Thank you netgalley and Lauren forrey for the ability to read for review.
I was excited to read the title alone pulls you in.
It was slightly difficult as the beginning rotates between past and present and what really happened in the past which is somewhat of a struggle to grasp.
Roommates, whodunnit, and what really happened to Callum

This book was ok. It started off really great, but then I started to get confused by the way it jumped from past to present.( At one point it jumped from locn 237 to 244.) It was a suspenseful read and a many surprises. I probably would not read it again, or tell my friends to read it though. A little too bloody for me. Thank you Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read this ARC.

This was an easy to read thriller that kept my attention all the way through! Lots of twists and surprises I didn't see coming. Very good, would recommend....definitely get this one guys!

I dare you to read the first chapter of this book and not be immediately hooked. It starts out with some pages from a journal where an unnamed narrator is telling you about what happened. These pages are sprinkled throughout the book, and they were my favorite parts. I found the journal incredibly intriguing, and it kept me wanting to read more.

This book is told in two different timelines. We follow six college students in 1995 that live together. Then, we follow five of them twenty years later when they all end up vacationing together at a secluded Scottish mansion. One of the six friends was murdered back in 1995, and someone blames all five survivors. We, as the reader, are trying to figure out who the murderer was, how the others were involved, and who is our unnamed narrator.

This book started strong for me, and I thought I was going to love it. However, as the plot unfolded it just kept getting more and more ridiculous. The only characters that were even remotely likable died early in the book. I found it hard to care what happened to the remaining characters. As the story progressed, I had a hard time suspending my disbelief. The plot was completely unbelievable and ridiculous.

One part Clue, one part Pretty Little Liars, They Did Bad Things by Lauren A. Forry is a fast-paced murder mystery that will take you on a disturbing “whodunit” journey that alternates between two timelines (now and 20 years ago). I didn’t want to put it down, and luckily it’s short enough that you could easily finish this in one sitting! A solid 7/10. 💥 (P.S. This is an advanced review copy—it will be released on June 2nd 💫!)⁣
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Six college students are living together in a dilapidated off-campus house while they attend university in 1994. When one of them is found dead the morning after an end-of-the-semester party, each of the remaining five has had a part to play in his death and what happened when they found him, but no one will speak up, and his death is ruled an accident. 20 years later, the five remaining former residents of 215 Caldwell Street are secretly brought together for a weekend at the secluded Wolfheater House by an unknown benefactor for a surprise “reunion”. But who brought them there, why, and will they make it out alive?⁣
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This book had a slow start, but got really exciting after about 50 pages and I couldn’t look away. It’s a pretty classic “whodunit” murder mystery, but I guessed incorrectly who the killer was, so it certainly kept me on my toes! I loved the use of the alternating timelines—we spend time with the Caldwell Street residents in college, and later as adults with completely different lives. I loved how the author revealed what happened bit by bit, so I never felt like I had put anything together myself for too long. This would have gotten an even higher rating if I had connected more with the characters, but we don’t spend quite enough time with them (and they’re awful people!!).⁣
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They Did Bad Things is a quick, delicious read; what I would classify as a “lay by the pool” book that I would absolutely recommend to anyone who likes a good thriller.⁣
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Thank you Arcade Publishing (by @skyhorsepub) for this Arcade CrimeWise ARC from NetGalley!

I 100% requested this because of the cover. The premise wasn’t entirely intriguing to me, and I definitely judged this book by it’s cover. I don’t know why, but I LOVE it! But I was pleasantly surprised and ended up really enjoying this one! It’s a clever and unique spin on the classic locked in murder mystery. I was entertained and engaged the entire time. I was so confident that I knew who the bad guy was really early on. And I don’t wanna give anything away, but I was both right AND wrong. None of the characters are likeable, but could you expect to like them based on the title of the book? I did feel like something was missing from this one though to push it to 5 stars, but overall this was a great murder mystery with plenty of murder.

This was a good read, but it had a few flaws or hiccups for me. The characters are meant to be unlikeable, but I wish I could have become more attached to the book. Decent read.

A lot of dull filler used in this book. Other than that, it reminded me of an Agatha Christie novel and I don't like Agatha Christie.

This book had me hooked from the beginning to the end. All through the book I tried to figure out who wrote the diary and what actually happened. Some of my suspicions turned out to be right. The only thing I didn’t really enjoy was the ending. I thought that the person who ended up being the bad guy could have been introduced more in the book and it did feel a little cliché.

But this is definitely a book that I enjoyed and had a hard time to put down.

Closed room thrillers are the mystery du jour and I am really developing a taste for them. Housemates move in, one dies and someone wants to get to the bottom of the death years later. Some many time jumps, it’s a little dizzying until you get into the rhythm and then the twists and turns throw you as much as the other characters. This builds to a great satisfying ending and at the end, was a great read! And yes, they all did bad things.

I am not sure how I feel about this book. It was a good book that had me guessing what is going to happen and it did have a very shocking ending. The way it ends makes me believe there will be a sequel.I also enjoyed the story line. However, I was not thrilled with the book. I am not sure though what I didn't like. It just was not as good as what I felt it could be. However, it was still a good book just not a WOW book for me. The ending was pretty good though because I had no idea it would end the way it did.

