In the small town of West Wilmer, the community grapples with the mystery of why Grant Dean waited 27 minutes to call for help on the night of a car accident that claimed the life of his sister, Phoebe. As the anniversary of Phoebe’s death approaches, Grant is haunted by memories and a secret he’s kept. Becca, who was also in the car that night, knows the truth and is determined to help Grant. Meanwhile, another resident named June, who’s brother Wyatt went missing the same night, receives a visitor who may hold the key to what really happened on the bridge.

The story started with an intense and fairly brutal opening of the events of the fateful evening. This prologue set the scene well and after finishing it I was more than ready to get into the mysteries around what happened on the bridge that night.

The story then took a slight turn. The pace reduced and it soon felt more like a slow burning character study, which continued throughout the majority of the book. The characters were all well crafted, with depth and layers beyond what many other novels I’ve recently read could manage. Even though it moved slowly, the mystery was always there and was delivered through small snippets, flashbacks and tiny reveals as the characters grew and were explored. Then, as the finale approached, everything came together in an intense ending that I think shows what the book was truly about. Trauma.

I won’t go into too much more as it’ll be difficult to do that without spoiling anything, but I think it’s important to know this when going into it. Expect more of a character study with mystery elements, rather than a fast paced mystery.

Another part of the book that I thought was worth mentioning is how well it was written. The prose was of a high quality and some of it flowed really quite well and was a joy to read. Each character felt like they had their own style which helped build them into what felt like real people.

For me, one of the major downsides to this was that it could be slow and difficult to get through at times. This wasn’t because of the subject matter but because the writing could often be quite repetitive and I felt like this made it stray into melodrama that didn’t fit the tone as well as it could have done. Even though the writing is good, there was only so many times a single character could tell you how awful and painful their lives and memories were until you start to lose patience. I think that the whole book could have benefited by tightening up those sections and bringing the total word count down by about 25%. It would have got the reader to the reveal at the end much quicker but could easily have maintained the in-depth look at the characters and their experiences. I think it would have been a better book for it.

Another thing for me that just creeps into what I didn’t enjoy was that none of the characters were likeable. Basically all of them had dislikeable traits and motives and even the more positive characters ultimately were consumed by selfishness with very little to redeem themselves. I think when I realised that this was a character study it helped to justify that and when I realised this was an examination of trauma it made sense. But what it didn’t do was make it any easier to read. If you’re someone that has to follow a positive character on a plot-heavy quest of good, then this will not be for you.

Overall, this isn’t just another basic mystery and has actually stuck with me quite a lot since I finished it. What it is instead, is a story about trauma and the ways that people in this little town have dealt with this incident over the last 10 years. Now yes, there are unlikable characters and it can sometimes be a bit of a slog which definitely slows down the story, but that’s kind of the point. They aren’t meant to be super likeable, relatable characters as they’re all struggling in their own ways with a seriously traumatic event and this is the exploration of that, wound up in a small scale but tightly written mystery. If that sounds like something you’d be interested in reading then you’ll probably love it. If it’s not, you probably won’t.

I hate doing this. But I only finished the book because I was leaving a review. Otherwise this would have been a “did not finish”. I can’t say it started strong and caught my attention. There’s 4 different POV all in this odd 3rd person view. Switching between like 3 or more timelines. Every character seems unhinged and mostly unlikeable. This story line had potential but even the twist at the end “the big reveal” wasn’t really that big. I trudged through this book hoping it would get better. But it fell flat.

Overthinking never does anyone any good. This story of a tormented town those population is overthrowing on steroids. Rather than talking the whole town is jumping to conclusions and then judging each other. Page by page I felt myself get caught in the overthink. It was scary.

For ten years, the small town of West Wilmer has grieved the death of Phoebe Dean in a tragic car accident, and questioned why her brother waited twenty-seven minutes to call an ambulance. As a memorial approaches on the 10-year anniversary of the event, those with ties to the accident and citizens of the town are reliving the event with its mystery and secrets.

