"Dark August" by Katie Tallo is a haunting and atmospheric mystery novel that combines elements of family drama, small-town secrets, and supernatural suspense. The story follows Augusta "Gus" Monet, a troubled young woman grappling with the sudden death of her grandmother Rose. As Gus returns to her hometown she left behind, to settle Rose's affairs, she uncovers long-buried secrets and dark truths that threaten to unravel her family's history.

Tallo skillfully creates a sense of foreboding and unease throughout the narrative, with the rural Vermont setting serving as a vivid backdrop to the unfolding mystery. The atmosphere is thick with tension and mystery, as Gus delves deeper into the secrets of Tenwick and its residents.

The character of Gus is complex and compelling, her grief and guilt driving her to uncover the truth about Rose's death, even as she confronts her own troubled past. The supporting cast of characters, including Gus's childhood friend and former love interest Henry, adds depth and dimension to the story, as each grapples with their own demons and motivations.

"Dark August" seamlessly blends elements of psychological suspense with supernatural elements, keeping readers guessing until the very end. Tallo's writing is evocative and atmospheric, drawing readers into Gus's world and keeping them on the edge of their seats with its twists and turns.

Overall, "Dark August" is a gripping and immersive read that will appeal to fans of mysteries and thrillers alike. With its compelling storyline, well-drawn characters, and atmospheric setting, it's a novel that lingers in the mind long after the final page is turned.

DNF @ 11%

Thrillers are really hit or miss for me and I just could not get into this one even after multiple attempts. I am drawn towards plot driven books and this one is more on the character driven end of the spectrum. I have heard great things about it though so I may try it again in the future.

I love small town thrillers and this one certainly did it for me. It was quite the atmospheric read that I buried my nose into this weekend!

Augusta ‘Gus’ Monet learns that her great grandmother—her last living relative—has just died, and returns to her hometown. She inherits an old house, and an old dog named Levi. In her grandmother’s house she discovers some cold case files belonging to her mother who was a detective that died when Gus was eight. A recently discovered body links to her mother’s investigation. Gus’ obsession also unearths and stirs up long buried secrets that risks her life.

Tallo wrote an addictive, suspenseful and thrilling novel that peeled the layers of the story so perfectly with the right pacing that had me on the edge of my seat. I definitely could see this book in a movie one day and that would be amazing.

Overall I really enjoyed this one and recommend for thriller lovers!!

I enjoyed this book a lot. It was a little slow at the beginning, but it became very suspenseful and the ending shocked me multiple times over! I did not see any of that coming. I liked the setting, and wish we had a little more of Gus's moms timeline as I found it very interesting.

This was a slow burn and honestly I had a difficult time getting into this story. If you’re willing to push through the slow pacing of this “thriller” it may pay off for you!

I had a super hard time getting into this book. I wanted to care about the mystery at the center but found it just a little too slow for me.

DNF
I didn't care about the story or the characters and I didn't like the writing. This was described as being fast-paced but to me it was kind of boring.

Fan-freaking-tastic debut thriller! Debuts can be hit and miss with me, but this was so chilling, so well-written, and packed with suspense, I couldn't put it down.

This is a debut? Wow, impressive. I was caught in the world with Augusta "Gus" as she unravels a mystery long buried after she inherits a house and it's belongings. A few surprises, mostly it was a slower-than-normal mystery/thriller, which wasn't a bad mix at all! I felt like I was reading two books in one. At times it was Augusta finding her new life and at other times it was her investigating.

Levi was the best addition to Gus' life! The dog added another level of home and comfort that Gus hadn't felt in her previous home. Because the mystery (several) unfolds fairly slowly at first, it keeps you on edge not knowing where the story is going to lead. Then, WOW, so good! An all-nighter!

​Again, this is a debut?!

Outstanding debut! Dark August gripped me immediately and played out like a movie in my mind the entire way through. The storyline was intricately and masterfully developed! There were so many parts of this novel that left my jaw hanging wide open—just when I thought I knew where Katie Tallo was taking the storyline, she was veer in the complete opposite direction -LOVE THAT! Dark August is a solid 5 star novel that I am certain every mystery/thriller fan will love as much as I did! I am so stinking excited to see what Katie Tallo come out with next!

Holy cow wow! What a freakin’ thriller! So well written, absolutely unputdownable, chills a plenty, thrills a many, and gasp worthy shocks! This book was so phenomenally written, had such great character development, and was original and realistic! I picked it up right before bed time, which I do not recommend, as it’s too fast paced and I promise you’ll not being getting any beauty sleep! Highly, highly recommend! Mind blowing good!
I’ll make sure to buzz it around platforms and use low amazon reviewer number on release date!

