It always feels a little odd calling a book centered around a murder a delight, but this book truly is a delight. It's a slow burn romance centered around a career-minded journalist and the focus of her career altering article, the hottest and most currently in-demand actor. Even though the two main characters have instant chemistry together, professionalism and a pesky little murder cover-up keep the characters dancing around their feelings for each other in a fast-paced and emotionally charged thriller. I really enjoyed how complex the characters and how their flaws were treated with such gentleness and care and how important their individual friendships were so important to them. I Did Something Bad is a wonderfully written novel and I look forward to reading more from this author.
Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

I absolutely loved this! While the beginning was fairly slow for me. Once it hit the 30%, or mayeba slightly higher, this book really did it for me. I found all the characters to be so lovable. The relationship between khin and her two best friends was somwthing i long for lol i really thought this was going to be more thriller/mystery (which may be my bad) but there was also a lot of romance. Which. By the way, i was LIVING for. I just recently got accepted for another of this authors books and i cannot wait to read it.

I will definitely be purchasing this ine for my shelves.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I just don’t understand the choices that the characters made and it was just annoying me.

The characters were also annoying to me and I didn’t like anyone.

I hope others love this one.

3 star review - it was a decent read. Read well and it kept me engaged. Thank you for the author and tea, for the chance of an arc.

I hate to do this but this is a DNF for me. The basic premise of this was good - a journalist becomes close with the Hollywood star that she’s writing a profile on. So why does she randomly need to be attacked and then end up killing her attacker? And then refusing to call the cops? It made no sense to me and I didn’t have time to get to know either of the leads enough to warrant caring what happened to them. When I realized I was just hate reading this I had to stop. Life’s too short for that. No official star rating since I didn’t finish.

Oh, this book. Had an interesting start, until it didn’t, I guess. The FMC was the most one-dimensional character I’ve ever read— why is the reader on a need-to-know basis? I understand authors do that to be mysterious but in this case it was unnecessary.

As the reader, you think the story is about one thing, when in fact it’s about something entirely different. This ‘thing’ is mentioned (casually, I might add) near the beginning of the book, and then we come to find out it’s the most important fact we’ve learned and plays a huge role in the development of the plot. It was frustrating because it kept being brought up when it should’ve been addressed better at the first mention of it.

And then, there’s the romance. Which doesn’t even start to happen until about 60% in, and then it feels so rushed. Every chapter jumps ahead days, and sometimes weeks, and I hated it. The characters were getting closer but we weren’t reading about it. And then they fall in love and live happily ever after.

This book feels like two different stories— the first half was a mystery and the second half was a romance. But they didn’t come together in a way that made sense to me, which made for an extremely frustrating read.

A belated thank you to St. Martin’s Press for my advanced copy of I DID SOMETHING BAD.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. - Freya, arc & monthly book box pick reviewer

MORE BOOKS LIKE THIS ONE!!!
10/10 mystery
10/10 romance
10/10 humor
10/10 poc rep

I loved this book so much!!! I loved the premise and how the author portrayed famous people and how they also grapple with their fame and how it changes their lives, not always for the better. And I love when mystery solving brings two people together!

LOVED everything about this book!!

Eh. I started this and put it down... picked it back up and put it down... tried listening to the audiobook and I still just couldn't get through it. I just wasn't vibing with this kind of story at the time. I really tried though!

I really wanted to like this one, but it just didn’t work for me. There was zero chemistry between Khin and Tyler, which made it hard to get into their dynamic. Tyler, in particular, felt super flat—like the only real depth he had was through his sister, and that wasn’t enough to make him feel like a fully developed character. We were just supposed to believe he was so amazing and perfect from the start? No....

The murder and investigation were also pretty flimsy. It was ridiculous from the very stat, and never developed into anything compelling. And Tyler’s motivation to help Khin? It just didn’t feel believable. Overall, it had potential, but the story didn’t come together in a satisfying way.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a DRC in exchange for my honest review.

Unfortunately, this one just didn't work for me. The description had me really excited, but it just felt increasingly less realistic and less well thought out as the story went on. Not a bad concept, but not super well executed. Thank you for the ARC. I did not leave a public review, as I did not want to bring a rating down for a new author.

I don't know how to feel about this book. LOVED Tyler and want to be friends with May. The plot seems too messy -- it felt like two different stories (the accidental murder and the journalist writing a profile on a star). The third act break up feels forced but I kinda get it I guess. The writing feels too..millennial? Gen Z? Don't know, but it's not going to age well I think (the references already feel dated). Overall, a fast-paced, engaging vacation read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC

I Did Something Bad

[Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to review this ARC with honesty.]

This is a very unique twist with a murder, a romance, a career and a whole lot of serious references to different social issues in the world. It made for a very interesting read.

