#1 Death Row: Quick read. Enticing. Gripping. Thrilling. Mildly confusing. 4/5
#2 The Ex-Wives Club. One Murder. Multiple suspects. Everyone has a motive. Who did it? 4/5
#3 False Note. Toxic father in Law-son relationship. Not as well written or gripping the other 5 books. 2/5
#4 The Skydivers. Found this one hard to get into as well. Liked it closer to the end. enjoyed the different perspectives. 3/5
#5 Good Neighbors. Quick Read. Easy Read. Enjoyed the twists and action! 4/5
#6 Small Things. I actually really enjoyed this one! I think it was my favorite out for the 6. again super fast and easy to read and to follow. Rude ass husband and the polite housewife. 5/5

Thank you NetGalley, the publishers and the authors for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of the "Alibis Collection"!

The Alibis Collection, published by Brilliance Publishing and Amazon Original Stories, is a captivating anthology of short stories that delve into themes of lies, truth, and deception. Each story is a testament to the authors' ability to weave intricate narratives that keep readers on the edge of their seats.

The collection features six compelling stories, each written by a different author. From Freida McFadden's Death Row, which explores the shocking twists in the fate of a condemned murderess, to Sally Hepworth's The Ex-Wives Club, which uncovers the dark secrets of a restaurateur and serial philanderer, every tale is unique and gripping. Other notable stories include David Lagercrantz's False Note, Chris Bohjalian's The Skydivers, Chad Zunker's Good Neighbors, and Wanda M. Morris's Small Things.

As someone new to reading compilations of short stories, I found the Alibis Collection to be a delightful experience. The ability to read one full story in a sitting was particularly enjoyable, and the fact that each story could be read as a stand-alone made it easy to fit reading into my schedule. Whether I had a few minutes or a couple of hours, there was always a story ready to captivate me.

The strength of the Alibis Collection lies in its diversity of voices and genres. Each author brings their own style and perspective, creating a rich tapestry of narratives that explore the complexities of human nature. The stories are well-paced and filled with unexpected twists, making them perfect for readers who enjoy suspense and psychological drama.

Overall, the Alibis Collection is a must-read for fans of short stories and thrillers. The anthology offers a thrilling journey through the darker sides of human behavior, leaving readers questioning what they can truly believe. Whether you're looking for a quick read or a deep dive into the intricacies of deception, this collection has something for everyone.

Meh. I wanted to love these. A couple were ok like the Freida one was the best. But overall I was really bored with these and had to force myself to finish

I love these novella collections that Amazon releases. They are a great pallet cleanser between novels, or are a great introduction to a genre that you haven’t read before. I’m dipping my toes into thrillers and enjoyed all these stories.

Rated 5 stars. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC ebook.

Holy cow, Freida. First story out the bunch and I am absolutely gobsmacked. I would write a synopsis but I truly do prefer to go into books blind, I actually cannot recommend it enough to other readers and this is a short but thrilling ride of a that I would absolutely recommend not reading anything about and just sitting down, and letting it take you where it takes you!

-I’ll update here as I read each story-

I enjoyed this variety of novellas. They amweee all vastly different but overall entertaining! Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read them and share my thoughts.

Out of six, three were fantastic, two were good and one just didn't make any sense to me. But overall this is a great piece!

After 3 separate 2-star reads and 1 DNF, I had to give up on this collection.

Death Row - This is a pretty classic Freida McFadden tale. You think one thing is happening and then something else does. I thought it was kind of ridiculous and the writing just isn't very good. 2 stars

The Ex-Wives Club - DNF, I couldn't get into this after several pages.

False Note - This was my least favorite of the 3 I finished. The MC and his father were both utterly repugnant and I just wanted both of them to not exist anymore. 1.75 stars

The Skydivers - I would at least consider reading a full-length novel from this author. I think something good could have been done here but it was just too short to execute it properly. 2.25 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC.

Love this collection of short stories though my favorite was Death Row by Freida McFadden loved this one, love the twist and the ending really got you thinking. The other two were tough for me to get though nearly DNFed so my rating is more based off of Death Row than the other two stories

I loved this collection. Lots of story in such short stories! I think my favorite was the Freida McFadden. Many thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this copy for review

I loved the Alibis Collection. If you are in the mood for a quick read from some of your favorite authors, this is for you.

