Tell Me What Really Happened

by Chelsea Sedoti

There are stories about the woods around Salvation Creek and the people who have gone missing. Now their friend is one of them. A riveting, fast-paced YA mystery told entirely through first person police interviews of four teens over the course of a few hours. It was all her idea. They would get away from their parents and spend the weekend camping. Down by Salvation Creek, the five of them would make smores, steal kisses, share secrets. But sometime around midnight, she vanished. Now the four friends who came back are under suspicion―and they each have a very different story to tell about what happened in the woods. The clock is ticking. What are they hiding? Who is lying? Dark truths must come to light if their friend is to be found… Told entirely through first-person police interviews, this riveting mystery  what really happened that night? Perfect Also by Chelsea The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett As You Wish It Came from the Sky Praise for Chelsea "Easy to read and hard to put down."― VOYA on As You Wish "A dark, comedic mystery about a girl's quest for proof that ultimately helps her discover some truths about herself." ― Justine on The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett "[A] quirky, intelligent novel." ― Booklist on It Came from the Sky

Genres: Mystery, Young Adult, Thriller, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Audiobook, Contemporary

416 pages, Paperback

First published December 13, 2022

About the author

Chelsea Sedoti fell in love with writing at a young age after discovering that making up stories was more fun than doing her school work (her teachers didn’t always appreciate this.) In an effort to avoid getting a “real” job, Chelsea explored careers as a balloon twister, filmmaker, and paranormal investigator. Eventually she realized that her true passion is writing about flawed teenagers who are also afraid of growing up. When she’s not at the computer, Chelsea spends her time exploring abandoned buildings, eating junk food at roadside diners, and trying to befriend every animal in the world. She lives in Las Vegas, Nevada where she avoids casinos, but loves roaming the Mojave Desert.

Reviews

[megs_bookrack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Five friends go into the woods, only four make it out alive. You may think you know this story, but I assure you, you've never heard it told like this!



In this story we're following five high school friends, Nolan, Petra, Maylee, John and Abigail. It's a sort of Breakfast Clubby set-up, with each character falling into a particular stereotypical role.

Maylee is the Queen Bee of the group, a wannabe influencer, snapping shots of herself whenever and wherever she can. It's her idea to go on this ill-fated camping trip.



Petra is Maylee's best friend, a smart girl, who tells it like it is. She's the only person who doesn't bow down to Maylee. Petra loves her, but she's not going to be steamrolled by her.

The other campers include Nolan, Petra's step-brother, an outcast with a penchant for cryptid lore, who always manages to say the wrong thing; Abigail, the poor girl-next-door, who isn't really part of the group, and John, Maylee's boyfriend, the jock with a heart of gold.



The trip begins with stress and ends very much the same way, x10. They're at each other's throats from the start and it's clear that something is going to go wrong.

The shining star of this book is hands-down the format. Told strictly through police interviews, I was blown away by how much tension Sedoti was able to create with that.



Each chapter begins as a question asked by the investigators. The subsequent meat of the chapter is the various players answering that question.

Most interesting to me was how that initial question, at the header of each chapter, is the only question revealed, but you can feel the characters filling in subsequent questions.



I'm not quite sure how else to describe it. It's definitely something you need to experience for yourself. I was super impressed with how clever this was.

Sedoti not only set the entire stage, but filled it in just by flawlessly placing answers to a few questions. It had to be perfectly arranged in order for it to flow well and make sense. I think she did a phenomenal job with that.



Overall, I found this to be a very fun read. It was grand how this unique format could create such a super quick and tense read. The characters drew me in. They felt believable and genuine in their distress.

It's not a groundbreaking story as far as the plot goes. Sadly, I even sort of felt like the conclusion was a bit anti-climatic in comparison with the build-up. Nevertheless, this was still a very engaging reading experience and I would definitely recommend it to fans of YA Thrillers.



Thank you so much to the publisher, SOURCEBOOKS Fire, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I was impressed with this and look forward to picking up more from this author!

[Nilufer Ozmekik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, one interrogation room: four teenage witnesses from a camp trip that goes wrong in Salvation Creek where a brutal crime occurs. This is absolutely exciting, riveting thriller keeping you in your toes!

