Plot Twists I'd Never...

JENN McKINLAY: Hub and I were chatting the other day about plot twists -- oh, do we love a good plot twist! -- and then we were laughing about some of the worst plot twists. So, here is my short list of plot twists I promise to never use...

1. It Was All a Dream

Three hundred pages of clues… and then the sleuth wakes up.
No. I am not gaslighting my readers.

2. The Evil Twin

Oh look, the identical sibling no one mentioned until Chapter 28. Bonus groan points if they have a scar.

3. The Cat Did It

I love cats. I write about cats.
But unless the cat hired a hitman and falsified a will, the feline is innocent.

4. The Murder Was an Accident (And Therefore Nobody Is Responsible)

A carefully planted mystery that ends with “Oops.”
If I promise you murder, I mean murder.

5. The Sleuth Was the Killer All Along

Unless the book is explicitly psychological noir, I am not betraying the reader I’ve asked to trust the narrator for 300 pages. That’s not a twist. That’s a divorce. 

6. It Was Aliens

Unless I’ve clearly written science fiction from page one, little green men do not get to swoop in and take credit for the body in the library.

 7. Everyone Faked Their Death and Moved to Aruba

If half the cast turns out to be alive, tanned, and sipping rum punches, I have failed you. Also, I am jealous.

Reds and Readers, what do you think of these? Did I miss any? What are some of the worst plot twists you've ever read or seen in a movie? Please be generic so we don't give any spoilers.