And Then There Were None meets The Last Time I Lied in this dark and twisty psychological thriller. In 1995, six university students moved into the house at 215 Caldwell Street. Months later, one of them was found dead on the sofa the morning after their end-of-year party. His death was ruled an accident by the police. The remaining five all knew it wasn’t, and though they went on with their … and though they went on with their lives, the truth of what happened to their sixth housemate couldn’t stay buried forever.
Twenty years later, all five of them arrive–lured separately under various pretenses–at Wolfheather House, a crumbling, secluded mansion on the Scottish isle of Doon. Trapped inside with no way out and no signal to the outside world, the now forty-somethings fight each other–and the unknown mastermind behind their gathering–as they confront the role they played in their housemate’s death. They are given one choice: confess to their crimes or die.
They Did Bad Things is a deviously clever psychological thriller about the banality of evil and the human capacity for committing horror.
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I would like to thank Arcade Crimewise and the Netgalley website for allowing me to read this book.
The story takes place in 1995 when six young university students moved to 215 Caldwell Street. A few months later one of them was found dead on the couch the day after a drunken party. Considered an accident by the police, the death of this young man is considered more like a murder by the five others. Twenty years later they found themselves in an isolated mansion in Scotland. They will be trapped in the manor without being able to get out. They will have to talk about the death of their roommate, tell their role in it and confess their crime or die.
A book read in one go, so much so that I hung on to the story so moving at certain passages, gripping, addictive, captivating, full of suspense and twists and turns with very endearing characters. I love the author’s writing.
This book kept me guessing till the very end. Great read with a lot of interesting plot twists and turns
3.5 stars, rounded up!
This review is a little hard to write because:
1. Everyone in it was a jack wagon.
2. The introduction of the characters and the time hopping made it a little hard to get into, but…
3. Once I got into it, I was really invested!
4. Its ended REALLY well, and that is always awesome.
Thank you to Lauren A. Forry, Skyhorse Publishing and Edelweiss for giving me this DRC in exchange for an honest review.
Overall, if you are a fan of closed room mysteries, give it a try.
The uninspiring title should have warned me; what a group of unappealing characters and a loose, rambling plot. Add some comma splices and I don’t know why I finished it.
Lauren A. Forry creates a chilly, claustrophobic thriller with a group of misfit characters who not only have a history together but also a bucketful of secrets. They Did Bad Things covers all the ‘dunnits’—who, what, why, where, and how—and you’ll want to read to the end to find out all the answers.
As ingenious as Knives Out, as twisted as Gone Girl, They Did Bad Things is a very good thing indeed.
It was different….
Lots of twists that I didn’t see coming. It does remind one strongly of Agatha Christie’s classic And Then There Were None, but it’s not a wanna-be. Very enjoyable.
Either the stupidest book I ever read, or the worst book I ever read. Can’t decide.
I liked this one. It was weird and creepy and atmospheric and I liked the back and forth as the secrets unraveled… I like the nod to Dame Agatha and the classic closed room mystery. I thought the revelations were managed well, delivered with an uneven and off-kilter pacing that kept things interesting and kept me guessing throughout. I’ve read a handful of these back and forth in time, *reunions after something terrible happened to that we’ve all kept secret for years” mysteries. This was one of my favorites. Despite the characters being fairly odious, I found them believable and their story credible, for the most part, and even when they weren’t I found the story entertaining and engaging. It was an easy and quick read and I would definitely look for more from this author. It’s not going to change your life, but it’s definitely a great way to spend an afternoon…
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for my obligation-free review copy.
Insightful and uncomfortable – we can recognize our own weaknesses – and strengths – as mirrored in these interestingly flawed characters.
Writing style too disjointed, hard to tie plot/storyline of this book. Gave up after trying to stay engaged after about 11% or so.
Good idea – execution not so good.
Just when you think you have it figured out, something unexpected happens.
