Denise Brown’s We Know What You Did is a gripping YA thriller that explores the fallout of a tragic night, where choices made in secrecy unravel lives and reveal deeply buried truths. This intense and emotional novel delves into themes of friendship, guilt, family loyalty, and the destructive power of social media.

The story begins with Summer and her best friend, Cee, taking pills on a reckless evening that ends in heartbreak when Cee dies of cardiac arrest. What follows is a spiraling storm of accusations and relentless bullying aimed at Summer, as whispers about that night’s events spread like wildfire. With her reputation tarnished and her grief compounded by guilt, Summer struggles to hold onto the truth—one that involves secrets harbored by both families.

Brown masterfully portrays the emotional toll of loss and guilt on young characters while highlighting the cruelty of online bullying. Summer’s internal conflict is raw and relatable, and the unraveling of the mystery behind her and Cee’s actions is paced to keep readers hooked. The novel’s focus on how secrets can fester within families adds a layer of complexity to the narrative, as Summer confronts not only her own choices but also the moral ambiguities of those around her.

The use of social media as both a weapon and a mirror to societal judgment feels timely and authentic, reflecting the pressure young people face in an age where privacy is scarce, and judgment is instant. Brown’s portrayal of this digital mob mentality is chilling, yet she also offers moments of hope and resilience through Summer’s journey of self-discovery and redemption.

For readers who love YA thrillers with a mix of mystery, emotional depth, and social commentary, We Know What You Did is a standout. Denise Brown crafts a compelling story that will resonate with teens and adults alike, leaving readers reflecting on the weight of secrets and the courage it takes to confront them.

I found the book confusing and didn't really enjoy it. I did like the social media aspect but on the other hand I struggled with the plot being a bit all over the place. I could see where it was going but I think it missed the mark a bit

Thank you to hashtag press and Netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The book is simple and doesn’t add much to the genre however it is marketed as a young adult mystery/thriller however this is not accurate. The story is a little convoluted and has a lot of needless filler while the writing style is more suited for the younger side of the young adult scale.

book was archived before i got the chance to read it, thank you for netgalley and publisher, i'm sure it was a great one

The blurb and cover give off YA thriller vibes but that is far from what I got. This was also highly confusing, I didn't care for the characters either... I couldn't continue. It didn't appeal to me.

I feel like the synopsis was a little misleading. I found the book very hard to follow along, the writing was all over the place. I had to DNF about 20% in because I was just no longer interested in the characters.

This book, both cover and synopsis, give off major YA thriller vibes, and I was disappointed when I discovered it wasn't. I think it would have been a lot more enjoyable had it been. It took me quite a while to read this one as I found it dragged on quite a bit, had a lot of unnecessary scenes, and a lot of filler. Not a one for me, unfortunately.

We Know What You Did by Denise Brown delves into the complexities of friendship, secrets, and loss, following Summer as she wrestles with grief and confusion after a tragic night that left her world turned upside down. At the heart of the story is the bond between two friends whose shared choices ultimately lead to devastating consequences, leaving Summer to piece together what truly happened.

The novel has a strong emotional pull, with Brown effectively capturing the intensity of grief and guilt. Summer’s journey is compelling, as she navigates a tangle of memory, trauma, and mistrust in her search for the truth. However, at times, certain plot elements feel underdeveloped, and the ending leaves some questions unanswered, which might leave readers wishing for a bit more clarity.

For those who enjoy suspenseful, character-driven dramas about friendship and loss, We Know What You Did offers a moving, if slightly enigmatic, exploration of the emotional aftermath of tragedy.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is hard to follow and is confusing. Though the blurb was interesting, but when I actually read it, I couldn't understand what was going on and couldn't connect with the characters. It's all over place.

This book stood out to me because of the use of social media in the story and how it is an almost omoinous presence that can make stuations worse and more harrowing and intense even when they are already at a breaking point. I thought this story was interesting and the author did a good job showing how social media and people's need to weigh in on things intensifies situations and makes things harder.

I’ve read and enjoyed her previous titles It All Started With A Lie and I Am Winter. So I was past due for a new Brown YA thriller.
We Know What You Did by Denise Brown is an excellent YA/NA thriller story.
Denise's writing is something amazing and I honestly can't wait read to read more from her!

