"I'll Never Tell" by Casey Kelleher is a Psychological Thriller with important topics!

Alessia is a 32 years-old wife and mother. Her husband Carl adores her and her young son Jacob is a blessing to their marriage. It's seems like such a perfect life!

Until -
A brick crashes through their window with a note attached reading, "FOUND YOU!" Is it a coincidence this is happening on the anniversary of that awful day twenty years ago?

Then -
Someone attempts to run Alessia's car off the road, a box with a dead rat inside is found at her front door and an old newspaper clipping is discovered hidden in her son's bedroom.

Alessia is convinced her childhood friend, Sarah, is back!

This story has two timelines, past and present and both are told in a third-person narrative. It begins as a multi-layered story that intrigues me. In the latter half, it dips, drags and feels predictable.

I did like the important topics within concerning abuse, personal harm and the impact trauma has on mental health. But be warned, these could be triggers for other readers!

The audiobook's narrator, Daphane Kouma's gender voicing was acceptable but her voice, as she read the third-person narrative, felt over-enthusiastic and distracting.

Be sure to check out other reviews as I have seen many high reviews for this one. Sadly, this book was not a good fit for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, and Casey Kelleher for a free ALC of this book. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review. The expected publication date is 12/3/21.

This was an intriguing listen. First, the narrator is excellent. I thought I had the Sarah character sorted out early, with a later character confirming it. Then, plot twist! I don't know if I liked any of the characters, but that didn't really matter since I enjoyed the story. I know some people don't like when a book jumps between "then" and "now". I think the way this has been structured in the book works well and doesn't distort the storyline. Thanks for allowing me this listen :)

I have never read anything by Casey Kelleher before and honestly I didn't know what to expect when I started to listen to this Audiobook.
Basically it is the story of a woman who desperately tries to hide her past as to protect herself and her family. Alexia has some pretty rough secrets to keep and as the story develops you won't be sure if she is as innocent as she claims to be.
Just dive into this deep and very very dark story and find out about what really happened to Sarah (does she even exist) and Alexia.
I literally could not stop and felt so deep for the women and all the other people in this domestic psychological thriller!
Thanks a lot #NetGalley #Bookouture Audio for providing me with an advanced audio copy of this book

I’ll never tell is a psychological thriller about a woman named Alessia who has a husband, Carl, and son Jacob who she loves very much. She has a life that she has always dreamed of and she is happy, until weird incidents start happening, and she believes that someone from her past is trying to torment her. In her past, she was called Emma Jane, and in an accident in the Dollhouse, someone wound up dead, although Emma Jane insists she was not involved…

This novel is told through alternating storylines. From then, as Emma Jane, to now as Alessia. I appreciate the alternating timelines (one of my favorite tropes) because it keeps me hooked to the story. This novel started off slow but by the 50% mark I got hooked, and the ending shocked me. I was engaged throughout the story.

I listened to this via audiobook, and it is important for me to stress that the narrator did a great job changing her voice for different characters and I never got confused as to who was speaking. I’ve listened to books in the past where the narrator made characters sound annoying and whiny but this was not the case, I actually forgot I was listening to an audiobook because I was so engaged and envisioning the story. The narrator did a great job bringing the story to life.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ALC

This. Gave. Me. Chills.

💛 Look. I have listened to my fair share of mysteries and thrillers. Probably several people’s fair share. And this is an instant fave. In short, it’s a yes from me.

💚 Let’s start with the fact that the premise is instantly gripping. Children doing terrible things? I’m terrified. Sign me up. And it only gets creepier from there. And I mean super creepy. There’s a distinct Freddy Kruger vibe throughout. If there is a scarier sentiment than I FOUND YOU, please write a book about it, make an audiobook and fling it my way.

💜 Major bonus points for the main character, Likeable, especially as she is not made to do incredibly stupid things in sacrifice of moving the plot forward. In fact, that leads me on to my main point. Which is that this is just well written. It’s real and human, with light amid the dark (the characters have fun together at times) and kudos for the very sensitive treatment of mental illness. Huzzah.
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SOUNDBITE

🎧 Hello, Daphne Kouma, I haven’t heard you before, but really enjoyed this maiden voyage. I liked that this was a very fluid performance. By which I mean that there was no sense of foreboding in the non-scary bits. I really liked the voices of Emma-Jane and Harriet. Some of the male voices were a bit off, but that’s me being picky.

