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jennthumphries's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
thephdivabooks's review
4.0
This is a departure in style for Alex Finlay, though he does tend to have some killer (pun intended) plots for his books. I found this to be more action-y, like watching a good action thriller. The book is more plot-driven than character-driven, though the characters were well-developed enough to keep me hooked.
Twenty-five years before the events of the book, Jenna, Donnie, Nico, Ben, and Arty lived at Savior House, a home that takes in kids whose parents have passed away or left them. While in some ways Savior House saved them—it gave them a place to stay when they had nowhere—it was also their tormentor. Girls at Savior House seem to disappear. Maybe they got placed with families like the administration said, but it seems unlikely. We learn about Savior House and their time there through snippets of story and memories. Savior House looms over the story as a dark entity. Even before we learn exactly what happened at Savior House, it’s clear this was not a happy home.
But it did bring our central five characters together. As adults, they don’t keep in touch as much as they should. Jenna is the central character of the book, and in my opinion by far the most compelling (though I think I would have also thoroughly enjoyed Ben if he had been alive for the book). Jenna was “recruited” (and I put this in quotes because she was definitely not old enough to consent fully to this) into a shadowy organization known as The Corporation. Among the many skills Jenna learned, she also became an assassin.
When the book begins, Jenna is retired from her life of crime and adventure, married to a lovely man with a teenage daughter. She’s happy. And that makes the events of the book particularly terrifying, because Jenna receives a calling card that must be from The Corporation.
I loved reading Jenna’s story. It was entirely unrelatable—something that can at times be frustrating—but in this case it worked because Jenna herself was relatable. She’ll do anything to protect her loved ones and the quiet, content life she has finally achieved. Jenna isn’t naïve though, she has safe guards upon safe guards built around their life to trigger if any threat gets too close. And sure enough, they all get triggered one by one.
The third-person narration worked well so we could get glimpses from a few different character’s stories. Donnie and Nico were less compelling and developed than Jenna, but equally as important to the broader story. They hold some pieces of the story we wouldn’t get if we only heard from Jenna.
The book moves fast and it becomes clear early on that someone is targeting this group from Savior House. While the characters seem like caricatures in their descriptions, they actually had some interesting development to them. Jenna is not your average former-assassin. Donnie may be a washed up musician, but he has more going on than you think. And Nico has a lot more details to uncover about what is going on in his life and his gambling addiction. The history of how he became the person he is fascinated me.
Though the book takes place in the present, this is a book grounded in the past. A lot of what we are trying to figure out is not just who is behind this, but what happened all of those years before? The past never stays in the past, after all. And secrets have a way of resurfacing.
Entertaining, lightening-fast, heart-pounding—What Have We Done may be different from Alex Finlay’s prior books but it is no less engrossing. A must-read if you are looking for a fast-paced thriller!
Twenty-five years before the events of the book, Jenna, Donnie, Nico, Ben, and Arty lived at Savior House, a home that takes in kids whose parents have passed away or left them. While in some ways Savior House saved them—it gave them a place to stay when they had nowhere—it was also their tormentor. Girls at Savior House seem to disappear. Maybe they got placed with families like the administration said, but it seems unlikely. We learn about Savior House and their time there through snippets of story and memories. Savior House looms over the story as a dark entity. Even before we learn exactly what happened at Savior House, it’s clear this was not a happy home.
But it did bring our central five characters together. As adults, they don’t keep in touch as much as they should. Jenna is the central character of the book, and in my opinion by far the most compelling (though I think I would have also thoroughly enjoyed Ben if he had been alive for the book). Jenna was “recruited” (and I put this in quotes because she was definitely not old enough to consent fully to this) into a shadowy organization known as The Corporation. Among the many skills Jenna learned, she also became an assassin.
When the book begins, Jenna is retired from her life of crime and adventure, married to a lovely man with a teenage daughter. She’s happy. And that makes the events of the book particularly terrifying, because Jenna receives a calling card that must be from The Corporation.
