From the first page this book had me hooked! From the point of view of Georgia, locked in a psych ward, and Mandy her twin sister separated at birth, this book is suspenseful and thrilling the whole time. I loved the back and forth point of views and the way the story unfolds. This is definitely an author I will auto buy from now on! Loved it!

Sarah Pekkanen is one of those auto-read authors for me, and The Locked Ward was a really quick and enjoyable read! It started off strong for me, but the ending fell a little bit flat and the twist wasn't as shocking as I'd hoped it would be.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for sending me this book!

When you get a chance to read an ARC from Sarah P...you DO IT. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC <33!!

Short, fast paced, and twisty. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a quick thriller.

Accused of murdering her wealthy family’s biological daughter, Georgia is locked in a psychiatric hospital for the criminally insane. When her estranged twin Amanda visits (a little unbelievable that you'd just get a call from someone in a locked ward claiming to be your twin sister and immediately be like yeah cool ok let's scheme!! but I digress...), Georgia swears she’s innocent and begs Mandy to help get her out. Mandy doesn’t trust her—but she also can’t shake the feeling something is very wrong. Is Georgia a pawn in a sinister family game, or is Amanda falling into the trap of a master manipulator?

Not 5 stars because
- the switching of POV's was great and kept me interested and turning pages, but the 2nd person pov for Georgia was a clunky for me.
- a bit predictable, in a way that thrillers like this sometimes are, but I was hoping for some kind of earth-shattering ending. The ending just felt...there.

I loved Sarah Pekkanen's House of Glass so I was very excited to read this thriller, which didn't disappoint.

The story follows two women - one wealthy, one not. They are not only sisters, but twins, but they didn't know about one another growing up.

The wealthy one, Georgia, is accused of murdering her adoptive sister and is locked away in a mental institution (and is faking her condition for a reason the reader needs to figure out.) Georgia calls on Mandy (the non-wealthy twin) to play detective and figure out what really happened the night her adoptive sister died.

The POVs go back and forth as Mandy gets closer to the truth (and closer to danger.) This is a quick, thrilling read with many surprises and twists and turns. I enjoyed it and feel like any Sarah Pekkanen fan would as well. I read it in only a couple of days and was happy to neglect chores to do so.

I really enjoyed The Locked Ward and following Georgia and Mandy. I pegged Georgia wrong, and the book kept reading until the very last page. I may have expected a bit bigger of a “bang” at the end, but overall it was a great read.

The Locked Ward follows twin sisters Georgia and Amanda as they strive to uncover the truth behind Georgia's arrest for murder. Adopted at birth, Georgia and Amanda were sent to live with separate families, Georgia being adopted by the wealthy, influential Cartwright family. Georgia's adoptive mother, Honey, gives birth soon after to Annabelle, her biological daughter. When Georgia is arrested for Annabelle's murder, she reaches out to her biological twin sister, begging for help. As her twin Amanda delves into family secrets, shady political characters emerge, complicating her quest for the truth. Was Georgia driven to murder by her jealousy of her sister, or is something bigger at play?

I really enjoyed this book. I thought the plot was well developed, with lingering questions after the climax addressed pretty well, and I loved the twists and shady characters. I also loved that Amanda was tough, strong, and smart, because oftentimes in thrillers, I find the female characters to be written as naive, which was the opposite in this novel.

I personally do not enjoy short chapters, found in this novel, but I know many people enjoy that. Additionally, I did notice quite a few grammatical errors and typos, so I believe this book should go through one more round of edits before publication date.

All in all, a four star read for me and I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

Georgia has been held in a locked ward after the bloody murder of her sister, Annabelle, but she insists she’s innocent. And the only person who she thinks can help her is her sister….but isn’t her sister dead? No, she’s talking about Mandy—a sister she’s never met before.

Overall Thoughts: I enjoyed the short chapters and this was a quick read. It was told from the POVs of the two sisters—Georgia & Mandy. One POV was told in first person and the other was in second person (which I found a little weird). Though some of the twists were predictable, overall I liked the book and thought it was an easy read, with an ending that wrapped things up nicely.

Thank you to NetGalley & St. Martin’s Press for the A
RC of this book!

