When someone hits Jet over the head, leaving her with a wound that will lead to a fatal aneurysm in the next 7 days, she decides to spend the time solving her murder. The premise of this was so interesting to me, yet I almost DNF'd after the first chapter. The writing style felt choppy and chaotic. This resolved itself by chapter two, which really left me feeling like the first chapter just wasn't polished enough. It took me a while to let go of the negative taste it left in my mouth, especially because Jet takes time to grow on you. She's immature and contradictory of herself, but she becomes more tolerable throughout the book. Still, a lot of the characters felt very YA to me, which makes sense considering it's an adult debut. I felt as though this story was only written as an adult thriller because of Jet's prognosis because there was nothing else that particularly differed from the author's previous work. I did guess pretty early on who killed Jet, but I didn't pick up on the motive until later in the book. The book does move quickly after Jet is attacked and it kept me interested, but some aspects definitely fell flat - especially the romance aspect. This unfortunately did not feel organic to me at all. Between the constant one liners from Jet and the pining from Billy, it was clear the author was setting readers up to be devastated by Jet's fate. I enjoyed working through the mystery and I liked Jet more by the end of the book, but all of the characterization left something to be desired especially in a thriller where the primary question is motive. 3.25⭐️

**I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review

I have been having a hard time writing this review, because I have so many thoughts and feelings about this fantastic book, that I can’t seem to put together a coherent thought about it. Plus, it is hard to write about without giving anything away, but I am going to try.

If this book is not already on your TBR, you really need to add it. It is a well thought out murder mystery, with fantastic characters, an emotional punch at the end and lots of nice twists to the mystery. I just adored this book and think it is Holly’s best book yet.

The story is told through Jet’s point of view and she is such a great character. You start off not liking her very much. She is abrasive and sarcastic, and not very nice to her family, but as she struggles with trying to discover who murdered her before she dies, you really start to feel for her and even like her a little bit. I loved her ‘I don’t give a fuck’ attitude and her gallows humor, they gave the story some much needed comedic moments. But this story wasn’t all about solving the murder. Jet spends time redefining her relationships with her family and friends, discovering some family secrets while finding herself.

Billy was such a sweet and endearing character, I just wanted to hug him and tell him everything was going to be ok, even though we both knew it wasn’t. I loved his determination to help Jet, even when it involved a little rule breaking. He was also a pretty smart guy and was able to help Jet figure some parts of the mystery out. There were some slight moments when I thought maybe he did it, but I pretty much suspected everyone, so that wasn’t a huge surprise. But that passed pretty quickly because I knew he just couldn’t have done it.

If you have read any of Holly Jackson’s books then you know how well she writes a story. This was a fast paced story that I pretty much raced through. It was really hard to put it down as I felt the urgency to figure out the mystery as much as the characters did. There are a lot of suspects, but the final twist was a bit of a surprise. Jet’s family was not the most functional, but some of their secrets were quite surprising. The ending was a bit rushed, but had such an emotional impact on me that I was ok with the rush. My only wish is that we got maybe one more chapter that related what happened to some of the characters, Billy mostly, but some of the other ones too.

Fans of Ms Jackson are going to love this. If you have never read any of her YA books, you can’t go wrong with starting with this ‘adult’ murder mystery. This is a one of a kind murder mystery with compelling characters and a heck of an ending.

All Holly Jackson books lean adult so I was very excited for her first adult novel. It did not disappoint. Jet was both realistic and so likeable. I read 70% of the book in one sitting and lost myself in the novel. This might be Holly's best work yet, which is saying a lot.

DNF did not care for this one, opening was boring and I have heard others that said it wasnt good, so I stopped reading

She does it again! Not Quite Dead Yet is Jackson's first adult mystery thriller and I am blown away. This story is both plot and character driven, and the plot twists had me up too late, just so I could finish the book! So many lovable characters, also some that are easy to hate, but there is such strong character development!!

eARC Review: Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This was my first Holly Jackson book and I was lucky enough to receive an ARC, so thank you to the publisher, Pengiun Random House!

Summary:
Jet, a 27-year old law school graduate, is attacked on Halloween and wakes up in the hospital with devastating news: a piece of bone is lodged dangerously close to a major artery in her brain. The doctors give her just seven days to live. With the clock ticking, Jet sets out to solve her own murder before it’s too late.

⚠️ Spoilers Ahead!

I had mixed feelings about this one. The premise was super intriguing, classic Holly Jackson twistiness with a morbidly thrilling countdown but I struggled a bit with the pacing. The opening chapters were fast and gripping, but the momentum dipped somewhere in the middle, then the ending went too fast again.

The shift to focusing on JJ as the primary suspect felt frustrating. The evidence against him felt too neat and convenient, so I never really believed he was the attacker.

I actually suspected Billy early on just because he was being too nice. But I quickly ruled him out once I saw a little romance starting to spark between him and Jet (which, to be honest, I really didn’t see coming). I wasn’t expecting a romantic subplot at all, especially with such a tight, tragic timeline but I appreciated the emotional complexity it added.

And then there’s the ending. Honestly, I kept hoping there would be a last-minute miracle to save Jet, but Holly Jackson really committed. I shouldn’t have been surprised she’s not afraid to make bold choices but I was still holding out hope. That finality hit hard.

Overall thoughts:
A unique take on the murder mystery genre, solving your own attempted murder while on a literal deadline but the pacing hiccups and slightly predictable misdirects dulled some of the tension. Still, I can see why Holly Jackson has such a loyal following, and I’m definitely curious to explore her other books next.