DEATH ROW (3.25 stars)

I've enjoyed Freida McFadden's writing so far, and since I kept seeing Death Row everywhere I ended up giving in and added the whole Alibis Collection to my TBR. I was intrigued by the premise of this short story with the prison setting and the possibility of the husband she is supposed to have murdered not being dead after all... Things started out extremely well, but it was the epilogue that completely ruined the story for me. Seriously, WTF did I just read?! Freida McFadden is known for her twisty endings that come out of the blue, and this short story is not an exception. Sure, I did have a vague idea what was going on with those little hints, but I didn't see the full truth until it was revealed. I was pretty satisfied with how things had ended... Up until the moment I read the epilogue that is. I'm honestly confused what the epilogue even MENT, and I hate the feeling of being left in the dark about what really happened in the end... It's a shame, because the rest of the story is very entertaining once you look past the fact that everything moves extremely fast. Then again, I always have a weak spot for stories with a prison setting... Death Row had a lot of potential to be excellent and I would have loved a longer story with more fleshed out characters. It could definitely do with losing that terrible epilogue though.

THE EX-WIVES CLUB (4 stars)

I've been meaning to try Sally Hepworth's books for quite some time now, so this short story collection was the perfect opportunity to sample her writing. And I have to say that I really enjoyed my time with The Ex-Wives Club! This is the longest story of the bundle, and the extra pages have been put to good use as there was a lot packed into the plot. It's definitely story I wouldn't mind seeing developed into a full novel! The different POVs gave the plot more dept, and it was interesting to learn more about the characters in play. Things can be said about just about every male character being despicable, which felt a bit one-sided and cliche... But there is no doubt that celebrity chef Ian Curley made for the perfect victim, and he DEFINITELY had it coming. I'm surprised someone didn't get rid of him before to be honest! The writing made it easy to keep turning those pages, and while not completely credible, the resulting story was without doubt entertaining. I'm looking forward to try one of Sally Hepworth's backlist titles soon, because this first impression of her writing was without doubt a positive one.

FALSE NOTE (2.25 stars)

This is another author I've never tried, because I've only ever read the original Millennium books. Still, since I love a good Nordic thriller, I was looking forward to try David Lagercrantz's writing and travel to Sweden with False Note. Well... Let's just say that I'm glad that my first experience with his writing was a short story and not a book, because I would have probably ended up DFNing it. There was just something about the writing style that I ended up clashing terribly with, and the fact that there wasn't really a proper plot didn't really help either. It was all so incredibly vague, more like a stream of consciousness than a story I would happily get my teeth into... Without doubt NOT my cup of tea. To make things worse, the characters are all absolutely horrible. This ment that I couldn't care less about what happened to any of them, and their behavior was extremely off-putting. The ending isn't satisfying at all either, and it's definitely the worst story of the bundle so far.

THE SKYDIVERS (2 stars)

Oh boy. I thought the previous short story was bad, but The Skydivers was even worse. I confess that I hadn't even heard of this author before, but the premise sounded interesting enough and I was curious to see where this story would take us. Now, I mainly just wish I hadn't wasted the time it took me to plough through this short story, because there was nothing remotely entertaining about my time with The Skydivers. One of the big issues I had was with the writing style, which was way too descriptive and flowery; basically, it felt like the author was trying too hard. To say that I clashed with the writing style is an understatement, that's for sure! The plot itself was both quite weak, confusing and basically buried under a pile of off-putting descriptions. I wasn't a fan of the characters either, who mostly felt like one-dimensional cardboard copies that I struggled to keep apart. This ment that I couldn't care less about what was happening, and the ending itself came out of nowhere. One thing I've learned from my experience at least is that Chris Bohjalian's writing most definitely isn't for me.

GOOD NEIGHBORS (3.75 stars)

Chad Zunker is another author that I hadn't heard of before adding this collection to my shelves... But his writing definitely made an excellent first impression. Good Neighbors is without doubt the most action-packed short story of the bundle, and I literally flew through the pages. What starts out as a simply domestic situation and helping out a friend soon turns into a nightmare situation for our main character Kara. Things escalate once our she witnesses something far worse than she expected to see... And the rest of the plot offers us a pretty wild ride indeed. Things can be said about the credibility and certain connections being too convenient, but this is a short story after all so there isn't really much time to wrap things up in the first place. I personally didn't mind, as this short story really works on an entertainment level. The characters are a bit one-dimensional, but Kara was somehow still easy to root for. I guess it has something to do with the fact that it is very hard to resist the temptation of wanting to find out what is going on... Either way, Good Neighbors ended up being one of my favorites of the bundle so far and I definitely wouldn't mind reading more of Chad Zunker's work in the future.

