This was an OK read, but I've read much better books by Modglin. This was an OK read, but I've read much better books by Modglin. It started out pretty strong and kept me interested and reading. But eventually it became rather implausible and boring. I know! I know! Don't shoot the messenger. This one just didn't really work for me.

I have really come to enjoy this author and have purchased several of her books over the last year. Unfortunately I think she has spoiled me with her crazy twists, and this one was not one of them.
One year ago Colbie Moore was to marry the love of her life, Phil, but he dies unexpectedly on their wedding day.. Present day, one year later, Colbie has rented a place to getaway with her three male best friends to I guess have one more mourning session before finally moving on. She decides to read all the letters from their wedding guests addressed to the newlyweds to be read on their first anniversary. This is when she finds a letter from her finance. After reading the letter it sounds as though Phil knew he was about to die and that he may have had some secrets to confess. Of course Colbie decides to investigate but is she really prepared for what she may find?
I didn't care for this book much. It had nothing that I've come to expect from this author. No suspense and I was just bored throughout. I am glad it was short because I am not sure I would have been able to finish. I couldn't connect with the main character and found myself doing an eye roll more than once with her and her relationships with James, Eric, and Miles. The ending was clever but also very hard to believe. Sadly the entire book was too far fetched for my liking.
Thank you so much NetGalley and Kiersten Modglin for allowing me to listen to an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you Dreamscape Media for my advanced copy for review!

On the one-year anniversary of her wedding, Colbie Moore's life looks nothing like it should.
Still grieving the loss of the man she meant to spend her life with, Colbie prepares for a weekend away to take her mind off her heartache, but the simple plan results in much more than she bargained for.

A box of letters, meant for the bride and groom to open on their anniversary, is instead opened by Colbie and her three best friends—Miles, James, and Eric.
And what it holds could ruin everything.

A mysterious note from a surprising sender shocks Colbie, propelling her down a dark path to discover the truth about the man she loved—his life and his death—before it's too late.

I love Modglin books! I requested this one without reading the synopsis and went in blind. The story line is always interesting and her writing style draws me in.

I’m quickly turning pages, but lots of questions quickly pop into my brain. She goes on an anniversary trip with her three guy friends (what seems like her only friends)? They get a house with three bedrooms… I just found that whole trip to be odd. Colbie was not my favorite, she comes off as very young, needy, and naive.

Talk about some awful almost in-laws.

I was looking forward to the big Modglin surprise twist, but as the secrets started come out I found it to be underwhelming. This one was not my favorite, but I will continue to pick up whatever she writes next!

This author has written several books and I highly suggest The Arrangement series!!

This is my first book by Kiersten Modglin, it's a good book to start with. I love a good mystery, finding out the husbands secret live after he dies will always be a good read. That ending was so good. I have my theory, I was half right. Now I must devour the rest of her books.

Great suspense with a lovely final twist or two. Female lead and male relationships can sometimes be unbelievable, but an enjoyable experience as the stories came together.

I've enjoyed this author's other books, and this one is similar. I liked the character development, but did have it all figured out early. I appreciate the theme of men and women being "just friends" - something very relatable to me in many ways. However it did get a little romance-y at times, a kind of saccharine sweetness that was not believable. Also, (Spoiler Alert!) seriously killing someone just to stop them from talking? Quite unrealistic. All the male main characters are seemingly in love with the female protagonist - is also not terribly realistic. Just a bit over the top for me.

This wasn't my favorite of Kiersten's books, but I'll read anything she writes. This book alternates between two timelines and follows a bride on her wedding day and a year later.

Kiersten's books are typically filled with unseen twists and turns. This fell a little short on twists and was late in the story. It's still a great read and enjoyable

One year ago, on her wedding day, the unimaginable happened to Colbie....Phil her fiancée died before the ceremony. She has grieved this loss with her three best friends, Eric, James and Miles, by her side to help her through. They decide to take a trip together and read through the letters that friends were asked to leave at the wedding in the hopes of perhaps bringing about more closure for Colbie. Of course that all changes when she reads a mysterious letter from Phil that makes her think his death wasn't just an accident/natural causes after all.

This one missed the mark a bit for me. I was just not invested in Colbie as a character. Ultimately I didn't much care whether Phil was murdered or not. Plot holes abounded and the ending was a tad underwhelming. I listened to this as an audiobook and thought the narration was fine. Of course as with all of the books by Kiersten I've read, this was a quick read. Overall three stars, meaning it was fine.

Special thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for this ALC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

If You're Reading This by Kiersten Modglin was a tense, gripping story!
I've enjoyed most of her books and this was no different!
I loved the twists in the plot. It keeps you guessing and entertained the whole way through.
This was a fast paced, page-turning novel and I'm so glad I was able to listen to this!!
You won't be bored because they are twists upon twists and the plot is so amazing
The narrator did an amazing job at keeping me entertained and eager for more!

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Dreamscape Media,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this eARC!

