If you love books that get under your skin, shock you with their raw honesty, and stay with you long after you’ve finished, then Lucinda Berry is the author for you.

One in Four follows Dr. Laurel Harlow, a chemical dependency counselor who joins a reality show 📺 where celebrities try to overcome their addictions under public scrutiny. But when one of the participants dies ☠️, things take an unexpected turn. The reality show—and the story—don’t go the way anyone imagined. Instead, it turns into a gripping search for the truth. Every page pulls you in, and with Lucinda’s sharp storytelling, the pieces slowly come together to reveal a dark reality.

Lucinda Berry doesn’t hold back. She shines a light 💡 on the darkest corners of human nature—the twisted personalities, the betrayals, and the uncomfortable truths we often try to ignore. When most would look away, Lucinda dares us to confront the things we fear most. This ability to acknowledge the things that terrify us, but that are very much real, is what makes her such a priceless author. ♥️

Thank you to Netgalley, the publishing house and the author for the opporunity to read a complimentary copy of this book in return for a review based upon my honest opinion.

This book went in one direction for the first forty perecent and then the last sixty percent of the book went in a completely different direction and took a strange turn. I’m not mad at it. I was just very shocked with the way the storyline went.

The book starts out with a murder in a inpatient treatment centre for addiction, called Crystal Meadows. It’s also part of a reality TV show about celebrity addicts getting clean. One of the celebrities, Maddie, is found deceased and our main character. Dr. Laurel Harlow is called to the scene by the crew.

As they try to discover what has happened to young Maddie, the young celebrity who died on screen on-set, the police believe that it is a murder, and they will believe that Laurel may be their main suspect which Laurel is very surprised to find out that she is thei main suspect.

This was my first book by this author, I have kind of mixed feelings about it. I’ve heard great things about this author and her other works and I will definitely be checking out more books by her.

I’m a huge fan of reality tv so this story grabbed me quick. A recovery reality show? Yes, please! I was in but about half way, the plot fell away. I can feel all the research poured into Lucinda’s books. I was highlighting facts instead of enjoying the storyline. Then, the abrupt ending threw me. It had great potential but fell flat for me.

I have moved all books by Lucinda and this was no exception! The storyline pulls you in almost immediately and keeps you reading. The time jump on certain chapters keeps you wondering and I definitely was not expecting the ending. Another great read from Lucinda!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of this ARC. My first novel by this author and certainly not my last. Everytime I thought I knew where the story was going, I was shocked by the twists and turns! The ending left a bit to be desired which is why I docked a star…but what a ride!

I've enjoyed Lucinda Berry's past books but I'm not sure how I feel about this one. The first half centered around a reality show based in a sober house of celebrities. When one of them dies, it creates chaos and confusion. But halfway through there's a twist so big that it completely changes the story and it's like it becomes a different book altogether. The ending left me with some questions as well.

The amount of belief that I have to suspend in order for this story to really make sense is just too much. The writing is simple. The characters are uninteresting and utilize absolutely no common sense. This was a miss for me.

Lucinda Berry is an auto-read for me. I will read anything writes. In true Lucinda fashion this book had morally and ethically questionable situations with no lack of gorey descriptions.

I truly enjoyed this book and was thoroughly engaged, however....there is a shift about half way through where the focus changes a lot and it just doesn't tie together the way I would have liked it to. A little disappointed in the ending but I still enjoyed the writing, as always, and Lucinda's dramatic flare for jaw dropping visuals of disturbing topics.

I love all of Lucinda’s books. This one took me a little bit to get through, I wasn’t a fan of the begining however by the end… omg Lucinda makes you truly think about what you’d do in these situations and I wasn’t expecting what happened at all. So good there’s a reason this woman is my favorite.

Wow! Lucinda has done it again! This book kept me on my toes from the very beginning. I had no idea what to expect going into this book per usual with Lucinda because I usually go in blind, this story took a lot of unexpected turns. I wish there was more to Gias story after the event that takes place! There are some heavy topics in this book with detailed descriptions so I would definitely check trigger warnings, but overall really enjoyed this book!