While I love a good slow-burn mystery, this one was too slow for my taste. The plot is intriguing and had a lot of potential, but it fell short. The intense, shocking, and grotesque prologue reeled me in, and I was excited to read more. From this point forward, the book was a slow-paced, 350-page, very repetitive building of suspense. The big twist occurred quite abruptly in the final 10 -12 pages, and seemed anticlimactic for the amount of buildup that it received. The story is told in two timelines and through the viewpoint of multiple characters. I struggled with the story because I could not find a likable character.

This is Ashley Tate’s debut novel and I really enjoyed many of her descriptions. I would definitely try another of this author’s books.

Thank you NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press and the author for the advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review.

I don’t have too much to say about Twenty Seven Minutes, I was mostly bored and felt the small-town drama was so forced.

The different POV chapters got very repetitive and the big reveal fell flat. There seemed to be a real connection being made between women grieving and immediately being portrayed as mentally unstable.

There are a lot better thrillers out there with a better payoff.

Twenty-seven minutes. That is all it takes twenty-seven minutes and lives can be changed forever. It is always so humbling to remember that life can change in just minutes. People you knew and loved can just be gone. Nothing should be taken for granted. This book weaves the ghosts of the past with the present as Grant and June are forced to come face to face with what happened ten years ago. Lies upon lies building up finally come to light when secrets no longer remain hidden. Readers will enjoy all the different revelations throughout the book. It is very fast paced and hauntingly beautiful.
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me - I tried to put it down and pick it back up a few days later but still couldn't get into this. Although the writing was fantastic, it is a no for me.

DNF @ 10%

The writing style felt overly descriptive and long winded. Found this one boring early on and not very thrilling.

You know a book has you in its grip when you theorize with almost every turn of a page, what could have happened on that dark and stormy night 10 years ago. You know the writing is good when you start out connecting and empathizing with the characters but as the story unfolds that empathy turns to annoyance and pity, finally ending in disappointment and dislike. This definitely isn't and edge of your seat nail biter, I felt like the pacing could have been a little faster but if you love to unravel a mystery within the pages of a book, to constantly question what you thought you knew from the beginning, this is the book for you!

A fast-paced , small-town thriller set in the Midwest that is told through multiple POVs in past/present timelines . I really enjoyed the premise of the story and I liked the dynamics between the characters , but several areas fell flat for me - it was a weird mix repetition of details but also lacking in details to flesh out the story and characters . The author did do a good job at showing the effects of grief , guilt , and the importance of honesty . Overall , I give this read 2 stars .
Publication date :: 1/30/24 .
From @goodreads :: For the last ten years, the small, claustrophobic town of West Wilmer has been struggling to understand one thing: Why did it take young Grant Dean twenty-seven minutes to call for help on the fateful night of the car accident that took the life of his beloved sister, Phoebe? If he'd called sooner, she might still be alive.
As the anniversary of Phoebe's death approaches, Grant is consumed by memories of that night on the bridge and everything he lost: his future, his reputation, his little sister. And the secret he's been keeping all these years is suffocating him. But he and Phoebe weren't the only ones in the car that night. Becca was there. She knows what happened—and she will do anything to help Grant keep his secret.
Thank you @netgalley and @poisonedpenpress for this ARC and the opportunity to review prior to publication .
#twentysevenminutes #netgalley #ashleytate #arc #advancedreaderscopy #goodreads #goidreadschallenge #bookstagram #books #bookrecommendations #bookreview #booklover

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC.

The premise of this book is really interesting amd the prologue starts off very strong. Then there's buildup, and buildup, and buildup, and...oh my gosh 300 pages of repetitve buildup to give us a 2 page wrapup at the very end. I started skimming at the 50% mark because it was just too much...or, actually, not enough. Mental illness and grief are treated insensitively and incorrectly. And nonsensically.

Unfortunately I was very disappointed in this book and very glad to finally finish it.

Thank you netgalley for this early read in exchange for an honest review.

What did work for me: the plot is captivating.

