The Guilty Ones

by Kyla Stone

Perfect mothers. Perfect daughters. Perfect lies.
After her husband’s death, Dahlia Kincaid and her 14-year-old daughter Mia move to the exclusive lakefront community of Blackthorn Shores, Michigan, hoping for a fresh start. It feels like a miracle. Lakefront views. Immaculate homes. And a coveted spot in the elite circle of neighborhood mothers. Even Mia is welcomed by the popular girls.

For the first time, Dahlia dares to believe they’ve finally found belonging.

Then one of the girls is found dead after a neighborhood slumber party.

The police suspect murder. All eyes turn to Mia. Blood stains her clothes. Fresh scratches mark her arms. And her story keeps changing. Every new piece of evidence cuts deeper. Every lie Mia tells makes Dahlia wonder what else her daughter is hiding.

As suspicion mounts, the mothers who once embraced Dahlia turn wary and watchful. Rumors sharpen into accusations. Mia withdraws, shutting Dahlia out. Desperate to protect her, Dahlia begins her own hunt for the truth, digging into the secrets buried beneath the community’s polished façade. But every answer she uncovers brings her closer to losing both her daughter and the life she’s fought to build here.

One thing is someone in Blackthorn Shores is a killer. But as Dahlia closes in on the truth, her worst fear isn't that the killer will escape—it's that she already knows who it is.

From USA Today bestselling author Kyla Stone comes a propulsive domestic thriller perfect for fans of Lisa Jewell, Shari Lapena, and Freida McFadden.

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

410 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 31, 2025

Reviews

[Lauren Speringo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This needed to be shorter. I lost interest during the last third of the book and I couldn’t wait for it to be over. Also had a young adult vibe to it at times that felt silly and annoying.

[❥ KAT ❥ Kitty Kats Crazy About Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will write up a review once my internet is fixed..

Pretty little liars..secrets and lies..

This book goes to show that whatever this author writes, I will read, because this is a genre she’s not known for writing.

Like a puzzle with missing pieces which we had to put together bit by bit with very little to go on other than what this fierce mother uncovered as she strove to clear her daughter’s reputation.

[Christie Lampe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book started off very strong for me, but felt too long. I started to struggle with the later half and just wanted to finish it rather than caring what happened.

[Donna Weber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whoah! Page Turner!!

[Stephanie Shaw · Rating 2 out of 5]

While this book has an interesting storyline, there are so many characters that it makes it difficult to follow and remember who is who. Six mothers and their six daughters, with husbands, siblings and other neighbors thrown into the mix. It was a lot to try to keep up with.

[Tammy K · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pathetic

This started out good but the moms and the daughters got on NY last nerve and I couldn't wait to finish. Juvenile, stupid decisions coupled with repetitive sentences made this a very boring unsatisfying read.

[Micala B. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ehh

It was ok.
A little too juvenile for me.
A lot of girl drama and cruelty. And there was a lot of redundancy, and predictable. It just wasn't for me.

[Ashley Michelussi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very predictable….and I was more annoyed with protagonist Dahlia than feeling sorry for her.

[Urmas A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the book. Kyla is very good at building up the atmosphere - who are the people, how their houses and themselves look like. It makes you to pay attention to the details and actions of the characters. However she manages very well to mislead us dipping some hints in a slow pace. She keeps the excitement up during the conversations and action scenes describing the situation during the dialogue which puts the reader into the middle of the action. The flash-backs are very well timed - you always understand why it was needed at that exact moment. I did not get the point of the last chapter initially, but it made total sense in the end.

[Kayla Willis · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a mother to a teen daughter that turns 14 in just weeks, this is one of my worst nightmares.

I devoured this in less than 24 hours. I was constantly changing my thought on who the guilty one was. I need not expect that last chapter. Oof it was rough, but this was such a good read. I was constantly changing my mind on what I thought happened and who did it.

I love Kyla's Edge of Collapse & other apocalypse series, but this locked in that I will read anything she writes.

[Courtney McGhee · Rating 2 out of 5]

I honestly don’t know if this book just wasn’t for me because I’m not a mom, or if I genuinely didn’t like it. The women in my book club seemed to connect with Dahlia’s desperation to protect her daughter, Mia, while I spent most of the book screaming, “WHY DON’T YOU JUST TELL YOUR MOM WHAT HAPPENED?” 😅

The story follows Dahlia after a girl is found dead following a neighborhood slumber party and all signs seem to point toward her daughter, Mia. As the investigation unfolds, Mia becomes more secretive, the other mothers turn into a pack of judgmental vultures, and Dahlia starts digging into the secrets hidden beneath the surface of their seemingly perfect community.

The problem? Every single character made me want to pull my hair out.

The kids were awful. The parents were awful. The friendships were toxic. The communication was nonexistent. Every major conflict felt like it could have been solved if somebody would sit down and have one honest conversation. Instead, everyone lies, hides things, keeps secrets for no reason, and makes the absolute worst decision available at every opportunity.

