I'll Be You is told through the dual perspective of identical twins! This is a twisty psychological thriller that will keep you up all night to finish it! Strong themes involved and the ending shocked me!

*Thank you so much to the publishers for gifting me an early release copy to give an honest review. My opinions are my own*

Quite a great read about two sisters, each with their own issues. Gorgeous twins Sam and Elli grew up as child stars and the Hollywood scene took its toll on Sam making her descend into a drug-riddled abyss and subsequently fractured her relationship with her sister.
Now, years later, Sam is finally getting her life back on track. However, when her father calls her one day to help out with a two year old niece that she didnt even know she had, Sam starts to find out that while she was lost in her own issues, Elli wasnt far off either.

Overall, this was a good book. I felt like I was missing certain elements to make it just a little more exciting and intriguing. We follow Sam as she tries to find her twin sister Ellie. Ellie's husband left her, she adopted a kid, and now, she's been at a "wellness retreat" way longer than planned. Sam begins to think that maybe her sister is in a cult. I liked the premise of this book, but I wish the book focused more on the cult aspect instead of all the flashbacks.

Another great book by Janelle Brown! Wonderful character development of these twin sisters and the book is written from both their voices. The theme of a cult is very timely...with the recent real life activities. Definitely less of my typical mystery or thriller (although there are definitely some big surprises) but a story which keeps you engaged and it's very hard to put down.

I’m not going to lie, I loved this book from beginning to end. The tale of sisterhood and the bond between twins that falls apart and comes back together. I loved seeing the perspective of both Elli and Sam and how their successes and failures ultimately brought them back together. I enjoyed that Sam, the unlikely heroine who was addicted to drugs came through for her forever reliable sister who’d fallen down the wrong path of a cult. I rooted for these characters to do right by themselves and in the end I was sobbing alongside them.

I was gifted an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have mixed feelings about this mystery involving twin sisters who have a history of impersonating each other. The plot was fast moving, and I wanted to see how things played out, but there was a lot going on. And some of it was a little far fetched. Overall, it was ok, but I think I liked the author's previous novels slightly more.

Janelle Brown does it again!!!! Grabbed me from page 1. Estranged twins, giving Sweet Valley High, cults, Hollywood child actors, truly could not put it down. Everyone is messy and real and terrible but in that human person way. Every time I was like “that person sucks” it was like “true but it’s complicated”. Janelle Brown is an automatic read for me now.

There are many stories about twins, this book packs several topics into a dramatic family tale. It's an interesting slant on twins who occasionally trade personalities with a secret hand signal. The early years are set in Hollywood where young twins Samantha and Eleanor are child actresses. The distinct nature of this business, along with their new-age Mother and remote Father, defines separate destructive futures for both.
Sam enjoys acting, Elli would rather be a normal kid in school with playmates. After their semi-famous stint ends they chose different lifestyles. Elli marries Chuck and spends lots of time and money to conceive the baby she's obsessed to have.
Sam spirals into an endless cycle of drug and alcohol addiction, one-night stands, rehab, group therapy, and meetings.
Elli tries to help, even pays for more rehab. Sam repays her with a despicable betrayal and they become estranged.
Their mother is oblivious to life happening around her. Her character reminded me of a generation of women who where raised to smile, ignore, deny, bury their head in the sand and pretend if you don't acknowledge "it", it didn't happen. I knew some of those ladies.
Elli is not happy despite Chuck's support and the adoption of two year old Charlotte. Chuck throws in the towel and moves out. She searches for answers, meaning and purpose. This leads her to GenFem, a womens power organization, run by Dr. Cindy Medina. She disappears to join this movement and finds herself deep into an even worse situation.
There is action, suspense, emotional family dynamics and surprising twists. I found myself holding my breath through some harrowing scenes. I was rooting for most of the characters and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I had not read anything by this author previously, but will watch for her next endeavor.
Many thanks to NetGalley, Janelle Brown and to Random House for the advance digital copy of "I'll Be You". These are my personal thoughts and opinions, given voluntarily.

I really enjoyed "Pretty Things" and was excited when I saw she had a new book coming out. She had me at cults. A lot of this book drew inspiration from such groups like Synanon, Scientology and NXIVM.

