This felt a little piecey and strung together but I really liked Jenna's arc (I'd read another book about her alone) and the concept overall. It was a quick read that held my attention.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.

My first book by Alex Finlay did not disappoint. What Have We Done was fast paced and bounced back and forth between the characters time together at a group home to present day. When their childhood friend is murdered a chain reaction occurs that leads the rest of the friends to return to the terrible place they all lived in the hope of solving his murder...and save themselves.
This book gave me vibes of like Stephen King's It...where childhood friends who shared trauma return home to fight evil.
I would definitely recommend this fast paced action packed thriller! Well Done!

This wasn't bad, but it was a big disappointment following Finlay's previous books. It's a totally different genre, more for fans of spy thrillers than psychological thrillers or mysteries. This felt like a James Patterson novel, so it wasn't really my speed; the characters were underdeveloped, products of setting and circumstance rather than people, and the book moved very quickly but without much variation.

3.5⭐️ rounded up. Fast-moving, twisty thriller. I didn’t want to put it down while I was reading! The characters are all a little one-dimensional, but I still found myself wanting to find out more about how they got into this situation and what would happen now. Overall, I liked The Night Shift more, but would still recommend this one if you are looking for an easy-to-read thriller.

Twenty five years ago five teens in a group foster home did something that is causing them to be hunted down in the present day. What truly went on back then and who is after them now? I really appreciated how this book was explosive from page one and is extremely fast paced throughout the whole story. I’ve read a lot of thrillers lately that are a super slow burn until it all blows up at the end, so it was nice to get a book that I could just fly through.

However, I was hoping for a bit more from the main POV characters. They have interesting backgrounds (a rockstar, a former assassin, and a reality tv producer) but I felt like a lot of the story was still pretty surface level and like the characters weren’t developed enough. Also, I feel like certain aspects of the book make some of the reveals pretty easy to guess.

Even though this didn’t turn out to be a new favorite I still had a fun time reading it. I’d say to check it out if you’re looking for an action packed thriller about secrets from the past showing up to cause problems in the present day.

I really enjoy everything I've ever read by Alex Finlay. This was no exception! I don't want to spoil anything, so please please please read this one to see for yourself!!

This was a thrilling, action-packed story that immediately had me hooked. But the more I read, the more I felt I was having to suspend my belief and then the reveal/reasoning behind everything just fell flat for me. I didn't hate this book, though and I'm definitely interested in checking out the author's other works.

This mystery/thriller follows Jenna, Donnie, and Nico. Twenty-five years ago the three were all residents of Savior House - an abusive group home for teens. When the home shut down, the three split up and grew up to live successful and troubled lives. Now, when each of them survives an attempt on their life, they reunite to find out who is trying to kill them and if it has any connection to a dark event in their past.

This was a really fun, fast paced, over-the-top mystery read and I really enjoyed it. I think there is often a focus on super twisty mysteries or really dark thrillers but I really loved this sub-genre of mystery also. The opening chapters immediately immerse the reader in this world and our first introduction to these characters are them being almost killed. We don't really know them very well at this point, so we have absolutely no guesses as to who is behind these crimes. However, when the book starts out so punchy and the characters are just as over-the-top as the plot, you know you're in for a good ride.

The multi POV was done really well and I loved how the chapters are so short that it really kept the pace of the book moving. I did find the characters to be a little more like caricatures at first - the suburban mom with a secret past, the washed up rockstar, and the sleazy TV producer. However, the choice to rapidly flip through POVs and follow each of these characters on their own really allowed there reader to quickly become grounded. I love multi-POV mysteries and thrillers, but do find that if there is too much time between POV switches that it does drag down the pacing and takes me out of the story having to re-orient myself to the new POV. We do also get the occasional chapter from some of the other characters in the book which I did like. This book does use one plot device I don't love and that is conveniently having one of the POV characters not mention or think about a certain plot point while in their POV and that plot point comes up in the reveal. This just always feel overly contrived and convenient for me.

I loved the way the shared past of our 3 characters was sprinkled in throughout the book. We get little flashbacks of their time at Savior House and these flashbacks happen more and more frequently as the book progresses. I really enjoyed this method of delivering the characters' histories instead of having full chapters devoted to this past timeline. Instead, we have the characters flashing back on their own memories in a way that feels very true to the characters. This was a really great way to flesh out the 'secrets from the past' trope in a way that didn't feel heavy handed. I loved the way the mystery reveal was a mix of secrets from the past as well as more recent events. I think sometimes when a reveal is solely based on a secret from the past, it ends up feeling a little bit like it comes out of left field because the main event was so long ago. In this case, the addition of more recent events gives the overall danger aspect of the plot more weight and feels more realistic.