After killing her sister, Georgia is locked in a psych ward while awaiting trial. Adopted as a baby, Georgia makes contact with her twin sister, who she has never met before. Her twin, Amanda, intrigued by the invite, visits Georgia in the psych ward. Georgia begs for Amanda's help to get her out. Amanda is not sure whether to believe Georgia, but feels obligated to help. After all, Georgia is her twin sister. As Amanda starts investigating, she realizes that Georgia's adopted family is not only super powerful, but kinda crazy. Do they have something to do with the murder? Or is Amanda's twin sister really a murderer?

I was SO excited to read this one. Sarah Pekkanen's House of Glass was one of my favourite reads of 2024. While I preferred House of Glass, I still really enjoyed the Locked Ward. Sarah is a very talented and creative writer, skilled at drawing her readers in and creating dynamic twists and turns. I really enjoyed the psych hospital setting as it gave a creepy overtone to the entire story. The twin element was also fun. Looking for a quick and creepy thriller? Then give this one a go! Be warned: once you start, good luck putting it down. I finished it in a single day.

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

First off, a huge shout out to NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen, and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an eARC of The Locked Ward in exchange for my honest review. You guys are the best! 🙌💖

Now, let’s dive into this riveting read!

Was it… Bitter, all-consuming jealousy? 🤔
Pathological sibling rivalry? 👭
Pure insanity? 😱

Whatever the cause—and trust me, everyone has a theory—it’s the Crime of the Decade when glamorous Georgia Cartwright is accused of killing the biological daughter of her wealthy Southern family.

Locked away in a psychiatric institution for the most violent offenders, Georgia's only plea to her estranged twin sister, Amanda, is: "I didn’t do it. You’ve got to get me out of here." 😰 But the question on everyone’s mind is: can Amanda trust her sister?

The atmosphere of the institution is so eerie and menacing that it feels like stepping into another dimension. 🏥💔 As Amanda navigates the claustrophobic tension, readers are taken on a thrilling ride — questioning whether Georgia is truly a victim of her powerful family or simply a master manipulator weaving a web of lies.

This novel is a beautifully crafted "killer" story that is superbly written! 📖✨ I devoured it in just ONE DAY! The short chapters made it impossible to put down, and I found myself racing through the pages with warp speed! 🏎️💨

Sarah Pekkanen is undoubtedly a master storyteller, weaving in some of the most compelling and gripping plot lines that keep you guessing until the very end. 🕵️‍♀️🔍 I was completely pulled into this psychological thriller, and I cannot express how thrilled I am to have received early access to such a fantastic book!

Final Thoughts:
I wholeheartedly recommend The Locked Ward to anyone who loves a page-turner that keeps you on the edge of your seat! 🎢🔥 Mark your calendars for August 2025 because this one is sure to become a bestseller! Don’t miss out! 📅🛒

I really enjoyed this book and finished it in a day. We first meet Georgia locked in a psychiatric institution after being accused of murdering her younger sister. She calls on her estranged twin, Amanda to help prove her innocence. There are a lot of dark family secrets that some go through extreme measures to keep secret. Amanda starts to unravel them while discovering more about herself and her twin- and learning who she can and can’t trust. Thank you NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for the eARC.

Would you be able to survive your time in a locked ward if it meant the truth could be uncovered? The Locked Ward delicately unravels the circumstances surrounding the murder of Georgia’s sister, Anabelle, and the journey of discovering that she also has a twin sister—Amanda. Amanda, or Mandy, did not discover the existence of her twin sister until she received a call from the locked ward with a request from her sister to visit her. They live near opposite lives—Georgia the wealthy southern socialite and Mandy the practical, down to earth owner of her late parent’s bar and restaurant. After finally meeting her, Mandy isn’t sure if her sister’s silence is due to shock, or if she is waiting for Mandy to uncover the truth about who murdered Anabelle and why.

In typical Sarah Pekkanen fashion, the twists and uncovered information were abundant in this book and I was sucked in! I did find the second person narrator perspective for Georgia to be a little bit odd given that Georgia’s perspective was first person. The strange coincidences of the twins and their ability to potentially read each others thoughts and feelings—even from afar—was also intriguing and at times a little strange (but hey, they say it happens!). The storyline had me sucked in and eager to finish!

I wasn’t sure what to settle on when rating this book. It’s a 3-3.5 star is where I’’m landing. It had a lot of good things going on, but something didn’t completely work for me.

I loved the short chapters. It kept me super engaged and I spent a lot of time guessing where things were going and I did not see some of the twists coming. & while I found some of them unsettling, I think that a lot of Georgia’s chapters felt repetitive and even though they paid off towards the end, I don’t know if we needed them every other chapter? Some of them caused Amanda’s chapters to feel disjointed and I’m not sure if that was intentional?

