I’m not sure what to say about this one… None of the characters were likeable, the storyline was pretty far fetched, and the depiction of mental illness felt poorly done. I finished it, but wouldn’t recommend it.

I just finished reading this book. The plot was absolutely fantastic! It was quite the page turner, and I could not put the book down once I began reading it.

This was a quick page thriller. The timelines were very hard to follow and at times way confusing. Very hit or miss with this author.

initial thoughts: just not for me. an interesting premise but a bunch of unbelievable, eye rolling scenarios had me having a hard time picking up this book to finish it.

still, a big thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press/Minotaur Books for the ARC.

I’ve always enjoyed this authors twisty books! The dual timeline is a favorite of mine and I think Sandie Jones did it justice! When Nicole’s current life collides with her past, she’s forced into wondering who she can trust and to protect the one person she loves more than anything, her daughter.

The ending was a little rushed for me and I feel like I still wondered ‘why’ to one of the main storyline plots.



TW: Rape

Nicole Forbes thought she had a nice, quiet life on the California coast with her husband and daughter. Out of the blue, a writer comes knocking asking her questions about a night she wishes to forget. Nicole was personal witness to the ending of the biggest British band of the 80s. Just after this visit, her daughter went missing. Two concerning events and Nicole believes they are connected. Back in the 80s, when Cassie was only 16-years-old, she was wildly obsessed with the popular boy band, Secret Oktober. She somehow captured the attention of the lead singer, Ben Edwards, and will do anything to keep it. Things go sideways for Cassie when she learns that Ben had discovered her older sister, Nicole, singing at a local bar. This only begins weaving the webs that could bring everyone’s life to a stop.

I enjoyed the back and forth between current time and the 80s. This one was twisty and certainly kept you guessing until the end. I haven’t read anything by the author before, but certainly would pick something up by her. She keeps it twisty and does a great job to make you want to like the right characters and hate the others.

This book was just okay! While I enjoyed the rockstar vibes I felt this one had so much potential that wasn’t executed well. I was entertained but also felt it was lacking at the same time.

I Would Die for You was an edge-of-your-seat thriller of extreme band fandom gone completely rogue. Intriguing, right? It's a topic I've scarcely seen addressed in thriller and mystery literature: when obsession and jealousy are taken a few steps too far, ending in murder - whether intentional or not.

The story is complex, well woven, and captivating. There are some disturbing and triggering elements and themes in the plot that may or may not have been necessary to the overall development of the story - therefore be sure to review possible triggers warnings before reading.

This was the first time I read Sandie Jones and it was a thrilling experience. However, I did feel that the plot was wrapped up rather quickly, leaving me feeling like some loose ends remained. I also wouldn't be surprised if a sequel is to follow.

🙏Thank you St Martin's Press, Minotaur Books and NetGalley for a gifted advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

⚠️ Potential Trigger Warnings (may not be an exhaustive list): missing person, drug use, sexual assault, homicide.

I almost never give a book less than 5 stars because I'm just here to be entertained. But the ending of this book is causing me to deduct a star. I really enjoyed the premise of the main character having left her old life behind to escape her past and then it all comes rushing back to cause conflict in the present. I enjoyed the alternating timelines up until the end and the story did keep me on my toes with the plot twists.
However, as I got to less than 5 minutes left in the audiobook and there was still a lot that needed to be wrapped up, I realized this would not be a satisfying ending.
SPOILERS BELOW
The end felt soooooo rushed and was also hard to keep up with. The end chapters were short and switched timelines with each chapter so l was mentally having to keep track of what exactly was going on.
The main character, Nicole, goes to see Ben, the guy in the band she was in love with in the 80s, with this girl who had previously showed up at her doorstep. For most of the book I thought Ben was the one who died in the 80s and who Nicole had been cleared of suspicion after a death occurred but no, he's still alive. So then I'm realizing who dies and I'm not mad about it but I'm also thinking why has she acted like she killed someone for the whole book. Anyways, her crazy sister is in town so she leaves Ben and the girl to go back home because she thinks her sister is kidnapping her daughter again. She and the sister have a confrontation within like the last 10 minutes of the book, the sister is still deranged, and her primary concern is that Nicole got the entire inheritance her dad left. This is because of what the sister did in the 80s and the fact that she's still very mentally unwell. So the sister almost kills Nicole but her husband and police captain friend rescue her at the last second and the sister is handcuffed and then the police captain gets a radio message that there's been a homicide in another county and why does that matter?
Because it's related to Nicole and the police captain looks at Nicole as her husband stops hugging her and her psycho sister has a twisted grin on her face and Nicole remarks that her sister will never stop destroying her life and the book ends. And that's why I'm giving this 4 stars.
We're lead to believe that Ben was probably killed by the random girl who turns out to be the daughter of the band mate Ben was convicted of killing and the sister's equally delusional enabling best friend. The band mate who brutally assaulted the sister and died from a drug overdose from drugs the sister who was 16 at the time gave him and he willingly took. So Nicole never actually told Ben the truth of her perspective of the events in the 80s before leaving to rush home and the poor guy l assume had a tragic end to his tragic life because of the psycho sister and Nicole who couldn't ever just spit out the truth. I didn't like how this book basically ended on a cliffhanger of everyone in the room looking at Nicole like she's responsible for this new murder. It felt so rushed. And logically, if she could actually just lay out the entire truth and relay the sequence of events, her husband and the police captain would very quickly realize she's not at fault for either band member's deaths and that her psycho sister organized this whole mess because of an extreme case of parasocial relationship.
In summation, the book is an excellent case study in how important it is to communicate clearly because bad stuff happens when everyone is running off assumptions and no one has a clear conversation with one another about what's actually going on

