"𝑷𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈," 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅. "𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒐 𝒎𝒖𝒄𝒉, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏'𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒈𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒕."

Amy Brewer, who now goes by Therese, is invited to a weekend getaway to explain why she left a party right before a group of teens were massacred twenty years before. When she arrives, she encounters two curious things: first, a group of people with close connections to the massacre are also present, and the host is curiously missing. After reading a note from the host explaining the absence, the group decides to dig in to dinner and spend the evening in their rooms. Upon waking the next morning, no one can find their car keys or cell phones. It soon becomes clear that they were all invited under false pretenses and that someone in the isolated house is a murderer. Worse, a storm is raging outside that will ensure all of the occupants will remain inside. Will Therese, now an FBI agent, use her training to uncover who the killer is?

This book had everything I love, especially the locked room setting, but I just didn't enjoy it the way I thought I would. None of the characters were particularly fleshed out enough for me to connect with any of them. The prologue was the strongest part of the book, and it immediately captured my attention. I believe if the story were told in dual timelines I would have enjoyed it more and would have connected with who the people were back then instead of just who they are now.

It was a solid read, and many lovers of locked room thrillers will surely enjoy this one. Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the early read. SHE LEFT will publish May 14, 2024.

I do believe this is a debut novel and as such ... I think the author did a really good job! The cast of characters, the setting, the plot ... nicely done. I look forward to seeing what this author comes up with next.

Thank you #netgalley and #poisonedpenpress for the eARC.

Amy, or Therese as she is known now, is the only survivor of a massacre which left her group of friends dead, twenty years later she is asked to attend a weekend getaway by a journalist with others with connections to what happened years ago.
Amy attends reluctantly but when all the attendees phones and and car keys disappear and one of the group is murdered it becomes clear that one of the party is intent on killing and Amy is in their sights.
This is a really satisfying locked room mystery with an impressive cast of characters - it is really well paced with plenty of twists - i really enjoyed it.

When Amy 'Therese' Brewer is invited to tell her side about a group of teens murdered twenty years before, she walks in to the weekend getaway to find a group of people with close connections to the massacre. The awkward meeting quickly turns deadly, but only after the group's phones and car keys go missing. One of the people in the isolated house is a murderer, and it's only a matter of time before they come for Therese.

Stacie Grey does an excellent job of drawing her cast of characters, giving them complex motivations and secrets, and compelling personalities. But the most impressive part is how Grey manages her twists; I've read quite a few 'murder in an isolated house/hotel/island' books, and Grey managed to take this one in directions I've never seen before, while still giving the reader the type of puzzle they expect. If you like twisty closed-circle murder mysteries, you'll love this book.

Thanks so much to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this ARC.