🎧 A light to medium amount of concentration required for this, especially if you want to pick up on little hints along the way. I didn’t get lost at any point and need to rewind. I also listened to this in a day, which meant that I did so whenever I wasn’t typing (ie, cooking dinner, errands, etc), which I couldn’t do with something too intricate.
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SHALL I COMPARE THEE TO...

I would put this on a par with Lisa Jewell. I would say it’s smarter than The Silent Patient.
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Big thanks to NetGalley and Bookouture for providing me with an ALC in return for an honest review.

Audiobook.
I'll never tell by Casey Kelleher.
Narrated by Daphne Kouma.
When we were young, Sarah and I did a terrible thing – but it was only me who paid the price. Now, just when I thought no one from my old life would ever find me, a note is slid under my door: I haven’t forgotten. I haven’t forgiven. FOUND YOU.
This was a good listen with good characters. I did like Amanda and Margaux. I had no clue who it was. 4*.

<i><b>I haven’t forgotten. I haven’t forgiven. FOUND YOU. </b></i>

Emma-Jayne and Sarah did something bad in the "doll house" when they were young, and it was Emma-Jayne who paid the price. When Emma-Jayne tried to tell the police what happened, she was branded a liar and placed on trial. Alone, frightened, and scared, she was known as the girl who killed.

Now twenty years later she is living as Alessia, a happily married woman with a young son. But then she gets a note, letting her know that someone out there knows what she did, things get worse from there. Who will believe her? Will anyone? Did she make it all up or is she still being victimized?

As readers learn more about her past in the "Then" sections, things become to fall in to place in the "Now" sections. This book touches on some very difficult subjects and although nothing is told in a graphic fashion, things may be difficult for some readers.

I appreciated how the author dealt with difficult subjects and enjoyed how more things made sense in the end. The middle dragged a little for me, but otherwise this was an enjoyable book.

Thank you to Bookouture Audio and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.25 stars

Alessia has finally moved on with her life and settled down with her family when the demons from her past creep up and begin to destroy everything. It begins with a brick thrown through their home window, then someone trying to run her and her son off the road, finally, a box is discovered outside her door with a dead rat in it. Alessia soon realizes that it is Sarah, a childhood friend, who never took the blame for anything. This was a decent psychological thriller. The timeline was split between Emma-Jane and Sarah as children to Alessia as an adult. There are many issues that are discussed through the book such as mental health, child abuse and long-term psychological effects of trauma. This was a fast—paced thriller that sucked you in right away. I do wish that there was more showing of what happened instead of telling the reader. With that said, I still recommend this book for someone that wants a quick psychological thriller read.

Alessia has a new life. She has a wonderful family and good friends and has completely moved past the awful events that happened when her and Sara were younger. Alessia, previously known as Emma-Jayne, told the police it was Sara and so in order for her to move on with her life she had to forget Sara and start over. Life was going great until a brick gets thrown through her window and she knows Sara is back and there is a score to settle and she must go back to that terrible place in time or risk losing the beautiful life she has created for herself.

Engrossing, expertly crafted story. I thoroughly enjoyed it even though I was able to figure out pretty early on what was going on and who was behind it. A great psychological thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat wanting to know what happens next.

𝘎𝘳𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘵𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦!

This is one of those stories that starts a little slow, but little by little grabs you until you can’t let go.
Thrilling, full of twists and tense, I needed to know who was behind everything and the ending was completely unexpected and fantastic.

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for this ALC.

𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦: 𝘔𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘺, 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘛𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘔𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘛𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

Alessia is happily married to Caleb and has a little boy Jacob. Life is good, until....One night while Caleb is working and brick is thrown through their window with the words "Murderer" written on it. Other weird things begin happening that put Alessia's life in danger or remind her of something chilling that happened in her past. The reader is given little bits and pieces of Alessia's childhood during this dual timeline novel.

As the novel unfolds we learn that Alessia was "Emma-Jayne" in the earlier time line and she had a best friend Sarah who is sinister, or so it seems.


