If you’re a fan of thrillers and a Desperate Housewives feel, you’ll love this one! Definitely a very captivating plot throughout. Normally I get lost or easily distracted by multiple POVs, but the author did a great job with everyone’s backstories and parts. So many twists that kept me guessing from the prologue to the last chapter. Crazy how secrets can cause such a reaction. This is my first read from the author I received as an ARC reader and I’m pleased to say the rest of her writings will be added to my TBR. Will be buying a physical copy to keep on my shelf as well.

It happens to all of us: a message intended for someone else ends up in the wrong hands. That’s all it took in It Should Have Been You. Susan, a new mom trying to make it through each day and night in a new world that is all about her tiny baby finds herself falling into the trap of social media. A small mistake takes us on a spiral through mingled perspectives and stories that all come together in murder, deception, affairs, and sadness. This must read domestic thriller keeps readers engaged until the very end as they try to figure out who really did it.

This book was a page turner at the beginning but I found I lost motivation to finish it towards the end. The idea behind the story, a simple text message, setting off a chain of events felt really unique which I liked

One misstep is all it took. Susan MEANT to send the gossipy What's App message to her sisters only, but she accidentally sends it to her entire community instead. This sets off a chain of deadly events that nobody could have expected. Another engrossing page turner by Andrea Mara that you will continue to think about after you've finished the book!

Andrea Mara does it again with It Should Have Been You—a chilling, fast-paced psychological thriller that had me hooked from the first chapter. What starts as a relatable, slightly awkward moment (who hasn’t panicked after sending a message to the wrong group chat?) quickly spirals into a dark, twisty exploration of trust, secrets, and the fine line between ordinary life and disaster.

Susan is a new mom just trying to survive the chaos of everyday life. But one sleep-deprived slip—a message sent to the whole neighborhood instead of just her sisters—sets off a chain reaction that pulls her into a nightmare of threats, suspicion, and even murder. The tension builds with every page, and the short, punchy chapters make it nearly impossible to stop reading.

What I loved most is how Mara captures the subtle anxieties of modern life—how quickly things can spiral, how fragile our reputations are, and how much we don’t know about the people we live next to. It’s sharp, relatable, and unsettling in all the right ways.

If you enjoy domestic thrillers with a strong female lead, tight plotting, and twists that will keep you up past bedtime, It Should Have Been You is a must-read!

I really enjoyed this suspenseful thriller. It keeps you wanting more and I loved the ending. It was such a great twist that I did not see coming and of course in the thriller that’s the best. I also liked the different POV I was able to get to know each character, a little bit better and really understand their point of view as the story unwinds. I like that it wasn’t just a mystery to solve but had different relationships between parents and children the sister’s husband and wife. It felt like you got to know the entire neighborhood overall a great read and I will definitely be reading this authors backlog..

What if one wrong text… cost someone their life? 😱
That’s the haunting question at the heart of Andrea Mara’s chilling thriller It Should Have Been You. If you've ever double-checked a message before hitting send, this book might just make you triple-check forever.

A perfect little neighborhood. A not-so-perfect little secret. And a single mistake that unleashes chaos. This book is like Desperate Housewives meets Gone Girl with a sinister tech twist. Let’s dive in 👇

🕵️‍♀️ The Premise: Suburbia’s Dark Side
The story kicks off with a jaw-dropper: a text message full of damning secrets about the neighbors is accidentally sent to everyone in the local WhatsApp group instead of one person. Cue collective neighborhood panic, whispers, and side-eyes. 😳

But what starts as juicy gossip quickly escalates into something far more dangerous—especially when one of the residents is murdered. Even more chilling? She lived at 26 Oakpark, just like our main character... only in another part of town. Coincidence? Yeah, right.

📚 What I Loved
✅ Twisty and fast-paced: The suspense never lets up. Just when you think you’ve got it figured out, Mara throws another curveball that makes you question everything.
✅ Relatable paranoia: We've all had that "oops" moment with a message—this book takes that anxiety and blows it up to terrifying proportions.
✅ Complex characters: Everyone has something to hide, and Mara does a stellar job peeling back those layers one chapter at a time.