I've only read one other Sandie Jones book (The Other Woman) and I absolutely loved that one. This was unfortunately a let down for me. The past chapters to me were a bit messy and confusing at times. I did really enjoy the present chapters, though! I'm definitely not giving up on SJ because I enjoy her writing style! Thank you NetGalley for my ARC!

I really enjoyed this book- it’s less thriller and more of a tale of sisters. I liked the band aspect with the dual timelines. As a new parent, I can’t event imagine how Nicole must feel when her daughter goes missing. The ending is a little over the top but I think that made for a great audio book. I was truly gripped while listening.


Thank you Minotaur Books for my gifted ebook.

Three things immediately drew me to this book: the dual timeline, the downfall of a musical group, and Sandie Jones. While this was not my favorite by this author, it did work for me. Each time we switched timelines, more puzzle pieces were revealed. I enjoyed the twists and ending. However, the characters were a little superficial, and the pacing was almost too fast. Some aspects were a little unbelievable, but I enjoyed the ride Jones took us on. I can't wait to see what she writes next.

I have really loved some of Sandie Jones prior thrillers, but unfortunately, I Would Die For You was a total flop for me. The comparisons to Daisy Jones ended for me at music being involved in both stories. I usually love a dual timeline, but this one was just too lackluster in the reveal for me.

Holy toxicity! Stories about obsession definitely draw me in and this was no different. I really enjoyed watching the story unfold. The altering past and present timelines kept me wanting to know what was going on. But there were many moments that seemed a little ridiculous. The characters lacked depth and I didn’t really care about what happened to them. The ‘twist’ both tried too hard and was too basic.

(I received this ARC from NetGalley. This is my unbiased review)

I Would Die for You by Sandie Jones is a novel split into two time frames and multiple POVs. From 'present' time with the main character Nicole and her family, to 1986 and the past that leads up to all the current events. Nicole and Cassie are sisters with a terminally ill mother, with Nicole being the more reasonable sister and Cassie the star struck fangirl. Cassie is obsessed with a new band, Secret Oktober, especially with the lead singer Ben Edwards. Cassie befriends a roadie sort of fangirl named Amelia and the pair soon do whatever they can to get into the shows or to see the band.

Cassie becomes deluded with the notion that she and Ben have something special when he acknowledges her presence at some events. Meanwhile as the story progresses it seems like Ben isn't fully aware of Cassie's existence. In this timeframe Ben ends up meeting Nicole at a bar where she sings and the two become close. All of this time Ben has no realization that Nicole and Cassie are sisters.

The story and the events of the 1980s build to a climax that ends in a death and a trial with Nicole being viewed as one of the suspects. There seem to be so many secrets and loose ends in the trial and this piece of the story that it makes the reader to wonder if more will be revealed. It certainly didn't seem to be in this book.

Flash to the present where Nicole's daughter ends up missing. Thankfully she is found and cheerfully tells her mother that she had a lovely time with her Aunt. As the story builds Nicole begins to suspect her husband of having an affair and begins to wonder if her past is coming back to haunt her.

