*This arc was provided to me by NetGalley and publisher in exchange for a review*

Arden Olivia Maynor was six years old when she was swept away during a flash flood and found three days later by Sean Coleman in a drain underground. It was believed she had been sleepwalking and just feel in by accident during the storm but the story never fully made sense to Arden. As she becomes an adult, she changes her name and moves away to get away from all the publicity the story gave her. She wanted to be forgotten and move on with her life but well into her twenties her past starts coming back to haunt her and she is struggling trying to figure out what really happened back then.

Throughout the whole story you knew something was up and that something move happened to Arden, now Olivia, as a child. The story didn’t add up. I had some theories throughout but couldn’t quite figure it out until late in the story. I really enjoyed this book through and through!

I would advise you not to finish this book before going to bed. I had the craziest nightmares with scenes from this book! And I rarely have nightmares.

Arden was six when she sleepwalked out of her house, ended up caught in a rain storm, clinging to a storm drain, before she was finally found three days later. She had quite a bit of notoriety after that. Twenty years later, Arden is living miles away under a different name, hiding from the admirers, including her own mother. She finds out her mother died seven months earlier, and receives a box of her mother’s belongings. Shortly after, she begins sleepwalking again. But, one night, she finds a dead man outside, a man from her past life. Arden is trying to find out what happened, and why she can’t remember. It seems she has blocked traumatic memories from her past.

The beginning of the book was a little slow, but then it picked up, and became a page turner. But, that last chapter in particular, had my heart racing, and gave me chills. I felt like I was on the edge of my seat the entire book. The mysteries of past and present weaving together nicely and finally getting resolved in that last chapter. This was my first book by the author but definitely will not be my last. Highly recommend.

* ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

The Girl from Widow Hills is another psychological thriller by author Megan Miranda with whom I’ve had some up and down reactions to before in the past. Having really enjoyed a few of hers though I just knew I had to check out this latest.

Arden Maynor is that girl from Widow Hills, the girl that as a child of only six years old she turned up missing from her home one night leading to a huge search. Arden had a habit of sleepwalking and one night she walked right out into a huge storm and couldn’t be found for several days but thankfully she survived.

As amazing as it was for Arden to live through such an ordeal the attention it brought to her family was too much for a child to grow up with. Arden changed her name to Olivia and was happily enjoying her anonymity until one night she begins to sleep walk again and stumbles right into a corpse.

I have to admit The Girl from Widow Hills was somewhat of a slow starter for me and I wasn’t too sure about it in the beginning. Thankfully though those twists and turns I love began to pull me more into story and get interested in Arden/Olivia’s predicament becoming curious as to who could be at fault. Once fully engaged the story seemed to fly by to a conclusion I didn’t see coming.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I typically like this author's books. This book kept me guessing throughout...and was creepy in spots. I didn't guess the twists and turns, which was fun. The ending wasn't as wrapped up as I would have liked, but a good read. From about 2/3 to the end was a race. Good read.

I post my reviews on my book club's blog: https://angelasepilogues.wordpress.com/2020/06/18/faux-headline-turns-thriller/ - Check us out, if you're so inclined!

This was a unique plot. Our main character, Olivia, isn’t who she says she is. But, don’t be alarmed, it’s not as sinister as it sounds. You see, Olivia is really Arden Maynor. That isn’t significant to us, but in the world of this book, you’d probably recognize the name. Or it would at least ring a bell, make you continue to consider her and question how you know her or why she is familiar, until finally, it clicks. Either you’ve googled it or something has triggered a memory, but you’ll finally remember that Arden Maynor was the little girl at the center of a national news coverage event.

When Olivia (or Arden, I hope I can write this without confusing you, friends) was six years old her mother awoke and knew in the instant her eyes opened, that her daughter was gone. In the middle of the night, Arden had put on her little green shoes and walked right out the front, leaving it swinging and unlatched in her wake. This wasn’t a runaway, though, because Arden was sleepwalking. And after a 3-day search, by luck, will-power, or divine intervention, Arden was found, alive and mostly unharmed.

I say mostly because aside from the physical injuries Arden sustained, the emotional and mental stress has stayed with her well into adulthood. So much so, in fact, that she changed her name and has worked diligently to hide her identity to even her closest friends and relationships.

She’s relatively well-adjusted and hasn’t encountered any pesky journalists or reporters since the ten-year anniversary of her rescue. She’s firmly entrenched in her career and relatively happy. Until she gets a box of her mother’s possessions and starts waking up outside, meaning she’s sleepwalking again, something she hasn’t done since childhood.

