by: Rachel Peterson
Genre: Young Adult Thriller
Release Date: August 4, 2026
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Perfect for fans of How to Survive Your Murder and Dead Girls Can’t Tell Secrets, this young adult thriller unspools the truth behind a tragic murder through multiple unreliable narrators who all have secrets to keep.
Here’s what we do know: there was another infamous barn party at the McClain family farm last night, and things went horribly wrong. By the end of the night, there were two dead bodies in the old barn: seventeen-year-old Sadie Cooper and her killer, Mason Vreeland. The murder was heartbreakingly witnessed by Sadie’s twin sister, Jayne, and Sadie died in her arms. Mason was killed by Sadie’s boyfriend, Ben, in an attempt to save Sadie.
Aside from figuring out Mason’s motive, it should be an open and shut case.
But it’s not.
The story unfolds just after the murders, and Jayne, Ben, and Sadie’s best friend, Liz, are telling the cops what transpired at the party and the events leading up to it. But little details don’t match. And those little details start to add up to big discrepancies. But who’s lying, and why?
The shocking truth is revealed in the third act, when the POV shifts to victim Sadie herself, in the days leading up to the party. Witness exactly what happened—and see if you can piece it all together. Because poor Sadie totally missed what was right in front of her.
Set in a small town in Ohio, the story follows the aftermath of an unchaperoned blowout party at the McClain farm, during which seventeen-year-olds Sadie Cooper and Mason Vreeland are killed. According to witnesses, Mason killed Sadie, and Sadie’s boyfriend Ben killed Mason. On the surface, this should be an open-and-shut case. The police just need to understand why Mason killed Sadie.
Killing Sadie is told from the points of view of three people in Sadie’s life: her best friend, Liz Stratton, her twin sister Jayne, and her boyfriend Ben Carrera. They are individually and simultaneously interviewed by police detectives in the hours after the murders. You would think this would make reading the book challenging, but it doesn't. In fact, it makes the book more interesting as readers and detectives attempt to piece the investigation together.
Through the interviews, you get to know the characters and soon discover small inconsistencies in their stories. The question becomes who’s lying and why.
Broken into acts, Liz, Jayne, and Ben take readers and detectives back in time to the day of the party and before in Act One. Act Two details Friday night, the night of the party. Act Three is the part of the story that takes it from good to great. Act Three is told from Sadie’s point of view and shows what truly happened. This is also the part of the book where readers’ minds will be blown, because there’s absolutely NO way you will figure out what truly transpired. I, myself, had two theories and was nowhere close to figuring this all out.
I would say I’m not generally a mystery/thriller reader. At least, not unless there are some fantasy or paranormal elements involved. I am, however, a person who is curious and likes to figure things out. Rachel Peterson has just made me a fan of YA mystery thrillers. I can’t wait to read more from her.
**Received a copy of the book from the publisher and voluntarily reviewed it.**
Rating: 5
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