Part romantic comedy, part cozy mystery, I loved all of I Did Something Bad. When a journalist writing a cover piece on an up and coming young action star accidentally kills her would be stalker, he witnesses it and they collude to cover up the crime, falling for each other along the way. I loved Khin and Tyler’s immediate chemistry, even though they don’t recognize it right away. And the extremes they go to hide the crime are hilarious and entertaining.

This book is definitely more romance than mystery, which would have been fine, but the romance fell flat for me.

Khin’s emotions felt surface level. My explanation is a minor spoiler, so I’ll hide it. (Most women who are victims of sexual assault, nearly raped, then kill their attacker, would be at least somewhat traumatized. They wouldn’t feel comfortable out alone. And I can’t imagine that they’d be joking about it. Khin seemed more upset about her past divorce than her recent assault.)

I didn’t dislike Khin or Tyler, but I also didn’t feel any sizzle. I didn’t feel the intensity. I just didn’t feel… period. I can’t really explain my disconnect beyond the fact that the romcom vibes didn’t work for the heavy content.

I enjoyed the aspect of Khin struggling to find her footing in the world, deciding what she wanted in her life going forward. This story has a lot to say, and will no doubt be a great fit for other readers.

*Thanks to St. Martin’s Griffin for the free eARC, provided via NetGalley.*

This is a cozy mystery romance starring a celebrity and a journalist that end up covering for each other when a potential murder occurs. It takes place in Myanmar and I enjoyed discovering the amenities in a new setting. The story itself may be a little far-fetched, but executed in a fun way that held my attention. I listened to the audiobook and the narration makes it a great way to enjoy this unique love story.

This was a cute romance read mixed with a little bit of mystery, which is what originally attracted me to this book because I love romantic suspense.

Even though there were some serious subject matter in the book I felt it was more of a lighthearted read. I would have liked a little bit more mystery but with this book being more romancey I can understand why the author was light on the mystery.

Overall I enjoyed this book.

I Did Something Bad is silly fun at the midpoint of romance and crime caper and I had to pretty much completely detach my logic brain in order to enjoy it.

The romance was problematic (see note) and the murder plot was unbelievable (Khin left a trail of whole loaves of bread for cops to figure it out). But I actually had a good time with this?

NOTE TO AUTHORS: If you want to write a journalist character, please, I am BEGGING you, get some advice from actual journalists. Having a reporter fall for and cross ethical boundaries with their subject isn’t harmless - and the fact that it happens so often in fiction shows just how embedded this false and insidious premise is embedded into the popular conception of how journalists behave. It is ***vanishingly*** rare for it to happen (see the reaction to the whole Nuzzi/RFKJr dustup to see how infrequently journalists violate ethical codes this way in real life).

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed “I Did Something Bad” by Pyae Moe Thet War. This book is a genre bending mashup between a romance and a murder mystery centering on Khin Hlaing, an independent journalist, who has been asked by Vogue to conduct a month long interview of movie star Tyler Tun while he is in Myanmar shooting his latest film. Except on the first night of shooting Khin is attacked by an unknown man. Khin and Tyler agree to cover up what happened while simultaneously investigating the incident themselves.

I loved a lot of this book - the relationship between Khin and Tyler was well done and believable, huge kudos for such an interesting genre bending premise, and the writing was witty while also delicate enough to handle some of the heavier themes. Two such moments really stand out to me: first, scene between Khin and her ex-husband in the middle of the book. The emotional catharsis was palpable and this confrontation sets Khin up for a really good emotional growth arc through out the rest of the novel. Second, I also loved the fact that Tyler bought Khin mugs at the end - just a really nice romantic and symbolic touch that showed just how much he paid attention to her and cared for her. Finally, I greatly enjoyed the setting. I don’t think I’ve ever read a book set in Myanmar and I enjoyed learning a bit about the culture.

However, I found the balance between the murder mystery and the romance to be a bit off. It felt like the narrative bounced between being a thriller and a rom-com but never found the right mix of both. I also found this book challenged my willing suspension of disbelief too much to be a five star read. It took longer than I wanted for the author to explain just why Khin was so eager to cover up a possible murder. She was clearly attacked and the whole episode seemed pretty cut and dry. So why not go to the police? I did think Khin’s reasoning was understandable once we finally saw how the police were treating women, especially Khin - it just took too long to get this clarification. I also found the solution to the mystery to be too easily solved and thus anticlimactic.

Despite these quibbles I found “I Did Something Bad” to be a very solid four star read and one I would highly recommend. I’m really looking forward to reading Pyae Moe Thet War’s next work - she’s become an auto-buy author for me after this book.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Griffin for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A smart and swooney rom com that will captivate you from the start. Khin and Tyler have chemistry and their interactions are both heartwarming and entertaining. You will have a smile on your face.
Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Khin Haymar is ecstatic to learn that she's being offered a story about Tyler Tun. She's excited for the job opportunity. The fact that Tyler is Hollywood's current Hottest movie star doesn't hurt. Soon she's getting to know this thoughtful, sexy many outside of his shiny star-ness but there's one night at a party when she's approached by a strange man. He attacks her and... well, she does something bad. And Tyler sees her and accidentally helps. They decide to cover it up for... reasons (?) I get that Khin is probably under some stress but her decisions don't really make sense.
From there, the two are stressed but falling in love. Then there's the (I think unnecessary) late misunderstanding. And the ending felt a bit rushed.
The marketing on this one is a bit off. The blurb I read said this made it feel like it would be a funny romance and, because of that, it took me a while to get into this book.

