Don't

Don't #1

by Gabriella Batel

Paityn’s awake. Her near-terminal lupus keeps her that way. That’s how she crosses Tony Suarez again. That’s how she becomes the only witness to something she wasn’t supposed to see.

The first time, Tony shot Paityn’s stepfather. Now he wants Paityn. He wants to keep her quiet about what she saw. And the best way to keep Paityn quiet is to silence her family.

But Paityn’s not going to let Tony touch her family—not while she’s still alive. And she’s not dead yet.

326 pages, Paperback

Published October 31, 2022

About the author

Gabriella Batel is a vibrant young Catholic woman with an adrenaline craving and a passion for God, family, acting, movies, fanart, YA, and good food. She's the author of the acclaimed Don’t series, the upcoming epic fantasy thriller Ending (the first in the Essence Bane saga!), and the prize-winning post-apocalyptic fantasy story “Antivenom.” She’s also the fiery audio narrator of Mary Rose Kreger’s award-winning story “Fiona’s Choice.”

Reviews

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't is a strong, well-written debut that captures a particular mood well. It's tough to put into words - it's a first-person, YA melancholy driven by tragic love. In this case, mostly familial and platonic love. The mood is suited to a story of gang violence, grief, retribution, illness, suffering, and mortality.

At around the halfway point, Don't became hard to put down. The point-of-view character, Paityn, has recently lost her stepfather, a police officer murdered by gang members. But Paityn, her pregnant mother, stepbrother, and friend are still mixed up in the continuing violence. And Paityn’s health is precarious, at best, as she suffers from frequent lupus flare-ups.

There's a lot of blood in Don't due to knife and gunshot wounds. So much so that I had trouble tracking who stabbed/shot whom and when. There's also some suspension of disbelief required for the sheer amount of unpunished, un-thwarted crimes committed, but it was consistent with the negligible presence of adults in this first-person YA world.

Beneath the blood, there's a faith theme of Jesus's ever-presence in our suffering and uniting our suffering with His, beautifully symbolized by a crucifix that passes from character to character.

[Gabriella Batel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know it's my book, but I hope you have as much of a thrill reading it as I did writing it.

[Ipsita · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

It's the author's debut book, and I have to
say she did a phenomenal job. The writing style was very eerie and atmospheric. It had me on the edge throughout the book. I love a thriller book when it gives me a rush. Like you're dying to know what will come next. If you love reading thriller books, then I highly recommend checking it out.

[Benita Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This debut from Gabriella Batel is stunning!! There are no words for her writing. You see and hear and feel every bit of every scene, drawn so brilliantly with words. But that wasn't even the best part—the best part was finding a thriller that is so very dark yet not gratuitously, and informed throughout by light. The ending is beautiful (I cried). Do yourself a favour and pick this one up, especially if you love thrillers but aren't a fan of the moral greyness and hopeless grit that most YA thrillers have to offer these days.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story is compelling and you are rooting for the heroine the entire book! It is so descriptive you are right there feeling all the love, pain, fear and anxiety. Once I started, I had to finish it.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars.
I really liked this book! I wasn’t sure if I would since I don’t typically read Thrillers, but I was recommended this book by someone else who also doesn’t typically read Thrillers and I wanted to give it a try. For me, this book was the perfect amount of intense. I thought the writing was solid too. For instance, the descriptions of lupus were incredibly vivid to me—I could feel Paityn’s experience of lupus as if I were Paityn. The descriptions in this book were probably one of my favorite parts of the book. I also loved the Christian elements—I thought they were beautifully woven in. There was one part describing how one character dealt with one specific traumatic interaction that I personally thought could’ve been developed a little more, which was why I gave it 4.5 stars. However, overall, I really enjoyed this book! Thank you Gabriella Batel for a great experience with my first Thriller, and I look forward to reading your second book :)

[The Page Ladies Book Club · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't is a very interesting read! There were plenty of times I was at the edge of my set and had a hard time putting it down! The book has an eerie feel and with the writing being so descriptive you can feel the emotions of the characters and see and hear every scene! It has some interesting and entertaining twists and turns. You do have to let go of reality a little but it was a great read! Thank you Rockstar Book Tours and Gabriella Batel for sharing this book with me!

