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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
challenging
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When I tell you I squealed when I got my ARC approval for this one, it wouldn't be an exaggeration. Sarah Pekkanen has been on my auto-buy list whenever I see her books in stores ever since I read the first one. This book comes with a very interesting blurb, which drew me in as well. Finding out you have a sister when you're in your thirties and she's been put in the locked ward due to possibly offing her other sister? Count me IN!
I admit this book was a little slow in the beginning for me because I wasn't connecting to Mandy - but I absolutely loved the thrill of Georgia's POV's. I very quickly got engulfed into both storylines and kept turning pages because I needed to know what happened next. I think I finished the last 50% of the book in one sitting! As someone who's read a lot of thrillers, I feel like sometimes it feels easy to predict what's coming next... but with this book, there were so many things that made me go "what if" and in the end I still didn't know it, even though I could have.
The Locked Ward publishes August 5th, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen, and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own!
I admit this book was a little slow in the beginning for me because I wasn't connecting to Mandy - but I absolutely loved the thrill of Georgia's POV's. I very quickly got engulfed into both storylines and kept turning pages because I needed to know what happened next. I think I finished the last 50% of the book in one sitting! As someone who's read a lot of thrillers, I feel like sometimes it feels easy to predict what's coming next... but with this book, there were so many things that made me go "what if" and in the end I still didn't know it, even though I could have.
The Locked Ward publishes August 5th, 2025. Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen, and St Martin's Press for the advanced copy. All thoughts are my own!
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The Locked Ward
By Sarah Pekkanen
Pub Date: 8/5/2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
This story follows two women who discover they are twins separated at birth, in split second-person POV. Which was a little confusing.
If I’m being honest, this one was all over the place. Not necessarily in a bad way. Just in a chaotic-psychological thriller type of way. I was wondering when the twist would revel itself the entire time I was reading.
The story was leading me down a path I was sure would lead to the resolution, only to pull the rug out from under me, leaving the possibilities for resolution wide open.
I enjoyed it.
dark
informative
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC.
We're both the unreliable narrator and the gullible listener in our own life stories.
I absolutely loved this line in this book. Because isn't this the truth? Everything in life is seen through the glass of our preconceived notions, our biases, our trauma. It shapes how we want to see things and how we make the puzzle pieces fit. Then one day we realize we weren't even making the right puzzle.
This was a great journey and a unique thriller. I especially loved the setting of The Locked Ward. It kept me guessing and I didn't see the twists coming. There were even multiple bombshell twists.
On a biased note, I loved the setting was Charlotte! The author did a great job. She knew the Panthers chant was "Keep Pounding!". That the richest houses are near Queens. That the nicest apartment in Uptown is The Vue and Cam Newton had the penthouse not Georgia but maybe they were neighbors? 😂 The only detail she got wrong was The Penguin. It has been here since the 1980s but the location is brand new. Details though! I love when an author is well researched and I love seeing my city represented in books recently.
Overall, a fantastic thriller and I highly recommend it.
We're both the unreliable narrator and the gullible listener in our own life stories.
I absolutely loved this line in this book. Because isn't this the truth? Everything in life is seen through the glass of our preconceived notions, our biases, our trauma. It shapes how we want to see things and how we make the puzzle pieces fit. Then one day we realize we weren't even making the right puzzle.
This was a great journey and a unique thriller. I especially loved the setting of The Locked Ward. It kept me guessing and I didn't see the twists coming. There were even multiple bombshell twists.
On a biased note, I loved the setting was Charlotte! The author did a great job. She knew the Panthers chant was "Keep Pounding!". That the richest houses are near Queens. That the nicest apartment in Uptown is The Vue and Cam Newton had the penthouse not Georgia but maybe they were neighbors? 😂 The only detail she got wrong was The Penguin. It has been here since the 1980s but the location is brand new. Details though! I love when an author is well researched and I love seeing my city represented in books recently.
