I really wanted to love this one, but I lasted about 40% before I gave up. I really could not stand any of the characters in the book. They were all horrible to each other. The entire premise started becoming too unbelievable for me. I gave her first book only 2 stars, so maybe this author just isn't for me.

ooof this pushed me to finally stop adding YA thrillers to my TBR
- REALLY did not like the writing. it was very clear that these were teens written by an adult
- so many fart jokes??? for what
- the E-sports team took up so much "screen time" for absolutely no reason
- has one of my least favorite tropes where the MC knows something the reader doesn't and teases you with it the entire time

This book is one hell of a ride. In a game of secrets we follow a main character that we don't know we can trust and it was an good ride. I will say I didn't see the twist coming. If you like stories where the main character is being tricked and has something taken from them and made to play a deadly game this book is for you

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC.

Description from NetGalley:
When Crystal Donavan gets a message on a mysterious app with a picture of her little sister gagged and bound, she agrees to play the kidnapper’s game. At first, they make her complete bizarre tasks: steal a test and stuff it in a locker, bake brownies, make a prank call.

But then Crystal realizes that each task is meant to hurt—and kill—her friends, one by one. But if she refuses to play, the kidnapper will kill her sister. Is someone trying to take her team out of the running for a gaming tournament? Or have they uncovered a secret from their past, and wants them to pay for what they did...

Let me get this off my chest: I understand that the flashback was when they were kids; however, once I found out what happened five years prior, I lost of my sympathy for Crystal. This book is fast paced and nicely written. I saw who is was coming from about 25% of the way through. For a YA thriller, it will probably bring in that age group to the genre.

Overall: 3.5/5

I love a good scavenger hunt but this was scary! Imagine having to play because your sister is being held hostage with each task meant to bring harm or death to your friends.

This story will have you on the edge of your seat as each task is completed. You will be completely shocked by some of these tasks as well as how the people behave.

Great read!

Man, this was intense. In true Diana Urban fashion, I was on the edge of my seat as each secret and plot twist was revealed. At times, the trauma and destruction was uncomfortable to read, which I suppose is the entire point, so I guess that means she did her job! If you want something fast-paced and concise, then this is for you. I'll definitely recommend to my teens at the library.

Also perfect for fans of Pretty Little Liars and Karen McManus books.

This sounded like it would be a really interested read, and I guess there were parts that kept me interested enough to keep going and see how it ended. However, between the over the top plot (like with zero possibility of being even slightly believable) and the extremely unlikeable (and one dimensional) characters, this just ended up not working so well for me. There was one part of the mystery that I didn't put together, but other than that, I also felt it was super easy to figure out who was behind everything, and it just was kind of a let down when I found out I was right. I still think that a lot of people might like this one, it just wasn't for me.

OH MY GOSH - Diana Urban is one of my top 10 favorite authors and this new thriller did not disappoint. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! The characters were relatable yet flawed, the plot was unique and well delivered, and the world building was outstanding. All of the twists, turns, dark secrets, and hidden truths kept me turning the pages well into the midnight hours.

These Deadly Games
by Diana Urban

These Deadly Games is an amazing psychological YA thriller that was a fast paced and entertaining read for me. I enjoyed this one a lot!

This book was shocking with so many twists that pulled at me like riding a roller coaster that went on and on, and just when you think things are slowing down, another surprise comes that made this read propulsive and heart pounding!

From the first sentence, I was pulled in!

I loved it!

I thought this was a decent second novel, but I think I might have enjoyed the first one a bit more. It was way to easy to figure out who was doing things and exactly who the person was, but it still was interesting enough to continue reading and had a few things I didn't know. Overall, it was decent.

Very twisty and suspenseful.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.75 stars

I read her debut last year and enjoyed it, so I was super excited to see what she would write next.

I’ll say this was such a fun and entertaining thriller; very fast paced as well. Though I did find the twist to be predictable—like I knew who was behind the game in the first place, which I figured out halfway through.

None of the characters (except for Crystal, the main character) felt distinct and I couldn’t tell any of them apart. They appeared one dimensional, so I couldn’t really connect with any of them.

Despite my issues, once I started this, I didn’t want to put it down. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. I kept wanting to know what was going to happen next.

Overall, this was a great thriller. And If you’re in a reading slump, I suggest you pick this up.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

These Deadly Games is an awesome YA thriller about an esports team and exposing their secrets. The esports team is up for competing to win $250000 - money the kids desperately need for their own reasons. However, someone kidnaps our main character’s sister, and the secrets and deaths start to come out. As we follow the real time ransoming, we are also given snippets of the past, a secret the team members are determined to keep.

