Thank you for the ARC of The Tapes by Kerry Wilkinson. The concept was great and the eerie vibe pulled me in right away. I liked Eve’s character and the overall atmosphere, but the middle dragged a bit and some twists felt flat for me.

Solid read for fans of slow-burn family thrillers — just not as punchy as I’d hoped.

Thanks again for the chance to read early!

The Tapes is an unputdownable psychological thriller that grips you from start to finish. It masterfully weaves a haunting story through a unique transcription-style narrative that may feel unconventional to some, but ultimately adds to the immersive and chilling experience. The story unfolds with atmospheric, slow-burn tension, as each cassette tape reveals deeper and darker layers of mystery. The emotional stakes are high, anchored in the raw grief of family loss, which gives the thriller a powerful and personal resonance. Wilkinson’s twisty and unpredictable plotting keeps you guessing at every turn. It's the kind of book that fuels midnight reading marathons, as readers feel compelled to unravel the truth before dawn. A gripping, emotional, and cleverly structured read that stands out in the genre.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc copy of The Tapes in exchange for an honest review.
Eve finds a set of cassette tapes which reveal more than one would think. "If you're listening to this, I've been murdered."
The Tapes is an absolutely gripping thriller which is sure to leave you on the edge of your seat. The pace is perfect, it is fast and full of unexpected twists.
Kerry Wilkinson really knows how to draw a reader in, I was hooked from chapter one and couldn't put the book down, I needed to know what would happen next, I was desperate for answers.
I particularly liked Eve as she was relatable in the sense that she was given a lot of character development and we are shown that she is not perfect which makes her feel more realistic especially when it comes to her relationship with her daughter Faith and how she deals with life as a single mom.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves psychological thrillers and insane plot twists.

This was a very dark and twisty story where you question everyone in the story just to find out whodunnit. I enjoyed this book on a deck of a cruise through the Caribbean. It was quick and engaging.


Read this is you like:
➡️ twisty stories
➡️ domestic thrillers
➡️ an unreliable narrator

Thank you Bookouture, Kerry Wilkinson and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

The Tapes 📼

Rating: ⭐️⭐️
Genre: Mystery
Pub Date: August 11, 2025

Eve discovers a cassette tape labeled with her name while she is cleaning her dad’s house out. The recording is the voice of her mother who disappeared several years ago. Eve is shocked to hear her mom say, “if you are listening to this, I’ve been murdered”

The intro to this book grabbed me immediately. What a mysterious and quick start to the book! Ultimately this one just didn’t work for me. It was extremely slow moving and I had a hard time staying invested since so little was being revealed. I also felt a disconnect with all the characters. I didn’t get enough depth with them and felt they were just sort of skimmed over. The ending was alright, it made sense and didn’t come out of left field. I’m sad to say this was a miss.

While it was not quite what I was hoping for, it was a good read. It was quick and twisty.

Eve is clearing her father’s house when she finds an old cassette player and a box of tapes. Though grieving, she smiles at the spark of nostalgia.

One tape is labeled ‘Eve’ – in her mother, Angela’s, scrawled handwriting. She disappeared for good more than ten years ago.
The tape whirrs. A voice crackles. ‘My name is Angela’. Tears fill Eve’s eyes at the familiar voice, at the thought this message is just for her. But the next words make her heart pound.

‘If they say I’m missing, I’m not. If you’re listening to this, I’ve been murdered.’

Desperate for answers, Eve has no one left to ask – only a box of tapes that could lead to the truth. But the more she listens, the more she realises she can never go to the police…
Because Eve’s mother had her own secrets. But what if her killer is still out there? And what if Eve is next?

It was a unique vibe.

This book was, without a doubt, unique and exciting. Throughout the reading I remained unable to get my theory right, which changed frequently with the twists and turns of the reading, and I felt extremely dumb for the entire duration of the book.
I finished it in two days, five hours of reading that flew by due to the author's genius and the way this book was written. I loved it.

Slow start. Good ending.

I had a hard time getting into this one. This might just be one of those books you have to read in a physical copy, not an online version. It took me about halfway through the book before I really found myself needing to know what happened next. By the end, I was very engrossed in finding out who was responsible! I only gave it three stars because of the format not flowing as well as I’d have liked, and also because it took me so long to be engaged with the story. I love thrillers, but this one was a slow burn. I’d like to read more by this author in the future, though! Her overall writing style is great!

I received this as an ARC from our good friends at NetGalley!

Eve's dad has passed away. Her mom disappeared years ago. During her childhood and teen years, the was a serial killer in the area called the Earring Killer.As she is cleaning out her childhood home, she finds a box of cassette tapes from her mom. On one of the tapes, her mom states that she knows who the Earring Killer, and she is going to be murdered. 3 stars

A good read, I have followed this author since his Jessica Daniel series which I really enjoyed

I must say in my opinion I think his writing style has changed a lot and some of them I didn't really enjoy.

The characters were all good and I was soon involved in the storyline and I did enjoy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for this ARC which I can thoroughly recommend.

Wow! I loved this book and couldn’t read it fast enough! Woke up thinking about it and have now finished it at 6.30am 😂

I really enjoyed the pace of this book - I was hooked from the very start - who wouldn’t be with a tape message like that?! It kept me on my toes throughout and I genuinely wouldn’t have guessed who the murderer was (I’m saying no more so as not to spoil it!)

I would have loved to have read about what happened the murderer after or a bit more into Eve & Faith’s lives post event but really enjoyed the book overall and would definitely read another from the same author!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC :)

Great writing style. Keeps you on your toes.

