Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate is due to be published JANUARY 30th 2024 by Poisoned Pen Press.

Ten years have passed since Phoebe died in a car crash with her brother Grant behind the wheel. What baffled the investigation, why did Grant call 911 27 minutes after it happened? Becca was in the car with them and injured. She has promised to keep Grant's secret.
As the ten year anniversary and memorial services are to be held, another car crash in the same location occurs stirring up memories and gossip in the small town of West Wilmer.
Everyone knows and points, stares and talks in whispers about what happened that night. One person in town, June remembers the night well when her brother vanished. She blames Grant's family because all of the grief went into Phoebe instead of the search in her brother's disappearance.
Dark secrets are revealed and the horrifying truth. Is Gant behind the crash or was it truly and accident ? What is he hiding?🫣

Thank you Netgalley, Ashley Tate and Poisoned Pen Press for allowing me the chance to read this fine piece of work!

I really tried to get into the book but I couldn't. I now believe that all the books should come with a 3rd person or 1st person warning 😩

I found there to be too many POVs it was confusing and they were not likeable characters.

Thank you poisoned pen press and NetGalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

this book reminded me that I need to read more thrillers.

fuck, this was so good. I didn’t see the ending coming at all. normally I don’t like books that are multi pov since it can get all jumbled and confusing but since it was all in third person, it was much easier to read.

I liked the build up to everything and all of the foreshadowing throughout the book that you don’t even realize is foreshadowing until the end.

this was a debut and you’d never even know it. this was so well written and so good, you’d think ashley tate was writing and publishing books for years!

thank you so much to ashley and netgalley for this arc 🫶🏻

“But the ambulance was called too late-twenty-seven minutes too late. Something that would weigh on him forever.”

In Ashley Tate’s debut novel, Twenty-Seven Minutes, she discusses grief, loss, love, and the choices we make that can forever change our lives. After a bad accident happened on the town bridge involving Grant and Phoebe Dean, and Becca – Granted waited twenty-seven minutes to call 911 which cost Phoebe her life. Fast forward ten years, Mrs. Dean is finally ready to hold a memorial for her daughter, and the whole town can’t talk about anything else. Old memories resurface, people from the past return, and the truth about what happened on that bridge will emerge.

Ultimately this is a book about decisions – how one bad decision can change your life in an instant and effect not just you, but everyone around you as well. However, this book is rather dark, gloomy, and more about how grief is complicated and can transform you.

I did like how the story was written in multiple POVs and the backflashes to ten years ago. But, I didn’t feel like it was a thriller, or mystery, or suspense, but a rather monotone drama with a storyline that never really took off. Becca and June’s character were very similar, depressing, mentally unstable, and confusing. This could have made an excellent short story, but it was too long and repetitive.

I was very close to DNF’ing this book several times, and while the ending saved the book some – I don’t think this one was for me. I maybe had too high of expectations first hearing about Tate at the end of The Whispers, and unfortunately this one fell flat. I give this 2.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“… but what was love without sacrifice?”

Twenty-seven seven minutes is the amount of time it took for Grant to call the ambulance after he and his sister Phobe were in a car accident that got her killed.  Even though it happened ten years ago, there is a lot of mystery behind it that left a lot of questions.  Only those involved know what really happened. 

The prologue is intense, dark, and intriguing and really hooked me.  But, despite that, it is tough to get into. The synopsis sounds interesting, but after getting about 100 pages in, I still have no idea what happened or what's going on.  Everything is clouded in mystery with no explanation other than the vague thoughts of the characters who don't come off as very likable. I think a shorter version that gets more to the point would make for a stronger story.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was a fabulous thriller with a touch of (maybe?) magical realism? Psychological warfare? Hard to say!! But, I absolutely enjoyed every minute. The beginning was so different from anything I’ve ever read that I knew it was going to be a gripping story. What else was super intriguing to me was that I didn’t particularly think any of the characters were ones to root for but I was still fully invested! This is an amazing debut by the author and I can’t wait to see what she does next!!

In this book we have many mid to late 20 somethings not moving forward due to the twenty-seven minutes it took Grant to call for help after an accident that killed his sister Phoebe. A tragedy for sure, but these people are all really messed up mentally and some also have physical difficulties due to the accident.

Not my favorite read so far this year. The book is so busy going back and forth between each persons view of what happened. A bit of woo-woo stuff with Phoebe still kicking Grant about his behavior, if only in his mind. The angst and vitriol from each of the main characters towards each other was not believable...especially after ten years.