Over achier- control freak Petra, her nerdy- Big Foot obsessed step brother Nolan, an outcast of school who lives in trailer park Abigail and person of interest- victim’s boyfriend John! The events are told from their POVs. Their friend Maylee who is forced them to have a camping trip on weekend in Salvation Creek is MISSING and probably dead!

The other participants of the trip are these four unreliable witnesses who tell their subjective comments about the entire incident.

Petra gives snarky answers, trying to teach the officers to do their job because she knows a lot about criminal and investigation procedures about missing people ( thanks to her police officer daddy). Nolan keeps giving enough statistical information about natural habitats and special attributes of Big Foot and he also gives extra information about missing people in Salvation Creek since 1900s. Abigail gives long speeches and in the middle of them she forgets what was the entire question, constantly babbling, giving anecdotes from her dear Nana Abbie and poor John attends to the interrogation with his lawyer because this is his second round to get questioned for a crime. The first time he’s blamed to drive under the influence and injure his friend ( thankfully he was acquitted. He wasn’t even sitting in the driver seat. ) But two of his friends point their fingers at him ( especially Abigail insists he’s the murderer even though they are not sure yet that their friend Maylee is dead)

So what happened that night?
Five teenagers: Maylee: influencer, magnet of the group who convinces her best friend/ super organizer Petra and Abigail ;( Maylee and she have a complicated relationship) who knows a lot about the wilderness and her boy friend John to attend to the last minute camping! Petra’s conspiracy theorist/ ultra weird step brother Nolan joins to the group because Petra’s parents force him to keep an eye on his stepsister.

Instead of Maylee, none of them are volunteered to participate to this trip but Maylee is great manipulator. During their camping, Nolan brings his special gadget to search for the creatures lurking around. ( at least he insists some dangerous creatures took many lives of innocent campers in the past! ) He finds a cabin in the woods filled with hunting equipment ( lots of sharp knives! ) throughout his search. The other members of the group get creeped out and they return back to their camping site without looking back!

But at the night time things get a little heated between them. The more alcohol, more slurry confessions later, they find out one of them brought a gun to their trip! At the end of the night, a gun shot bursts out and cuts the silence of the woods!

What happened to Maylee! Did one of them kill her? Did Bigfoot tear apart her body?

Four unreliable voices, one murder case, long interrogation process! Just continue to read and enjoy the gripping mystery!

It was easy to read and smart whodunnit thriller to read in one sitting! Highly recommend to YA thriller fans!

Many thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for sharing this amazing digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

[Melissa (Vacation Mode) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent YA mystery, kept me guessing. Unique format.

A group of five teens go camping for the weekend. Only four of them come out of the woods. Through a series of police interviews, Petra, Nolan, Abigail, and John are quizzed on what happened during the time away in order to figure out what happened to Maylee. Petra is Maylee's best friend. John is her boyfriend. Nolan is Petra's stepbrother, and none of them can really figure out why Abigail was invited. Nolan is obsessed with bigfoot and has come prepared to find evidence of one. As the events are recounted back to the police, the reader can see that everyone has something to hide.

When all is said and done, I wasn't the biggest fan of the conclusion. However it made sense and seemed like it could have happened. The four teens were unreliable narrators--not always solely to the reader, but sometimes to themselves as well. I liked the police interview format, it never strayed away from that, although as with everything presented in this way (most books that contain diary entries for example) there is WAY too much detail and dialogue for it to be fully believable as a delivery method.

All of the characters went from likable to unlikable and back again for me as the story progressed. I appreciated that as I knew more, I changed my opinion about each of the characters many times. Also, I thought it was interesting about how the characters felt and thought about each other changed over time too. I had a general suspicion about what happened to Maylee fairly quickly, but the ultimate resolution was pretty surprising.

As a side note, there was way too much talk about bigfoot in this book. I get it, I live in the PNW and my town even hosts Squatch Fest every year with leading cryptid experts giving talks about the subject. Maybe I'm burned out on it because of that, but it was too heavily focused on in this book for my taste.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.

[sofia · Rating 2 out of 5]

i'm being so serious when i say i never want to hear anyone talk about bigfoot again

[Tiffany · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish that Bigfoot had killed all of these characters.

[A Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Five teens went into the woods at Salvation Creek to camp despite knowing the folktales and missing person stories surrounding the area. It was Maylee’s idea, and she always gets what she wants. But around midnight, her friends awake to find her missing. And by the morning, they’re in a police station giving their statements. Separated from each other, they each provide different details that sometimes contradict each other about what really happened that night. Who is telling the truth? And who is responsible for Maylee’s disappearance?