I will read anything by Kiersten Modglin! Her thrillers are always so different. If You’re Reading This follows Colbie who’s fiancé died right before their wedding. She’s taking a vacation with her 3 best guy friends 1 year after her almost wedding day.
I enjoyed the story and was happy to get some flashbacks of the wedding day. The story seemed all over the place in a way and honestly I thought there would be more to the letter situation. Amber, Colbies sister, was an annoying side character that I didn’t feel was even necessary to the whole story.
Overall I enjoyed this one and it had a happy ending, for a thriller. I would recommend this book if you enjoy romantic suspense and morally grey characters. Thank you Dreamscape for my advanced listening copy!

I was very excited to read the new Kiersten Modglin book. She is the queen of twists and turns.

This particular book wasn't as fun, though. I think part of the reason was that I really couldn't stand Colbie. She was helpless at a baseline level ... "oh, a flat tire? What will I do? Please, save me, strong men!" Modglin's female characters in other books have been so powerful and independent.

I also found the premise that 3 adult men would trip over themselves and each other to protect her to be laughable.

I was mildly disappointed that some of the awful people in Colbie's life never get what is coming to them. I need a little more karma.

My girl Kiersten is back at it with another banger. Seriously this author can do no wrong. This was a quick listen and I gobbled it up like it was thanksgiving dinner. More please from this author! A forever fan!

This was really good. It kept me engaged and the end was really surprising.
The narrator was really good.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley.

3.25⭐

Featuring ~ single 1st person POV, dual timeline, death of fiancé, secrets

Our main characters are:
Colbie ~ surviving fiance
Phil ~ deceased fiance
James ~ Colbie's BFF
Eric ~ Phil's BFF
Miles ~ a close friend

One year after the wedding day death of Phil, Colbie goes away for the weekend with James, Eric and Miles in order to open letters written to the bride and groom. There's one letter in there that opens up a whole can of worms.

I did like the plot and the dual timeline of the present and a year before on the wedding day. I wouldn't say it was super suspenseful, but it kept me intrigued and patiently waiting to know how Phil died and what his secret was. The secret was on the meh side for me. For the most part I didn't really mind any of the main characters. I hated the characters I was supposed to ~ Phil's parents and Colbie's sister. I was surprised about the ending, not the death part but the end end, and I'm not sure I liked it.

Narrated by Subhadra Newton for 6 hours on the dot, easy to follow at 2x. She did a lovely job and I didn't mind her male voices.

Kiersten has become my go to author if I want a thriller and this book was it. I really did enjoy the narrator for this book also. I feel like all the books I have listen to be her have been really good.

I’m rounding up from 2.5 stars because it did keep me listening while I was getting my work done but the story itself was just okay, the narrator did do a good job with it though, which is why I’m rounding up to 3.
Colbie’s fiancé dies on their wedding day, just moments before the ceremony is scheduled to start. The story picks up one year later as Colbie is trying (sort of) to move on with her life. There is a box of cards that they had set out at the wedding for people to give them to be opened on their first anniversary, and today is that day, and despite them not getting married, and her fiancé not making it to be there with her to read them, colbie decides to take her 3 best friends, who all happen to be men, to an air B&B for the weekend and open the letters. However, when she does, she finds one from her dead fiancé that opens a trail to a past that she knew nothing about and makes her realize that she never really knew him or the men she thought she knew.
The story is told in 2 timelines-the wedding day and the present day anniversary. And with each flash back to the wedding, new pieces of the puzzle are revealed, leaving the audience questioning every one of her fiends. The problem is that there were several improbable plot holes that were quite hard to get past that it made it kind of hard to get through. That being said, if you set aside all reality and just go with it, you’ll get entertained for the afternoon.
Thanks to the author for this audiobook arc in exchange for my review.

I love finding new favorite authors! I am a part of a Facebook group for psychological thriller lovers. It was there that I was first introduced to Kiersten Modglin. The first book of hers that I read was I Said Yes. It was a solid thriller, she sold me immediately. I also listened to the audiobooks for her novels, The Arrangement and The Good Neighbors and loved them. In the past few months I have continued to work my way through her backlog. I was thrilled when I received an email with from Netgalley with an audiobook copy of Kiersten's newest release, which I am reviewing today.

If You're Reading This... is a suspense novel written by Kiersten Modglin. It was released in September of 2022.
If you would like to purchase If You're Reading This you can find it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. You can follow the author, Kiersten Modglin, on Instagram and Goodreads! You can also check out her website!

The day of their dreams was nothing short of a nightmare.
On the one-year anniversary of her wedding, Colbie Moore's life looks nothing like it should.
Still grieving the loss of the man she meant to spend her life with, Colbie prepares for a weekend away to take her mind off her heartache, but the simple plan results in much more than she bargained for.
A box of letters, meant for the bride and groom to open on their anniversary, is instead opened by Colbie and her three best friends—Miles, James, and Eric.
And what it holds could ruin everything.
A mysterious note from a surprising sender shocks Colbie, propelling her down a dark path to discover the truth about the man she loved—his life and his death—before it's too late.
Soon, Colbie begins to question everyone around her as the mystery unravels.
What was Phil hiding from her when he died?
What secrets are still hidden?
The closer she gets to answers, the clearer it becomes that someone has gone to great lengths to protect their lies.
And if she pushes any more, everything she has left could be exactly what she stands to lose.
Is it worth risking everything to truly know the man she's already lost?
After all, she's been warned…she might not be able to handle what she finds.

