Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"Then Things Went Dark" by Tara Sim is a compelling dive into the dark underbelly of fame culture, set against the backdrop of a reality TV competition on a remote island. The novel follows six celebrity contestants—Araminta Yaxley-Carter (influencer), Isko Andrada (chef), Rhys Sutton (actor), Kalpana Mahajan (activist), Jerome Frances (entrepreneur), and Theo Newman (rockstar)—as they vie for the title of the most "iconic" person and a hefty cash prize. Each contestant brings their own baggage and secrets, adding layers of intrigue and tension. This is definitely a unique book, and I really enjoyed this kind of “who-done-it” mystery where everything has been televised.

The story begins with the contestants' arrival and quickly dives right into the drama, alliances, and betrayals typical of reality TV. As a person who quite enjoys reality TV, this was right up my alley. I absolutely loved all the reality TV troupes shown throughout the book. The narrative structure alternates between the competition's real-time events, social media reactions, and the subsequent police investigation following a contestant's untimely death. This multi-faceted approach offers a comprehensive look at the unfolding drama, which I particularly enjoyed, especially with the social media aspect as that is a fundamental part of the book and today’s society.

One of the book's strengths lies in its exploration of the characters' dark pasts and the facade of their public personas. While none of the characters are particularly likable, their flaws and vulnerabilities make them compelling. There were times where I found the characters to be quite annoying, which took me out of the book and made me stop reading a couple of times. However, there was a lot of jealousy and rivalry among the contestants, which made them and the plot more engaging.

The plot is well-conceived, reminiscent of a "Big Brother" style reality show, with 24/7 live streaming, confessional booths, and competitive challenges. However, the challenges themselves often feel underdeveloped, serving more as a backdrop for character interactions than as pivotal plot points. Those parts of the reality TV aspect weren’t as engaging, which I found a bit disappointing. What I enjoyed the most, however, was Sim's critique of fame culture and the vapid nature of celebrity life is sharp and unflinching. The contestants' desperation to revive their careers or win public approval is palpable, making their actions and motivations all the more believable. Despite the characters' lack of redeeming qualities, the story maintains a certain level of engagement, largely due to the suspense and the mystery surrounding the death. The ending ties up the various plot threads satisfactorily, albeit somewhat abruptly. It provides closure while leaving enough intrigue for you to wonder the characters' fates and the consequences of their actions.

Overall, "Then Things Went Dark" is an entertaining and thought-provoking read, especially for fans of reality TV and those interested in the darker side of fame. While the disjointed format and unlikable characters might be off-putting for some, the novel's unique premise and engaging plot make it worth a read. Tara Sim has crafted a story that, much like reality TV, is both addictive and reflective of our society's obsession with celebrity culture.

NetGalley ARC review: I really enjoyed the structure of the chapters. How first it was what happened with the contestants and then it went to social media comments followed by what was going on in the police investigation. I thought it made the pacing flow nicely and was interesting to read that way.3.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

With multiple POVs and "confession booth" narratives combined, Bea Fitzgerald takes us into the high-stakes world of a celebrity reality TV show. Six contestants arrive on a desert island, hungry to prove themselves in front of millions of viewers. But when one of them dies on camera, secrets emerge, and the remaining five find themselves entangled in a web of suspicion. As the world watches, they grapple with how to keep their darkest truths hidden.

The concept of a reality show set on a remote island with D-list celebrities is intriguing to me. However, the lack of relatable or likable characters left me wanting more. Each character seemed either horrible or fake, making it challenging to root for anyone. I didn't care about the character who died, the detectives added nothing to the plot and I didn't care about them either, and the relationship of 2 of the contestants was not believable. it was like reading a train-wreck happen (which is what trash TV is all about, so some readers may love this). While the premise held promise for me, the execution fell short. I'm still going to give it 3 stars for being entertaining.

Liked the idea behind this book, a reality tv show on an island airing in almost real time. I thought the book had a strong start enjoyed it was broken up into episodes as chapters but there was just too much going on. There were too many characters that were not needed especially the whole plotline with the detective investigating the potential crime that just felt unresolved. This book also to me felt a little to long and a lot of things could've been edited out. I'll give this 3 stars and would try another book from this author in the future. I want to thank NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn’t sure what to expect going in to this novel but was pleasantly surprised. This book held my attention very well and was fairly fast paced.

The Things Went Dark was a quick read once I got about 15% in. It took a bit to get going through and I honestly thought at first I wasn't going to care for the story. The mystery was easy to figure out, but the story was still pretty enjoyable.

Wow! I loved this! I couldn’t put it down and read during every free second I could spare. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

3 stars- this fell flat for me which was a bummer. I was really looking forward to it. thanks netgalley + the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest reviews.

Thank you so much to Negalley and Sourcebook Landmarks!

