Finders Keepers

by Natalie Barelli

Dear Diary. Today I'm going to kill her. Love, Rose.

When Rose discovers her troubled past splashed across the pages of a bestselling book, she knows her carefully constructed life is about to unravel.

The author, Emily Harper, claims the story is fiction, but Rose knows better. Desperate to find out how Emily discovered her deepest secrets, Rose ingratiates herself into the author's life, posing as an eager assistant and adoring fan.

But as Rose gets closer to the truth, long-buried memories resurface. Slowly, the horrifying events of her teenage years come into focus, revealing that sometimes, the people you trust the most are the ones you should be most afraid of.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Audiobook, Mystery Thriller, Fiction, Suspense, Psychological Thriller

302 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 26, 2023

About the author

You will usually find Natalie Barelli reading a book, and that book will more likely than not be a psychological thriller. When not absorbed in the latest gripping page-turner, Natalie rides motorcycles, knits very badly and spends far too much time at the computer. She lives in Australia.

Reviews

[Kaceey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75🌟
How would you react if you discovered someone wrote a book about your dark past? Everything in your life, chronicled on your laptop. The same lap top that was stolen!

Well, you’d be hell-bent to get that laptop back pronto, before this thief can do more damage!

Enter “sweet” Emily. (So called) author of Diary of an Octopus. While marketing her book she’s befriended by her biggest fan, Rose. Who coincidentally, is the person that actually lived the events contained in the book.

Rose desperately needs to embed herself into Emily’s life. She must find a way into her apartment to retrieve that laptop! Her life and future depend on it.

I listened to the audio and I have to say Emily’s character started grating on me as much as it did for Rose. There so much “sweetie” talk! It was an over the top sugar rush!

Natalie Barelli always delivers fun, twisty reads. And I’m looking forward to more!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars
What would you do if someone made your diary into a novel?

Rose had lost her laptop a few years ago at the airport. She was unaware that this one mistake would change her life forever. Her laptop contained her diary, where she wrote her deepest thoughts and secrets. Now, someone has transformed her diary entries into a full-length novel. She must locate this author and retrieve her laptop before her darkest secret is revealed to the world.

The story completely enthralled me. There were so many unexpected twists and turns! I didn't want to put the novel down! Highly recommend it to fans of psychological thrillers.

*** Thank you to NetGalley, Natalie Barelli, and Dreamscape Media for graciously sending me the audiobook to review. As always, all thoughts are my own.***

[Hades ( Disney's version ) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an ARC of Finders Keepers by Natalie Barelli

This thriller is told in a sort of, uno-reverse fashion and I really enjoyed the unique way the story was told. We know the answers to some pretty big questions pretty early on. But is it all that cut & dry? Is life ever that simple?.... Exactly. 

Through the use of some heavier topics, such as grooming and gaslighting, we get to see how wrong first impressions can be. And no matter how much you may think you have it all figured out.. chances are you probably don't. 

I was pleasantly surprised by this one! It was very hard to put down and the twist kept coming! 

Until next time,
Hades
🩵

[Nina (ninjasbooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I must say, this was intense. The main character was hopelessly naive and could have profited from thinking things through, but it definitely lead to some moments that made me quite nervous. There were a lot of twisty moments, but there were some points that I wondered about.

Spoiler alert ‼️

Why did the teacher need his wife to be killed ? Couldn’t he just have made it look like a suicide? And if the main character thought she had a confession on the computer, why not password protect it ?

[Krickette❤️ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finder Keepers written by Natalie Barelli was a slow developing, mildly interesting and mysterious story. Although this novel presents itself as a thriller-it is not. With a well written story line, and mildly developed characters, Finder Keepers is a “beginners reader” into the genre of mysteries. So much left to discover- I was surprised it didn’t dive deeper. Unfortunately, this novel stalled a bit for me and left me wanting more.