I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads. This had everything that I like about Kiersten Modglin's books. It was engaging to the point where it was impossible to step away from, it had fascinating characters, and plenty of twists and turns! When I wasn't listening to the audiobook, I was thinking about what might happen next. To me, that is the sign of truly great writing. I was hooked almost instantly.

If you have checked out the blog before, you probably know that I have raved about Kiersten's The Arrangement series. I loved that one so much but I definitely understand that it may be too much for some readers. That series was such a good read but was a bit unhinged and full of chaos (which is definitely my thing, but may not be yours---and that's okay!). I think this book would be a happy medium. It has it's twists and it's shocking moments without being quite as intense as The Arrangement series is. If you are looking for an introduction to this author, I think this would be a great book to start with. While I loved that series, I can also appreciate the variety of books that Kiersten produces. While they all fall somewhere under the thriller/mystery/suspense umbrella, she never recycles the same plot twice. She has an extensive catalog of books, so that is certainly impressive to me! KMod, you continue to impress and exceeded even my wildest expectations.

I mention this pretty much every time I review a Kiersten Modglin book but...Kiersten has this really cool tab on her website called 'songs and scents'. This tab includes a list of all of her published works and the songs and candles that accompanied her writing process for them. I just think that is such a neat way to involved readers in with the writing process and it exemplifies how different that process can be for every author.

Overall, this was such a good read. Kiersten Modglin has quickly asserted herself as one of my must read authors. Everything she touches, I will read and love! I would highly recommend this book for readers 18+. There is some adult themes, dialogue, and language used throughout. If you like domestic suspense or are just looking for a new favorite author, I think you should give this one a try.

Will you be checking out If You're Reading This...? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

As always, thank you for reading!

XO,
Madison

I want to start by saying I am a fan and regular reader of Kiersten Modglin. I have enjoyed most of her other books however “If You’re Reading This” was a miss for me. This book isn’t a thriller and, honestly, is barely even a mystery. Colbie was pretty irritating to me. She spent the last year consumed by her grief and leaning (in my opinion) way too heavily on these three, male friends when I didn’t get the sense she was with her fiancé all that long and it turns out she didn’t even know him that well.
I think her total dependence on her three “best friends”, who all just happen to be male and one of which she had just met the day her fiancé died, bothered me the most. At one point she gets a flat tire, at home, and is completely incapable of figuring out how to deal with that, something her fiancé would have been able to manage but since he’s dead (and has been for a year) she has to call on one of her “best friends” to help her. How is she an adult woman, who by her own admission spent most of her late teen/early adult years cleaning up her sisters messes, but she can’t handle a flat tire?
Overall I did not enjoy this but I will keep reading Ms Modglin’s books because I do believe she is a talented writer.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest opinion.

I enjoyed the overall jiist of the book, but felt there were times where it was a bit try-hard and lackluster. I could tell each character was well thought out and had a great backstory, but their connect to Colby always felt forced and not genuine. The story drags on for a while then decidedly puts the pedal to the metal to wrap everything up in a most interesting way.

"...If I was going to look for answers I might not like what I was going to find...I didn't want comfort. I wanted justice."

Once again with her latest work, If You're Reading This..., the twisty queen of thrillers author Kiersten Modglin has created a suspenseful domestic thriller.

From the very beginning we are shocked by the scene of bride Colbie in an ER waiting room finding out her groom Phil is dead from a heart attack before he ever said "I do."

Fast forward to what would have been their one year wedding anniversary and Colbie is at an Air BNB with Jamie her man of honor and life long bestie, Eric the best man who was like a brother to Phil, and wedding band singer Miles who has been a comfort to Colbie through the year.

She is there to open the envelopes the wedding guests left for the couple with messages of where they hoped the couple were in life and love. It's emotional yet sweet until the last envelope which is surprisingly from Phil and begins, "If you're reading this..."

What?! Did Phil know he might die? Was it a premonition or something more nefarious? I have to be honest I did not see the full story until the end and for me that is the best compliment for a thriller.

I had never heard narrator Subhadra Newton before but I was very impressed with her honest performance of Colbie who goes through every feeling from grief to shock to anger to love. It was a rollercoaster of emotions.

If, like me, you are a fan of this author you will enjoy another fun twisty ride. If you haven't experienced the thrill of her mysteries and if you're reading this review... it's definitely worth your time to check out If You're Reading This...

I received a free copy of this audiobook from Dreamscape Media via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

*This Review Is For The Audiobook*