This was a really good thriller! It felt like a much darker Below Deck episode, all the crew drama was great and there were some really surprising twists. Definitely a great summer read

2.5 rounded up. This was just okay for me. I thought it was a little too long and got to be confusing with so many characters and in the end, the motivations were a little off the wall. I wasn’t really invested in any of the characters and found them all quite shallow which made it difficult to invest in the story.

I Did Warn Her is Gilbert’s second thriller, set on the opulent yet dangerous superyacht, the Ophelia. This locked-room mystery features tension and high stakes within a luxurious yet claustrophobic environment.

Sasha, a former nurse, joins the Ophelia as a stewardess for a transatlantic voyage from Gibraltar to New York. Upon arrival, she is surprised to discover that her fellow stewardesses are nearly identical to her—tall, blonde, and attractive. A sense of jealousy, pettiness, and envy pervades the crew as the ship sets sail. As they progress further into their journey, chilling incidents begin to surface, unveiling dark secrets and countless twists that heighten the suspense.

Gilbert crafts this story from multiple perspectives, including Sasha and her five lookalikes on board. Featuring characters with similar appearances adds an intriguing layer of tension, encouraging readers to pay close attention to their personalities and try to figure out which voice belongs to whom. This can be a bit confusing at times, especially when switching perspectives, but overall, it is a truly gripping page-turner that completely hooks you from start to finish.

Get ready for a whirlwind of surprises by the climax – some may hit the mark, while others might be a bit more surprising. This book is thrilling, dramatic, and hard to put down – just be sure to enjoy the ride!

Captain Howard is taking The Ophelia super yacht on his last charter before he retires. For his final voyage, he is taking two of his very rich "friends" across the Atlantic to NYC. Sasha is joining the stewardesses after leaving her job as a nurse. The weird thing is, all of the stewardesses look alike - blonde, thin, and in the same uniforms. Sasha is just stepping in for a stewardess who left under mysterious circumstances. Also on the yacht are several deckhands, the chief officer, a chef, and two escorts accompanying the guests. The stewardesses are very mean and petty to each other right from the start. After a night of partying (and arguments), one of them is dead. With everyone having secrets, who is the murderer? And is the murderer the same person who has been stealing things?

I've never actually watched Below Deck, but the cattiness between the stewardesses is exactly what I'd expect in the show. The book is told from the POVs of each stewardess and eventually one of the guests, which is necessary since they are constantly lying or hiding things from each other. There is a ton of drama and suspense going on, making it hard to put down. The characters are mostly unlikeable, especially in the beginning, but they were the type that you love to hate. There were tons of twists and surprises so I enjoyed unraveling the mystery.

I’m sure some readers are going to have fun with this one. This was a bit too much for me. I did enjoy the “at sea” atmosphere, rich people's problems, and the twists. There are a lot of POVs, and at times, it just got too chaotic. All of the characters were very unlikable, and while it was entertaining at times, I just couldn’t hold onto that feeling throughout the whole book.

As much as was going on, the pacing was pretty slow for most of the book, and the length was too long. I absolutely loved her first book and will continue to pick up Sian Gilbert’s future works. Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for this eArc of I Did Warn Her.

Sian Gilbert’s debut, She Started It, was one of my top reads in 2023. So of course, I was dying to read their newest release.

🚢If you’re looking for the perfect summer thriller, this is it!

It’s claustrophobic, you never know who to trust (the answer is no one), and the stakes and tension build to an explosive conclusion.

There’s tons of drama, lots of catfighting, and plenty of characters you’ll both love to hate and hate that you love.

A super twisty trainwreck you can’t look away from, there are lots of mysteries and competing agendas happening all at once. Everyone is hiding something. This whodunnit had me constantly guessing.

It has commentary on the effects of beauty standards for women, their perception, treatment, relationships, status, and comparison.

Although I connected more with the author’s debut, I still thoroughly enjoyed my time in this story. I was hooked and couldn’t put it down. A fantastic page-turner and I highly recommend it!

This is a locked-door mystery set aboard The Ophelia, a billionaire’s ridiculously luxurious yacht crossing the Atlantic with a crew of model-gorgeous stewardesses. Sasha is a last-minute hire joining a staff already on edge after a previous death, missing jewelry, and the arrival of the yacht’s owner with new, equally secretive guests. When another crew member turns up dead after a wild night of partying, everyone on board is a suspect and the tension ratchets up fast.

There are multiple POVs in this one, which added to the intrigue, but at times felt like too many; it was hard to keep track of who was who. That said, it delivered some great twists I didn’t see coming. A fun, twisty thriller perfect for fans of murder mysteries in claustrophobic, glamorous settings (with, let's be honest, a cast of unlikeable characters)!

