Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate starts off with Phoebe Dean laying on the side of the road taking her last breaths. If only the paramedics were called within those long agonizing twenty-seven minutes. If they were called as soon as Grant and Becca woke up then Phoebe would still be alive. 10 years later it is coming up to the anniversary of Phoebe's death and her mother is going to throw a memorial for her. June's brother Wyatt, had left town on the night of the accident never to be seen or heard of since. Wyatt shows up out of the blue and wants to attend the memorial with June. He only has a limited to fix what happened 10 years ago. Grant, Phoebe's brother has always told Becca that the accident was her fault and she must keep their relationship a secret. Becca is in love with Grant however he is only using her to cover up the fact that he was the one driving that fateful night. The ending of this book is so unbelievable that made all the sense in the world. Beautifully written and exicuted to the end. I felt the sorry for Becca the whole time that I was reading this. She was so blinded by her love for Grant and didn't see what a real jerk that he is. Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Publishers for giving me an advance copy of this title.

I really struggled with this one because it felt very YA to me. The characters did not mature at all over the course of ten years and they were all quite unlikable.

There were a few things I did like about the book that kept me interested enough, It is fast paced and the twist ending is very much a shock. I did have that edge of your seat feeling for most of the book. It did start to feel like I was waiting forever for something to happen though.

Overall, I think this one was a decent debut and I would be interested to read more from this author.

Unfortunately I could not get into this book. I thought I’d like it based on how it started… then too many characters were introduced, and I didn’t connect with any of them, and I found myself not caring what happened. It was a DNF for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this arc in exchange for an honest opinion.

When it took twenty-seven minutes for Grant to call for an ambulance, it took his sister Phoebe's life. She was the most popular girl both alive and dead. Now ten years later, her mother wants to have a memorial for her and the entire town is talking about it. Meanwhile, June's mother has just passed away. Her brother also disappeared the night that Phoebe Dean was killed, but nobody is talking about him. While the buildup for the memorial is closing in, will the truth about what happened that night finally come out?

A fast paced read that keeps you guessing about what really happened. The author does a good job holding the readers attention while going into the history of the characters. A great book!

This was a very engaging mystery/thriller! This is a story about a long-ago murder and the ripple effect it is still having ten years later. The timeline moves between the past and present and while it did take me some time to reorient, it really added to the suspense. The small town setting and characters were great and there is a twist that I genuinely enjoyed. I am excited to see what Ashley Tate comes out with next! Thanks to Ashley Tate, Poisoned Pen Press, and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I can NOT believe this is Ashley Tate’s debut novel!! It was fantastic and absolutely thrilling.

This novel starts out in Phoboe’s POV. She knows what caused the car accident, but she is dying, and she can’t figure out why her brother, Grant, hasn’t called for help.

10 years later, shortly before the anniversary of Phoboe’s death, tensions run high as 4 friends gather together and uncover the truth of what happened that tragic night.

This book started out slow and then ramped up in the middle but then kind of went off the rails at the end. I think it’s a good story overall but it was just all a bit of overkill at the end, overly dramatic. I would give the authors next book a try because I quite enjoyed her style of writing .

There were times I liked this story, but most of the time I did not like it. It was well-written but the characters...it was exhausting reading the frantic desperation, constantly repeating things and all of the them ranged from dysfunctional to mentally ill. The author did a great job of conveying this repetition as desperation, so the repetition didn't bother me in and of itself, however, it wasn't enjoyable to read in the slightest. The other major issue is that I could see the ending way too early, every bit of it. I wasn't fooled by the red herring (of sorts) at all. I think this author has a great ability, that I hope is applied to a setting less exhausting so we can get a meaty story. I understand why she chose to write this and I can relate very well to her desire and drive to write this story, but I hope for a better one in the future.

Thank you to Poisen Pen Press for an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

I unfortunately didn't enjoy this book. I found it repetitive and hard to get into. I will definitely try another one from this author!

Wow! One heck of a debut novel for Ashley Tate! enjoyed this book and I was hooked the whole time. I kept waiting for some big WOW moment (because I just knew there had to be some twist), and I got it at the end! 4/5 stars! Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review

The opening of this book pulled me right in! I was definitely curious to find out why Phoebe's brother waited twenty-seven minutes to call an ambulance after the accident. It was a slow burn to get there, and I feel that the book could have been a bit shorter. The writing was good, and I liked the multiple POVs, although the characters all acted like they were still in high school, so there was a bit of a YA feel. I think the author did a good job of showing the trauma and grief that Phoebe's family and friends were going through. The twist at the end was surprising as I didn't expect it.

This is the author's debut novel, and I'll be looking forward to reading her next book!

Thank you, @netgalley and @poisonedpenpress, for the #gifted e-arc of this book!

This book was a dark, twisty, slow burn thriller and I did not see the final twist coming. Ashley Tate was masterful in capturing a variety of dark and complex emotions in the characters in the story.