I loved reading Jenna’s story. It was entirely unrelatable—something that can at times be frustrating—but in this case it worked because Jenna herself was relatable. She’ll do anything to protect her loved ones and the quiet, content life she has finally achieved. Jenna isn’t naïve though, she has safe guards upon safe guards built around their life to trigger if any threat gets too close. And sure enough, they all get triggered one by one.
The third-person narration worked well so we could get glimpses from a few different character’s stories. Donnie and Nico were less compelling and developed than Jenna, but equally as important to the broader story. They hold some pieces of the story we wouldn’t get if we only heard from Jenna.
The book moves fast and it becomes clear early on that someone is targeting this group from Savior House. While the characters seem like caricatures in their descriptions, they actually had some interesting development to them. Jenna is not your average former-assassin. Donnie may be a washed up musician, but he has more going on than you think. And Nico has a lot more details to uncover about what is going on in his life and his gambling addiction. The history of how he became the person he is fascinated me.
Though the book takes place in the present, this is a book grounded in the past. A lot of what we are trying to figure out is not just who is behind this, but what happened all of those years before? The past never stays in the past, after all. And secrets have a way of resurfacing.
Entertaining, lightening-fast, heart-pounding—What Have We Done may be different from Alex Finlay’s prior books but it is no less engrossing. A must-read if you are looking for a fast-paced thriller!
ashbashstrong's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
beeson_sherry's review
4.0
When they were growing up, Jenna, Donnie, and Nico all lived at a children's home, each for a different reason. They've grown and gone their separate ways, but someone is trying to kill the former residents of this children's home. Each of the residents has a past/present they'd like to keep hidden, but the killings have brought them together again.
a_reader_obsessed's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
I’m at an impasse as to how to really feel about this book.
At times, it was a compelling mystery, the chapters short, spurring fast progress, making one want to know what would come next. Other times, I was impatient as the narrative jumps back and forth from past to present between three main characters tied by their teen years at a foster home that was anything but kind and nurturing. Old friends are dying and/or getting hurt, and someone is getting too close to the truth of that long ago fateful night.
There was also a fantastical element that was a bit incongruous to cold hard reality, where I wanted to follow that particular background and storyline more than the main plot. As a side note, I wholeheartedly beseech Finlay to give us a prequel telling all on Jenna's mysterious history.
Overall, I enjoyed this easy suspenseful mystery and am reassured that Finlay will consistently continue to deliver!
I’m at an impasse as to how to really feel about this book.
At times, it was a compelling mystery, the chapters short, spurring fast progress, making one want to know what would come next. Other times, I was impatient as the narrative jumps back and forth from past to present between three main characters tied by their teen years at a foster home that was anything but kind and nurturing. Old friends are dying and/or getting hurt, and someone is getting too close to the truth of that long ago fateful night.
There was also a fantastical element that was a bit incongruous to cold hard reality, where I wanted to follow that particular background and storyline more than the main plot. As a side note, I wholeheartedly beseech Finlay to give us a prequel telling all on Jenna's mysterious history.
Overall, I enjoyed this easy suspenseful mystery and am reassured that Finlay will consistently continue to deliver!
bargainsleuth's review
5.0
For this and other book reviews, visit www.bargain-sleuth.com
Told from multiple points of view, this thriller from Alex Finlay had me on the edge of the seat. Jenna, Nico, Donnie, Ben & Artemis lived in a group home 25 years ago. Something happened involving them, it’s not explicitly stated until late in the book but enough hints are given that the reader figures it out well before then. Now, it appears someone is trying to take all of them out, but none of them can figure out who.
Ben, the federal judge, is murdered. Donnie, his best friend and washed up rock star, is threatened with a gun by an attractive woman and is forced overboard of a cruise ship; somehow miraculously, he’s rescued by fisherman. Nico is a reality television producer on a show featuring coal miners and is attacked by an attractive woman, which makes him run down a mine shaft. Then there’s an explosion and Nico is trapped.