This was a fun, fast-paced YA read. I enjoyed how it was set up. Each chapter began with a question asked by the police, then was answered by each different character. This was a great way to get everyone’s POV in an organized way, and the author did an excellent job at not including too much repetition. It was also fun to see how varied the characters’ interpretations and perspectives were about different events. This was probably the strongest part of the book and was surprisingly engaging.

I also quite liked the characters. They were all unique and had strong voices. I liked the wide range of their personalities, and how none of them felt like caricatures. The inclusion of one character’s obsession with cryptozoology increased my enjoyment of this work and added a whole new level of interest. While the plot wasn’t the most realistic, it was wonderfully entertaining.

If you enjoy fast-paced YA books, then this is a must read! Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for allowing me to read this work, which will be published 4 April 2023. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

[Mai H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I needed a break from the holiday books, and yet I knew I wasn't going to feel bad for these kids. The token Black kid gets racially profiled. The weird kid is weird. Alternatively, this is a story about the consequences white girls get for lying. Which, there are basically none.

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire

[Bec (becbingesbooks) - sorry, behind with lots of catching up to do · Rating 3 out of 5]

I flew through this YA mystery but was quite disappointed by the ending. It seemed like the author didn't try to wrap much up at all, just a "here's what happened" abrupt finish and very anticlimactic.

It has a huge focus on bigfoots. I get why, but it was a lot and started to annoy me a bit.

A huge positive of this is that it is uniquely written - all told in police interviews. There are different first person POVs for different characters being questioned and I really enjoyed the style and it kept everything very interesting. However, I think the author could have done more to differentiate between the characters so we knew who we were reading without flipping back to the character name headings.

This has AGGGTM vibes at the start so if you also loved that, you may enjoy this (subject to above haha). I really did enjoy for something different and an easy YA read but the last 5-10% disappointed.

Thanks to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for my eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Publication date: 4 April 2023.

[Debra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Salvation Creek. It has been the source of stories and speculations about missing persons, specifically young women, for decades. It would not be my first choice of where to go camping, but for five friends it sounded like the perfect place to get away, make out, swap secrets, and escape their parents.

You know the drill...5 went into the woods.... only 4 made it out!


What is unique about this book is that it is told through interview/police interview format. Readers do not see the interviewers’ questions but the teens being interviewed give their responses. This worked very well. We get to know each teen through their interviews which show each's recollections of what happened, their thoughts about each other, even their suspicions.

Big kudos for such a unique way of telling the story. I found this to be very well done. This was a fun and entertaining YA mystery.


Thank you to SOURCEBOOKS Fire, Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com

[Linzie (suspenseisthrillingme) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maylee Hayes came up with the fun idea of an overnight camping trip to Salvation Creek with four of her friends. Hoping to enjoy some unsupervised alone time with her boyfriend, John, she floated the idea to her parents and got the green light. Next up was persuading John, who already wasn’t a big fan of the great outdoors. Joining them were Abigail, Petra, and Nolan, each of whom were looking forward to huddling around a crackling campfire with hot dogs, s’mores, and plenty of laughs.

But when things started to go off the rails, all of them began to wish that they hadn’t accompanied her into the wilderness. Especially when things went from bad to worse. For it seems that somewhere around midnight, Maylee disappeared from her tent. Even John, who was sleeping right beside her, had no idea where she went. Left alone with no cell service or nearby help, the four remaining friends desperately tried to find her in the cold, dark night.

But that was hours ago. Now, they find themselves at a police station answering questions while search and rescue continue to look for Maylee. But the longer she’s gone, the worse her chances are. As the cops begin to unravel what happened the night before, the truths and the lies begin to come to light. Do any of them know what really happened out there? Was it a stranger living up to the dark rumors that are whispered about Salvation Creek? Or, unthinkably, could one of them be responsible?

Well, Tell Me What Really Happened was certainly a rather mixed bag for me. Between the ingenious, completely original format and the steadily ratcheting suspense, I found myself wrapped up from the start. Granted, this one definitely came off geared more for teens than some other YA thrillers that I’ve read which can easily do double duty with adults, but I still raced through the pages nonetheless.

