ajt87 's review for:

The Locked Ward by Sarah Pekkanen

4.0

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

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Sarah Pekkanen’s books always hit for me and her latest, The Locked Ward, is no exception. 

It’s the crime of the century when Georgia Cartwright, adopted at birth, is accused of killing her sister, the biological daughter of a wealthy North Carolina family. Locked in a psychiatric ward while waiting for her trial, she reaches out to her estranged sister Mandy and whispers the words “I didn’t do it. You have to get me out of here.” Amanda doesn’t trust Georgia, but something more sinister seems to be at play here. Is Georgia the victim of the wealthy family who raised her or is she a master manipulator willing do whatever she can to get out of her situation.

What ensures is a fast paced thriller that felt like race to find out the truth. As always, Pekkanen paced this novel well, told in alternating POVs to get into what each woman is thinking and experiencing. I really liked the choice to tell Georgia’s story in 2nd person. Felt unique and fresh. I think I preferred Mandy more, just as I never knew if we could trust Georgia fully, but they’re both well fleshed out characters with an interesting dynamic. I thought I knew where this was going 40% of the way in, but was genuinely surprised when it went a different way. I thought the final twist was completely unnecessary, but it was such a drop in the bucket moment that it didn’t matter much.  

Definitely worth checking out if you like well paced mystery thrillers.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. 

Release Date: 8/5.