Never Coming Home
Kate M. Williams
⭐️⭐️⭐️

A mysterious island, 19 guest they all have 1 thing in common and all but 1 come home? This book does leaving you wondering if the one and only person left on the island is capable of commuting such crimes…. I love the hanger this one leaves because you wonder how a person is capable of such things!! Definitely a fast and awesome read, just wish there was going to be another book, or it would of left you with better clues!

I was pretty hype about this book. I love the idea and the whole premise of the book. Taking a bunch of influencers and throwing them on an island… what could go wrong right??
Y’all know I hate to give out to much about a book cause I try to go in blind so the only thing I will say is I figured out the end a little to early which always upsets me but overall, it was a great read and I highly recommend it!

For more on this tour and other upcoming TBRandBeyondTours visit https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/

Oh lord this book was intense. I really enjoyed both the regular and psychological thriller aspects.

From the midway point, I started to guess the whodunnit. I didn’t think it was straight up obvious but also I just felt like so much emphasis was put on this one character that I was like “hmmmm. I wonder.”

The end being an open ending also left me reeling. Like whaaaaaat. This book was addicting and crazy and just the perfect thriller.

So anyone who is a fan of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None will recognize the parallels between its plot and Never Coming Home by Kate M. Williams. Given that this was a book described as YA, it is only fitting that the 10 characters are all social media influencers under the age of 21.

Ten influencers of varying degrees of success are lured to an exotic island known as Unknown Island. No one knows who owns the island or the resort, only that it only allows people under 21 and as a soft launch, these ten influencers won the privilege of an all-expense-paid vacation at the resort. When they arrive, they soon realize how little they know about their circumstance and each other. It turns out this vacation is not going to be the luxury one they anticipated and will instead cause them to face their biggest challenges ever. Will anyone leave the island and live to tell the tale?

There were characters that were villains right out of the gate and characters that I grew to really like and even empathize with as the book went on. As someone who loves Agatha Christie and locked room mysteries, I adored the setup. In fact, maybe the only thing I didn't love has to do with my age and stage. I am a mom, not a real Young Adult. Therefore, when I read books where the characters are kids and their behaviors reflect some of the scarier aspects of Lord of the Flies, it freaks me out for my own kids. So I think if I had read this book when I was still a teenager, I would probably have given it 5 stars. But since my reviews are a reflection of who I am now as I am sure there are many other moms who might relate, I will stick with 4 stars. But seriously, I wish all YA books grabbed and held my attention as much as Never Coming Home!! Highly recommend.

Kate M. Williams delivers an updated version of the classic murder mystery “And Then There Were None”. In her novel “Never Coming Home” 10 young stereotypical influencers agree to go to the brand new luxury resort as a way to gain publicity and increase their number of followers. As soon as they arrive, they quickly realize that things are not how they thought they should be: no staff, limited food, unfinished rooms, and no way to escape. Each character receives a letter that reveals a secret from their pasts. Then people start dying!

Although there is not a main character per say, Williams tends to develop the pop star, the DJ, and the gamer. At times the other characters seem superfluous and quickly forgotten. I had to look back at the character list several times to keep track of who was who. Williams creates a good twist right at the very end, but I would like to have seen more clues. The ending seems more like an epilogue written in a different style and tone.

I would definitely recommend this to my high school students to read. It would be a great pairing with Agatha Christie’s novel as well other takes on the theme/plot. Young adults would connect to the social media references.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Random House Children’s Books for granting access to the Advanced Proof.

NEVER COMING HOME by Kate Williams is modern take on Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None with the locked-door element of a remote tropical island. After a viral marketing campaign makes Unknown Island the "it" destination, ten young influencers are chosen as the first guests. What they think it going to be a glamorous, high-profile vacation turns out to be a deadly game of revenge.

This was fast-paced read with an intriguing premise and a diverse cast of characters, though I was disappointed with some aspects of the representation (see spoiler below). Since the narrative jumps between all ten characters, it was sometimes difficult to find anything distinct about each character's voice.

SPOILER: I was very disappointed that the first person murdered was a trans woman and the real-world implications of being in such a vulnerable group weren't touched upon.