🙈 What Gave Me Whiplash
If you like your thrillers with a tidy little bow, just know that It Should Have Been You keeps the tension high and the morality murky. There are no easy answers here—only consequences. And honestly? That made it even better. 😈

⭐ Final Verdict: 4.5/5 Stars
It Should Have Been You is the definition of a one-sitting thriller. It’s juicy, dark, and addictive—like scrolling through a neighborhood Facebook drama thread... except someone ends up dead. 💬☠️

Read this if you love:
📌 Neighborhood secrets
📌 Mistaken identity
📌 Social media gone horribly wrong
📌 That "OMG I can't believe that just happened" feeling

📖 So... Should It Be Your Next Read?
If you're into thrillers that blend real-world tech with real-life terror, It Should Have Been You should absolutely be on your TBR. Just... maybe think twice before sending your next message. 😉

This was an interesting story about a woman who means to send her sister a sparky text about some of her neighbors but instead the message ends up on a message board for everyone to read. I could feel her panic as she tried to remove it but as we know, the internet is forever.
When someone is killed, perhaps in response to the text things really ramp up.
There are several storylines going on at once and this is a page turner getting to find out the what's and why's behind them.

Andrea Mara delivers an absolute knockout with It Should Have Been You! From start to finish, this book had me completely hooked. The writing is sharp, the tension is gripping, and the way Mara weaves multiple points of view with dual timelines is nothing short of masterful.

Often, books with complex structures can feel disjointed, but here, every transition is seamless, adding an extra layer of intrigue that kept me turning the pages. The storytelling feels effortless, yet it builds so much depth and suspense. I loved every twist and turn, and the way the past and present intertwined made the mystery even more compelling.

If you love psychological thrillers that keep you guessing while delivering an emotionally charged narrative, this one is a must-read!

The book was a bit slow to start, but I truly enjoyed reading it from beginning to end! Although I could predict parts of the book, I still wanted to read every second of it! I do think we could have used more character development, but the plot was easy to follow and kept me engaged. It’s one of those books you say WHAT NOW? I highly recommend reading this book.

Thank you for the ARC!

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Viking Penguin for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

This book comes out about May 6, 2025

📚 It Should Have Been You
✨ by Andrea Mara
📖 Genre: Thriller
⭐ Rating: 5/5 stars

📝 Review:
WOW This book started a bit slow for me, but as more was revealed I was hooked. I was flipping through the pages quickly after about 150 pages needing to know what happened, who did what, and why. Some parts I did guess a bit, however my guess was only a piece of the truth and there was always more! If you have sisters especially and/or children this book will be relatable, a bit scary, and thrilling. Between heartwarming and hostile families, cheating husbands, mental breakdowns, and teen drama, this book has it all and you won't want to miss it!

🤔 Why You Should Read It:
This book will keep you guessing and the answers will not be what you expect. You won't want to put it down once the plot begins.

#BookReview #Bookstagram #ReadingCommunity #ShaBookNook #ItShouldHaveBeenYou

Brilliantly written with plenty of unexpected twists. I could not put it down. It did make me think about how something that seems small can actually have far reaching consequences. Highly recommend reading this wonderful novel.

This book I could not put down loved it from beginning to end. I would highly recommend!! This isn't like something I've read before.

Susan, a teacher on maternity leave, sends a snarky comment to her sisters about mutual acquaintances on What’s App and unfortunately, for her, it was sent to the neighborhood group instead.. What ensues is everyone’s worst nightmare and then some. After deleting it, she realizes that someone has screenshotted it and shared it with others. As hard as it is to believe the jealousies and anger towards others lead to murders and unexpected harm to others. This story is a page turner and keeps you wondering all the way through who the murderer was and why did these people get murdered.
The story is told through several narrators and sometimes can be a bit confusing, but overall, it was a very enjoyable book to read. Thanks to NetGalley for this free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Engaging and entertaining. A recommended purchase for collections where crime and thrillers are popular.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Although I stayed up way too late to keep reading, I felt the story had too many over the top coincidences, responses and consequences to an accidental text sent to the wrong group. That being said, I thought it was interesting enough to keep reading to see how everything ends up connecting in the end. I’m not a fan of social media and this story highlights all the things I dislike…anonymous judgements, bullying, glamorization of materialism. There were a couple surprises in the story, but more predictable turns. I’d recommend if you want a quick mystery/suspense read with an interesting premise, but a soap opera backdrop.