SMALL THINGS (3.5 stars)

The final short story of the collection is another new-to-me author, and while I'm not a big fan of domestic drama I was curious about the plan mentioned in the premise for the main character to stop her abusive husband. Small Things is without doubt mainly domestic drama, which is probably why I haven't rated it higher as this type of stories just isn't for me... That said, the story is worth reading for the ending alone. I don't want to give away too much to avoid spoilers, but this story will basically show you the abusive marriage the main character Hannah finds herself trapped in and just how despicable her husband is. Then something happens that makes Hannah finally say 'enough', and boy did that cheating, body shaming, gaslighting and all round abusive bastard of a husband have it coming. There is quite some focus on the abusive relationship as well as infertility, so this short story should definitely come with a trigger warning... The writing is great though, and it's definitely made me want to browse Wanda M. Morris's backlist. The ending is without doubt the best part of this short story! Very satisfying indeed.

Death Row

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 2.75 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

this short story was actually going pretty well, but only until the ending. it was rushed, confusing, and overall just not what freida usually writes. a bit disappointing because i love all the other books i've read by her.

The Ex-Wives Club

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 4 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

this was actually a really fun read! the twist was quite clever. wish we got more though!

False Note

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 2 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

i don't exactly know how i feel about this one. i know that i didn't like it and that i felt disconnected from the story. but yeah that's pretty much it.

The Skydivers

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 1 star ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

what even was this?? very confusing novella, and it was just way too descriptive for a short story.

Good Neighbours

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 3.5 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

so much action in such a short story! i really enjoyed it and i can see myself checking out the author's other books in the future.

Small Things

⋆ ˚｡⋆୨୧˚ 3 stars ˚୨୧⋆｡˚ ⋆

if you like a good revenge story, i think you will enjoy this short story!

˗ˋˏ ୨୧ thank you to NetGalley, Amazon Original Stories, Freida McFadden, Sally Hepworth, David Lagercrantz, Chris Bohjalian, Chad Zunker, and Wanda M. Morris for the digital arc in exchange for an honest review! ୨୧ ˎˊ˗

Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon original stories for the complimentary short story Alibis collection by Freida McFadden, Sally Hepworth, David Lagercrantz, Chris Bohjalian, Chad Zunker, and Wanda M. Morris.

Death Row by Frieda McFadden (1st book in the Alibis collection) As a side note I had previous read this book through Prime reading but will be adding my review here for the book.

My Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Death Row was a short but overall enjoyable read for me, I guessed the twist but I’m still pleased with how things had played out. I didn’t mind these characters either! Talia and Noel were interesting characters to read about. I enjoyed this short story and I definitely would love to see more with them in the future if possible! I’m curious to see how the other stories in this short collection are going to play out! If you want a quick suspenseful read or love Freida Mcfadden in general I’d recommend Death Row!
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The Ex-Wives by Sally Hepworth (2nd book in the Alibis collection).

My Rating;⭐️⭐️

I’m a little disappointed with this story, I liked the premise and enjoyed reading about the female characters/ex wives. I liked that we got different perspectives and the interview chapters were a nice bit to include. It matched up nicely with whose character perspective we were following previously. I wasn’t a fan of any male characters, I didn’t like the fat phobic comments, and the ending leaves me feeling disappointed. Even though we don’t get much character development since it’s a short story, I still felt like these characters had so much potential if it was just given a little more. Everything ended becoming rather flat. While I’m all for a sleaze bag getting what they deserved this just left much to be desired. The detectives pretty much gave up before they even started.
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False Note by David Lagercrantz (3rd book in the Alibis collection.

My Rating:⭐️

I didn’t like this read at all, all the characters are awful people and the mystery is hardly a mystery at all. I’m very disappointed with how things had played out. I had thought this collection/read was supposed to be mysterious and thrilling but it’s neither of those things. I wish the story would have focused more at the “mystery” aspect but this story just ended up becoming failed character growth with a disappointing ended. The supposed mystery is basically forgotten
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The Skydivers by Chris Bohjalian (4th book in the Alibis collection)

My Rating:⭐️⭐️

I found the story of the skydivers to just be okay, the characters were likable and plot was okay however I feel confused about some of the characters background. Some of it just feels out of place and a bit confusing. I wish we would have gotten just a bit more plot wise, I feel that this story is mostly relying on speculation as to what happened and who was involved.
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Good Neighbors by Chad Zunker (5th book in the Alibis collection)

My Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️

Good Neighbors was a decent read! I found these characters to be enjoyable to follow, the atmosphere of the book felt tense and suspenseful. The storyline for Good Neighbors was likable, the mystery was a decent one and it didn’t leave things hanging or up to speculation. Though this was a short read this definitely feels like a full thriller type of novel. After reading I’m feeling satisfied about the wrap up of things. My overall rating is a 3.5.
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Small Things By Wanda M.Morris (6th book in the Alibis collection)

My Rating;⭐️⭐️⭐️

Small things was an enjoyable read, I liked Hannah as a character and found the jewelry making aspect to be interesting! This read was suspenseful and I found myself eager to see what happened. Things play out in a satisfying way and the ending was rather pleasant!

