Wow! This book was like an amazing water slide - a smooth ride with lots of fun twists and turns. Alex Finlay deftly builds an incredibly engaging story with multiple timelines, perspectives, locations, and key characters. Ryan, who has very limited memory of what happened when his girlfriend Ali disappeared years earlier, is in Italy with fellow law students when he gets a little more information about that night, sending him on a heart-racing hunt through Europe. Back in his hometown, Poppy, the younger sister of a high school peer of Ryan and Ali’s, is newly deputized and finds herself taking the lead on reexamining Ali’s case. Her adventure leads her through some stressful and distressing analysis of people she’s known her whole life. Ryan, Ali, Poppy, and all the other characters are multidimensional and sympathetic. The pacing is excellent. The settings are described in a perfect amount of detail needed for the plot. Finlay gave me everything I love in a book I can get lost in. While this is the first novel of his that I have read, I’m definitely going to backread his other work and keep a close eye out for upcoming publications..

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Netgalley, and the author for early access to this excellent novel.

Interesting story. Was nice to see it all come together at the end. Didn’t leave me wondering. I would recommend this.

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for the ARC! I had a very hard time wanting to stop reading this book once I started. What a thrilling and exciting read. This book pulls. you in from the first paragraph. Amazing character development. Loved how everything unfolded with all involved.
Highly recommend

The premise was very intriguing for this one and I must say it delivered. There were just the right amount of twists and turns to keep me intrigued. Alternating stories that weave together well is always a good bet. Throw in some old fashioned Cypher action and we have a winner!

Thank you @minotaur_books @macmillan.audio #partner for the free copy of this ebook and audiobook!

Alex Finlay always delivers such a solid edge of your seat thriller and this one is no exception! In this story we follow Ryan who has experienced a very traumatic event that left him with a severe blow to the head and a spotty memory with his girlfriend Ali disappearing into thin air. Because her body and car were never found Ryan was never charged however suspicion always follows him since he was the last to see her. When he’s traveling abroad he gets a life changing phone call. Her car has been found…with two dead me a mysterious letter written by Ali: If something happens to me….

In a fast paced thriller crossing different parts of the world, each character paths collide resulting in an explosive ending! I absolutely love this action packed, tense entertaining story. I was easily able to connect with each character and love how Alex writes from each POV. I love that we got to tour the world in this book and I was so surprised at how it all fit together like a puzzle in the end. The ending wasn’t completely believable however, that’s what I loved about it! Alex Finlay will continue to easily be an autobuy for me and as always I look forward to his next book!

I LOVED this book!!! It kept me on my toes, turning the pages with a gleeful smile on my face! This is how you do it! Anyone picking this book up to read is in for a treat!

✨Arc Review!✨
If Something Happens to Me
By @alexfinlayauthor
Thanks to @minotaur_books and @netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital arc! This one had me turning the pages past my bedtime. With a large cast of characters and locations, it was a lot to keep up with, but a wild ride! I really enjoyed the high-stakes suspense, twists & tangles, and world-wide adventure throughout this novel. As always, short chapters add such an encouraging and engaging quality for me. The epilogue wrapped things up nicely. I’d highly recommend this book if you like mobster storylines, a bingeable read, and holding onto hope and your seat.
Stars: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

#arcreview #netgalley #bookreview #ifsoemthinghappenstome #alexfinlay #suspensethriller #bookrecommendation #maybookrelease #bookadventure #mobsternovel #bookstagram #minotaurbooks

Another great book from Finlay! When the book starts there are four distinct storylines, and multiple voices narrating perfectly throughout the audio. Storylines that make the reader unsure of how they are going to connect, but connect they do with a nice twist!
Five years ago, Ryan was pulled from a car and struck on the head and his girlfriend, Ali, and the car disappeared. With suspicion surrounding Ryan, his life has forever changed, but he still can’t get past that night.
Poppy has just returned to her hometown in Kansas as a deputy sheriff. She’s about to embark on a case that could end her career and her life before she even gets her feet off the ground.
Shane is the head of a major crime syndicate in Philadelphia and he is out for blood. Trying to right a wrong that has torn his family apart.
Michael and his fourteen year old daughter, Taylor, are on the run, but are they safe?
When Ali’s car is found, the story takes off, so buckle up and enjoy the ride!
As a joint read/listen, I’d like you to thank Minotaur Books, McMillan Audio and NetGalley for an ARC and ALC of this book.

