Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me access to this eBook. This review contains spoilers.

If you want a slowburn thriller that is dark, as well as sometimes genuinely upsetting and uncomfortable (definitely check the content warnings if there are topics you’d like to avoid in that wheelhouse), consider When She Was Me for your next read. Marlee Bush weaves conflict and tension throughout every page of this book incredibly well, but I do wish there were some opportunities for relief (maybe to be snatched out from under us, maybe to make the payoff a little more satisfying). I think if the book had a little more moments of rest to get more attached to the cast between the page-turning conflict and anxiety, I might have given it a rating in the 4 to 5 star range. I’m definitely interested in checking out Bush’s future work, especially considering how strong her writing style is already and how well she writes tension.

This narrative overall is incredibly strong, and the twists don’t feel like they’re pulled out of no where; I like that it goes against the assumption many people going to make based on the title and premise that the twins have switched or will switch places and still manages to put down clues for the real twist without being too obvious. That’s where the twist did surprise me: my running theory initially was that Cassie was the violent sister in the flashbacks, then that it was Sarah. That it was neither, and that I had picked up on the right red flags around Sarah’s character, made it satisfying on both fronts. The parallel arcs between the two pairs of sisters were very interesting—overall, it makes sense, and I think the juxtaposition between them was well done.

When I started reading, I was wary of Cassie and sympathetic towards Lenora (probably more because of my own experience with agoraphobia than the book itself—I imagine a lot of other readers will feel more inclined towards Cassie). Ultimately, both were characters whose motivations I could process and who I could, for the most part, root for; I’ll admit I very quickly distrusted Sarah primarily because she was the landlord and when the book started dropping breadcrumbs about her, I assumed she would be the villain. I was a little uncertain throughout the book of what the reader's takeaway is intended to be, with its themes of unreliability, intention, and the tenuous bonds of trust, truth, and sisterhood, but I do like where it ended. The choice for Sarah to have to be the one to finally stop Emily, mirrored against Cassie absolving Lenora, showing that, metaphorically, Emily chose to take up the knife while for Lenora, it was put into her hand, is thematically potent and striking.

While I consider this a page turner—after all, I started reading it one night and finished the next afternoon—the plot itself is definitely a slower burn. Conflict is slathered throughout the book to the point that it's kind of a stressful read, especially when done in very few sittings and digested fairly quickly—in other words, it's pretty effective. The structure was elaborate—two timelines, three character perspectives, all told in first person with one including a second person element—but effective for the story being told. It creates a claustrophobic, gothic atmosphere that suits the plot well. A majority of the scenes felt necessary within the narrative, though I wish the Cassie/Parker subplot had been a little more developed and woven into the tapestry of the book—the very brief interactions with him don’t fulfill the things I need to get invested (positively or negatively) in a romance subplot or in him as a character. If there were a bit more screentime dedicated to that and tying it into the narrative, I think it would only make the book stronger.

The writing style is interesting, balancing out the slow pace of the story with sharp, direct sentences, utilizing fragments stylistically. It creates a fast, steady rhythm that suits the book well. Description is visceral, vivid, and incredibly clear, while depth of perspective is appropriate, zoomed in close on each point of view character’s psyche. Grammar was consistent, though some of the grammatical style choices stood out to me; none of it is technically wrong, so it doesn’t lose points for that, but it did take me out just a bit. Character voice doesn’t vary a whole lot across the board, between dialogue and narration, which has its pitfalls in characterization but benefits the twist by making the unspecified flashback narrator difficult to pinpoint down.

In "When She Was Me" by Marlee Bush, twin sisters Cassie and Lenora navigate the aftermath of their tragic past. Orphaned after the murders of their parents, Lenora is left traumatized, confined to the safety of their cabin, while Cassie grapples with guilt, feeling responsible for her sister's condition due to their prenatal circumstances.

Despite their isolated existence, they find purpose and success through their popular podcast, which delves into true crime stories that highlight the lives of victims (since they were once victims themselves).

Their lives are upended once again when a new resident of their remote community is found murdered. Cassie begins to suspect Lenora's involvement in the crime. As tensions rise and secrets unravel, Cassie must confront the possibility that the person she knows best may be capable of murder.

