The premise of this novel was extremely interesting to me and felt very unique compared to some of the tired thriller tropes we see nowadays. I was immediately hooked from the start and couldn’t put it down until I knew how it ended.

In my opinion I think this is Holly Jackson’s best book yet. The mystery had me on my feet the entire time, and I connected with the characters so well. This incredible story follows a woman named Jet, when Jet is attacked on the night of Halloween she suffers a brain injury. The brain injury Jet suffers from will be the cause of her death in one week. She decides that she wants to spend the last week of her life solving her own murder. The bits and pieces or the mystery will have everyone shocked as they’re revealed, and the small side plot of romance will have people smiling. This is a must read book for this year especially for people who love the mystery genre. I could not recommend a book more

4 ⭐

One week.....7 days, the amount of time Jet has to solve her own murder! At age 27 Jet has yet to figure out her life's path, but on one fateful Halloween night, she is attacked by someone in her home, hit over the head several times. When Jet wakes in a hospital, she thinks she is lucky to be alive, but the doctor gives her terrible news, that the damage is fatal, in a weeks time she will suffer an aneurysm and there is no way to stop it. Jet is determined to figure out who her killer is before she dies, and she enlists help from her old childhood friend Billy, but what they uncover along the way is quite shocking!

Thank you netgalley for letting me ARC read this in exchange for an honest review. This book was a page turner, the twists and turns, all the secrets people are hiding. I definitely did not predict majority of the twists. I highly recommend checking this out. This is suitable I would say for 16 and up, there is foul language, but such a fun thrilling book!

I am always happy to read a Holly Jackson book, and I loved the premise of this book. Jackson’s first adult novel centers on Jet, who is in a race against time: she has one week to solve her murder before she dies of an aneurysm caused by that violent attack. She’s a likable, if frustrating, character who’s struggled to find her way in life. She is helped along the way by her rekindled friendship with Billy, who was her best childhood friend and neighbor. It’s a good, quick read with a twist I didn’t figure out and a surprising ending (to me, at least). Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC.

Suspenseful and gripping. Hooked onto every single page trying to figure out who killed Jet! Wow. Holly Jackson does it again.

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Holly Jackson is my favorite mystery author and her books have become an auto buy for me and this book did not disappoint! It follows Jet Mason who attacked on halloween night and suffers head trauma because of it. She is told by her doctor that she has seven days to live before her head injury kills her, Jet decides to use her last days to solve her own murder. As she starts her investigation she realizes someone was there to kill her that night and that her town and family have more secrets than she ever realized.

This was such an incredible read. Jackson is a master of writing mysteries and building a creating tension. She does a wonderful job of balancing chance and actual mystery solving. Her characters have a lot of depth and this book contains ones of the best red herrings I've read in a really long time. My only complaint is that I think the pacing is a little weird but the last 25% is a masterpiece. That aside, Jackson has mastered her craft. She has a formula that works for her but is still somehow unpredictable every time (RIP all of her book couples, she apparently hates love, but that's ok).

Overall, can't wait to buy the physical copy and can't wait to see what Holly Jackson does next.

This didn't have the magic of As Good As Dead for me but it did have the absolutely unhinged commitment.

Good idea behind a book - solving your own murder before you die but terrible execution. The writing was super corny and the characters weren’t really introduced properly. Made it hard to like any of them

Thank you so much, NetGalley, for the eARC of Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson.

Jet Mason only has seven days to live. She was attacked on Halloween night. She wants to use the seven days that she has to live to find the person responsible for the attack.

The beginning of this book started strong. This book started to get a little repetitive for me. I knew one outcome of this book. This is not my favorite book by Holly Jackson.

5 stars - Dare I say this is Holly's best book??

A big thank you to Netgalley and Bantam for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Expected Publication Date: July 22nd, 2025

~ Plot ~
In seven days, Jet Mason will be dead.
After a brutal attack on Halloween, Jet Mason is left with a traumatic head injury that leaves the doctors certain: in one week, she will die from a resulting aneurysm. As the clock counts down the hours to her death day, Jet and her childhood best friend Billy team up to solve her murder before it's too late.

