★ 01/23/2023
In the prologue of this top-notch mystery thriller from Finlay (The Night Shift), five kids from Savior House, a group home for troubled teens—Jenna, Nico, Donnie, Benny, and Arty—take turns firing a gun into a shallow grave. Twenty-five years later, aging rocker Donnie is forced over the side of a cruise ship at gunpoint; an explosion traps gambling addict and reality show producer Nico in a coal mine shaft; and ex-assassin Jenna, the book’s action hero, is activated again to hit Arty, now a tech billionaire. Benny, a federal judge, has already been murdered in Chestertown, Pa., near the now-abandoned Savior House. The person who gave Jenna her assignment turns on her when Jenna intentionally botches the job. Eventually, Jenna, Nico, and Donnie—each a distinct, original character despite drawing on genre tropes—reunite to discover who’s trying to kill them and why. Amid multiple red herrings, Finlay slowly reels out his protagonists’ combined backstories. Readers will eagerly follow the maze-like plot, with its many twists and turns, to the exciting conclusion. This isn’t to be missed. Agent: Lisa Erbach Vance, Aaron Priest Literary. (Mar.)
A LibraryRead Hall of Fame Selection for March – Best Book Voted by Librarians
One of BuzzFeed’s “Most-Anticipated Thrillers of 2023”
One of BookPage’s “2023 Most-Anticipated Mystery & Suspense”
One of BookBub’s “Most-Anticipated Books of 2023”
One of Goodreads’s “2023 Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers”
One of Go BookMart’s “15 Most Anticipated Books of 2023”
One of Novel Suspects’s “20 Psychological Thrillers We’re Excited to Read this Year”
One of PopSugar’s “Best Thriller Books Hitting Shelves In March”
One of She Reads’s “Most-Anticipated Thrillers Coming in 2023”
One of The Every Girl’s “20 Most Anticipated Books of Winter
“[A] top-notch mystery thriller . . . . Readers will eagerly follow the maze-like plot, with its many twists and turns, to the exciting conclusion. This isn’t to be missed.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Finlay has mastered the thriller genre with this novel . . . Finlay superbly creates a character-driven coming-of-age tale that is full of twists.”―Library Journal
“[Finlay’s novels] have earned him a reputation for producing suspenseful, fast-paced thrillers. As usual, his characters are well drawn, his writing is tight and vivid, and he keeps readers guessing with a series of twists and red herrings.”—Associated Press
"[Finlay's] gripping tale delivers both heart-pounding action and plenty of twists to keep the reader guessing. A thoroughly entertaining "popcorn thriller"—just right for fans of Riley Sager's Final Girls and Stacy Willingham's A Flicker in the Dark."—Booklist
"Finlay makes skilled use of point of view.. Fast-paced action and a compelling study of friendships power this suspenseful thriller."—Kirkus
“[A] thriller that will have your pulse and mind racing.” ―E! News
“A highly entertaining, addictive thriller . . . Finlay [has] become one of the must-read voices in crime fiction today.”―Mystery & Suspense Magazine
"Explosive, whip-smart, and compulsively readable, What Have We Done sets a new high-water mark as Alex Finlay’s best thriller yet"—Sarah Pekkanen, New York Times bestselling co-author of The Golden Couple
"A next-level thriller that brims with dark surprises and unforgettable characters inextricably connected by their pasts, loyalties, and an unspeakable secret. Inventive, immersive, and downright addictive, What Have We Done had me flying through the pages. Put this one on the top of your to-be-read list."—Heather Gudenkauf, New York Times bestselling author of The Overnight Guest
"Alex Finlay proves once again he’s a master storyteller. What Have We Done has unrelenting action, inspired characters, and an innovative, pulse pounding plot. Alex Finlay has become one of today’s top thriller writers. This is why. Read this book.”—Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author
“This is the very best kind of thriller: fast, smart, and not a wasted word. Alex Finlay is a master at making the pages fly past.”—James Kestrel, Edgar-award winning author of Five Decembers
Praise for Alex Finlay
"High-energy . . . Finlay expands the puzzle and ratchets up the action."—New York Times on Every Last Fear
"He grabs readers from the very first line and keeps them propulsively turning pages with absolutely thrilling cliffhangers."—Newsweek
