Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for my gifted digital review copy!

Sam and Elli, identical twins and former child television stars, followed a similar trajectory until their late teens. Yearning for a ‘normal’ life, Elli drops out of the spotlight while Sam struggles to stay in it and descends down a path leading to drug and alcohol addiction. After a big falling out that results in the two not speaking for over a year, Sam’s mom asks her to come home and help with Charlotte, the niece she didn’t know she had. Sam, a year into sobriety, is forced to confront the fact that she may not know or understand Elli as well as she presumed.

Yay for another amazing book from Janelle Brown and boo to me for taking way too long to read this one. As always, Brown’s characters are lush, developed, and feel like real, breathing people. I was quickly drawn into this one and felt so invested in Sam and Elli’s stories. I particularly emphasized with Sam, especially as she details her battle with addiction. The book covers so many interesting themes: sisterhood, perception of addiction, and cults/groupthink. I wouldn’t expect anything less of Brown- she’s definitely become one of my favorite authors!!

Janelle Brown has written an excellent twist on twin sisters who have gone in opposite directions. A definite must read!

4? stars

This was an interesting read. I’ve been very into the domestic-thriller genre these past few years, so I always like to check out big and/or intriguing story concepts. There’s also something about twins and the potential to swap identities/lives that can be kind of fascinating. This book was strange but fun; it got a bit wild at times, it was twisty, and I was captured by many of the details of the story. Overall, I enjoyed this story and will be keeping an eye out for the author’s future work.

Thanks #netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review. This started out slow for me. I almost stopped but after the first third of the book, I couldn't put it down. Highly recommend.

Interesting story of dysfunctional twins who were former Hollywood stars who haven’t spoken to each other but now one twin must solve the mystery of where her twin is. Numerous drug use descriptions, cult interactions, child kidnapping, and an odd romance between former addicts covered in this book. A quick read that isn’t really a thriller but will keep you guessing.

Identical twin sisters and former child stars are now adults and have grown apart. One, a seemingly perfect housewife and homemaker who lives near the beach. The other, having never fully recovered from her failed career in Hollywood, deals with mental health issues, substance abuse and addiction. Then one sister disappears, and the other is forced to confront the secrets in order to connect the dots.
When Sam's parents call her to come help with Elli's daughter while Elli is away at a spa, Sam wants a chance to prove that she is sober and responsible. But as Elli's absence is extended, Sam knows that something is wrong.
Not just a mystery with a cult at its center, I'll Be You also examines the sacrifices we make for those we love.

Two identical twin sisters and former child stars are now adults and have grown apart. One, a seemingly perfect housewife and homemaker who lives near the beach. The other, having never fully recovered from her failed career in Hollywood, deals with mental health issues, substance abuse and addiction. Then one sister disappears, and the other is forced to confront the secrets in order to connect the dots.

This was actually my first book from the author and I liked it a lot. It was told in multiple parts, each from a different sisters point of view, which I found really interesting. I liked getting their unique perspectives on the events as they unfolded. The cult aspect of the book was pretty cool, as I havn't read many books with this theme. I think this is classified correctly as a mystery/suspense, so don't go into this one expecting a thriller.

The book deals with secrets and lies, the bond between family (most especially between twins) and the complex choices that we make to keep those family bonds. I like how it introduced a behind the scenes look at child stardom. Overall, I found this to be an entertaining read that had me easily turning the pages to see what was coming.

This was a terrific book - twisty and unexpected and kept me guessing the whole time without being over the top. Definitely worth reading.

Elli has disappeared. Not long after joining GenFem, she left her daughter with her mother and cut off communication with her family. Has Elli joined a benign self-help group or cult? Either way, her identical twin sister Sam is determined to bring Elli home.

The exploration of the complicated relationship of the estranged sisters makes I'll Be You an intriguing read. While I wouldn't label this one a thriller, this slow-burn contemporary fiction novel mixes mystery and suspense with a fascinating tale of sisterhood, manipulation, the impact of failed expectations, and co-dependency.

I'll Be You raises some interesting moral questions to ponder long after you finish reading it.

I received a gifted copy of this book.

Ooh time goes by and if i don't write the review right away...sigh. I'm trying to be better. The best i can do right now is give a star count...

Well this book was like the dysfunctional twins meet The Handmaids tale. Good storyline but it was a little drawn out. Very slow moving at times that when it went from time to time per chapter, I found myself confused and had to go back and re read. My second book by this Author, I didn't enjoy it as much as I enjoyed her "Watch me disappear"
Thank you to Netgalley, Random House and the Author, Janelle Brown for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

In a follow up to Pretty Things, Janelle Brown's I'll Be You is captivating and draws you in to the story of twin child stars Sam and Elli-now grown up and estranged. Elli, anxious to leave Hollywood behind, carved out a path of college, marriage and a new business opportunity, while establishing herself in her community. Sam, the more passionate (and troubled) actress of the two, struggled in Hollywood-with both addiction and career disappointments. After not speaking to Elli for over a year Sam is startled when her father asks her to return to Santa Barbara to help care for Elli's two year old adopted daughter. Sam had no idea Elli adopted, let alone that her husband Chuck has moved out. When Sam arrives home, she's even more surprised to find out Elli is on a mysterious retreat in Ojai-that was only supposed to be for a weekend. Just where is Elli? What is going on in Ojai? Is it really a wellness journey or something more sinister? Told in alternating timelines and perspectives Sam is determined to find out just what happened to Elli-and realizes just how intertwined and complicated their bond has become. While not as suspenseful and twisty as Pretty Things, I'll Be You is a well-written story with great character development, mystery and complications.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book. This was a quick read and compelling once you realize that one of the twins is trapped in some type of cult situation. It wasn't the best writing, but not bad enough to detract from the story. A solid psychological thriller with a neat & tidy ending.