If you enjoy stories of sibling bonds that defy all limits of loyalty, this book is a must read for you! Thank you NetGalley and publishers for this advanced copy!

When She Was Me
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Marlee Bush

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley, Poisoned Press and Dreamscape Media and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: There's only one way out of these woods…

Ever since that night, twin sisters Cassie and Lenora have been inseparable. As the sole permanent residents of Cabin Two, their refuge on an isolated Tennessee campground, they manage to stay away from prying eyes, probing questions, and true crime junkies. Just the two of them, Cassie and Lenora against the world. The peace and quiet is almost enough to make them forget what happened all those years ago. Almost.

Until a teenage girl camping at the neighboring cabin goes missing, and the memories come rushing back. As the crime becomes ever more recognizable—they know better than anyone that so-called 'happy families' can be anything but—each sister suspects the other knows more than she's letting on….

Trapped in the isolating, claustrophobic wilderness, Cassie and Lenora must piece together the truth of what happened—and the sinister truth lurking in their own pasts—before it's too late.

My Thoughts: For a debut novel, this was great. Cassie and Lenora are identical twins. They live in a cabin in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by the woods. Their lives are quiet and they can almost bury their traumatized past. Another family moves into the cabin next door for the weekend. Their teenage daughter, Tilly goes missing in the middle of the night. The only other person that could have witnessed what happened is Lenora, however, she does not recall anything as she was sleepwalking in the middle of the night. With a short list of suspects, Cassie and Lenora must try to get to the truth, before the trauma from their past is exposed.

The story was narrated by Cassie and Lenora, in their POVs, with past flashbacks sprinkled in. Our protagonists are unreliable, at best. Cassie is more extroverted, while Lenora is more introverted, does not like to interact with anyone other than her twin sister. Cassie uses the trauma she has been through in a job where she focuses on victims of murderers. Lenora hides from her trauma and is barely surviving. The twins have very different contradictory personalities but have undying loyalty to one another, that they would not break for anything.

The characters were well developed with mystery, secretive, and intriguing. The author’s writing style was complex, compelling, twisty, and engaging. The author had me invested from cover to cover. The author does an amazing job at setting an atmospheric, claustrophobia isolated setting in the woods. The descriptions and scenery paints a picture that draws you in and makes you feel like you are there. The characters were built up in a slow burn manner. There is a bit of internal monologue, but it works well for this novel. The plot was fantastically delivered in twisty layers, even twists within the twists. Then the final conclusion was clever and unpredictable.

I had the pleasure of having the digital and audio book ARCs. I leaned more on the audiobook. This has all of the elements of a good thriller, it was creepy, dark, twisty, captivating, compelling, and gripping. Watch out for Bush, with her master storyteller abilities, she will quickly make a mark in the thriller genre. I highly recommend picking up or borrowing from your library today.

I'll start with the bad. I found it really hard to understand the setting of this book. The premise says remote Tennessee campsite, and I could not envision what that looked like, especially in terms of the cabin that the two sisters live in.

I also had a hard time completely understanding Cassie and Lenora in general and their relationship. I felt like a lot of things were left in the dark and maybe I would have enjoyed this novel more with better explanation.

This novel moved slowly for me, which is another reason for my 3 start rating. However, when things finally started coming together, I couldn't read it fast enough. The ending was definitely interesting, and I think had the entirety of the book read more like the ending I maybe would have enjoyed this story more.

For a debut novel, I think this author did great! I loved her writing & the story is so different than others that I have read. I thought this book was really unique! I love that Lenora & Cassie are twins, but soo different. I enjoyed them both. I definitely was not expecting the ending at all. I’ll definitely read more books from this author.

This book was great. It was creepy, it was such a thriller. There's identical twins that hide out in this campsite, something bad happened to them in their past. something happens at this campsite and the sisters end up in the middle of the whole thing. You get the perspective of both the twins and it has you go on a whirlwind. You don't know who is lying and who is telling the truth. it was so good.

4.4 ⭐️
What a bag of emotions this book has left me in! Such a unique story with a jaw dropping twist from a new author 👏🏼

🌑 I felt in the dark for much of the book, but was so intrigued with the mystery that I was fully invested as my mind raced with possibilities.

✍🏼 The writing style was not my preferred. It wasn’t bad, but it was written in a way that slowed me down. But still worth reading for sure.