This book was quite disappointing, tbh. I follow the author on Instagram and really wish I liked her book more than I did. It follows 6 characters living on an island alone for a month for a reality tv show, and when one of the contestants die on the show the rest are all suspects in his murder. It flipped between the days of the show and the murder investigation. I really liked the different timelines, and it also had social media posts in it that I thought were interesting. However, a romance developed pretty quickly in it and I thought the way the romance developed in three weeks was slightly unrealistic and underdeveloped.
I think fans of reality TV would like this book, but I probably wouldn’t recommend it to a hardcore thriller/mystery reader.

Not my favorite. The characters were essentially all alike and since they were all hooking up they all merged together in my mind. I like the idea of a reality show but this was not anywhere close to what it could have been.

Six already very famous, very glamorous people arrive on a deserted beachside paradise to compete in ICONIC, a new reality show. Millions will be watching them over the next few weeks --- and millions are watching as one of them dies, on camera. It sure looks like an accident, but the police aren't so sure. An investigation begins, and what happens among the law enforcement people is almost as interesting as the reality show itself. Great mystery, particularly for the many readers who can't get enough reality TV.

Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for providing an ARC.

3.5/5 stars, rounded up to 4. This book let me down a little bit in the mystery aspect: I didn't feel super invested, and the truth revealed at the end felt kind of unsatisfying. However, this book absolutely excels in creating an oppressive atmosphere of suspense and pressure. I had to put it down a few times because it was getting to me. (Spoiler) <spoiler> The real-time evolution of the abusive relationship was masterfully written, especially when we cut to the outside viewers' comments: it was genuinely upsetting to me, excellently done. </spoiler> Heed the trigger warnings in the beginning!

Overall, a solid read, with interesting characters and relationships, if a little lacking in the engagingness of the mystery itself.

3.5 stars!

I love reality TV and I'm on the hunt looking for the perfect reality TV thriller for me. Regretfully, this wasn't it. I feel like this was a really shallow commentary on the vapidness of fame, and I didn't really care about the person who was murdered unfortunately. I do think the reality TV part was fun, but I just needed the mystery to be better,

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

A-MAZING!
This is a fabulous novel about a reality show done wrong. Told from multiple points of view including police reports we learn about the brand new reality game that was set on a small island...

What the contestants didn't know was that the reality show was live streamed at different times of the day. Millions watched and participated in popular votes. When the most popular of them all, Rhys, is murdered, there should be millions of witnesses, but it is a mystery unsovled!

Who is running the show? who is behind the scenes? Can anyone win? And who killed Rhys?
Pure fun, diabolically addictive - Then Things Went Dark #sourcebooks #beafitzgerald #thenthingswentdark

I really wanted to love this book but it fell kind of flat. The writing was okay, but the plot was a little unlikable. I think this premise of this book the idea was solid, but execution left something to be desired.

This had a great premise and cover but it sadly fell flat for me. It was hard to find a character I could relate to, I thought they were all so awful, tbh! The challenges they faced as well seemed very trivial and not very thought out. This missed the mark for me unfortunately. Thanks for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion!

This book has such a great premise - reality TV show of 6 D-list celebs thrown on an island for a month, competing to be the most “iconic.” We’re told right away that one of the contestants is found dead in the finale, and the story unfolds with each chapter representing an episode on the show. We get an inside look into these extremely unlikable characters, and a bit of what they’ll do for fame. I think there’s a bit to say about a book that can get me so enraged at character to where I had to pull away and remind myself it’s fake :).

The part that didn’t work for me was the entire police investigation at the end of each chapter, it added extra characters and a subplot that was pretty pointless. The writing in each of the chapters was also inconsistent and the reality show plot and challenges felt a bit thrown together. I’m also super disappointed it didn’t somewhat redeem one of the characters in the end - won’t go into this too much to avoid spoiling but I thought it would have went along so well with how the character was described initially.

Then Things Went Dark follows a group of celebrities living temporarily on an island for a reality show that is going to crown one of them as the most iconic of the group. Throughout the book we learn each character’s reasoning for wanting the title and cash prize, and follow the investigation into the death of one of the contestants.

I was not the biggest fan of this book. All of the characters hooking up with each other made it difficult to differentiate them, so it took me a while to remember who was who in regards to their back stories. It also was difficult to become interested in the story line when a lot of the focus was on them hooking up with each other.

The ending was very interesting to me, the author did a great job with it, and it was worth the read. This wouldn’t be one of my go-to recommendations but it would be a decent summer read.

I would like to say thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Bea Fitzgerald for providing me with an ARC copy of this book in return for my honest review.

This had all the drama. I love when books are about reality shows and this one was done really well. It took me a minute to get used to the narrative style but I grew to appreciate it.

3.75

This was a very different reading experience to the author's debut book (which I enjoyed) but not a bad one. It was fast and intriguing for the most part. None of the characters are even a smidge likeable, but then again that's the point so the author's done a great job creating thoroughly hateful characters with toxic behaviours who're all out for themselves and nobody else and have tons of secrets to hide. The ending felt a bit anticlimactic in comparison to how the narrative was built up (a back and forth of present-day storyline at the police investigation and the throwback narrative of the cast on the show), but still a fun pacy thriller.