💎 💎 💎 1/2
Man, the summary of this book was so good. Honestly the plot was good but there were to many other stories and WAY to many different POVs. There were kids trying to hurt/kill other kids and it just was a lot of confusion. Definitely has a good main story though.

I’m grateful for the opportunity from @netgalley for this ARC book.

#arcreview #multiplepov #suspense #mystery #thriller #aunties.book.club #netgalley #bookreview #itshouldhavebeenyou #revenge #affairs #murder

This was so good!!! I had a blast!!!

SUMMARY:
Folks, so much happens in this book. There are so many characters. I will just give a very brief overview, I suppose.

Susan: Lives at 26 Oakpark. Has Husband Jon and Baby Bella. Two sisters, Leesa and Greta. Fond of sending gossipy texts.

Savannah: Lives at 26 Oakpark....but like a different one. Mostly alone, very mysterious. What happened to her?

The story basically revolves around these two...but like also about everyone they have ever met.

Most basic outline of events - Susan gets real messy on WhatsApp, which is apparently a thing people use. (Also apparently people still use Snapchat??? I thought that was dead and gone.) People get BIG MAD about this message. Mad enough to straight up want to kill Susan...or, you know, the woman who lives at 26 Oakpark.

MANY EVENTS UNFOLD.

MY THOUGHTS:
I looooove a book with multiple POV characters. Really hits the ADHD itch in my brain. This book is so fast-paced and fun. At the same time, it all plays out pretty logically and gives you time to understand what is going on. I guessed a lot of the twists and was completely wrong about plenty of others.

Justice for Leesa. Leesa never did anything wrong in her entire life and gets no recognition for it.

All of these characters (besides wonderful Leesa) have something deeply wrong with them. Like, deeply flawed characters throughout. But you also see where they are coming from. They all feel like real people reacting in real ways. A little heightened, sure, but still realistic.

You will CONSTANTLY be on edge for poor Bella. Please stop putting this poor baby in danger I was so stressed.

WAIT Felipe was also an angel. Cody as well. Only Bella, Cody, Leesa, and Felipe are making it to heaven. Everyone else gives stinky rat behavior.

FINAL OPINION:
I wish I could say more about this book, but I am so scared of giving too much away. A must read. Super fun, very well written. I think I will read it again once it comes out just to go over all the hints again.

Thank you to NetGalley and Viking Penguin for the ARC! All opinions are my own.

This story is told from multiple points of view, and centers around Susan, who accidentally sends a hurtful message meant for her sisters, into her neighborhood group chat. This small mistake sets off a domino effect that spirals into three murders. While the idea is intriguing, I found the pacing to be quite slow, with little happening until the last 1/4 of the book. By the time the plot picked up, I wasn't all that surprised by the twists, and the eventual "who killed who" and "why".

One of the aspects I did appreciate, was how the book brought up the negative side of social media. The idea of sending a message, how fast it can circulate, and how one small mistake can change everything. Also, how young children have the world at their fingertips and how that isn't the best thing for them.

The writing itself was decent and easy to read, and I thought the concept had potential. However, for me, the story ultimately wasn't what I hoped it would be.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing this ARC! This book will be published on 1/16/26.

I am obsessed with Andrea Mara. Something about her writing style, in particular, how she writes about families and conflict between family members. All of her books are fast-paced, "keep you up at night" style thrillers and this one was no exception.
"It Should Have Been You" focuses on the effect that one text can have on the lives of multiple people. Susan, the main character, is home on maternity leave and scrolling her neighborhood "What's App" messages when she decides to send a mean text to her sisters about someone (Celeste) who posted. Unfortunately, the thing we all dread happened and Susan sent the message out to...well...everyone. Next thing she knows, three people are found dead and one of them lives at the same address as her. Was the murdered woman meant to be Susan? Did she cause these deaths by one ill-conceived text that she will forever regret?
I devoured this book in two nights. At first it was difficult to keep track of the various characters, but once I got the hang of it, I was hooked. This book is about something that could happen to anyone, and that's how Mara taps into our fears. How many times have you sent a text to the wrong person? What happened because of it? I loved this and will read all the books she puts out. Amazing author who hasn't let me down yet!