~ Main Thoughts ~
OH. MY. GOD. This might be an unpopular opinion, but this is Holly's best book. The unique plot, the smaller mysteries all adding up to connect to the main murder mystery, the grief and acceptance, and the END?? I was sobbing in the grocery store parking lot over the end.

The reveal was good! I guessed the killer around halfway through the book, but I think that was moreso my trust issues being correct than the killer being obvious. The scene wasn't epic by any means, it was actually very sad, but I think that makes it even better. This book is very raw and real, and a grand reveal would've seemed almost comical with the context.

~ Characters ~
Like most Holly Jackson books, the characters are not very lovable (except my baby girl Billy, who is the perfect man). Almost everyone has done at least something wrong or suspicious, including our main character Jet, so almost everyone is a suspect.

Now, as much as I didn't love Jet, I can't hate her. Her personality and arc were the main focus of the book, not the mystery. Yes, Jet isn't very likable, but would you be likable if you were killed before ever truly living? If you never even got to be yourself because you spent your whole life trying to fill the void left by the "perfect daughter"? If you pushed everything off because you could just do it later but you can't anymore because THERE IS NO LATER? She's not a favorite character of mine and in no means do I like her, but I understand her and her motives. I think that makes the plot all the more painful because she's so desperate to cram an entire missed lifetime into 7 days, not just because of the years she'll miss but because of the years she HAD but did nothing with.

(as you can tell, I'm still not over this book)

GO READ IT WHEN IT COMES OUT NEXT MONTH 🫵

This is by far my favorite Holly Jackson book to date!
I’ve been waiting so long for her to dip into adult instead of ya and was not disappointed. The concept of this book was totally insane and it worked 100% completely captivating from page one. But fyi don’t get too attached to the protagonist. 😭😭😭😭
This book is emotionally devastating and thrilling and the perfect read and these characters will stick with you!

I was eager to read Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson, as she is one of my teenage daughter's favorite authors and has now become one of mine as well. This novel is an adult thriller that features suspense, family secrets, intricate relationships, and significant emotional intensity. Jet, a 27-year-old from a Vermont family, has seven days to investigate her own death following an attack that results in a fatal brain injury. Jackson presents a complex narrative, incorporating themes of mortality and resilience along with intricate plotting. Jet's determination, combined with the gradual development of her bond with childhood friend Billy, forms a compelling emotional foundation for the narrative, making this book a must read. The unpredictable ending and unique premise make this a standout, earning it 4.5/5 stars for its suspenseful, heartfelt execution. Thank you, Netgalley, for providing this advanced ARC. I will be incorporating this into my collection.

Book Review: Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson.

Jet is 27 years old and the daughter of a wealthy family. She is waiting for the time to prove herself as successful in her own right and her mantra is “I have time.” Until she doesn’t…. She is violently attacked by an intruder in her home, suffering a brain injury that will kill her in seven days. She has made it her mission to find her killer before she is dead. This is her last chance to prove herself and nothing will stop her.

The story kept me interested from beginning to end. I love a surprise ending and this did it. That being said, her ability to do all of the things she did after sustaining such an injury did not seem reasonable to me. I did not connect with her character initially, however, as the novel progressed, I began to enjoy her. Her witty sense of humor added levity into what would otherwise have been a gloomy narrative.

While this might not have made my top list of thrillers, it was a fun read and had a satisfying conclusion.
4⭐️
Thank you for the opportunity to read this advance copy review
#NotQuiteDeadYet #NetGalley #RandomHouse

thank you to netgalley for the arc!

normally i don't read mysteries but this one was pretty good. i have not read anything by holly jackson before, and i really enjoyed her prose. there were some very annoying things (our main character, for one, but she got better), and the amount of "sniffs" i read just from a grammatical standpoint was very irritating. i hope some of those change to synonyms in the future.

i wanted to catch the killer. i was close, but didn't get them!

