Paris is accused of killing her celebrity husband. After all, she was found with one of his razors in her hand and covered in blood next to his dead body. However, as much as she says she didn’t do it.. this could all ruin the life she made for herself while running from her past. Years ago, Ruby Reyes was convicted of murdering a married man she was having an affair with.. and now present day, Ruby is being released from prison and she knows the truth about Paris and her past. Paris has no choice but to go back to the past and face the horrible memories that haunt her.

What a quick and hard to put down thriller. “The Things We Do in the Dark” has everything you’d want in a thriller: multiple POVs, jaw dropping twists and times where I was even a bit scared... which doesn’t happen for me often. This is the kind of book that gets you out a reading slump and leaves you questioning the twists and turns of what you just read. However, there were times where I felt plot holes in the book were rushed through and also kind of predictable. Overall, a very enjoyable read!

Jennifer Hillier does it again!! This book alternates timelines for the main character, highlighting her past and illustrating her present, filled with new challenges, based on the trauma and history of abuse she endured from those she should have been able to trust the most. I was honestly surprised by the twists in this novel and that’s not always the case with psychological thrillers. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of 5 for me!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this advanced copy of Jennifer Hillier’s upcoming thriller, Things We Do in the Dark!

Pub Date: July 19, 2022

2 stars ⭐

I don't think this author is for me unfortunately. I read her previous novel 'Little Secrets' and I didn't understand the hype with that one at all.

Unfortunately I feel the exact same about her upcoming release 'Things We Do In the Dark' I hated the characters and didn't really care about the story.

Absolutely riveting and fantastic. This was my first by this author and I am captivated. This author can write and I’m so excited to discover more of her work.Great plot with a story full of twists and turns.

Did I just read this book in one sitting? Why yes, I did. I cannot tell you the last time I read a book without [literally] putting it down.

Two years ago, Jennifer Hillier’s “Little Secrets” rocked my world. It’s easily a top 10 book for me…an absolutely wild ride. I have lost track of how many people I’ve recommended it to because it was just that good.

Hillier masters so many things in this one. She wrote some solid characters with Joey/Joelle, Paris, and Drew. She also wrote some characters you just absolutely love to hate. The character development and plotting was fantastic.

I also loved how smooth Hillier’s transitions from past and present were. They flowed so beautifully as she built the story. She perfectly wove together two separate timelines in a way that was flawless. I enjoyed getting a glimpse at Joey’s upbringing & some of the trauma she endured. I especially loved part 2, where we meet Drew. I loved, loved, loved Drew’s character. He is so genuine and you just want the best for him. I found myself rooting so hard for his happiness, whatever that would end up being.

There was a point (maybe around part 4), where the book started to drag…just a little bit! There also weren’t any major jaw-dropping moments, but I was hooked from chapter 1 and was dying to find out how everything tied together.

It’s so hard to follow up a book like “Little Secrets.” I don’t envy Hillier’s monumental task in writing “Things We Do in the Dark.” Did I love it? Yes, absolutely. Did it completely measure up to “Little Secrets”? Not quite, but I will still recommend this book. I just craved a big, jaw-dropping moment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. This book is slated for release on July 19, 2022.

4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. So I’m not real sure where to start with this review. I did really enjoy this book. This is my third Jennifer Hillier book but I’m thinking it was my least favorite…and not because it was bad, it just seemed very predictable to me. It seemed like I figured out almost everything that would be considered a twist before it happened. I do enjoy this author’s writing style and there were many characters in this book that I want to talk about but don’t really know how to without giving away any spoilers. It was so sad and hard to read at times about Joey’s life and the things she went through…the abuse and the awful lifestyle she had to live. I liked Paris and Drew’s characters but Ruby, she was pure evil. I can honestly say this book was a solid 4 stars for me from the start. I guess I had hoped by 75% (after it being so predictable) that there would be a shocker ending but I really don’t feel like there was. I mean the ending was satisfying to an extent but there was just nothing “WOW” about it. I think it had potential to be a 5 star for me if it would have ended with a big twist. But just because many things were obvious to me before they happened, they may not be for other readers so I still absolutely recommend this book if you are a Jennifer Hillier fan!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