I think I wanted an overall creepier thriller, based on the premise and I didn’t get that. That’s a personal expectation and preference though.

I do enjoy this authors writing style a lot and I would still recommend this to others and read more by her in the future. It just wasn’t a new favorite for me and I slightly preferred House of Glass, last year.

What a twisty, thrilling read 🤯 This was super fast paced with twists & turns that I never saw coming. It has a shocking ending that I would have never guessed! Such a good psychological thriller 👏🏼 This will be released in August 5th, 2025

Huge thanks to @netgalley for the ARC!

4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

#thelockedward #mystery #thriller #psychological #arc #netgalley #newrelease

The Locked Ward was a little slow in places for me but was a solid three star read. I was not a fan of Georgia’s chapter because of the POV. Overall, a solid, quick read!

Thank you NetGalley for opportunity to read and review The Locked Ward!

3.75 stars

This is my first solo Sarah Pekkanen book, I’ve read a number of her books with Greer Hendricks.

The Locked Ward is definitely a solid read and one I would recommend. I struggled at times with Georgia’s chapters being in second person point of view.

I do wish the ending was a little more shocking or gripping as it did leave me feeling a little incomplete. But of course not every book can have a mind blowing twist at the end.

Overall I did really enjoy this book and love that each chapter was quite short, it kept the story moving really well and never pulled you from one POV for too long. Felt much more fluid this way.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s press for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Having loved House of Glass, I had high hopes for this one but it was disappointing. The characters didn't seem particularly well developed and the story dragged a bit in places. The part that kept pulling me away from the story was the "special twin bond" between Amanda and Georgia. I just couldn't believe that after 30 years apart, they meet once and suddenly they have twin telepathy? One quick meeting and you can feel your twin in danger from across town? But not a single magic twin twinge in 30 years? I just didn't buy it and it really detracted from the story for me.

I'll still read Sarah Pekkanen because I usually like her books but this one wasn't for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to read this eARC.

“The Locked Ward” by Sarah Pekkanen is a quick and entertaining thriller that will not disappoint. The story revolves around twin girls separated at birth, raised in two separate families and are totally unknown to each other. The book opens with one twin waking up in the locked ward of a mental institution accused of brutally murdering her younger sister. She is successful, wealthy, from a high profile family and therefore the salacious story is all over the news. When the second twin gets a call from an attorney telling her she has a biological twin sister who is asking for her help, her whole world is changed in an instant.
Both women are desperate for answers, wading through lies and years of deception while trying to find the killer and establish a connection as sisters. This premise kept me reading way into the wee hours of the night.
There were so many clues that I was sure I had it all figured out but I can honestly say I never saw the final twist coming! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Note: Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I’ve have the opportunity to read many of Sarah Pekkanen’s juicy thrillers in the past. The last one, House of Glass, giving me chills! Although, the short chapters had me quickly devouring the story, the plot itself seemed a bit juvenile for her typical writing caliber. There weren’t any points that were truly twisty or thrilling. I think I was really hoping for a bigger reveal rather than all the reiteration on twin telepathy and sisterhood.

What a tight, twisty thriller! I loved this book! Georgia is an upscale wedding planner who is accused of killing her sister. Georgia ends up in a locked psychiatric unit while awaiting her trial. She decides that it’s time to reach out to her twin sister. The issue? They were adopted and never grew up together. Needless to say, her twin Mandy is shocked. Many begins uncovering the layers of their adoption, Georgia’s family, the murder, and the dynamics of being a twin. Very well written book that had me staying up late to finish it. Highly recommend! Thank you to the publisher and net galley for an advanced copy of this book

ARC review • pub date 08.05.25

Georgia is now a “prisoner” in a locked ward as she is completely silent after being accused of murdering her younger sister. Meanwhile Mandy gets a phone call stating that Georgia, who she has never met before but has read an article about the murder, is her twin sister separated at birth.

Georgia has put all her cards on Mandy to help her get out at any cost.

The only thing I didn’t love about this story was Georgia’s pov was written in second person. It was a fast paced, easy read, and I genuinely enjoyed it. I had many possible scenarios and it kept me guessing and intrigued until the end.

Read if you love:
-psychology
-found family
-dual pov
-Lucinda Berry books

4⭐️

Thanks to St Martin’s Press/NetGalley for my gifted ARC