Characters
👉Rose: She is our young main character- she is dodging past memories and trying to live in the now.
👉Iris: This is Roses fake persona after finding out her “real” identity was stolen.
👉Emily: Up and coming new Author -writing about the identity of Rose - and the trauma Rose faced -although passing it all off as it was her own experiences.

The interaction(s) between these characters feels very young, abrasive at times, unbelievable, and shallow. Truthfully, I think this makes or breaks your novel. Is it plausible? Can it go where it needs to go in order to keep the reader engaged? I didn’t think so.

👉A Peak inside the story:
Rose is a young adult who discovers that her personal story of her childhood trauma was published in a novel by a woman she doesn’t know, named Emily. Rose begins the adventure of trying to figure out how this author knew about her past. Overtime, Rose uncovers things related to a lost laptop. On this laptop, Rose, in earlier years, had transcribed her personal journey and filled the laptop with traumatic incidents she experienced (using it much like a diary). How could Emily have ever known any of this? Where is Roses laptop? Rose goes to lengths trying to seep into Emily’s inner circle and this is where the mystery begin to unfold.

I was very excited to read this book. I was let down at its lack of depth, but thought it might get better. It was a just very surface level story.

I want to thank NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

My rating is 2.5 stars. ⭐️ ⭐️ 💫

[Heather Adores Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐
Genre ~ psychological thriller
Publication date ~ ebook ~ August 26, 2023, audio ~ September 19, 2023
Page Count ~ 322 (52 chapters)
Audio length ~ 9 hours 40 minutes
Narrator ~ Rachel Leblang
POV ~ single 1st & 3rd
Featuring ~ 2 part story, dual timeline, gaslighting, manipulation

Rose is strolling along when she notices a book display for Diary of an Octopus, but wait that sounds familiar. How did her personal diary get published by someone named Emily? It must be because she left her laptop at the airport 2 years ago and she swiped it.

Rose, calling herself Iris, weasels her way into Emily's life in order to get her laptop back, which is not an easy task. Emily was really grating on my nerves calling her sweetie all the time in her condescending tone, I just wanted to cut her tongue out.

In part 2 we get the POV of Mr. B, who is the star of the diary, and we dive deeper into what happened back when she had a crush on him.

Overall, this was a nice, fast paced one with some nice twists, and that's all I'm going to say.

Narration notes:
She did an okay job. Some voices weren't great at all, maybe I'm still just trying to clear my ears of the sweetie crap, but others were perfect.

*Thanks to the author, Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the audio copy. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review*

Connect with me ➡ Blog ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A five star thriller read after a while! I wasn’t expecting it to be this good to be honest as I was not aware of the author’s other books before this latest release.

I just picked up the book as it is a new release and I was pretty fed up about hyped books. The most I was anticipating from this read was that it would be an average somehow cliché thriller fiction and I was desperate for some different writing other than the ones I am familiar with. Maybe all these actually helped me enjoy this book more!

I would suggest you NOT TO READ THE BLURB. Seriously DON’T. You would enjoy the book more by going into it blindly.

All I can say is that you will be pretty much guaranteed to be entertained by how much the characters are unreliable and unlikeable but also knowing them with all their flaws and still would like them despite how crazy the plot gets towards the second half.

The first half is fast paced, will pull you more and more towards the second half. The second half is just plain crazy but the pace slows down a bit. I feel it’s deliberate and that’s how I enjoyed the plot twist more.

Forget my five star rating. Just go through it as blindly as possible and keep an open mind. Well…. how many crazy people are we expecting from this story? I won’t tell!

[daniela weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

having been gaslighted once,
you will probably appreciate 
this catharsis: lighter than
most books on this trope,
ironical and empowering.

[Mandy White (mandylovestoread) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Natalie Barelli books are always a winner for me. Dark, yet humorous and oh so addictive. I binge listened to this in a day, I really needed to know how this would end…and what an ending 😱 You will never guess where this will take you.

