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While We Were Burning

By: Sara Koffi
Narrated by: Henriette Zoutomou, Karissa Vacker, Louisa Zhu
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Publisher's summary

Parasite meets Such a Fun Age in a scorching debut that is as heartbreaking as it is thrilling, examining the intersection of race, class, and female friendship, and the devastating consequences of everyday actions.

After her best friend's mysterious death, Elizabeth Smith’s picture-perfect life in the Memphis suburbs has spiraled out of control—so much so that she hires a personal assistant to keep her on track. Composed and elegant, Brianna is exactly who she needs and slides so neatly into Elizabeth’s life, almost like she belonged there from the start. Soon, the assistant Elizabeth hired to distract her from her obsession with her friend's death is the same person working with her to uncover the truth behind it.

Because Brianna has questions too.

She wants to know why the police killed her young Black son. Why someone in Elizabeth’s neighborhood called the cops on him that day. Who took that first step that stole her child away from her. And the only way she’s ever going to be able to find out is to entwine herself deep into Elizabeth’s life, where the answers to her questions lie. As the two women hurtle towards an electrifying final showdown, and the lines between employer and friend blur, it becomes clear that neither of them is what they first appear.

©2024 Sara Koffi (P)2024 Penguin Audio
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Critic reviews

One of New York Post’s Most Thrilling New Books of the Season

One of Elle's Best (and Most Anticipated) Mystery and Thriller Books of 2024

One of Crime Reads’s Most Anticipated Crime Fiction Of 2024

One of Paste's Most Anticipated Mystery and Thriller Books of 2024

One of Book Riot’s New Mystery Thriller Books for April 2024

One of Brit + Co’s Most Anticipated and Best New Books For 2024

One of BookBub's Best Mysteries and Thrillers of Spring 2024


One of PureWow’s 18 Best Beach Reads of Summer 2024

One of PureWow’s 8 Books We Can’t Wait to Read in April

One of The Root’s April 2024 Books by Black Authors We Can't Wait to Read

One of Beyond the Bookends’ 88 Sensational New Spring 2024 Book Releases

“Fast paced and thrilling, While We Were Burning is also heartbreaking in its portrayal of a grieving mother forced to confront both the person who caused her son’s death and the systemic injustice that led to it. I was riveted the whole way through.”—Ana Reyes, author of The House in the Pines

While We Were Burning is the fresh take on the domestic thriller we need right now, a provocative observation of racism and classism embedded within a searing, fast-paced revenge story....This is more than a riveting suspense about two women who form a tenuous friendship—it’s a page-turner with serious things to say about who gets to be a victim and what justice looks like.”—Ashley Winstead, author of In My Dreams I Hold a Knife

What listeners say about While We Were Burning

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Psycho Chaos

What a chaotic collection of characters.

More than one head shaking moment filled with WTFs.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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delicious revenge

this book is WILD! It was so good I made my husband listen to it just for how wild it was. twists and turns. I love books about unlikable women, and this was very well done.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

What a wild ride!!

I really enjoyed this book. As soon as you think you’re on to something another plot twist is thrown your way and all you can do is read in complete and utter shock. I loved it and it was perfect for my book club

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Loved the performers but the story was meh

I got to the end and was thinking, “wait, that’s it?!” So many loose ends, I’m mad I wasted money on this

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