4.25 of stars rounded down.

I honestly think this had the potential to be five stars if the first half hadn’t been so slow. The setting was atmospheric, I felt immersed in the Savannah & South Carolina coastal settings.

I thought I had the ending figured out, but man I was wrong.

I also enjoyed the mix of red herrings on both timelines.

I definitely enjoyed this more than A Flicker in the Dark, so if that didn’t work for you, try this one out!

TW: stillbirth, post partum mental health

"You don’t have to pull the trigger to get away with murder—sometimes, all you need to do is load the gun and let it go off on its own."

I LOVE that this story is based in Savannah, Georgia (my current home! 🥹) and I was excited to read on and imagine Isabelle walking down the streets of Savannah. The scene setting of this book was spot on with the description!

With the MC Isabelle’s declining mental state I was worried this story would be about a typical unreliable narrator. But I’m glad this is not a typical case, because it’s definitely more than that!

I was not able to predict the ending but I did have my suspicions 👀 I really enjoyed Isabelle’s past POV, and the red herrings of this story. Some of the twists can be predicted, but otherwise worked out well! All in all I enjoyed this book, it was just a bit too slow of a burn for me.

Thank you so much @netgalley @minotaur and @stacywillingham for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

Isabelle Drake hasn’t slept in a year…not since the day her baby son, Mason, was kidnapped from his crib in the middle of the night. Now, a year later, police are no closer to finding a suspect or fresh lead in Mason’s disappearance. With all avenues seemingly expired, Isabelle turns to a true crime podcaster who promises to figure out what happened to Mason.

However, Isabelle is alarmed by the questions the podcaster asks her about her own past. She’s not sure who she can trust, and nobody is sure they can trust her…but she won’t rest until she knows what happened to her son.

Author Stacy Willingham proves this is no sophomore slump after the debut of A Flicker In The Dark, which was a phenomenal read. This one is a page-turner with intrigue and suspicions galore. It is a bit of a slow burn, but has some juicy and surprising payoffs. I’m highly anticipating Willingham’s next read. Highly recommended.

Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected Publication Date: 1/10/23.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

5/5 stars

Holy forking crap. My heart is still racing from the last 1/3 of this book. Willingham blew it out of the park in her sophomore novel and I have to say that I loved this book so much better than A Flicker In the Dark. I absolutely LOVE the MC Isabella and how unreliable she is. Willingham did a fantastic job at the dual POV and showing how Isabella’s childhood could be impacting the person she is today and the recent events that could have happened. I think that being able to get inside Isabella’s head and *trying* to understand how the lack of sleep/grieving the loss of her son are impacting her current functioning. I feel like this aspect of the story just causes the reader to be sucked in because you want to know what really happened when Isabella was younger and what really happens when she sleepwalks or zones out at times.

I also think that Willingham approached the topic of motherhood and the lack of sleep that come along with it perfectly well. She does such a great job at showing the mothers guilt that we experience when our children are fussy due to like colic but then feeling guilty that we might have more negative thoughts. I will say that as a mother to a toddler, this was definitely difficult to read at times and I would have to read another book before bed because I became sooo paranoid about my daughter that I would check her baby monitor so many times before I would even go to bed. So if that is a trigger for you, then this may not be the best book for you. However, with that said, this book is freaking fantastic and I couldn’t put it down. And that twist at the end! I didn’t see it coming from a mile away!
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This review will be posted to my Instagram blog (read_betweenthecovers) in the near future!

Really enjoyed this one! Big fan of the unreliable narrator as well as the dual timelines and mysteries. The audiobook was fantastic.

**4.5-stars rounded up**

Isabelle Drake has barely slept in a year. Not since the night her toddler, Mason, disappeared from their home. Her and her husband were asleep in the next room, but they heard nothing, saw nothing. The only sign of an intruder was an open window in Mason's room. With zero other leads, or evidence though, the police had nothing to go on. The case goes cold.

Since that time, Isabelle and her husband, Ben, have split. Isabelle knows the stats, it's not unusual for people who have lost a child to split up. For her though, she just couldn't understand how Ben seemed to move on after Mason. He gave up on him. Isabelle can't do that. She's not going to chalk it up as a loss and move on. Her son could still be out there. She refuses to see him as gone forever.

Isabelle talks about the case, literally gives talks about the case any time she can. She figures talking about it, keeps the case alive. It keeps Mason's missing status in the forefront of people's minds. It's after speaking at an event dedicated to True crime that she meets True Crime Podcaster, Waylon Spencer.

