Member Reviews

I liked this book, but I felt like there was so much going on at times, the story couldn't keep up with iteself.


That's my whole review and I don't have anything else to add.

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From the sassy title to the wild ride of twists and turns in the storyline, this gripping psychological thriller had me totally hooked, flipping those pages with bated breath just to see how it all unfolds.

With its clever back-and-forth between past and present chapters, the author skillfully lays out the events leading up to that fateful Christmas Eve. And can we talk about Charlie? She's such a complex character, dealing with her messed-up memories and carrying that heavy load of guilt. What really got me was realizing that Charlie isn't the only one hiding some serious secrets here.

The way the mystery unraveled at the end felt totally legit and left me feeling super satisfied. Overall, this book is a total page-turner and had me absolutely glued to it from beginning to end.

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4/5 stars!!!!!

I stayed up way too late finishing this book — once I started, I couldn’t put it down. The author deftly weaves Then and Now narratives to propel the story forward and reveal bits of information as needed. Some of the twists I saw coming, some I most definitely did not!

Charlie’s mental health and trauma were explored realistically and respectfully. Sometimes thrillers sacrifice character development for plot, but this one was extremely character driven and I felt like I truly knew Charlie by the end of the story.

Fans of Jessica Knoll’s Luckiest Girl Alive will enjoy this one, too! I will definitely be reading any other titles this author releases.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the eGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Charlie, the EIC at a big magazine, has spent the past nine years reinventing herself after surviving a deadly graduate school attack that the press dubbed "Scarlet Christmas." But when the sister of one of the victims announces she's producing a film about that tragic night, with the intention of revealing the truth about what really happened, Charlie is forced to revisit the past she's tried so desperately to forget. Her panic mounts as she grapples with the black holes in her memory, which have left her wondering if she has more involvement in the deaths of her classmates than anyone realizes. Hollander delivers one gripping twist after another as Charlie frantically pieces together her memories, culminating in a shocking ending you won't see coming.

Holy crap. I wish I could give this book six stars, because it is the best thriller I've read in ages. I ignored my family for a full day and stayed up hours past my bedtime to finish it, because I literally could not put it down. Run, do not walk, to preorder this one!

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Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book early.

Unfortunately this book fell flat for me.

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A fresh, witty thriller tailor-made for fans of IN MY DREAMS I HOLD A KNIFE.

What a fabulous premise, with excellently timed twists that made me freeze and whisper ‘oh crap’ to myself. I LOVED Charlie’s voice; she’s shrewd, calculated, and terrified, and it’s a compelling combination. The plot felt very much like a hard twist on the ‘college friends reunite ten years after the murder of a classmate’ trope, and I was here for it. Hollander is a master of dialogue, both external and internal, and the jumps back into the past were masterfully placed to mislead and heighten tension.

My only drawback is that this book started out with a bang, and I was sure it was going to be a solid five stars—and it was, until maybe the last 15%. Tragically, it felt like multiple of the plot threads fizzled out a bit, and I struggled with how some things were resolved—they seemed just too built up for what it ended up being, and it seeeeeemed like the MC very intentionally withheld info from the reader on a couple things until the very end, but without a viable reason (other than surprise for the reader).

Still, I very much enjoyed this thriller, and think it’s perfect for readers looking for a fresh twist on college-campus thrillers!

Extremely grateful to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc—I’ll be getting a physical copy!

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Thank you to everyone who allowed me to get an ARC of Everyone who can forgive me is dead by Jenny Hollander, let me tell you this is one crazy story. I was thinking it was going to go one way and then something else would happen and then it would make me think even more. It is a fun suspenseful thriller. Mostly suspenseful as the thriller part happens bits and pieces when they talk about the Red Christmas. I did love how we learned more of the past as they were going through therapy, so in a sense we were learning it at the same rate as the main character. And I wish I could say more but it all inner links that leads up to the end. It is a fun easy read as I read it in two days, mostly because I needed to see how it would end. The ending was sort of what I expected but not as well which was a wonderful thing.

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When she was a graduate student, Charlie was connected with a notoriously famous crime. But, nine years later, as this book begins, she has managed to move on, dissociate herself from it, and become a very successful professional. Unfortunately, the past begins to catch up with her, and there are very few people who can help her to clear her name and leave her past behind forever. A great thriller!

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really good mystery and what happened that night . loved finding out the secrets and the trauma from that night. loved the friends and that twist.

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An interesting take on the unreliable narrator premise.

Charlie, a successful editor at a magazine about to marry into a wealthy family, has a secret. Everyone knows she was a witness to the Scarlet Christmas killings, but no one knows she lied. Even worse, Charlie can't remember the truth - her memory is a black hole. As other survivors participate in a documentary for a major anniversary, Charlie feels herself beginning to lose control. With the help of her therapist, Noor, she begins to dig into her memory to find out what really happened before it's too late.

This book was fast-paced and well-written, and I adored Charlie, despite her failings. But the final twist left me a little disappointed.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead by Jenny Hollander will release on February 6th, 2024.


First, a quick overview of the plot: We have our main character, Charlie, running a successful magazine and about to marry into a wealthy and well known family, but does her soon to be husband really know her and what she is capable of? Does she even know what she is capable of?