10 social media influencers are invited to Unknown Island for an exclusive, free trip that is buzzing all over social media. When they get there there’s no internet, no staff, and the luxurious suites are just a shack. They realize they are all stranded and soon learn that all have some sort of secrets in common. Soon they all begin to die one by one.

Honestly this sounded cool and I picked it up because it reminded me of Fyre Fest but it just wasn’t memorable. It ended up being a generic mystery story. There’s way too many characters just to be there and I couldn’t keep track of them. Plus the chapters were too long. There’s also no creepy atmosphere and I just didn’t care.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book.

Let's just say, if this were a TV show, I'd be binge watching it! The premise is fascinating, especially considering the culture of influencing today. A unique take on a cool idea.

I am a sucker for a secluded setting where people start getting murdered, so I knew this was one I wanted to read!

A seemingly random group of social influencers are invited to a pre-opening event at a secluded island getaway…(think Fyre Festival). When they get to the island, they find themselves alone and without any of the amenities they thought they would have. The rooms are a mess, the food is…limited…and then people start dying.

I really enjoyed the storyline for this one. I didn’t really “like” any of the characters, but with a plot like this, I definitely don’t need to! I liked the way the murders played out and how the entire situation’s ulterior motive was revealed.

This one has some surprise moments, some great reveals, and a quick pace. I really enjoyed it, and I would recommend it for YA thriller readers who enjoyed locked-in settings!

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

Now this is a summer YA thriller I needed. It was engaging, fast paced, sinister, and deadly. Bring on the 10 different characters that you can actually tell apart, and be rooting for them all to stay alive.. till they don't.

Remote island.
Mysterious
Deadly
Fast Paced.

Perfect for a beach read, unless you're on a remote one.

Thank you to Penguin Random House audio for my ALC, all opinions are my own.

E - AR C • RE VIEW
La Never Coming Home by @heykatewilliams
*PUB DAY: TODAY (June 21, 2022) *

Happy Pub Day!! This was such a fun read @ I mean come on ten influencers all tricked into thinking they have made it big and invited onto a famous UNKNOWN
island but that's not the real reason. You have to read this one to unravel all the twists. Definitely recommend to those who enjoy a good YA thriller

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

CWs: Murder, gore, blood, anaphylaxis, suicide, drugs

4.25/5 stars

After reading the synopsis for this one, I was really excited to dive into it. It gave me And Then There Were None vibes, and also All Your Twisted Secrets. Fans of these kinds of stories will enjoy Never Coming Home.
I liked that these people were all influencers. It was a fun way to really modernize the story especially when they’re on a deserted island with no technology. The constant talk about numbers and social media was interesting, and it helped to flesh out the characters.
There are 10 influencers, and while the book is told in 3rd-Person, we do jump into the minds of each of the influencers. I found it hard to keep them straight in the beginning, and I wished that I’d taken a picture of the list at the start of the book. Once I got more into the story I was able to tell them all apart, and I appreciated that the author tried to give them all different voices.
I found that the pacing was pretty good, and the story moved along well. It did slow down a bit in the middle, but it picked up again a bit. It also slowed down again towards the end, but picked up with the climax. I found the beginning moved really well to establish the characters, the setting, and set up the plot.
I enjoyed reading this one. It definitely felt like a modernized version of And Then There Were None which I didn’t mind. The characters were all interesting with their secrets, and the plot kept me guessing.

I was initially intrigued when I learned this all took place on an isolated island. It sounded like the perfect backdrop for a thriller. There's a large cast of characters at the beginning and it took a while to remember who they were and not mix them up. The list of influencers at the beginning of the book helped a lot, but many of the characters didn't last long. Speaking of that, I felt that you didn't have a lot of time to get to know who the characters were so it was hard to sympathize with what happened. I did enjoy that they all had their own backgrounds and histories though. Unfortunately I was able to figure out the big plot twist about halfway through the book. But I thought that the reasons why they all were invited to the island were cleverly created.

In the end, I was a little underwhelmed with this story but enjoyed the setting and overall concept.

For all ages, a fast paced thriller that will keep you guessing! I really enjoyed the twists and turns. I didn’t want to put this book down! Highly recommend!

