Wow, Megan Goldin knocks another one out of the park with her newest thriller!

Rachel is a host of a popular true crime podcast. She is just starting season three which is her first time covering an active trial. Rachel’s listeners will be able to act like jurors in a controversial rape case. When Rachel arrives in the small town at the start of the case, she realizes she has a stalker. Someone is following her around and leaving letters regarding a murder case that happened 25 years ago in this same town.

I was a big fan of Goldin’s last novel, The Escape Room. The two novels are completely different buy both are equally riveting. I love how The Night Swim revolves around a true crime podcast. I found the plot fresh and engaging. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good thriller.

Oh my gosh!!! I could not put this one down!! I finished it 3 days ago and am still thinking about it! Although I can't speak from experience, I felt it painted a very realistic and sad picture of how a rape victim is treated in a courtroom. I really enjoyed the back and forth between the cold Jenny Stills case and the present day Kelly Moore case and also how parts of the story were told as a part of Rachel's podcast. I wish I could give more than 5 stars on this one! I am definitely buying The Escape Room now, as this was so well done. This one will stay with you!

Thank you to NetGalley, Megan Goldin and St. Martin's Press for this ARC!

Two compelling crime storylines - past and present - are craftily woven together in The Night Swim. Since I easily, instantly pictured the setting and the cast, I can imagine this being an excellent audiobook (particularly with the podcast episodes). I'll definitely look for more of Megan Goldin's books!

Rachel has a true crime podcast and sets out to cover a rape trial in a small town while also receiving letters about the death of a girl years earlier. The letters are from Hannah, who believes her sister Jenny was murdered and wants Rachel to look into it. This book was emotional at times as it deals with rape and its aftermaths on everyone involved. I liked the ending and how the two cases were tied together. Good, solid book!

Enjoyed "Escape Room" & love true crime podcasts, so this book was definitely at the top of my "To Be Read" list. This book kept me captivated from the beginning. A suspenseful thriller kept me wanting more.

If you enjoyed "The Escape Room"; you'll enjoy "The Night Swim"

4.5 stars

I love true crime podcasts, and I love mysteries, so this was the perfect book for me!

Rachel is the host of a popular podcast, and is covering a controversial rape case for her third season. En route to the tiny seaside town, Neapolis, someone leaves a message on Rachel's windshield, begging her to solve the murder of a teenager girl. The crime took place decades ago in the same sleepy town, and the girl's sister begs Rachel for resolution.

As Rachel investigates, she finds startling evidence that the murder was covered up. Worse yet, there seem to be connections between the cold case murder, and the crime she came to Neapolis to report on.

I enjoyed Goldin's Escape Room, and I thoroughly enjoyed this mystery as well. Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This was the first time I read one of author’s books. I will definitely be reading her first book “The Escape Room”.”The Night Swim kept me captivated from beginning to end, There were two stories running parallel throughout the book that make the reader query when and if they’d ever connect. Sexual Assault is the topic explored in this fictional book and the method of exploration by the author has quite a different and intriguing spin to it.
I highly recommend the page turner book that will raise societal questions as you delve into the plot.

I was not emotionally prepared for how this story was going to make me feel! As I sit here and try to formulate my thoughts, one thing I know for sure is that this will sit with me for a long time. Rachel is a podcaster who is in town to follow a rape trial of a young girl for the next season of her podcast. At the same time she receives messages from another woman, Hannah, who is wanting Rachel’s help to solve the murder of her sister 25 years ago. The Night Swim is told through Rachel’s point of view, her podcast sessions, and through the letters left by Hannah. Each page peels back layer after layer of secrets, tragedy, fear, and the truth. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story. Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC!! Thank you to Megan Goldin for writing such an amazing book!

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Rachel is a podcaster who discusses trials. For her third season she decides to follow a rape trial rather than investigate past trials. This takes a her to a small town in North Carolina, where a young girl is accusing a well know swimmer of rape. Additionally, a 16 year old girl, Jenny, was murdered in the same town 25 years ago but it was called an accident. Her younger sister never believed it was an accident and though various notes, asks Rachel to investigate.

This was a totally engrossing novel that I finished in just over a day. After throughly enjoying this author’s previous novel, The Escape Room, I was excited to read this one and I have to say, I think this one was actually better. I couldn’t flip the pages fast enough. I would love to see Rachel in future books but even if that doesn’t happen, I will be in line to read whatever this author comes up with next. Great read.

This was a solid thriller that I had a great time reading. The characters were well drawn, and the storyline flowed seamlessly. Would like to read more books by this author.

When I saw that author Megan Goldin was publishing another book this summer I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. While I try to read my ARCs in some kind of order when I saw the book summary of The Night Swim I couldn’t wait…and I am so glad I didn't!!

After reading a lot of "thrillers" I have been let down way too many times to get super excited. Rarely is there a book in this genre that feels like a completely fresh perspective while also being completely captivating and moving. This book had it all, mystery suspense, dual timelines, and a story pulled right from today's headlines.

Goldin introduces us to the main character Rachel Crall, who is a podcast investigative journalist. As someone who devours way too many true crime podcasts, this was right up my alley. Not only was this the perfect way to tie in the storylines but it was absolutely riveting.

Crall is following a modern-day sexual assault trial when she gets pulled into a crime from the past in this same small town. These interwoven themes and storylines worked perfectly together and the ending was both surprising and satisfying.

I loved that while this was a fast-paced ride there were so many thought-provoking moments and quotes. The moments of "gray" spoke to me so much and are just part of the many reasons why these cases are so complex.