I know I touched on it earlier, but the best aspect of this novel was easily the structure. Told exclusively through police interviews of the four remaining friends, it creatively wove together all of their POVs into a cohesive plot that took me on quite the ride. And with each chapter, the tension got thicker and my pulse got higher. Unfortunately, one of the pieces of the plot that didn’t rock my world was the conclusion which felt decidedly anticlimactic.

Some other aspects that didn’t thrill me were how similar all of the characters felt. None of them rang with their own identity and I found myself repeatedly having to flip backwards to check on who was speaking. I also didn’t enjoy the constant talk of Bigfoot. By the end, I found myself skimming Nolan’s sections when they were mentioned. Yes, there’s a definite purpose behind their inclusion in the plot, but it felt overdone for sure.

Ultimately, as an adult reading this novel, I was blown away by the accuracy of how fallible one’s memory can be in the midst of stress. I could easily see how four teenagers would spin tales for investigators to hide things they’d rather not share, but also have diarrhea of the mouth. I didn’t, however, connect to any of the characters, which was unfortunate. Whether this was due to my age in relation to theirs (and my limited memory of what it was like to be a teen) or the writing, I can’t be sure.

Despite all of the inherent flaws, however, I had a blast reading this book. If you love a good YA mystery/thriller, be sure to pick Tell Me What Really Happened up. It’s a great, quick, easy read that worked well as a palate cleanser of sorts between harder hitting thrillers. Rating of 3.5 stars.

Trigger warning: drunk driving, bullying, teenage drinking

[Jovana (NovelOnMyMind) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes I think it would be good to be hated. Hated or loved. Nothing in between.

3.5 ⭐

This was fun for the most part. The plot was interesting, distinctive characters, I liked the mystery, and the format helped get through the book quicker.

I liked trying to guess what happened. Though I got a part of it early on, there were things I didn't expect. I also liked the feeling of isolation in the forest, it set an unsettling atmosphere that kept me on the edge of my seat.

What I didn’t like was that because each of the character was giving their own view of every single detail, sometimes the narration felt a bit repetitive. But it wasn't bad at all for the most part.

But then... Well, the ending did feel quite anticlimactic. It was a solid four stars for me until then, but now - I’m not so sure. I’m still trying to decide my exact rating. I think 3.5 is how I feel about it right now, but I might change it soon.

A huge thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of Tell Me What Really Happened by Chelsea Sedoti in exchange for an honest review.

[Dona's Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to the author Chelsea Sedoti, publishers Sourcebooks Fire, and as always NetGalley, for an advance audio copy of TELL ME WHAT REALLY HAPPENED.

Five friends walk into the woods...stop me if you've heard this one. Only four come out. And only one of them knows what the heck cryptozoology is.

TELL ME WHAT REALLY HAPPENED is told in such a creative and clever way. I was hooked-- when I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it and getting back to it to read more. The premise is that a girl on a camping trip turns up dead, but the circumstances are completely mysterious because of the unreliability of witness account. Hardly revolutionary, but the plot gets turned up when certain elements are introduced. Like Big Foot. (Yes, that gets as crazy as it sounds.)

I love the form in which this book is written, in overlapping witness interviews obtained by the local police department. It both increases the jarring incongruity of the story, while also backlighting this steamroller of a theme the reader never quite loses sight of. Talking of course about the fact that no one's account of things can be trusted.

This is a really fun read!

Rating: 👣👣👣👣.5 / 5 Big Feet
Recommend? Yes!
Finished: April 11 2023
Read this if you like:
🔪 Murder mysteries
🏕 Camping in the woods
👮 True crime stories
🦄 Cryptozoology

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was told in a really creative format that flowed well. Four teens are in interrogation rooms with the police talking about a camping trip that ended with a fifth girl going missing. The book is told from eh perspectives of the four teens, but it’s their answers to the police told in conversation stream. I figured out the twists, but still enjoyed reading them. The characters were all kind of horrible people (well John wasn’t horrible and Abigail tried not to be but overall I didn’t care what happened to this group truth be told), but it worked for the story that was being told. I liked that the book didn’t shy away from big issues, like of course the missing girl’s Black boyfriend is the first to be separated and clearly the police’s prime suspect. The style really made this a fast read that was really engrossing.

