Reviews with content warning for Cancer - If Something Happens to Me

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If Something Happens to Me by Alex Finlay

7 reviews

bringmybooks's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

~~Bring~~ | ✨Borrow✨ | ~~Bypass~~

Thank you to Edelweiss, Minotaur Books, & Macmillan for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

Review: This book was entirely not what I was expecting, but I don't know if that was a bad thing. *shrugs*

I was invested from the get-go, and I really liked the multiple POVs that we got - I thought it kept you hooked while providing just enough information to keep you guessing. Sort of piggy-backing on what I said above, this thriller was nothing like what I expected so there were a lot of times I was surprised until I understood the direction we were going and then it was a bit easier to see what was coming next.

Although one thing I *really* appreciated was that the two "MCs" did NOT end up together at the end - it really kept this one believable that their relationship was important enough to both of them to not let each other go until there was some kind of closure, but also that the relationship would not have survived past that closure.

Overall Rating: ★★★★ / 4.13

Rating each element of the book out of 5★
Characters ★★★
Atmosphere ★★★
Writing ★★★
Plot ★★★★
Intrigue ★★★★
Logic ★★★★
Enjoyment ★★★★
Pacing ★★★★
Dialogue ★★★★

★ did not like / ★★ it was okay / ★★★ liked it / ★★★★ really liked it / ★★★★★ loved it

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shesflippinpages's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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clairebonney's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

3.5

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savvyrosereads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

Thank you to the publisher for providing me a free eARC for review! This one is out May 28.

Rating: 3/5 stars

Ryan’s girlfriend Ali was kidnapped before his eyes five years ago—but when the vehicle she was abducted in is finally found alongside a coded message, buried secrets might finally come to light.

Let’s start with the good: this one is pretty fast-paced, with a lot of action and drama, and a straightforward writing style that makes you want to keep reading more. I liked most of the characters (including the ones I was probably least supposed to, honestly) and was generally entertained throughout.

That said, while I am positive there is an audience for this book, I don’t think I’m really part of it. I guessed the twists early and, more importantly, didn’t like them—the plot felt predictable and a bit silly, and I didn’t like the way things wrapped up for anyone. For most of the book, I was probably rooting for the villains, which I don’t think was the intention.

Overall, this was a fast read and if it sounds good to you, I’d still recommend it! But sadly not a favorite of my year (or even month) so far.

CW: Torture/murder/death; suicide; bullying; mentions of child abuse/domestic violence

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theinstabookworm's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-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? Yes

3.5

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Minotaur Books for the e-ARC of IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO ME by Alex Finlay in exchange for my review. This novel will be released on May 28, 2024.

I tried to pick this up a few weeks ago, and soft DNFed it when I wasn't in the mood. I wasn't going to come back to it. I DNFed one other book by the author and thought maybe the author just wasn't for me. But, I kept seeing good review after good review pop up on my feed, so I decided to give it another chance.

I thought I had the twist figured out, but I was so wrong in a great way. There are a lot of characters, and I had trouble keeping track of who was who. I wish each character's name was stated at the beginning of their chapter so we could remember whose POV we were in. Also, the epilogue was three chapters long, and it didn't need to be. All of those things slowed the book down for me. Most of the reviews I've been seeing say this is fast-paced, but I found it to be more medium paced. Despite what I've mentioned, I did enjoy this and was intrigued to find out what happened next every time I had to put it down. I'll be going back to the book I DNFed by the author at some point, and I've also added his other books to my list and look forward to picking them up in the future!

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

4.0

Finished reading: May 9th 2024

"Whoever said if you're seeking revenge, dig two graves - one for your enemy and one for yourself - had it almost right."

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Head Of Zeus in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I always seem to have a great time reading Alex Finlay's thrillers, so it's easy to understand why I was over the moon that my request for his newest story If Something Happens To Me was actually approved. I've been wanting to pick it up ever since it appeared on my kindle, as I loved the sound of the blurb with the promise of an international setting and multiple layers... And I have to say that I ended up having a blast with this story. Engaging, fast-paced and action-packed: If Something Happens To Me turned out to be yet another more than solid thriller.

This story uses a multiple POV structure and is also divided into different parts. These layers gave the story more dimension, and while you might wonder how the different POVs fit in together at first, it all becomes clear in the end. The POVs are spread out over different locations as well: you begin with Ryan in Italy, deputy Poppy in Kansas and the third set in Philadelphia that will provide the mobster angle. The last one doesn't seem to fit in with the story at first, but once the connection became clear I admit it was a clever one.

I love stories with a travel element, and we get plenty of that while we follow Ryan around. Italy, UK, France... His journey takes him across Europe as well as the US, and I liked what the locations added to the plot. This is probably why Ryan's POV is one of my favorites, although I really enjoyed spending time with Poppy as well. I could also appreciate that the different POVs introduced different thriller subgenres to the plot, blending for example detective, crime, psychological and mobster elements along the way. The story as a whole felt well balanced and I quite enjoyed the resulting thriller cocktail.

Things can be said about the credibility of it all, as certain twists are either farfetched or too convenient. I also spotted one of the big twists quite early on, but as a whole there were still plenty surprises along the way as well. If you don't mind the plot being over the top and are more interested in the entertainment level, If Something Happens To Me most likely won't let you down. Between the fast pace and engaging writing style it will be easy to keep turning those pages!

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aimyreads's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

After a few really bad reads I was desperate for something exciting and man this book delivered!

From the first page to the last I was invested fully. I went in having some ideas about where the story would go after reading the blurb but nope, the twists and turns kept me guessing throughout.

I loved the characters, and watching their evolution. There’s a particular plot point that made me heave a sigh of relief when it unfolded but I won’t disclose it here as that would be a spoiler.

My recommendation is to go into this book as blindly as you possibly can and just buckle your seatbelt. It’s going to be an epic ride!

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for providing me with this advance readers copy!

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