They Did Bad Things

by Lauren A Forry

[Sophia]

2/5

In 1995, a student is found dead in his university houseshare. 20 years later, the remaining housemates are invited to an isolated hotel under false premises, seemingly to force the killer to confess.

I was really intrigued by the premise of this book and its Agatha Christie/Clue vibes but I ended up disappointed as the story played out.

Things I liked:

- The plot! This is fundamentally a good story and I kept reading because I wanted to find out who killed Callum.

Things I disliked:

- The pacing was a bit 'off' and the book felt like it oscillated between action and dull filler. When Callum's killer is finally revealed it was almost anti-climatic and glossed over.

- The characters, oh god the characters. There was potentially one likeable character in this entire book and he dies within a few chapters. I'm sure the author didn't intend for her characters to be likeable, but they lacked depth and relatability and it made sticking with the book hard.

Overall: a promising thriller that fails to deliver.

Thanks to Netgalley and Skyhorse Publishing for providing this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.