Thank you to NetGalley and Inkubator Books for the ARC!

This was a fun, twisty ride for most of the book. There are multiple POV's who each hold their own secrets and loyalty to their family. There were a few parts that moved fairly slow, but overall the many twists made up for it.

⭐⭐⭐.5, rounded to 4

Goodness me, this was such a good book. Highly entertaining. Would definitely recommend to others, that's for sure!

This one was just okay for me…
I liked the overall plot, guy goes missing and his family is desperate to find him and they start pointing blame at whoever is closest which happens to be his roommate.
But the characters in this book are all clueless and self absorbed and drove me nuts most of the time. It was really hard to connect with any of them or feel sympathy for any of them which made me struggle with this one as I was going.

I also thought the end fell a little flat - there wasn’t a big reveal or a tidy conclusion for everyone.
Just wasn’t for me.

Fantastic best friends always make the best enemies in my opinion. Secrets suspenseful just brilliant loved it

This book is insane. So much going on at one time and you just have to ride the ride. The different aspects of the story have you questioning everyone while you read. Then just once you think the book will end a new set of twists pop up and you're back at wondering what will happen next. If you're looking for a great thriller and suspense book this one is definitely for you.

This fast paced thriller explores family feuds, gambling, failing friendships and marriages.
Cal and Brad appear to only be friends because their mums Ivy and Jane are. on the surface, everyone appears perfect, however as the story goes on, like an onion it slowly reveals the cracks in each and every character. Each character in this book has a dis likeable quality at the forefront of their personality, and I couldn’t help but hate Cal despite the fact he was missing. This adds to the drama of the book and shows that we are all messy and flawed. I loved the alternating POV’s, This is everything I look for in a psychological thriller.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This was my first book by this author but will certainly look out for her in future. Lots of twists and turns with interesting characters. It’s 5 stars from me.

Life is about choices. All of which have consequences. This was one of the books that makes you want to shake the characters and ask them what the hell is wrong with them. It was easy to see how complacency can take an ugly turn. The interweaving of the characters lives was done well and the ending was unexpected and left you wanted a bit more....so that karma could do it's thing....but alas....such as life....didn't happen.

First off, I need to say that I picked this one because of its cover. Isn't it stunning?
Two childhood friends hit the slopes for a ski trip that quickly turns in a chaotic and frenzied missing person search when one vanishes, unleashing long-buried secrets that tear both their families apart.
Who doesn't love a psychological thriller with a bit of drama?
I know I do, and this one had that aplenty. Hidden resentments, drug use, gambling debts, and a fateful drunken accident. Add to that a teenage girl using social media to whip suspicions and doubt against one of the friends.
Told through multiple POV's, You Shouldn't Have Done That ride of secrets, fractured friendships, and vengeful plot, and I'm here for every twist. This was my first read by Liz Alterman, and I'm definitely going to be more of her work soon.

You Shouldn't Have Done That is one of those books where you think you know what’s happening, and then everything slowly takes an unexpected turn.

I went in expecting a solid domestic thriller to keep me turning pages, but what I got instead was a tense, twisty unraveling of friendship, loyalty, and what it means to protect your own. Two lifelong best friends. Their sons go on a ski trip, but only one comes back. The fallout is immediate and brutal. And when the internet gets involved (because of course it does), everything explodes.

I don’t have kids or a decades-long mom friendship to relate to, but the emotional mess of blame, suspicion, and survival hit home. Watching these women go from tight-knit to barely civil, all while trying to figure out what actually happened on that mountain kept me totally locked in.

