What Have We Done by Alex Finlay is a gripping and intense thriller that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. The story follows three childhood friends who were reunited after 25 years due to a series of murders targeting them. The novel delves into the dark and traumatic past of the characters, who were once residents of a group home for parentless teens, and the secrets and trauma they've been carrying for years. The author masterfully weaves together the present and past, creating a narrative that is both compelling and emotionally charged. The pacing is fast and the plot is well-crafted, making it impossible to put the book down. The characters are complex and relatable, and the ending is satisfying and unexpected. Overall, "What Have We Done" is a must-read for fans of psychological thrillers and suspense novels. It is a powerful and thought-provoking novel that explores the themes of friendship, trauma, and redemption.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Minotaur Books for this advanced copy

4.5 stars

25 years ago Jenna, Donnie, and Nico were best friends, bonded by their stay in the Savior House (a group home). When the home shut down due to multiple children going missing, they were sent their separate ways.

Now a stay at home mom, a rock star, and a TV producer they appear to be living successful lives, even as their childhood trauma still haunts them. Although they haven’t spoken in years they are thrown together again by one scary fact: someone is trying to kill them. To save their lives they have to join together and confront their past.

From the minute I picked up the book it grabbed me and didn’t let go. From the prologue that absolutely hooked me to the twisty ending, I was glued to the pages.

The story is fast paced, never truly slowing down until the end. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t put it down, I had to find out what was going to happened next.

Told in multiple POV, I was kept guessing, trying to put together the pieces. Every time I thought I had it a curve would be thrown in and make me question myself. Even though I did get a few parts of the mystery right, the story was told in such a way that I was never certain of it, I was constantly second guessing. And there were definitely a few twists thrown in I did not see coming at all!

My only complaints are that the character development left something to be desired and one part of the ending got a little far fetched for me.

Overall an unputdownable thriller, my first from Alex Finlay and now I will definitely be reading through his backlist!

Thanks to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing a free ARC of this book in exchange for a fair review.

I enjoyed Every Last Fear and The Night Shift so I was looking forward to a new thriller from Finlay. Unfortunately this one did not hit the mark for me and was my least favorite of his novels so far.

Both the characters and plot line were very heavy on tropes and stereotypes of the genre. Tech billionaire? Check. Aging rock star with a substance abuse issues? Check. Hitmen from shadowy organizations? Check. Shady people taking advantage of young orphans? Check.

I did enjoy the read and it kept me engaged but the ending was a bit predictable and had more than a few twists that stretched reality past the breaking point.

3.5 stars.
Four seemingly disparate people separated by distance: Jenna, Donnie, Nico and Artemis, are all suddenly targeted by a woman and almost killed (though in Artemis' case it's a wee bit more complicated). They all knew one another when they were kids at a foster home. Though seemingly a caring place, it was actually pretty grim with bullies, and alarmingly, several girls went missing over a three-year period. In the present, they've all achieved a level of success and/or notoriety, and must reevaluate their pasts after their near-deaths.

There are definite echoes of Stephen King’s “It” in this story, in that in the past a small group of loser kids that no one would miss decide to investigate the disappearances of other kids in their foster home. And in their present, after one of them dies, they must come together to determine who wants them dead.

It turns out a pair of identical twins have been targeting them, and once Jenna ensures her family is safely hidden away, she reunites with Donnie and Nico and the three begin digging into why they’re on a hit list.

Alex Finlay maintained tension as we follow the three separately as they decide to return to the foster home for answers. There's plenty of violence along the way, with the twins fairly cackling as they consider ways to murder, whether targets of innocent bystanders. The pair are almost caricatures as they keep popping up menacingly, and dealing out violence.

I greatly enjoyed Finlay's "Every Last Fear" and "Night Shift", I think primarily because of the presence of Agent Sarah Keller, who's not present here. And though Jenna is somewhat reminiscent of Sarah, I found it hard to care about Nico and Donnie, and the twins never quite felt like real people. This book was a wee bit less compelling than the previous books I've read by this author, but still kept me curious, worried and tense.

