This was such a good read. It was fast paced and kept you on your toes. The plot twist was one I was not expecting. I felt for the characters as they went through the ups and downs and twist and turns of this story. I would recommend this book to everyone when it releases in January. For a debut novel this was amazingly written and amazingly talented.

4.5 ⭐️
This was a quick read but I was really drawn into this story from the beginning. I loved the different perspectives and each main character felt really relatable. The story took me for some twists and turns and I liked that ‘Mary’s’ situation felt obvious but with pieces missing.
I felt like the interactions between Drew and his dads was really robotic and more like teacher/student. I felt like there was some holes but overall I enjoyed it.

Drew’s girlfriend goes missing and he’s the biggest suspect. Meanwhile a girl turns up in a ditch without any memory of her name or life.
How far will Drew go to find his girlfriend and clear his name?

It’s pretty rare that a thriller manages to cause me to choke up with emotion…but this one sure did. Oh my goodness did I fly through this fast-paced book. I am so surprised this is the author’s debut novel, as it was so well-written and feels like it was done by an experienced suspense author—I can’t wait to see what she comes out with next!

That’s Not My Name is told in multiple perspectives and follows the story of a teenager who goes missing after last being seen with her boyfriend. Naturally, the boyfriend becomes the police department’s primary (and only) suspect, despite there being next to no evidence regarding Lola’s disappearance. I don’t want to say much more for fear of spoilers, but I highly recommend adding this nail-biter of a story that leaves you wondering until the very end to your TBRs and checking it out when it releases December 26th! This was one that I thought I had it all figured out multiple times and was wrong at every turn!

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Fire, and Megan Lally for providing me with this free e-ARC in exchange for a review!

Fast-paced suspense/mystery follows Drew and his two best friends, Autumn and Max, as they try to find Lola, Drew's girlfriend. Autumn's father, the town sheriff, is convinced Drew is responsible for her disappearance. Drew will stop at nothing to prove him wrong and find Lola.

A missing girl from a small town in Oregon. Everyone thinks the boyfriend did something awful but the boyfriend thinks she's been kidnapped. A girl waking up in a coastal Oregon town with no memory of who she is. These two sides are our POV - two compelling stories that you just wait to collide.

I liked both MC's. I found each voice unique and realistic. I used to live outside of the small town mentioned in here, and I grew up visiting the Oregon coast, so this story had a special place in my heart. I love that the dread, the missing girlfriend, the girl who can't remember - I love how the worry and unease just bled off the page. It's a very fast paced, quick read. I wanted to know more, I needed to know how it would end. This was so well done, I loved it!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

If you read this and say you saw the ending coming, you’re lying.

The sense of dread in Mary’s chapters and the agency and well-placed humor in Drew’s chapters made this story a delight. But the ending? That ending has be tearing through the last forty pages or so not knowing what to believe or what I wanted to be true. And the final chapter is the perfect, satisfying closure the reader needs.

Consider me a Lally fan.

Solid 4.5 stars, rounding up.
Great use of dual pov. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

This was such a fun, well-written and exciting read. It keep me guessing the whole time! This is an author to watch.

I could not stop reading this. I thought I had it all figured out, but was shocked and a bit sad at the end that I hadn't. Very addicting read!

HOLYYYYYYY FUCKIN SHIT

I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING!!!!

THAT PLOT TWIST

THRILLERS DONT HOLD BACK

Gosh, thrillers aren’t my usual genre and it’s usually hit or miss BUT THIS ONE???

OMGGGGGGG

imma cry y’all.

All the tears.

When a girl wakes up in a ditch she has no memory of who she is, or how she got there . A man walks into a police station to report his 17 year old daughter Mary as missing and thinks the girl is her. A boy is searching for his missing 17 year old girlfriend Lola- everyone thinks he’s got something to do with her disappearance. So who is this girl? That’s not my name is fast paced and wonderfully twisty. Told in a dual POV, it’s an addictive thriller with plenty of secrets. I loved this book and the characters and can’t wait for more by this author. Thank you NetGalley for the advance digital copy in return for my honest review.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this! It had me on the edge of my seat, which doesn’t happen often in the YA thriller genre. The fact this is a debut is insane! The storyline and pacing was excellent. Can’t wait to read more from this author!

I read this in one day. That is highly unusual for me! I couldn’t put it down. It was a fairly quick read and I inhaled it.

It’s exactly what I love in a thriller. I was sucked in with that first line, “I think I might be dead.” It’s intense from that first sentence and doesn’t stop.

And that ending? So many emotions, so well done. It’s rare I find a 5 star thriller because I can always guess the ending or twists (downfall of being a big reader). But I loved every second.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for the copy!

I was drawn to this book due to the cover and clear thriller vibes. I was also captivated by the concept and the amnesia component. It is always intriguing when a character needs to sort through what they are being told to get to the truth. I also enjoyed the inclusion of a second crime with Drew being accused of murdering his girlfriend. I immediately wondered if these two events were connected and eagerly anticipated the answer. The author did a great job of making this a true page-turner while still focusing on character development. I would love to read more from this debut author!

