I Did Warn Her by Sian Gilbert is a fun read about the crew on a luxury super yacht and their trip ends up going horribly wrong. Of course, it’s not the first time a voyage of this super yacht went badly, either. If you like twists and turns this book is full of them, almost too many really. The POV also shifts between six different characters and with one going by a nickname for most of the book but not her chapter titles, it can get a bit confusing. Between trying to keep the twists straight and keep the characters straight every time the chapter and POV changed it seemed a little much at times. I did have fun reading it and I definitely didn’t guess quite a few of these twists but I could see how the 6 different POVs alone could be too much for some people.

I read She Started It back when it came out and thought it was a fun surprise! Isolated areas are one of my favorite type of tropes in books so having this one set on a luxury yacht was perfect! I will say that none of the characters are particularly likeable until later in the book. In fact most of them I will say I actively disliked, but I believe that was the idea. The author's writing style is very easy to read and has great pacing, and I really love that about her books. The ending caught me a little off guard as well which was a pleasant surprise. Looking forward to her next!

3 ⭐️
Expected publication date - June 17, 2025

WHAT I LOVED - The locked room mystery, on a superyacht, crossing the Atlantic.

WHAT I LIKED - Waiting to see which horrendous characters would die.

WHAT I DISLIKED - Every character was pretty awful.

WOULD I RECOMMEND? Possibly. It would depend on the person reading it. It was a quick read, I just did not care what happened to any of the characters.

Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for this eARC for review. All opinions are my own.

After She Started It, I became a Sian Gilbert fan, and it continues after I Did Warn Her. As a fellow Below Deck watcher, Sian really captured the culture of a Superyacht with, of course, an added whodunnit element. It held my attention and I enjoyed the unpredictability. I gave it 3 stars because I felt like the story was setting up for a big plot twist that didn’t really come. There were some nice surprises along the way, but nothing that knocked me out of my seat because all the characters were set up to be suspicious. There were also some clichés along the way, like characters pointing the finger at another and everyone blindly hopping on the bandwagon, but that’s expected with any whodunnit. Overall, a solid and fun read!

This is a fun locked door thriller set on a super yacht. The story revolves around a bunch of stewardesses who all look alike. No one is very likeable and each one has their own grudges and secrets. While it was an overall fun read full of so many twists, a few issues I had was the amount of povs. It was a bit excessive and it took me a bit to remember who was who. The length of the book is way too long and I just don't think it needed to be as dragged out. If you love a long thriller, I think you would love this as a summer read.

I love a good locked room mystery set on a boat in the middle of the ocean. This one did not disappoint! There were many layers to the mystery and a lot going on. The multiple POV chapters kept the pace fast and moving forward. The characters were easy to keep track of (even though they all look the same). The ending was suspenseful, thrilling, and unexpected. I could not put this one down!

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow | William Morrow Paperbacks for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was a great and fun story. It was thrilling and suspenseful. I was hooked from the first page. I highly recommend checking out this book.

A drama filled read that read like a chapter from Bravo's below deck. An enjoyable fast paced read that left me wondering what would happen next.

This was like Clue and Below Deck had a baby. Tense and filled with twists and turns! I was shocked by the different surprises.

It always feels weird when my first instinct is to call a thriller, fun but that’s exactly what this was! So many secrets, so many miles from land, and so much murder. Short chapters with alternating POV makes this a quick read. Salacious and wildly entertaining, this will make the perfect summer thriller, just hope you aren’t on a boat when you read it. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

Wow! This book was one heck of a wild ride! I honestly did not expect to enjoy it as much as I did. Part One started a bit slow with multiple POVS from all the stewardesses. The author introduces them one by one, giving us some insight into their personalities and backgrounds. And boy, were they detestable! I didn't like ANY of them. I thought, oh no, I am not going to be able to read this. I'm glad that I stuck with it though. Once I hit Part Two, chaos abounded, and the intensity shifted into high gear and remained until the end. There were so many secrets and lies, and different mysteries taking place all at the same time. I didn't know who to suspect for anything. Most of the cast were awful and had something to hide. This book rocked with action and excitement. I ended up really enjoying it. I would definitely recommend.

Huge thanks to William Morrow for granting me a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review!

I Did Warn Her is a sleek, twist-filled locked-room mystery that delivers danger, secrets, and deception—all set against the glittering backdrop of a billionaire’s yacht. If you loved She Started It, this is another cunning thriller that will pull you in and keep you guessing until the very end.

The Ophelia is luxury at its finest, but beneath the polished surface lies a tangled web of secrets. The all-but-identical stewardesses—Sasha, Jade, Imogen, Euphemia, and Lola—each carry their own baggage, lured to the yacht by the promise of high wages and a chance to outrun their pasts. But when jewelry starts disappearing and whispers of a previous death resurface, paranoia sets in. And then, the real nightmare begins: one of their own turns up dead after a night of lavish partying.

Suddenly, the opulent escape becomes a claustrophobic prison where every guest and crew member is a suspect. The question isn’t just who’s hiding secrets—but who’s dangerous enough to kill?

