You Have to Believe Me

by Sunday Tomassetti, Minka Kent

A wronged woman must do the impossible—prove herself innocent of her ex-husband’s murder—in a shocking novel of suspense by Washington Post bestselling author Minka Kent.

She has every reason to hate her ex. It doesn’t mean she wants him dead.

Every day on her way home from work, Dove Damiani drives past her ex-house, where her ex-husband lives with her ex-dog and her ex–yoga instructor, next to her ex-neighbors and the ex-life she once affectionately described as “frighteningly perfect.”

To outsiders, Dove is bitter and resentful. The divorce left her alone, with nothing but a set of car keys and 50 percent of a paltry savings account. So when the lifeless body of her former husband is discovered in the birch grove outside Dove’s apartment on what would have been their fifth wedding anniversary, investigators waste no time making Dove a person of interest.

She swears she didn’t do it. She’s never so much as killed a spider in her thirty-four years. But as evidence mounts against her, Dove finds herself questioning her memory, her sanity, and even…her innocence.

Previously published as You Have to Believe Me by Sunday Tomassetti, this revised edition of You Have to Believe Me includes editorial revisions and a new ending.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Suspense, Adult, Ebooks

265 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 4, 2019

Reviews

[Bren fall in love with the sea. · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It's been three hours since you died.Well, more like five. It was five hours ago they found you cold and lifeless in the birch grove outside my apartment. But it was three hours ago when they knocked on my door and asked me when i'd last spoken to you".

You Have To Believe Me by Sunday Tomassetti

My Review:

Poor Dove. Her husband has left her and taken their house and their dog. And to make matters even worse he is now living with Dove's (former) best friend Kirsten.

At least he was.

Before he was murdered..on what would have been his and Dove's fifth wedding anniversary.

Dove didn't do it or so she says. But who DID do it? Could it be Kirsten, Dove's former friend and the beauty with the mysterious past?

Or is it someone else? Even someone very close to Dove?

You have to believe me (LOVE the title) is a wildly fun and wickedly creative psychological thriller. The writer messes with the reader's head. There are a pool of suspects and any one of them could be the culprit. As we, the readers, get to know Dove and get inside her head, we are constantly casting our suspicions from one to the other and then the next. Sunday Tomassetti writes in such a way that the reader becomes as frantic to know who the guilty party is as Dove.

And then there is Dove herself. Could she have done it? Some of her actions do suggest that. But so many people have a motive..

One just has to keep reading this. It is fast paced and sizzles with intensity. You never know what's around the corner, waiting to surprise and confuse the reader even more. I loved it!

This is one I absolutely recommend to all psychological thriller fans. It's got meat to the story and depth and was just an all around fun and enjoyable read. 4.5 stars and a book you will want to add to your TBR list.

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Perfect Roommate, The Stillwater Girls, and When I Was You all have characters and plot and development that I at least somewhat cared about. There’s none of that here. These characters are paper-thin and have no evolution or improvement.

Dove does not seem upset whatsoever. She is extremely calm, actually. And we never find out why she is narrating her chapters to Ian the entire time.

Kirsten knows about the ligature marks in her first chapter—major plot hole.

I did appreciate that for once the author isn’t obsessing over other females’ appearances and material possessions.

(Someone) is broke AF and just gives all the money away?!? Yeah…not happening.

[Nazanin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

I have read some of this author’s books and enjoyed all of them. This one compared to the others wasn’t that good (in my opinion). It was predictable, I could guess it quite soon (without knowing the reason) but I should add the writing was as good and could keep my interest. Told in dual POV, 1st person, it’s a standalone novel. It’s an easy read, fast-paced, and contains short chapters with a satisfying ending. All in all, I had fun reading this and hope you enjoy it as well!

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

Have you guys heard of Minka Kent? I discovered her books a couple of years ago and really like her style. She writes fast paced and addictive thrillers that are always pretty entertaining. I say all of this because the author of this is actually MK writing under a pseudonym, so if you’re a fan of her books don’t miss this one!

If you’re looking for your next weekend binge read this would be a good choice, it’s super fast and there was always a lot going on to keep my attention. I never knew quite who to trust and the whole thing was one big guessing game right up until the end. It was also pretty twisty and kind of read like a lifetime movie, a little over the top and dramatic but also fun, you can’t really stop reading because it just sucks you in, even if it’s a little out there.