I enjoyed the "who's trying to kill us" central mystery part to this story, but I think it could have been better navigated from the investigation point. Our three main characters don't group together until the last 1/3 of the book and even then, they don't stay grouped together. Due to their different life paths since leaving Savior House, one character is much more adept in their investigation skills than the other two. The other two characters don't seem to be particularly interested in figuring out who it was who tried to kill them, they are content with letting the authorities handle the investigation. Sure, they have some side plots going on in their stories that become important to the overall plot, but until the point where those reveals are shown to the reader, it really feels like it is the one character pushing the plot along. I wish the friend group gathered together sooner in the story and maybe they don't fully trust each other due to their long time without contact, but I think if all 3 were actively investigating what happened to them it would have made for a more engaging read. Once all 3 do get together and start really digging into their shared past, I absolutely loved the story and the way it ended up connecting all these different threads.

Overall, this was a very fun read. Like a summer blockbuster, we had a lot of action, some over-the-top plot points, and a really snappy pace. I loved the way the secrets of the past and the character's flashbacks were utilized, but I wish the group got together sooner so we could have more of the group investigation instead of the 3 very separate plot threads for so long.


TW/CW: alcohol abuse, drug abuse, parental death, drug addiction, gambling addiction, child abuse, pedophilia, sexual assault

Thanks to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the ARC. Expected publication date is March 7, 2023

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for letting me read this one early. It publishes on March 7.

I loved Alex Finlay's previous book, THE NIGHT SHIFT, but this one didn't consume me in the same way. It felt more like watching an action movie, this one will be a hit with the crowds that love non stop types of thrillers. It was almost too fast for me, not much character development but with a lot of characters. Not my favorite, but if it became a movie I bet it would be a hit.

What if Orphan X was a woman?

Alex Flinlay in What Have We Done imagines just that: a female orphan x type…a parent-less young woman from a group home plucked out of said home to be trained by a shadowy cabal of assassins. But What Have We Done isn’t just about that—a female assassin. No, it’s much more complicated than that.

A small group home in Pennsylvania sees Jenna, Donnie, Arty, Ben and Nico form strong lifelong bonds forged through trauma, friendship and the fierce loyalty that arises from shared experiences.

When two of their fellow group home friends go missing, the five friends decide to take matters in to their own hands and the consequences haunt them in to adulthood.

Their adult professions, in Jenna’s case assassin, are mostly coincidental. That disappointed this reader. I LOVE Orphan X and I wanted the assassin storyline to be the plot driver. It isn’t here. ((I would love AF to explore this genre with Jenna more fully. I’m down for a female badass any day. )) With this novel, Jenna’s profession has little to do with the main plot line (consequence of a youthful decision) and is used as a device to misdirect (at first) then tidy up (later). I feel this was a missed opportunity. *But as many other readers have noted, this book is different from AFs prior works…maybe that’s why the whole assassin storyline was primary.

The book shares three perspectives (Donnie an aging rockstar; Nico a TV producer they call “Hollywood”; and Jenna the aforementioned assassin.) When on of their own, Ben (a judge) is murdered each have a narrow escape from those who seek to murder them as well. Is this related to the group home? Why are people trying to kill them? Has one of them betrayed the group?

The plot is a straightforward action thriller and in this way, AF has diverged from the books before that won him readership. As stated, many have been disappointed by this change. Not me. I only wish he went harder in this direction. What kept this from being a five star read for me was that the plot contained *one too many* angles. *one too many* attempts at making this NOT an assassin story and making it a “kids eff up and past haunts them” type trope. It had *one too many* things that laid just outside the boundary of believable. Maybe even *one too many* characters.

That said, I’m happy to see AF branch out this way and I hope Jenna comes back for her own fully dedicated series.

This book was fine for what it was, but unfortunately that isn’t the book I was hoping for. While this is marketed as a thriller, it reads like an action movie, and that’s just not something I’m interested in. The story started out promising, but quickly, too many characters were introduced, along with some strange time jumping in the middle of chapters. I was still invested for most of the book, but there were just too many twists to keep up with, making the ending a disappointment to me. If you’re a fan of James Patterson or Lee Child, this might be a good pick, but for those looking for a true thriller, I’d advise looking elsewhere.

I really think this author was fantastic. The book starts off with a bang and with the twists and turns that just added to the story.