This is a whodunit that thrives on its voyeuristic thrills and sharp character dynamics. The atmosphere is taut, the tension razor-sharp, and the twists relentless. It’s the kind of read where every chapter leaves you second-guessing who to trust and what’s lurking just beneath the surface.

If you’re a fan of locked-room mysteries, morally gray characters, and thrillers dripping with dark glamour, I Did Warn Her is one you don’t want to miss. Just be warned: once you’re aboard The Ophelia, there’s no getting off until the final, jaw-dropping reveal.

This book is the story of a super yacht and the staff and guests aboard. They all have secrets and suspicions arise when someone dies during their last trip of the season. I really liked this author’s last book She Started It and similarly, this book made me think of Mean Girls as well. The characters all have secrets and all seem to mostly be out for themselves. The story line kept me interested and wanting to know how the secrets come together and what was going to happen. I would recommend this book to reality TV lovers including Below Deck and people who love to hate book characters.

Sian Gilbert is back with her second novel, "I Did Warn Her." Her debut novel "She Started It" was an amazing read and this one was just as good.
The story unfolds aboard The Ophelia, a luxurious yacht owned by a billionaire, where the crew’s sole mission is to keep the wealthy guests satisfied—no matter the cost. Enter Sasha, the newest stewardess, a tall, blonde, gorgeous addition who blends seamlessly with her beautiful peers. But beneath the sleek veneer of The Ophelia, trouble brews: a stewardess from a previous charter died mysteriously, expensive jewelry keeps vanishing, and tensions among the crew simmers. When the owner brings aboard his best friend and two enigmatic women—each hiding their own secrets—a night of partying ends with a crew member dead. Suddenly, everyone’s a suspect, and Sasha finds herself at the center of a deadly game of trust and betrayal.

This book has nonstop action, and I loved the twists and turns that it delivered. Sian Gilbert is a brand-new voice in the thriller genre that is here to stay!

This read was incredibly juicy and I loved following the dark super yacht drama. A large cast of characters but easy to follow along and each with their own unique secrets. Right away you know something is off when you learn that all the stewardesses are basically clones of each other in appearance. How suspicious. That sets the tone for a fcked up voyage into the abyss.

if you are looking for a 'locked door' thriller that takes place on the open sea, then I Did Warn Her by Sian Gilbert is for you. This story is fast paced as you speed through the book to see who the culprit is. Everyone is suspect and no one can be trusted. The twists and turns and multiple viewpoints leave you questioning everything. This is a great thriller.
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow Paperbacks for the opportunity to read this ARC.

A super fun summer thriller! For fans of Below Deck (which is even mentioned a few times in this book), this superyacht thriller will have you guessing until the end. Very entertaining.

I Did Warn Her
by Sian Gilbert
Pub Date: June 17, 2025
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
A luxurious yacht, a gorgeous crew with secrets and rivalries...and murder! I Did Warn Her is a cunning locked room mystery set on a billionaire’s yacht, by the author of last year’s sensation She Started It.
After reading the author’s debut novel “She Started It”, which I absolutely loved, I couldn’t wait to read this newest release. While I did enjoy this book, I think I’ve just gotten to a point where I’m a little tired of locked room (yacht) mysteries. This story had many POV’s to keep track of (which was fairly easy once the story took off), but then I felt it started to drag on through the middle. Now, I will admit that I didn’t read this book as fast as I usually do.
If you like locked room mysteries, with lots of finger pointing 🫵- then this is the book for you! Although I didn’t enjoy it as much as the author’s debut, it was still a fun read and I think many who are new to this genre will enjoy it even more than I did.

When I was first offered this novel, I was excited because I had been fortunate enough to read Gilbert's debut She Started It before it was released-- and had been riveted.

Everyone knows that the sophomore novel is the most challenging (for obvious reasons), but I have to say, for an oversaturated genre, Sian was able to put her unique fingerprints all over this one. She takes a common premise (murder on the water) and ratchets up the intrigue with not just any boat, but a superyacht, not a run-of-the-mill staff, but instead, modelesque stewardesses, a flurry of red-herrings, intersecting plotlines, multiple murders, and one big fat mess of a catastrophic disaster.

Will people complain about any or all of the above? Sure, but they are missing the point-- we are reading for an escape, not for believability here and I for one am happy to escape from the world for a bit to get a fictional peek behind the curtain of what it's like to live on deck a superyacht serving the elite without a second glance, just as I am equally happy to close the book afterwards, not having to have experienced their tragedies!

At times there might have been a tad much going on, but overall it kept the pacing and kept me turning the digital pages. Gilbert is going on my auto buy list from now on.

I would like to thank NetGalley and William Morrow for allowing me to read this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was excited when I saw Sian Gilbert had a new book coming out. I loved her previous book. Multiple characters that act and look the same stuck on a yacht in the middle of the ocean. Sounds like a great setting!

Sian Gilbert has a way of making you hate almost all of the characters. And the multiple POVS make it somewhat more difficult in figuring out exactly what’s going on. There were moments when it felt slow… And I had expected more from the ending especially with how her previous book ended. However the twist in the epilogue was not one I saw coming.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.