It’s frightening enough to wake up in a different place than where you went to sleep, but it’s worse when you wake up next to a corpse. Which is exactly where Olivia (aka Arden) finds herself at the start of “The Girl from Widow Hills.”

I liked Miranda's writing style. And I'm sure I'll be grabbing up some of her backlist in the near future.

She had a main character that wasn't entirely likable. She isn't unlikable, either. Further, it's understandable why Olivia has built up so many emotional boundaries, but she doesn't let her friends get too close, nor the reader. This makes it harder to anticipate any twists and turns of the plot.

Like I stated earlier, I thought the plot was unique. For me, it was unlike a storyline I had read before and I was genuinely surprised with the ending. You don't have to be kept guessing in order for a thriller to be engaging or well-written, but it certainly has it's merits!

The Girl From Widow Hills begins by following Arden Olivia Maynor, the survivor of a seemingly open and shut case that occurred 20 years earlier, when she was only 6 years old. But, things aren't always as they seem. When old faces keep popping up in the new life she's built for herself, she's thrust back into reexamining what happened 20 years ago and uncovers some disturbing details along the way.

I don't want to give anything about this twisty, turny thriller away. It kept me guessing until the very end and it had layers upon layers built around the central plot that we had to keep peeling back and trying to identify. Well written and intriguing, I just wish there had been a little more of a conclusion/epilogue before the book wrapped up.

I enjoyed the development of all of the characters! Megan Miranda is a favorite author of mine... while this started a little slow, I liked the build up of figuring out what happened both in the present and the past. The end was a total shocker/ didn’t see that coming!

Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
I stayed up late to finish The Girl from Widow Hills because the story and the writing were just that captivating! A six year old sleepwalks and gets swept away, stuck in a drain for 3 days before she's rescued, but then she changes her name and moves away 10 years later. And now 10 years after that, now that she's established herself and her career, everything explodes in this creepy thriller. Definitely recommend, especially if you've enjoyed Miranda's other books like I have!

This was fast paced mystery with twists and turns. I usually have the endings of most thrillers figured out before they are revealed, but this one kept me guessing. It was a great twisted ending!

Arden Maynor was a child when she was swept away while sleepwalking during a terrifying rainstorm and went missing for days. Strangers and friends, neighbors and rescue workers, set up search parties and held vigils, praying for her safe return. She was found, alive, clinging to a storm drain. The girl from Widow Hills was a living miracle. Arden’s mother wrote a book. Fame followed. Fans and fan letters, creeps, and stalkers. And every year, the anniversary. As soon as she was old enough, Arden changed her name and disappeared from the public eye.⁣
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Wow - this is such a wild, twisty thriller! I read this so quickly to see how it unfolds. This was such a good mystery and I'm so excited for more people to be able to read this one.

Wow, is The Girl from Widow Hills an intense read--it has been a while since a thriller kept me on my toes the way this one did, and I loved that! Megan Miranda takes a typical thriller plot--missing child-- and put a fresh spin on it. What happens to the adult who was that missing child, that media curiosity? After the outpouring of relief, after you grow up, after you realize that maybe being defined by something you can't remember isn't how you want to live?

The Girl from Widow Hills takes an unflinching look at survival, about the parent/child bond, and about what and why we as as society are so fascinated by the awful, yet don't want it to linger. I genuinely thought I had figured out who the "bad guy" was and yes, there was one (or two) but what I loved the most about this book was its recognition of the good and bad in everyone, including ourselves. You may have enemies, etc. may be in danger, but who are you? What are you capable of? Very highly recommended.

Arden Mayor was just a child when she was swept away while sleepwalking during a terrifying rainstorm and went missing for days. Then she became the miracle of her small town of Widow Hills, Kentucky when she was found clinging for life to a storm drain. Her mother, Laurel, wrote a book. The family received money, fan letters, and, yes, stalkers. Soon it became too much and when she was old enough, Arden changed her name. She became Olivia. Now, as the twentieth anniversary of the incident nears, she has her own life. No one in her new world knows about her past. But when she receives word via phone call about her mother's death, something jolts loose in Olivia. She starts sleepwalking again, waking outside her house. And then one night she awakens, outside yet again, the body of a corpse at her feet. Even worse, the man is someone she knew from her previous life as Arden. Suddenly, Olivia's right back where she started: under scrutiny and media attention. And this time, she isn't the media darling, but a murder suspect.

"I was the girl who survived. The girl who held on. The girl you prayed for, or at least pretended to pray for--thankful most of all that it wasn't your own child down there, in the dark. And after: I was the miracle. The sensation. The story."