[ੈ✩‧₊˚ faithreads *ೃ༄ (inactive) · Rating 5 out of 5]

this is hands down one of the best, well written murder mysteries I’ve ever read!!! the plot was SO entertaining and interesting, and totally unpredictable!! the format was so unique and engaging! the characters were perfect! ugh just so good! I loved loved loved the ending, (not the death part lol) just how she wrapped everything up was AMAZING! I’ve never even thought about this scenario but the way the author described it made PERFECT sense! Maylee was a pretty typical spoiled girl who never heard the word no, even till the end. Nolan was the typical weird kid who was randomly obsessed with Bigfoot! Petra was the obsessive but secretly insecure bestie lol. And Abigail was just kinda there. I think this story is a great testament to how our experiences and memories are different depending on our own mindset and past, and also how little you can truly know about the person you think you know best. (Idk if that made sense) so this book was awesome and scary but not tooo bad!!! would totally recommend!!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audiobook Rating: 5/5

I started seeing Tell Me What Really Happened by Chelsea Sedoti all over Bookstagram so of course I had to see what the fuss was about, plus I LOVED her prior novel As You Wish. The format of this book was very cool and different, and it SLAYS as an audiobook. I don't read much YA anymore but when I do it is usually a mystery or thriller, and this one really delivered for me. There is a slight paranormal aspect that keeps you wondering if there is something more sinister going on, and plenty of action and young adult drama. Each chapter starts with some kind of question or statement from the cop questioning the high school students, and there are more questions asked throughout each of the chapters, but we find out what those are by the character's reactions to them.

I have never read a book quite like this before, and going back to it slaying on audio, it did that because it has a full cast of narrators: Shannon Tyo, Kimberly Woods, Reynaldo Piniella, Josh Hurley & Jeff Gurner. Whoever cast these voice artists really nailed it, as they were perfect for each of their parts. I HIGHLY recommend the audiobook since it is so well done, and it is one of my favorite YA audiobooks now. I did think the end was pretty anti-climactic after everything we go through to get there which is why I took off a star, but this was such a clever story and format that I couldn't put it down. Tell Me What Really Happened is perfect for the reader who likes a quick pace, high school drama, lots of secrets, and a hint of creepiness.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

[Susan's Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a fun YA read. Five high school seniors decide on the spur of the moment to spend a night in the infamous woods at the edge of their small town. You guessed it, one of the group disappears.... and Bigfoot may or many not be to blame! (Just kidding... sort of....!)



The story is told from the first person point of view: each of the four remaining campers are interviewed by the police. Sedoti does an excellent job of creating a portrait of each character through their responses.



Petra, whose father is the town's chief of police, probably drove the interrogators right up one wall and down the other - she told them off more than once, often berating them for wasting time interviewing the remaining campers when they could, instead, be out there looking for their missing colleague. I laughed more than once at her screechy, push retorts. I'm sure the cops were tempted to toss her into a cell just to get some relief.



I don't want to give any spoilers, so I am just going to encourage you to read this highly entertaining mystery that comes with a life lesson for us all! 4 out of 5 well deserved stars (with one point deducted because I got so confused about the timing of that gunshot.)

[Helena (helenareadsxx) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Chelsea Sedoti for this ARC. Best YA thriller I have ever read! That's all I can say without going into spoilers and having a rant aha. Love, love, love!

[Trina · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars for the audiobook. This story is told completely through police interrogation dialogue and the audiobook had a full cast of narrators for each character. There were a handful of sound effects which added to the setting, and the actors portrayed the character emotions wonderfully.

Additionally, the plot was genuinely interesting. Missing girl YA is a dime a dozen but I can honestly say I've never encountered some of the elements here before. I was entertained and burned through this in a day!

[Karla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Story 4 stars**
Audio 5 stars** all cast performance
Narrators Shannon Tyo, Kimberly Woods, Reynaldo Piniella, Josh Hurley,
Jeff Gurner

[Courtney · Rating 1 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourebooks Fire, and Chelsea Sedoti for an ARC of Tell Me What Really Happened.

I wish I had more positive points to make about this book, but it looks like I will be the outlier.

First, what worked best is the way the story is told. Teens, one of whom is obsessed with finding a Bigfoot in the woods, set out on a camping trip. Someone ends up dead, and the police separate them into interrogation rooms. The story is told through police interviews with each of the teens, and all of them seem to have a different story. As the mystery of Maylee missing unfolds, readers are left asking themselves, but who is telling the truth?

