ARC Review - Releasing July 22, 2025
My Rating: 4 ⭐️

“Jet is going to solve her own murder.”

Yeah, I was hooked.

This book was a total page-turner — I couldn’t put it down and ended up finishing it in a day. The central mystery, Jet’s race against time to solve her own murder, pulled me in from the start. While some twists were predictable, it was still compelling to watch everything unravel. That ending? Did not see it coming.

Following Jet and Billy on their chaotic, week-long investigation was both satisfying and heartbreaking. Watching their friendship slowly mend was emotional, especially knowing how limited their time was. Jet’s “nothing to lose” energy brought tension and urgency to every scene, and Billy? An absolute sweetheart. Their dynamic really carried the story. I was happy, sad, and just a little furious by the end.

Jet’s character arc was tragically beautiful, but I’ll admit she sometimes felt more like a teenager than a 27-year-old — especially in her early interactions with other characters.

There were also a few moments that stretched believability, particularly as Jet’s condition worsened. I can’t speak from experience, so maybe that’s just me.

My only real complaint? The ending felt a bit incomplete. I wanted more closure, especially from the side characters and their reactions to the final reveal.

Still, if you want a murder mystery with friendship and a few tears, this one’s for you. Perfect for a suspenseful October/November read — and yes, bring tissues.

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⚠ Content Warnings:

[Violence, blood, infidelity, murder, gun violence, fire/fire injury, medical content, child death, injury/injury detail]

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A huge thank you to Random House Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own! My review is now posted on Goodreads and StoryGraph.

I could not put this book down!! I loved Jet so much and felt so many emotions because of her! The last 10-15% of the book was a little predictable, but I still had fun!

(rating 4.5) Really enjoyed this, Such a cool concept with her surviving and having such limited time to figure everything out. Will eat up anything Holly Jackson writes. Loved the characters, had me on the edge of my seat. Justice for Jet

Emotional. Damage. Holly, how could you do this to me?! Not Quite Dead Yet is a gripping, fast paced thriller following a young woman who is attacked on Halloween night. Although she survives, she will have a fatal aneurysm in 7 days, and in that time she plans to solver her own murder. This was the best book I've read this year. I love Holly Jackson's writing, her stories are so detailed and lead to the most mind blowing twists imaginable. This was probably the most devastating book I've ever read, but an absolute masterpiece. Thank you Ballantine for the opportunity to review my most anticipated book of the entire year!!!!!!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bantam for this advanced readers copy!

I have read A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series, Five Survive, and Kill Joy (loved them), so I was quite excited for this book as well! I truly enjoyed the story.

Jet’s personality was so fun and sarcastic and I enjoyed every second of it. She was a well written character. Billy was truly a sweet and caring soul who loved Jet until the very end. For a brief second, I thought there was a chance it could have been Billy… 🤔 thankfully I was wrong on that theory.

Not Quite Dead Yet kept my sleuthing brain on its toes. The premise of the story was unique and enjoyable. While I did solve the mystery before the story ended, it was a thrilling and fast read.

my heart is aching and my cheeks are still wet from crying over this book. holly jackson does it again. poor, sweet billy. jet really did love you.

this was fast-paced and electrifying and although it was a stand-alone i found myself attached to the characters. specifically jet. i /wanted/ her to get the answers. she deserved the answers.
there is so much i want to say but i don’t want to give away any spoilers.

a longer review coming soon.
from the bottom of my heart, thank u holly and netgalley for sending me this arc.

Other than the medical portion of the story being completely unrealistic, I loved this story! It was twisty and turny and a blind side at the end. Everything I would expect from Holly Jackson. This book definitely still has a YA feel. Even though the main character is 27 years old, her thoughts and actions feel more like a teenager.
Bottom line-if you are a fan of Holly, you will love this book!

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review!

Holy wow! My jaw is on the floor. I read the AGGGTM series and loved it, so I went into this book with high hopes. It exceeded my expectations! The book did start a bit slow, so I was unsure how I was going to feel about it.

When Jet and Billy started working together to try and solve her murder (yes, you heard me right), watching the pieces unfold truly kept me on the edge of my seat. The last few chapters had me gasping out loud, and screaming at my Kindle. I was saying "no no no no!" as Jet was reacting to the truth the same way that I was. Pure shock. I loved this book and I cannot wait to buy a physical copy as a trophy for my book collection.

