Her, Too by Bonnie Kistler grabbed me from the first page, and did not let up until the shocking finale. This is a legal thriller that hits on many of the ripped from the headlines topics of today: workplace sexual assault, harassment and retaliation, sexting, cybersecurity, and quality of life issues. There is a lot packed into this novel, which gives the reader a lot to think about though it doesn't feel overdone.

I did not think that I would like the main character. Kelly McCann is a defense attorney who has become well-known for her success in defending men accused of sexual assault. Ms. Kistler has, however, masterfully created a character that is not only likable, but so sympathetic that I was rooting for her after about 50 pages. The other characters are equally likable, or not as appropriate, and enough detail was included to give them depth.

The pace of the story is tight, and I read it in basically one session (though I had to sleep)! It reminded me of John Grisham's legal thrillers, which I love, and while I have not read The Cage or House on Fire, Kistler's previous novels, I will be doing so, ASAP.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Perennial for the digital ARC of Her, Too by Bonnie Kistler. The opinions in this review are my own.

This gripped me right away. I had been in a slump but this pulled me right out. The premise of women coming together to get revenge intrigued me enough to request the title. Kelly, the protagonist, was well written and equally likeable and abhorrent. The twists and turns along the way were unpredictable. 4 stars.

Originally I wasn't sure I would have been the target audience for this particular book. I had already formed an opinion of the main character based on my own personal history and the synopsis of the book. My opinion was actually the same as some of the other characters in this story, but it changed as the book went on. Even still, there was a LOT going on, and it sometimes was a bit hard to follow. I think having the main character be a criminal defense lawyer turned victim was an angle that not many people would want to explore, and yet it was done well. I would definitely recommend this to people who have a stronger stomach and aren't easily triggered by mentions of assault.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: July 4, 2023
Kelly McCann is obsessed with winning, which is what makes her so good at her job as a defense lawyer. When she’s called to represent George Benedict, a scientific researcher on the cusp of finding a vaccine for Alzheimer’s, in a sexual assault case, she pulls out all the stops and emerges victorious- and George gets off scot-free. But Kelly soon learns firsthand that the man she represented is most definitely guilty, and has been taking advantage of women for years. Now, intent on revenge, Kelly must reach out to his former victims in order to lay a scheme that will destroy Benedict, but first she must earn the trust of the women she chose not to believe.
Bonnie Kistler’s third novel, “Her Too”, is a powerful and emotionally charged revenge novel that takes the #metoo movement to a whole new level. What happens when women aren’t believed and are betrayed by one of their own? How can they seek revenge on a powerful man who has been labeled a “hero” by modern day society? Kelly learns the hard way that the only way to get justice is through truth, and by rallying behind the very women she betrayed.
“Her, too” is narrated almost exclusively by Kelly, although there are a few sections where we hear from “the other women”, as they retell their traumatically painful experiences. Kelly was initially an unlikable character (after all, who likes a defense attorney?) although she eventually grew on me, but the other women were a different story. I immediately felt for them, developing a quick rapport that allowed me to root for them as the story went on. They all come from various walks of life and have faced their own judgments, and the fact that not all of them meet a happy ending adds an element of realism (albeit bittersweet) to the plot.
This is not an easy read, obviously, as the subject matter is intense and very personal. However, “Her, too” is also one of those reads that will stick with you. The ending was deliciously satisfying, and even had a little twist thrown in for good measure, although it is difficult to feel completely satiated after reading a novel this emotional and relevant. Trigger warnings abound, but Kistler has created a stirring storyline with relatable and genuinely human characters. I haven’t yet read Kistler’s other two novels, but considering the mark this one left on me, I’ll be next in line to read them, and any other story Kistler creates going forward.

HER, TOO is a powerful legal thriller. Kelly McCann defends men who are falsely accused of sex crimes. She decides to take on another case against scientist, George Benedict, who has been accused of sexual assault. She is sure that she can win this case, because winning is what keeps her going. In the end, Kelly does win, but also pays the same price that George's accusers did. After becoming George's next victim, Kelly decides to contact the victims that George has hurt and plans to get revenge. Soon after this, the victims start dying and they are all ruled as accidental deaths. Kelly doesn't believe this is possible. Is George on to them? Or is it someone Kelly knows, that no one would suspect?

I love a good legal thriller and this one checked off all the boxes for me. Kelly was a strong powerful attorney who was determined to work hard for her family, even though she was dealing with a lot in her personal life. I was happy to see that Kelly was going to get revenge after what George did to her and these other women. My suspicions were correct as to who was killing these girls, but I still enjoyed it. The ending was sad, but also gave Kelly hope for her future. If you enjoy legal thrillers, I would recommend HER, TOO.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for my ARC.