The twists were fine, but I never found myself shocked because I was too busy being irritated with everyone involved. The book leans heavily into the “everyone is hiding something” formula, and after a while I stopped caring who the killer was because I disliked the entire cast. Even when new revelations came out, my reaction was less “OMG!” and more “Of course you’re hiding that too.”

The saddest part is that the one person I actually liked was Mia’s dad…and he’s dead. 😅

I kept waiting for a character to redeem themselves and give me someone to root for, but it never happened. By the end, I wasn’t invested in the mystery nearly as much as I was invested in finally being done with these people.

Not a terrible book. Not the worst thriller I’ve ever read. But between the frustrating characters, the endless secrets, and my inability to relate to the central mother-daughter dynamic, this one just wasn’t for me.

I can already tell this one is going in the same category as my “I don’t like anyone in this book and wish they’d all seek therapy” reviews. 😂

*** I had also figured out that Rowan had something to do with the death of Leah. Mia was just there when Chloe, Rowan’s daughter, pushed Leah from the cliff. Chloe told her mom and Rowan went back and finished the job. That wasn’t shocking.

[Brielle Tamburri · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. I really wanted to like it :( it dragged on and had a lot of redundancy

[Hannah Austin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book pissed me off almost the entire time I was reading it.

[Danica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Murder. Another reason why sleepovers are falling out of fashion.

[Amy Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was juvenile and more like a young adult drama with too much going on.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read most of Kyla Stone's apocalyptic series and love them all. She writes in the thriller genre just as well.

The setting is a wealthy gated community that houses some mean girls along with some grown-up mean girls also known as their mothers. Ater losing their husband and father, Dahlia and Mia move to this community not because they are wealthy like the others but because they inherited a small cottage. They are welcomed into the community right away and are very thankful to be included in the established teen and mom cliques. After a sleepover becomes a tragedy Dahlia finds herself fighting to protect her daughter and wondering if they ever were welcomed.

A tense and twisty story that keeps you guessing until the very end. I continued to change my mind on who was to blame and didn't see the ending coming.

[Angela · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of people loved this book. It was not poorly written. But I found all the characters to be despicable. Without anyone to root for, I didn’t care who was blamed and/ or responsible.

[Rebecca Soderlund · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 - an interesting enough psychological thriller but not super believable and written rudimentarily

[Emily Spadavecchia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Figured out the twist within 75 pages that’s a record so this gets 3 stars because I was generous

[fang ma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m impressed by how rigorous the plot construction is—nothing struck me as unreasonable. The twists are well-timed, and I truly didn’t anticipate how it would end.

Still, compared with her earlier post-apocalyptic fiction, I’m not sure the suspense genre plays to her greatest strengths. Her previous work felt remarkably realistic and alive, with a strong command of large-scale storytelling. In that light, focusing on intrigue among wealthy suburban housewives feels slightly smaller than what she’s capable of.

[Ashley Trussell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book more than I did. It caught my attention in the beginning but I had it figured out early on so the rest was annoying. I couldn't wait for it to be over just to prove that I was right. I didn't like any of the characters. The girls were mean, the moms were mean and stupid. A lot of talk about the dog and what he was doing.. Dahlia making idiotic decisions.. it just didn't hit the mark for me.

[Debbie Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fast paced read, but the inconsistencies in the story drove me nuts. One paragraph will say “they went upstairs.” The next paragraph says “and then they went upstairs” when they were already up there. This happened a lot. The main character also “wiped her sweaty hands in her pants” throughout the entire book. Maybe switch it up a bit instead of repeating the same phrases over and over.

[Stephanie Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Guilty Ones by Kyla Stone was such a binge-worthy thriller. After Leah’s death, a group of girls is left carrying the weight of secrets, guilt, and the fear that the truth could eventually come out. I flew through this book because every chapter ended with something that made me want to keep reading. Some reveals were easier to predict than others, but overall this was a super entertaining read with plenty of drama and suspense. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kyla does such a great job story telling. I was intrigued the whole time I read. I kept going back and forth on who was guilty. The characters are easy to follow and relate to as well. This is such a well written book on a hard topic that delves into teenage mom/daughter dynamics.

[Mimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 …extra points for the beautiful cover which is why I picked it. Lot of characters to keep track of and most of them suck. The execution of the story could have been a bit more streamlined.

[KM · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the better thrillers I’ve read this year, and I really attribute that to the character work!

[Paula Keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great thriller. Lots of twists and turns. I like the author and how she writes. Easy to read.

[Stacy Whitworth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’ve always been a huge fan of Kyla Stone and I usually binge listen to her books, but this book was very very slow . The last 10 chapters were great compared to the first 35, but a pretty predictable ending. I hope she writes more of her action filled stories….

[Kyla Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everyone in this book sucks, but also I found it enjoyable.

[Chris Ruppert-Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was definitely a page turner. The girl drama and lying is a bit much. Hits close to home with my own daughter being the same age as the girls in the book. Although this one takes it a bit too far. I don't want to spoil the ending for others.