A truly creepy thriller with an uncompromising heroine. Dark August introduces the reader to Augusta (Gus) Monet, a waif of a girl, barely hanging on since her detective.mother was killed in a wreck several years earlier.
Gus is currently living with Lev her abusive boyfriend. When she gets a call from her great grandmother's housekeeper, everything changes.
Great gran Rose has passed away, leaving Gus her house, car and aging dog.
Inheriting the house opens up a whole new world for Gus, including a hidden cash stash.
Then theres the mystery of the town of Elgin, Ontario, which went up in flames several years back. Gus gets caught up in the case her mother was investigating. Now her life is on the line.
Dark, thrilling and hauntingly absorbing, Katie Tallo's Dark August is a thriller not to be missed.

Dark August by Katie Tallo is about a woman named Augusta (Gus) who is meandering through life until her great grandmother passes away. Gus heads back to her hometown where she has inherited her great-grandmother’s old house and her dog. As you might imagine, Gus finds an old trunk and naturally, it contains interesting contents. More specifically, files on a case from her mother, a woman who died in an accident when Gus was a child.

Gus decides to look into the story and wants to solve the case.

Of course, nothing goes as planned.

Check it out:

Augusta (Gus) Monet is living an aimless existence with her grifter boyfriend when she learns that her great grandmother—her last living relative—has just died. Ditching her boyfriend, Gus returns to the home she left as a young girl. Her inheritance turns out to be a dilapidated house and an old dog named Levi. While combing through her great grandmother’s possessions, Gus stumbles across an old trunk filled with long-lost childhood belongings. But that’s not all the trunk contains. She also discovers cold case files that belonged to her mother, a disgraced police detective who died in a car accident when Gus was eight. Gus remembers her mother obsessing over these very same documents and photographs, especially a Polaroid of a young ballerina.

When Gus spots a front-page news story about the unearthing of a body linked to one of the cold case files from her grandmother’s trunk, she can’t resist following her mother’s clues. As she digs deeper, determined to finish her mother’s investigation, her search leads her to a deserted ghost town, which was left abandoned when the residents fled after a horrific fire. As Gus’ obsession with the case grows, she inadvertently stirs up the evils of the past, putting her life in danger. But Gus refuses to be undeterred and is committed to uncovering long-buried secrets, including the secrets surrounding a missing geology student, the young ballerina in the Polaroid, a prominent family’s devastating legacy, and a toxic blast that blew an entire town off the map.

But is Gus ready to learn the truths that culminated on one terrible August night, more than a decade earlier, when lives were taken, and secrets were presumed buried forever…?

I’m always interested in a cold case from a small town. And there’s always something that grips me with story where a woman returns home. I call books like this a “slow burn” where there aren’t massive twists and turns in every chapter, but a consistent story that moves forward to a satisfying conclusion.

If you like a solid mystery, take a look at this one.

Read this today, get it here now.

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book!

THIS BOOK!! YESS!! I loved this book. The atmosphere was everything I wanted it to be. I loved the plot and storyline in the book. I loved the characters in this story. It gave me all the feels I was looking for when I started reading this. I highly recommend this author. I loved the writing. I will be looking for other works in the future from this author.

Dark August is a twisty and enthralling debut thriller you won’t want to miss!

Twenty-year-old orphan Gus, short for Augusta, is returning home after running away as a youngster years ago. Her great-grandmother, and sole remaining relative, is dead. She has left Gus her reverse-mortgaged house, a stack of bills, and a Buick that was born in the 80s or earlier. Oh, and Levi, Gus’ now old dog.

While cleaning up the house for sale, Gus finds her police officer mother’s evidence from her last case. Intrigued, Gus tries to solve the crime herself.

Dark August has the best conclusion I’ve read in a thriller for awhile. Twist after twist appear and then vanish with the next reveal. I thought I had figured it all out. Nope! Who doesn’t love a surprising ending? However, I was a bit confused by all the timeline changes at the beginning.

Overall, I rate it 4 stars! If you love being an armchair detective, I dare you to guess the stunning and heart-pounding conclusion.

Thanks to Harper Paperbacks and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Excellent dark Canadian thriller

"Her dad loved the underdog. Loved the idea that anybody could do something great. Just once. And that would be enough. That would make his life matter forever."

August "Gus" Monet is 20 years old and has been on her own for a long time. Both of her parents were policemen with the RCMP in Ottawa, Canada and both died young. She went to live with her great-grandmother at 8 years old and was shuttled off to a boarding school very soon thereafter until she was 18.