💧This books oozes with secrets, loneliness, darkness, jealousy, mystery and unbreakable bonds.

“There’s an intimacy between Tilly and me. One formed last night as I spent hours becoming her friend online.”

👯‍♀️ The twins own mother held resentment for them, literally since the day they were born.

“…that baby cried helplessly on her chest, our mother could only stare at her husband across the room and watch the way his eyes followed the pretty nurse down the hallway.”

🌪️ This book threw such a crazy twist at me that I never expected. My jaw dropped so hard that I had to put it down and walk away for a moment to recollect my thoughts. love being shocked!

Thanks to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press, and Marlee Bush for providing me with a complimentary ARC to review!

What an amazing debut novel for Marlee Bush! The story flowed and was written so well * it was hard to believe this is a first time author! The dynamic between Lenora and Cassie is so fascinating. Their undying devotion to each other was pivotal in laying the groundwork for the rest of the story. Bush executed this task beautifully! There were so many intense scenes that I'd have to take a short break to slow my heart rate. The twists kept my head spinning, and the ending left me feeling so satisfied. Well rounded, well written, and well worth the read!

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC of When She Was Me by Marlee Bush.

Have you ever been camping? Do you like it?

Cassie and Lenora are twin sisters living in a cabin in the woods, trying to hide from their dark past.
When a teenage girl goes missing, while their family is camping, Cassie thinks her sister did something to the teenage girl.

Can Lenora hurt someone? But who else could have done it? Both sisters try to figure out what happened to the missing girl.

The book was a little slow in the first half. Then it started getting interesting towards the ending trying to figure out who murdered the teenage girl. We do see a lot of in-between timeliness and learn more about Cassie and Lenora's childhood. At times I did feel lost not knowing who was who or what was happening. It was gripping and twisty but then it all made sense and

Such a fast paced fun read! I loved all the suspense and twists.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this eArc in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC of When She Was Me by Marlee Bush.

Cassie and Lenora are identical twins living in a tiny cabin in a remote area in Tennessee. Cassie keeps an eye on the property, meets her neighbors and any temporary tenants in the area and cares for Lenora. Lenora hasn't left the cabin in ages. The two are harboring a traumatic secret that has damaged them both in different ways. All of that is brought to a head when a neighboring teen girl ends up missing. Now, everyone on the property is a suspect, and secrets may have to come out...

This had a great start, very foreboding, I loved the blacktop imagery, and the sparce neighbors. Everyone had secrets, and you had no idea who to trust. The end unraveled about as messy as a sweater sleeve on a loose nail. It had so much promise, so much potential, but this was just too much, I couldn't buy it at all.

2.5 stars rounded up

A great novel that was eerie, creepy and full of twists and turns. I loved trying to guess what was going on and what would happen next.

4 ⭐️ Happy Publication Day!! 🎉 “When She Was Me” is about identical twins Cassie and Lenora who are inseparable after surviving a past trauma. They live in an isolated home in the woods, far away from the rest of society. However, when a family shows ups at the cabin next door, and their 15 year old daughter vanishes in the middle of the night, their world is turned upside down.

This is a bit of a slow burn, but the twins are such interesting characters that it made me want to keep reading. I needed to know what happened to them that caused them to bond in such an unhealthy way. As a fraternal twin myself, identical twins have always freaked me out.

I like having multiple POVs in books, but I don’t love when two characters essentially tell the same story for the reader, rehashing things over and over. I did enjoy the glimpses of the past sprinkled throughout.

Overall, this story is unsettling and atmospheric and I would definitely recommend! The best part about this book? It’s a debut!! Insane! 4 stars!

Thank you to Marlee Bush, NetGalley, and Poisoned Pen Press for the complementary advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

What secrets do the woods hold? When She Was Me is a captivating debut that will keep you on your toes and shellshocked with the twists and turns inside of the pages.

This review has been posted to Goodreads and Storygraph on May 28th, 2024. Links provided.

Twin sisters Cassie and Lenora have been inseparable since one fateful night years ago. As the only permanent residents of Cabin Two at an isolated Tennessee campground, they’ve been able to hide from their past by creating a refuge away from inquisitive minds and investigative questions. But, their serene existence is shattered when a teenage girl, Tilly, from a neighboring cabin goes missing, dredging up long-buried memories. As the mystery of what happened to Tilly starts to mirror their own dark past, each sister beings to suspect the other of hiding crucial secrets. In the vast wilderness but with nowhere to escape to, Cassie and Lenora must uncover the truth of what happened and confront the sinister reality lurking in their history before it’s too late.

