I loved the concept of alternative realities that was explored in this story. It was truly fascinating. If you want to read a unique storyline, then read this book. I have read many books, but this was something new. We live in one universe, but who knows how many versions of us exist in other universes? We will never know so it was great to see Laney exploring other universes while trying to find one very special person. I love how this book is about many things: mystery, romance, coming of age, love, redemption, family issues, self-discovery, parallel universes with many twists and turns. The math is simple:
Great story+great writing=great book.

Thanks to Netgalley for a copy in return for an honest review. I have mixed feelings about this book. The premise of the story is intriguing and at times is scientifically plausible. The underlying story is interesting and there is the odd twist here and there. However, I have mixed feelings as I found the protagonist unbelievable and really hard to relate to. Laney comes across as naive and sheltered at times and yet her alternate self seems to walk from one sexual fantasy to another. Yes I get that according to the theory this is what would happen, and this may be a technique used by the author to illustrate the extremes, but the sexual nature of some of the events was a little over the top and in my opinion, unnecessary. There was definitely an over emphasis on bondage and vibrators. I almost wanted to go back an high light how many references there were to vibrators. Because of this Laney was not a character I could believe in and I don't think many teens would relate to her. She is such a contradiction. And the relationship between the characters seemed forced and over done. I'm sorry but no boy would go to an airport to stop a girl he just met. And what's with all the wine? And really, Laney has spent years reliving her decision and the she meets the other woman and all is instantly forgiven to the extent she might leave home to live with her.

And then that just leaves the science. For me this is a big deal. I have studied time travel and world theories and this is inconsistent. About half way through the book the ideas became pure fantasy. The twins thing is not logical and there is no account of other people's choices affecting outcomes. We are asked to accept that Laney can travel sideways and that for each of her choices there is an alternative Laney making an alternative choice, but the same would stand for every other character too. This is totally overlooked, which may not bother others, but it bothers me.

So overall this book wasn't really for me. Great premise but lost in translation. It doesn't fit nicely into the genre and for me, it was far to sexual ( I would let you cum as loud as you like) this from a pregnant step parent on a plane journey to her teenage step daughter. For this reason I'd give 2.5 stars. The writing wasn't bad, a little repetitive, but the organisation and overtly sexual content puts it on my not again list.

Thank you Netgalley, Skipstone Publishing (publisher), and Brooke Skipstone (author) for giving me early access to this book via an E-ARC in exchange for my impartial review.

I was drawn in by the title and cover of this book. They came together in a way that really piqued my interest! Then I read the blurb - that was what drew me in. I couldn't wait to dive in and devour all that this book had to offer. Was it worth it? Yes it was. Absolutely.

TW: The preface to the book offers readers a trigger warning, and for good reason. This book is packed with loads of sexual content, descriptions of violence and murder, and other grimy stuff. If you're faint hearted, you might want to skip this one.

Laney's big bad decision that set everything off is her deciding to tell her mom that she found her dad having sex with another woman, and she was just 13. She's 16 at the start of the book and she's had to live with that guilt and regret for 3 years. There are other little decisions that make up the multiple parallel universes.

There are so many things brought together in the freshest and most original way in this book. We see the main character, Laney, dealing with feelings of regret and living with the fallout of our choices. Throw in a mix of alternate/parallel universes, and a murder mystery, and you've got "Some Laneys Died".

The author did a great job of blending these elements together in this fast paced book. I was lost and didn't know what was going on half the time, but I was able to get back on track towards the end.

I love the originality of the book's premise and will definitely be on the lookout for more books by this author. If you're a lover of YA, SciFi novels, and murder mysteries, do check this out!

Some Laneys Died is a sci-fi thriller about decisions, their consequences and the guilt of choosing the wrong path.
The book follows 16-year-old Delaney West, who caught her father cheating when she was just 13. She told her mother and has regretted her decision ever since, imagining countless other ways it could've gone. When she learns that every decision she makes creates a new universe, where she chose something else, Laney wonders if it's possible to skip to a different universe and change her world.

I enjoyed the concept of decisions creating parallel universes, it opens the possibilities to tell a story through the lens of decisions and consequences with a sci-fi thriller twist and is what originally drew me to the book. The premise intrigued me but sadly, it didn't really deliver for me.

