This book kept my interest throughout but at the end of the day, still wasn’t my favorite thriller I’ve ever read. The ending wasn’t super satisfying and while it wasn’t clear who did it the entire time, there was not much of a resolution and that’s not my favorite. Proceed at your own risk!

I loved the concept and title of this book but the execution and actual plot fell flat for me. I found myself bored and not gripped, thrilled, enthralled throughout like I was hoping. If it had a couple twists throughout it would have likely kept my interest more.

There are a lot of books that center around the main character still reeling from the mysterious (or suspicious) death of a best friend. But I though that Don't Forget the Girl brought a lot of new ideas to the table.

This book is about a trio of friends that was shattered when one of them vanished. The remaining two have carried on, but are reunited when a podcaster decides to revisit the case.

I loved the triple POV ( a little Lovely Bones-style narration from the grave), loved the new directions that this took a familiar trope.

Will keep an eye out for this author's future books!

I enjoyed the way that the author showed the dynamics of female friendship. The secrets we share and even keep from the most important people in our lives. And the lengths that we would go through to get justice for them. The narrator on the audiobook did a good job

When the debut is as stellar as Don't Forget the Girl, I can tell that Rebecca McKenna is going to be an author to watch. The dual timelines of Abby, Chelsea, and Bree's freshman college year and then ten years later of just Bree and Chelsea is the perfect way to slowly unravel the twisted web that is Don't Forget the Girl. Bree and Chelsea are both living messy, unbalanced lives, the mystery of what really happened to Abby making it difficult for them to move on. With the upcoming execution of the killer and the discovery of Abby's body, everybody's secrets are exposed, and it's so very entertaining to watch. I loved this one!

Good read - this was my first book by this author and I am happy I picked it up! Will definitely recommend and be adding to my bookshelf!

3.5/5 stars (rounded up to 4 stars)

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
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We never remember the dead girls. We never forget the killers.

This was definitely more of a slower burn than I would usually like. It took me a little bit to get into the book and there were times where I felt like the author was getting caught up on details that weren’t necessarily needed. I really wanted to like this book because I like the aspect of not getting the people who are killed by murders but we always focus on the killers. I think overall, this debut has a lot of promise and I am looking forward to reading more from this author but unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me.

John Allan Blue will be executed soon for the murder of two sorority girls and the disfigurement of another. He’s also suspected of kidnapping and murdering other women; including Chelsea and Bree’s best friend, Abby.

Chelsea, Bree, and Abby were three best friends who attended the same school, and we’re figuring out life together. No one imagined that one of them would be murdered by someone they might’ve known. For twelve years, Chelsea and Bree, went their separate ways in life to grieve, but a break in the case may bring them back together.

I first thought this book was a mystery/thriller but now that it’s marinated in my mind for a few days; I found that it was very religious, repetitive and slightly boring in the middle. When I put it down to take a break, it was extremely difficult to pick it back up. Overall, I enjoyed the ending

Usually I love when an author adds podcasts, police records, and twitter conversations but in this books it felt confusing and rushed. Overall; I enjoyed the ending, and for that, I gave it three stars.

This was good. A little slower than I would have liked and a lot of detail, but still good. I found this story to be an interesting viewpoint on how we, as a society look at serial killers. We tend to want to read, watch and listen to all things related to them and forget the actual victims. Hence the title. Twelve years ago, college student Abby goes missing. Jon Allan Blue is a convicted serial killer awaiting execution and presumed to have also killed Abby, although she was never found. Her friends, Bree and Chelsea have not forgotten and have had their lives since then affected by not knowing for sure what happened. They decide to go on a podcast and a new can of worms is opened. I did not really connect with Bree or Chelsea, but I did like the way the story was told. We get flashbacks from the three women and also the podcast, interviews and social media. Very timely. I would read more from this author.

Thank you to #NetGalley, Rebecca McKanna and Sourcebooks, Landmark for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Jon Allan Blue isn’t just a name in a grisly headline—he’s the reason the girl they once loved is dead. No one remembers Abby, but Bree and Chelsea do. They can’t help but think of Abby every time they hear Blue’s name in the media, who is obsessively chronicling the countdown to Blue’s execution. Bree and Chelsea wish it would hurry up and happen already so they can move on.

But maybe in order to do that, the two of them need to revisit the past. Get closure. Hell, maybe even find answers. And what better way to do it than by going on a podcast?
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i really wanted to like this book but i just sadly could not get into it. the pace dragged at a lot of different points for me and i also felt like there were too many details and plot points the author tried to cram in. i’m also really not a fan of the “you POV” at all, which sucked bc i couldn’t get into Abby’s chapters and they’re the ones i really wanted to read. most sad is that i really didn’t find anything too likable about Chelsea and Bree. being unable to relate to them made it hard for me to keep going alongside the other problems i felt this faced. i think the fault is mine due to my own preferences and feel like this may be more suited for others with different tastes than mine.

