Really well written mystery/thriller that delves a bit deeper than most books in this genre. Very entertaining.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/126919062

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC.
What a nail bitter! Engrossing read with a narrator
who has had a painful experience and hasn't gotten over it nearly 10 years later. She has a super successful job, is engaged to the son of one of NYC's wealthiest families and yet she struggles with debilitating panic attacks and eats tranquilizers like candy.
Taking place 9 years prior and today, you don't know what to believe, there are some harrowing scenes, but the ending is great and the journey to it well worth it.

A twisty thriller that kept me guessing with twists throughout! Once I started this book, I couldn’t put it down. My heart was in my throat as we navigated through the mystery, with a great payoff as all the details finally fell into place. 4.5 stars!

It's been nine years since Charlotte Colbert witnessed the horrific events the tabloids dubbed 'Scarlet Christmas'.
And a Scarlet Christmas it was!
Told from a singular, first person POV, we journey with our MC, Charlie, through alternating timelines of 'now' and 'then', witnessing her battle with a dark, traumatic past while simultaneously and desperately trying to clutch on to the façade she outwardly exudes in the now.
Charlie's current grip on reality feels tenuous, so you just don't know how trustworthy she is. And this is what had me flipping pages like a nutcase. I just had to know what was true and what was imagined!

Hollander weaves us through past and present with ease and meticulous articulation and I was hooked from page one. Definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

EVERYONE WHO CAN FORGIVE ME IS DEAD is full of twists and clever reveals that leave a reader wanting more. Charlie Colbert seems like an ice berg at first, but at the same time, it also feels easy to warm up to her as a main character. Hollander did really well at making it feel like you were her best friend who received unfiltered thoughts and even completely in her brain with nothing hidden from you unless it was hidden from her as well.

There were some (mostly happy) surprising reveals toward the end, but also some moments where you just had to face palm at some of "young" Charlie's decisions. Especially ones relating to Jordan. Each of these secrets/plot twists were absolutely worth waiting for though.

This book reminded me a bit of LUCKIEST GIRL ALIVE by Jessica Knoll but with a character who was older when tragedy struck but I found it incredibly easy to care/root for Charlie, though, which was very different from Knoll's book for me.

The title is fabulous and the book is beautically written and definitely a five star read. Charlie was a survivor of a college massacre named Scarlet Christmas by the press. In fact, Charlie was completely physically unharmed but suffers from survivors guilt and a nagging feeling she either did more, or knew more than she told investigators. Years later, she is a successful editor in chief, engaged to an affable young man and has seemingly made peace with the past. Until Stephanie, the sister of Cate her bff and victim announces a movie to ‘set the record straight. Reeling, Charlie falls apart, to stop the movie while going through super fast therapy to get to the truth. Charlie is multidimensional, really interesting and often very funny and you are rooting for her (although you don’t have any idea of really happened until the very end of the novel) it’s told in then and now which sets the scene nicely for the next chapter. A distinctly different telling of what could be a well covered plot is fresh, entertaining and throughly twisty and nervy.

From the provocative title through the twists and turns of the storyline, this taut, psychological thriller had me turning pages in anticipation of its conclusion.

Charlie (Charlotte) Colbert has invested an enormous amount of psychic energy to suppress the horrific event known as the “Scarlet Christmas” massacre. She has succeeded for the most part by building a high-powered career, becoming the fiancée of a wealthy, respected man, and leaving her friends from that time in the dust. However, secrets and their associated emotions rarely stay buried and when a colleague decides to produce a film about the tragedy, “to set the record straight,” Charlie’s carefully crafted persona begins to unravel.

In chapters that alternate between the past and the present, the author skillfully unfolds the facts leading up to and including the fateful Christmas Eve. I found the character of Charlie to be well-developed and appropriately complex given her faulty memories and her guilt. One of the striking aspects of the novel is the revelation that Charlie is not the only one keeping secrets. I found the resolution of the mystery both believable and satisfying. Overall, this is an entertaining and enticing read.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

A truly interesting and different sort of psychological thriller, Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead is the kind of twists and turns that I love. Charlotte "Charlie" is successful and engaged to be married into an incredibly wealthy family. But when she hears that the worst event of her life is being made into a movie she begins to crumble.

This book has it all - bad friends, psychiatrists, confusing male partners and of course the heart of it took place at a prestigious graduate school. The best part is that Charlie, while struggling, is not the "whoa is me" woman that is so often casts in these kind of tales. I am not screaming at her to get a backbone and that made it 100 percent more enjoyable. I would say that the title tends to lead you to think this is dark horror or depressing atmospheric style book - I would cast it more as darkly comic and beachy yet thrilling.