The skipping between different universes was confusing, and not just in a way where a certain level of confusion draws the reader into the confusion of the main character. There were multiple passages that I had to read twice and even then I wasn't sure what had actually happened. This led to me being unable to fully grasp the plot and orient myself within the story world which ultimately made it hard to care about the events and characters. Maybe this could be fixed within the formatting to make flashbacks/skips more visually distinct.

I disliked Delaney, her characterization felt inconsistent at times and I had trouble believing that she would so readily accept all the strange events and changes in her life. One example of this is her immediately trusting her father's new girlfriend, it made it feel like more of a plot-device and less like genuine characterization, I would have expected Laney to be more suspicious and generally less naive.
Another gripe I had, which is mostly based on personal preference, was the amount of sexual content, which was a lot more than I had expected. It felt strange to have Delaney, who is supposed to be 16 and seems fairly naive and innocent throughout the book, be put into very sexual situations, some of them very dark and traumatic. To me, there was a disconnect between her character, age and the sexual content which ended up making me uncomfortable at times.
I did however like the basic character constellations. I liked the functions within the plot that the characters like Delaney's mum or her step-brother Eddie had, I just wished they'd been more nuanced and complex.

Sadly, I was not the biggest fan of the writing, which might be a personal style preference, but some descriptions were either too cliché or just bland and I never fully got into the rhythm of the story.
Overall, I felt that Some Laneys Died might have benefitted from at least another round of edits to truly bring out the potential the premise has. Ultimately this was a 2,5 star read for me.

“So far today, I’ve created seventy-three new universes . . .” That opening line sure caught my attention and the rest of the story kept me enthralled for the next several hours. Barely stopping to catch my breath, I finished this book in less than a day. Each chapter ends with a surprise or cliffhanger or new bit of information which forces the reader to keep turning pages. Laney discovers horrible secrets about her past as she tries to restore a relationship with her father. She literally fights for her life, but along the way finds love and an ability to skip among versions of herself if different worlds. Spellbinding!

Some Laneys Died is an amazing read. At the core of the story, is a teen struggling with the breakup of her parents which she blames on herself. She has few friends and a brilliant physicist mother who Laney believes is waiting until Laney is in college before having serious conversations with her. But what makes this story unique is the splitting of universes every time Laney (or anyone) makes a decision. The Laney who didn't expose her father's affair exists in another world where her father still lives with her and Mom. Laney wants to skip to that other universe. However, an event occurred before the story begins—the skeletons of two sisters are found in a park near where Laney found her father having sex. How this event relates to Laney's struggles to find herself—and her sister—blows the reader's mind away. What a unique read!

I'm flittering between 3.5/4 stars for this book and I'm not quite sure which one to settle on. I went into this book knowing absolutely nothing about it, only going off a very brief blurb and to be honest, I feel like this is definitely the best way to read this book.

What did I like?
- I really enjoyed how Brooke combined both a typical YA mystery with a science fiction element and how it was so intricately woven into the plotline. At first, I really didn't like this and I spent the first half of the book convinced our main character Laney had some kind of mental health disorder and these other dimensions were something she created in her head to help her cope with past trauma.
- Brooke has a way with words and storytelling. I have also reviewed her other book (link below) and I was also blown away then with her storytelling. Brooke definitely doesn't shy away from writing about difficult topics and she does with both bluntness and consideration. It's a rare talent.
- Laney was such a powerful character. She had a lot going on in her family life and the details that were considered were shown graciously.

I think my issue with this book is that I found it all so confusing. I still left the book not really 100% sure what on earth was going on with all these jumping from different times. I think a better explanation was needed or some clarity should have been given. And the fact the people around her seemed to take this information so...well was odd to me. If someone in my family told me they were skipping between dimensions, it would take me a lot to believe them. They all about knelt down and shook her hand. For that reason, the book was hard to read and to follow. I felt more confused reading it than I would have going into a typical science fiction novel and judging from the cover, I didn't expect this aspect of the book at all.

Overall, if you have the time to properly focus on this book, it's definitely the one for you.
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not sure where to start with this book. The concept of the book in itself was brilliant — I loved what we were dealing with and the fact that you could 'skip' or 'surf' between universes. About how the storylines were coming together. How Laney was figuring things out as she went, and how the family and relationship dynamics kept changing.