I was really excited to find a mystery set in Myanmar--a country I've visited and a country that isn't written much about...but, to be honest, I think this book could have been set anywhere as the setting did not play much into the story aside from a few quick references and emphasis on identifying Asian characters.

And the story itself was a bit odd--just an odd combo of far-fetched and realistic--like the book couldn't decide what genre it wanted to be.

Book: I Did Something Bad
Author: Pyae Moe Thet War
Genre: Romance/Comedy/Mystery
Places Featured: Myanmar
Review Score: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (It was fine)

I think this one may have been slightly misleading in referring to it as a rom com. It is a slow, slow, slow burn as far as romance goes, and it's not necessarily funny. However, I did enjoy the adventure portion and the twists and turns.

1.5 stars.. yeah.. not my cup of tea. I thought I would like the combination of romance + murder mystery/high stakes, but this one just didn't work for me. Maybe it's the author's writing style and tone that aren't for me or the overall premise of the book and what our main characters went through. The romance was not believable between Khin and Tyler, and I think that's something that really kept me from being fully immersed into the book while reading.

This one was a slow burn for me. I would say it’s more of a cozy mystery than a full on mystery. However, I did enjoyed the crime and figuring out who attacked our A-list celebrity. . It just took a while to get into the story for me. Once I read a few small twists I connected a bit more to the story. I will say the romance between the two seemed off and I believe that is what took away my connection with the two characters.

This was SO dissapointing. At the moment I have to DNF. I am always looking forward to a cozy mystery-esque story but this is falling flat. My main issue is that I did not like our main FMC. Maybe she would have grown on me but I just could not take the time to care. Maybe I will circle around to this book once I am looking for this type of story.

✨Book Review✨
I Did Something Bad by Pyae Moe Thet War
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
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This book was a cute rom com. I really loved the first half, but the second half got a little boring. I really didn't like the fallout between the love interests. Their reaction based on what happened seemed unrealistic and that frustrated me. I did really love the celebrity vibes and the characters were lovely. I would recommend this one if you want a cute celebrity/journalist rom com.

I really liked this book. The description was very interesting and made me wanna read the story. I love romances and adventure stories and this was a little of both. I liked the way the characters interacted with each other, it was so fun to read. I think the book was well written and I’d recommend this if you like romcoms with a side of murder.

This story was all over the place. Khin is writing an article about Tyler but then they cover up a murder while joking about it and then they fall in love. I guess it was funny in places, and witty at times, but overall, I wasn’t sure what to make of this. I will say it was entertaining but it was trying to be too many things.

"I Did Something Bad" by Pyae Moe Thet War was a highly entertaining read.

It has a little of everything. From movie stars to murder, and of course, a romance story to root for, readers will be captivated by this one.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this and am looking forward the next book written by Pyae Moe Thet War.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for gifting me this ARC.

This was such a cute read until we got to that 3rd act break-up. I still enjoyed the experience overall, but it definitely took away

Khin is a journalist assigned to shadow and write a big scoop about Tyler Tun, a huge movie star. It will be the big break she needs after a really hard divorce and will give her a chance to snag a coveted role at Vogue in Singapore. Tyler is definitely hiding a secret and Khin is determined to figure out what it is. But when things go awry, can Tyler and Khin work together to help each other out? And will feelings develop along the way?

I thought this was a fun read, full of cute pop culture references. Khin and Tyler had a sweet chemistry together and their banter was adorable. I loved the Myanmar setting. I thought Khin's past trauma and Tyler's reluctance to open up added depth to their story. I liked their friends and movie set setting. I didn't even mind the murder plot because it didn't take too much page time. <spoiler> The one thing that dropped this book a whole star for me, was the 3rd act break-up. He got angry because she was DOING HER JOB. I just can't. May (Tyler's bff) was also a total brat. They knew she was writing a story. Tyler invited her to write the story. What was she supposed to do? Not do her job, the whole reason she was there? Ridiculous. I also HATED that Khin went to grovel to May and Tyler several times. He should be groveling to her for being a baby about her writing an article she was paid to write. </spoiler>

As stated, I enjoyed this book, but that 3rd act wasn't for me. I would read more from this author and hope that she treats her next heroine better than poor Khin. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the e-book in exchange for my honest review.

This was a really fun read. I loved that was a rom com with a twist of murder. Love the chemistry between the two characters.

Enthralling and delightful, this debut novel by the author truly deserves a 5 star review!
Freelance journalist Khin is offered a once in a lifetime chance by the editor at Vogue to interview mega star Tyler Tun. To make this opportunity even sweeter, the editor has promised that if she can obtain an exclusive scoop regarding Tyler, she will give Khin a permanent position as a Vogue journalist in Singapore. Khin is still emotionally coming to grips with her marriage ending and jumps at the opportunity. Meeting Tyler, he is not what she might have imagined Hollywood’s golden boy to be. When a stalker accosts her near the movie set and attacks her, she fights back while on a railing over the water. She stabs her attacker with her pen and tries to toss him into the water, only her grabs onto her. Tyler grabs her so she doesn’t fall, but when the attacker doesn’t swim away, it becomes a question of what to do?
The book is full of twists and turns. My one issue is that part of the plot twist seems a bit forced, but this was a great read. If you enjoy a good romance with a bit of mystery thrown in, you will enjoy this book!