I'm over the whole concept of identical twins taking each other's place, but I picked this up on the strength of the author's first book which I really enjoyed. This one was fun up to a point, with fairly believable characters and a good start. Sadly it devolved into detailed descriptions of drug use that bored me. Addiction recovery is a great topic but the addiction itself isn't. The rather silly details of the cult, and all the plot holes it produced, dragged the story down and I started skipping which actually took me almost to the end. The Charlotte subplot was cute if not in the least believable, and could have been the main plot thread without all the other detritus. Hoping for more from this author next time.

Identical twins start off as one and become two, so one twin stepping into the other's shoes should be simple, right? After all, they are essentially the same person. But just where does "nurture" come into play? At what point do our life experiences grab the reins and steer our lives in a direction other than nature intended?

Janelle Brown's new novel I'll Be You tests the twin theory with identical former child stars Sam and Elli Logan. Sam and Elli are virtually impossible to tell apart, but their personalities are like night and day. Sam is vibrant and gregarious, the exact opposite of her more timid and meek twin Elli. While Sam loved the idea of the sisters starring in their own Nickelodeon series as teens, Elli just wanted to shy away from the spotlight, which is when the girls started pulling the ultimate swap - "You be me, and I'll be you" - putting Sam in front of the camera while pretending to be Elli. Little did they know that their switch game would play a larger role in their lives down the line.

Now adults, Sam is a recovering addict and Elli, well, Elli has disappeared off the map. Estranged from her twin, Elli has disappeared to a mysterious feminist retreat, leaving behind a recently adopted two-year-old daughter, a beautiful home, and a soon to be ex-husband. When Elli doesn't return from her trip when she is supposed to, the twins' mom calls in Sam to help care for Elli's daughter. But Sam knows her twin better than she knows herself, and she KNOWS that something is wrong with Elli. Who better than her other half to figure out why she has abandoned her former beautiful life?

Growing up on the Sweet Valley twins, I'll admit that I have a penchant for twin stories. Lucky me, novels about twins are in abundance these days! If you enjoy reading books about the strong bonds between siblings, then I'll Be You is definitely a novel that you can get into as Sam and Elli's extraordinary connection is the common thread running through the pages of this book. The mystery/suspense aspect of this novel plays second fiddle to the intricacies of twin relationships, and works to highlight the curious ways that identical twins can almost live and breathe as one.

I'll Be You is evenly paced and distributes suspense throughout the story, never giving away too much at once. As the plot thickens, so does Sam and Elli's relationship in the reader's mind with Brown revealing intimate details of their twin-ship and sharing secrets from their past.

I personally loved that Brown chose to cast Sam and Elli as former child stars, highlighting the important role that twins play in Hollywood, and detailing how the girls use their identical looks to both get what they want out of their lives, not only on screen, but off as well.

Recommended to fans of Rose Carlyle's The Girl in the Mirror.

I've recommended this one successfully for fans of Saint X and The Last Thing He told Me. I found it lackluster, but for less avid readers it's a good summer read.

I'll Be You is part thriller/part family drama, following the story of now-estranged adult twin sisters who had previously found fame as children's stars. When one goes missing, the other steps up to help track her down. The book has multiple timelines and perspectives. The twists and turns were a bit predictable, but I still found the book fun and interesting. I especially loved the child star plotline, which really took the book to the next level to me. If you find twins creepily interesting, love stories about burned out child stars, or are interested in cults (don't ask), you should absolutely buy this book.

This book was amazing. I've always loved twin stories and this novel has so much going for it. The synopsis does a great job describing the plot. I won't give too much away, but one of the questions Janelle answers is, why do child stars always end up on drugs? A terrific story.

This was the first Janelle Brown book I have ever read. I found it enjoyable. It moved along quickly and kept me interested the whole time. I thought the twin thing was clever. It kept up the suspense for me until the end. I found all the characters likeable and relatable. and liked how things weren't always how they seemed with the two sisters. There was never a point where I wanted to put the book down. I thought there were a few minor little things that were off, but now in writing my review three days after finishing the book, I can't even remember them, so they were tiny. I especially like how the book ended. I feel like this review is lacking, but I can't write that much about it, other than what I liked.

I will be looking for more Janelle Brown books to read in the future. Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read and review this book. All the opinions expressed are mine and given freely.

WOW! It was a crazy read for me, especially because I have identical twin daughters, who were in the Hollywood TV scene as babies. Very well written, crazy story, and I couldn't put it down.