ARC Review: We Were Never Friends by Kaira Rouda

 

Title: We Were Never Friends

By: Kiara Rouda

Genre: Mystery

Pages: 228

Release Date: February 3rd, 2026

Rating: ★★★☆☆

 

Summary from Goodreads:

Sisters? Forever. Friends? NEVER. Who knew a reunion weekend could be so deadly?

Meet the sorority sisters of Theta Gamma

Roxy Callahan Gentry, the ruthless former sorority president and current hostess who has painstakingly choreographed every detail of this weekend—even matching the cocktails to her couture—to prove that she remains their undisputed queenAmelia Dell, the widow drenched in old money and alcohol, with her big pot-stirring spoon and uninvited boy-toy in towJamie Vale, the double-legacy pledge, straight-A student with no sparkle, now a top cardiologist with a picture-perfect family—and a well-guarded bad habitBeth Harrison, the scholarship student who never quite fit in and was only admitted because her best friend Sunny insisted that the two were a package dealSunny Spencer, the carefree and beloved friend to all, or so it seemed—until she wasn'tThey've been summoned to Roxy's luxurious Palm Springs vacation home to celebrate the engagement of her son to Beth's daughter. But the refurbished 1920s estate is eerily reminiscent of the hotel where tragedy struck during Spring Break twenty-five years ago. Long-simmering tensions and shocking secrets begin bubbling to the surface like bodies—because while the weekend was supposed to be about celebrating the future, it's not so easy to bury the past…

 

Add on Goodreads

 

Review:

This book gave off strong I Know What You Did Last Summer vibes but unfortunately fell short in its delivery. There was so much potential. A cast of characters who clearly don’t like each other but pretend to, all while sharing a dark secret, but the tension never quite built the way I hoped. Every detail about that secret seemed too easily revealed, leaving little mystery or suspense. By the time the ending rolled around, it just didn’t pack the punch it could have. A promising premise that fizzled out before it found its footing.

Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review. 

No comments:

Post a Comment