First, the age group categorization -- 14-18 -- seems like a stretch. I'd say 13-15. The teenage problems floating around the book do not seem like the kind that 17-18 year olds would face. I cannot see any 18 year old I know reading this and feeling even remotely related to what's happening aside from the points about choosing a college major. Everything else seems a bit...juvenile for someone that age.

Some of the minor details are incorrect. Petra, the girl who organized the camping trip, makes it a point to say that she had to buy "special keto hotdogs" for one of her friends who tagged along. Keto is a fat heavy diet; hotdogs are a keto-friendly food. From what I understand, "keto hotdogs" aren't a thing. Hotdogs are, by default, keto. I know what you're thinking -- does it really matter? The answer is yes. When you read a book, you expect it to be fact-checked when appropriate, even when it's fiction.

Finally, and I don't want to give too much away because I don't want spoil it for anyone who might read this book...Sasquatch plays way too much of a role here. If you are someone who is dabbled in the hunt for a Bigfoot in the woods, or if that's ever remotely interested you, I recommend it. Otherwise, you'll probably be just as disappointed as I was when I closed this book.

[angeline (taylor's version) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was ... kinda boring, the story has been done before so many times, so I wasn't interested I just hate not finishing books. I knew the ending at least like 100 pages in.

The characters were.... bland and not lovable. They talk about how Petra and Maylee are supposed to be like best friends but it does not feel like they are, in fact they don't even act like friends.

I wasn't expecting much from this book but I was expecting more than THAT. I'm pretty sure some people would love this book it's just not it for me.

[recontraluchita · Rating 3 out of 5]

estuvo bueno escucharlo en audiolibro porque está escrito en formato de interrogatorio, es entretenido pero los personajes cuentan demasiado contexto que no tiene importancia

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audiobook is really good. Once I got used to the unique storytelling, it hooked me right away.

[Lackof_shelf_control · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Honestly, I don’t care if people love me or hate me. The worst thing would be if no one thought of me at all.”

I loved the format of this YA mystery. The whole layout is the interrogation from the police of the five members on the camping trip that Maylee goes missing from. So each chapter is a question from the police and then it changes POVs (back and forth) answering the question. It sounds like it would be confusing, but it was not and made it sooooo easy to fly through.

Nothing scary about this one and I did guess mostly how things played out in the end, but it was such an easy read that I don’t feel like it was ruined by that. Ultimately, this book highlights how we can all see the same thing and yet all remember things very differently!!

[Diana | LatinaWithABook · Rating 3 out of 5]

A unique twist to this YA read! I loved the concept of a book based on the interrogation of 4 teens after their friend went missing on a camping trip. Each chapter is a question from the detectives and the response from each teen.
This is truly a YA book and I loved how quick and easy of a read it was. I found it hard to like the characters and like true teenage fashion found them all wrapped up in themselves. As an adult I often read YA and I found myself looking at it from my teenage nieces point of view and knew they would absolutely love the book!

Thank you to Chelsea Sedoti, Net Galley & Sourcebooks Fire for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[merr · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book follows five friends as they go on a camping trip into the woods. Sounds familiar right? Expect you have step siblings where one is all about being in control and being good at whatever she does and the other believes in Bigfoot and spends more time on his computer then around people. You have a couple who is made up of a popular party girl who is use to being the center of attention and a rising star on social media and a goody bookworm boy, and then the outsider girl who seems to be the fifth wheel of the trip and comes camping without a tent. As a whole, the five of them aren’t necessarily friends, especially when they discover they really don’t know each other as much as they thought. Secret love triangles, backstabbing, and lies and omissions that leave the book full of twists and turns from start to finish. Because five of them went into the woods, but only four of them walked back out.

The book is written in a pretty unique way. It’s broken into two parts and it is from the perspective of the friends from police interviews. So each chapter kind of starts out with what the detectives asked them and how the four respond to what’s going on and what is being asked. Some of the character’s perspectives are really cool and stay interesting throughout. But also some of them kind of lack and get repetitive. It still makes it a fun read and was nicely done. With everything happening I think it does a good job being broken up so that it doesn’t necessarily get confusing on what is happening and who is telling it, which was nice to see.

