Wednesday, June 15, 2022

ARC Review: Never Coming Home by Kate M. Williams

Never Coming Home

Author: Kate M. Williams
Publication: Delacorte Press (June 21, 2022)

Description: The beach read you have been dying for! When ten of America's hottest teenage influencers are invited to an exclusive island resort, things are sure to get wild. But murder isn't what anyone expected. Will anyone survive?

Everyone knows Unknown Island—it’s the world’s most exclusive destination. Think white sand beaches, turquoise seas, and luxury accommodations. Plus, it’s invite only, no one over twenty-one allowed, and it’s absolutely free. Who wouldn’t want to go?

The mysterious resort launched with a viral marketing campaign, and now the whole world is watching as the mysterious resort opens its doors to the First Ten, the ten elite influencers specifically chosen to be the first to experience everything Unknown Island has to offer. You know them. There’s the gamer, the beauty blogger, the rich girl, the superstar, the junior politician, the environmentalist, the DJ, the CEO, the chef, and the athlete.

What they don’t know is that they weren’t invited to Unknown Island for their following—they were invited for their secrets. Everyone is hiding a deadly one, and it looks like someone’s decided it’s payback time. Unknown Island isn’t a vacation, it’s a trap. And it’s beginning to look like the First Ten—no matter how influential—are never coming home.

My Thoughts: This story is a locked room mystery. Well, actually an isolated island mystery. Everyone knows about Unknown Island. It's exclusive. It's free. And it will host curated groups of selected young influencers. At least, that's what the marketing and social media is saying. 

When the first group arrives - ten people ranging in age from 16 to 20 - they find that everything isn't like the media blitz says. There's no staff; the rooms are not at all luxurious; there's no internet. The ten people also discover that they have been lured to the island where someone wants some sort of revenge on them. It seems that they were all involved in some sort of accident that resulted in death.

The guests are a mixed bag of people from a beauty blogger, to an environmentalist, to a hot young chef, to a DJ who might just be dealing some drugs. It doesn't take long before they start dying. The first death is a poisoning but a wide variety of methods are used. The chapters about the growing fear and growing number of deaths were exciting even though I didn't care for any of the characters.

Learning that there was one survivor who might or might not have planned the whole thing left an ambiguous ending that will linger in my memory. Fans of suspense will enjoy this story.

Favorite Quote:
"What if whoever is doing this is trying to take us down because they can't stand to see other people Succeed?"

Everyone nodded. It was a flimsy explanation, but it was the only thing that could possibly make sense.
I received this one in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley. You can buy your copy here.

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