When an old college classmate decides to produce a documentary on ‘that night’, it sends Charlie into a panic and she becomes desperate to uncover her lost memories of what actually happened the night of Scarlet Christmas.

This is all I really want to say without giving away too much - and with that said, I definitely recommend going in blind. Allow yourself to melt into Charlie’s own confusion and go with her on the journey. Make your own theories and see if you can figure out what actually happened that deadly night.

Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is a really good book. I was hooked very early on and around the 30% mark I had a hard time putting it down. This is one of those books that I had to know the ending of before I could go to sleep - we all know those books - and it most definitely led to a shorter night of sleep, haha.

The writing is beautiful and it’ll the author does a great job of confusing the reader and keeping you right where she wants you. You really grow to appreciate the characters, maybe developing some strong hatred towards some and some soft spots towards others. My biggest complaint with this book was the ending - I fell like it kind of fell flat, like I had missed something early on. However, that could also be considered a positive thing because it most definitely has me wanting to reread the book when it officially releases to see if I can catch any foreshadowing!


When I finished the book, I was torn on whether it should be given a 4 or a 5 star review. After sitting on it, I think that this book is a solid 4.5 star read.

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🌟🌟🌟🌟

A fast and furious look at memory, trauma and the terror of navigating both, as we meet a survivor of a terrible crime, nine years later, and share in her frantic quest to resolve her part in a past she cannot reconstruct.

Charlie Colbert, now a successful NY editor-in-chief, is thirty-two year old and our first person narrative voice. As she flips between telling us the story of her ‘now’ life, and the fragments of her ‘then’ world that may be slowly coalescing, it’s very clear her fractured mind makes her an unreliable narrator. Exactly what the events are, those the then graduate school freshman and her friends experienced, on the fateful day dubbed “Scarlett Christmas”, will take some time to unravel, leading the reader on a panic-stricken ride that will not let up through several twists until the final ending.

I enjoyed this book and found the author’s delight in drawing out the ultimate conclusions, along with the tricky ending itself, both devious and satisfying. All told, this entertaining read is a solid psychological page-turner, and one that is extremely hard to put down.

A great big thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC of this book. All thoughts provided are my own.

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I liked this one. It was a quick and easy read and even if I saw some of what was coming from a mile away, I still thoroughly enjoyed the ride. Hollander has an easy writing style and does a nice job painting a vivid picture of her characters and the horrible situations they find themselves in (and if they find themselves there largely because of their own actions, however banal, that simply made the story feel more relatable since that happens all too often in the real world). I would definitely read her again.

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This book was well written and I felt like the characters were compelling. However, it was a very slow burn suspense novel. The storyline was a great premise although at times I felt a bit confused about the past events. Everything came together in the end, though, and it was a satisfying ending.

Thanks to St Martin’s Press, NetGalley, and the author for the advance copy!

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This book was more of a slow burn than your typical thrillers, but I still enjoyed it. It really delved into the idea of lost memories related to trauma. I enjoyed it, but did feel a little “okay, what now?” At the end. Would recommend reading it but not a top favorite of mine.

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So many things are uncovered throughout the plot that you DONT WANT TO PUT THIS DOWN and you NEVER are really sure what happened 9 years ago until the author wants you to know.

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I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
WOW what a psychological thriller. I could not put it down.

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I will say that I went into this with fairly high expectations based on the description - which was captivating - and after starting, I wasn't sure it was going to live up to expectations. STICK! WITH! IT! The second half of this book brings everything together and it is so satisfying!

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It’s giving In My Dreams I Hold A Knife meets Final Girls Support Group, meets The Only Survivors? It’s got academia, it’s got a dual timeline, it’s got a mildly unreliable narrator (but for a legitimate reason), it’s got a tragedy with multiple layers and more than one person trying desperately to keep a secret. It has a few mildly predictable twists mixed with a twist or two that you don’t see coming (which is the best combination of twists, IMO).

Nearly a decade ago, Charlie Colbert was the key witness in a horrific event that left her and her friends wounded - and some dead.

With the ten year anniversary rapidly approaching, the media’s interest in the story - namely, in some gaps in timelines and unanswered questions - is being fervently renewed.

Charlie has made a point to distance herself not only from the tragedy but from the version of herself that survived it. Poised, polished, and ready to begin the rest of her life with her equally upstanding fiancé, she has no interest in reliving the events that shaped her all those years ago.

But someone close to the center of it all has a vested interest in telling the world what happened that night - almost as much of an interest as Charlie has in keeping them quiet.

And when it turns out that the people closest to her have been keeping secrets, too, Charlie only has so much time to get to the bottom of what she witnessed that Christmas Eve… before someone else does it first.

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An impressive debut! Charlie is a survivor of what was called “Scarlet Christmas” because of the bloody scene that was found at the Carroll University where she attended for Journalism. Ambulances took the injured and the dead whereas Charlie walked away with no injuries. Because her brain is trying to protect her by not letting her remember exactly what happened, Charlie believes that she may have had something to do with the tragic events. Now, a “based on a true story” movie is being made for the ten year anniversary and Charlie is afraid of what lies she told might be uncovered. What lengths will Charlie go to so this movie never gets made? I was hooked from the first chapter and found it to be quite an interesting and entertaining page turner. I thank Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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