I enjoyed this story immensely. As the blurbs say, it’s quite reminiscent of And Then There Were None and Clue which I love so I thought this would be a book for me. It definitely was! Five people who used to be roommates at University are all called to the foreboding Wolfheather House under false pretenses to come clean about the death of their sixth roommate in 1995. It was ruled an accident, but these men and women know that it was anything but. They soon find out that they are trapped in the dark and secluded mansion and cannot escape until the truth is revealed. But will they live long enough to tell it?
Once the story gets going, it flows quickly and you find yourself trying to guess who the killer was then and who has brought them all here now. I loved the way it played out and I found the whodunit ending to be realistic and not overly contrived. But the story felt a bit short, and like others have said, more character development would have fleshed it out some and helped forge connections with the characters. There’s really not one main protagonist that anchors the story, it’s actually diary passages that do that – written by the one responsible for bringing everyone together.
Overall, it was fun and easy read, especially on a dark night with the rain pouring down – perfect atmosphere. This author has found a new fan!
I had a hard time getting into the rhythm of this book and how it was told back and forth in time through a diary without much guidance. I felt like I needed a timeline chart or something. The characters were mostly unlikeable, which made me want to put the book down because I’m sick of this all-too-common trope, but I liked the hidden passages and the Agatha Christie-vibes so I stuck it out. I didn’t understand their motivations. Honestly, I got a little lost about two-thirds in when the story took a few complicated turns. The strangest thing was that the ending was pretty good, yet I still don’t feel strongly about the book. When I have to struggle to stick it out, I lose zest for the story. I gave it 3 stars because the ending did lift the book.
Thank you, NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book.
Twenty years ago six college students shared a house. A few months later, one of them was found dead in the living room following an end of year party. The police ruled his death an accident … but the remaining students knew different.
The truth of what happened to the 6th housemate has not stay buried.
Today, the 5 remaining students, who haven’t seen or talked to each other in years, all arrive at a crumbing, secluded mansion. All have been invited to be there by one pretext or another.
Trapped inside with no way out and no signal to the outside world, the now forty-somethings fight each other—and the unknown mastermind behind their gathering—as they confront the role they played in their housemate’s death. They are given one choice: confess to their crimes or die.
This was just an okay read for me. I honestly did not like any of the roommates and I didn’t care for all the in-fighting and bickering, The story bounced back and forth in time which left me having to backtrack what I’d already read. I have ambivalent feelings about the ending. I wasn’t invested in the story, so I found it less than suspenseful.
Many thanks to the author / Skyhorse Publishing / Arcade Crimewise / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
In 1995, Hollis, Ellie, Oliver, Lorna, Maeve, and Callum are university students who meet when they move into the same house. Months later one of the six is dead. The police rule the death an accident, but the remaining roommates know it wasn’t. Twenty years later the remaining roommates are lured to Wolfheather House, a secluded mansion on the Scottish Isle of Doon. They are trapped with no way out, forced to confront what each did related to their former roommates death – if they want to make it out alive.
Perfect title for this book, as the characters did indeed do some very, very bad things. The book carried the feel of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None with the isolated setting and characters set up to reap what they sowed, but with significant alterations, such as moving between timelines. I enjoyed the book and look forward to the authors next. Recommended for fans of psychological thrillers.
Content Warnings: SPOILERS homophobic and misogynistic comments; rape (not on page) END SPOILERS
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC. The opinions in this review are honest and my own.
Thank you to Netgalley, Skyhorse Publishing and the Author Lauren A Forry for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I found this book a little hard to get into, but once I got all the characters straight it was unputdownable!
A total Agatha Christie like “And then there were none” Whodunnit!
With an I didn’t see that coming ending!
My first read from this Author and I will definitely be following her and reading more of her books.
Ok wow I was hooked from the start, it’s definitely a page turner and twisty! I enjoy plots that brings you back in time to an event usually a tragic one and find new discoveries. The characters were a bit much though and some aren’t likable per my rating. Thanks to Arcade Crimewise and NetGalley for an ebook ARC. This is my honest review.