"So that's what I know about people. People hide and people cheat and people lie and people only look out got themselves because people are shit and very few deserve better."

In 1995, six students moved into 215 Caldwell Street. But only 5 leave. They all know the death of their roommate wasn't accidental. But they don't know who killed him and no one wants to take any blame. They convince the police it was an accident and move on with their lives.
But somebody doesn't want them to move on. Twenty years on, somebody lures them to the secluded Wolfheather House. Someone who has given them a choice. Confess, or die...

This was without doubt my favourite read so far this year. I could NOT stop reading. This book had so many surprising twists and I loved every second of it.
The characters weren't very likeable, but they were never supposed to be liked. The jumping from past to present, and from person to person was a pain at times but it still made for a fantastic read. And that ending? Absolutely amazing.
I don't say this often, but I would LOVE to see this as a movie.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this.

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opportunity to read a complimentary advance reader copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

In 1995, six university students rent rooms in a seedy run down house, all of them expecting a different experience; some just wanted to study, some to party., some to make friends, but what they became at the end of that school year was accomplices as only five of the six walked away from the seedy house on Caldwell Street. Of these five, one of them is responsible for Callum's death, but are they all guilty?

Now twenty some odd years later, they have all ended up at the same out of the way inn on the Scottish Isle of Doon, all for different reasons and are surprised to see the others from that house on Caldwell Street when they arrive. The arguing starts right away and by the next morning and their host is missing they realize that they are there for a nefarious reason and that they may not make it out alive. Now they have to wonder which of them, if any, to trust.

A classic whodunnit, lots of twists and turns, and a great ending. I really enjoyed this book. As we uncover the mystery with the help of a diary left behind, I was surprised many times but the turn of events.

They Did Bad Things by Lauren A. Forry publishing on June 2, 2020, follows a 20-year-old story of roommates from college and one night of their lives that changes them forever. All of the original roommates are lured to a sizeable Scottish Mansion that has been transformed into the old house they shared in college. The problem is they have no idea why after 20 years or how they all arrived at the same place on the same stormy night; however, they do know the driving reason behind the reunion. I have mixed feelings about the book; after initially reading, the publication ranked in the mediocre category for me. I will note that I sometimes have a hard time giving reviews because sometimes it might not be the right book for the reader.

I read “They Did Bad Things” after reading a much-hyped summer blockbuster. The author’s book is a labour of love for them, and I do not want to dismiss the title altogether. The book had the possibility of being one of my favourites as the book had an interesting plot; however, at times, the plot and characters were not as fully developed as I would have liked as a reader. For example, one of the characters Hollis was one I wanted to know more about; however, he seemed to less than developed as the other characters. As an avid reader, there were a few holes in the plot at times, leaving it predictable. However, certain aspects of the books have stayed with me, such as the book's overall premise, which would make a great movie with a few changes. When reading the book, it dragged and lulled at times and fell short of giving the reader the “loss of breath” moment when the reader finally figured out who did and the motive behind the journey for a mysterious weekend.

Quick synopsis: In the mid 90s, six roommates move into 215 Caldwell St. One dies in what's believed to be an accident, but the other roommates know that's not really what happened that night. Over 20 years later, they are all reunited, unknowingly, to pay for their crimes.

Overall: This started off as fast paced and captured my interest immediately. However, by about the 1/3 mark, it started to slow down. I always enjoy the concept of locked door suspenses, but would've liked to see more depth and development with the characters.  None were likeable in the least (and all were likely sociopaths), which may have been the author's intention.

I also struggled a bit with the nonlinear narrative in this one. It may have just been my eARC copy, but there wasn't any indication of when we were in present day and when we were in the past in Caldwell St. Then, the text would jump back to to something that happened "16 hours earlier" or "3 months earlier", but this didnt really add anything to the story.  The ending and reasonings of the murderer's actions were a bit difficult to grasp, and I was left with a few unanswered questions.

Thanks to netgalley for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review!

This was a So-so thriller. I had high expectations about where the story could go. It started off a lot like the movie Clue and I was intrigued for a while but then it became very convoluted and I was just ready for the story to end. I really liked the premise around the story and the ending left a bit of a cliffhanger which might make for an interesting follow up book but this one just didn’t live up to its full potential.

I adored the plot, but hated all the characters.
EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.
So, while I got totally engrossed in the story, it was with many many eye rolls and face scrunches that I finished this book.
Thanks to NetGalley and Skyhorse Publishing for my DRC.

I'll start by saying that the premise is good, it's been done before but that's ok because the author put their own spin on it. I thought the writing was also good because I freaking hated every one of these characters, which is what I assume the author was going for. I did find them a little hard to believe, like who acts that way?! At times their characterizations were OTT so I found myself rolling my eyes. But honestly, I was enthralled and wanted to see whodunit so when talking about a mystery, I'd say that's a home run!

This started off hard for me to get into. But once I did, it was really good. The time hopping can easily confuse you, so this a book that you will need to pay attention to put the pieces together.

I could not put this book down. It’s hooks you from the beginning. I enjoyed the way the author wrote it. Keep in mind the story jumps between past and present but the author does it effortlessly!