She is now back in her hometown in Ottawa after receiving word that her great-grandmother has passed away. Little does she know the murky waters of secrets that she will uncover as she looks back into her mother's last days.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. I loved the character of Gus, trusting soul she was even after the hard knocks life has thrown at her. And I loved her old dog, Levi.

Most of the story is based on the small town of Elgin - a town devastated by greed and by unsafe, deadly mining practices. I enjoyed reading about it and the way it was utterly destroyed.

This is a murder mystery and also a thriller and I highly recommend it.

I received a copy of this book from Harper Books through Net Galley and Edelweiss in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.

A tight-paced, and exciting thriller from Katie Tallo.

Gus inherits her great grandmother's house - which requires her to return to her hometown. There's a bad childhood to be dealt with as well as her mother's last cold case. Gus finds herself following her mother's journey to solve the case -

This book moves quick. Who is the mystery man? Who is the ballerina? Who is who?????

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book,

I loved this Southern gothic tale! The plot kept me riveted throughout and turning the pages to find out exactly what happened. Would recommend to fellow mystery/thriller lovers.

Title: Dark August
Author: Katie Tallo
Genre: Thriller
Rating: 4 out of 5

I’m not sure how I feel about this novel. For me, Gus was kind of an unlikable character at times. Actually, I didn’t really like any of the characters, and that made the novel hard to read. Excellent writing and the setting was vivid—and creepy. I loved how Gus picked up her mother’s legacy and I enjoyed all the convoluted connections between the past and the present, but the overall feel of the novel unsettled me. Which is maybe the point in a thriller?

Katie Tallo was born in Toronto. Dark August is her new novel.

(Galley courtesy of HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Info
Paperback, 448 pages
Expected publication: June 30th 2020 by Harper Paperbacks
ISBN 0062948040 (ISBN13: 9780062948045)
Other Editions (3)
Source:Netgalley EARC
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BOOK BLURB
An electrifying, page-turning debut about a young woman haunted by her tragic past, who returns to her hometown and discovers that there might be more to her police detective mother’s death—and last case—than she ever could have imagined.

Augusta (Gus) Monet is living an aimless existence with her grifter boyfriend when she learns that her great grandmother—her last living relative—has just died. Ditching her boyfriend, Gus returns to the home she left as a young girl. Her inheritance turns out to be a dilapidated house and an old dog named Levi. While combing through her great grandmother’s possessions, Gus stumbles across an old trunk filled with long-lost childhood belongings. But that’s not all the trunk contains. She also discovers cold case files that belonged to her mother, a disgraced police detective who died in a car accident when Gus was eight. Gus remembers her mother obsessing over these very same documents and photographs, especially a Polaroid of a young ballerina.

When Gus spots a front-page news story about the unearthing of a body linked to one of the cold case files from her grandmother’s trunk, she can’t resist following her mother’s clues. As she digs deeper, determined to finish her mother’s investigation, her search leads her to a deserted ghost town, which was left abandoned when the residents fled after a horrific fire. As Gus’ obsession with the case grows, she inadvertently stirs up the evils of the past, putting her life in danger. But Gus refuses to be undeterred and is committed to uncovering long-buried secrets, including the secrets surrounding a missing geology student, the young ballerina in the Polaroid, a prominent family’s devastating legacy, and a toxic blast that blew an entire town off the map.

But is Gus ready to learn the truths that culminated on one terrible August night, more than a decade earlier, when lives were taken, and secrets were presumed buried forever…?

Dark August introduces a bold new voice and will leave readers guessing until the final startling conclusion.

My Thoughts
This was kept short and spoiler free because so much is revealed in the book blurb that it is not necessary to go into more depth other than to say for sure this will be a series to keep track of for me and enjoy each new book if I get the pleasure of reading it.

A true page turner.

20-year-old Gus/Augusta Monet turns everything in her life upside down and inside out with her quest for the truth in this novel of suspense.

In her search to uncover the truth she asks questions that lead to answers the young woman was not expecting, nor were they without cost to Gus herself and others she had found her way to on the winding path for truth.

As the past and present collide this once slow moving read starts a fast game of cat versus mouse that reveals as much as it conceals along the way.

A murder mystery with many different characters to keep track of all while keeping Gus as its main focus that is worth exploring from start to finish each twist and turn along the way.

An excellent intro to a new-to-me-author that would love to read more from in future.


blockquote>[EArc from Netgalley]

On every book read as soon as it is done and written up for review it is posted on Goodreads and Netgalley, once released then posted on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles as well.