This was my first Sarah Pekkanen book and I will surely be reading more. I felt invested in the characters and the storyline. It definitely left me with some questions on why they even went through with the adoption in the first place considering the birth of Annabel, I am grateful to have been able to read this as an ARC

I was really looking forward to this book, but it didn’t live up to expectations.

The premise was intriguing—Georgia, accused of killing her sister, ends up in a psychiatric facility and reaches out to a twin she’s never met—but the execution fell flat. The alternating perspectives between Georgia and Mandy made the narrative feel choppy and confusing.

While the short chapters made for a quick read, the writing lacked depth. There were too many mundane details—whole scenes about cooking eggs—that felt like filler. The sudden, unearned bond between the twins seemed unrealistic for adults meeting for the first time. As someone with healthcare experience, the portrayal of the psych ward felt inaccurate and overly dramatized.

The story had a few twists, but most felt melodramatic and hard to believe. I’ve enjoyed Pekkanen’s previous books, but this one missed the mark for me. I’m giving it 3 stars—readable with some redeemable qualities, but ultimately forgettable.

Thank you to Net Galley for my advanced copy.

I am very thankful for this arc. Unfortunately Ive had a hard time getting into it. It just isnt catching my attention. But im sure many will enjoy it

Suspenseful with twists I didn’t see coming. I liked the characters and the decisions they made. I especially liked the chapters from the locked ward. There were a few red herrings that made things interesting. I liked the relationship that developed between the sisters.

This wasn't exactly what I was expecting it to be but it was good! The tiny "twist" at the end really makes you rethink the entire story!

Short gripping chapters is what propelled this book forward, the ending sadly did not pack the punch I was truly hoping for. I breezed through this book, it was easy to digest and had a great premise. I honestly felt like a blind fly on the wall that could hear everything that was going on but didn't quite have enough information to put the story together. The book bounced back and forth between two women Georgia and Mandy. Georgia is currently in a Psyche ward as she is being accused of killing her sister Annabelle. Plot twist: Georgia reaches out to Mandy and informs her that they are actually twins that were separated at birth, Mandy feels that twin pull to visit her sister and find out how she can get her out, all while not being killed herself. This book is cloaked in mystery and as the reader you are left in the dark. As the story unfolds I kept wanting to find out more and more, and when the big reveal comes its kinda like a marshmellow.
I really enjoy Sarah Pekkanen's books , but they don't end as well as I would like. I think she could benefit from a little bit of a more twisted mind, maybe she should grab coffee with Jennifer Hilliard to get some ideas.....

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to read this advanced copy. I was not influenced or paid in exchange for my honest and original thoughts.

This was a fun read & easy to breeze through with the short chapters. I loved the dual POV but did find it strange that one was in second person. The ending didn’t feel crazy shocking but I was content with the extra twist we got. I would suggest this one if you love thrillers with quick chapters and lots of interesting family dynamics!

I gave this 3.5 out of 5 stars.

I always enjoy a Sarah Pekkanen book, and this one was no different. It's full of characters that make you question your insights, just like most of her books. It follows Georgia, a socialite accused of murdering her adoptive sister/residing in a mental institution, and Amanda, Georgia's biological sister...whom Amanda didn't know existed. Georgia has asked for Amanda's help, all while hoping she can stay in the mental institution and avoid being murdered herself.
I enjoyed the twists and turns in this novel, and I think it's an enjoyable read if you're in the mood for this type of book!

The Locked Ward is the latest psychological thriller by Sarah Pekkanen.
The story is told from two perspectives: Georgia, a socialite wedding planner accused of murdering her younger sister Annabelle, and Mandy, her newly discovered twin sister who runs a bar 90 miles away.
Georgia is currently locked in a mental hospital after being arrested and is trying to prove her innocence through the freedom of her twin.

What I Loved:
The twin connection (i.e. one twin getting a nose bleed at the same time the other twin gets a broken nose miles away) was intriguing.
The chapters alternated between Georgia and Mandy, keeping me engaged.
The chapters were also short and quick, making it very hard to put the book down. It was fast-paced and action packed.

What I Didn't Love:
There weren't as many surprise twists as I hoped there would be. However, even though the shock factor was lacking, I still really enjoyed winding my way through the story and felt invested in the characters.
The ending didn't really shake the earth, but everything tied up fairly neatly and I put the book down very satisfied.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sarah Pekkanen for an advance reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.
ARC copy, ebook
Book: 4 stars

I am a huge fan of Sarah Pekkanen's books and have read or owned most of her published works. This latest novel is no exception; I thoroughly enjoyed it. The plot revolves around two very different twins who were raised separately under contrasting circumstances. When one twin is accused of a crime, the other becomes embroiled in a web of lies and murder while trying to help. Despite my extensive experience with thrillers, I thought I had the story figured out, but Pekkanen's skillful twists caught me off guard. I won’t delve into the details that you can find in the synopsis, but if you enjoy thrillers with unexpected turns, this book is a must-read. Sarah Pekkanen will always be an auto-buy author for me, and I appreciate NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an ARC, my views are my own.