Delaney was an interesting character, although I did think she acted out of character some times. Maybe it's because there was an amalgamation of several Laneys within her who would've been different version of her? Maybe that's was made her make decisions I didn't think she would make. She was smart and good at figuring things out, but I'd have liked to get inside her head apart from the whole skipping universes — find out what kind of person she is, what are her thoughts. Make myself root for her.

Unfortunately, for most part of the book, I found myself getting incredibly confused. What universe were they jumping into? How were they skipping? What happened to the body they left behind? How they did end up in the same universe? What's real? What's not?

I thought it would keep getting clearer as we went by, but unfortunately it didn't. I could see the author knew what universe or storyline she was dealing with when she wrote, because I could sense a confidence in her words, but unfortunately, I could barely follow along.

Fair warning — it does have mentions to sexual assault and triggering themes (there were times where I felt uncomfortable with what was being described), but that might be a more personal preference.

Overall, this wasn't a bad book at all, and the conceptualization of it was brilliant (and I will look forward to more books by this author), but for me, it just didn't hit the mark taking the idea and putting it into words as well as I hoped it would. It was still a very interesting, albeit confusing, read, and I had a good time reading it (and it's a decently quick read too, so good for a book to take when travelling or reading in a sitting.)

Thank you to Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) and Netgalley for this eARC.

Review posted on Goodreads (aglionbys) and Instagram (withoutarmours)

SOME LANEYS DIED is a great story of discovering your identity and overcoming trauma. There is a content warning at the beginning that does need to be taken seriously. There is a very strong sexual theme throughout that includes consensual and non-consensual touching. There is also a consistent conversation of sexual activity and body parts between Laney and her parents that is very awkward/cringy at times. It is done in a brilliant way, but could be a concern for some.

SOME LANEYS DIED follows a 16-year-old girl as she struggles to reconcile a decision she made when she was 13 that she has been obsessing over since. But it's not that simple. Laney has been having memories and dreams of things that did not happen in her timeline. At least according to those around her. So she must figure out what is reality and whether she is losing her mind.

A fascinating read about obsession, regret ,and finding yourself with a super interesting scientific spin.

Some Laney’s Die is a science fiction thriller about a girl called Laney who can ‘skip’ through the parallel universes where she was forced to make decisions – such as choosing to tell her mother that her father was cheating. It is, no word of a lie, BRILLIANT.

I love this concept and I’m so upset that nobody else writes books with multiple universes that are grounded in the mundane of the modern day. Skipstone is so clever with all the different decisions that Laney makes, from small ones like going to hang out with a boy, to big ones like telling someone about a murder.

A murder mystery runs throughout the novel, and it is very brutal, so warnings to squeamish readers. Skipstone doesn’t hold back on the sexual content, which is almost welcoming compared to other books aimed at Young Adults. Laney is very open about sex and the novel doesn’t shame her for that, and I think that’s really important in the current climate. Her mother is also seen to enjoy sexual relationships with people, and it isn’t framed as weird, or that an adult women shouldn’t enjoy sex.

I think the Alaska portion of the novel does hinder the plot a little bit, but perhaps as a British reader, I was just confused by the geography of it all. I felt like Laney was too far away from the main plot happening in the woods at home, but she does skip back quickly.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, as I think it’s very clever and a very enjoyable read. If you’re a YA reader who liked Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, I would implore you to read Some Laney’s Die. The main character, Laney, is fantastic, and it kept me guessing all the way through. I really wanted to know what happened, and I was rooting for her to succeed.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

Laney's life changed forever when she caught her dad cheating and decided to tell her mother. Her dad was kicked out, her family fell apart and she's filled with regret,especially when, talking to her genius mother, she learns that every decision could create a new universe with the opposite choice. So she starts to think about all the decisions she could make, what universe they could create and what could happen if she skipped sideways to another universe. Her only escape is her imagination, but when two girls are found murdered around the same time her father cheated on her mother, Laney starts to believe things could be connected.

Some Laney died is a book able to blend mystery, science fiction, thriller in a novel full of suspence and twists. The story is interesting, the plot captured my attention, but I'm sorry to say this book didn't fully work for me.
I didn't like the writing style, too fast-paced, too messy, and the story, even though really interesting and captivating, couldn't hold my attention and it was a bit confusing and I couldn't relate to the main character, I found her a bit too obsessive and it was a bit difficult understand what was real and what was part of her imagination.

