Cover Image: They Did Bad Things

They Did Bad Things

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Member Reviews

Solid thriller with a little reminder of Tana French mixed in with some Agatha Christie. Good plot, just wish the characters were more likable. 3 stars

Thank you to Skyhorse Publishing and Net Galley for the ARC.

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Fast paced. Twisty. The whodunit keeps you on the edge of your seat for the entire read. Really enjoy a good thriller!

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A Classic Theme.....
Six students, a house share and a death. Who was responsible? When, twenty years later, the remaining five reconvene - lured under various pretences - at a mansion on a secluded Scottish isle, they are forced to confront their possible crimes or face the consequences. Tense and menacing with sinister undertones throughout this is a contemporary take on a classic theme. Enjoyable and entertaining reading.

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While Forry's novel was slow to begin with, I was soon consumed by the eloquent voices of the alternating perspectives. I worried that this might confuse readers, but I was pleasantly surprised by how adept Forry was at telling multiple stories, that led to a chilling, twisty end.

A modern day Agatha Christie that was thrilling and enjoyable - I would recommend this book to book club!

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I had a hard time getting into this one. I thought it was a bit confusing. The time jumps were a bit too fast and i couldn’t keep up with the characters. It was a quick read and i enjoyed the ending. I thought it was an interesting premise and i enjoyed the twists

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Such a good read. It is dark and stormy, but still maintains realistic character development! Great writing, lots of unexpected thrills thrown in. Would definitely recommend!

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When a college student is found dead in his home the morning after a party. The police rule it as an accident. His 5 roommates know that isn't true. 20 years later, all of his roommates are lured to an old mansion and trapped inside.

The story is a little jumpy and hard to follow. None of the characters are likable, and not in a good way. The twists and turns weren't worth the journey for me.

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Thank you, NetGalley, for my digital copy!

I’m giving this book 5 stars... and here’s why:

As a college student myself, I was immediately drawn to this book’s plot. I found the story engrossing, as I am a sucker for thrills and suspense.

If you enjoy an enthralling, quick read packed with thrill, this book is your next pick.

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This was an interesting mystery! I was skeptical at first but when it picked up, it instantly drew me in and I couldn’t put it down afterwards. Compelling characters and fascinating plot. Can’t wait to read more books from this author!

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A dark and twisted ride that wasn't THAT thrilling. I ended up DNF'ing because it just got to the point where the action was predictable.

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This book started off good, but I stopped caring at around 63% through it. DNF.

I'd like to thank to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

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Slow moving, but gripping story. This was a little different than other thrillers I've read, and that worked for me.

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This was a very engrossing read. I love the “people trapped in an isolated place with a killer” theme and this novel is a great example of it. The twists were great and unexpected. It was suspenseful and creepy and I really enjoyed it.

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This was okay. I think my expectations were really high because I read one of her other books, Abigale Hall, and was really impressed. That one was straight up horror. This one was more typical mystery thriller with the "everyone is invited to this isolated place for reasons pertaining to the same even in the past" trope. It was interesting and well-written enough for me to finish it and want to know how it ended. But overall I was not super into this.

Thank you to Skyhorse Publishing for a free digital galley via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

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There were 6 housemates at Caldwell street. All 6 were students. The house was known for its huge parties. There was always an excuse to hold a party. End of semester, beginning of a semester, end of exam week, the house on Caldwell could always be counted on for parties. Surprisingly, not all 6 housemates loved the parties. They did go along with them though. 1 party ended up with a dead housemate and 5 keeping secrets. 20 years later, the 5 housemates were forced to face the truth about what happened at Caldwell Street 20 years ago.

I loved the setting for this mystery. There is something about claustrophobic settings that amps up the tension. In this case, phones with no signals, all means of transport damaged, secluded location and a murderer on the loose, there was nowhere to run.

The story is narrated in dual timeline. The 1995 timeline takes us back to the house in Caldwell street and the mysterious death. These chapters were narrated by a anonymous character. I was naturally drawn to them because I wanted to know about the death in 1995. How did the housemate die? Who killed him/her?

The present timeline is where things kind of fell apart for me. We had 5 alternating narrators and the story kept jumping to different times some years back, others just hours ago. It felt like too much trying to keep everything straight and this stole my enjoyment of the book since I was too focused on trying to follow who was saying what and when. I think this is another reason why I preferred the 1995 timeline which had 1 narrator and 1 flowing story.

In the end, the mystery is what kept me turning pages to the end. However, the narrative style especially in the present timeline was not an element that I enjoyed. Overall, this was an okay read but with such an intriguing premise, I was expecting more.

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In September 1994, six university students, Hollis, Lorna, Ellie, Oliver, Maeve and Callum move into the house at 215, Caldwell Street. Exactly nine months later, in mid-1995, Callum is found dead on the sofa. Each of the remaining housemates give a statement about their ignorance about what might have happened to him and eventually the police deem it an accidental death.

Life goes on....

Until twenty years later, when these five ex-housemates find themselves face to face once again, under one roof at Wolfheather House. Each has been brought to this place by a clever ruse. By a person who knows the truth about what transpired that led to Callum's death.

Because Callum's death wasn't an accident.

It was murder. And they all played a part in it.

And now it's time for retribution.

While reading this book, I kept thinking what it was that I didn't quite like about the book. Then it hit me; the characters. The book begins with a diary entry by the person who has rolled this ball of revenge into motion. Each following chapter is a POV of each of the five housemates who are stuck in Wolfheather House, in present time, followed by more of the diary entries which uncovers the plot bit by bit. Also, with each chapter we gradually get to know about the traits of these five people and one thing is certain: they all are, to varying degrees, selfish, self centered and with an ugly temper to match-- horrid people. To fulfill their needs and wants or to save their own skin from trouble, they are easily willing to use and hurt others. Callum, by far, was the only nicest one of the whole group.

The book manages to keep the suspense of who the culprit is intact right till the final 2-3 chapters that serve as the climax....of both the incident that happened twenty years ago at 215, Caldwell Street and the present situation.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publishers Skyhorse Publishing/Arcade Crimewise and author for providing me with an e-Arc of the book.

Rating: 3.5*.

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I'm on a roll with books this week! This was another entertaining read. Intriguing plot. Interesting characters. Well written. Well-constructed mystery that kept me guessing until the very end.

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It took me a little while to get into this book, but once I did I couldn't put it down. Most of the characters are selfish jerks, which I loved. It's like watching a train wreck you can't look away from. I love seeing what dastardly deed they would do next! The timeline bounced back and forth but I'm used to that, as many books seem to do that now. All in all I really enjoyed it!

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i was given this ARC from publisher and netgalley for an honest review and opinion

i felt like this book was really hard for me to get into. it had a lot of characters and jumping around time line. i felt like i had to reread a lot of things just to make sure that i was paying attention.
due to the multiple characters and time line, im not sure i really enjoyed the book but quickly finished it. other than that, it was a good plot

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I did not love this book. The story is really convoluted and all over the place. The and-then-there-were-none storyline totally falls apart. I can't even remember who the actual murderer is and I just read the book. The characters aren't especially likable and there are too many. And a new character is introduced midway through the book as a possible suspect with a plausible story, but then that's revoked. It's all very confusing and hard to understand.

This book needs more backstory on the characters and their lives at college first. And then less of a muddled path in the current day. There can still be twists and turns and flashbacks, but they need to be better thought out.

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