I will say, some of those things did not (my opinion here) flow as well with the rest. Don’t get me wrong, it should be talked about but being as you have a murder and this topic and also how very little the murder is truly the plot of the story, it felt disjointed. I do like the two main characters but it felt - displaced.

Still had a fun time reading this and would read from this author again.

My Rating: 3 Stars

I enjoyed I Did Something Bad. The storyline flowed nicely and I actually liked the characters. It was fun reading a story set in a place I'm not familiar with. I would recommend this book to my friends and family.

3.5 Stars

While there are parts of this that require you to suspend disbelief, I Did Something Bad is so much more than just a romance with a hint of suspense. I would argue this is more about friendships, focusing on trust and belief, finding oneself, and even a bit of social justice issues.

Taking place in Myanmar, Khin is a journalist on the cusp of huge career move if she can get the scoop on international movie star Tyler Tun. What begins as a professional agreement to spend time together quickly escalates to a friendship with hints of more after Khin accidentally kills a man in self-defense. Khin and Tyler decide not to come forward with this information (for reasons explained) and while this becomes the underlying plot, the highlights of the story are really about how their friendship grows from their connection on social issues and their relationship with their friends.

I enjoyed getting to know the culture of Myanmar as I knew little outside of the civil unrest and armed conflict.

This was a cute story. A writer gets a chance to follow an actor for two months to write a piece on him and things get out of hand quick. There’s love and murder and betrayal and redemption all the greats. I liked the story and it came together well but at some points I was like “that was a little too easy”. The characters were likable but not very deep. The narrator did a great job.

This was such a fun read! Lately, I've been really into romantic thrillers, and this one did not disappoint. Khin, a journalist, lands a major opportunity to write a cover story about a huge celebrity, Tyler Tun. She gets to spend two months in Myanmar with full access to him, and if she does a good job, she’ll be offered a new position. But when Tyler saves her on one of their first nights on set, it triggers a series of thrilling events that will keep you hooked. The story is fast-paced, with fantastic secondary characters, and the chemistry and witty banter between Khin and Tyler are absolutely delightful.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of I Did Something Bad by Pyae Moe Thet War!

After her divorce Khin lives for her work. She recently got an opportunity to interview the Tyler Tun - international moviestar and rumored next James Bond - for Vogue Singapore. Not only is this a great opportunity but, based on how well it turns out, Khin may also be offered a job with Vogue Singapore, giving her a way out of the city she still shares with her ex husband.

Typically writing articles with a bit more substance to them, she knows she can tackle a simple celebrity profile and having full access to Tyler Tun for two months is unheard of.

But when an incident occurs on the set of his new movie, Khin realizes that she needs Tyler's help. As they work together to keep their names out of the press, Khin begins to see the real Tyler, the one reserved for his family and close friends. Now, everything from her new job to her life are on the line.

I kept hearing a lot about this book and I think it was hyped up too much as being a romantic thriller. I didn't really find much in the way of thrills or suspense about it.

I feel like it would have been more apt if the book was marketed more as a celebrity romance. To be fair, it was, just not as, I feel, whole-heartedly as places calling it a thrilling and suspenseful read.

But looking at it through the celebrity romance lens, I really enjoyed it. I like how low-key Tyler was. Yes, he is a super celeb, and also yes, there were moments of chaos that follows him around in his everyday life, but I didn't feel like it was too overwhelming as a lot of fictional celebrity stories are conveyed. I also loved the way that Tyler and Khin's relationship slowly forms. They have no aspirations toward one another, but because they are set to rely upon one another after conflicts arise on his movie set, that gives them this unguarded vulnerability where they teeter on fully trusting the other but also not knowing if they can fully trust each other at the same time. Their livelihoods are in each other's hands for better or worse.

There is an aspect to Khin's writing that somewhat plays a part in how events unfold - if I can possibly be more cryptic for you! Not wanting to give too much away, but this was really the heart of the entire story for me, and I would have loved if the conflicts that arise were allowed to acknowledge this from the onset, because I feel like it would have made for a more dynamic read. Instead it becomes part of the mystery which means that it's something we don't fully understand until that mystery is solved which is close to the end of the book which in turn keeps it from being developed as much as I would have loved to see.

Overall, though I enjoyed the read which was a first for me by Pyae Moe Thet War. Her next book is already on my TBR list.

Romcom + murder? It reminded me a bit of some books that I previously read but it was still enjoyable. The banter is amazing. I love it.

An interesting debut - while the writing style didn't work for me, it was definitely an interesting premise with interesting characters. I would have liked the hero's POV, but that's a personal preference (I pretty much always want the hero's POV). If you want a romantic suspense rom-com, you should try this book.