I kind of figured out the ending 1/2 through the book so I felt like from the middle to the last 1/4th of the book, it kind of slowed down after a quick start. The ending was disappointing because it was so predictable. That being said the first part of the book kept my attention, creepy kids always spook me. Once I caught on to what was happening it became a ho-hum I know will happen next.
As for the final ending, you know once it has been tied up with a ribbon I was more disappointed than anything. I found some flaws in details.
1. If a little girl supposedly killed her abusive step father and claims to have a friend "Sarah" who was there as well wouldn't you do an exhaustive search for said girl?
2. A little girl in the sAME SMALL TOWN named "Sarah" was missing and this little "murderer" of a girl is claiming to have befriended a girl named Sarah wouldn't that be a bit.....suspicious and worth investigating before ruining Emma Jayne's life?
3.The Tooth, proves that Sarah was real.....at 12 would't you be old enough to reason that??

I actually really liked the characters, especially Alessia's husband Carl and her friend Harriet. They seemed very "Real" .
So overall I would say if you have a gap in your bookshelf and need a quick read that will whet your appetite this is the one. It won't change your life but the ride is good.


Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, and Casey Kelleher for a free ALC of this book. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review. The expected publication date is 12/3/21.

⭐⭐⭐⭐Stars!
Story is told then and now.
Then ~When Alessa (Emma-Jayne) was twelve years old, she and her friend Sarah loved to play in an old cottage they call the ‘doll-house’. Their game turned into something deadly when Alessa’s step-father is found murdered and she is believed guilty. She claims she didn’t do it that Sarah did. However, no one believes her.

Now ~ Alessa at thirty-two years old is married; she and hubby Carl have a toddler, Jacob.
Strange things are happening to Alessa. She believes Sarah is doing hurtful things to her and that she is going to take her little son Jacob.
Alessa seems to be having a breakdown. She has been convinced that there is no Sarah and she was an imaginary friend.

This was a great psychological thriller. I am a big fan ~ I know what to expected and love when it keeps me guessing.
There were times that this was a slow burn as I totally had it figured out ~ wrong!
It turned out to be a WOW read for me!
My first Casey Kelleher novel ~ I am anxious to read another!!

Addition, Audio narrator, Daphne Kouma did a super job performing the characters.

Want to thank NetGalley and Bookouture Audio ~ for this audio eGalley. This file has been made available to me before publication in an early form for an honest professional review.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for December 3, 2021

The narotor does a very good job at telling this story. The flow of this story is brilliant and very engaging.
As we learned of Alessia's painful past my heart ached. This book is such an emotional roller-coaster. A brick crashes through her home saying 'I found you' and it in the anniversary of that fateful day. There were a few twist that made my heart pound as I couldn't believe it. Alessia's is convinced that Sarah is back she's now having to tell Carl her past. I like how we switch to the two different narratives from past to present day. There amazing tension that builds so much. I would add this to your to read pile.

Whoa. This book was surprisingly good! Never heard about Casey Kelleher before but after reading this, I can say that I am now a fan! Wow.

The flow of the story was engaging. There was never a time that I got bored or disinterested because every page had my full attention. I was completely preoccupied and absorbed. I remember not getting out of bed, glued to my screen all day just so I could finish this.

The characters had an air of mystery to them--there was a point in the book where I started to doubt the credibility of the main character and it added more edge to the plot. Although I figured out one of the twists 30% into the book, (I'm sure a lot of you would be able to piece it together early on) it didn't take out the excitement for me. The surprise kept coming. Also, the author didn't have to describe the major plot point in graphic detail for me to be affected by it, that's how good the author executed the subject matter. I love it.

I did cry at the end. After all, this book is about starting a new life after a tragic past, but, we all know that the more we run from our demons, the more we become vulnerable to their clutches. Just like Alessia--who is living a normal life with her loving husband Carl and their son Jacob, but someone from her past is threatening to destroy the perfect life that she built, someone who knows about what she did twenty years ago, someone who won't stop at nothing to make her remember.

Please add this book to your list if you haven't yet. Totally worth it.

Cheers to Netgalley and Bookouture for the ARC! So glad I requested this book!