Faces of the past make their unexpected return and Nicole is faced with the need to protect her family at any means possible. The way I Would Die for You ended it left me speculating if the story will be continued in another book. It didn't leave on necessarily a cliffhanger but I definitely had questions and some bits of the story were not resolved. In my opinion I do hope there is a continuation of the story. It wasn't the best Jones' has put out but it did catch my attention. Until next time, happy reading!

So spooky! Whether it was the anticipation of actions to come from a character who had suddenly changed so drastically, or the unsettling events that started to unfold as we weaved back and forth between timelines...the whole thing gave me shivers!
If you're looking for a "stay up all night trying to see what happens next" novel, this one's for you! It gives a whole new vibe to the domestic thriller genre.

**3.5-stars**

I Would Die for You is a story told via two timelines: 1986-London and 2011-California. We get Nicole Forbes perspective in 2011, and her younger sister, Cassie's, perspective in 1986, when Cassie was just 16-years old. This novel also features one of my favorite things: musicians. I've been so excited for this story as it revolves around a super popular, yet fictional, band from the 1980s.

In fact, the 1986 timeline definitely stole the show for me. There's something about the vibes of the 1980s music scene in London that I just find so compelling. And I did feel like this captured the fan-side of that moment really well. I did enjoy the back and forth throughout the story, learning more about the sisters, and trying to figure out what happened between them.

Closer to the end, however, the timelines started to feel less distinct, and I honestly had to relisten to the last 1/2-hour of this audiobook 3x. It did have me invested though. This was a 4-star read for me right up until the very last bit. Seriously, the last few paragraphs, I was like, that's it!?

I never mind an open-ended story, one that leaves a bit up to the Reader's imagination, but this wasn't like an 'evil grin on your face' last moment twist, it was more a, 'you're seriously going to end it right there', kind of thing. Nevertheless, I still found this an overall entertaining story about sisters and all the twisted drama involved in their relationship.

Thank you to the publisher, Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. I have a lot of fun with Sandie Jones stories, and will happily continue picking up all her new releases!!

Although I usually love books by Sandie Jones, this book fell a little flat for me. Told in two time lines, part of the book read like a YA book, with a lot of petty sister drama and following a band around England. This was the part that fell a little flat for me. The flash forward part (2011, I believe) was a lot more relatable (as I am an adult, currently) and I enjoyed this part of the book much more. Trying to connect the dots as to how the past related to the present often felt like some dots were missing for me. This made for some confusion and wondering how we got from point A to point C, and how I could have missed point B (Although I don't always think that I did miss it.)

Generally, it was an entertaining book which I enjoyed. I just have liked some of Sandie Jones's previous books much better.

3.5 stars.

In 1986, Cassie was obsessed with Secret Oktober, the hottest band in London, and harboring a crush on leading man, Ben Edwards. She was determined to do anything it took to capture his attention amidst all the other groupies. When Ben discovers Cassie’s older sister, Nicole, singing at a bar, he can’t help but feel drawn to her. In 2011, Nicole lives in California with her husband and daughter when a writer knocks on her door asking for insight into the downfall of Secret Oktober, thus pulling on threads of her past life.

I WOULD DIE FOR YOU is a fast-paced read told in dual timelines (1986 and 2011) and in dual POV (Cassie and Nicole). I enjoyed both timelines and characters’ narration, particularly how both timelines intermingle by the end. That said, I found Nicole’s POV to be more relevant to the overall plot, and the more interesting one to read.

While both POVs were interesting, I was left with the feeling of needing to know more and the sense that I was reading about the characters from a distance, leaving me little feeling of relatability or engagement in their lives. Additionally, the characters’ relationships felt one-dimensional, and I didn’t feel wholly convinced about either of the characters’ passions or feelings.

The plot is intriguing with lots of secrets and lies mixed in amongst the instability of the characters. The ending is a bit of a whirlwind and abrupt, but overall, I liked it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Minotaur Books, for the opportunity to read this advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review! All opinions expressed are my own.

This book just did not make the mark like her previous books. I rarely give a rating below a 4 but felt it appropriate for this one. The characters were not quite believable and definitely not the first one likable so there is immediately no connection to the book. Their antics and the back and forth timeline just didn't work well. Subject matter for most is
unrelated to readers experience and general disinterest. There may be some readers that could find it entertaining but not my cup if tea. I was invited to read an advanced reader copy of the book but was under no obligation to write a review. The opinions expressed are my own. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.