Thank you to Netgalley and to St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.

I couldn’t put this book down. That’s how good this book was. We have multiple POV’s, all leading to an amazing end, and one that I didn’t expect. We have a group of people who are being targeted, someone want to kill them off, but WHY? We go back in time to when they all met and OMG, the things that discovered, and the secrets they all kept, it was such a ride. I love me a good psychological thriller read. I am adding this one to my MUST read for EVERYONE!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

25 years ago, 5 kids on a group foster home had a life-altering experience. They went their separate ways and, mostly, didn't speak again until now. One of them has been killed and the others are all targets, but who wants them dead?

This book was wild. It's pretty different from prior books by Alex Finlay, but it's still a page-turner. There are secrets, betrayals, friendships, and ... assassins! If you're looking for something that keeps you reading into the night, and you're willing to suspend your disbelief for a while, this is a good book for you.

I really wanted to love. I’ve read two other books by Alex Finlay (The Night Shift and Every Last Fear) and absolutely loved them. I was hoping this would be the same. Sadly, it just wasn’t.

While it was an OK read, the story didn’t pull me in and I really didn’t care for the characters. The pacing was off, somewhat slow and disjointed in the beginning, but kind of felt rushed at the end. And how it all wrapped up? Eh.

It was an OK read and while I’d recommend it to some, it wouldn’t be the first option to top my recommendations list.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review

I received a digital advance copy of What Have We Done by Alex Finlay via NetGalley. What Have We Done is scheduled for release on March 7, 2023.

What Have We Done begins with Jenna, Donnie, and Nico in separate places but all in potentially deadly situations. The three manage to survive those opening moments, then work to find the connection between the threats on their lives and their common past in a group home for parentless teens. The story weaves between the three points of view, showing us their paths to rejoin as adults to face their common threat and the threads that have followed them from their past.

The strength of this story is the plot. Finlay manages to create questions for the reader regarding both the current events and the events from the past. These questions were enough to keep me forward in the story, as I wanted to figure out what happened to the characters at the group home and how that tied to what was happening now.

What was disappointing for me was the resolution of those questions. While the events of the story made logical sense, I found that the why of the story did not hold together for me. While we did see the story from the point of view of the three main characters, I did not feel that the characters were deeply developed. Like the secondary characters around them, they read more as types than as individual people. Without that depth of character, it was difficult to follow the motivations of the characters, which made the resolution to the story unsatisfying.

Overall, What Have We Done had the plot potential to be a great read, but I needed more character development to really appreciate the tale that Finlay wanted to tell.

This book was okay. I enjoyed the multiple perspectives to the story and multiple storylines. Still, it felt like there were A LOT of different characters and storylines….Sometimes it did not feel cohesive. At times, I thought that this was a sequel because it felt like there may be something I was missing, only to realize that this was not a sequel.

I love a book with multiple POV and Alex Finley definitely delivered on this front. However, it was really hard to connect to any of the characters; none of them was likeable. In the end though, it was still a very entertaining thriller and I had a good time reading it.

I could not put this book down!! So freaking good! I was instantly hooked from the beginning and on the edge of my seat the entire book! I usually have trouble following along with books that have more than 2 POV but had no problem with this books. The characters, the plot, the writing, the suspense, the ending….I loved it all! If you are looking for a good mystery/suspense/thriller then definitely add this one to your TBR.

I love Alex Finlay so I was excited to jump into his latest. Unfortunately, this one just didn't work for me. There are entirely too many characters and not one of them is likable. The plot is a bit clunky and predictable. Overall, it didn't click for me. A huge thank you to Netgalley, Alex Finlay, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is my second book by the author, and while it was entertaining, it just didn't quite grab my attention. I couldn't really connect to the characters, and though the writing was good, I did feel the story was somewhat predictable. That being said, I would give this author another try in the future.