I listened to this book on audio from Netgalley and OMG it was phenomenal! I couldn't stop listening and I was considering getting the headphones surgically attached. There was a sense of menace and foreboding from the start but it was also a heartbreaking and emotional story as we learned of Alessia's painful past. Such a rollercoaster of emotions. There were a couple of great twists that I didn't see coming. It was so well written, very clever, the characters were well crafted and believable and it certainly kept me on my toes guessing on how the story would enfold. I am definitely going to seek out more of this authors work. I must say that the narrator was fantastic at expressing all of the emotions of the characters. A solid 5 stars from me and one of the best books I have read this year!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4358167932

Review also posted in Facebook groups - The Book Club (TBC), The Book Club Audible Listeners and The Fiction Cafe Book Club.

Alessia's life appearing put together, as a 32 year old mom of a toddler, Jacob, and married to a loving husband, Carl, she has left her past behind her. Until odd occurrences begin to take place, it's seems like such a perfect life! A brick crashes through their window with a note attached reading, "FOUND YOU!" Is it a coincidence this is happening on the anniversary of that awful day twenty years ago? The past comes back like movie reels before her. Some are unpleasant leaving Aleesia off kilter from reality. In her past, she remembers her name as Emma-Jayne, and a playmate, Sarah, playing in an abandoned cottage, deemed as the "dollhouse". Visuals of a dead body lying on the floor and Sarah disappearing leaving Emma-Jayne to take the blame. After spending six years in a mental institute for the murder of her stepfather, she changes her name and moves away from her hometown. The story is told through two main timelines – the past and now. The writing is such that it raises the tension very quickly, which stays on every page. The first half had me completely hooked, till gradually the story starts falling into place, when the two timelines cover significant detail. The author weaves issues pertaining mental health , child abuse and long lasting effects of psychological trauma throughout the narrative with commendable restraint without making the reader feel uncomfortable. Taut , suspenseful and fast paced, this psychological thriller is hard to put down. The narrator had a pleasant voice and worked well in the story. The writing style is light and easy, I enjoyed reading it. The plot is well structured, but I thought it could have gone deeper and darker given the themes of the books. This book should definitely be on your list in December. You won’t be able to put this one down. It’s full of twists that will leave you shocked.

Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture Audio, and Casey Kelleher for a free ALC of this book.

This starts out slow and I got kind of bored.
It does eventually pick up around 20% in and gets progressively more exciting till the end.
I had figured out a few of the bits well before the reveal, but Kelleher still managed to surprise me with lots of bits I had no idea I should have been looking for.
Well done Kelleher, well done indeed!
Much love to NetGalley and Bookouture Audio for my DRC.

Well, this book was a real whirlwind! There were times that I was convinced it would be a 3* book and then there were times that I was totally gripped.

I'll Never Tell follows the story of Alessia, a mother who has changed her identity as a way to move on from her past. We learn about a horrible murder that took place in the creepy 'Doll House' in the woods where she and her friend used to play when they were little. The story starts when a brick is thrown through Alessia's window with the words FOUND YOU.

The book flits between two time periods of 'Now' and 'Then', allowing the reader to gradually piece the story together. However, it is really not that simple; this book was packed full of twists and turns that I really didn't see coming. Just when I thought I'd got my head around something, there was another plot twist and this really kept me interested.

Overall, the story was good, although it did take me a little while to get into it. That being said, now I've read it, I would be interested to read it again with the knowledge of how it ends!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me the ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I'll never Tell by Casey Kelleher was pretty good as far as an audiobook go. This is a typical popcorn thriller book, which I tend to love! The characters are relatively shallow, not sure well developed story line, but the twist was great! This is a great book to listen to during the day at work or while doing something else because you don't have to focus on it 100% to understand what is going on. It is very interesting and overall enjoyable for the right listener!


3/5 from me!

I started this audiobook yesterday and I got about 30% in and unfortunately I had to stop. I felt that many of the topics discussed were to triggering for me. Also the writing was a little jumbled and I found myself dosing off a lot. I do not think this is a bad book I just think this particular book isnt for me. Thank you for giving me a free copy for a honest review.