This was a bit of a slow burn mystery for me more than it was a thriller, but it was an enjoyable read. It wasn’t your traditional mystery because while two of the main characters do what to know what happened to their friend when she went missing at 18 it wasn’t a book of tracking down clues or interrogating suspects like you might suspect. More than a book about a murdered co-ed this is a story about friendships and romantic relationships and identity. Chealsea and Bree haven’t kept in touch much since they lost their best friend Abby when they were all 18. While her body wasn’t found it was generally believed she was killed by the serial killer who was apprehended shortly after her disappearance and after he murdered multiple girls in a sorority house. The story flips between Chelsea and Bree’s current lives including discovering that Abby’s body has finally be found. The other narrator is from Abby’s perspective from the year when she was murdered. Overall I thought this book tackled a bunch of hard topics and did a good job. It just wasn’t quite the gripping thriller I had thought it was from the description.

This is one of my favorite books I’ve read around a crime in a long time. As someone who reads, watches and listens to true crime this book made me take a hard look at that practice and reminded me to remember to focus on the women who are so often the victims of those crimes. I was also the age of these protagonists so recalling the times and placing myself in the story was very easy. I will keep my eyes posted for another book by this author.
Thank you to a NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in return for my review.

Don't Forget the Girl by Rebecca McKanna

Pub: June 20, 2023

Pub week review ! Thank you @bookmarked, @netgalley for the gifted copy to read & review 💚

🚨 ALERT 🚨 New addition to my top reads of 2023 !

I’m officially calling 2023 the year of amazing debuts!

Q - what debuts have you loved this year ?

Don’t Forget the Girl is a book I will not easily forget. It’s a thriller with depth. It’s an exploration of grief, friendship, family, love and loss. And of course, there are serial killers.

I love McKanna’s writing style. Her characters are three dimensional and the atmosphere vivid.

She balances this with dual timelines and three POVs that keep the pace steady. The use of interviews, newspaper clips and a podcast script throughout the book adds further dimension.

As a consumer of true crime, the book also made me reflect. While I can rattle off names of singular victims (mostly white women, but that’s a whole other topic), I can’t do the same for victims of serial killers. But I can sure rattle off a list of the killers. I’m going to make a conscious effort to change that.

For my friends who don’t typically read thrillers, I encourage you to look past the “serial killer. “ This is just as much a book broken lives, how to life with your past and move forward. I truly think you will love it.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy. Run don't walk to get a copy of this book. I cannot believe this was the author's debut novel. I tore through this book in just a couple of days while working and wrangling a toddler.

This a very character driven drama/thriller. It beautifully explored the relationship between three friends and how a violent act shaped their lives. It is told from all three of their viewpoints and told over two different time periods. The author did a great job of weaving the past and present timelines together and I did not find myself confused. It is more of a slow burn and not necessarily a "whodunnit" but more of a "did he do it". I think the author was also able to end the book on a realistic note which I always appreciate.

Overall, excellent debut novel and I am excited to see what this author publishes in the future. Highly recommend!

The Mother at Number 5, I think is not what I would have picked for the title of this book. However the story line was good and the narration went along well with it.
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While Adam and Ros are on vacation with their daughters Ros meets Lotte a single mom looking for a new friend. What Ros doesn't know is that her new friend has an agenda. A friendly invitation to have cocktails has turned into a night that Ros cannot remember. Thank goodness her vacation is almost over and she will not need to see Lotte again.
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Returning home and settling back to everyday life Ros drops her girls off at school to find Lotte there with her daughter Katelyn. Shocked to see her and even more shocked to find out she lives just a block away, but how? why? Ros thought her wild night would come back to haunt her, but that is not the only thing that will turn her life upside down. Lotte is out for revenge but on who?
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I was gifted the ALC from Netgalley and Jill Childs for my honest review. I have to say I am not sure I would call it a Thriller but more a suspense book waiting to see what is happening in the story and trying to figure out what is going to happen. In my opinion I am going with a 3.5 star rating. The story line does have a few triggers for those who are sensitive to sexual assault.

I really wanted to love this one, I really tried. The whole concept of the book is honestly great and I've not seen many books that want to make us see that we are glamorizing the serial killers and forgetting the victims. That's what kept me going, but it was so slow for me that it didn't hold my interest.

I loved the way the story was unfolded, with the multiple POV's and the victim Abby's POV that is actually made to feel as if it was you. I felt it gave a more personal touch to the book and made you feel like you were in it. Although I can understand it can get confusing for some readers to follow the switches and the third and second person written POV's.

