Disclaimer: thank you to NetGalley and Henry Holt & Co. for a free copy in exchange for an honest review! 

I'm not usually one for real-world crime thrillers, but I was very pleasantly surprised by this book! The mystery itself is very intriguing, with lots of complexity and a well-handled reveal. Marie Tierney is really good at breadcrumbing us through the case; I was able to guess the person responsible, but not the actual twist itself! The pacing is tight, and while the really short chapters can sometimes be disorienting, I felt like it helped keep things moving.

I was a huge fan of Ava, the protagonist. I'm not sure if this was the author's intent, but as an autistic reader, I saw so much of my younger self in Ava, and it was a really rewarding experience. She's a wonderful narrative anchor, and it helped make the frequent character perspective changes a little less jarring. 

I did feel like there were moments where the writing felt a little sloppy. There was missing or unnecessary punctuation, or very rushed description of location changes, and I had to go back and reread a sentence or two a few times. I also do, unfortunately, feel like this novel fell victim to the common ableist/sanist trope of "the killer is mentally/psychologically unwell, and it's made them evil" that's very common in crime thrillers. It wasn't egregious, but it was noticed. 

Overall, this is a compelling, macabre, and thrilling crime novel that kept me engaged from cover to cover. This is an impressive debut!