To see this review (and others) that I’ve posted online, please check out my Instagram and Goodreads profiles:
*Instagram - bookworm_traveler808
*Goodreads - Cherihy808

Wow! Jennifer Hillier takes you on a wild and thrilling ride, set in multiple timelines that twists and turns through intertwining plots that will grip you from beginning to end. It is a character driven, dark thriller that blends the multiple plots and timelines expertly together. Jennifer Hiller brings her characters vividly to life throughout the book. Paris is a character I will not soon forget! I definitely do not want to divulge any plot details; it is best to simply read the book and discover for yourself! This is a 5 plus star book! I thoroughly enjoyed it and thank the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC! It was an amazing read.

Jennifer Hillier is a new-to-me-author, and this was a thriller with a lot of twists and turns. I figured out several things early on, but it was still an enjoyable read. Child abuse, rape, neglect, lies, secrets, jealousy, murder, drama, suspense, and more! You want to root for Paris and hope things go in her favor.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Despite being a fan of Little Secrets, I didn’t get into this one for some reason. While I usually favour a calm start and a clever and subtle build up to any drama. This book starts straight away before you’ve got your bearings. It asked for investment from me that I just couldn’t give. Crime, prison, drama- and all from, more or less, the first page. I’ve already seen lots of rave reviews for it on Goodreads but unfortunately, it didn’t work out for me.

Three deaths, all connected by one woman. Did she kill any of them? Is she innocent? Were they even murders?! This was a WILD ride. I loved the pacing of this book. Hints were dropped pretty quickly so you could start piecing clues together early on while also adding more questions. (But you’re never left utterly confused or bored by lack of action or details.) The ending was SO satisfying to me. The pieces came together in a way that made sense and I was left feeling content. Even a little happy. (As happy as a book about murder can leave you.)

I’m grateful to the publisher and NetGalley for giving me an opportunity to read this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Like one of her previous novels, “Jar of Hearts”, Jennifer Hiller’s newest book, “Things We Do in the Dark” is complex and multi-layered, told from multiple points of view that eventually converge to reveal a larger narrative.

There are four main characters:
Paris Peralta, Filipina fifth wife of a not quite retired comedian husband (“the chick who married the old guy”) and now accused of killing her rich husband;
Ruby Reyes, aka the Ice Queen, who killed her married lover 25 years ago and was convicted by her abused teen daughter’s diaries;
Drew, an investigative podcaster, incensed that this infamous inmate is getting out of prison early by now saying it was a #MeToo self-defense;
and Joey, the surviving teen daughter and former roommate of Drew, who did not get a happily ever after, became a stripper and later died in a fire before turning 21.

Ms. Hiller deftly weaves together threads that make these 4 initially separate stories into a compelling and tense thriller. The connections between the main characters are slowly revealed — there’s many relationships we can guess about ahead of time without surprising big reveals later on. As a reader, I had some self-satisfaction of realizing connections before they were verified, but I was still at a loss to guess the ultimate whodunnit about the very first death in chapter one. To any inevitable reviewers who claim that they had it figured out halfway — nope, not possible. 4.5 stars for this layered psychological thriller.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Although it’s just the cheap imitation, not Garfield, stuffed cat Chesterfield.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO The plants and landscaping fit in Seattle and Toronto. No palm trees were transplanted.

Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier

This is my third from the author and my third straight from her!!! Jennifer Hillier never disappoints and her suspense, characters, and multiple  timelines are just fantastic.

This book hooked me right away and never quit! The suspense never dulls and I was flipping pages so quickly! This felt fresh and original and has so many pieces - murder, glamour, romance, and mystery! Paris' character was interesting at the beginning but once she starts to reveal her history in slow and horrific details, you feel so many emotions for her and what she perseveres through.
This book publishes July 19. HUGE thank you to @minotaurbooks for my advanced copy!

Terrible...in the very best ways. Because this was such a heart wrenching, emotional read.

Jennifer Hillier's latest, Things We Do in the Dark, starts with the arrest of Paris Peralta, the decades-younger wife of Jimmy Peralta. Jimmy, an aging comic on the comeback trail, is in his bathtub, lying dead in a pool of water and his own blood. When the cops arrive, Paris is on the floor next to him, covered in his blood and clutching his straight razor--which was presumably used to kill him.

