This is a quick read. The author does not waste much time before Allie's life is upended and spiraling out of control. I could understand why people including Allie's husband, Mark was doubting her. When he would ask her a question, she would withhold information. Yet, I did feel bad for Allie.

I kept trying to figure out who was responsible for all of the bad things happening to Allie. Just when I would think I had it figured out, there would be a twist. You could say that I was really invested in this story. I was not let down by the ending. This book does not read like a debut novel. Looking forward to reading more books by this author. ( )

What a super fun read! This is a twisty, suspenseful thriller that I read in one sitting. I couldn't put it down! Allie is an established photographer who has a great job, wonderful marriage, and loving little boy. She lives in a very clicky neighborhood where mothers constantly monitor each other, gossip, and essentially try to outdo each other. Allie has a dark secret past that not even her husband knows about, and she moved into the neighborhood hoping to bury her past and start over. But when a strange man calls her by her former nickname and then assaults her at a party, Allie begins questioning who might have access to her past. Then the man who attacked her is killed and the police are knocking on her door. She discovers that someone has been impersonating her online and all kinds of nasty photographs and rumors go viral causing serious damage to her reputation-socially and professionally. Even her husband begins to question the truth about his wife. As the police look for the killer, Allie becomes a suspect and it takes all her courage to reach into her past for clues as to who is framing her and trying to destroy her life. ( )

I Don’t Forgive you
By Aggie Blum Thompson

Allie left her old life behind 17 years ago and moved to Eastbrook , DC with her husband Mark who’s a lawyer and their son Cole. Her mother has dementia , and is charge of her care which is expensive and deteriorating quickly. But as off as she seems to be she’s dropping hints left and right to her daughter.
She seems to have only 2 friends - Daisy her realtor and Leah who’s daughter is in the same class as her son.

Allie and Mark attend a party with the neighborhood block. ( )

Should you be held accountable for things you did as a teenager? Yes, what Allie did years ago was stupid, but she thought she left that all behind. Now, living in an upscale neighborhood in Bethesda, with her lawyer husband, and young son, Allie’s past life is coming back to haunt her. Harmless flirting at a party turns into something more sinister. Things are popping up on social media which are damaging to her reputation. Allie is now being framed for murder, but why? Her memory is failing her, her mother is hallucinating, her job is on the line, but she swears that she isn’t doing any of the terrible things. Who is trying to hurt Allie, and how far will they go?
This will keep you guessing until the end. Looking forward to reading more by this author! ( )

I Don’t Forgive You presents us with Allie Ross, a professional photographer, mother, and new resident of an exclusive D.C. suburb. Her life seems to be falling into place, but her past is waiting for her. Allie is so ashamed of her past, of events that transpired while she attened a private high school, she has not even told her husband, so when someone calls her a name she only used for a very short time at that school and when a shirt from that school shows up among her child’s clothes, she thinks someone is coming after her.

And are they ever! A local man is murdered the night after he called her a tease and accosted her at a party and there is a trail leading right to her door.. And still she does not tell her husband. He recommends a lawyer and she dilly-dallies. Even after meeting with the lawyer, she goes on her own to the police to file a complaint about false identities being used on social media.

There is a lot to like about I Don’t Forgive You. The suspense is real and I wanted to know who was persecuting her. Was it her former high school teacher, her sister-in-law, her former best friend, or some other neighbor? There was plenty to wonder about, but it was ruined by how completely stupid Allie was.

So, I get that people are reluctant to speak about past trauma. It’s certainly horrible that the victim of a predator carried the blame for so many years. But, when you’re husband thinks you are either unfaithful, an alcoholic, or losing your mind, you come clean. For your child’s sake, if you are a murder suspect, you tell the truth to your husband and your lawyer. You don’t risk losing your child and your liberty out of embarrassment, especially since the most damning element, a nude photo, has already been made public.

My frustration with Allie, the ability to know that her confidential work would be posted, her absolute stupidity made me angry. Seriously, the bad guy would have won the day if winning depended on her own actions other than one fortuitous move near the end, and that involved instinct, not intellect. It was the oh-so-tired ending of all spy films where the evil genius recounts all the steps of the plot before killing the spy but then is thwarted by some move or another.

It does say quite a lot about Aggie Blum Thompson’s writing skills that I remained in suspense and involved to the end of a book that irritated me so much.

I received an e-galley of I Don’t Forgive You from the publisher through NetGalley.

I Don’t Forgive You at Forge Books | Macmillan
Aggie Blum Thompson author site

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2021/06/22/9781250773913/ ( )