It's a puzzle and you aren't going to figure out the twist until the very end! I love how so much of it made sense as I read through the flashbacks! If you like a likable heroine, a dark beachy thriller or are just ready for a new Thriller superstar, Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead is for you!
#StMartins #Everyonewhocanforgivemeisdead #jennyhollander

Thanks NetGalley for the chance to read this suspenseful first novel from Jenny Hollander as an ARC in exchange for my unfettered opinion.

Workaholic Charlie Colbert has put the horrific "Scarlet Christmas" massacre she witnessed in grad school behind her. She's at the top of her game as Editor-in-Chief of a glossy New York magazine. She's about to marry into a powerful and elite family. But when one of her former classmates plans a tell-all documentary, she is forced to confront what she saw, what she can't remember –– and what she didn't tell the police.

Hollander explores guilt, therapy, and self-medication with a confident and sure hand, weaving Charlie's present-day narrative with flashbacks to the events leading up to the Scarlet Christmas. Fans of twisty psychological thrillers like Gone Girl will gobble up this fast-paced tale of memory repression, PTSD, and the glitterati of elite Manhattan.

In "Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead" by Jenny Hollander, readers are taken on a thrilling journey where the truth is a fragile construct. Charlie Colbert, a woman haunted by the events of a fateful night at her prestigious graduate school, has spent the past nine years in hiding. While the world sees her as a mere witness to the nightmarish events known as "Scarlet Christmas," Charlie knows she played a much deeper role.

Now, Charlie has meticulously reconstructed her life. As the editor-in-chief of a prominent magazine and engaged to a publishing industry prodigy, she has erected an impenetrable fortress around her emotions. But when a provocative film made by one of her former classmates threatens to unravel her carefully constructed existence, Charlie realizes that her resolve may not be as unyielding as she once believed.

Jenny Hollander masterfully explores the intricacies of Charlie's character, revealing a complex woman driven by ambition and an unwavering determination to protect herself. As the narrative unfolds, readers are drawn into Charlie's world, grappling with the uncertainties of her past and the consequences of her choices. The author weaves a web of suspense and psychological tension, keeping readers on the edge of their seats, eagerly turning the pages to uncover the truth.

"Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead" is a gripping psychological thriller that explores the lengths one will go to protect themselves and the consequences of buried secrets. It delves into the complexities of human nature and the transformative power of truth. Hollander deftly navigates the blurred lines between victim and perpetrator, and the emotional toll that guilt and fear can exact.

Thanks NetGalley for the chance to read this suspenseful first novel from Jenny Hollander as an ARC in exchange for my unfettered opinion.

Workaholic Charlie Colbert has put the horrific "Scarlet Christmas" massacre she witnessed in grad school behind her. She's at the top of her game as Editor-in-Chief of a glossy New York magazine. She's about to marry into a powerful and elite family. But when one of her former classmates plans a tell-all documentary, she is forced to confront what she saw, what she can't remember –– and what she didn't tell the police.

Hollander explores guilt, therapy, and self-medication with a confident and sure hand, weaving Charlie's present-day narrative with flashbacks to the events leading up to the Scarlet Christmas. Fans of twisty psychological thrillers like Gone Girl will gobble up this fast-paced tale of memory repression, PTSD, and the glitterati of elite Manhattan.

File under "Fast, fun, beach-read."

Charlie witnessed a tragedy back in grad school and it suddenly comes up again when they are talking about making a movie about the event. Charlie’s life starts falling apart as she tries to grapple with this situation.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Minotaur books for making this book available for early review. The writing was absolutely take your breath away, gorgeous. I made annotations on every other page. The writing alone is worth reading the book for. Add in trauma and friendship and dark girlie drama and you've got yourself an up all night with a book party.. i thought I knew where the mystery was going.. twice. And twice I was wrong. There is one scene in the book I found a little improbable but I enjoyed literally every other little thing to pieces. Which is not to say I liked all the characters. I actually didn't like Tripp. Or his parents. This book is going to be loved far and wide. Pacy, addictive, breath holding suspense, and a satisfying ending. Put this one on your radars for Feb. 2024

"Jude's expression remains impassive. Which is to be expected, because Jude hasn't been able to move her face since the nineties."

What is it that draws us (or me, maybe?) to the campus mystery? #everyonewhocanforgivemeisdead has two timelines, the before Scarlet Christmas when Charlie's friends were murdered, and after. Charlie's done extensive work on herself, her career and her mental state, but she's still a mess, just going through the motions. It's hard to like her. Campus Charlie is much more relatable, even if she and her cohorts seem a tad old for graduate school (no judgment). The perfect storm is brewing, and you think how much more can this girl, and her family, survive, before imploding? Ms. Hollander makes it compelling to find out (also, funny!). Very much enjoyed, highly recommend!