Happy Friday y'all! And happy first day of July! I can't believe that we're already halfway done with the year! OMG! Here's to more great books in the second half of the year. Today's my stop on the Never Coming Home tour with Turn the Page Tours and OMG y'all this was such an intense and great book! I for sure loved it. Thank you so much to not only Turn the Page Tours for having me as a part of the tour, but to Delacorte Press for having this tour. Along with this tour, there's also a giveaway for this book, so make sure y'all go enter that ASAP. Never Coming Home came out on June 19, so make sure you go check it out today!
Never Coming Home 4/5 Stars
Summary from Goodreads:
The beach read you have been dying for! When ten of America's hottest teenage influencers are invited to an exclusive island resort, things are sure to get wild. But murder isn't what anyone expected. Will anyone survive?
Everyone knows Unknown Island—it’s the world’s most exclusive destination. Think white sand beaches, turquoise seas, and luxury accommodations. Plus, it’s invite only, no one over twenty-one allowed, and it’s absolutely free. Who wouldn’t want to go?
After launching with a showstopping viral marketing campaign, the whole world is watching as the mysterious resort opens its doors to the First Ten, the ten elite influencers specifically chosen to be the first to experience everything Unknown Island has to offer. You know them. There’s the gamer, the beauty blogger, the rich girl, the superstar, the junior politician, the environmentalist, the DJ, the CEO, the chef, and the athlete.
What they don’t know is that they weren’t invited to Unknown Island for their following—they were invited for their secrets. Everyone is hiding a deadly one, and it looks like someone’s decided it’s payback time. Unknown Island isn’t a vacation, it’s a trap. And it’s beginning to look like the First Ten—no matter how influential—are never coming home.
Oh this book was so good. There was so much intrigue and I never knew what was going to happen next or who was going to die next. I loved the whole concept of 10 influencers having murdered people having to deal with the consequences of their actions and they way everything played out was so great! The pace of the book was super well done- no one died too quickly but there was also no lagging and the end- omg- it through me for such a loop that I'm still thinking about it. I'm definitely going to have to reread this one to see if I catch anything that makes me think what I read at the end is what I really think happened (I'm intentionally trying to be as vague as possible because y'all need to get the same kind of surprise when you read the last couple of paragraphs that I did). Overall, I really loved this book and I think everyone should read it this summer! Grab it today! Amazon | Bookshop

This book was so good! I love that we get the multiple perspectives, and the villain….completely out of left field.

Fast-paced and exciting, this And Then There Were None retelling did not stop!

Whether you’ve read the source material or not, this is a great summer thriller to add to your TBRs.

Williams’s has a fantastic writing style that keeps you hooked and captivated to the final page. An intelligently thought out and gripping story that will leave you breathless.

This is a fantastic YA reimagining of Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None featuring a cast of Gen-Z influencers. I couldn't put this down and it reminded me how much I actually really love reading mysteries! If your idea of a summer beach read is a fast-paced murder mystery/slasher, I highly recommend this!

The characters all felt three-dimensional, flawed, and interesting which I feel is no easy feat when you're starting off a book with 10 different POVs (and the added challenge of making you invested in characters before quickly killing them off).

I did guess who the killer was somewhat early on but that doesn't mean this was predictable. The story had enough clues for me to figure it out along the way but also caused me to question my guess multiple times leading to a very satisfying reveal at the end.

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of Never Coming Home by Kate Williams from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This book is INTENSE and will grab you from the first page and keep you engrossed all the way until the very last sentence. It's a wild ride and SO good! Don't delay, start this book today!

I was given the opportunity to read this from @turnthepagetours and I could NOT put it down.

A group of Influencers have been invited to a remote island called Nowhere Island for a soft launch of a new luxury resort. The main thing they have in common besides their "follower counts" are they are all under the age of 21, except one, Grant, who came in to help while the main hosts tie up some loose ends with investors. Once they arrive they all start to realize the 'luxury resort' isn't so luxurious and once the other 'employees' leave they get even more suspicious. After breakfast they are all handed an envelope in which there is a statement letting them know the reason they were chosen is they have something else in common....they are all murderers.

I could not begin to guess what was going to happen next or what or who I thought was behind everything. I was on the edge of my seat and irritated every time I got interrupted. If you like a fast paced mystery/thriller THIS BOOK IS FOR YOU!