained on the run for years. After Geo is released from prison several murders occur with striking similarities to Angela's. Has Calvin returned to hunt Geo down for testifying against him? Is there more to the story than Geo is letting on? Any decent writer can build suspense when the "who dunnit" is unknown-only a few can keep the momentum going once the killer is revealed-and Ms. Hillier does that in spades. Jar of Hearts is gritty and gruesome. No death is pretty, but the ones in Jar of Hearts set a new standard for ugly. That Ms. Hillier can even remotely humanize (and even get us to sympathize with) the despicable characters in her story is a crowning achievement on its own. While reading Jar of Hearts I thought "this will make a great movie"-and plans for that are already in the works. Due to its graphic detail, Jar of Hearts is probably not for everyone-but if you're looking for a gutsy, no holds barred murder mystery-you won't be disappointed.

Three friends attend a party- Geo, Angela and Kai.

Only two make it home that night.

One grows up seeking the truth of what happened that fateful night.
One already knows.

One grows up to become a cop and uphold the law.
One ends up in jail.

Told in 5 parts: (The 5 stages of grief as explained by Kubler-Ross) from the POV’s of Geo and Kaiser
Denial
Anger
Bargaining
Depression
Acceptance

A well written crime novel but NOT for the faint of heart. This serial killer is gruesome.

Definitely some surprises, though I personally struggled to accept one of the reveals.

I would like to thank Netgalley, Jennifer Hillier, and Minotaur Publishing for the ARC I received in exchange for a candid review. This book will be available for purchase on June 12th, 2018!

Easily one of the best books I've read this year. Normally, with so many different "voices" a book can be hard to follow, but this, this was "unputdownable." Incredible introduction to this author. I will be looking for more!

This book kept me up very late because I just couldn't bring myself to put it down!

It was interesting how you are placed in the middle of the sequence of crimes. It was a interesting perspective on the story and very well done. I will admit as soon as you found out she was raped and more details of the new cases you could figure it out, but it didn't prevent me from enjoying the rest of the story.

A good thriller.

This is an exceptionally well-crafted thriller with an ending that completely surprised me.

While the prison scenes are especially well done, the entire book transports you – sometimes to places you’d rather not go.

While the story is a violent one, there’s so much emotional heartbreak and abuse in the book that the psychological aspect of it is just as jarring and horrific as the physical aspect.

And while our characters surprised and even shocked me at times, I loved them.

I will very happily read this author in the future!

Loved this thriller! Geo and Angela were best friends in high school until Geo began dating 21-year-old Calvin. Jealousy flared and tragedy ensued leaving Angela missing and found dead after fourteen years. Calvin is arrested and Geo is also sentenced to prison as an accomplice and it is there the story really begins as we follow her journey for the five years she is incarcerated. Old flame, Kai, now a police officer is of course conflicted, but he vows to get the truth as more bodies are uncovered. What is the truth? How many secrets are buried along with the corpses? More than you know! I thought I had it figured out but I wasn't even close. This kept me turning pages long into the night until the end! What a thrill ride!

Wow! Excellently written, soooo hard to put it down. A great read, highly recommend. I'd give it more stars if I could.

EXCELLENTLY written thriller that had me hooked from the start. I loved the author's main characters and the doubt you had on what was going on. I didn't guess the twist near the end and I always enjoy when I can't figure it out. Great pacing and story development--loved it. 5 stars!