I absolutely loved 85% of this book, but it felt rush and ending fell flat for me. Prior to that, though, I really became invest in the characters, plot, and had figured out many of the twists. I also loved the short chapters! Finlay is always an auto read/auto buy for me.

I finished this a couple of days ago and spaced the review. Man, it was good. It was cool and surprising and I loved the twist that was provided halfway through the story. As I was reading I knew that I was. missing something and then that thing was just faceplanted in front of me and it all came together. It was done well. Really well. I could imagine 20 other authors who would've totally messed up the situation if they were given the same task, but Finlay, it was gold.

Anyway, the story was solid, the lead-up was awesome, the finish was brilliant. This was just a cool book from start to finish. I really like Finaly's work and if you are a fan you'll dig this book. It was a fun read and it flew by. It's well worth the page-turning. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Y'all rock.

This one was middle of the road for me. I loved that it was fast paced because of the short chapters, and had multiple settings. But, I didn't love the multiple POVS and characters....I got confused on who was who, and I actually stopped reading this book for two weeks before picking it back up. I think, overall, I just didn't love the mobster/mafia theme of this one. I thought it was a bit silly to me, but I don't normally like books involving mobsters...although, I do love a good mobster movie. Also, the plot twist was not very exciting.

This is my first Alex Finlay book, and I think people who have read him before will probably enjoy it. If you love the mafia trope, you would enjoy this too. I will still read another book from this author since I think the meat of the book just wasn't for me.

Thank you NetGalley for my digital copy.

Not his best, not his worst. Just seemed like a bit of a farfetched storyline. Also, the ending - WHAT HAPPENED TO ALLISON?! Ending was abrupt and sort of annoying to me!

What a great book! This one kept me guessing and reading all night.
At the start of the story, the plot feels essentially like two different stories being told. Slowly the threads of both start weaving together with some nice twists and turns. I loved the ending each character had, was a. nice change from the usual.
Recommend for those that like a great thriller!
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: 5 stars! (I would give more if I could!!)

I have always had my eye on Alex Finlay and finally got my hands on an ARC copy of If Something Happens to Me. The storycontains multiple POVs that captured me right away! Seeing the various characters POVs on the decisions that were made throughout the book had me flying through the book. The book is a super fast-paced thriller about a missing girl, a crime boss, and a sheriff trying to make sense of everything.

Cannot recommend giving this one a read enough!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this one ok. I figured out pretty much the whole mystery by about 50% of the book, which was frustrating because it made the back half drag while the first half went quickly. I think if you haven't figured it out, then the pacing is probably not so frustrating … but the plot generally lost steam overall. The chapters are short and quick.

I really liked Poppy the Deputy Sheriff but Ryan was intermittently sympathetic and frustrating. I felt bad for the way he was living in the wake of the mysterious disappearance of his high school sweetheart, but I also thought some of his actions were unrealistic and rash. The bad guys were sometimes sympathetic, which I appreciated because they're so often portrayed as 100% awful and I think that's probably not the case for most people.

I wish the ciphers had been more a part of the book. The cryptic note was such a compelling part of the premise but they were pretty minimal in the plot overall. To be fair, I think at this point I see cipher and expect something Da Vinci Code-esque, so that's on me.

This one has some sensitive topics, so please check trigger warnings if there are topics you prefer to avoid.

This book was very confusing. There were what felt like 100 characters, it took place in a handful of different cities/locations, and over different time frames?? I think?? But all that was provided at the start of a chapter was the location, you had to (try) to figure out which characters viewpoint it was from. The ended also lacked detail, like one main character seemed to have just been left out of the ending, or maybe I was confused again? The story was exciting at times, but overall, not a fan.