I will read anything Sarah Pekkanen writes. This book was gripping and thrilling and I absolutely loved it!

I loved this story! It’s filled with suspense, mystery, danger, and intrigue.

Georgia is locked in an insane asylum. She’s being accused of murdering her sister, Annabelle. I love her character and the part she plays.
Mandy is pulled into the saga by Georgia’s lawyer. That starts a whole other mystery.

I loved the writing and especially the narrative for Georgia. It kept me intrigued being written as if she was talking to herself. It flows perfectly back and forth between Georgia and Mandy, dropping little nuggets of what’s happened between different family and friends in the past, as we try to figure out who really killed Annabelle. Is Georgia playing a part and someone else is a killer, or is Georgia truly guilty?

This story keeps you guessing. I had an inkling of some things, but never 100% certain. There are some fantastic twists. As revelations unfold, things get dangerous and sinister. I could see this as a movie, the story was so great. A gripping thriller that keeps you anticipating to the very end.

“We’re both the unreliable narrator and the gullible listener in our own life stories.”

Lots of twists and turns in this whodunnit mystery! Family secrets, murder, affairs - what more could you want from a salacious mystery? Sarah Pekkanen is wild with her plots, but somehow they always seem to come together for an entertaining read.

***This review contains spoilers***Honestly, when I first started reading this book, I thought it was by Frieda McFadden. The writing style is very similar. It is a story about Georgia, who has been locked in a psych ward because she is being accused of killing her sister. She connects with Amanda; who she has previously found out through a private investigator that she is her twin sister.
She asks for Amanda to visit her so that she can get messages delivered through her to help prove her innocence. During the process, Amanda begins to find out things about her parents that she never knew, as well as about her twin sister, with whom she was separated at birth from.
Thank you to #netgalley and the publishers for this arc.

Absolutely love me a good thriller! And this cover is perfect. I love a good, quick read in the summer time that keeps me on the edge of my seat! Saraj Pekkanen know how to surprise me.

Well, this book was interesting. It starts off with a wealthy woman waking up inside a locked ward having been accused of murdering her younger sister at her own a birthday party. She is the villain of the story, obvs. Or is she?

Soon we learn about Mandy, who shockingly learns almost immediately upon her entrance stage right into the pages is that she is the long lost forgotten abandoned or given away twin of said above rich lady. So who had the better life growing up? We’ll see.

I enjoyed the alternating POV and the succinct chapters. I didn’t quite find either woman to be completely lovable, though. However, despite all of my many, many guesses at what the heck was going on here and who did what, I somehow didn’t guess what seemed so obvious in the end- erm- the part about the main plot, not that last bit (you know).

Anyway, I took away a star because I felt the whole twin telepathy component seemed a bit forced. For starters- how do they suddenly have it so strongly only AFTER finding out about each other? It just kept getting brought up so much that I started getting slightly irritated by it. And I feel like that last twisty part at the end was a little extra. But maybe I’m wrong.

Overall, I enjoyed this read and look forward to more by this author. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martins Press for the ARC and a chance to review this early. Much appreciated. #netgalley #stmartinspress

This book was okay. It seemed a little far fetched and it was slow. It was hard to get into the characters.. Not my favorite by her.

Lots of twists and turns in this psychological thriller. I was captivated from the very first page. I loved the mystery and secrets!

Mandy grew up as an only child of two devoted, loving parents, and she dutifully keeps their memories alive running their neighborhood bar. Until the day she gets a phone call that changes everything: it turns out that she has a twin sister, Georgia, who is accused of murder and is currently locked in a psychiatric facility waiting to be declared fit to stand trial. Mandy must delve into the life of the sister she never knew and work her way through a complex history of lies and betrayal to get to the truth before Georgia is sentenced either to life in prison...or to death.

This book had an interesting plot set-up and a lot of promise, but it didn't really deliver. I've read several others of Pekkanen's books and found the mysteries engrossing and the characters compelling, but this one fell flat. I understand that portraying Georgia's experience in the locked ward might have needed to be done at a bit of remove (so the reader could appreciate her deception at pretending to be in a dissociative state), but the entire book read that way, even the sections from Mandy's point of view. Why? That writing choice made it feel like the story was being told from the bottom of a well by someone who wasn't invested in it at all.

Now having said that, there were some clever twists that I didn't see coming AND I fully realize that some of my issues above might be addressed in future rounds of editing. Like I said, it has potential so I'm hopeful that bit more polishing could turn this into a solid thriller. As is, though, it was pretty meh for me.

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

I thought the book was okay. The plot was fast-moving and addictive, and the short chapters made it easy to move through. I enjoyed the dual POV, but hated that Georgia's perspective was in second person. I was excited to see where the story was going, but parts of it were just a little too unrealistic for me to buy (the twintuition was overkill).

I also have to say I'm also pretty sick of psych ward thrillers, they so often devolve into really stereotypical and harmful tropes, which was visible here.

Overall, good for a quick thriller, but I wouldn't really recommend.