title: That's Not My Nameauthor: Megan Lally
published: 12.26.2023
publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
genre(s): thrillers
pages: 290
source: Kindle Unlimited
format: eBook
buy/shelve it: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | BookBub | StoryGraph | Goodreads
rating:
the blurb
She thought she had her life back. She was wrong. It was a mistake to trust him.
Shivering and bruised, a teen wakes up on the side of a dirt road with no memory of how she got there―or who she is. A passing officer takes her to the police station, and not long after, a frantic man arrives. He's been searching for her for hours. He has her school ID, her birth certificate, and even family photos. He is her father. Her name is Mary. Or so he says.
When Lola slammed the car door and stormed off into the night, Drew thought they just needed some time to cool off. Except Lola disappeared, and the sheriff, his friends, and the whole town are convinced Drew murdered his girlfriend. Forget proving his innocence, he needs to find her before it's too late. The longer Lola is missing, the fewer leads there are to follow…and the more danger they both are in.
a few notes
trigger warning: ❗some graphic violence❗
POV: 1st person; dual
setting: Washington City, Oregon
keywords/phrases: murder, distrust, guilt, grief
tropes: high action, protagonist as suspect, unreliable narrator, high stakes, stalker, ineffective adults, red herrings
spice: 0/5
language: 5/5🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬
mood reading: in the mood for twisty plots, high action, emotional storylines.
awards: Oregon Book Award Nominee for Young Adult Literature (2024), Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Young Adult Fiction (2023)
my review
This was such a great story! The dual storylines really added to the anticipation and suspense of the plot, such different perspectives to the ongoing story. Drew’s chapters were full of emotion that ranged from fear to sadness to guilt to anger. It was hard not to fall into his story, to not feel what he felt. And Mary’s chapters… the confusion, the rising fears, the horror… all of it equally spine-tingling. The red herring trope is often overused in thrillers, but I loved the way it was used here, in a way I don’t see too often. I’d say more but SPOILERs. So no. And the epilogue of the book gutted me completely!
I need to read more from this author!
About Megan Lally
Megan Lally is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of That’s Not My Name. When she’s not writing dark and twisty young adult novels you might find her barefoot at the ocean, drinking one too many lavender lattes, or arguing about the validity of glitter as a favorite color. (It’s absolutely a color, and it’s the best one.) She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her family.
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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2025 52 Books Reading Challenge
- 2025 Cloak & Dagger Reading Challenge
- 2025 Linz the Bookworm & Logophile Reading Challenge
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