A quick side note, I’ve still been struggling with thrillers and this one held my attention so that’s saying a lot for me at the moment! I can’t tell you how many thrillers I’ve set down in the last couple of months and this one made the cut 🙌🏻

[Fanny · Rating 3 out of 5]

No puedo decir que mi primera experiencia con Sunday Tomassetti haya sido increible, personalmente no cumplio mis expectativas por completo. En un comienzo me tenia muy interesada y pase un buen momento creando teorias para resolver el misterio que oculta la novela pero segun fueron pasando las paginas fue perdiendo fuerza, ademas la resolucion final fue muy muy irreal, no me crei la explicacion que le dio la autora, ademas no me agrado la forma en la que desarrolla, todo un poco caotico y apresurado.

En cuanto a los niveles de suspense es bastante floja, no hay casi tension, ni sorpresas o giros inesperados, la historia resulta bastante lineal, lo que hace que te quedes con ganas de mas thriller, o al menos a mi me sucedio asi.

La autora a mi modo de ver desaprovecho varios puntos, pudo haber explotado mucho mas a el personaje de Dove, siento que nos la presento de una forma muy potente y luego ella queda en nada, una protagonista mas, y tambien creo que podia haber dado mas juego a la lectura si no se hubiese centrado tanto en los lios del pueblo, eran partes que no aportan nada, ni siquiera a la parte de intriga ( como pense en un principio ).

En fin, You Have To Believe Me es un libro con toques de suspense que esta bien si te gustan los thrillers simples y no muy rebuscados, si quieres una novela mas intrigante y sorprendente no creo que te satisfaga, o a lo mejor si, cada persona es un mundo, al igual que los gustos.

2.75 Estrellas!

[Melissa Borsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Mystery, Suspense, Drama. A great weekend read.

[♛ Garima ♛ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating:
3.5 easy stars

Cover:
Nothing remarkable but that is the thing which made me notice this!

Trigger:
Any trigger would be spoilery but nothing too extreme, I promise.

Short review:
This is one of those easy to run, unputdownable murder mystery you could easily get sucked into.

Dove loses everything (or she thinks she does) when her long term love affair and marriage fail abruptly. The codependent relationship turns into obsessive one. Somewhere along the line, I got deja vu of reading The Girl on the Train because unreliable narrator, pregnant new wife, so perfect white-picket-fenced life, is a trope used many times. But this time it has to be different so we get a variation of ending and it is one of the easy to read books too.

Review in image/gif:


Recommended:
Yes

Aftermath: (possible spoilers)
There is something in the book which didn't make sense to me and now while writing this, it escapes my memory. Maybe it will come back later on but while it might have bothered me, this was an enjoyable read nonetheless.
Update (24/02/2020)
Now I remember, this author also writes as Minka Kent. In past, I have requested her book in KU as well however never read it. I am guilty of that and I will remediate the situation. As I updating this review, I finished reading When I Was You and it is another amazing piece by this author.

[J.A. Schneider · Rating 5 out of 5]

“You Have To Believe Me” by Sunday Tomassetti has left me speechless. What a fantastic page turner! No lulls, continuous action, and a steady build-up of tension, twists and turns. Thirty-something Dove Damiani still loves her ex-husband Ian, who has left her for her best friend. On what would have been their 5th anniversary he is found dead outside her apartment, and she becomes the main suspect. Dove tries to discover for herself who killed Ian, but each time she questions someone brings another surprise and plot twist. Does anyone really know anyone? This story is filled with tricky, well written characters and you’ll be second guessing every one. Start reading, and you won’t be able to put it down. I loved it!! Well done, five stars!!

[MaryannC Victorian Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up in between the other reads I have going and this one had me guessing the whole time until almost the last 3/4's of the book.

Dove (love that name) is having a hard time moving on from the sudden end of her marriage to Ian who ran off with her ex-good friend, she has become bitter and resentful, she was blind sided that her once perfect marriage failed. So when her ex-husband is found dead, she's the first one to be fingered as the prime suspect, she had all the reasons to kill him, but her husband stealing ex-good friend also harbours a secret of her own, is Dove being setup or did she really lose it and kill Ian? These are the questions and a story chock full of twists and turns that kept me guessing. Recommended.

[Philomena Callan Cheekypee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fabulous read. Luckily I didnt have work the next day as this kept me up til the wee hours reading as I just couldn’t put it down.

Dove has everything she ever wanted with her husband Ian until he suddenly wants a divorce. She finds herself living in an apartment while her ex has her home, dog and living with her ex best friend. It’s a pure nightmare but things get worse when he is found dead outside and she’s the prime suspect.

Brilliantly written story full of suspense that I couldn’t put down. I’m so looking forward to reading more from this author in the future.

[Jennifer Medway · Rating 1 out of 5]

If Kim Kardashian decided to write her own version of Girl on a Train. Atrocious writing.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I was convinced that I was only whole when I was with you, convinced my life was only worth living when I was living it with you."