But for Paris, the arrest is not the worst thing. It's being thrown into the media spotlight. Because she's got a past she's been running from, and she'd rather spend the rest of her life in prison than have her former life resurrected.

Meanwhile, Ruby Reyes, convicted to life in prison herself for a crime eerily similar to Paris's, is being released early. And Ruby's claiming to know certain secrets about Paris that she'd rather keep buried.

The only question left is what will Paris do to avoid *another* murder charge?

Having only read Hillier's last book, Little Secrets, which I loved, I was eager to read her latest. And boy did it ever surpass my expectations. When I say the book was "terrible," I only mean that when we're introduced to Joey, an integral character in this novel, we're given a story so heartbreaking and tragic that's told with such emotion, empathy, and realism, it's hard not to think of so many girls living in her situation all around us. I was moved to tears more than once. Joey and Paris are survivors, full stop.

There' s plenty to love here, the hard content (there's much abuse of the page, though it's rarely graphic and written so as not to be exploitative) notwithstanding. My biggest complaint is that it's over and I'm suffering from a little book hangover.

This is a huge recommendation for me--for genre fans and for those of the author. It's solidified her as an auto-buy for me, and I'm looking forward to more in the future.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press/Minotaur Books for allowing me to read this ARC through NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Jennifer Hillier never disappoints and this is my favorite yet. There was never a dull point and the suspense kept me turning the page way past when I should’ve been asleep. I love thrillers and I feel like this had a fresh take and in a good way. The story flowed so well between the different timelines and the characters felt so genuine that you couldn’t help but root for Paris. I will be recommending it to anyone and everyone. I am so incredibly thankful to get this ARC from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press!

This book has it all - a little seedy underbelly, a little glamour, a little murder, a little romance, a big mystery- I loved it. Paris' character seems a bit flat until she starts to tell her story, and her history of trauma reveals she thinks deep and says little - except when she needs to.

Especially revealing, as always, is Jennifer Hillier adding Filipino flair and history into every scene. It makes it especially personal and resonant.

Thanks for the early review copy, Net Galley!

Jennifer hillier is an auto-buy author for me and I was immediately intrigued by the plot of this story - the celebrity husband of a woman with her own secrets to hide is found murdered and she is accused of the crime, thus beginning to unravel the truth about her own dark past. I generally liked the pacing of this story, little bits from the past slowly leading to the revelation of who Paris Peralta is. Sometimes it felt a tiny bit scattered, the story of character Joey could have unfolded in a slightly more linear way, but ultimately this was a fun and satisfying read. And just when you think you have worked out the reveal, there is a final surprise in the last pages. This was an enjoyable thriller from an author I can always count on. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for sending me this advanced copy for review.

NO SPOILERS

Have you ever read a book that you took your time reading because it was so good you didn't want it to ever end? That's exactly how I felt about this book!! Hillier is a fantastic writer and this book is no exception! There was never a dull point in the book. Her writing flowed beautifully! The story is told from different points of view weaving a suspense-filled thriller that will keep you up reading late into the night.

Thank you to Net Galley & St. Martin's Press for a gifted copy. This is my honest review.

Another engaging pageturner from Hillier. A recommended purchase for collections where thrillers and her previous titles are popular.

Jennifer Hillier is such a great author that while each book is different you can expect the same great attention to detail in the story line. The story here was also fantastic. Paris Peralta is finally living a quiet, safe life with the man she loves. But when she wakes up one morning to police pointing guns at her and accusing her of murdering her husband, she has to prepare for not just a murder trial, but also all of her secrets to get spilled for public consumption. Because hundreds of miles away in a Canadian women’s prison is Ruby Reyes, and Ruby knows a thing or two she shouldn’t. And she’s about to get out of prison. This is told In 5 parts and at different times reveals Paris’s past in slow, horrific detail. But just because she was raised in violence doesn’t mean she’s meant to repeat it…does it?

JH fans: you’re going to love this next hit!

Several different story lines and narrators work together to tell about Joelle and her abusive mother Ruby; Drew, the investigative reporter; Paris and her husband, Jimmy; and the ladies in his life. Dark and raw, this novel will keep you reading late into the night. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my review.