This review will be share on my Instagram (@coffee.break.book.reviews) in the near future.

Bonnie Kistler's "Her, Too" is a thought-provoking and poignant novel that delves into the complexities of family dynamics and the aftermath of a traumatic event. The story follows a woman who must confront the dark secrets within her own family as she fights for justice. Kistler's writing is powerful and evocative, exploring themes of resilience, forgiveness, and the pursuit of truth. With its compelling narrative and well-drawn characters, "Her, Too" is a gripping read that leaves a lasting impact.

This book hooked my attention and I read it in one night. Lots of twists and turns and the ending was a shock for sure!

Triggers: sexual assault, murder

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Bailed at 40%. I can't with this. This review will be spoilery, so don't read any further if you don't want that.

Alzheimer's, in no way, shape, or form, could be from a virus. For example, from both my maternal and paternal lines, I am predisposed to have late-onset Alzheimer's. You know how I know that? DNA testing revealed that when they looked at the ε4 variant, and I had 2 copies. DNA can not show a predisposition to a virus. You cannot look into someone's DNA and say, oh yeah, they were bound to get polio, covid, the flu, because that's not how viruses work. We get viruses from other carriers, such as infected people or animals. (I'm including mosquitos with animals, i.e.: West Nile virus.)

Do I get cranky over junk science? Yes, yes, I do. And even if the science were somewhat sound, threatening to take away a lifesaving cure for Alzheimer's would be the absolute crappiest thing a person could do, to the entire world. And I don't want to put up with a whole book of either of these things.

After reading The Cage and enjoying it, I was thrilled to be approved for this. I was racing thru the pages hoping for the women to be successful in what they set out to do. THAT twist my I physically felt my eyes popping open and my jaw dropping. This is going to be one of the big hits of the spring/summer. I will be reccommending in all my book groups.

This book started off sloooow! If you like slow burns, this is definitely your book. The first half of it took me a couple days, because I had a hard time getting gripped by it. Thankfully, the second half sped up and I finished it in a couple hours.

Kelly is our protagonist. She’s a go-getter, a lawyer with a perfect win record, and a great family. Her husband (for no reason that was extremely relevant to the book) is in a coma, and when she isn’t working, she’s at home taking care of him.

Her work leads us to meet Dr. George Benedict: a potential Nobel Prize candidate and the man who discovered that Alzheimer’s Disease was caused by a virus. He is poised to release a vaccine for the cruel disease, and rid the world of it. His work in the field makes him very well-respected, but he’s a sexual predator.

Kelly knows this, but also doesn’t want to lose her status as the lawyer who doesn’t lose, so she defends men like this. She justifies it by giving the women relatively meager settlements, and she’s taking care of her family with the money she makes. Even when Kelly herself is raped by Dr. Benedict, she immediately washes away the evidence and continues forward with helping men during the “Me, Too” movement. If the world found out, she’d be seen for the hypocritical and insensitive woman that she is (did I mention she’s a rather unlikeable character?).

In what can only be described as a harebrained scheme, she eventually gets together with three of the women she screwed over with settlements and NDAs, and they all set out for revenge. Problem is, Kelly is a slightly unreliable character who doesn’t always think things through, so we will just say… things go awry.

The initial slowness of this book and how much I disliked the main character definitely affect my rating on this one. The writing was good, the ending was clever, but nothing ever made my jaw drop. I really struggled on the rating for this, but I’m going with 3.5, rounded down because I think it was a good book, but I don’t think I’d read it again.

(Thank you to Harper Perennial & Paperbacks, Bonnie Kistler, and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released on July 4, 2023.)

Her Too By Bonnie Kistler is a genre I'm not used to reading but was definitely a book hard to put down!

Her Too oozes with gripping drama that drives you to keep turning the pages. Kistler does a great job with imagery in this novel as well as leaving enough suspense to keep you guessing. I felt like a minor detective trying to figure out what happened before I got to the answer.

One thing I will say about Her Too is that it can be a triggering novel from many aspects. A tough family health issue, abuse, sexual violence, and homicide are all present in this novel. Some details, while superbly written, can be hard to get through.

This is a story that needs to be read. For women and men alike, Her Too, while fiction, speaks on very real circumstances in today's world. It sheds many different perspectives on one major issue (that presents itself in lots of different ways) and has proven to be very enlightening.