First time author and I'm sure will be reading slot of his book in the future

Thank you net galley for the opportunity to read this new author to me and this wonderful read

What does a retired hit-woman, reality TV producer and an old rock star have in common? Well for starters they were all teen residents at Savior House, a group home for kids in foster care. Also, someone is trying to kill them. Although they have not seen each other since they were young they are drawn back together to face the atrocities that happened at Savior house and find out who wants them dead for what they did in their youth.

With Alex Finlay you always know you are going to go on a wild ride and this book was no different. It was so unlike anything I have read and the 3 main characters were so entertaining and charismatic. I was rooting for them throughout all the chaos they were going through. I loved the multiple points of views and how everything tied together at the end. This book keeps you on your toys and never has a dull moment.

What Have We Done is the exact kind of escapism, reality-tv drama-esq, Jason Bourne level fun that I really, really love in a book plot, when it’s done as well as @alexfinlayauthor does it.

I utterly devoured this book from start to finish, in one glorious sitting. I do love a book with different character POV’s and I adored how over the top the three main characters of this story are. Washed up rock star, reality tv producer and retired hit-woman? Seriously, and undeniably larger than life fun when you get to write those kinds of big personalities, and @alexfinlayauthor didn’t hold back on any of them, never mind the perfectly crafted and totally deranged supporting cast.

Do you need to suspend reality a little reading this book? Yes. But is it a fast-paced, high octane ride that keeps throwing out great twists? Also yes.

I had an absolute blast reading this one, and it’s (IMO) a must for thriller readers TBR piles this spring. Yet another book that keeps @alexfinlayauthor on my auto-buy author, must read pile!

Many thanks to @minotaur_books for the copy, and please, someone sell these book rights for movie development, because this a the very definition of popcorn thriller in the best way.

This high action thriller was very readable; following three perspectives that committed a crime years that is coming back to haunt them.

This is my first Alex Finley and I wasn't sure quite what to expect. This felt more like an action move Thani was expecting but it made it a very fast paced read.

I could the characters to be a little flat though, the story moving so quickly it didn't seem like we were able to really care about these characters. The characters were short and switched pov quite a bit with flashbacks woven through that didn't seem to work well for me.

The most interesting part was the pov of the killer and I would have rather just read a book from them.

Overall, this was interesting and not that memorable.

This book was a wild ride! It's definitely the type of story that keeps you up all night reading because you just have to see what happens next. It has multiple POVS and short chapters which is a combination I really like specifically for this genre (thriller) The juxtaposition in this book between some very dark and serious subjects and almost cartoon like villains/ action Scenes shouldn't work and yet it does. There were a few scenes where thought to myself "okay this is too much this is silly" but I was still extremely riveted so guess it wasn't too much. The ending of this book is so sad and melancholy in a brilliant way. I definitely recommend this for a quick read. There's nothing super graphic but l'd still look up trigger warnings.

Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review

This was my first read by Alex Finlay.

His writing style is compelling and easy to follow.
Unfortunately this story just did not work for me. I love a thriller with multiple POVs but this one just did not work for me. And the dual timeline was not clear to me at all.
I don’t feel like I knew the characters and their pasts were important but I just didn’t think we got enough of the past- even by the end to truly understand what Finlay wanted us too.
I personally prefer realistic thrillers. And this one is not realistic. If I am going to enjoy an unrealistic thriller I need the storyline and the plot to be solid. I felt like there we a lot of plot holes and many storylines that were never completed/fully explained. Even some storylines that were unnecessary.

Maybe this thriller was just not for me. I will be trying another book from Finlay as I did like his writingstyle n

What Have We Done follows a group of adults who are being haunted by a terrible thing they did as children. Someone is trying to kill each one of them. Told from different points of views, we spend most of the book getting small snippets of the story at a time. The book really picks up when the characters start to connect back up towards the end. Very thrilling!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This story follows Jenna, Nico, and Donnie all now adults that are suddenly experiencing the repercussions of a past crime. It’s told from each of their perspectives with flashbacks to the past.

I enjoyed Finlay’s other two books but this just didn’t hold my interest until towards the end when the characters collided. It was too disjointed and I really didn’t care about what ended up happening to the characters.

The real question to this book is what have this group of friends not done. I loved the characterization of each of the characters. Hearing the book from all their perspectives was just lovely. It really brought the story to light and showed how they banned together in childhood and then later when their lives were on the line. To think that kids who came from nothing were all able to become famous, or important. The twist and turns will keep you guessing from the start, nothing is as it seems, and it just all plays out so beautifully. I really enjoyed this book, and I can’t wait to recommend it. I don’t want to give to much away with this review but be ready for a wild ride.
Thank you so much to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for allowing me to preview this book before it was published.