P.S. thanks to #netgalley for the ARC.

The author gives us such a great character with Charlie Colbert, a witness to a brutal crime involving her close friends at an elite graduate school that she was attending. Charlie's story starts 9 years after the crime, told through present and past tense.
The underlying sense that there's more to the story that Charlie is telling kept me eagerly reading until the end to put all the distorted information together. Life appears perfect for Charlie, so why is she hiding so many things? Her fiancé, Tripp's character in the story appears to just muddy the water. Or does he have more to do with it than was first thought?
I truly enjoyed this book and for the first time I really want to re-read a book to try and find the parts I may have missed the first time.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the gifted ARC. All opinions are my own.

I was really excited to read this book based on the description alone. I loved that there was then and now sections it really pulled the whole story together. I also loved the mixed media aspect.

I thought Charlie was a great character, especially since I found her to be an unreliable narrator, and I love when that happens in mysteries and thrillers. I really enjoyed how she pieced everything together for us and an easy to follow way.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will definitely be reading more by this author.

Good thriller, very compelling. A couple of the characters and relationships felt a bit undeveloped, but overall, loved it.

I absolutely loved reading this book. I was completely drawn into the topic and could not stop reading it.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the copy of Everyone Who Can Forgive Me Is Dead by Jenny Hollander. The writing style was great and made me want to read more of Charlie's story. I didn’t find her very likable. I’m so tired of female MCs who turn to mixing pills and booze when they're going through something, especially when they admit it’s a bad idea every time they do it. I wish Charlie and Tripp’s relationship had been explained more because they seemed like such an odd couple and Tripp didn’t seem to have much of a personality. Unless of course that was the point in which case he was great! The book started strong but started to peter out and get repetitive. There were also things that didn't really make sense, like Charlie’s interaction with her therapist near the end. Charlie needs help to remember what happened, but the therapist doesn't really help her! This is a great debut though and look forward to the author’s future stories!

Wow! This breathtaking debut had me hooked with its intense psychological thriller and gripping mystery from the first page. The story revolves around Charlie Colbert, an unreliable heroine with a distorted memory, as she tries to piece together the memories of a tragic event that occurred 10 years ago, resulting in a bloody massacre with three deaths. This captivating storyline immediately drew me in, and I couldn't help but concoct my own theories about what happened on that ominous night.

Charlie, a survivor and the last girl standing from the incident known as the "Scarlet Christmas," has undergone significant mental and physical changes. She has reinvented herself as a powerful editor-in-chief of a major magazine and is engaged to Tripp, a wealthy individual in the publishing industry. However, she still sees her psychiatrist, Noor, as she continues to struggle to remember the events of that fateful night. Guilt consumes her because she passed out during the incident and lied during her testimony. Now, she must confront her blackout and uncover the truth of what truly happened that night, especially as Cate's twin sister Stephanie, one of the victims, plans to make a movie based on the real events. As new clues and discrepancies emerge in the case, Charlie's lies are on the verge of being exposed. She cannot let everything she has worked so hard for crumble. She must protect her life and her family, including her sister Felicity, who requires special care.

With time running out, Charlie pushes herself to the limit to remember the events before someone else takes action and puts her behind bars. Deep down, she fears that she may be involved in the killings and that she may be more dangerous than she ever imagined. Racing against the clock, she does everything in her power to halt the movie production while also attempting to recall the forgotten pieces of that tragic night and confront the ghosts from her past.

Throughout my reading, I couldn't help but think, "OMG, this is amazing! I'm so curious to see how the big mystery unfolds and how everything will conclude." The riveting pacing kept me engaged, and as the pressure mounted, it urged me to turn the pages a little faster. However, as I reached the last quarter of the book, the magic slowly began to fade. I started questioning if the author could tie everything together in an appropriate manner because several plot holes began to surface. I found myself going back to reread sections to ensure I understood the events correctly.

While the conclusion wasn't bad, it wasn't as earth-shattering as I had expected. It left me with lingering questions and a few unresolved plot holes. I had set my expectations quite high, which made it difficult for me to fully appreciate the answers provided, considering the investment I had made in this riveting journey.

I'm still rounding up my rating from 3.5 stars to 4 because it remained an intriguing page-turner. However, I do wish that the last quarter of the book had been written with greater clarity. There were moments when I lost myself in Charlie's foggy thoughts and dreamy state, causing me to reread certain pages to grasp the revelations.

Overall, this was a promising debut, and I am genuinely open to reading more works by this author in the near future.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.