Once the plot picked up I finished it within a few days. I was eager to learn more about GenFem and Dr Cindy and where little Charlotte came from. This book did not disappoint. Definitely read if you love cults and thrillers.

Told in semi-alternating viewpoints and timelines, I’ll Be You tells the story of twin sisters Sam and Elli. Former actresses, they’ve moved on with their lives, or at least, they’re trying to. Sam turned to drugs and alcohol, and Elli turned to her husband and dreams for her family. But when Elli doesn’t return after a spa weekend, Sam must step in to help, even if she feels unwanted, even if it’s triggering her sobriety.

For me, I liked Sam’s chapters more than Elli’s. Their mother is pretty much toxic garbage, and I can see why Sam has felt like such an outcast. While not a justification, it explains so much why she has turned out the way she is. I felt so much more for her and felt invested in her life.

The blurb on Goodreads states that this is a “magnetic thriller,” and it’s not a thriller. It doesn’t state that on retail sites, so perhaps they realized it wasn’t. I would pin it as a family drama or women’s fiction. Either way, this is a great read, with a fun storyline and rich characters. Thank you, Random House Publishing, for sending this along!

I’m torn on how I feel about this book. There were parts I really liked that were mysterious and kept me entertained, and there were other parts that for me were so ridiculously unbelievable that I considered DNF’ing this book. Finishing the book won out because I was curious what was really going on between twins Sam and Elli, but after loving Brown’s book Pretty Little Things, I’ll Be You was a big letdown for me. I think I was waiting for a big twist to be shocked with and that just didn’t happen.

Do you ever read a book and get to the end and you're like WOW, that author is seriously off their rocker?  Well Janelle Brown is definitely a little off her rocker and I'm really glad for it.  I'll Be You is very strong in character development with an amazing and unique plot. 
Highly recommended!   This is my second book by Janelle, Pretty Things was very good but this one is even better, especially the "spa".

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC. As an identical twin I am always attracted to books who have stories centered around them, and as a psychological thriller, what could be better? I liked the two twins POV and reverting back and forth between the past and the present. As a twin myself I enjoyed the different characterizations, they may be identical in appearance, but not in personalities. I did enjoy that the book did center more around the twin's and their complex relationship than as just another mystery.

I enjoyed this book more than Brown's previous book, Pretty Things, I'll look forward to her future novels.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House for the opportunity to read and review this title prior to publication.

I adored Janelle Brown's previous book, Pretty Things, so I was excited to get a galley of I'll Be You. I read about 25% of the book, and I noticed a lot of similarities to This Might Hurt by Stephanie Wrobel. I did not finish that book, and the further I got into I'll Be You, the more I was dreading that I was reading such a similar book. I would rather not "hate read" it to give it a bad review online, so I am just sending this one through Netgalley. I may still try to read more of Brown's backlist, but this one was just not for me. Thanks again.

Thank you Netgalley and Random House for the eARC. This was my first Janelle Brown book, and it won't be my last. I am a sucker for like the whole "trying to uncover what happened to me" plot so this was my bread and butter. The twin or sibling trope is something I enjoy, especially when it comes to having feelings of just something not being right. This was a wild ride. Definitely recommend.

When is a weekend retreat not a retreat? At what point does the family start to question whether or not their daughter should be back by now? Just exactly how long do the grandparents take on the responsibility of a two year old before they call in assistance from the twin sister, you know, the one who’s the family disappointment?

All these questions and more make up the beginning of I’ll Be You by Janelle Brown. The story centers around identical twins Elli and Sam who grew up performing on television, first splitting a supporting role and then as twins, starring in their own show. From the beginning, the differences between the two emotionally were almost so strong as to end their careers before they got started. Elli hated performing and Sam lived for it. The solution? Sam pretended to be Ellie on the show so she would stick with it. The problem? That left Sam too exhausted to get everything done and the perfect target for an unscrupulous makeup artist who was willing to become her first dope dealer.