This book is best to go into fairly blind. All I will say that our main character Rose is an interesting character. She has believed that she is a psychopath since the age of 13, and now her deepest and darkest secrets are about to be revealed l

You will be shocked, you will laugh, you will hate certain characters. You do not want o miss this. The narrator, Rachel Leblang was fantastic at giving all the characters a unique voice.

Thanks so much to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the advanced audiobook. Released on September 19th.

[Natalie "Curling up with a Coffee and a Kindle" Laird · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely brilliant.
I have read a few Barelli books now, and this is easily my favourite so far.
Completely, utterly compulsive reading, and wondering what was going to happen and by whom changed with every tap on my kindle to turn the page.
As a fan of rodents, I didn't like what happened to Pauly!
I was obsessed by this book. The pacing and drama was as fast as lightning and I couldn't bear to be away from my kindle whilst I was reading it.
It is so well plotted and I am looking forward to rereading it to experience it again (which I rarely do, my TBR doesn't like it)
A fantastic read- bravo, Natalie Barelli.

[Nikki Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a little leery going into another Natalie Barely book. In my experience, she's just a 3 star author. However, the ending of one of hers bumped it up to 4.

Gotta tell y'all, the MC starts out strong. Hilarious AF. She's a manipulator and liar. She'd rather tell a lie than give the boring truth. One day, she's walking down the sidewalk and sees the name of a new book in the store's window. Curious, she's goes in and opens the book. She is horrified when she realizes the story is hers. Her words that were written in her diary 9 years before and kept on her laptop. Only, she lost the laptop. But as she's reading, she also remembers something else in her diary that must not get out...... She's also a murderer.

Now Rose is on a quest to retrieve the laptop and destroy it. But how is she going to do that? By getting to know the author, Emily. Oh boy, how Emily is a nerve grating character. Rose jokes about killing her many times.... and in the back of my mind, I'm like.... DO IT! Kill this bitch please lol.

I enjoyed this. What I didn't like was the ridiculous confession towards the end. THESE DRIVE ME INSANE. If I'm caught, okay yes I'm guilty. But NEVER will I ever give you ALL of the damn details. That's like just adding more and more felonies to your committed crimes. This is of course far fetched, but I think the layered sarcasm and suspense make it worth reading. 4 stars

[Mallory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook and I loved the narrator. She did a great job bringing the narrator and other characters to life (even when I hated some of those characters). The main character was fascinating from the start - a self-proclaimed psychopath who lies constantly walks into a bookstore and discovers that the laptop with her childhood diary she lost was found and published. She’s determined to get her laptop back since she committed murder the year she kept that diary and she isn’t sure what made the published cut. This book was funny and twisty and I enjoyed it. It moved a little more slowly than I would have liked and there were a couple of characters that I know I was supposed to hate but I hated so much I got frustrated that the book wouldn’t move past them (it was important for the story, just characters so annoying I wanted to throw the book down, I promise this is a sign of a well done book). I will definitely be looking for more books by Natalie Barelli.

[Nancy W. (cabingirlreads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

DING DING DING! We have a banger alert here! It’s been a while since a book took me on the crazy train and this one right here made my head spin and my jaw drop so many times, I lost track!

Rose, at the age of 13 becomes obsessed with her English teacher, Mr. B and begins writing out her fantasies in a diary. Fast forward 10 years, and Rose spots a book called Diary of an Octopus in a bookstore. This also happens to be the name of her diary that she had saved on a laptop and lost at La Guardia Airport two years prior. The person claiming to be the author happens to be a social media influencer named Emily Harper. Rose begins to panic because there are things in her diary that she does not want made public.
This book is filled with so many psychopaths you don’t know who is the craziest! Once I got to Part Two, I literally gasped. I could not put my Kindle down! If you like your thrillers filled with unlikeable psychotic characters you will devour this! And that ending! I did not see that coming at all!

I’m a huge fan of this author’s work and I feel like her books aren’t talked about enough! This is my 5th book by her, and she keeps getting better and better.