The way everything unfolded slowly is so satisfactory. Like pieces of a puzzle coming together. The writing tugged me along the path Eve's going. At one point, I thought if it was eve who recorded everything and who's behind all this. Everyone's a suspect. Yet, there is no way to figure out the mystery.

One thing that felt very convenient is how Viv knew about the storage unit. That felt out of place. Else, each doubt, each realization, each truth kept me turning the pages.

Eve finds in her recently deceased father's garage some cassette tapes recorded by her missing mother where she says she has been murdered.
Thus begins the search for the truth for Eve, who doesn't know what to think due to her mother's volatile character. We also meet the victims of the Earring Killer through excerpts from the book written by the mother of one of the victims.
With that, all that remains is for Eve to find the killer before he finds her.
It is a slow paced novel that in its last third accelerates a little until the end where some twists may surprise us.
Overall it holds your attention with an original premise and an entertaining plot.

This one was a tough one to rate for me. The story, the twists, the flow, it's all there. It is a bit of a slow burn, in my opinion, it didn't really pick up and get intense until near the end. I would have liked to see a bit more character depth. The basis is great though. The intrigue of the Tapes and how it's all brought together was well done. Worth a read!

“This is my second go at this. My name is Angela and I’ve been murdered… Well, I think I’m going to be murdered. I don’t know. It’s just… I don’t think I’m a good person. I did something. I’ve done lots of things…”

This book had me hooked from the beginning! I hadn’t read any other titles by the author, but after reading this one, it definitely won’t be my last. It was a twisty thriller that had me guessing until the end. Eve was a likable main character and had me wanting to find out the fate of her mom right alongside her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the ARC.

Eve’s mother, Angela, disappeared thirteen years ago, and as the book begins, she is packing up her father’s house after he died of a heart attack. Her brother is much older than her, and they rarely see each other. Eve is pretty much alone, except for her teenage daughter, Faith, and her friend Nicola.

While going through her father’s house, she finds tons of cassette tapes, all labeled with dates in her mother’s handwriting. One was different, though - instead of being labeled with a date, it’s labeled with Eve’s name. When Eve listens to it, she hears her mother saying that she is pretty sure she’s about to be killed, and if she’s right, she wants Eve to know that she loves her.

As Eve listens to that tape over and over, she also hears her mom saying that she did some bad things in her life, like stealing her best friend’s car and robbing a bank. She was a kleptomaniac, yet some of the things she admits to can’t be true. Eve would know if a million pounds was stolen from a bank near them, and her mother is an admitted liar. She just wants to know one thing: was her mom lying when she told Eve how much she loved her?

This book has Eve looking for the answers, and it’s also about her small town’s pesky little serial killer problem. The Earring Killer is not only a person who kills women and takes one of their earrings, it’s also the name of a book written about the unsolved murders. The story is mostly about a week in Eve’s life, but some chapters are excerpts from this true-crime novel, and it fills in missing pieces.

I really like this author, and this is the fifth of her books that I’ve read. This probably would go on the bottom of the list for me, but it’s still a decent book. The plot was solid, and many surprises kept making me raise my eyebrows. I really thought I had pegged the ending, but I was waaay off. Crime/mystery fans will enjoy this one! 3.5 stars.

(Thank you to Bookouture for inviting me on this book’s tour! “The Tapes” is slated to be released on August 11, 2025.)

The Tapes focuses on main character, Eve, who happens upon an eerie mystery while cleaning out her late father’s house. She finds a box of cassette tapes her (missing) mother recorded over a decade ago implying she expected to be murdered and anyone listening to the tapes should know why.

I thought the concept of the cassette tapes was great and the book had some great twists and turns. I was surprised by the ending but not completely shocked. I did find some parts in the beginning to be slow and sometimes repetitive but overall it held my attention. Great for those who love a twisty mystery!

Thank you NetGalley and Bookouture for the advanced copy!

The story of each chapter is okay, but the character development of each character feels a little lacking. The pacing moves too quickly and the lack of depth on the part of the characters makes this story a little difficult to follow. I admire the writing style of the story, which I think is somewhat different from other authors, by taking the time setting back and forth.

I have been absolutely hooked! It is a bit of a slow burn but for once, that didnt put me off. The writing style and the fact that the MC is brought to life and humanised so well kept me completely invested in what the outcome would be. There were some twists and red herrings but it really was the relateability of the character that kept me so invested. It felt like a completely fresh take and an original concept which made it all the more fascinating. Definitely recommended

If you’re listening to this, I’ve been murdered.’

Eve is clearing her father’s house when she finds an old cassette player and a box of tapes. Though grieving, she smiles at the spark of nostalgia.

One tape is labeled ‘Eve’ – in her mother, Angela’s, scrawled handwriting. She disappeared for good more than ten years ago.
The tape whirrs. A voice crackles. ‘My name is Angela’. Tears fill Eve’s eyes at the familiar voice, at the thought this message is just for her. But the next words make her heart pound.

‘If they say I’m missing, I’m not. If you’re listening to this, I’ve been murdered.’

Desperate for answers, Eve has no one left to ask – only a box of tapes that could lead to the truth. But the more she listens, the more she realises she can never go to the police…
Because Eve’s mother had her own secrets. But what if her killer is still out there? And what if Eve is next?

This was a fun read. I enjoyed this one and read it in two sittings. The book is about a killer and Eve must find out what happened to her mother all those years ago.
I liked that this one was a different story. Listening to cassette tapes, hearing her mother's voice. This starts with a string of strange things happening, which ultimately leads to a killer.
I thought several times that I knew who it was, but I guess i didn't know everything.

Read this if you want some different story than others and if you want some nostalgia...

Thank you, @netgalley and @bookouture, for my free copy!