Waylon takes an interest in Mason's case and proposes to Isabelle that they work together. If he can interview her for his series, it will bring even more exposure to her case. After some thought, Isabelle agrees and Waylon comes to stay in Savannah, to be near her and make the interview process easier on them both. Thus, it begins.

In addition to Isabelle's present perspective, we also get her past perspective. In her childhood she lived with her Mom, Dad and little sister, Margaret. After tragedy struck the family, Isabelle was haunted by the event. She's never truly recovered from the trauma and a lot of recollections are more her trying to parse out the truth of what happened as opposed to a strict retelling of the event.

I really enjoyed the inclusion of this past perspective. I felt it gave a lot of insight into who Isabelle was as a character and helped to give substance to her motivations in her present. I found this entire story so compelling. From the first moments I met Isabelle, I was sucked into her story. I wanted to know everything there was to know about her life, both past and present.

It was interesting to be inside her head as she grappled with the loss of Mason and tried to make sense of it. The lack of sleep has had an effect on her, so it's unclear whether or not she's entirely reliable.I am a sucker for an unreliable narrator. I know some Readers are over it, but I'm so not one of those Readers.

I wouldn't describe this as being fast-paced, it was more of a steady pace with great tension throughout. Each chapter fills in more and more of the puzzle and it was really hard to put it down. There were some super fun twists and reveals. I just had an absolute blast with this one. I really enjoyed Willingham's earlier release, A Flicker in the Dark, and personally, I think this one is even better. Highly recommend the audio format as the narration is fantastic!

Thank you so much to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. After loving her first two novels, it's safe to say that I will continue to pick up anything else Stacy Willingham writes. Looking forward to more!!

All I can say is this is a head spinning book! Isabelle is a complete and utter mess. Isabelle’s young son, Mason, is taken from his crib in the middle of the night. What happens from there is follow Isabelle’s search for her son. It is a story filled with twists and turns - and in the end your jaw drops open. A fabulous story thanks to NetGalley for this early read.

Isabella’s son Mason has been missing for an entire year, stolen from his bed at night without a trace and without signs of forced entry. Isabella struggles with insomnia and has a history of sleep walking, a dark, disturbed troubling past, and so much grief.⁣
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Her husband Ben, has already lost hope and left her high and dry. His history with women is also very concerning. ⁣
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This story is woven in a way that you aren’t quite sure who took Mason, if he’s alive or dead. ⁣
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Did Isabella do something while sleepwalking and doesn’t remember? She feels so guilty and she isn’t sure why. ⁣
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Did Ben do something, because it seems he never wanted a child to begin with and was maybe looking for an excuse to leave his wife? Is someone else to blame?⁣
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This book is so unputdownable, has so many good twists and turns I didn’t see coming, and was such a wild ride of clues and case files to try to figure out what happened to Mason; and what happened in the past to bring on this insomnia and sleep walking.
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This book was absolutely incredible! I was kept on the edge of my seat devouring every word! I've already recommended it to several people and can't wait for her next one! An amazing follow up to Flicker in the Dark

This book is excellent. I had such a hard time putting it down. It was actually quite scary and at the same time completely enthralling. I thought I had it figured out but I was wrong and I love when I'm wrong! I found myself thinking about this one while I wasn't reading it like a little detective. The writing is excellent, the characters are well developed and the plot will suck you in and not let you go! Stacy Willingham has made it to my auto buy writers list after this one. I also loved A FLICKER IN THE DARK and highly recommend that one and ALL THE DANGEROUS THINGS.

I was super interested in this book because I loved Stacy's Previous Book. This one was a Little more Predictable. It had a good premise but fell a little flat for me.
Her writing in general is still amazing. She can Describe a place and make you feel like you are there.
While it did not live up to hype for me. I would still recommend it

It’s her life. A life of motherhood. A life defined by a lie. One year ago Mason was taken from his room while Isabelle and Ben slept in the next room. Isabelle has spent the last year unable to sleep, unsettled by the thought of his case being unsolved with no suspects and no leads. Isabelle wont stop searching for her son. Her husband Ben wants to move forward so he’s moved out leaving Isabelle alone in her pain.

All the Dangerous Things is about Isabelle Drake a woman who once didn’t want children then found herself feeling empty without Mason. Her seven year marriage didn’t survive the tragedy of losing Mason. His kidnapping caused a strain on there marriage. Instead of growing closer and forming a united front, it took Ben six months to move forward.
Everyone including detectives, her husband, and neighbors expect her too move on. Waylon is different. Waylon is a podcaster offering her an outlet to put her story out there to aid in getting answers or clues.