Often books in the mystery/thriller genre are enjoyable escape reading but rarely stick with me long after I have finished them. Goldin's ability to handle this topic with such an insightful manner made this a 5-star read for me. I can't wait wait to share more about this book closer to its publication date and I highly recommend adding it to your summer reading list.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy. As always, all opinions are my own.

I quite enjoyed reading this book. I liked how it was covering a current trial while investigating an old crime and running podcasts all at the same time. It was entertaining and plausible too, in my opinion. It does deal with rapes and sexual assaults, so if that triggers you, you may wish to skip this, but it wasn’t graphic and I felt it handled the situations well without the shock value many authors use those topics for. This was more of an awareness from a victim perspective.

Thank you #NetGalley and #StMartinsPress for this ARC ebook.

Rachel has a true crime podcast that has made her famous. For her third season, she heads to the coastal town of Neapolis to cover a rape trial. A young college student and Olympic level swimmer is accused of raping a 16 year old high school student. At the same time, Rachel begins receiving notes that tell the story of a similar case from 25 years ago.

Both stories were compelling. The story from the past was parceled out slowly. The present day story was more of a court room drama.It repeatedly reminded readers how hard rape cases are to prosecute. I was left feeling angry at a justice system that favors the rapist over the victim.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a good book. The author effectively utilizes the current popularity for true crime podcasts by having her main character, Rachel Krall, host a podcast called Guilty or Not Guilty. The book opens as Rachel prepares to start the third season of her podcast, in which she will be discussing a rape trial as it happens, putting the audience "in the jury box", as she says at the end of each episode. The alleged rapist, Scott Blair, is a college student and champion swimmer, and the son of a prominent family in the fictional coastal town of Neapolis, North Carolina. [The choice of alleged rapist may bring to mind Brock Turner, the Stanford swimmer convicted of sexual assault.] The victim/accuser is the granddaughter of the town's legendary former police chief, although this connection is really not helpful, but rather results in accusations from supporters of the Blairs that the case against Scott is so weak that he is only being charged with rape because of the family connection. The case has divided the town and has made miserable the life of the victim and her family.

In addition to covering the trial for her podcast, Rachel has been contacted by a former resident, Hannah Stills, who wants her to help prove that her sister Jenny, who drowned 25 years ago, was actually murdered. Hannah communicates via e-mails or notes that she arranges to be left for Rachel, revealing bits of the story at a time (in large part because she is having trouble dealing with the memories brought up by thinking about/writing about her sister's death) [also, if she reveals everything immediately, it makes that portion of the book much shorter]. Rachel is not particularly pleased at how Hannah is choosing to communicate, as it is creepy/violative of privacy to find unexpected notes/letters on your car or left for you at the locations where you are at the time, but the journalist in her cannot resist the challenge. Therefore, she is trying to dig up the town's past while covering the Blair trial.

The book alternates between the trial and current events, including Rachel's investigation into Jenny Stills, and the lives of Hannah and Jenny Stills twenty-five years ago. Both past and current storylines are compelling and keep the reader wanting to know more. The author has created an interesting cast of characters, with some of the characters having considerable depth. Relying on first impressions is unwise, as multiple characters will turn out to be different than they first appear.

One of the things I particularly liked about the book is that the author utilizes the podcast episodes to "educate" [but not in a lecturing or condescending manner] the reader about the trial process, the difficulty of successful rape prosecutions and the reasons why, how traumatic testifying can be for a victim of rape (or other forms of sexual assault) as they have to publicly relive the events of the assault in excruciating detail, what is like being a juror, etc. Particularly powerful is when Rachel recounts her interview with an ER nurse, who explains the step-by-step process of collecting a rape kit, making it overwhelmingly clear how invasive the process is at a time when the last thing the victim wants is someone touching her, taking samples of her, etc.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Having read Goldin's The Escape Room I was interested in reading her latest novel. I was not disappointed as I do enjoy courtroom thrillers but this was much more than that as it delved into a separate plot line that took place outside of the courtroom. I found myself making excuses to read just a little bit more before I had to attend to those daily chores!

The Night Swim follows the story of a podcast host investigating true crime, she puts her listeners in the jury box. For her latest season, she's following a rape trial in the small town of Neapolis, what she doesn't expect is to end up looking into a potential crime that occurred 25 years before. Recommended for fans of thrillers, true crime podcasts, and those who enjoyed Truth be Told on Apple TV.

See goodreads for my review of this book. Thank you for the opportunity to preview the galley and provide feedback.

This one is definitely going to be a big one once it hits the shelves! Seriously I am in love with it! The main character is just so amazing you cannot stop reading. It really was a thriller that you will not want to put down. Bravo!

What a great read! While the details of the crimes are heartbreaking, the topic is so important! I think Megan Goldin did a wonderful job presenting the information. While the novel unfolds two crimes, past and present, the writing style keeps the storylines straight. As the chapters progressed, I was drawn in to both the past and present equally. This thriller is just twisty enough to keep the reader turning pages. Well done!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Megan Goldin for granting me the opportunity to read this early release copy.

Megan Goldin delivered a top story with The Escape Room and this is another excellent read.

My main frustration with this book was that work kept getting in the way and I wasn't able to just sit and read it from start to finish! An addictive page turner I didn't want to put down.

The narrative follows a rape case, with the podcaster leading the narrative soon getting tied into an earlier similar case from the same town.

The interweaving of the past case with the present one, and the interspersed postcast episodes worked extremely well in delivering a thoroughly engaging read.