Then Things Went Dark truly reads like a reality tv show in book format. Filled with scheming, secrets, scandals, & betrayal, none of the characters are particularly likable, which is pretty typical with most reality tv. The drama is half the fun! It was a little difficult to follow with the unique formatting: jumping between the “tv episodes”, the investigation, the social media comments, etc. The drawn out commentary and dialogue caused it to be a slower moving read, but the mystery and build-up of the whodunnit style story kept me intrigued until the end. I’d read another reality tv style ARC recently so there was some concern about the lines blurring, but this one had such a unique premise and writing style that it really held its own.

Thank you to NetGalley & Sourcebooks Landmark for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

This book grabs your attention so fast and holds onto it through the entire book. It is so well written with so many twist and turns - you don’t know what is going to happen until it happens. Great characters and story.

Then Things Went Dark reads like a juicy reality TV show. None of the characters were particularly likeable which is necessary for this type of story, but this also makes it hard to be fully invested in the story. Normally I try to find at least one character to like and root for, but I just couldn't in this book. Yet at the same time I couldn't stop reading this book to find out what happened.

I'm not a huge fan of reality TV shows and I think this book will be more enjoyable for those that enjoy the drama and unlikeable characters.

Thanks to Netgalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The premise of this book sounded so amazing, I was so excited to give it a try. Unfortunately the multiple POV's did not work for me in this one and some things were just highly confusing. None of the characters are likeable and the writing style just did not do it for me.

Overall, I really enjoyed Then Things Went Dark!

The story centres on 6 "icons" living on a secluded island and partaking in a reality TV show. Although secluded, the contestants are being filmed and livestreamed throughout their stay. The reader begins the book being told that one of the contestants has died and the death, being treated as suspicious by the authorities, was caught on camera and watched by millions.

The story is told through "episodes" and interspersed with snippets of post-death police interrogations. The reader spends the book wondering what truly happened on the island and piecing together clues.

Although there were some points mid-story where my interest began to wane. I held on to finish the book and I was NOT disappointed. The ending was one I did not see coming. It was smart, original, and the perfect bow on top of an intriguing story.

Bea Fitzgerald deviates from the typical whodunnit mystery format, both in her writing style and story arc. Although I at first questioned whether she could pull it off, she proved without doubt that not only can she pull it off, but she can exceed expectations. I will certainly read her future works!

This was a fun read full of entertaining dislikable characters and boasting a good mystery.
Mysteries with people who can’t stand each other on an isolated island always works for me. Add in the reality show aspect and you can’t go wrong

I’m always going to request any thriller reality tv show related book. And I’m always going to be so grateful when I get approved for one. The effects of fame can cause is so interesting and thrilling within itself. I loved the plot and felt really drawn to the celebs who started dating. Overall, I was interested in the execution and thought it was well done.

The concept is ~so good~ but I found the whole book to be sort of slow moving? You know immediately that there are secrets amongst the group and that someone from the case is dead and someone else on the cast is responsible, so you're actively trying to sort out that mystery, but it still felt like it was almost dragging at times. I liked that the investigation and social media commentary was interspersed with the episodic views of what happened on the island, but I also could've put this down at any point and been totally fine with it.

I love murder mysteries, and was intrigued by the premise of this book: A murder mystery with an art/influencer, activist, musician, chef, tech entrepreneur, and actor? All with secrets they want buried deep? I was hooked from the beginning!
I loved the focus on characters and character development. The ability to make a reader love a character one moment, and then hate them the next is truly an art form. This book shows the complexity of human beings, and you’ll never guess who the “murderer” is!

Scandals, scheming, alliances, and betrayal. Everything you would expect from Reality TV, what you don't expect is watching a contestant die. Rhys Sutton is the most hated man on television and then, he dies. Police race to uncover the truth surrounding his death. Who was responsible or was Rhys's death truly an accident?

I really enjoyed this book. The formatting was fantastic. I felt like this was an actual reality TV show put to page. The characters and situations described by the author were written so clearly that I could almost see them in my head. I thought I knew what happened surrounding Rhys's death about halfway through...I in fact did not know! I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a who-done-it mystery.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for providing me with the ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

Goodreads review - This book was such a fun read! It would be the perfect book to read on the beach while sipping something fruity. As someone who loves a good reality TV show, it felt like I was reading an episode of Celebirty Big Brother. The way the author was able to capture an emotionally abusive relationship was spot on, and felt like the embodiment of the Taylor Swift song "Tolerate It".