I struggled to get through this book. It seems to be excessively wordy and sometimes difficult to follow. Adults behaving badly to themselves and each other is not my favorite trope. It would have been more believable if ten years hadn't passed. Lies and half-truths are never good.

Once I begin a book, I follow through to the end. The only redeeming part of the book WAS the end when we learned exactly what happened in those twenty-seven minutes.

I really enjoyed this book. It was fast paced & the author’s writing kept me intrigued. My only issue is that the twist wasn’t that much a surprise & that’s the only reason I gave it 3 stars.

**This book will be published on 1/30/2024!**
I received this e-book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and the author/publisher for the copy!

Throughout Twenty-Seven Minutes, we follow several characters 10 years after a fatal and tragic accident in their small hometown. We find out that Grant waited 27 minutes to call for help after a car accident, which resulted in his sister, Phoebe's, death. Although a story was weaved and made to be believed, someone knows what really happened that night. Could the 1o year memorial be the time to reveal the truth of what happened?

Although I only gave this one 3 stars, I did enjoy this book! Ashley Tate kept us on our toes at the end of every chapter and built up the suspense all the way to the last chapters.

Told from the points of view of Becca, Grant, June and Wyatt, Twenty-Seven Minutes by debut author Ashley Tate, begins ten years ago, with seventeen year old Phoebe Dean, as she lay dying on a bridge after being thrown from a car.. Two other passengers, Grant and Becca, both injured in the crash, managed to survive. On the same night, June's brother Wyatt, after yet another fight with their father, disappears, leaving the miserable existence in a town that so many of the teens (June, Phoebe, Grant and Becca included) want to escape from.

Ten years later, the town is holding the Phoebe Dean Memorial to commemorate the terrible event that led to her death. The city is also putting to vote tearing down the very bridge on which Phoebe died. The continued focus on Phoebe's death is bringing up bad memories and guilt from Both Becca and Grant. Both of whom share a secret, one of many, of what happened that night in the car that led to the tragic event that happened on the bridge. For June, the memorial served as a reminder that the most traumatic events of her life, both the disappearance of her brother ten years ago, and the recent death of her mother, would always be overshadowed by Phoebe Dean. For Wyatt, the memorial is the catalyst for returning to explain his absence and expose secrets so that both he and June can find peace. For the town, filled with people who failed to see, hear, or provide help to those who needed it, all while reveling in the gossip of those unfortunate to be caught up in it, the memorial would finally bring about the answer they'd been dying to know for ten long years: why did it take Grant twenty-seven minutes to call for help as his siter lay dying.

The premise of Twenty Seven Minutes is an intriguing one. The story is very well plotted, with the author doing a masterful job of of juggling multiple points of view while moving back and forth between timelines. Tate also does a good job of developing each character. As each chapter unfolds the reader gets a clearer picture of who the main characters are. She puts the readers in an interesting position of empathizing, or even sympathizing, with these teens who are on the cusp of adulthood, all wanting to escape in order to have better lives than the ones they endure, and equally disliking the adults that those who survived that night became. As the layers are peeled away, what's left behind are people who emotionally never survived the events of that night. The truth reveals some ugly, unhappy, and self-serving characters.

As one who reads a great deal of mysteries and psychological thrillers, the surprise twist was not much of a surprise. The greater surprise was that the author took so long to reveal something that I feel should have been obvious to most reader by the halfway point. Instead, by the time the secrets are revealed, we are just pages from the end of the book. It felt like a lot of work for little payoff. I would honestly have preferred that the secrets had come out at the 75% mark and the last 25% have been dedicated to showing who the remaining characters continued on. to be. Would exposing the secrets and lies leave them still as emotionally stuck as they had been during the last ten years, or would they be free of the heavy burdens of the secrets and begin to move positively forward with their lives. At the very least I feel like there should have been an epilogue, and I am not a fan of epilogues.

Overall I had mixed feelings about the book. I feel that the author both did an excellent job of fleshing out the story and the characters while at the same time falling into the traps that many new writers fall into: (1) using an excess of words to tell the reader what is happening rather than writing concise statements that allow the reader to simply experience the story; I need a writer to paint me a beautiful picture without following up to explain every detail, and (2) trying too hard to drag out suspense for a big reveal thus making some scenes feel contrived. While this book is not one that I would pick up to read again, it was certainly worth reading the first time around, and I would be more than willing to read more from this author as she hones her craft..