This wasn't quite what I was expecting. There was intrigue, mystery, suspense, a murder to solve, and even a few surprising twists. I did not expect it to be as emotional as it was. But I loved the premise Jet set; so unique and original. The beginning was slow and a bit awkward but this story really hit its stride.

This was twisty thriller full of suspense and clever turns. The beginning is a bit slow, and most of the characters—including the main one—come off as unlikable at first, often acting more like teens than adults in their late 20s or 30s. But as the story builds, the pace picks up and I found myself growing to like the FMC and getting pulled into the mystery.

In Holly Jackson's debut adult novel, 27 year old Jet is attacked on Halloween night and suffers a life threatening head injury. Due the injury, the doctors are certain she will suffer a fatal brain aneurism in 7 days. Determined to finally accomplish something, Jet sets out to solve her own murder with the help of her childhood friend, Billy.

The premise of this novel is very unique. I have never read a mystery where the main character is solving their own murder. Jet's insistence in figuring out who killed her reminds me of Pip from A Good Girl's Guide to Murder. They both are very stubborn and won't take no for an answer.

I was fully invested from the first chapter and really wanted to follow Jet's journey. Even though you kind of know how her story will end, I was honestly still shocked. I definitely didn't suspect who the killer was.

Holly Jackson's writing is just so captivating and binge-worthy. It is fast paced and has you constantly turning the page. If you liked A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, you will undoubtedly love this.


Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This book is a thriller that really tears your heart out. The relationship that Jet and Billy form will ultimately make you sad in the last chapter of the book. The one kept me on my toes and ripped my heart out all in the same breath.

Holly Jackson is one of my favorite thriller authors! Not Quite Dead Yet is her adult debut and it did not disappoint. Because of the insane plot, this felt extremely fast-paced - I was dying to find out the ending and was routing for our main character, Jen. Also I did NOT expect a romance to be interwoven in this, so I was very pleasantly surprised!!!

I definitely recommend this! Thank you so much to Random House for the advanced copy!

4.5 stars - Long story short, Jet is brutally attacked in her home and is told she has seven days to live. So what will she do with those seven days? Solve her own inevitable murder, of course! This plot is so unique and honestly felt like a breath of fresh air. This story is so chock full of tension that I was literally biting my nails towards the end. Jet is not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but she had me laughing out loud so many times. I love her sarcastic, dark sense of humor. Jet's childhood best friend, Billy, is hands down one of the biggest cinnamon rolls this inexperienced romance reader has ever seen. The juxtaposition of their personalities was pure gold in my opinion. The story starts out a little slow, but Holly Jackson knew how to build the tension. It was so well done. Very excited to read more from this author in the future!

I haven’t given a book 5 stars in a long time, but this one absolutely earned it. While a few moments felt predictable, the overall storyline kept me engaged and genuinely surprised me at times. It struck a great balance—realistic, yet still full of suspense, humor, and even a touch of sadness. Kudos to the author—this was a truly enjoyable read.

Holly Jackson has once again written an amazing mystery thriller novel! This was very different from her past young adult books and I really enjoyed the change. I was so engaged with Jet's character the whole way through and was in shock by the ending, even though I knew it was coming.

The premise of this book caught me immediately as it was so unique and nothing I had ever read before. This story follows Jet who is attacked on Halloween night and is told she can have a surgery with a very small chance of survival or she will live another 7 days waiting for her aneurysm to rupture. Much to the dismay of her mother, Jet is desperate for those 7 days as she is going to solve her own murder.

This book was a quick read and did have several twists. While it was overall enjoyable it did still seem like a YA novel to me as I felt like the characters spoke/acted like they were teens rather than adults. I also figured out the major twist. Though there were some twists that I didn’t see coming. I would recommend this book if you’re looking for a unique story and don’t mind a bit of a YA feel.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

I absolutely loved this book. Like previous Holly Jackson books, this took quite the turn! I loved the writing style being told from Jet’s point of view from beginning to mostly end. I’m so sad for Jet but loved the ending to this thrilling novel. I highly recommend this book and rate it 5 stars!

Thank you so much to NetGalley for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Listen, I haven't read a 5 star thriller in SO LONG and I read this one in 2 days.

It did still kind of feel YA at times, except for the literally 200 times Jet drops an f-bomb, but it was still so good. Jet cracked me up and I related to her so much in the sense that she "kept waiting for her life to start." Solving her own murder with her was such a fun premise and I had the best time with it!

Even though I knew how it was going to end, I was still so emotional!!! Definitely grabbing a physical copy of this when it comes out.

This was an ok thriller. It seemed more like a YA novel, especially since the 27 year old MC acted more like a teenager. In fact I actually went back and checked the age after reading for awhile. I pretty much guessed the ending and the attacker beforehand. At times it was enjoyable, but several times I was tempted to delegate it to this DNF pile., but it was just interesting g enough to continue. 2.5 stars rounded up. Ok

My heart is aching. Ouchy.

This is probably the best book I have ever read. I’ve enjoyed everything from Holly Jackson, but this story.. I don’t even know how to express how I’m feeling.

So many twist. So much drama & mystery. And such a fast paced book. I couldn’t put it down.

I’ll forever love Jet. I’ve never felt so destroyed after finishing a book. But I absolutely will be recommending this to every person I know. I have a feeling I’ll be thinking about this for a very long time.

Thank you NetGalley, and Random House Publishing for this arc!!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the ARC!

This was seriously one of my favorite thrillers ever. It was such a fun story and then it RIPPED OUT MY HEART. It was the perfect story with an expected but still perfect ending. I loved this adult debut from Holly Jackson and hope she does more like this in the future!