Thank you so much NetGalley, Random House Publishing, and of course the brilliant Holly Jackson for this early copy!

When Jet gets murdered on Halloween, she wakes up 2 days later and is told she has a week to live. Jet has always pushed everything to later, she had time to get it done, but now with only a week left she has one plan: solve her own murder.

This book felt like a rollercoaster you go on again as soon as you get off. It was brilliant, funny, and thrilling. I already wish I could read this for the first time again. The ending had me in a chokehold. Between crying, smiling, and a little bit of laughter, I could have never predicted the twists and turns that were thrown at me. This story was something I never knew I needed, but I needed it.

I have read and really enjoyed all of Holly Jackson's books, and I was very curious to see what her first adult thriller would look like.

Off the bat, the premise of this one was very intriguing. It has that classic bingeable Holly Jackson plot that’s inherently fast-paced with a solid group of characters that are all a little suspicious at one point or another. Jet as a MC was interesting in her behavior and thought process but I feel like it made sense for the story and was familiar to Holly Jackson's typical MCs. Her ability to joke about her situation and not take it too seriously allowed this tragic storyline to lean more mystery/thriller. I enjoyed the comedic relief Jet brought and it was more digestible because of how she was treating her situation.

The mystery itself was engaging and led you all over the place while still providing a big reveal at the end. I actually really liked the way this story ended, it was explosive in all the best ways and didn't seem too outlandish or unrealistic. I think the only thing I got caught up on was some of the characters did not seem fully fleshed out and a little 2D, so it made it hard for me to theorize who the attacker was and their motives (but maybe that was the point).

Overall, a 4.25⭐️ rating for the plot, characters, and the suspenseful trust-no-one vibes. I think I maybe enjoyed some of her YA thrillers a little more, but this one was a great time!!

Thank you NetGalley & Random House for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

You’ve got to remember to breathe while you’re reading through this thriller. How do I accurately describe what I just experienced into words other than “Holy Shit.” Holly Jackson knows what she’s doing here.

Jet Mason is a 27-year-old daughter of a wealthy family who never follows through with anything. She has the mouth of a sailor and a motto of “I’ll do it later.” And she’ll be dead in seven days. On Halloween night she’s brutally attacked and is given a week to live, as doctors tell her she’ll eventually experience a fatal aneurysm. Jet then sets out to follow through on one thing for once. Solving her own murder.

Can we make this a movie please?! Well done Holly!

I loved this book!!! Thank you for the arc, I am so happy that I got the chance to read it. The twisted minds, the plot twists, the way the characters pulled you in..all amazing. Highly recommend!!

4.25 Stars

Jet moved back home after a year of law school, and has been trying to figure out what is next. Her mother is domineering and always critical of her. Her father shows her love but defers to her mother, Her older brother is married to Jet's former best friend and has a baby, and neither seems very interested in having a relationship with her. The story begins on Halloween night after the town festival has wrapped up. Jet goes home first and is in her living room, when she is attacked from behind and hit several times on the head. When she awakens in the hospital, the doctor tells her that she has an injury that will cause a large and fatal aneurysm within a week. The only other option is to try to repair this surgically but there is a very small chance of surviving the surgery. Despite her mother's insistence, Jet decides to not have the surgery but rather spend the week she has left solving her murder.. Her mother makes this so difficult that Jet moves in with her childhood best friend Billy., and he helps her investigate.

This story quickly pulled me in, and kept me turning pages right to the end. Jet's complicated family relationships make for a rich backdrop to this mystery and kept me guessing for quite a while. I really enjoyed this author's writing style and I will definitely look at more of her books. This is a book I definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Firstly thank you so much to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley!! I am a huge fan of Holly Jackson and was ecstatic when they gave me early access to read this book. To no surprise Holly Jackson outdid herself once again. I finished this book in one sitting and actually cannot think of a single bad thing about this book. The progress Jet was able to make throughout the book was incredible. I did ball my eyes out and will say this is a tear jerker so be aware. If you loved Holly Jackson I have no doubt you wont love this new book by her!!