Throughout the whole book I was trying to make my guesses on what I thought happened and who I thought was responsible for it. And let me tell you, this book had my head spinning, I didn’t expect half the twists and turns that came out. There were parts that I was somewhat right on, but even if you somewhat might guess it, it doesn’t exactly pan out in the way it alludes to or what you may have guessed. I think it does a good job throwing you off of the obvious but also tying everything back together to make sense of what happened. I really enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend giving it a read, it was so good!

[readwithmichele · Rating 2 out of 5]

THANK YOU NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for gifting me an ARC (Advanced Reading Copy) of this book in exchange for my honest review.
HOWEVER, I’m RAGING right now…..Can someone tell me what happened? That’s what I want to know.
SYNOPSIS: “I started thinking I should have just stayed home and read all weekend. Though, I’d just finished a book I really loved, and you know how sometimes you don’t want to start a new book because you’re still stuck in the world of the last one? No? Never? Gosh, you’re missing out.”
^^This story is told from an 8-person point of view that gives a nice feel in understanding the entire tale.
WHO. DONE. IT?!!! Four teenagers plan a last-minute camping trip to Salvation Creek, hours away from home...all on their own. Maylee, Abigail, Petra, John and Nolan decide to spend a weekend, camping in nature, completely away from civilization and cell phone service. Maylee disappears…then she winds up dead.
REVIEW: This thriller is told in an 8-character interview style. I never expected to be one to like this style, but discovered with Daisy Jones & the Six and this book that I absolutely LOVE IT. For me, you get to know the character’s behaviors and personalities very well this way.
Maylee has gone missing and each of her other 4 teen friends in the group are being interrogated by police following their short camping trip. Their relationships interweave and you discover how close (or unclose) they are. After arriving and pitching their tents at the campsite, things begin to unravel, and friendships and connections aren’t what they seem on the outside. This was a gripping story, and the interview style had my eyes racing from beginning to end with each page. And I’m not giving away any spoilers, but with as entranced as I was in this story, I was VERY much upset with how it ended in the last few pages. This went from a 5-star to a 2 star for me right up until the very end. I’m SOO disappointed.

[AndiReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really fun book! I love when the narrative of a book is presented in a unique way. In Tell Me What Really Happened, we are introduced to a group of 4 very different high school students who are responding to interview questions presented in a police station. Before long we learn that a 5th member of a camping trip has been reported missing the police is questioning the friends about what transpired.

While this is a YA book, there was less of that over emotive language that sometimes ties up a narrative. All of the teens were very realistic. As you read on, you will learn more and more about the events and form you own hypothesis about what happened.

If you like teen based mysteries, a who done it based in a forest or just love unique stories with thrilling concepts, Tell Me What Really Happened is for you! #sourcebooks #ChelseSedoti

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

TELL ME WHAT REALLY HAPPENED
Chelsea Sedoti

This was a unique read because the whole story is told from the police interview answers of four teens who were at the scene when the event occurred. Each teen has their own perspective of what happened and their own agenda. But one thing is always the same, Maylee, who fancies herself as an Internet Influencer at 18... :{ is dead. How it happened and who is responsible has not been determined, hence the investigation of the police.

When five teens decide to take an overnight camping trip to Salvation Creek, unsupervised to let their hair down. What happened is a well-written book with some characters that I sometimes struggled to like.

I struggled with the girls, Petra, Maylee, and sometimes Abigail. These girls had some personality issues such as control and narcissistic issues. The boys Nolan and John were not as snarky as the girls, but they each had some issues. Nolan is a conspiracist and John is terribly conscious of his race as a factor anytime the police are called in. Clearly, he has a reason that will unfold as the story does.

Like all witnesses, they all believed what they believed, and somewhere in the middle of it all, was the truth. Petra was full of bitchy answers so typical of young adults of her age who believe they are the smartest person in the room, and Petra's dad is a police officer so she is? She attempts to correct, warn and threaten the officers as they attempt to do their job. Nolan is consumed by his belief in Big Foot and how it might be in the area of Salvation Creek, there is a great deal of history offered that was ok. He was tricked into drinking more and more whiskey by Maylee before she disappeared. Abigail is an old girlfriend of Maylee, while John is Maylee's current boyfriend. He is black and very aware of what that might mean with regard to contact with the police. He is upset because Maylee's behavior that night exposes him to issues with the police and she didn't think about what that might mean to him.

But the question is really what happened.....

4 stars

Happy Reading!

[Ju (NO POLLS) · Rating 2 out of 5]

it was certainly a book?