Thank You NetGalley and Hashtag Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I really struggled with this one, it was both realistic and very unrealistic at the same time. No one noticed the mental health struggles, even the people who “cared” for summer. There was people willing to help but never. I don’t know it was just so very strange. It felt as though it was building up to something that never came and the ending was just so far away from anything in actual life. I also wasn’t a fan of the writing style so I know that didn’t help.
Overall the book was a struggle to get through from start to finish, it did however only take me around 3hours to read. Not sure if I would read anything else from
this author but maybe if the storyline felt different.
🌟🌟🌟
Release date - 7th November

When Summer’s best friend Cee dies from cardiac arrest after both girls have taken pills, the accusations on social media begin, but as the bullying intensifies, Summer grows closer to revealing the secret both families are harbouring.

The plot was very intriguing and there was so much about it I truly enjoyed, but there probably was way too much going on, to a point where figuring out what this wanted to be was incredibly hard. I liked the exploration of grief in Summer's character, and I also really enjoyed the complexity of her family dynamic. It's just that it all felt like it was building up to something that never came, and it left me wishing for a bit more clarity. It felt like there were all these threads just hanging lose that failed to be connected. The stakes for the book were there, and things were supposed to be tense, but it was just never built upon, and that also felt weird. I really liked the concept overall, and I do think it could have been something great if explored more in depth.

Many thanks to LiterallyPR, Hashtag Press & NetGalley for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I received a free copy of, We Know What You Did, by Denise Brown, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Summer BFF Cee has died, everyone thinks that Summer played a part in her death. I did not care for the language in this book at all. This was a heavy read.

Denise Brown does a great job in creating a tense and suspenseful atmosphere that I was on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. The characters were everything that I wanted and enjoyed how strong everything was. I loved the use of social media and how it affects people.

I really wanted to like this book more than I did, it definitely had potential but it didn't reach it for me.

This book was extremely confusing. I found the plot impossible to follow. I feel like the blurb was interesting but the execution of the idea was all over the place.

Unfortunately, I didn't love this book. I just thought it was ok. I liked the main character, but I couldn't connect with any of the characters. I also didn't love the plot and was very confused sometimes.

I read the newer version of this novel, We Know What You Did publishing November 7th 2024.

I am really not sure what this book was aiming to do but it missed its mark several times. Just one I thought the story was going one way, it went another. It felt very disjointed, like Brown couldn’t decide what type of book she wanted this to be, so she tried it all at once and it massively failed and was a let down.

There were so many plot threads or hints at plot threads that were never picked up. For example, I thought it was going to go somewhere with Summers mental state — in many instances it seemed as if she hallucinated or did stuff that she could no longer recall, such as harming people. But nope. This wasn’t explored further at all. And I get it, this in one way was showing her grief — but the book seemed to set it up as something more and never followed through (like with this bear-wolf…).

The whole car crash and drug storyline was also a mess that never really went anywhere. The threat of prosecution and an investigation hung over the book, and yet it never came to fruition. No one interviewed Summer. No one asked questions. She was just accused and it was left as that. We didn’t even get to find out what happened with the drivers, despite that being a massive thing of them being predators.

Which leads me to this thing with Mac…so strange and I could never quite tell where that was going. Summers mum was also a mess. I do think Brown managed to capture the messy and often problematic and harmful dynamics of families and life as a teenager. It was heartbreaking to see Summer wanting boundaries and rules and to be patented, but to have the adults around her, such as her Mum and Gran, either give in to her or excuse her behaviour — meanwhile Summer is internally screaming at them to stop.

Overall I didn’t really like this and it took me some time to get through despite how short it is. I think this book has potential, it’s just very underbaked and misses the mark in so many instances that it’s sad to see.

I was lucky enough to receive this book as an arc reader through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I honestly do not know what to say about this book. I found it extremely hard to follow as a reader. The storyline needed more developing and depth into it. I feel like we got a lot of unnecessary details that just made the story boring. I wanted to DNF so many times but wanted to give it a chance but even the ending made no sense to me. Also what is a bear-wolf and why was it so important to the story. I’m so sorry I couldn’t provide any positive feedback but I really did not enjoy this.