Below Deck + murder = a book I can get down with. This was a fun one that moved decently quick and had an interesting cast of characters, many who are unlikable. I enjoyed seeing all of their terribleness come out as they tried to cover their own secrets.

I Did Warn Her
Imagine an upscale yacht, stunning look-alike crew members whose only job is to make the guests happy, stolen jewelry, and a murder mystery on board.
This clever secret- laden plot with multiple POVs had me hooked from the start!
4 stars

This book was an absolute whirl wind! I have never read a book so fast!

The main story in this book as about a young girl who is trying to get to the bottom of her friends death. She had been in the foster system with her best friend who had gotten jobs on a super yacht. One as a deck hand and one as a stewardess. After her friend mysteriously dies she comes back as someone completely different to investigate the scene of the crime. Her hair is different, she’s lost weight and her voice is even different. When Jasmine starts digging into the chaos of this ship there is more at hand here.

This book was told in multiple POVs and it had my head spinning with trying to figure out who the killer was. Everyone was suspicious! I loved this book! So many hooks and connections that I didn’t see coming. I couldn’t put it down! Wow!

Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow books!

I was so intrigued by the premise of this story, so I was super excited to be given the chance to read it early. Also, the cover is great. I really enjoyed Gilbert's debut novel, so I had similar expectations going into this one. While I didn't love it quite as much, I still found this to be a compelling locked room (locked boat?) mystery with lots of twists and characters that I hated but also needed more from (think...Real Housewives). It was an interesting glimpse into a life I'll never have with a compelling mystery and interesting characters. A solid read!

The writing on this one left something to be desired. Character descriptions were monotonous and grueling but this is fine enough as summer thriller.

Review on Instagram later this week

I enjoyed this one! Below deck vibes mixed with murder mystery. There are a TON of characters to keep track of and I swear each of them has some sort of nickname which made the story a little difficult to follow at times. Overall the book delivered on multiple twists that you didn’t see coming. The ending was crazy how everything wrapped up and the reader finally learns the full story.

I did warn her is another winner by who is becoming a true player in the thriller field. With vibes of Samantha downing and Ruth ware, this thriller shifts between Stewardesses on a cruise ship who are all hiding secrets as they are being murdered one by one. Atmospheric and suspenseful, a fun thriller perfect for the summer!

Thanks to publisher for providing the arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Dark, Addictive, and Full of Surprises

I Did Warn Her was a gripping and twisty read that kept me turning the pages late into the night. Sian Gilbert knows how to build suspense and slowly unravel a mystery that makes you question everything—and everyone.

The writing was sharp, and the tension between the characters felt real and intense. I loved how the story peeled back layers of secrets and lies little by little, keeping me hooked the entire time. The darker themes were handled well, and there were some moments that genuinely shocked me.

I’m giving it four stars because while the buildup was great, I felt the ending could’ve been just a little more fleshed out or emotionally satisfying. Still, it was a strong and well-written thriller that I’d definitely recommend to fans of psychological suspense with a dark, clever edge.

I did not enjoy this book. It read too much like a rip off of Below Deck. I thought it was a little unoriginal and felt like the author had watched the show more than actually done research on super yachts.

Thanks to William Morrow for the gifted copy!

After absolutely loving Sian’s first book, I put this high up on my list of anticipated thrillers of the year. However, it didn’t quite live up to the hype I had in my head. The characters were a little raunchier and darker than expected, which can work well in a thriller, but they just didn’t have any redeeming characteristics and it was hard for me to connect with them or want to root for anyone.

Thank you @williammorrowbooks for a #gifted copy!
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If Below Deck had a dark twin with a body count, it would be I Did Warn Her. This twisty thriller had me hooked from the moment Sasha stepped aboard The Ophelia, a billionaire’s floating palace with secrets as deep as the ocean it sails.
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This one had a model-perfect crew, shady billionaires, stolen jewels, and more than one dead body. The vibes? Luxury meets lethal. The crew may be gorgeous, but no one is innocent, and the tension ratchets up with every chapter. I was constantly wondering who’s hiding what and who’s next?
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The slow-burn paranoia creeps in as the champagne runs dry and alliances start to crack.
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If you love locked-room mysteries, rich people behaving badly, and Below Deck drama turned deadly, I Did Warn Her needs to be on your summer TBR.

Sian Gilbert sure knows how to write a mean girl and I am here for it.

The characters were awful self centered and cruel and then before I knew it they started to grow on me. I enjoyed her take on a trap room mystery and I thought she executed her twists pretty well.

All in all I really enjoyed this book and the characters. It was fun, thrilling and even emotional. I’d definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to NetGalley & William Morrow for the chance to read this book

Very fast paced read, kept me hooked from the beginning and I could NOT turn the pages fast enough to get through this one, I NEEDED to know who did it, how, where, when and with what candlestick!