This was an Intriguing read. Very mysterious. I really enjoyed the main character but I didn’t like the professor or the ex. I wasn’t sure how the different cases were going to come together but in the end they did & I liked how they pulled together. I think the beginning was really good and the end as well but the middle was a bit long. At times overly wordy. Which the audio did help with that, so that’s something! The narrator really brought the story to life. All in all, I liked this one. Could have been cut down in length. But still good

This book was decent but I found it really slow and I just didn't connect to the characters as much as I had hoped I would.

This is a fun suspenseful thriller that will keep you guessing. Was Jack's grandfather murdered? Did she kill her own father? I listened to the audiobook and loved the narration as it really brought the story to life. The twists just keep coming and the ending was a surprise! I loved the red herrings and I just went along for the ride.

ℝ𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘: ⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕞𝕒𝕥: 𝐸-𝐵𝑜𝑜𝓀 & 𝒜𝓊𝒹𝒾𝑜𝒷𝑜𝑜𝓀

ℝ𝕖𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕨: 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬), 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰-𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫. 𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧-𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞! 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐰-𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡, 𝐬𝐨 𝐈 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝟏/𝟒 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡.

𝑵𝒐𝒕 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒔 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐉𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐚’𝐬 (“𝐉𝐚𝐜’𝐬”) 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐞𝐱𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝟐𝟐 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 (𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐞). 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲.

𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝓉𝑜 𝒴𝒶𝓈𝓂𝒾𝓃 𝒜𝓃𝑔𝑜𝑒, 𝒯𝒽𝑜𝓂𝒶𝓈 & 𝑀𝑒𝓇𝒸𝑒𝓇, 𝐵𝓇𝒾𝓁𝓁𝒾𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝒫𝓊𝒷𝓁𝒾𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔, & 𝒩𝑒𝓉𝒢𝒶𝓁𝓁𝑒𝓎 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒜𝑅𝒞! 𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝓅𝒾𝓃𝒾𝑜𝓃𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝓎 𝑜𝓌𝓃.

I absolutely loved this book! Jacinda “Jac” Brodie’s story kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. Returning to her hometown of Brook Haven, South Carolina, after years away, Jac confronts a past filled with anger, grief, and guilt—emotions I felt right alongside her. The shadow of her father’s tragic death looms large, especially with whispers of blame that forced her to leave.

Jac’s journey toward self-acceptance and her love for her family, even amidst the turmoil, is beautifully written. I was completely engaged as she navigated the town’s new dynamics, particularly with the wealthy newcomer, Faye Arden, who just seems too perfect. There’s definitely something sinister lurking beneath that charming exterior, and I was right there with Jac as she tried to uncover the truth.

The mystery surrounding her grandfather's death adds another layer of intrigue. Why did his pacemaker fail? Jac’s determination to find out what really happened kept me hooked. And can we talk about her disastrous situationship with her professor? I was furious for her when he exploited her pain for his own gain.

As for the romantic angle with her ex-boyfriend—let’s just say it’s complicated. He seems eager for a second chance, but I couldn’t help but wonder if it’s really a sweet reunion or something more tangled. Overall, this story is a captivating blend of mystery, emotional depth, and personal growth. I thoroughly enjoyed every moment and highly recommend it to anyone who loves a gripping tale of redemption and self-discovery!

I hadn't read Yasmin Angoe until I read Not What She Seems, and I definitely think I need to change that! This book was super wild at the end and while it was a slower burn to start, I was completely invested and couldn't wait to see what would happen. Jac is the main viewpoint in the story, and while I didn't always understand or agree with her choices, she was a multifaceted character who was both relatable and frustrating at the same time. She made for an entertaining and interesting FMC and the drama was top-notch.

Jordan Cobb narrates the audiobook, and I would recommend it to all the audio fans out there. I thought Cobb was an excellent narrator, especially for Jac, and she helped keep me on the edge of my seat. The conclusion of Not What She Seems blew my mind a little bit and was completely unexpected. Including Faye’s viewpoint later in the book was a brilliant idea and helped me get a better idea of her character and what was driving her throughout the story since we don't have her viewpoint elsewhere. There were a lot of what I would call stupid decisions being made when I neared the end, but it added lots of suspense, and I couldn't look away.

After reading this book that has family drama, a murder mansion, armchair detectives, past and present crimes, and a sneaky sweet antagonist, I’ll be picking whatever this author is writing down.

It’s a thriller with in depth background of its characters, set in the low country of South Carolina, and gives a shoutout to my alma mater, the University of South Carolina.

Great narration!!

2.5 🌟 rounded down

She is exactly what she seems.

Unfortunately, this story had a very hard time keeping my interest. The concept itself is intriguing, but the execution was way too long and predictable. There were many times when I just wanted to jump into the book and smack Jac on the head for her foolishness.

The side story with the mom felt completely unnecessary. Her actions to uncover the truth with the police were repeatedly ridiculous, and the reader often connected the dots far ahead of the main character, which kind of ruins a mystery/thriller for me.

I did appreciate the feminine/Black women rage aspect of the book and the family bond and struggles that were portrayed. Plus, I found Faye’s past (even though predictable) very intriguing and interesting.

Even though the story itself was meh, the narrator did an amazing job with this one—definitely picking up other audiobooks with Jordan Cobb as a narrator.

Thank you, NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing, for this audiobook ARC! All opinions are my own.

I tried listening to this on audio but it was a bit hard to follow. This audio is a DNF for me. I may try to read the kindle version instead. The story so far was intriguing but I can not listen to it.

Thanks to Brilliance Audio for the audiobook!

I read this entire book in one day and it's a long one, so that alone is quite a compliment to it!

My biggest problem with this book that started well and ended even better was that there was so much unnecessary fluff in the middle. This book could have been more effective had it been half the length. I feel like the plot of the beginning of the story that lured me in was lost in the woods of the nothingness in the middle of the book.

I did like the main character and was rooting for her!

The narrator did a great job holding my attention as well. 5/5 on the audiobook production!

This is out now!

Yasmine Angoe is not talked about enough! This book was so good. Thrilling and mysterious, the characters were interesting and I loved the ride this book took me on. I was unsure about how the different cases would pull together but in the end it all made sense. Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would highly recommend it. My only complaint would be that at times it was a little too wordy but, paired with the audiobook, it was easy to get past. The audiobook was very well performed and incredibly entertaining. The narrator really brought the story to life.

A taut thriller. Starts off with a bang and kept.me invested throughout the entire read. The narrator did a great job, too.