I was fortunate enough to attend a virtual author talk by Holly Jackson and I really appreciated the back story to this novel. Jackson discusses writing for a more mature audience but basically says it was like writing for YA but with more curse words:)

The premise of this story is too hard to resist. Jet has been attacked (with the intent of killing her) and she will die from the injuries in seven days. She is determined to find out who attacked her and why.

If you liked A Good Girl's Guide to Murder, you will like this and do not be intimidated by this not being labeled as YA because it is still Jackson's writing style and very easy to read.

There is a little suspending of disbelief with the fatal injuries that Jet has but she is still able to solve a mystery and that the time frame for her impending death is so specific but that is often the way with thrillers.

There are twists and turns, suspects that pop up one after the other and a fairly satisfying resolution to the mystery.

I just finished Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for an eARC.

27-year old Jet is ready to do something big with her life... but maybe she'll start tomorrow. She dropped out of law school at UPenn, quit her banking job in Boston to move back home to her small Vermont town. If anyone asks, she's working on it, trying to figure out exactly what she wants to do, because her life needs to matter. But she'll do it later. After a community Halloween event, one that's hosted by her family's construction company, Jet beats her parents home. And that's when someone kills her. Three blows to the back of her head, blood everywhere, no witnesses. When she wakes up in the hospital, she's told devastating news-- she has seven days to live before an aneurism kills her. Determined to finish something for once, Jet sets out to solve her own murder-- and in the process disrupt some long buried secrets.

This is Holly Jackson's first adult novel. Typically a YA author, I was surprised that she was venturing out. And it didn't really work that well for me. Jet is 27, but she acts more like she's 17-- her relationships, her attitude, it all read very arrested development to me. And sure, there were some plot points that fed into the idea that some of this was justified, but overall I felt like she wasn't the age she was supposed to be. This holds true for about every twenties to thirties character in the novel; the pettiness, the stunted emotional regulation-- just didn't read adult to me. There was also this huge suspension of disbelief I had to swallow that a person who just had major head surgery would be able (within 36 hours) of doing things like slinging a sledgehammer, light breaking and entering, etc. I just felt like there would have been more limitations due to her serious injuries. That said, the plot is well thought out-- the twists and surprises were earned. Holly Jackson is a master of intertwining stories and planting early seeds that pay off the in end. In that way I was highly satisfied with the way the story played out. I wish she had done this as a YA novel, aged the characters down, and maybe made Jet a little less physically proactive. The mystery itself is great, and the motives and backstory really build to a good reveal, I just couldn't get over that these people were in their late twenties/early thirties, and that she literally had a brain bleed and walked out of the hospital like it was nothing. Nice try, not my favorite.

Not Quite Dead Yet is a chilling, unputdownable thriller following the story of a Jet, a girl who was attacked and told she has a week to live with the injuries she sustained. She decides to spend that last week solving her own murder in an attempt to feel like she finally did something with her life. I stayed up until 1am finishing this book two days ago, and I have not been able to stop thinking about it since. Jackson does an incredible job building her characters, ensuring her plot is consistently exciting, and leaving you guessing what really happened until the very end. I adored Jet and Billy's friendship and cried reading one of the final scenes. I rarely cry when reading books, so that says a lot for me personally! I haven't read a thriller that enthralled me this much in a long time, and I know these characters and their stories will be sticking with me for a long time to come.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read an eARC of Not Quite Dead Yet in exchange for my honest review. My review is now posted on Goodreads, and I will share it on Instagram (@bookedwithkay) on release day.

It was entertaining but it wasn't anything to write home about. One thing I will say is... protect Billy forever because what a gem. Sweetest man ever.

First off I would say that this is Holly Jacksons best novel yet.

While the story started out a little slow, once the action started I was hooked. The main character is in her late 20s which you don't see very often anymore and it was refreshing to read. While I tried my best to guess who the killer was in the end I was wrong. I managed to guess some of the small plot twists but I was having a blast trying to put all the pieces together.

Overall this book packs a punch by being comedic and tragic all at the same time. "Not Quite Dead Yet" is set to release July 22nd 2025.

This review will be published on June 26th 2025 to Goodreads.

Jackson's jump into adult mystery/thriller is done seamlessly. The characters read as adults but still look back to younger days. I loved the way the book was broken up into days and the ending had me screaming. Let's just say the twist got me. It's not an easy read and very emotional but I still enjoyed it.