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a reread for me, but it was just as spectacular as the first time I read this debut novel. Gabriella Batel does a wonderful job of creating a stressful, suspenseful, and eerie tone throughout Don’t. I could not put this book down from the start of the second half.

Don’t has an amazing cast of characters that I found myself rooting for (even Tristan). I love the family dynamics and the constant love between everyone in Paityn’s inner circle of family and friends. The conflict between Paityn and Luiz at the end is so well done but so frustrating as well.

This is a thriller novel though. It does not have a happy ending (or maybe it does depending on how you look at it).

One of my favorite aspects of this novel is Paityn’s faith and relationship with Jesus. I found myself spotting Jesus everywhere during this reread. The ending is heart wrenching and beautiful. I did shed some tears.

I cannot wait to read Book 2.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book--it is one of my all-time favorites! From a riveting plot full of twists and turns that will surprise and shock you and leave you wondering how it will all end to three-dimensional characters who feel real, this book will take you on an emotional rollercoaster (in a good way). I typically don't read thrillers, but this book is the exception. I loved the ingenious way that Gabriella Batel seamlessly incorporated Jesus into the story. His interactions with Paityn made my heart melt. Importantly, I love and appreciate how Gabriella Batel handles difficult questions, like where is God when everything seems to be going wrong, and where is He when we're hurting? Her book is raw and real. The ending was completely unexpected and yet completely satisfying. It was beautiful. I'd give more than five stars if I could! She is definitely an author for which I will be eagerly awaiting her next novel!

[Jame_EReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 👧🏻 read this suspense romance and had plethora of emotions about it.

👧🏻 reviewed it: This book gave me a mixed sense of what love is. While following Paityn’s terminal illness, the suspense came gushing in like a tidal wave. The twists and turns just didn’t stop. I love the suspense thriller because I wasn’t expecting it to be that way. I must warn you that there are so many triggers and bloodshed and the ending was unexpected but justified. The only thing I had to google was Lupus because even though I’ve heard and read this illness what Paityn’s situation made this book more complicated and persuasive in the story. I highly recommend this book if you love suspense thriller book.

[Country Mama · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this debut YA book by the author. She wrote a compelling read about a girl who has an almost terminal disease, and she witnesses something out her window. And then the real story begins! I could not put this book down while reading it, especially after the midpoint.
There is some tragedy in this story that makes this story so intriguing to keep reading to find out what will happen to Paityn and her family. There were underlying Christian elements to this story for fans of Christian thrillers and just thrillers in general! The author really does a fantastic job with pulling her readers into the story and into the dark story that the author weaves so well!

[Leslea Wahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was quite impressed with this debut novel. The writing style is unique and reflects the tension of the story. The short chapters and intense story line made this one a hard book to put down.

[Nicky Maunder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been chatting with Batel for many months on social media through our mutual love of certain books/genres (YA thrillers being one of them). When she reached out to ask if I’d be part of the street team for her upcoming sequel to her debut (which I agreed) of course I had to read the first book.

As you’d expect with a thriller, this one covers some challenging and dark themes. Our main character, Paityn, and her family are reeling after her police officer step-father is murdered through gang violence, with the repercussions of this violence threatening their lives. Not only do they have to deal with the trauma of their grief and their safety, Paityn’s health is hanging on a knife edge due to her lupus becoming increasingly difficult to treat. And her police officer mum is pregnant. Blimey!

Bagel’s debut covers so many strong themes: family, grief, chronic illness and facing your own mortality (at a young age). What was refreshing is that, after all these hardships thrown at Paityn, she still has her faith - not only in her god, but also her mum (who is pretty amazing).