What didn’t work for me: In my opinion there are just too many characters to keep track of. I also think there’s so much repeating. Not enough action or ah ha’s throughout the book in order to keep me captivated.

I’ll be honest, it took me a LONG time to get through this book. It just wasn’t for me. This book is about why it took the dead girls brother 27 minutes to call for help while his sister lay at the scene of the accident dying.

Despite a promising prologue, unfortunately I ended up DNFing this book.

The prologue was intriguing but what followed felt like a chore to read due to the excruciating slow development of the story and the 4 POVS that felt unnecessary.

I could have continued reading despite the slow pace if at least some of the characters were likeable but every single one of them were highly unlikeable. As such, it was hard to connect or care about any of their stories or about what was going to happen. Even Phoebe, the girl who tragically died, was unlikeable and I found myself questioning why I would care about what happened to her when I couldn’t even bring myself to like her.
In addition, I can’t quite put my finger on why exactly, but it also felt very YA, but without the ease or enjoyment that usually comes with YA books.

Nevertheless, I’m thankful to the publishers & NetGalley for the opportunity to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Twenty Seven Minutes was a riveting and nail biting thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time!

Ashley Tate masterfully weaved a sgripping story from start to finish. I loved the characters and the setting which just added another amazing layer to the story!

Interesting read. What is reality and what is not. Tate weaves the two well so that the reader is engrossed on what truly happened those missing minutes. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Grant and Phoebe are brother and sister. June and Wyatt are brother and sister, too. Grant and June lost their siblings on the same day. Phoebe died in a tragic car accident and Wyatt left the town. Grant was with Phoebe on that faithful day. Him, Becca and Phoebe. He was driving the car and he waited 27 minutes to call an ambulance after the accident happened. The question that the entire town has is: WHY?

Ten years have passed since this, and Phoebe is still one of the main topics in town, especially with her death anniversary approaching. Wyatt is forgotten, almost by everyone. The only person who is still wondering what happened to him is June.

When I read the description of this book, I was really interested in it. When I started reading, I really liked the story, and I had high expectations of it. Somewhere in the middle, my attention was lost, since the story wasn’t exactly what I expected. Still, the end wasn’t disappointing, and I think it fit with the whole narrative.

We are following the story from four perspectives: Grant’s, Becca’s, June's, and Wyatt's, and from two timelines: today and 10 years ago. These four characters, together with Phoebe, are more or less the main focus. I missed a bit more description about them because I have a feeling they were mostly presented through events from 10 years ago, and we did not meet them outside of this. I liked the dynamic of four different perspectives, but I was all the time anticipating some big reveal or great plot, which unfortunately, I did not get. Still, all of this doesn’t mean that the book is bad; it just wasn’t the right fit for me.

Thank you NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and author for sending me this book for review consideration.

I’m in the minority here but I had such a hard time finishing this book. I just couldn’t get interested in the characters and found myself not caring that much what happened “they night”. I found the plot to be lukewarm and just not exciting. Kind of felt like a waste of time reading this one. But lots of other people enjoyed it so maybe just not my cup of tea. Thank you NetGalley for the advance digital copy

In this stunning and propulsive debut, a town grieves the loss of a young girl—but some fight to keep the truth about her death a secret.

A great mystery read! Well plotted, well developed, great twists and turns. I look forward to seeing what else this author does!

Phoebe, the town’s golden girl, is killed in a tragic car accident. The whole town knows that if her brother had called for an ambulance sooner she could have been saved. Why did it take him 27 minutes to call for help? Now numerous lives are ruined and all the secrets are finally unraveling as they all prepare for the 10-yr anniversary of Phoebe’s death.

. Told through four different POVs and alternating between the current day and 10 years ago - each character becomes more relatable and memorable with every turn of the page. I would definitely count this as YA book - it is filled with former high school drama that no one in this story has let go of.

I was hooked from the beginning and it held me to the end. The only reason I won’t give this 5⭐️ is that I have too many questions that I wanted answered due to little clues that were intentionally left for reader. But that’s totally ok. A debut novel that is this good means I will follow this author into the future.