Still, it's a very original and peculiar novel, so I recommend it to those who love science fiction and alternative universes.

Some Laneys Died is an unforgettable read, that messes with the readers head and their grip on reality a little. Absolutely brilliant.

Hi everyone!
Rating 3.5 out of 5
I have mixed emotions about this book, I loved the writing so much (I highlighted so many sentences),
The plot was amazing and suspensful I finished it in just a few days
The only peoblem was the main character, I didn't ike her at all, which made it very difficult to enjoy this book fully.

I enjoyed this very much! I wasn’t expecting to like this as much as I did, but it was so good. I loved Laney and I loved the relationships, and how everything unfolds. Brooke Skipstone does such a wonderful job of keeping you guessing until the very end about what is going to happen and what actually is happening at the time even. The only issue I had with it was the relationship with Laney and her mother, and the attitude towards her mothers looks and her mothers attitude towards her for such a trivial thing of possibly looking like her dad’s girlfriend. Other than that, I loved. I can’t wait for book two!

Laney caught her dad cheating and he begged her not to tell. Upset and angry, she told her mum and since that day Laney is filled with regret about her decision. She writes version after version of how differently things may have turned out according to the choices she could have made.

At first it seems to be just a fictional outpouring of her grief as she tries to deal with what happened but when she hears the news that two girls were murdered at the same time and place as where the events of her past took place, she starts to believe it is all linked.

Quantum physics and parallel universes admittedly make my head hurt but the explanations provided by Laney’s mother, an expert in the field, helped me understand it enough to grasp the book’s concept. Following Laney through different versions of herself and her worlds depending on the butterfly effect of choices she made was deliciously dizzying sensation. I’m really looking forward to the next in the series!

Try this if you enjoy a fast paced book that makes you twist and turn the possibilities over in your mind.
Avoid this is you prefer twists and turns to be more traditionally written.

"Reality is an illusion we create in our mind. We live in a foam of universes like the head on a glass of beer."

CW: graphic depictions of suicide and suicidal thoughts, graphic depictions of sexual assault and general sex, extreme violence and language.


'Some Laneys Died' is a young adult, sci-fi thriller blend following a girl named Delaney West after she discovers her father cheating on her mother. Her obsession with the decision to tell her mother leads her to discover the multi-universe theory and how her decisions directly impact her selves in those other universes.

I found this book entertaining! While it's not the most intense or well-written thriller I've ever read, it still kept me engaged and wanting to keep reading. The beginning has a clear hook as it lays out the concept of the novel, and the last 1/4 of the book is extremely gripping! I did find the middle to lag slightly between the two high points, but the plot was still moving and I wouldn't say it was boring.

I found the characters to be a major positive of this book, but surprisingly it was the side characters rather than the main character that were the most interesting. There's a wide cast featuring diverse races and experiences, different personalities and opinions. It really helped to move the plot along at random points where it would start to drag.

The main issue I had with this book was the characters realtionships with the main character Delaney; they all seemed to instantly trust whatever she said and just roll with it. There was no minor push back to anything she said, which stifled some of the twists that would have been more extreme had there been some more conflict. Also her narration left something desired, it felt slightly like a typical 16 year old YA protagonist.

All in all, I would recommend this book to those who enjoy an entertaining thriller, a quick read, or those who are looking to begin reading in the thriller/suspense genre.

Thanks to the publisher for providing a digital ARC of Some Laneys Died in exchange for an honest review.

I'm going to be honest with you guys, this book is messy and complex and was 100% the right book for me, but I can totally see it not being the right book for other people. I've been obsessed with multi-verse books basically my whole existence and this one was no exception. Laney feels like such a fully formed protagonist, the world and her family is so wonderfully fleshed out, and I love the way multi-verse theory is explained. I will say, I found the middle section of this book a tad lagging and some of the end bits felt unnecessary but I know a lot of people will likely disagree with me. I just happen to be a fan of more open ended, just after the height of action endings but I know a lot of readers who love it when books gradually work down so you get to know exactly where the characters end up so I'm not sure if that's honestly much of a negative, it's more of a preference thing.

Basically, if you grew up rereading Rebecca Stead's When You Reach Me an unhealthy amount of times, this is going to be right up your alley.

TW: Repeated depictions of sexual and physical assult, PTSD, suicide & suicidal thoughts