I could not love the characters as they were portrayed actually pretty horribly. They were annoying and hard to empathize with. It was a very character focused book, which is not what I expected when I read the blurb, that disappointed me. As I mentioned the idea of it was great, to make people realize that the true crime podcasts are really focusing on the serial killers and making them "stars".

Also, there was a lot to unpack in this book, it brushed on a lot of topics, which I wished the author would've focused more on one. It felt too heavy and confusing in my opinion

I can see why so many did enjoy it !! It might also be something you would enjoy. Not because it isn't for me that it's not for you.

I am glad I listened to this one, as I am not sure I would've stuck through it by reading. The narrator did a good job, but I felt her voices for each character very similar so it was a bit confusing.

✨️Thank you to @netgalley & @rbmedia for my free ARC & ALC in exchange for an honest review.

A fast-paced thriller with alternating timelines between the past and the present. The book features three friends, all with their own secrets, guilt, and trauma. Abby is murdered during their freshman year of college, and twelve years later, her body is found, and the man who is suspected of killing is on death row for other murders. We follow Chelsea and Bree as they struggle to cope with their friend's death and the guilt they've carried for over a decade. The story shines a light on the romanticization and glitz given to true crime podcasts and TV and tries to bring the focus back to the victim. I appreciate that the victim nor her friends are squeaky clean either because it makes the aftermath feel real. The ripples that a crime has on not just the victim but friends, family, and the community are definitely felt in this story.

This book takes aim very deliberately at a society that has made true crime a profitable market; it doesn’t pretend that it’s a recent phenomenon–the Victorians loved to read about Jack, didn’t they?–or that most people barely feel any qualms about indulging in it–unless and until it touches them.

It is narrated in rigidly alternating chapters by three longtime friends, Bree, the college professor who is sinking into alcoholism and depression; Chelsea, the married minister with the Instagramable life who has lost her faith; and Abby, the missing girl whose remains have never been found.

Both Bree and Chelsea are dealing with huge amounts of unprocessed guilt; they have been both more or less coping, being functional adults and productive members of society, until finally, the serial killer they all knew all those years ago is about to be executed.

No more delays, no more legal wrangling: in a few weeks, he’ll finally die–and they still won’t know for sure what happened to Abby.

They still won’t be able to move on from her disappearance.

It is the immediacy and finality of the upcoming execution that tips both their lives from the pretense of more or less functional adulthood into the chaos of two young women who were never allowed to process their feelings over the events that led to the night their friend literally disappeared.

I am not going to lie, it took me a couple of chapters to get into the story; I am not sure what I expected, but Bree’s almost palpable self-hatred and Chelsea’s self-flagellation feel disproportionate at first, too much for survivors’ guilt.

Also, the narrative choices felt uncomfortable at first: Bree’s and Chelsea’s sections are set in 2015, and narrated in third person present tense, while Abby’s sections are set in 2003, and narrated in second person present tense.

Too often, present tense third person feels like reading a script for a play, but here the author manages to pull the reader into the characters’ inner lives as both Bree and Chelsea struggle to reconcile their present with the past; Abby’s sections fill in the things they don’t know.

The blurb calls this novel a thriller, and it is one, in the sense that we start with many unanswered questions, and that by the end we readers know what happened.

There is no magical epiphany for Bree and Chelsea as they start the painful process of getting past losing Abby the way they did, but there is a bit of catharsis as they reconnect and, finally, face the feelings and secrets they have kept from each other and themselves, and we leave them in a hopeful place in their lives.

I said above that they were never allowed to process what happened; the novel shows how people connected to victims of crime, especially this kind of crime, have no protection from either the criminal system or the prurient public interest that has made the fame and fortune of many a true crime podcaster.

The inserted excerpts from fictional true crime media–podcast transcripts, twitter threads, opinion pieces, investigative journalists reports, books, docuseries–are virtually indistinguishable from their real life counterparts; and they all show how everyone connected to the victims (and the killers, should they ever be identified), are subject to direct exploitation as either victim themselves or handy targets.

But the most insidious harm of society’s obsession with true crime is that those directly affected don’t get to have a respite; they don’t get to put any distance between themselves and the tragedy in their lives. And at the same time, the victims are rarely, if ever, centered. (Without looking it up, can you name one of Ted Bundy’s or Dahmer’s, or even Jack the Ripper’s, victims? If you can, do you know anything about them beyond who killed them?)

I read this book in two sittings, and I’m going to be thinking about it, and my own participation in the exploitation machinery, for a long time.

Don’t Forget the Girl gets 9.00 out of 10

What a great debut! The different POVs and timelines worked so well together. While not exactly a thriller, I couldn’t put down this exploration of friendships, love, and grief.

I really wanted to love this book. The synopsis reminded me of one I had read and enjoyed and I thought I would love this. It just fell flat for me. It didn’t keep my interest and I found it hard to want to pick it up.