Wow, ok. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. This is a fast paced, YA mystery/thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the end. I don't read a ton of YA books but this one is a must read. Debut author Megan Lally hits this one out of the park.

Wayne was giving me the creeps right from the get go and I just knew there was something fishy about this whole situation. I think the author did a wonderful job of telling the story in an engaging and concise manner without skipping important details pertaining to the storyline. 4.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley, Sourcebooks Fire and Megan Lally for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Pub Date: 1/2/24

OMG, never did I expect that from a debut author! Wow, wow, wow...I cannot believe this Lally's first novel!! This book hooked me from the first page and did not let go. I loved every second, every twist, every turn. It was deliciously twisty and gave just enough to keep me thinking about until I picked it up again. This book will keep you awake at night!

In Megan Lally's debut novel, "That's Not My Name,' we meet Drew, whom is the boyfriend of Lola, a girl who has disappeared. Along side chapters set from Drew's perspective are chapters told by simply someone known as "Girl". It isn't until a few chapters in that we learn her name is "Mary". The story is told in alternating viewpoints between Drew and Mary. Drew is the prime suspect in his girlfriend's disappearance and Mary is struggling to remember who she is and whether she is truly Mary at all. The events that come after are a whirlwind of twists and turns that will delight any thriller fan.

I highly recommend this debut novel of Lally's and will definitely be on the lookout for more of her work in the future. Easily 5 ⭐!

I was provided a copy of this e-book in exchange for my honest review. I want to thank NetGalley, the author, and publisher for this ARC.



****SPOILERS AHEAD*****


I loved every second of this book and could not put it down. The only negative remark that I can think of to make for this book was that the timeline didn't quite add up for me. The book makes mention that Lola was missing for 5 weeks and Drew and company began didn't want to believe that she was dead, so they hung onto hope she was alive which lead them to track her down. In Mary's world though, we only follow her for a short amount of time (less than a week). At the end of the book we learn that Lola was the girl taken before Mary and that she was murdered shortly after being abducted. What didn't add up for me was that Wayne always needed to have a girl to be his daughter, but Lola was missing for 5 weeks and Mary only accounted for not even one of those weeks. This left me very confused as to what happened in between the two girls.

Holy COW! Easily a 4.5/5 star read for me. I finished this book in a day.

I loved the POV from 'Mary', I could feel the frustration, the confusion, everything that she was feeling as we went into the timeline of the book.

Drews POV was very much needed as well. I loved him. He was such a good MC for this book.

The twist also left me SHOCKED. I thought I nailed the ending, but I was far from it, and so glad I was.

This is a must read if you love thrillers!

This book was a wild ride. It's been a couple of weeks and I still can't get over the ending. It's absolutely not what I was expecting! I'd highly recommend this book!

Content Warnings: murder, kidnapping, police incompetence, police harassment, blood, emetophobia, violence

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC!

To describe this story in one word, I’d choose: clever. In this fast-paced, wicked debut, Megan Lally weaves together the points of view of “Mary” and Drew to tell the story of a missing girl and the lengths the people who love her would go to to bring her home.

When “Mary” wakes up on the side of a dark road covered in blood, she can’t remember her own name, let alone how she got there. She considers herself lucky when her worried father comes to pick her up from the police station and begins the gentle process of helping her regain her memory, but the more that she remembers, the less lucky she starts to feel.

Drew is the last person to see his girlfriend before she goes missing, and their entire town believes that he killed her. While the police search the woods and the river for her body, Drew still believes that she is alive, and he’ll stop at nothing to save her.

Reading this book feels like slowly submerging yourself in ice-cold water. The dread is so real and so physical that it’s pretty much impossible to put down. And just when you think you know what’s about to happen next, BAM! Your feet are knocked right out from under you in the best way.

This is one story I won’t forget for a while. If you enjoy young adult thrillers, you won’t regret picking up That’s Not My Name in January.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. That's Not My Name by Megan Lally will be released on January 2nd, 2024.

4 stars.

Imagine waking up and having no memories of who you are until a man claiming to be your father, documentation and all, arrives at the police station to bring you home. Imagine being suspected of your girlfriend's murder after she disappears. Told in alternating perspectives, That's Not My Name follows 'Girl' and Drew as they battle their respective issues, 'Girl' trying to figure out who she is, and Drew trying to clear his name of murder despite unhelpful police. Now combine the two - is 'Girl' the person Drew is looking for?

That's Not My Name dives immediately into the story, filling you in on background information as the story progresses. For the most part, you are given nothing to go off of as you try to figure out what is going on. Is 'Girl' really Mary? Is she Lola? Who can you trust when you have no memories of your own? Megan Lally does an excellent job of keeping the suspense high and the dread at the forefront of your mind throughout the story. I read this book in a single sitting because I just HAD to know the answers.

The writing is solid and the inclusion of minorities is pretty cool. I can't recall the last time I read a book with a main male character with two dads. My only complaint is that you kind of have to suspend reality during the story, but what book doesn't need that? Reading this as an adult, I rated the story 4 stars. If I had read this as a teenager it would have been 5 stars or higher.

Start the new year off right and pick up this book!