Blog Tour: Who We Were by B.M. Carroll #bookreview #WhoWeWere @bmcarrollauthor @ViperBooks #NetGalley

It’s been twenty years
but all is not forgiven.
Katy is not the shy schoolgirl she once was, and she’s looking forward to showing her classmates who she’s become. Annabel was the queen bee, but her fall from grace changed her life forever. Zach was cruel, but he thinks he’s changed. Robbie was a target. And he never stood a chance.
Their reunion will bring together friends and enemies, many for the first time in decades. But someone is still holding a grudge, and will stop at nothing to reveal their darkest secrets…

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Hi and welcome to my review of Who We Were! Many thanks to Viper Books for the invite and the eARC via NetGalley!

I’m still trying to stay away from NetGalley but I just had to go and request Who We Were. I just love that juxtaposition of who-we-were and who-we-are, the study of how people evolve, or not. And I must say, I found that incredibly well executed in Who We Were. The author nailed the high school clique thing, with all the clichés that became clichés because they’re true – the queen bee and her obedient best friend, the jock, the class clown, the shy girl, the mocked kid – and shows us some very realistic character arcs.

In high school I was definitely a Katy, the shy one, the one who’s neither popular nor unpopular, the one who tries to get along with everyone, the one who keeps a low profile and mostly flies under the radar. I’ve always been an introvert and I’ve always been a reader and most people just didn’t get that. I had my own little clique of likeminded friends so high school was rather fun. Still, a few years ago there was talk of a reunion and a friend wanted us to go and I dug my heels in and said: nope, I’m not doing that! Having read Who We Were I’m glad we didn’t go, who knows what could have happened?!

In Who We Were, Katy – the shy girl who’s grown into a confident woman – is organising a reunion. It’s been twenty years since the year 2000 students last saw each other and Katy wants to do a yearbook update showing what the students have been up to, who they have become. But before long, someone is sending out hurtful messages to some of the former students, messages containing sensitive information that only a select few know. It looks like someone is trying to sabotage the reunion, but if they are really trying to settle old scores, they won’t stop there.

All the characters in Who We Were are well rounded and fully fleshed out. I became invested in them, I connected with them, I felt like I knew them, I rooted for them. When they became paranoid, I became paranoid with them, even though I knew at least some of their suspicions had to be red herrings. I did figure out whodunnit before it was revealed but for the longest time it was far from obvious (despite my fantastic sleuthing skills 😉)

Plot-driven and character-driven in equal measure, Who We Were is a highly addictive thriller, I read it in a day, staying up way past my bedtime to finish it. The outcome is surprising, yet not unrealistic and everything is wrapped up nicely in the final pages. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and if you like high school vs. adult life type stories, I think you will too, recommended!