I was fully prepared to give this story three stars until I got to the last 10% of the book. There were many aspects of this novel that I really enjoyed. The writing is haunting and beautiful, the story is intriguing, and the author’s ability to flow between the past and the present is seamless. The ending has a twist that I most definitely did not see coming and felt was very well done, hence the extra star. The only reason I struggled with this book was because I personally felt like the pacing was far too slow. While I really did like the plot, setting, and characters, I have a very difficult time remaining interested when I feel that the pacing could be faster. So, with that personal preference aside, I would highly recommend this book if you want an intriguing story with a well written twist at the end.

Thank you to Poisoned Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read to an ARC of When She Was Me in return for my honest review.

This was a bit slow paced for my taste. I did love the relationship between the sisters. Something else I really loved is the writing style and language the author used

Actual Rating: 3.5⭐

It’s not a bad read but I prefer fast-paced thrillers so this one was a bit challenging for me to finished. But I keep on reading because I wanted to know the answer to a bunch of questions that I had while I was reading this.

The pacing was slow and some parts felt repetitive like how Lenora and Cassie keep fighting back and forth throughout the story.

I felt confused sometimes about where this story is going and who to trust but it all made sense in the last few chapters where all the pieces comes together and the secrets are all out in the open.
The plot twist was totally unexpected and my mind was blown because it's a very smart twist that I didn't think of.

Overall, for a debut novel it wasn’t bad, I like the creepy secluded atmosphere of living at a cabin in the middle of the wood PLUS the plot twist was totally mind blowing!
I’ll give this author another try if the author releases another book in the future.

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: murder, violence, blood, rape, sexual assault, pedophilia, brief mention of animal death and cruelty, bullying

When She Was Me was an intriguing mystery-thriller. The story follows twin sisters, Cassie and Lenora, who are living in a remote Tennessee campground, after fleeing their hometown following a horrific event. Life has been pretty quiet for the girls until a teenage girl staying at one of the other cabins ends up dead. Now, the twins are thrown into a murder mystery and their own lives may be at risk.

I thought this was a well-written and compelling debut novel. I loved the isolated campground setting and the suspenseful atmosphere in this book. Cassie and Lenora were interesting main characters. They are very different- Cassie is outgoing and curious, while Lenora is introverted and cautious. I liked the dynamic between the twins.

I liked the mystery, even though parts of it were a little predictable. I did enjoy the ending and I thought it was a good conclusion to the book.

I definitely recommend this book to mystery-thriller lovers. I look forward to reading this author’s next book.

3.5⭐️

3.5 rounded up - intriguing debut thriller

Now, I preface this by saying I'm not really much of a thriller reader - I really enjoy psychological thrillers when it comes to film, but often find the violence too jarring in fiction. Thus, this wasn't my favorite read but I can appreciate it even though it was a bit out of my comfort zone. Moving on!

Twins Cassie and Lenora are inseparable. After the tragedy of "that night," they are all each other has and have virtually isolated themselves at a remote campground with only has a handful of cabins. They don't talk about the past, despite it shaping everything they do. When the teen daughter of the guests in cabin 3 disappears, the memories their past and their suspicions of each other threaten to destroy them. How far are they willing to go for each other?

This is told in three POV - the present for both Cassie and Lenora and an unnamed past POV. I liked the back and forth and the bit of confusion it started to create, there was tension there in the "who is who" of it all. I was really intrigued through the first half, but I do wish this was tighter. The story started to get bogged down after the halfway point in my opinion and I started to wonder how long it would take to wrap up - at 400 pages, I think the story could have been shorter and then the plot would have kept up pace. The ending was strong (violent) and I think the twist will get a lot of readers.

If you are thriller reader, this could be a fun one for you!

Thank you Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

First I want to thank Poisoned Press and NetGalley for the eGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I was quite surprised that this was a debut novel! It's a fun one, it's a quick read and very twisty.
If you are looking for a slowbuild and twisty mystery-thriller than try this one for sure!