Dove Damiani: jilted and obsessed ex-wife or innocent victim in someone else's game? It's up to the reader to decide. The short chapters and alternating points of view create a quick page turner with several unexpected twists along the way. While I had my suspicions early on that proved to be correct, there were still plenty of surprises (especially the final twist) to keep me on my toes.

A great read for thriller fans, this book looks at the motivations that drive good people to do bad things. In doing so, it speaks about relevant social issues currently dominating the media. It also looks at the lengths a parent will go to protect his/her child. First loves and the question of whether we ever really get over our firsts constitute a common theme as well.

Content aside, my main complaint about the book is the abundance of grammatical errors to the point of becoming highly distracting to the reading experience. For this reason, I feel the need to modify my rating to 3.5 stars, rounding up to 4 for Goodreads based on the story itself.

[Myla · Rating 5 out of 5]

You Have To Believe Me has plenty of mystery. The characters were imperfect and that's somewhat refreshing. I could understand Dove's anger and fears after what she'd been through. But can she really do it, kill her ex-husband?

The story moved along at a nice pace and it had some twists and turn that I couldn't foresee coming that keep this story interesting. The ending was thorough and the unexpected revelation of the truth that won't leave you frustrated. I really enjoyed it and not to be missed!

Note: ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Amitaf0208 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - entertaining however predictable.

[Crystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was good, with lots of twists and complex characters. The 3 stars is because it just wasn't as good as Sunday Tomassetti/Minka Kent's other work IMO.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't really care much for Dove, the wife and the main character. From the beginning of the story, I found her "lacking" in a lot of things...and it seemed the police did also. I admit that she was faced with a tragic situation...her ex-husband is found dead near her apartment and all evidence is points in her direction. She, of course. pleads her innocence as detectives try to paint her as the jilted ex-wife who wanted revenge. When the police first told her that Ian was dead, she vowed to find his killer. What is with these civilians that want to chase after killers? Ian and Dove were married for five years, but they knew each other for twenty. Ian Damiani was a high school history teacher that had been awarded several high honors in his profession. One day out of the blue he announced that he wants a divorce. Dove hoped he just needed some time and would change his mind, but she had no idea he would hook up with her friend Kirsten. It was unfortunate that the character Dove was defined by her mood disorder. I could understand why the police would look at Dove as their #1 suspect, but they made this discission know too quickly. I’ve read a lot of psychological thrillers and know when a trick is being planted in a story, and it was way too easy to fall for the old "the wife is obsessive" motive and it was planted too early in the book. The story is repetitive in nature rehashing the same scenes just with different characters. When more characters are introduced, it produces a long list of speculations. Rather than this being about the detectives solving a crime, it becomes about questionable motives between the ex-wife and the girlfriend.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

i enjoyed the style in which this was written

[Lisa B.]

3.5 stars

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Super fast paced and fun, I read most of it in an evening. Nothing ground breaking if you've reada lot of domestic thrillers, but if you're looking for something entertaining, you can't go wrong with this one! Between Dove and Kirsten and all the shady characters in their lives, I did not predict the outcome!

[Toni Lapuzza · Rating 1 out of 5]

I listened to the Audible of this book. Imagine being locked in a room with 52 screaming toddlers, some idiot in the corner scratching his nails down a chalkboard and having a full blown wedgie. That doesn’t compare to the annoyance of the girls voice narrating this book! Oy vey! I can’t. The story line is not gripping in the least bit and I kept waiting for something to hold onto to keep my interest afloat. It has not come. DNF at 60%
Not sure why this has high ratings. Maybe it’s just the audible version that makes it so bad. Don’t know, don’t care. Moving on!

[Bronwyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

At the beginning of this book, it explains that the author is actually Minka Kent writing under a pseudonym in order to publish her “passion projects”. I have to admit, I’m really glad that I read Stillwater Girls by this author before I read this. Had I started with this book, I never would have touched another Minka Kent book ever again.

The premise of this book is fabulous. Dove has been divorced for a couple of years and the body of her dead husband turns up in the woods behind her apartment on what would have been their anniversary. The blurb grabbed me. The execution was abysmal. I absolutely hated how Dove would talk to her husband in the narrative. It’s all written in the first person. As you’re reading it goes like this:

It’s times like these that I think about you and your students, Ian. All those instances you went above and beyond, staying long after the final school bell rang to hold study sessions or volunteering to take the history club to Washington, D.C. for a week every summer and paying for your expenses from your own pocket so there would be extra money in the budget for more sightseeing.

Remember when you donated your clothes to that family with all the boys when their house burned down?

I have no problem with books written in first person form. It may take me a bit to get into the rhythm, but I get there. But to have that and the character musing like this is annoying. It feels like they’re continually addressing the reader. I don’t particularly care when authors break the fourth wall, but this felt constant and I hated it. Dove came across as a psychopath. That was probably the author’s intention, but it was just bad. I give myself so much credit for not DNFing this.