A must read... and one that you'll be frustrated you can read it fast enough.

I has trouble reading this and it wasn't the writing! The writing and characters and story were great. I struggled with the content as someone whose been Sexually Assaulted it was difficult to read but all in all I did like the story!

The story is good but I struggled with the choice of words.
I feel the author was trying too hard to use uncommon and strange expressions that though easy to understand, hampered the flow of the story.

I knew a little about this book going in but do feel there should be a trigger warning for sexual assault. This book is heavy and at times was difficult to get through but overall it was a good read.

Kelly has always been a can do person. She has a successful legal career and has worked tirelessly for her family and clients. Her specialty though is not something she’s proud of, she defends men accused of sex crimes – though she maintains they are falsely accused. Until one day, she learns the hard way that not everyone she defends is innocent by falling victim herself. She joins forces with the other women who accused her client, and together they vow to bring him down. Kelly pulls out all the stops, but will he destroy her before she destroys him?

I loved this book! It was just what I needed after a bunch of romance books. I really enjoyed how sexual assault was shown in this book. I didn’t want to like Kelly because of her job, but when I learned why she was doing it – everything made sense, and I related to her. Kelly is such a strong female lead and shows the sacrifices women make every day to take care of their family. The writing on this one was phenomenal and highly entertaining.

Even though this book was a heavy read, and one that hit way too close to home, I really enjoyed it. I hope you’ll check it out July 4th.

Thank you to the publisher Harper Perennial and Paperbacks, Harper Paperbacks, @harperperennial, and Netgalley @netgalley for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book hooked me right away! I thought I wouldn’t like Kelly but I couldn’t have been more wrong! Great read, fast paced and very hard to put down, plan for an all nighter!!

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Perennial for providing me with the eARC!

I was way too excited when my request for this ARC got accepted. I appreciate books that provide social commentary on assault, especially when the justice system is involved. I was worried that this book wouldn’t live up to my expectations, but it went WAY beyond what I was expecting - it will easily be one of my favorite reads this year. I finished this book in a little over two days, but I’ve been sitting on it as I wasn’t sure how to articulate my thoughts on it into a review.

Based on the synopsis, I was honestly expecting to despise Kelly’s character at the start; however, she’s almost immediately a likable character. Even if I didn’t totally agree with her views at the start of the book, I admired her ambition for her career, her prioritization of her family, and her desire to protect those closest to her.

I experienced a range of emotions while reading it, and I found that I had to put the book down at a few certain points due to overwhelming sadness, anger, or to simply reflect on some parts (specifically, conversations Kelly had with her son).

Even though I finished this book weeks ago, I still can’t stop thinking about it. I have so many more thoughts and feelings about it but don’t know how to put them into words other than: you need to read it. Needless to say, I will be preordering a physical copy of this book and most likely won’t be able to shut up about it or stop recommending it.

I love Bonnie Kistler and was so excited to get an ARC of “Her Too.” While I knew the material may be tough for me read, I’ve enjoyed Bonnie’s other books so much I decided to take the risk. Before I get started I will say this book needs a TW for sexual assault.

“Her Too” is the story of high powered lawyer, Kelly McCann. Kelly’s job is to defend wealthy men accused of sexual misconduct, and she’s great at it. Kelly feels on top of the world when she gets the doctor who has cured Alzheimer’s off a charge of rape until he sexually assaults her that same night. Kelly knows she can’t go to the police as it could end her career, but vows to get revenge.

This was a heavy ready, but I never felt like I couldn’t push though. I liked some of the girl power elements of the book. My only negative thing to say is at times I felt like some of the subplots were distracting. Overall though I would recommend this book. It was original and I enjoyed it until the end.

Incredibly well written and entertaining. I forgot to take notes about 1/3 of the way in because it got so exciting. The author does a great job of providing backstory without being boring or repetitive. The story is well paced and the reveals are teased out at the right times. I'd put Bonnie Kistler up there with Gillian Flynn. Without giving too much away, because you really should read this, my only complaint was I expected the reveal at the end to be a different person and I believe my guess would have been better. Her, Too grapples with a lot of really tough subjects that include r*pe, exploitation in the workplace, and the cost of medical life support. Overall, it's just a really good story idea to explore the trials and tribulations of a woman who uses her talent to defend male rapists.

This was a 5 star read! It was a book I did not want to put down. I love a tough female lead character. Kelly is simply a powerful force to be reckoned with. This was my first book by this author and I plan to read another one of hers soon!