Reviews

When She Was Me by Marlee Bush

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herelieshenry's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

In the interest of full disclosure, this review is specifically regarding a DRC copy of the book from Net Galley, so while I imagine this eBook was pretty close to finalized, some details may have been changed between my copy and the official release.

If you want a slowburn thriller that is dark, as well as sometimes genuinely upsetting and uncomfortable (definitely check the content warnings if there are topics you’d like to avoid in that wheelhouse), consider When She Was Me for your next read. Marlee Bush weaves conflict and tension throughout every page of this book incredibly well, but I do wish there were some opportunities for relief (maybe to be snatched out from under us, maybe to make the payoff a little more satisfying). I think if the book had a little more moments of rest to get more attached to the cast between the page-turning conflict and anxiety, I might have given it a rating in the 4 to 5 star range. I’m definitely interested in checking out Bush’s future work, especially considering how strong her writing style is already and how well she writes tension.

This narrative overall is incredibly strong, and the twists don’t feel like they’re pulled out of no where; I like that it

goes against the assumption many people going to make based on the title and premise that the twins have switched or will switch places and still

manages to put down clues for the real twist without being too obvious. That’s where the twist did surprise me: my running theory initially was

that Cassie was the violent sister in the flashbacks, then that it was Sarah. That it was neither, and that I had picked up on the right red flags around Sarah’s character,

made it satisfying on both fronts.

The parallel arcs between the two pairs of sisters were very interesting—overall, it makes sense, and I think the juxtaposition between them was well done.

When I started reading, I was wary of Cassie and sympathetic towards Lenora (probably more because of my own experience with agoraphobia than the book itself—I imagine a lot of other readers will feel more inclined towards Cassie). Ultimately, both were characters whose motivations I could process and who I could, for the most part, root for;

I’ll admit I very quickly distrusted Sarah primarily because she was the landlord and when the book started dropping breadcrumbs about her, I assumed she would be the villain.

I was a little uncertain throughout the book of what the reader's takeaway is intended to be, with its themes of unreliability, intention, and the tenuous bonds of trust, truth, and sisterhood, but I do like where it ended.

The choice for Sarah to have to be the one to finally stop Emily, mirrored against Cassie absolving Lenora, showing that, metaphorically, Emily chose to take up the knife while for Lenora, it was put into her hand, is thematically potent and striking.

While I consider this a page turner—after all, I started reading it one night and finished the next afternoon—the plot itself is definitely a slower burn. Conflict is slathered throughout the book to the point that it's kind of a stressful read, especially when done in very few sittings and digested fairly quickly—in other words, it's pretty effective. The structure was elaborate—

two timelines, three character perspectives, all told in first person with one including a second person element

—but effective for the story being told. It creates a claustrophobic, gothic atmosphere that suits the plot well. A majority of the scenes felt necessary within the narrative, though I wish the

Cassie/Parker

subplot had been a little more developed and woven into the tapestry of the book

—the very brief interactions with him don’t fulfill the things I need to get invested (positively or negatively) in a romance subplot or in him as a character

. If there were a bit more screentime dedicated to that and tying it into the narrative, I think it would only make the book stronger.

The writing style is interesting, balancing out the slow pace of the story with sharp, direct sentences, utilizing fragments stylistically. It creates a fast, steady rhythm that suits the book well. Description is visceral, vivid, and incredibly clear, while depth of perspective is appropriate, zoomed in close on each point of view character’s psyche. Grammar was consistent, though some of the grammatical style choices stood out to me; none of it is technically wrong, so it doesn’t lose points for that, but it did take me out just a bit. Character voice doesn’t vary a whole lot across the board, between dialogue and narration, which has its pitfalls in characterization but benefits the twist by making the unspecified flashback narrator difficult to pinpoint down.

Content Warnings

stefs_bookshelf's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

For all my thriller girlies, go get this book!! This book kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat the entire time, I did not want to put it down. I love the unreliable narrator aspects of the story that keep you unsure of what to believe and the setting was perfect for a good thriller. The story revolves around two sisters who live on a campground and are both coping with things from their past that they have to confront when a visitor to the campground goes missing. The writing was fantastic, I was shocked to realize this is a debut novel, Marlee Bush is a name I am sure we will all be seeing more of!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!!

susan_king's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

4.25

What an amazing debut novel for Marlee Bush! The story flowed and was written so well • it was hard to believe this is a first time author! The dynamic between Lenora and Cassie is so fascinating. Their undying devotion to each other was pivotal in laying the groundwork for the rest of the story. Bush executed this task beautifully! There were so many intense scenes that I'd have to take a short break to slow my heart rate. The twists kept my head spinning, and the ending left me feeling so satisfied. Well rounded, well written, and well worth the read!

mercedesn24's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC of When She Was Me by Marlee Bush.

Have you ever been camping? Do you like it?

Cassie and Lenora are twin sisters living in a cabin in the woods, trying to hide from their dark past.

When a teenage girl goes missing, while their family is camping, Cassie thinks her sister did something to the teenage girl.

Can Lenora hurt someone? But who else could have done it? Both sisters try to figure out what happened to the missing girl.

The book was a little slow in the first half. Then it started getting interesting towards the ending trying to figure out who murdered the teenage girl. We do see a lot of in-between timeliness and learn more about Cassie and Lenora's childhood. At times I did feel lost not knowing who was who or what was happening. It was gripping and twisty but then it all made sense and BOOM!

stephsbooktalk's review against another edition

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Thank you so much to Dreamscape for the copy of the audio!

This book is out now.

I am torn on how I feel about this book because I really enjoyed the first half of the book but then suddenly, I had no idea what was happening.

I thought the story of having the two sisters who obviously are hiding from something or had experience some sort of trauma. They are very different one Cassie is more of the mother figure of the two and Lenora is reserved & does not leave the house unless she has to.

I really enjoyed the mystery of the young girl going missing and finding out what happened to her. But as I mentioned somewhere in the middle, the 50-70% range was where they lost me. I am not sure if it was the flashbacks or the dual POVs but I just was not sure what was going on. And then suddenly we were in the present and the twists were happening.

I thought Imani Jade Powers did a good job with the narration and tackling both of the sisters. Her tone and cadence made it to be very easy listening.

Even though this ended up being just an okay read for me, I will give Marlee another try as this is her debut.