Death Row

3.5 stars? 4 stars? I don’t know how to rate something that didn’t really have an ending.

I really enjoyed the dual timeline to help unravel that our FMC Talia is actually psycho like yeah don’t cheat on this woman. However, the ending was getting so interesting then BAM. confusion.

I really wish this was a full length Freida book. I feel like she lately has been doing over the top twists (The Teacher, The Tenant, The Boyfriend), but I felt like this twist would’ve done well if it was more fleshed out.

I’m excited to read the next few short stories in this series!

The Ex-Wives Club

3.5 stars

This was really fun to read! I love how each chapter was a slightly different POV, so you got to learn a little bit more about each of the suspects as you go. Despite it's short length, I felt like each character had depth and was distinct from one another. I could've read a whole novel about this, following each person's individual story. I also liked the ending quite a bit and definitely felt like it was worth the read.

False Note

2 stars

This one definitely was a bit harder to get into. I think both the son and the father deserved what they got because wow are they both terrible people! I would've liked to see a few chapters here and there in Ebba's point of view to add some spice. Sadly, I just don't think reading this really did anything for me.

The Skydivers

2 stars

This one was ok! Kinda hard to get into, but I did enjoy following 2 different POVs. I don’t know if the writing style is for me, but I do think it told a good story. I wouldn’t be opposed to picking something else up by this author in the future.

Good Neighbors

3.5 stars

I liked this one quite a bit! I think it took a good story in a short amount of time. There were twists revealed in both POVs (husband and wife), and I think the pacing was really well done. I definitely could read a longer story of this but still felt like I got everything I wanted out of the shorter version.

The plot was interesting enough that I do think I’d try another book from this author.

Small Things

4 stars

This one was the best one! I really enjoyed this. I definitely will check out this author. I feel like this was the perfect length for the story that was told. I felt really sad for our girl Hannah, but the ending was excellent. This is a great example of being able to make an impact in only a few pages. Definitely worth the read!!

‘Motive. Means. Opportunity. Without proof of all three, the guilty can walk free. But even with an alibi, the innocent can still be condemned. For six award-winning, bestselling authors of psychological suspense, truth and lies weave together in a tangle of conflicting loyalties, hidden crimes, and dark secrets. Pull one thread, and there’s no telling what will unravel.’

AOS are always quick, fun and refreshing! And the Alibis Collection was no different. They were also deviant and clever, two of my favorite descriptives!

Thank you Amazon Original Stories for this opportunity!

Rating: 4.5 ★ 

Even when someone has a solid alibi, they can still be found guilty—and those truly responsible may go free without enough evidence. In this gripping collection by six acclaimed psychological suspense authors, the line between truth and deception blurs. As secrets, betrayals, and buried crimes come to light, one small discovery can set everything spiraling out of control.

This collection of short psychological thrillers absolutely delivered. Each story is quick to read but still packed with tension, twists, and unforgettable characters. The different writing styles from the six authors blended surprisingly well, making it a gripping experience from start to finish.
The standout for me was "Death Row" by Freida McFadden—a chilling, fast-paced story that immediately pulled me in. The plot had me questioning everything, especially when the supposedly dead husband suddenly reappears. The twist caught me totally off guard, and the emotional weight behind the character’s desperation felt incredibly real, despite the story’s short length.

All the stories are under 50 pages, making this the perfect pick if you're looking to get out of a reading slump or squeeze in a suspenseful read between longer books. I originally picked this up for McFadden’s story, but I ended up enjoying every one and now want to explore the other authors' works too.
If you’re into psychological suspense with dark secrets and sharp turns, this collection is absolutely worth your time.

Thankyou to netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I originally requested this book due to seeing Freida McFadden's book in this collection however I ended up loving all the books. They are super short, some being 50 pages or less so they are the perfect length to quickly read either in-between books or to get out of a reading slump. My favourite was still freida mcfaddens but the other five were still brilliant and I will be looking at their backlist.

Loved! These books really fit well together and even though they are quick reads, I found myself intrigued by each new story! I always love the series with different writing styles!