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booksandbujos's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This was a solid, standard thriller. The middle dragged a little at times, but the ending felt like a decently-paced climax. The reveal felt a little out of nowhere. I also don’t know if we really got closure on the sort of main mystery/ initial incident of the death of her mother. Was it actually natural? Was it supposed to be something more like the other deaths? Not entirely sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Infidelity, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Car accident and War
rachelle_reads's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
4.25
First, the good: The author’s portrayal of OCD and the way she addressed refugee trauma and intergenerational trauma were well done. That’s what sucked me in. I couldn’t always tell what was real and what was a dream or false memory, and that works well is a psychological thriller.
This was going to be a 5 star book for me until the last 50 pages or so. Everything wrapped up too neatly.Three murders closed, with what evidence? And her relationship with her teenage daughter so quickly fixed? Please. I wish the author had taken time to finish all the storylines better, rather than using dialogue to explain it all away.
One other complaint has to do with the role of the psychiatrist. I appreciated how the author used this character to help us understand Annie’s OCD. But the psychiatrist did a lot of things that are quite unrealistic.You would never take on a client who was the spouse of a former roommate/boyfriend. I think I would have enjoyed the story more if Dr. Patel and the husband were conspiring together, but she was just a run-of-the-mill unethical therapist.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I look forward to reading more from this author as she hones her thriller writing skills.
This was going to be a 5 star book for me until the last 50 pages or so. Everything wrapped up too neatly.
One other complaint has to do with the role of the psychiatrist. I appreciated how the author used this character to help us understand Annie’s OCD. But the psychiatrist did a lot of things that are quite unrealistic.
Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I look forward to reading more from this author as she hones her thriller writing skills.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Violence, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Fire/Fire injury
siobhanward's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I think this book was another victim of me having read too many thrillers. I saw the ending coming about halfway through and kept waiting for something else to pop up and surprise me but nothing did. Annie was a solid character and I wish there had been more about her and her mother, since that was the most interesting part of the book. Otherwise, this felt like a very standard run of the mill thriller with an unreliable protagonist meant to keep readers guessing, but without something to really shock you.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Death of parent, and Murder
magyklyxdelish's review
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Car accident
Moderate: Animal death, Infidelity, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Minor: Racism, Sexual assault, Police brutality, War, and Classism
rachelcoconut's review
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
starklinqs's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I thought this book started off strong and ended well enough, but the middle dragged a lot for me. This didn’t really feel like a thriller, and at some point the book just felt incredibly repetitive and I was wishing they would just get to the point.
The main character was really interesting though - despite not liking her, I still felt protective of her character, and I enjoyed reading her perspective. The story really felt like a book on mother/daughter relationships with a little bit of thriller thrown in - maybe if it was marketed differently I would have enjoyed this a bit more.
I thought this book started off strong and ended well enough, but the middle dragged a lot for me. This didn’t really feel like a thriller, and at some point the book just felt incredibly repetitive and I was wishing they would just get to the point.
The main character was really interesting though - despite not liking her, I still felt protective of her character, and I enjoyed reading her perspective. The story really felt like a book on mother/daughter relationships with a little bit of thriller thrown in - maybe if it was marketed differently I would have enjoyed this a bit more.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Violence, and Death of parent
cc_shelflove's review
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to the author for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Following the death of her mother, Annie's life begins to unravel. A client disappears, the police are all up in her business, and oh, does she really even love her husband? Her obsessive-compulsive disorder does not make it any easier for Annie to navigate these challenges. As spiraling thoughts began to consume Annie, I found myself worrying for her well-being more and more as the book went on.
K.T. Nguyen offered the reader glimpses of Annie's past which explained some of her behaviors in the present day. She endured severe emotional abuse by her mother and was subjected to the generational trauma that often occurs in immigrant families. I think this would be a great book club book because there are many components that would prompt thoughtful discussions outside of the plot.
While Nguyen's debut novel is categorized as being a thriller, I cannot stop thinking about the HORROR 🔪 elements it contained! New fear unlocked..... 😳🪲👅 I seriously am going to be thinking about that for days. Overall, I identified many parallels to a book I read recently, which I think removed the shock factor for me in reading this novel. However I am sure other readers will have different experiences and You Know What You Did will be well received! Also, there was a Cody Rigsby shoutout which I hope he finds and shares. 😆 I'll be picking up future releases by this author for sure.
Following the death of her mother, Annie's life begins to unravel. A client disappears, the police are all up in her business, and oh, does she really even love her husband? Her obsessive-compulsive disorder does not make it any easier for Annie to navigate these challenges. As spiraling thoughts began to consume Annie, I found myself worrying for her well-being more and more as the book went on.
K.T. Nguyen offered the reader glimpses of Annie's past which explained some of her behaviors in the present day. She endured severe emotional abuse by her mother and was subjected to the generational trauma that often occurs in immigrant families. I think this would be a great book club book because there are many components that would prompt thoughtful discussions outside of the plot.
While Nguyen's debut novel is categorized as being a thriller, I cannot stop thinking about the HORROR 🔪 elements it contained! New fear unlocked..... 😳🪲👅 I seriously am going to be thinking about that for days. Overall, I identified many parallels to a book I read recently, which I think removed the shock factor for me in reading this novel. However I am sure other readers will have different experiences and You Know What You Did will be well received! Also, there was a Cody Rigsby shoutout which I hope he finds and shares. 😆 I'll be picking up future releases by this author for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Mental illness, Violence, Death of parent, and Alcohol
julessssss's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this book is complex in the best ways, it is everything I could have asked for. I have been itching for a good horror (or horror-adjacent) book and this was it.
Annie is an unreliable narrator and I found myself both caring deeply for her but also disliking her (which was a perfect balance). I was compelled to know what was going to happen next and what information was being withheld, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
I did feel like the resolution was a little lackluster though, and if I would tweak anything about this novel, it would be that.I did like, however, that the ending gave her a secret to keep (in the most vague terms possible lol)
I will be back for more of what this author does in the future.
I cannot say I would recommend this to just anyone (if you are interested, consider looking at a list of trigger/content warnings), however, if you are a horror or thriller fan, this might be a great fit.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing team for granting me a free and advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Annie is an unreliable narrator and I found myself both caring deeply for her but also disliking her (which was a perfect balance). I was compelled to know what was going to happen next and what information was being withheld, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.
I did feel like the resolution was a little lackluster though, and if I would tweak anything about this novel, it would be that.
I will be back for more of what this author does in the future.
I cannot say I would recommend this to just anyone (if you are interested, consider looking at a list of trigger/content warnings), however, if you are a horror or thriller fan, this might be a great fit.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishing team for granting me a free and advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Death, Gore, Infidelity, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Stalking, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: War