Phoebe Dean died ten years ago in a tragic car accident and the mystery of the night she was killed hangs over the community. Her brother and best friend, Grant, was driving and took 27 minutes to seek help…an amount of time that potentially cost Phoebe her life. Their mother has decided to host a 10-year memorial for Phoebe and that has the whole town stirred up.
The story is told from multiple perspectives aside from Grant’s. There’s Becca who is a bit unstable and was a friend or possibly secret girlfriend to Grant and who was also in the vehicle that night. We also hear from June who recently lost her mother to cancer and whose brother Wyatt mysteriously disappeared the night of the crash. Wyatt shows up out of the blue after their mother’s passing and we hear his perspective as well.

Throughout the book, we see the interweaving of these characters’ lives and the slow unraveling of their stories. The story starts a bit slow then picks up pace until a crazy ending that I didn’t fully see coming. The author’s ability to capture dark emotion is impeccable and as was the mastery of weaving this story together. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to her next work.

Thank you so much to Netgalley & the publisher for this review copy! I am so looking forward to this and to writing a full review on my social media when I am able! Thanks again!

The prologue to this one was brilliant. So clever.

Unfortunately, it ended up being a DNF for me. It pains me, as I want to support Canadian women authors. I wish Ashley Tate all the best with this one!

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for this ARC!

Told between alternating points of view as well as dueling timelines, Twenty-Seven Minutes unfolds in a slow and methodical way, giving you bits and pieces of the story at a time.  The trouble is, after all this time, who can you trust to tell you the truth?  As it turns out, you can't trust anyone.

The characters are all very complicated people.  And, to be quite honest, most of them are very unlikable for various reasons.  However, as I delved deeper into the story, the effects of grief and time start to show through the cracks.  Grant I had the most animosity for due to his attitude and the way he seemed to interact with everyone around him.  Losing his sister took a serious toll on him and it showed.  Wyatt confused me, I was concerned for him, but also wary, wondering why he'd returned after so long.  On the other hand, I felt for both Becca and June.  Neither were great people, but their trauma was raw and on display from the very start.  

Twenty-Seven Seconds was a rollercoaster ride of lies, secrets, and surprises.  I had figured out an aspect or two of what had happened that night, ten years ago.  But there were things that I hadn't expected and was shocked when they were revealed.  This is very much a slow burn mystery, with things being revealed at a relaxed pace.  However, I found myself invested, needing to know the truth of what happened that night.  Have to say, I was also rooting for everyone to find peace at the end, too.  I'd definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys a slower paced mystery with unreliable characters.

Twenty Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate
★★★ 3/5 stars

✦ Synopsis
A small town is still reeling from a car accident that killed star student Phoebe Dean. Her brother, Grant, was driving.
27 minutes to call for help. A secret kept for 10 years. Only 3 days until everyone knows.
He could & have saved her life. So why did he wait?

✦ My Thoughts
This was our February book club pick! The blurb for this one really grabbed my attention, but it wasn’t as great as I hoped. There was lots of small town drama, high school baggage, & a bit of a supernatural element that I didn’t expect (or enjoy very much🙈) I just struggled to really get into it.
Lots of characters, POVs, & timeline jumps were hard for me to keep straight.

✦ Read if you like :
-Slow burn mysteries
-Cold cases
-Small town secrets
-Unlikeable & unreliable characters
-Only if You’re Lucky by Stacey Willingham
-Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll
-The Overnight Guest by Heather Gudenkauf

thank you to Netgalley + Poisoned Pen Press for the opportunity to read this ARC ◡̈

It's the 10th anniversary of a tragic accident that left one girl dead and her brother distraught. In fact the whole town is in an uproar about tearing down the bridge where the accident happened. Many lives have been affected.

When a book has this many unlikeable characters, it can be a hard sell for me and, unfortunately, this one missed the mark. The story itself, although very slow moving, was enough to keep me engaged until the end, but only to wrap up the loose ends and not because I necessarily cared about anyone involved. In hindsight, I should have seen the ending coming, but I'm not one of those readers that spends a lot of time trying to figure things out before hand; I just tend to go along for the ride. I did predict the relationship between two of the characters, so was proud of myself for that, but other than that, the ending came as a surprise. I found I was more interested in the story leading up to Phoebe's death than I was in the story leading up to her memorial.

This book has grief and trauma etched on every page, so reader beware.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the eARC! The beginning of this was very intriguing, starting right in the action before skipping ahead to “present day”.

Unfortunately, the book became slow and was difficult for me to pay attention to - waiting for things to start coming together and amp up. I wasn’t overly impressed with this one and it didn’t standout to me.

This book starts off with a shocking scene. Then it backs us up. It's a dual timeline between then and now and that builds the suspense for me. Multiple POV, which is a favorite for me because you see the story for many angles, and it makes it more twisty.

Most of these characters were pretty unlikeable, but I'm good with that too. It fit the storyline.

The big secret is finally revealed, and I maybe would have wanted a little more in the end, but overall a solid read and kept me engaged throughout.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.