From the first page, I was completely hooked and couldn't wait to discover how the mystery would be solved. The characters were not always likable, but I found that it made the story even more interesting. I found myself questioning their motivations, which made the story more intriguing. I was very satisfied with the way the story wrapped up in the end. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend it to others looking for a good, quick read.


Thank you Netgalley and the publisher, for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty Seven Minutes - from the moment of the accident until the ambulance was called. Twenty Seven Minutes…and Phoebe Dean is dead.

Ten years later - the town is holding a memorial, and those most affected by that night have been left picking up the pieces. But with a visitor in town, the tale of that night is starting to unravel, and the truth isn’t quite what you think.

I thought the premise of this book was exceptional - the idea of a major town secret unraveling over three days after a tragic death peaked my interest. But the writing felt overly rambling - it was almost too drawn out. I would find myself skimming and then I’d have to go back to reread because the layers of the story weren’t quite precise enough.

A car accident ten years ago takes the life of 17-year-old Phoebe Dean, one of the most popular girls in the small town of West Wilmer. Her older brother, Dean, was driving, and Becca Hoyt, in the back seat was severely injured. Twenty-seven minutes elapsed before Dean called for help. Why?

That's the burning question in this tale of ruined lives that stopped in place when the accident happened. The story, told from multiple POVs, follows the timelines of events leading up to the accident, and ten years later as the tenth memorial is but days away.

The book blurb written by the publishers had me eager to read this debut mystery novel. Unfortunately, for me, the read didn't match up with the hype. I found the characters flat, and
the story repetitive and sad. This is a tragic tale, no doubt, but the reality that the main characters were never able to get past the night of the accident is sadder still. And though I had compassion for each of them, I can't say I liked any of them.

Reading is very subjective, and this book was not a good fit for me.

My sincere thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for permitting me to access an DRC of this novel via NetGalley. Publication is 1/30/24. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and are freely given.

I enjoyed this book, it is a four person POV. It started out kind of slow, but with the short chapters it picked up. This book is full of town secrets and unreliable narrators. The end has an unexpected twist that stopped me for a second. Overall it was a good book, there just was not anything that really grabbed me about this book to make it stand out.

I loved the many POV and the short chapters. It really picked up towards the middle to the end. The plot twist threw me for a loop!

I really wanted to like this book. The premise was right up my alley, and I went into the book with really high hopes. Unfortunately, this was just not the book for me.

I felt like over 90% of the book was reading about the lives of very unlikeable characters without anything actually happening. Even the flashbacks to the past felt like not much was happening that moved the story along.

I stuck with this book because there were enough good reviews promising a really good twist. I will admit that the twist was really good, but by the time that it finally came, I was so bored with the book I didn’t particularly care.

I am not a huge fan of a slow burn thriller, but I do sometimes love them if the story gets going by the 50% mark. I didn’t feel like the story here every really got going. This just really was not the book for me, but if you love a really slow burn with a huge twist, this could be the book for you.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for a copy of this book. I leave this review voluntarily.

Wow! This was an incredible read. Fast-paced, taut, raw, and executed in a masterfully written way. Ashley Tate was able to handle dark material in an immersing, relatable way. I'll be back for the next novel, as Tate is becoming one of my favorite authors.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early read.

This was….weird. There was a lot of dialogue but somehow a lack of plot? While I love a small town setting, this town felt so sad with all the characters talking about how trapped they were and desperate to get out. The repetition was heavy with many characters feeling extremely similar. There was one twist I didn’t see coming surrounding one of the more likeable characters. I wish I could say more positives but It felt like a creative writing project by.

Twenty-Seven Minutes is a mystery thriller with slowly built-up suspense that kept me turning the pages from the very first scene. Greif was portrayed really well and was really the catalyst that kept pushing the story along. I enjoyed the plot, the overall creepy setting that was established, and the nice twist ending. However, I never really got as invested as I wanted to with the characters and, unfortunately, this was the biggest drawback of this novel for me personally. But overall, I had a good time with this book and what it brought to the table.

I believe the re-readability of this book would be very high since the author left clues throughout the entirety of the story that would be fun to go back and see that the ending was there for us readers to figure out the whole time. I would certainly recommended this if you enjoy slow burn thrillers and don’t mind some gore. Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in which I am voluntarily leaving this honest review.