We Were Never Friends by Kaira Rouda-review
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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date February 3, 2026
Sisters? Forever. Friends? NEVER. Who knew a reunion weekend could be so deadly?
Meet the sorority sisters of Theta Gamma Mu:
-Roxy Callahan Gentry, the ruthless former sorority president and current hostess who has painstakingly choreographed every detail of this weekend—even matching the cocktails to her couture—to prove that she remains their undisputed queen
-Amelia Dell, the widow drenched in old money and alcohol, with her big pot-stirring spoon and uninvited boy-toy in tow
-Jamie Vale, the double-legacy pledge, straight-A student with no sparkle, now a top cardiologist with a picture-perfect family—and a well-guarded bad habit
-Beth Harrison, the scholarship student who never quite fit in and was only admitted because her best friend Sunny insisted that the two were a package deal
-Sunny Spencer, the carefree and beloved friend to all, or so it seemed—until she wasn’t
They’ve been summoned to Roxy’s luxurious Palm Springs vacation home to celebrate the engagement of her son to Beth’s daughter. But the refurbished 1920s estate is eerily reminiscent of the hotel where tragedy struck during Spring Break twenty-five years ago. Long-simmering tensions and shocking secrets begin bubbling to the surface like bodies—because while the weekend was supposed to be about celebrating the future, it’s not so easy to bury the past…
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REVIEW:WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS by Kaira Rouda is a contemporary, adult, thriller focusing on five sorority sisters, and the secrets they have kept for close to twenty-five years.
Told from several first person perspectives (Rosy, Amelia, Jamie, Beth) using present day, introspection and memories from the past, WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS follows the reunion of four sorority sisters to celebrate the engagement and upcoming nuptials between Beth Harrison’s daughter Celeste, and Roxy Callahan Gentry’s son Zach. Along with some of their significant others, the estranged sorority sisters will gather at Roxy and Ryan Gentry’s newly refurbished estate, a mansion that reminds everyone of the death of someone they loved. Twenty-five years ago, while vacationing in Palm Springs, Roxy, Amelia, Jamie and Beth would bury a dark secret that would differently haunt each sister respectively, a secret that each swore they would take to the grave but death and destruction has followed the sisters to the present.
The world building is detailed and thought provoking. Secrets from the past will destroy any chance at friendship, secrets that reveal a darkness no one knew existed.
WE WERE NEVER FRIENDS is a story of secrets and lies, murder and destruction, betrayal and vengeance, obsession and madness. The character driven premise is edgy, dramatic, twisted and gritty; the characters are desperate, dangerous and tragic.
Copy supplied for review
Reviewed by Sandy