Wow! This was definitely a ride! This is a story about revenge in many forms.

Ryan is haunted by a fateful night five years ago when his girlfriend, Ali, was abducted and presumed dead. Despite any evidence against him, his small town assumes he had something to do with it. When he tries escaping his past, it catches up to him and he finds himself chasing a killer through Europe. Meanwhile, Ali’s car has been uncovered with two dead men in the front seat and a cryptic note. Mix in a crime boss out for his own special kind of revenge and no one is safe.

This was a fast paced thriller that had me guessing the whole time! It’s almost impossible to give a synopsis on because of how many layers there are and the complexity of the story. I really enjoyed how everything came together and was linked. The short chapters kept me intrigued as well as the multiple POVs. The pacing of the story was fantastic and very well done. This is the first book I’ve read by this author, but will not be the last!

4 stars

Alex Finlay has does it again, but audiobook listeners beware: you will get great narration, but you need to focus. There are a lot of characters and a lot of details to pay attention to here.

One woman's disappearance impacts the trajectory of multiple characters, and since unraveling the mystery is the best part, I'll keep any further discussion of events quiet. What I will add is that it is a lot of fun to put the pieces together through various characters' perspectives, details, and revelations. Full disclosure, I did have to restart this one after realizing I must have missed some key information during my casual first listening attempt. This isn't the kind of thriller/mystery listeners should plan to engage with passively.

I really enjoy Finlay's work, and this most recent book is no exception. Added props for a quick read which - at this time of year - especially has its place on a beach or at a pool near you.

5 out of 5 stars!

Why did Ryan Richardon want to study law? Did he always have a knack for the law? Or, did it come after his ex-girlfriend, Ali, went missing? Even though he doesn’t remember a lot from that night, his last memory of Ali includes the car door being ripped open and hands yanking him from the vehicle while Ali screamed for her life. After that, Ali and her car vanished without a trace. Ryan was the only witness to this crime, so he quickly became the only suspect.

While Ryan is in Italy on a school trip, he gets a call from his father saying that the police have identified Ali’s car submerged in a lake. Inside the car confuses everyone even more. Two unidentified dead guys and an envelope in Ali’s handwriting saying, “If something happens to me…”. While Ryan is in Italy, something crazier happens. He spots the man he believes killed Ali. He doesn’t remember much about that night, but the man he sees looks so familiar. He follows the man, trying to make sense of it all, but he is led across the world. Little does he know, there is a new sheriff's deputy in his hometown working the same case with the same suspicions, and a mobster in Philadelphia who has suffered a tragedy on his own.

“If Something Happens to Me” by Alex Finlay was the book I could not physically put down! Once I started it one evening, I had to finish it before going to bed. This was a fast, action-filled novel with twist after twist. With multiple perspectives changing every chapter, you will keep telling yourself you need to read one more before going to bed. Until, like me, you are so engrossed, you need to figure out what happened to Alli. Throughout the story you will start to unravel what happened to Ali and why all of these perspectives are intertwined. I would not be surprised if this made a book of the year list.

I LOVED all the characters in this book and what they brought to their chapters. I felt like I was rooting for everyone. Ok, maybe not everyone, but you will figure that out in time. They all had such emotional complexity that made me feel like I was right alongside them figuring out what had happened. Changing the point of view every chapter made the book fly by and was fascinating.

“If Something Happens to Me” by Alex Finlay will be published May 28th, 2024. Pre-order now, so you don’t miss out on one of the best books of the summer!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, Alex Finlay, and NetGalley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

This was a twisty, fast-paced thriller. I also found it kind of dull. It reminded me of "The Last Thing He Told Me" in the sense that they both had everything I'd expect from a thriller (short chapters, sketchy characters, lots of suspenseful twists and turns) but it didn't totally work for me.

I liked it. I just didn't love it. I never really connected with the characters, which is always a bad thing in my book. I'd recommend it for a summer, poolside/travel read. It's the kind of book that's good to read in short bursts.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.