Lucinda Berry does it again. This is such a unique concept. It puts a spin on traditional rehab for addiction and turns it into a reality TV show but then murder happens. One of the former child stars living in this "big brother" house is found dead. What happened? Who did it? In typical Berry fashion, I absolutely could not guess this one and it left me with my mouth hanging open in the end. Be aware that this is dark and could contain some triggers for some. There is drug abuse, homelessness, addiction, and suicide among other things. Lucinda Berry is an auto-buy author for me and this book did not disappoint.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this earc! This was one Captivating suspense novel! I’m excited to look into more of the authors work in the future.

Any Lucinda Berry book usually has me hooked, and One in Four was no different. What a concept: Put former child stars together into a rehab situation like this and then use it as reality TV - but throw in the twist of a murder. My only critique was the big "twist" and reveal came a lot sooner in the book than I was expecting.

This started out so good and kept me reading but in the end it slowed down a little to much for my taste. But it's still a very good thriller. Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for a chance to read this book.

The idea hooked me. A therapist on a reality show with recovering child stars, murder, and buried secrets. But it didn’t fully deliver. The pacing was off and I couldn’t connect with the characters. The mix of mystery and personal drama had potential, but it just didn’t pull me in like I hoped.

I've been a fan of Lucinda Berry for quite some time now. I absolutely love her first 6 (adult) novels and how different and out of my comfort zone they are, and especially the mental health proper representation.
However, since Berry's last 2 releases I noticed a significant change in the quality of her stories, characters and her own writing. It seems to me that she decided to quit all the great mental rep and heavy and dense stories for more mainstream thrillers, which is a 'decision' I did not like it. SO, I was hopeful this new book, ONE IN FOUR, would bring Berry back to her roots and to being a great storyteller she was.
Sadly, this didn't happen. Again. ONE IN FOUR is another one of her 'new era': a kind-of psychological popcorn thriller with characters and twists that we have read so many times before.
Not gonna lie: I'm very disappointed (again) and I'm starting to wonder if I should just quit reading Lucinda Berry's new releases and maybe just go re-read her older (and much better!) books.
Thanks, anyway, NetGalley for allowing me to read an early copy of this book.

Of course, Lucinda Berry does it again. Another gripping, twisted story. Always check those trigger warnings! This books has twists that keeping coming until the very end and leave you asking yourself, WTF?!?

Lucinda Berry is very skilled at writing deeply disturbing situations in an authentic voice. She is adept at making the stories feel realistic and the characters feel believable. Berry is very good at making you sympathize, as a reader, with characters who are doing (or have done) awful things to themselves and/or others.

However, I feel cheated by this book. The blurb on GoodReads and the summary that is publicly available does not accurately capture, in my opinion, the central narrative of the book. I signed up for a psychological whodunit murder mystery where a psychologist specializing in addiction recovery uses her training to figure out who is lying and who is telling the truth after one of the individuals dies suspiciously. This is not what you get in this book. About 30% through the book does a 180 in terms of plot. It moves into very dark, deeply disturbing territory that is quite challenging to read. I know this is a hallmark of Berry's writing but I expected different outcomes given the description. In particular, I did not like the ending as it just felt unnecessary to go that direction.

One In Four - Lucinda Berry
Pub Date - 5/13/25
Rating - 2/5
Trigger Warning(s) - rape, drug abuse, suicide, alcohol abuse
Summary - Dr. Laurel Hargrow is wrapped up in a reality tv show featuring former child actors who are trying to get over their addiction. Suddenly she gets a call in the middle of the night that Maddie, one of the children, has died while the cameras are still rolling. The story then follows Laurie as she tries to find out what happened to Maddie, while also revealing some of Laurel's own secrets from when she was in college.

Thoughts - Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for this advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. I was very interested in this premise especially since reality tv show murders have been a common troupe lately. This book was not that at all -- there was NO reality tv aspect! She could have set this book in a therapist's office and would have gotten to the same ending with absolutely no problem. The story wasn't linear and went in a completely different direction, one that didn't have anything to do with the murder victim. I found myself skimming towards the end because of the unnecessary amount of internal monologue by the main character. Overall, not worth reading in my opinion, she's got better books.

This is a book about a lot of serious issues, rape, self harm ,bullying , addiction, pressures to fit in. It was ultimately written in a way that didn't do the topics justice unfortunately. It became less and less believable as the story went on and that felt like it cheapened the issues it was talking about. It almost felt like two different books in one. I usually like her books, but was disappointed in this one.