[Lisa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I honestly don't know what all the hype is about this book. I listened to the audio version and the narration was SO very annoying! I had to spend some time contemplating if that skewed my impression of the book overall, but in the end, I have to say it didn't. The story did have some twists, but that was the only positive in my opinion. The characters were flat and irritating, the overuse of "sweetie" grated my nerves, there were several eye-roll moments, and the writing itself seemed pedestrian.

[Dann · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a story!

I didn't read the synopsis before reading the book, which made it extra jaw-dropping. So I don't want to say too much about it and ruin it for you.

Somehow this managed to be both hilarious and scary. Barelli's conversational narration style kept this light even as the story bordered darker topics. I couldn't stop reading.

When you think you finally know what happened... you soon realize you really, really don't.

Thanks for the rec, Coco! Your review was on point as usual!

[Kim Hess (kims_killer_reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This book was SO GOOD!! I loved it. This is my second Natalie Barelli book I’ve read and so far she is 2 for 2 with the five stars for me. I just love her writing style. She kinda reminds me of my girl Freida and that is only a positive for me. The twists in this book were crazy. 🤯 There were more than one and I never saw any of them coming. After the first one I was like oh so this is who did it, this is how it’ll end, but Natalie had a few more ideas and kept changing things up time and time again.
For those not familiar with this one because it’s not out yet, I’ll give a short description because I really don’t want to spoil anything. This story is about a girl named Rose. Years ago, when Rose was a teenager, she wrote in her diary all about a crush she had on one of her teachers. But then Rose lost that diary. Someone else, a girl named Emily, found it and ended up telling everyone it was her writing and actually published it as her own book. Rose recognized the story as her own and decides to go to one of Emily’s book signings, to find out all she can about this woman who stole her journal. And what unfolds after that is just a great, wild ride of twists and turns. I loved it so much. I ended up listening to it for 5 straight hours because I couldn’t stop. I HAD to know how it was going to end. This was a definite ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars for me!!

I’d like to thank @netgalley and @dreamscape-media for this ALC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed every minute of it. 🙏🏻
Pub Date: September 19, 2023. Be sure to pick up your copy. You’re not going to want to miss this one.

[Eve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
Publication date ‏: ‎ August 26, 2023
Narrated by: Rachel Leblang
Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

I've read many books by Natalie Barelli. Some of them were enjoyable, some were just okay.
FINDERS KEEPERS is probably my least favorite Barelli’s book (perhaps partly due to the narrator).

At first FINDERS KEEPERS sounded interesting - imagine that you are keeping the journal where you share your most intimate thoughts from your teenager years. Then you accidentaly leave your laptop behind at the airport, someone finds it, reads your very personal journal and then publish it for everyone to read. You want revenge and get close to the person who did it. How far will you go?

I found Rose (22) kind of pathetic, weak and not very wise. I'm not much into journals but if I kept it, I'd protect the file with the password. Especially if you have "sensitive" material in it. Her falling for much older teacher...don't know what she saw in him. 20+ years older teacher must seem ancient for a 13-year-old, unless she had some sort of daddy issues. As I was told how she felt, then I had trouble believing in her feelings and that she would go that far as we were made to believe.

Sadly this was another story where author used blackouts as a way of making the protagonist doubt in her own actions. When you have no memory of killing someone, the most obvious explanation would be that you didn't do it. Isn't it? It was kinda frustrating to read how the protagonist feared that she had done something she had no memory of, or thought she was some sort of crazy psychopath who had killed twice, at the same time she was being so clumsy and insecure that it made me question how someone like her could have gotten away with the murder. The most obvious reason...she didn't do it? Someone had manipulated with her?