I don't have a lot of notes from reading this, but I think it's because I was too caught up in the story. This was a twisty thriller, and I simply wanted to know what happens. You can't ask for much more in a good mystery, can you? I've read a few books lately that cast a strong shadow of doubt on the protagonist (Heather Gudenkauf's This Is How I Lied being a great example)--and Miranda does great work of it here. Olivia sleepwalks, and we have a hard time fully trusting her throughout the novel. Heck, she has a hard time trusting herself.

Of course, there are plenty of other suspects and lots of twists and turns to keep you guessing. I enjoyed the story of a girl escaping her past, only to find it catching up with her, no matter how hard she tried. We see how the media and attention can unravel even the happiest of tales, how Olivia's mother couldn't handle the pressure, how Olivia had to become a different person to survive. Why, we wonder, does society have to take a happy thing and ruin it.

"The case made all of us, and then it unmade us."

Overall, this was a fast-paced and intriguing read. Olivia is an interesting character, oddly sympathetic despite her possibility of being a murderess. 3.75 stars, rounded to 4 here.

Megan Miranda’s latest thriller, The Girl from Widow Hills delivers yet another fast-paced, twisty ride. Olivia has a past that she is desperate to forget but it all catches up to her when she stumbles over a dead body in her front yard after sleepwalking one night. The plot is fast paced and the ending was a surprise. I just wish the storylines with two of the characters (Olivia’s neighbor and her nurse friend Bennett) had a more satisfying resolution. Other than that, it was a fun read that I devoured in one day!

This is by far my favorite book from with author so far. I love how unique this storyline is. There are so many twist and turns and I loved it. I was never bored. In the end she ties everything together perfectly.

Olivia has been trying to put her past behind her, only the past never stays truly buried. Olivia stumbles upon a dead body on her and her neighbor's property line. It's a man from her past, but who murdered him? With many different suspects Olivia doesn't know who to trust, or if she can even trust herself. The plot line is great with an even better twist.

This book was all over the place for me. I really wasn't sure what was happening throughout most of it. Suspense was lacked,

This is my second Megan Miranda read. I disliked both books so I am starting to think this author isn't for me :(

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this eARC

This was a very entertaining read. I enjoyed the way the tension was ramped up throughout the story and I found the ending completely unexpected.

Megan Miranda is always consistent. I find she always has plots with lots of pieces that can be difficult to sort out until the end. But in the end, the pieces fit together well and make sense. The characters are relatable and generally not frustrating.

I definitely count Miranda as one of my go-tos for fun thrillers. Can’t wait for the next one.

I always look forward to a new Megan Miranda book and I found The Girl from Widow Hills an addicting read with an intriguing premise.

When Olivia was a child, she went missing for several days and the search to find her caught national attention. Twenty years later, she’s moved away, changed her name, and wants to forget everything that happened. Her carefully cultivated new life is threatened, though, when she discovers the dead body of someone from her past on her property. Throw in some intense sleepwalking incidents and gaps in her memory and we’re not really sure if Olivia is guilty of more than she knows. The mystery was a bit of a slow burn, but the addictive writing made that ok. I liked the characters, especially Olivia’s neighbor, Rick, and her friend/co-worker/possible love interest, Bennett. I would have liked a little more resolution when it came to those characters, though.

Overall, I enjoyed The Girl from Widow Hills. Even though the mystery was a bit of a slow burn, I felt invested in Olivia and everything that was happening. I didn’t 100% guess the ending, which is always a win for me these days. I did find the ending a little underwhelming, though. I would have liked an epilogue. While this wasn’t my favorite Miranda book, it was still enjoyable and I’m looking forward to her next book.

Overall Rating (out of 5): 3.5 Stars

I was beyond excited to be approved for a suspense/thriller by Megan Miranda. The Girl from Widow Hills kept me reading from the beginning. A little girl sleepwalking in a rainstorm and whisked away by a flood to be found miraculously in 3 days. Olivia Meyer, formerly Arden Olivia Maynor, wants nothing to do with her past celebrity life, that was brought on by her mother and the book she wrote. She remembers nothing from the horrible experience as a child, but was left with anxiety for closed in spaces. She has a new life in North Carolina far from Widow Hills, Kentucky. At least she thinks so, until she is awakened one night outside by her neighbor, Rick, and realizes she is sleepwalking again and she hasn’t since she was that small little girl. A tragic event occurs that leaves Olivia wondering who she can trust including herself. What really happened to her in Widow Hills, Kentucky and why is her past coming back to haunt her in ways she had never imagined? You will loooove Miranda’s new book. This to me is her best yet! I went back and forth wondering who was the “bad guy” and Miranda had me fooled!!! Definitely a twist you will not see coming!!! Thank you, NetGalley for the free ARC!!!!