What They Did: A Novel

by Rio Youers

A dark, character-driven crime novel about two best friends bound by a violent secret, for readers of Dennis Lehane, S.A. Cosby, and Gillian Flynn.

She keeps me safe. She keeps me wild.
Carly Rivers and Dana Lee were best friends when they were younger. Like fire and water, they always balanced each other Dana kept them wild. Carly kept them safe.
But then, a split-second decision resulted in an irreversible tragedy. To this day, neither has spoken of what happened; they share a terrible secret that sent them on separate paths, each hoping to leave the darkness behind them. Carly becomes a police officer in Florida with a beautiful house and a beautiful husband and son. For Dana, things go the other way. After a string of failed relationships and broken hearts, she finds herself in Black Ash, Michigan, working for the notorious meth dealer Warner Prince.
When Carly’s husband, also a cop, is killed in the line of duty, her son, Anthony, spins out of control. In search of his own fresh start, Anthony heads to Toledo, a stone’s throw from Dana’s home in Black Ash. As Anthony’s friendship with Dana puts him in the crosshairs of some sinister people, Dana’s and Carly’s lives come together again. Twenty-four years have passed, but the secret between them hasn’t died, and the friends soon find themselves in a situation where history is doomed to repeat itself.
Brimming with action and suspense, and tempered with a strong emotional core, Rio Youers’s gripping new novel is an intense, edge-of-your-seat story about fierce friendship, the bonds of family, and the extremes we’ll go to, to keep our loved ones safe.

416 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication August 18, 2026

About the author

Rio Youers is the British Fantasy and Sunburst Award–nominated author of Lola on Fire and No Second Chances. His 2017 thriller, The Forgotten Girl, was a finalist for the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel. He is the writer of Refrigerator Full of Heads, a six-issue comic series from DC Comics, and Sleeping Beauties, a graphic novel based on the number-one bestseller by Stephen King and Owen King. Rio’s latest novel, The Bang-Bang Sisters, was published by William Morrow in summer 2024.

Reviews

[Wayne Fenlon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced reading copy.

What They Did is quite the slow burn compared to Rio's other works, but that's not to say this is any less engaging. In fact it's quite the opposite. It's a real heavy hitter at times and will leave your jaw on the floor. Some of those latter scenes... man... they get you alright.

The character depth, as is the pacing, is right on the money. Great writing.

I really hope this novel does well for Rio. I believe his time is yet to come.

One of those novels to sit back and sink into.

Quality.

[Sara Melugin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two teenaged best friends. One crazy night. Two very different paths that converge again 20+ years later. This one had me feeling all the feels. It read like it could be a true story... The cycles of life and the choices we make and a mother's fierce love. While What They Did was a tragic story, it gives hope too.

[Gabby Hurley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5

Thank you NetGalley, William Morrow, and the author Rio Youers for gifting me with this ARC to review! I had a mostly enjoyable time reading it but it unfortunately didn’t stand out to me.

Liked:

-first step to being a cop…murder someone and hide the body. Listen I will almost always love this plot line for a book. Carly decided to use that experience to bring a little bit a justice to the world. I can forgive a little murder when she was 21 (murder was completely justifiable too, man wasn’t a good person).

-3 povs. I’m a sucker for multiple povs (if done properly). I liked Carly’s cop and mom brain battling it out, Anthony’s raging emotions that led to devastating consequences, and Dana’s bleak outlook on life in general (even though she kind of pissed me off as a character)

Disliked:

-this is not the lion king, please stop calling Warner a lion or using it as a metaphor every other sentence. I can handle a couple of comparisons with the villain to a deadly animal but this was just way too much. Every scene with Warner in it the character he was with would refer to him as a lion at minimum 3 times on top of Warner referring to himself as one. If you have to keep mentioning it, I think that means you aren’t really as bad ass as a lion.

-Dana blaming karma for her shitty life decisions. I don’t like when people can’t take accountability for their own actions. “I just attract bad people/things,” no ma’am you chose shitty people because you like the danger and recklessness. Genuinely she wasn’t even being forced to work for Warner! She literally could’ve gotten herself out at anytime (which she says) but chose not to.

[Kathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wasn’t a fan of how the chapters were set up. The story moved pretty slowly, and at times it was hard to tell whether I was reading necessary backstory or just filler. There was a lot of information that didn’t feel relevant to the main storyline, which made it difficult to stay engaged. I honestly found myself pushing to finish it. There was also more violence — and more detailed descriptions of it — than I personally prefer. The repeated abuse and demeaning treatment of women was uncomfortable to read. That said, the ending was strong. It tied up all the loose ends and didn’t leave the reader guessing about what happened. It wasn’t what I expected, but overall, it wasn’t a bad book — just not quite the right fit for me.

[Anniee Bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the gifted copy!
What They Did is a haunting, emotionally charged story about the long shadows of the past and the secrets people carry for years. This book isn’t just about suspense it’s about consequences, guilt, and how one moment can ripple through an entire lifetime.
The writing is atmospheric and tense, with characters that feel deeply human and flawed. The story slowly tightens its grip, pulling you deeper into a web of choices and unresolved history. It’s the kind of book that makes you pause and reflect, not just rush to the end.
If you like character-driven suspense with emotional depth and a lingering impact, this one will stay with you.

[Herbibliomaniac · Rating 3 out of 5]

3🌟

An engaging story about choices people make and the paths they choose follow due to grief and trauma.

I really liked that there were more than 2 povs. It was nice to get both women's perspectives as well as the son's.

Had dislikable characters (love that) and ones I wanted to hug and smack at the same time.

It was a bit slow but still enjoyable.

Thanks to William Morrow and Rio Youers for sending me an Arc to review.