Overall, a fantastic thriller and I highly recommend it.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
this was definitely one of my favorites of sarah’s recent solo stories - it was captivating and fast-paced and full of heart pounding moments 👀
featuring two long lost twins, georgia and mandy, and their two completely separate lives, I was so invested in the separated at birth trope y’all, except the mystery itself didn’t really hold my interest as much…
I wanted more from the threats, the political scandals, and of course more unaliving tee hee whoops 😭 I just felt that the thriller portions were lackluster in comparison to her other books and instead focused on the family drama elements
I did indeed binge this in a few hours because I was so invested if I was right in all of my plot twist guesses - so that was a big win for me!! every time I thought I had it figured out, the story was flipped on its head again with another layer!
thank you to st martins press for the gifted copy!
rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: sonoma coast chardonnay
featuring two long lost twins, georgia and mandy, and their two completely separate lives, I was so invested in the separated at birth trope y’all, except the mystery itself didn’t really hold my interest as much…
I wanted more from the threats, the political scandals, and of course more unaliving tee hee whoops 😭 I just felt that the thriller portions were lackluster in comparison to her other books and instead focused on the family drama elements
I did indeed binge this in a few hours because I was so invested if I was right in all of my plot twist guesses - so that was a big win for me!! every time I thought I had it figured out, the story was flipped on its head again with another layer!
thank you to st martins press for the gifted copy!
rating: 3.5 stars
wine pairing: sonoma coast chardonnay
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my first Sarah Pekkanen thriller and I was impressed. I started reading this one via digital ARC but found it a bit hard to get into so I switch over to the ALC and listened to the rest which was the best decision! The narration of this book was spot on! Perfect amounts of inflection and not too over the top that it took me out of the story.
I did feel like one of the big plot twists was given away right off the hop but after reflection it was a necessary piece of the story to make known right away in order to help lay out the narrative!
A bit slow overall but I did enjoy this and will give more of her thrillers a shot in the future!
The Locked Ward is out August 5th, 2025! Thank you NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen, and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. This ALC was provided in exchange for an honest review.
I did feel like one of the big plot twists was given away right off the hop but after reflection it was a necessary piece of the story to make known right away in order to help lay out the narrative!
A bit slow overall but I did enjoy this and will give more of her thrillers a shot in the future!
The Locked Ward is out August 5th, 2025! Thank you NetGalley, Sarah Pekkanen, and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. This ALC was provided in exchange for an honest review.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
I absolutely flew through this one! This is a very fast-paced thriller - readers who have liked Pekkanen's previous works are sure to enjoy this one. I was definitely intrigued with the mystery and enjoyed the twists at the end.
The narrator was superb, I am really glad I listened to the audio because I think it really enhanced the story. January LaVoy's performance is fantastic.
Thank you to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ARC!
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"The Locked Ward" is an exciting and fast-paced thriller that I could not put down. This story involves wealthy Southern families, sibling rivalries, and secret twins. Need I say more? I was hooked from the first chapter and binged the entire thing in about a day. The story is told from the POVs of Mandy and her long-lost twin sister, Georgia, who is in a psych ward after being accused of murdering her younger sister. I loved the dual POVs because I had no idea who to trust or who to believe. There weren't a lot of huge twists, but the plot was just so fun and unique that I couldn't stop reading. Loved it!
I listened to the audiobook narrated by January LaVoy. As always, she was amazing. I could seriously listen to her read the dictionary. She expertly voiced the many characters and was able to make them easily distinguishable. Her performance was full of emotion, and she was able to build so much tension and suspense with her narration. She did such a great job bringing the story and characters to life.
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by January LaVoy. As always, she was amazing. I could seriously listen to her read the dictionary. She expertly voiced the many characters and was able to make them easily distinguishable. Her performance was full of emotion, and she was able to build so much tension and suspense with her narration. She did such a great job bringing the story and characters to life.
Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Macmillan Audio for the ARC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.
I liked how twisty this mystery was, and I enjoyed watching Amanda try to put the pieces together to save her sister. The short chapters made the story move at a quick pace and kept me engaged and present.
January LaVoy did a great job narrating this story. I already complete NetGalley searches for my favorite narrators; January was already on the list and she will continue to remain on my list of favorite narrators.
January LaVoy did a great job narrating this story. I already complete NetGalley searches for my favorite narrators; January was already on the list and she will continue to remain on my list of favorite narrators.