Jenna is a different matter. She’s a “retired” assassin for hire, who receives a cryptic message telling her about a hit she has to do or her new family will be in danger. The hit turns out to be her old Savior House friend Artemis, who is a Bill Gates-like character in the book. She purposely misses her shot when she sees who the target is, and that’s when all hell breaks out. She’s on the run and has to get her step-daughters and husband to safety. Luckily, she told her husband all about her past and they have a safe house ready and waiting for them. Once they’re secured, Jenna needs to find out who hired the female assassin and if it has anything to do with the events of 25 years ago.
It turns out there’s not one but two assassins, the Doublemint twins, if you will, who aren’t the typical killers. They don’t do it for ideology or for money, they do it for sport. And that makes them that much more dangerous.
Each chapter is short, covering Nico, Donnie, Jenna or the killers’ point of view, which quickens the pace of the story and makes you want to keep flipping the pages. The person of interest who may have hired the assassins is the son of the headmaster of Savior House, who mysteriously disappeared 25 years ago. He was brother to the town mayor and given the job to keep him out of trouble. His son, Derek, is now a freshman congressman from the district, and has motive. But how did he find out what the gang did all those years ago? Someone must have been talking. Ben was killed because of it.
Jenna, Nico, and Donnie need to band together to figure out the mystery before the assassins try to take them out again. The answers to the mystery are surprising.
I’m not normally big on thrillers because they usually involve a fair amount of violence, but What Have We Done does not have gratuitous scenes. When someone is injured, there isn’t an in-depth discussion of wounds, for which I was grateful.
I received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from NetGalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
Told from multiple points of view, this thriller from Alex Finlay had me on the edge of the seat. Jenna, Nico, Donnie, Ben & Artemis lived in a group home 25 years ago. Something happened involving them, it’s not explicitly stated until late in the book but enough hints are given that the reader figures it out well before then. Now, it appears someone is trying to take all of them out, but none of them can figure out who.
Ben, the federal judge, is murdered. Donnie, his best friend and washed up rock star, is threatened with a gun by an attractive woman and is forced overboard of a cruise ship; somehow miraculously, he’s rescued by fisherman. Nico is a reality television producer on a show featuring coal miners and is attacked by an attractive woman, which makes him run down a mine shaft. Then there’s an explosion and Nico is trapped.
Jenna is a different matter. She’s a “retired” assassin for hire, who receives a cryptic message telling her about a hit she has to do or her new family will be in danger. The hit turns out to be her old Savior House friend Artemis, who is a Bill Gates-like character in the book. She purposely misses her shot when she sees who the target is, and that’s when all hell breaks out. She’s on the run and has to get her step-daughters and husband to safety. Luckily, she told her husband all about her past and they have a safe house ready and waiting for them. Once they’re secured, Jenna needs to find out who hired the female assassin and if it has anything to do with the events of 25 years ago.
It turns out there’s not one but two assassins, the Doublemint twins, if you will, who aren’t the typical killers. They don’t do it for ideology or for money, they do it for sport. And that makes them that much more dangerous.
Each chapter is short, covering Nico, Donnie, Jenna or the killers’ point of view, which quickens the pace of the story and makes you want to keep flipping the pages. The person of interest who may have hired the assassins is the son of the headmaster of Savior House, who mysteriously disappeared 25 years ago. He was brother to the town mayor and given the job to keep him out of trouble. His son, Derek, is now a freshman congressman from the district, and has motive. But how did he find out what the gang did all those years ago? Someone must have been talking. Ben was killed because of it.
Jenna, Nico, and Donnie need to band together to figure out the mystery before the assassins try to take them out again. The answers to the mystery are surprising.
I’m not normally big on thrillers because they usually involve a fair amount of violence, but What Have We Done does not have gratuitous scenes. When someone is injured, there isn’t an in-depth discussion of wounds, for which I was grateful.
I received an Advanced Reader’s Copy from NetGalley and Minotaur Books in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.
kgos's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5