Also I didn't get the urgency to get the laptop back - when she got her hands on the computer, and deleted the files, there was a possibility that the files had multiple backup copies that were not stored in the laptop, so what's the point? Besides the book had been already published, the harm was already done. As the author stole the idea/story from Rose, it was unlikely she would go to the police with what she had found in that diary. Or if Emily had taken Rose's diary to the police, is that enough evidence to connect and charge Rose with the murder (she was 13 at the time, plus she didn't give any clear confession that she had really done something to the teacher's wife).

Towards the end things started to pick up and some action finally started to happen. It was pretty obvious who were the real culprits even without those chapters from the teachers POV. I felt a bit bad the way Rose mocked her crippled teacher. But when you think how he showed no remorse when he cheated on his wife, how he manipulated with Rose, how he planned his wife's murder and Rose was meant to take the blame for what he had done, then...

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

So twisty, Finders Keepers by Natalie Barelli kept me up all night.

[Jeanie ~ MyFairytaleLibrary · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story mostly about two young women. Rose who accidentally leaves her laptop with her diary on it and Emily who snatches the laptop and manages to have it published as her own. After meeting Emily at a book signing, Rose makes friends with her in order to get her diary back and protect herself from an incriminating secret.

I’ve read some slower moving books lately, so I needed an entertaining thriller. I enjoyed this author’s book Missing Molly so I was happy to get an early audiobook copy of Finders Keepers thanks to @netgalley @dreamscape_media

This was a very entertaining read with lots of twists and darkly funny moments. Just what I needed and I truly enjoyed it and finished it in an afternoon. I liked the first half, but the second half was even better and had me laughing out loud at the outrageous twists. Everyone here is delightfully despicable and loads. The narration by @rachelleblang was great.

3.5/5 rounded up

[♡Heather✩Brown♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

✨B O O K • R E V I E W✨

Finders Keepers

You’re walking by a bookstore one day when you just happen to see a book - what you soon realize is that this book is your diary from when you were a teenager. But you aren’t the author - someone else is - and they’re claiming ownership.

This is a classic Natalie Barelli thriller! Rose worms her way into Emily’s life. She’s looking for her old laptop that holds the only copy of her diary. She must find this laptop and delete the diary before someone else reads it and takes it to the police.

Only Rose isn’t the only one holding secrets. Emily has her own agenda and won’t play by Roses rules.

With twist after twist this book is like an exorcism with a possessed person’s head spinning around and around. Fast-paced this book will give you whiplash.

[Heathers_readss · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so glad this book is being re-released because it has been on my radar / wish list for the longest time after hearing only positive reviews about it.

I was gifted a copy and the book definitely delivered and met all expectations!

The plot follows the FMC who misplaced her laptop, which just happened to contain her diary….which just happened to contain her inner most darkest thoughts and deadliest secrets. Sounds like a pretty big problem, however it gets MUCH worse when she discovers her journal entries have been turned into a full blown novel! She is now on a race to retrieve her property before the world realizes what she did.

I loved this plot! Soooo unique, and thrilling and suspenseful. Despite the FMCs sordid past I actually liked her and rooted for her survival in this disaster of a situation.

The pacing feels fast and you will be racing to the end to see how it all turns out.

Fully recommend this read!

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

What would you do if someone published your dark, secret diary as if it was their own book? This was an enjoyable psychological thriller and my first Natalie Barelli novel!

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

Rachel Leblang really makes this story come to life with her narration! All the characters were spot on and I thoroughly enjoyed listening to how it was put together so seamlessly. This book is about a woman who’s always felt like an evil person stemming from events in her past that come out after her laptop is lost and the finder publishes her life story. It was all so unique and felt refreshing in this genre that can feel repetitive at times. I love how it was told in the present, with snippets of the past for insight! I would definitely recommend to anyone who likes psychological thrillers!

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I cannot believe I finished this.

[Hailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a thrill ride! I started this yesterday and would have finished it but I needed sleep. So I just finished and it was AMAZING! Twists and turns and an ending I didn't see coming.

[Kim Benouski · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an annoying book. The way it was written and the obvious “twists” seemed like something a high schooler might write. Sorry.

