Book Review: "We Were Never Here" by Andrea Bartz
“We Were Never Here” by Andrea Bartz
Synopsis: Emily is having the time of her life--she's in the mountains of Chile with her best friend, Kristen, on their annual reunion trip, and the women are feeling closer than ever. But on the last night of the trip, Emily enters their hotel suite to find blood and broken glass on the floor. Kristen says the cute backpacker she brought back to their room attacked her, and she had no choice but to kill him in self-defense. Even more shocking: The scene is horrifyingly similar to last year's trip, when another backpacker wound up dead. Emily can't believe it's happened again--can lightning really strike twice?
Back home in Wisconsin, Emily struggles to bury her trauma, diving headfirst into a new relationship and throwing herself into work. But when Kristen shows up for a surprise visit, Emily is forced to confront their violent past. The more Kristen tries to keep Emily close, the more Emily questions her motives. As Emily feels the walls closing in on their cover-ups, she must reckon with the truth about her closest friend. Can Emily outrun the secrets she shares with Kristen, or will they destroy her relationship, her freedom--even her life?
Rating (out of 5): 4.25
I received an ARC from Ballantine via Netgalley. All opinions my own.
Review: Friend of the blog Andi Bartz is back at it with her third thriller. While I quite enjoyed her first two books, she has well and truly hit her stride, and her newest is far and away her best yet. I tore through it in a day and am so impressed at this delightful and wicked mystery.
So many mysteries about people we know well proving to be sinister are about romantic relationships, so the best friend dynamic here was a fun departure. Emily feels deeply indebted to Kristen for saving her from an attacker on their last international vacation to Cambodia. Disoriented and frightened of being jailed in a foreign country, they cover up the death and vow to put it behind them. But shockingly, on their last night in Chile, Emily finds Kristen with the body of an ill-fated would-be hookup and must help her hide the body once again.
Kristen’s behavior grows increasingly erratic and frightening, just as Emily is building a new relationship and trying to regain stability. Kristen will go to further and further lengths to keep Emily close. The stakes at hand are high, and Emily’s reputation and well-being hinge on Kristen’s silence.
The book is extremely suspenseful and well-paced, and ends with a nasty little twist that I enjoyed quite a bit. It’s elevated from your average thriller read, and a great beach read for the dog days of August.
TL;DR: A strong and inventive third effort from Andrea Bartz, who keeps getting better and better.
If you liked this; try:
“My Sister, the Serial Killer” by Oyinkan Braithwaite (Bookshop | Kindle | Elizabeth’s Review)
“Long Bright River” by Liz Moore (Bookshop | Kindle)
“Nothing Can Hurt You” by Nicola Maye Goldberg (Bookshop | Kindle)
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