Thanks to Inkubator Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

BOOK: YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT
AUTHOR: LIZ ALTERMAN
PUB DATE: MARCH 2025
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REVIEW
Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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When I read a book, especially a thriller I like the ending to be predictable as in tbe bad guys should be caught and placed in the prisons they belong or even die. Unfortunately, I didn't get that. However, this book had an amazing storyline, setting, pacing, and the most annoying, selfish, disgusting characters ever. None of them were redeemable. But, I still liked the book. It focused on the lives of childhood best friends, Brad and Cal, their dynamics and the dynamics between their families whom they brought close.
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I loved the author's use of multiple POVs here. It added more depth to the novel. Jane, the selfish woman who birthed selfish kids who she thinks are the best in the world, especially her son. Ivy, mother to Brad and Max, I won't say what I think of her. Emerson, the influencer who uses a tragedy to become popular. Brad, one of the MMC who refuses to stand up for himself or leave his friend's shadow. And Cal, the selfish friend.
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I liked the storyline and the pacing, I really do. I read this book in six hours, even less than that! It was that good. I wondered what happened to Cal and how. I was so surprised when I found out what really happened. It was an amazing plot twist.
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While all this was happening, I got an inside look at the interpersonal relationships between the Whittakers and the Chapmans and their own selves. Safe to say I didn't like what I saw. I didn't like the ending too, it was disappointing, I wanted to see the bad guys punished.
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I liked this book, but I hated the characters. I would recommend it if you can get over my ire over it. But, it was unexpected and well written. It had amazing plot twists too.
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This is the first book that I’ve read by this author and I enjoyed it for the most part. It was a little slow in places, but I would read this author again.

Jane and Ivy have been best friends for 20 years. After their adult sons go skiing, Brad returns without Cal and never reported him missing. Cal's family starts a public appeal against Brad pleading to know what happened. Mothers will do whatever they need to to protect their family, even at the cost of their closest friendship.

I was so excited for this book because I loved the last few I read by this author, but this one wasn’t my favorite. It was a quick read and enjoyable enough but just didn’t have the extra oomph I look for in a thriller.

You Shouldn't Have Done That by Liz Alterman is a gripping psychological thriller that delves into the dark side of friendships, family loyalty, and betrayal. Jane Whitaker and Ivy Chapman have been inseparable for twenty years, their bond forged through their sons' childhood friendship. But when their adult sons, Cal and Brad, go on a skiing trip to Wyoming and only one returns, everything changes.

The mystery surrounding Cal’s disappearance and Brad’s strange behavior creates a rift between the two mothers, leading to suspicion and deepening mistrust. Jane, desperate for answers, becomes increasingly convinced that Brad knows more than he’s letting on about her son’s fate. The dynamic between the two women unravels as their long-standing friendship fractures, with each mother willing to go to great lengths to protect her own child.

Alterman masterfully explores the psychological toll of a missing person case, the tension that mounts as secrets unravel, and the devastating consequences of protecting family at any cost. The suspense builds steadily, keeping readers on edge as loyalties shift, and the lines between right and wrong blur. The real strength of the novel lies in its complex characters—both the mothers, who are forced to confront the lengths they’re willing to go for their children, and the tangled web of relationships that forms around them.

You Shouldn't Have Done That is a twisty, emotionally charged thriller that keeps readers hooked until the very last page. It’s a sharp exploration of friendship turned toxic, the fragility of trust, and the high stakes of protecting your loved ones, no matter the cost. Fans of domestic suspense will find this book an absolute page-turner.

This book was an interesting read that I was always keen to pick up but the over complicated and over the top ending left me wondering why I had bothered. Such a pity because the plot certainly showed promise.

Good book! Keep me wanting to keep reading! My first by this author and i will read more !! Highly recommend this author !!

I loved this frenemy book! Both generations are pretty terrible, and I enjoyed how the author made everyone catty and terrible, so you were invested but didn't really like anyone.
I liked the different POV's-it was fun to see how everyone was acting in this mess, and who was the real antagonist in this book.

This book's pace was great, with just the right amount of twists to keep me engaged. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and this was my first read from this author, but I am very interested in more of their work.

Alterman is a new to me author, so I had absolutely no idea what awaited me between the covers.

I needn't have worried.

The plot was great and had me on tenterhooks right from the start. It was a little slow in starting, but the further I read pace picked up, and when we neared the penultimate chapters we went full on throttle.

Friendships, tension, and toxicity form the basis of the story, capturing the fallout of how everyone in turn is affected by the actions of an individual.

Great characters, well developed and realistic.

Twisty, thrilling and thoroughly enjoyable.