[Serena Bowes · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC review - no spoilers
“When Rose walks by a bookstore and discovers the crime she thought she’d buried is now splashed across the pages of a bestselling novel, she knows her carefully constructed life is about to unravel “

This booked had me absolutely hooked from the start till the very last page! The multiple twists and turns have given me whiplash! I couldn’t get enough. Cleverly thought out with multiple levels to the story really kept me engaged throughout. I couldn’t guess any of the twists in this book which I find hard to come by these days!

[Lindsay Nixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Historically I have devoured and enjoyed every Natalie Barelli I've read.

The premise of this book had me hooked from the beginning and I was shooting my fists in the air in excitement for the first 20% (?) of the book.

The concept is novel, thought-provoking and outstanding with such a terrific setup. I was very eager to bing read.

However, by the end of Part 1 I was already let down, especially with the "revelation" that was not believable nor well explained/justified. It also felt like missed potential. Still I stayed with it and was briefly glad I did with another turn in the backstory (more below) but then the book lost me (again) and only got worse. Too many people, too many long winded confessionals (loathe!), too much explaining that I wasn't buying, crazy maniacial standoffs that diluted what could have been surprising revelations and just...distewmuch over the top insanity that wasn't fun or delicious. My other main issue was 13yo Rosie. I'm not sure the author knows an actual 13yo? She is written more like 8 or 9. I am around a lot of 11/12/13yo's regularly and Rosie wasn't 13.

In the end there were parts of this book I really liked but it is easily my least favorite; though with some editing I think it could be terrific. Thanks netgalley for my ARC/ALC!

SUMMARY (*note I cannot provide a summary that supports my points without a few very minor spoilers).

When Rosie was 13 she kept a diary on a laptop, detailing her teenage fantasies about a 37yo teacher. It was very similar to the crush the girl in the movie My Girl had, however here this one ends when the teachers wife dies. Rosie, who suffers blackouts, is afraid she may have killed his wife in a blackout. Because Rosie has also been accused of killing the class hamster (she has no memory of this either, but the critter was found in her locker) and the kids at school tease her for her crush; she and her mother move away. Rosie, however, lives with endless fear she will one day be found out for killing the teachers wife.

At 20yo (?) this laptop is lost. At 22, while at B&N, Rosie discovers her diary has been published as a book, by Emily Harper. Rosie poses as a fan named Iris to meet Emily. Emily claims this is a work of fiction; a book about a 13yo girl who doesn't realize she is being groomed by her teacher.

This got me thinking... did the teacher "groom" Rosie to kill his wife for him? (He was having an affair) so I read more...

Shortly after Emily and "Iris" meet, Emily hires Iris to be her PA. Iris/Rosie is thrilled as now she'll have access to Emily's apartment to find and destroy the laptop. (I had a GREAT laugh when she found the laptop in the basement storage and it had battery charge to power up; sure.)

As Rosie/Iris finds the laptop, Emily reveals to her that she knows who she is (a.k.a. the diary owner) and she is now going to blackmail Iris into giving a confession about killing the wife on her podcast. As this is all happening, Lola, a friend of 13yo Rosie, starts messaging Emily saying her book is the story of Rosie---is Emily Rosie or did Rosie tell Emily the story? Lola is suspicious.

Since Rosie/Iris has access to all of Emily's social media, email, etc. She sees the Lola messages and reaches out to her. Lola brings some clarity to Rosie, causing her to wonder for the first time if she was groomed and to doubt whether she killed the teacher or the hamster. As Lola and Rosie continue to sleuth the real killer comes out to play which leads to an epic showdown and many many long confessionals explaining things.

Note: I typically reserve 2-stars for DNF but I just couldn't seem to get myself to tap 3-stars here.

[Kathy Brackin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow such an interesting story kept you guessing or thought you knew but really good 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started off pretty strong but the ending was dumb.