I think this book was wonderful. It was really fast paced and engaging. I think a lot of people will be able to relate to the different characters and really become invested in the story. My biggest gripe with the story is that it was a little over the top and unbelievable. If you’re an adult reading this one, you may have to suspend your belief to get through some of the challenges. Also, some of the pop culture references really stick out. If you’re not a fan of those, they may annoy you. Overall, I highly recommend this book to those who are interested.

Overall, a 4/5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an advanced ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Yea I just didn't like this. Reading this was like zoning out in class and then focusing just as the teacher announces a project or calls on you to answer a question you didn't hear. I was so excited to read this because one of my favorite booktubers was hyping this up but I barely made it through this. I knew after the first few chapters I wouldn't even like this book.

What a fun cat-mouse game. This book was so heart-pounding and I enjoyed it for the most part. I loved the premise behind this book so much, just didn’t hit the execution well enough. I loved the ending too, but I felt like there wasn’t enough going on with the characters and I would’ve liked more details on them. It was an overall solid YA thriller.

Be careful who you cross because it may be a deadly decision. These Deadly Games bring the fighting from the computer screen to real life. Crystal Donavan needs to make a money quota to be able to compete in the annual game tournament but that may be the least of her problems. While there were surprises and a twisty story it seemed Urban only wanted to coast with the pace and characters. Crystal is superficial and does not have much depth. She is self-centered and doesn't seem to have any common sense. While her friends are mere side characters with little to add to the plot. The villain doesn't really make sense in the context of the whole book. At times I felt much of the action and suspense were forced and only made the book feel pieced together.

I absolutely LOVED this book!!! I loved Diana Urban’s first book, All Your Twisted Secrets, and I adored this book even more. This is a fun, twisty, fast-paced, soapy, high-stakes thriller and I found it to be such a great read. While I did guess the twists fairly early into the book, that didn’t hinder my enjoyment of it.

It felt very Saw-like with no gore, similar to Urban’s first book which is something I loved. I found the concept fun, the characters unlikeable, but great to follow, and the plot engaging.

I can’t wait to read what Diana Urban writes next!

Crystal Donovan gets a message on her phone during class wanting her to play a game. A game where each task she must do is meant to hurt someone important in her life and if she breaks the rules or tells anyone, her younger sister will die.

There are several 'twists' in this story - most predictable, while others are surprising. Everyone seems to have secrets...but how do they play into the mystery of Who can be trusted, and who is the kidnapper?

Oh, and Crystal is also competing with a team to win three million dollars and the annual (video gaming world) Mortal Dusk Crown.

But as she sees her close circle friends dying off one by one, she realizes the games she's playing are more sinister than she could have imagined.
Overall, a good cat-and-mouse, twisty, action-packed read!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to preview These Deadly Games. When a young woman gets a strange message she thinks it’s a joke. Soon she is caught in a cat and mouse game with a crazy person. She is asked to do a lot of strange tasks or else he sister and friends will be hurt. Soon she finds this game is turning deadly. Maybe she’s next on a list to die.
Predictably difficult to read. 2 stars

This was a fast-moving YA thriller about a group of friends whose past is coming back to haunt them.
I really had high hopes for this story but I wished I had DNF’d this book. It wasted about 8 hours of my life I can never get back. I wanted to like this book so bad but NOPE. I liked the idea of a friend group of competitive gamers, as this is surprisingly uncommon in YA books. I honestly could not get on board with the silliness of this story because it honestly was so unrealistic.
Crystal is a difficult character to like. She's self-centered, selfish and only really cares about what the game tournament can do for her. She mentions helping a friend through an eating disorder (that was quickly resolved) but it came across as Crystal making herself look like a good person. I could fully understand why her friends thought she was paranoid and didn't seem to like her that much. Honestly if she would have trusted her friends she would not have had so many problems. Also, she could have ended the whole story with a phone call. Even has things started to happen she still chose to keep quiet. Just bad choices lead to more bad choices.
The more the back story was revealed I guessed the killer way before the big reveal at the end. The plot twist was not a twist at ALL. If you followed the story closely enough you could guess what happened. I rolled my eyes so many times during while reading this book, my head hurt. If I hadn’t been reading on my Kindle, I probably would have chucked this book at the wall. I’m giving this book 2.6 stars because I was tricked into reading this whole book hoping it would get better. I’m so sorry I did not like this book. Thanks for the advance copy from Netgalley and the publisher.