I have been a huge Alex Finlay fan since I attended an author chat with him after The Night Shift came out. I was so excited to get an early review copy of this one and I'm happy to say that it didn't disappoint! Now, if you are going into this one thinking it will be like his previous books, you might not be happy. You do have to suspend some credibility with this one, but if you can, you will highly enjoy it!

Alex Finlay is the king of multiple POVs and this one really showed off how well he can craft a character and their individual story. This one felt very character driven and it really seemed like he took the time to develop each of the characters so they felt like real and unique.

As far as the twists go, I saw a lot of them coming and none were really too shocking. But all that said, this one hooked me in from page one and I had a hard time putting it down. It was fast paced and an overall fun read!

I give this one 4/5 stars!

I loved Finlays last book so was very excited to read this latest one. However it missed the mark a bit… I didn’t feel like I connected with any of the characters. It felt pretty disjointed in the narrative sadly. I wanted to love it but would say I just liked it.

Five kids become friends while in a group home for kids named Savior House. Twenty five years later they come back together when they realize someone is trying to kill them. They share a bond but they also share a secret.

I loved this one! It was fast paced and full of action. I liked the friend group despite their flaws and enjoyed getting the backstory of their time at Savior House. I love a badass female character and Jenna was just that. A contract killer turned SAHM. I loved the authors previous books and this one was a fun, unputdownable read for me. I thought the ending was wrapped up well and I was surprised at how it went down.

I did the audio - and loved it. Multiple narrators always makes me happy.
Children in a group home are bound for life - sharing a deep secret. Missing girls from their group home. A small town run by brothers.
And now someone is hunting them down.
Really good twists. I enjoyed these characters - and their harsh start to life. Very well done.

What Have We Done
Alex Finlay
4⭐️

A stay-at-home mom with a past.
A has-been rockstar with a habit.
A reality tv producer with a debt.
Three disparate lives.
One deadly secret.

✨ I love a story that pulls you in right way! What Have We Done did just that. Although it was a slow-burn, it was fast paced and action packed. Short chapters are my absolute jam, and they were key in this book. There’s a lot going on between the multiple POV’s and flashbacks to a previous timeline, but once I got an understanding of who’s who, and what’s what, I was fully engaged.

What I enjoyed;
✨ Twisty Action-Packed Thriller
✨ Alternating POV
✨ Cat and Mouse
✨ Short Chapters

I would recommend this plot driven thriller, though you really need to be able to suspend your disbelief.

Mark your calendars, What Have We Done is out March 7th.

Thank you so much St. Martin’s Press, Minotaur Books, and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

First, let me say I love Alex Finlay and will continue to read anything he writes. I loved The Night Shift and I had high hopes for his one. I can’t figure out exactly what it was but this wasn’t my favorite. All of the characters were unlikeable. I am all for morally grey characters but I had a difficult time finding any redeeming qualities about any of them. The plot was entertaining and I did enjoy the “ I know what you did last summer” vibes it gave off. It started off great- a bunch of kids burying a body- but that was the best part. All in All a good thriller but not great.

What Have We Done is out March 7th!

WHAT HAVE WE DONE - ALEX FINLAY
4⭐
PLOT - Jenna is a stay at home mom with a past, Donnie is a rockstar with a habit, Nico is a reality TV producer with a debt.
25 yes ago they were best friends living at Savior house a group home for parentless teens.
When the home was forced to shut down they split up and now they will be reunited as someone is trying to kill them.

MY THOUGHTS -
As with all Alex Finlay s books..the suspense is top notch, multiple alternating POVs and short chapters.
There is quite some action also in this one and I did enjoy the uniqueness of the hired assassin.
Out of all 3 characters Jenna's was by far best and well developed as compared to the others.
In all a good suspense thriller.
Thank you publishers and netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.