Notes -
I genuinely loved this book. My only notes are that it may be helpful to add like a profile section at the beginning. A lot of reality shows introduce contestants on social media, so a social media post about who they are and their background would be a cool addition to making it feel more real!

Second, I think the fast-forward at the end of each episode to the detectives trying to figure out who murdered him should have been broken out into a mini-chapter. It wasn't really part of the episode, and was a little jarring to jump forward to the interviews.

The third note is about the subplot of the detectives sleeping together - this really added nothing to the story and was kind of confusing. I could do without that.

A wonderfully dark and engaging thriller set in the cut-throat world of reality TV, when the stakes go way beyond the regular “likes” and turn into a life and death scenario.

This was reality TV/fame culture to a "t"...I love reality TV (guilty pleasure, what can I say?), but struggled to digest it in book format. I loved the plot, but the back and forth between the (many) unlikeable characters was rather offputting and made it tough to get into. 2.5 rounded up to 3.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the gifted eARC to read and review.

Thanks to NetGalley, Bea Fitzgerald, and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reader copy. I received an advanced reader copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The writing style was unique in that it was written as though one were watching an actual reality television show. There were different perspectives, individual confessionals during certain moments, and even thrown in social media postings. The social media parts did feel thrown in though and seemed unnecessary. Each character appeared to be worse than the first, which pretty much sums up reality show contestants.

The ending is what made me take off a star for the review. It was just an ending. Nothing really special and it did not enlist a big reaction. There was so much build-up and mystery, so it was not very satisfying.

4.0

Setting: Portugal
Rep: bisexual protagonist; gay protagonist; lesbian South Asian protagonist; pansexual protagonist; multiple queer side characters

I downloaded this when it was read now on Netgalley as I love a good mystery that involves reality tv and a bunch of "famous" people stuck together. It wasn't particularly twisty - the end didn't really come out of nowhere, and I would've liked to have seen the viewer reactions to the final episode - but I enjoyed the social media aspect and the queerness (even both of the detectives are queer!) and it was a fun read, if not the twistiest!

On a sun-drenched desert island, a reality show takes a sinister turn as six contestants strive to prove their worth. With high stakes and intense pressure, what begins as a quest for glory transforms into a harrowing nightmare. Over eighteen episodes, the contestants become entangled in a complex web of betrayal and intrigue. The climax, witnessed by twelve million viewers, marks the tragic end of Rhys Sutton on camera, thrusting five survivors into the hands of the Portuguese police. Their dreams of reality show success shattered, they must now confront real-life consequences.

In the day of hard-core social media and unrealistic reality TV, this book fits right into the current cultural narrative. I was initially intrigued by the murder mystery and was not too excited about the reality aspect (even though I love Below Deck, but cannot go as far as any of the Real Housewives). Surprisingly to me, the TV episode chapters are what drew me into the story and kept me engaged. Even though I cannot say that I really liked any of the characters that much, and I certainly was not a fan of Rhys, I was fascinated by the murder.

Side Note: I didn't think the cop romance part was necessary. I don't think it added anything to the story.

Then things went dark is a twisty gripping novel of suspense and details. You will love this gripping book and be left wanting more! I recommend Then things went dark!

Enjoyed so many things about this one, and that title is just perfection.

The writing was so clever--each chapter starting as an episode of the show, fluidly using third-person-omniscient to give us peeks into each character's perspective, and then switching to the present police investigation. Bea Fitzgerald does a great job contrasting each character's perception against each other, to the point where a few times, you're really not sure what to believe. I liked that some of the characters had ulterior motives to being on the island, but I did think there would be more of that--especially with a certain two characters. I kept waiting for the twist, sure that things weren't as they seemed, but instead they really were haha. So perhaps that was an issue with my expectations!

Party-influencer-life really isn't an interest of mine, so personally I didn't read it for the reality-show aspect, but I knew that going into it and enjoyed the book. I think those a bit more connected to pop culture would really enjoy it.

So grateful to Netgalley and the publisher for the e-arc!

3.5 stars rounded up.

I loved this book! It was a unique writing style, with so much going on and it really drew me in. We learn right away that there is a murder and we know who the victim is. Now it’s a matter of finding out what happened and why. Each chapter is an episode of a reality show, and just like reality tv, there are confessionals scattered throughout. The story also includes the police investigation, social media comments from viewers, etc, so you become immersed in the plot. It’s a really great modern spin on the classic mystery. I look forward to recommending this book to others. Thanks for the opportunity to read!

I’m sorry to say I didn’t love this one. A murder takes place on a reality show, on a desert island. I just couldn’t get into it.