I did enjoy the chapters that were written in Kirsten’s POV because she wasn’t talking to her dead boyfriend. Dove was just completely unhinged. I also didn’t like the last chapter (which was kind of like a “6 weeks later” epilogue). It felt out of character for Dove after the way she had been written for the entirety of the book.

I give 2 generous stars for Kristen and the premise. Her chapters are the only reason I didn’t give up because it made the mystery interesting. Had it stayed in Dove’s POV, I definitely would have DNFed with no regrets.

***once again, GR isn’t linking my notes/highlights with my kindle even though I have it set to sync. 😡***

[sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

so i honestly picked this book up just because i found it at a grocery store. i wasn’t really expecting much, but i liked it! it was really fast paced and it had nice twists. it wasn’t my favorite read of this year, but it was good!! i’d recommend it for people who wanna read a quick mystery book.

[Kaycee Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this book from the giveaways, so thanks to the author! I know how much time and hard work goes into writing a novel, so I really appreciate your willingness to share it for free.

I really enjoyed the characters and how the story unfolds. I kept thinking it was going to be predictable, but then it wasn't.

[Lynn Dubinsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kept me guessing till the very end!

[Asia (zupa.czyta) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Są książki, które wymagają od nas ciągłej uwagi, skupienia na fabule i sporej dozy logicznego myślenia, jeśli chcemy rozwiązać zawikłaną zagadkę kryminalną. I są też czytadełka, przy lekturze których zwoje mózgowe mogą odpocząć, a czytelnik nie jest zmuszany przez autora do intelektualnego wysiłku. "Musisz mi uwierzyć" zaliczyłabym właśnie do tej drugiej kategorii.

Nigdy tego nie ukrywałam - lubię bohaterki, które ewidentnie mają coś nie tak z garem. Dove - była żona zamordowanego Iana, jest idealnym przykładem narratorki niewiarygodnej, czyli takiej, co do której od samego początku masz podejrzenia i wiesz, że nie możesz jej ufać. W najnowszej powieści Minki Kent przewija się też cała plejada bohaterów pobocznych, którzy przerzucają na siebie podejrzenia, jakby grali nimi w ping-ponga. Gdy jednak w powieści w końcu pojawiła się postać sprawcy, od razu wiedziałam, kto tu jest wszystkiemu winny. Z przykrością muszę przyznać, że nie widziałam głębszego sensu w późniejszych działaniach tej osoby. Nie potrafiłam zrozumieć, dlaczego od chwili morderstwa postępowała w tak kretyński sposób. Chociaż sam motyw przestępstwa jest dla mnie jasny, to co nastąpiło później już nie bardzo ;) Muszę się też przyczepić do kreacji bohaterów - oprócz Dove nikt tu się niczym nie wyróżnia, wszyscy są płascy, nijacy i schematyczni.

"Musisz mi uwierzyć" będzie idealną książką na rozpoczęcie przygody z lekkimi thrillerami, czytelnicy zaprawieni w bojach nie znajdą tutaj niczego nowego, nic też ich raczej nie zaskoczy. Jest to całkiem porządne czytadełko, ale na pewno nie najlepsza książka Kent.

[Diane Dachota · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was written by Minka Kent under a pen name. Interesting thriller about a woman named Dove, recently divorced who works at a dentists office. Her husband and the love of her life Ian ran off with her best friend.The book really starts when Dove's ex husband is found murdered and she is suspected in the crime. There are a number of possible suspects including Kirsten, a mystery woman Ian may have been seeing, Noah the dentist who Dove works for and possible others.

I didn't guess right away who the killer was and I enjoyed the process of finding out the reason for the murder. This novel has some similarities with a book called Her Name Was Rose that I read earlier this year. I received a free ARC copy of this book.

[R C · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have tried to read this book twice now and can’t make it past a few chapters. WHY IS THE MAIN CHARACTER TALKING TO HER DEAD HUSBAND? The whole “you used to be like this.”
“You preferred x”. I can’t. I deleted it from my Kindle and moving on. This is a first for me! Anyone else have this same reaction?

[Sandra R · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm on the fence with this one. I really didn't like Dove's internal narration; eg - talking to her deceased husband in her mind all the time. I almost DNF at 30%, but this is Minka Kent, so I continued and I was pleased I did. There are several red herrings and lots of twists. I liked this psychological thriller, but I didn't like the characters enough to really care about what happened with them.

[Cynth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced thriller that will make you second guess everything and doubt every characters! Definitely recommend!

[Tammie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I predicted this one early on but it still kept me very entertained.