Thank you NetGalley and RandomHouse for this eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I don’t read a ton of thrillers, but Holly Jackson is one of the few thriller authors I really enjoy and continue to come back to. I was especially excited for this book as it is her adult debut!

Not Quite Dead Yet follows Jet, a 27 year old law school drop out who has recently moved back in with her parents. On Halloween night, she is attacked by an unseen assailant and ends up with severe brain damage. Her doctor tells her that she has a brain aneurysm that will burst within the next week, killing her. Jet decides to dedicate the last week of her life solving her own murder with her childhood friend Billy.

Unfortunately, this is my least favorite Holly Jackson book, and I think it’s mainly due to my dislike of Jet’s character. I found her insufferable and immature. She acted like a 17 year old rather than a 27 year old. The way she talks to everyone around her honestly had me rolling my eyes. I normally don’t have any problem with unlikeable protagonists, but this one I found to be cringey and it took me out of the story. I do like that she was smart, and I enjoyed following along with her as she uncovered new clues. I would say this book is not super fast paced until the last 30% or so, and when it picked up I found it hard to put this book down. The ending was wild but satisfying to me and I think the reveals were well done! Overall would still recommend just not over Holly Jackson’s other books.

Started off really exciting and fast paced but by the end it was just falling flat for me. This might be the first time I haven’t been obsessed with a Holly Jackson novel. I’m so glad I got to read it though!

I was really unsure of this book in the beginning, but the title intrigued me A LOT! This book had a few unexpected twists, but it came together in the end. I loved the characters and their interaction that had me yelling, How could you?? And Just confess already, You Jerk! But, well no spoilers. Thank you NetGalley for the ARC #HollyJackson #NotQuiteDeadYet

Holy COW this book!! I won't lie; I was unsure in the first few chapters as the writing style felt very YA with a lot of characters to keep track of. But once Jackson got her momentum going, I couldn't put this down! "Not Quite Dead Yet" has us following Jet after being attacked in her parents' home on Halloween night. The catch? Jet's trying to solve her own murder...which she survived...kind of? But will be dead-dead in less than a week so only has until then to figure it out.

I read a LOT of thrillers, but this was an incredibly original storyline that kept me on edge until the very end. Jackson is a PRO at creating twists that are so wild yet still believable and make sense. I absolutely loved the protagonist - Jet is relatable, complex, and witty as anything...only she could make me LOL with her death looming in plain sight.

This was an easy 5/5 stars, but even if I didn't like 99% of it I'd still give it 5/5 stars just for that ending. I finished this a few days ago, and I'm STILL thinking about it! Easily one of my best reads of 2025 and will be all over the bestseller lists upon release. Thank you SO much for this ARC!

Really engaging characters help further propel this already attention grabbing plot. It was a wild ride of a thriller and I see why this one was an adult thriller.

'Not Quite Dead Yet' is quick paced and emotional, readers will fly through this murder mystery by Holly Jackson.

I read most of this one sitting last night and then the rest in my lunch break today so to say it was gripping was an understatement. Jackson can do a lot with character development in such a short time. As someone who isn't a connoisseur of adult crime, I can't tell how original the plot actually is, but I found it to be engaging nonetheless. I certainly did not guess who the murderer was, which I think is a good sign.

The last chapters fell apart for me, a little. Something about those last two scenes didn't quite work. They felt melodramatic to a point that it didn't feel believable anymore (well, I was at least unable to suspend my disbelief after a certain point).

I must take this opportunity to also formally request that Holly Jackson goes back to writing murder mysteries set in the UK. Part of what made her first series so unique amongst all the other YA mysteries was it's setting and the fact that it was a series. You really got to sit with the characters and the mystery unfolded over time in a unique setting for the age range. I fear that despite this one gripping me AND the fact that I think moving to adult crime was a great move for Jackson, it will not linger in my brain for very long.

3.5 stars for an engaging murder mystery with an interesting twist on the genre. Thank you so much to Bantam and Netgalley for this proof!