"A suspenseful tale . . . Finlay spins it at a rapid pace, his characters well-drawn and his tangled plot expertly developed. The twists arrive at a dizzying pace."—Associated Press on The Night Shift
"It's safe to say Finlay is one of the genre's most exciting voices."—E! News
"Alex Finlay is a literary force to be reckoned with."—Providence Journal
03/01/2023
Finlay (The Night Shift) has mastered the thriller genre with this novel. Following four adults who once lived together 25 years ago in an abusive group home called Savior House, the story unfolds as Donnie, Jenna, Nico, and Artemis each undergo a near-death experience. Someone is trying to kill each of them, so they reunite in hopes they can find out who is responsible and eventually stop them. In order to do so, they must all revisit their secret pasts. Finlay superbly creates a character-driven coming-of-age tale that is full of twists. All the characters come from troubled backgrounds, and it's clear that even though they have lived decent and somewhat successful lives as adults, they have experienced trauma from their childhood that has never been resolved. As each character deals with their own issues and seeks to determine who is trying to kill them, they learn and grow from the experience. VERDICT This is perfect for fans of suspenseful thrillers such as those by Riley Sager.—Lacey Webster
2023-02-08
Four former friends are reunited when a secret from their past puts a killer on their trails.
Twenty-five years ago, five young teenagers living in a foster home did something very bad. This book’s prologue gives us a glimpse of it before shifting to the present, when those once-lost kids are adults who, at least from the outside, look like successes. Arty is a wealthy tech mogul, Donnie a fading but still recognized rock star, Nico a reality TV producer, Jenna a very happily married mom to two stepdaughters. And Ben became a judge—but now he’s been murdered. The other four survivors of Savior House haven’t seen each other in years, but Ben’s death will shake and imperil them. First to feel the seismic shock is Jenna, who, it seems, had a former career as an assassin, having been recruited at 15 right out of the foster home by a shadowy outfit called The Corporation. She gets a message she hoped never to get, summoning her back to her old job. But things go awry, and she hurries her family into hiding and goes on the hunt for Ben’s killer. In the meantime, Donnie, whose band is playing on a cruise ship, falls overboard but is miraculously rescued; Nico, on the job for a reality series about coal miners, is trapped underground when a tunnel collapses but also is rescued. And Arty is a target as well. Someone from their shared past is after them—but who, and why, and who is the mysterious woman who seems to have tried to kill each of them? Jenna is an engaging action hero, and Finlay makes skilled use of point of view, whipping the reader from Jenna to Donnie to Nico as they struggle to understand and survive, separately and then together again.
Fast-paced action and a compelling study of friendships power this suspenseful thriller.
Several teen residents of a group home commit an act that someone tries to kill them for 25 years later. The pals come together to try to find out who is behind the scheme. The story bounces between their time at the home and the present day. The audiobook is a classic example of a well-paced, intriguing thriller that is truly enhanced by excellent narration. Each character, major or minor, is well drawn and believable. Rock-star Donnie gets a folksy voice, a French woman takes on an exaggerated accent, and a pair of sinister twin sisters have a happy-go-lucky tone. The story is great, and the narration is both appropriate and entertaining. M.B. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
Several teen residents of a group home commit an act that someone tries to kill them for 25 years later. The pals come together to try to find out who is behind the scheme. The story bounces between their time at the home and the present day. The audiobook is a classic example of a well-paced, intriguing thriller that is truly enhanced by excellent narration. Each character, major or minor, is well drawn and believable. Rock-star Donnie gets a folksy voice, a French woman takes on an exaggerated accent, and a pair of sinister twin sisters have a happy-go-lucky tone. The story is great, and the narration is both appropriate and entertaining. M.B. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
