The synopsis sucked me in immediately and overall, the premise was good. It was a little slow in the middle, which is why I would give it a 3.5 ⭐️ but the twists were overall good. The main character is definitely unlikable, but since she is a diagnosed psychopath I think thats the point. I would say this is worth especially for the twists at the end!

Never Saw Me Coming had such an interesting plot! Several diagnosed psychopaths are part of a study with their schools psychology department and they start being targeted? Yes please! Such an interesting concept. This book had several POV (which I always love), a game of cat and mouse, a tiny bit of heat, and a race to find the murderer before they get murdered first.

Was it interesting? Yes. But it did not keep my attention very well. I think the book was a little too long and I kept getting lost in chapters that I felt weren't necessary to move the story forward.

Overall, this was an okay read for me.

I am disappointed with this book. I was expecting one thing and received another. It had potential but it was not well written.

Chloe Sevre, a freshman in college, seems like your average student but little do they know that she is plotting revenge for something that happened in her past. Chloe was excepted into a study at her college for psychopaths, but no other students know that is why she is there. The group of students in the study aren't supposed to know each other either, but when one of them is found murdered they start to suspect that someone is out there to kill the psychopaths. Chloe uses the murders to her advantage to get some revenge on a fellow college student who ruined her life when she was younger. But she has to be careful because all of the students in the study have to wear smart watched to track their moods and their movements. Follow along to see how she get her revenge without being caught.

The premise of this book is incredible. I think there's something to be said about books that can create a protagonist that's not a "good guy." The You series really revolutionized those types of stories, and created a space for authors to write stories that are a bit unorthodox but oh, so interesting.

I was frustrated by so many pieces of the book. The story could've been great, and I was surprised by the ending. But there were many places where I was very underwhelmed, and there were many pieces that were lacking or things that I felt were rushed or not fully explained.

The biggest issue was the timeline and pacing were all very weird. I didn't understand many of the jumps in the story and how things would go from one time to the next so suddenly - again, very frustrating.

I did like that overall idea of the plot, and I'm very interested in reading books from the POV of psychopaths and/or sociopaths.

I've been hesitant to read and request thrillers as of late because I've pretty much given up on them. The market is so saturated with the same ol' tired tale of an unhappy marriage or a seemingly perfect marriage gone awry. If I do end up reading a mystery/thriller these days I want there to be some substance to it, some thing that makes it unique and special.

With this novel, I felt the premise was unique enough to keep me reading and wasn't wholly bad in terms of characterization and plot. However, you can definitely tell this is a debut and the writing isn't quite there. But I found the twists to be developed enough to keep the pace fast (which is the point of a thriller) and the fact that all the characters were unreliable and you have no clue who you can trust.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Quite a different story that had me creeped out when a group of psychopaths enrolled in a study, Chloe was all set for revenge. This had many side stories and different POV which at times were difficult to stay focused on. The book did drag out a bit, but the cold characters and the increased body count would interest many. A

Had such a fun time with this story. Could the characters have been more developed? Yes. Did I care? Not really. I had a blast.

Such a unique and fairly ridiculous premise, and so much fun. Perfect for those who are tired of the same characters with the same motives in practically every thriller and are willing to shelve their disbelief for a while and just go with the fast-paced plot. There will be many times while reading that you'll say, "sure......that seems plausible" and "well, okay........we'll go with that" but you'll never think "this is boring".

I first heard about this book through a book buzz with the publisher and was immediately intrigued. Psychopaths aren't typically the subject of novels and when they are, delving into their lives isn't done. I don't read a ton of thrillers, and the twist definitely surprised me. This is one of my favorite books of the year.

Posted on The Storygraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/user_reviews/scriptationist

"Psychopathy is defined as a mental (antisocial) disorder in which an individual manifests amoral and antisocial behavior, shows a lack of ability to love or establish meaningful personal relationships, expresses extreme egocentricity, and demonstrates a failure to learn from experiences and other behaviors associated with the condition."

Walking in the minds of psychopaths, hearing their thoughts and reasonings, was quite a different way to experience a story. With this multiple points of view story, we get to read this book almost as we would watch a murder mystery play out in a movie. The suspense of not knowing who the killer really is or whether it could be one of the characters we are seeing the story play out with, makes this even more intriguing to read.

For me, I could not fathom the reasoning of Chloe and Charles most of the time. They don't see the world in emotional colors, nor can they empathize with the people around them, justifying their motives much more easily than I ever could.

The characters each have a distinctive voice, easily discernable from one another. And I definitely did not see the ending coming, the small details that I both saw and missed. An impressive debut novel from Vera, an author to watch!

Did not get to this book in 2021.
My review is not a reflection of the work or the writing/plot itself, but rather speaks to other books that caught my attention more.
Hate I didn't manage to squeeze this one in, but there are so many books and only so much time.

I would look to Goodreads or other reviewers on Netgalley who read the title and will offer their unbiased opinion.

Really enjoyed this one - I was really engrossed with the story the entire time! Thanks for the opportunity to read!

Loved this book! It was such a thrill to read and I would highly suggest it to anyone looking for a high paced thriller!

A group of college-age psychopaths get free tuition to college in exchange for participating in a study by a psychologist who thinks he can help them become functioning, constructive members of society. But someone is killing them off and Chloe (one of the psychopaths) is trying to stay alive while working to fulfill a vendetta of her own. Interesting premise, but just so-so writing and execution.

I was pulled back into campus life so comfortably and realistically I never saw the threatening presence lurking. Vera Kurian is a gifted writer with an eye for detail and a solid descriptive flair. The story never lags and the ending was satisfying.

What a story! I never knew I needed a novel about psychopaths until I read this. Chloe was such an interesting anti-hero. I really enjoyed her character even though, as an empath, I can't imagine what it's like to not understand things through other's perspectives. This story kept me guessing throughout the entire book and I was still thrown off at the end!
Also, I love that the author is a licensed professional in this field as well, which made me feel like I was learning something through her writing- which was fantastic. I highly recommend this thriller/suspense story!

This was a super fast-paced book centering around a college whose Psychology department studies psychopaths. Have you ever wondered if you've been sitting next to someone who would be considered a psychopath? Well, Chloe is one. But you'd never know it because she looks and acts like everyone else on her college campus. Except that she has a plan to kill a young man who wronged her so many years ago, right after she does yogalates. I loved this book! It was intriguing, twisty, and kept me hooked until the last page.

An interesting peek into a psychological research project. Secrets, lies, psychopaths, what more could you need to keep the pages turning.?

At times like this I really wish you could do half stars because this is solidly 3.5 for me. But I'm rounding up because a) it was fun and b) I was happy to see a book with a DC setting that had nothing to do with politics. I went to AU and this might be the first book I've even heard about that centers uni students in the district. In the author's note, she mentions DC as the city of her heart, and that definitely translated onto the page. And finally c) I really respect what this writer pulled off which was taking objectively terrible people (confirmed psychopaths) and making them compelling protagonists. The voice reminded me of You with that sort of charming, incisive narrative that pulls you in, even though you know this person is bad, you like them, and soon enough you forget you shouldn't until all of a sudden wait, why are you murdering people, oh right, psychopath. A few things were still too weird for me to get behind (spoiler: Are we supposed to ship Chloe & Charles? Like, find them cuddling in his hospital bed at the end cute when his girlfriend has just left the room? I was kind of hoping she was the murderer and the final group member to be honest) but overall a fun, fast read.