As Isabelle recounts the last seven years with Ben readers gain insight about Isabelle and her inability to let go. Stacy Willingham also travels back into Isabelle’s childhood and her relationship with her sister Margaret.

Stacy Willingham illustrates a mother devasted by her toddler being kidnapped. Her credibility to give information to the detective is met with concern given the suspicion of the situation and backstory. Stacy did an excellent job of arousing suspicion in other characters. Stacy wrote a clever and plausible thriller. It’s kind of creepy and scary. I could not get enough. I was hooked. This is a story based upon buried memories from her childhood that defined her into motherhood. This was a fast and steady pace thriller with many working parts.
I can’t remember the last time I sat down to read a book and found myself unable to tear myself away. I read it in one day. It was thought provoking and well written. I’m a fan just from this one book. I’m already ready to delve into another of her books. Sadly, she’s only got one other book. That’s okay. I’ll wait for more books to get published. She’s worth the wait.

Narrator:
Karissa Vacker is the solo female performer of All the Dangerous Things. Karissa’s voice acting skills are spectacular. Her ability to transition from one character to the next is exquisite. She can alter her tone and pitch to voice male characters as well which is a unique quality to have.
It’s interesting that I just finished listening to What Lies in the Woods narrated by Karissa Vacker. Good thing I enjoy her voice.
I listened using the Netgalley app at 1.75x speed.
I listened to audiobook while following along with the ebook. Having both expands my experience. Having Karissa bring these characters to life with Stacy’s words controlling the direction of the story was exquisite.

I wanted to read this book because I was a fan of Stacy Willingham's previous book - A Flicker in the Dark.

I devoured this book in 24 hours. It was a fast-paced thriller set in a small town. Isabelle Drake's son was taken from his crib at night while his parents slept. Now one year later, there have been no developments in the case and the case has gone cold. Isabelle is determined to find out the truth about what happened to her son. She has had trouble with sleeping her whole life - sleepwalking and also insomnia, leading her to doubt herself and the events of the night that her son went missing. There are some mysteries from her own past, some intrigue and ultimately some twists, I didn't see coming I could not put this book down!

Quite the little mind-bender. I have to say I was shocked more than once while reading this book which I love to be. I was intrigued by this story as I used to be a sleep walker and my sister woke up one night to find me standing by her bed with a pillow in my hand. She must have really made me mad that day. Lol. All The Dangerous Things is definitely a good read.

I picked up this book because the plot sounded interesting - I have only read a few other thrillers about kidnappings. I was sure I had guessed the twists in this one, but I was wrong - and there were quite a few things I didn't see coming! It does drag a bit but then gets more fast-paced towards the end (as so many thrillers I read lately).

This is the kind of book that makes me want to stay up all night to keep reading, especially since each chapter ending begged for me to move on to the next chapter. When the main character isn't sure she can trust herself, what does she do? How far back in her life did she go wrong to end up where she is now?

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this novel. I encourage you to check this one out! Really solid read.

A year ago, Isabelle’s life drastically changed when her toddler son was taken out of his crib in the middle of the night while she and her husband were asleep. The case went cold very quickly with little evidence and few leads to follow. Isabelle will not rest (she literally doesn’t sleep) until Mason is returned to her. When a true crime podcaster approaches Isabelle for an interview, she agrees in hopes that new witnesses or clues will be come to light. His questioning makes her second-guess who she can trust…including herself.

I have to start by saying the plot here isn’t overly creative and I found some of the reveals to be predictable. But, it was still enjoyable, especially with twist after twist coming full speed. The story has a few subplots that all merge together in the end. The pacing was steady and lined up the dual timelines nicely. All the characters were unreliable, including our MC. The audiobook narration was excellent.

And absolutely riveting thriller! I was hooked from the beginning. With the dueling timelines of past and present and so many red herrings it was easy to get thrown off the scent of the truth. I absolutely love Stacy Willinghams
Books and she will be an auto buy from here on out!

Isabelle is currently suffering from extreme insomnia. This is completely understandable, since about a year ago her son went missing from her house in the middle of the night. The story goes back and forth between Isabelle’s childhood and the present, and we realize that perhaps Isabelle is not as reliable of a narrator as we first thought.
Although I really ended up liking this book, it took me a bit to get into the story. If you don’t mind a slow start, grab this one!