This is how the two girls started down distinctly different paths. Elli became the classically good girl, leading an orderly life and demonstrating herself to be an upright, outstanding citizen. Sam, on the other hand, became a wild child, drinking, doing drugs, going down the path of addiction and creating havoc in her wake.

Now the twins are a year past Sam’s last relapse and rescue by Elli and this time it seems Sam may be successful. She has been sober a year, works in a coffee shop managed by her sponsor, and has cobbled together something of a life. Now Elli has gone for the weekend, leaving her 2 year old with her grandparents, to attend what she called a retreat. The problem? She’s been gone an extra five days, isn’t responding to phone calls or texts, and the grandparents are at their wits end. The solution? Call Sam to come and take care of the child for a few days until Elli gets back.

Their solution is riddled with problems, not the least is the expectation that being back with her parents will serve as a major trigger for Sam to start drinking and drugging again. Still, she feels an obligation and goes, only to discover things are stranger than she thought. No one has heard from Elli. The retreat she is supposed to be attending is behind a tall, impenetrable fence and the occupants refuse to let Sam in or acknowledge Ellie’s presence, and Ellie’s life appears to be in chaos. Her husband has taken off for Tokyo, Sam can find no information on Charlotte, the daughter, a “For Sale” sign suddenly appears in front of Ellie’s house, and Sam meets with total failure when trying to contact Elli.

The first part of the book is told from Sam’s point of view and describes her spiral downward, how she manipulated Elli into performing, and the ways in which she believes she contributed to the destruction of her twin. In her mind, it all started when she convinced Elli to swap places with her in various situations. Now she is feeling guilty for whatever has happened to Elli and feels she must fix it. The solution? How about the “I’ll be you” of old? Can she pull off turning herself into Elli and breaking into the compound where Elli is?

The second half of the book is told from Elli’s point of view, and tells how the story ends. She also believes she has some blame coming in terms of being responsible for Sam’s addiction. She has gotten involved in a group way over her head, though, and without Sam’s help might not be able to extricate herself.

While the book is not a mystery in the classic sense, it does present a puzzle regarding what has happened to Elli, who are the people who now seem to be controlling her every move, and how can this situation be resolved. It takes a long look at what it might feel like to be a twin, highlighting a feeling of being half a person on their own.There are numerous moments that create tension or peril for each sister, and leave the reader wondering if the twins are going to be successful in rescuing themselves from this situation. Although the pace is somewhat uneven and seems to drag in spots, overall it’s a gripping read that will have your heart pounding during parts of the journey.

There may be some difficulty in getting started with the book as Sam is not a very sympathetic character which may make it difficult to become invested in the book. She comes across as totally unlikeable, largely because she doesn’t like herself. The turning point for that is when Elli’s narrative begins and the reader is given the chance to see Sam from another point of view. That change and the decision Sam makes to “rescue” Elli and try to create some positive outcomes from mistakes presents Sam in a different light.

My thanks to Random House Publishing for providing an advanced reader copy of the book for this review. The opinions stated here are entirely my own.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I really like the way Janelle Brown tells the story. Generally speaking I must confess that I am not a fan of twin stories. It's a very convenient trope that is often used as a way out of corners, and so I tend to avoid such plot lines. Nevertheless I had faith in Brown's ability to pull this one off, and pull it off she did.

From the opening pages I was completely drawn in and found the tale of Sam and Elli to be engaging, infuriating, challenging, and oddly moving - which pretty much sums up a sister relationship in a nutshell... the writing was crisp. The characters were well-developed. And if the central plot construct wasn't a wholly original one, the way Brown deftly navigated its twists and turns certainly was - rendering it a fabulous read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Ms. Brown is a marvel, and this new thriller is no exception. What a page-turner with her usual twists and turns, and on top of that, an incredible foray into the psychological make-up of twins, and her searing all to real, exploration of addiction. It’s a thriller on another level, and a book I’m happy to talk up and push.

This is an identical twin story that is unlike any I’ve ever read! Elli and Sam were very close as young twin sisters, but each chose very different paths in adulthood, with Sam getting herself into trouble after trouble! When Sam gets a phone call to come help, she has no idea what she’s getting into… or what Elli a horrible situation her sister has entered. This was a crazy wild ride!