When Kieren, his girl friend and his baby daughter return to his childhood home in Tasmania to help his mother deal with his father suffering from Alzheimer’s, he knows old memories of guilt will be dredged up, but he doesn’t realize how deeply they will impact him. When teens, his brother died trying to save him from drowning during a horrific storm. Kieren has always blamed himself. Years later, the death of a college art student brings memories to life again when the small community becomes involved. The audio version brings the tension and emotion to life.

I had a really hard time with this one. I just couldn’t get into it. It was very slow and not much happened. I think it was more atmospheric and character driven but i wanted more suspense and more action. It was an interesting premise but just struggled to hold my attention.

This is a slow-burn mystery/thriller set in a coastal Australian town that has secrets. These secrets start to rear their ugly head when Kiernan returns to his hometown after being away for quite some time. A young girl is murdered shortly after his arrival and the plot centers around what happened to her and a girl who went missing many years earlier. This ties in with a tragic boating accident from years ago that greatly affected Kiernan and his family. I enjoyed listening to this audio book. At times it did feel a little slow but the ending was good. Thank you to NetGalley and MacmillianAudio for this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 Stars Loved the descriptions of the stormy ocean and rocky coast in Australia. I liked the significance of the title and all the caves, ocean beach parts etc. I felt like I was there along the coast too! A few too many characters that I got a bit confused, but it's likely just me. I really didn't know who to trust. The narrator did a good job, and I kept wanting to come back to the book to listen to see how it unfolded. This is my first book by this author. Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillian Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book!

The Survivors audiobook was great. I loved the story, it was a fantastic whodunit! The narrator was good however, the characters were difficult to differentiate during dialogue. Overall though, the book kept me on the edge of my seat which is why I gave it 4 stars.

I don't like when I'm reading a book and it has so many characters you can't keep up. I felt confused and real bored the majority of this book. I did not in any way have a connection with any of the characters. This one just didn't hit the mark for me. It was definitely a slow burn. While the plot was good, it just seemed to drag on and on. I did appreciate the ending. It was not predictable as I surely wouldn't never guessed that. This book was a disappointment considering the hype. This was my first book by Jane Harper. Even though my first experience was not good, I'm still willing to try some more books by this author.

Thank you #netgalley and #macmillianaudio for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook for my honest opinion.

The Survivors is a slow burn novel. Kieran and Mia have returned to their small coastal town.. Kieran has to deal with the memories of the death of his brother and friends many years ago during a raging storm. Now a woman is found dead on the beach. What will the investigation into her death reveal?..Lots of suspicion and speculation! The whole town has a ominous feel to it through out the book. I listened to the audio version and had no problem understanding the Australian accent. In fact the accent helped me to feel like I was there in Evelyn Bay.

thanks to netgalley and Macmillan Audio for a great listen.

Totally blown away by this slow burning thriller! Kierran and Mia are back in their hometown of Evelyn Bay to help Kierran’s parents move. Kierran still blames himself for his brother’s death in a storm years ago, and his return stirs memories, regrets, and buried secrets in the small coastal town. The author does a superb job of setting the scene. Each character has layers that add depth and interest and make you wonder...

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for the arc.

It was a decent read. Good mystery, really liked the main character, Kieran. A problem I always have with audiobooks is that when there are many characters constantly brought up in a story, I get them confused, and it’s not as easy to go back and check to remember who they are in an audiobook like you can a hardback, haha. The narrator did well, too, but the story, though I liked the mystery aspect, just didn’t hold my attention enough and it took me awhile to get through it.

I love a thriller that keeps your spidey senses on alert nearly the entire time. The Survivors has two events (actually three) that keep you wondering what happened. The first two happened twelve years ago. Part of the mystery centers on a missing teen during a storm and the other involves the death of two others in the same storm. The second event is a possible homicide that may or may not be connected to the past mysteries.

Our main character, Kieran Elliot, lost his brother in that tragic storm, and has been carrying around the guilt and grief for a dozen years. Those feelings resurface as he heads back to the Tasmanian coast with his own young family. This time around, Kieran is uncovers revelations that make him question the narrative he's always held as truth about his past.

Harper does an incredible job of casting enough shadows on several characters to force you to trust no one and question everything. While the story was captivating enough, there were parts of it that lulled and dragged on a bit too much. However, I still felt fully immersed in the atmosphere of Evelyn Bay.

The audio was fantastic. I’ve listened to Stephen Shanahan narrate a couple other Jane Harper books and cannot recommend him enough. His Aussie accent is exactly what you need to transport you directly into Harper’s stories. Thanks to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an ALC for The Survivors.

This is not my very favorite Jane Harper (I still love The Dry with my whole heart), but it's pretty damn close. What an amazing setting, a great mystery, and a wonderful cast of characters. She does it again, many kudos, Jane!

Thank you so much for this ARC!

Ugh, I was so excited for this. It was actually my book of the month selection. The book was a DNF (I was a bit bored) and I could not complete the audio book, accent was too thick.

Started out slow, but picks up! Engaging, if not somewhat familiar with other thrillers I've read/listened too, especially after the knockout that was The Night Swim.

I enjoyed the mystery and the twists of this book and did not see the ending coming. The audiobook narration however was a struggle to listen to.

If you’re looking for a good mystery/thriller to entertain you during the long winter months, look no further. In The Survivors by Jane Harper, a man returns to his hometown to assist his parents, but also ends up revisiting a haunting past.

Kieran Elliott’s life changed that day almost twelve years ago when a big storm hit his hometown on the coast of Tasmania. Tragedy struck the family and a young woman went missing leading to an investigation of the death that was never resolved. Indeed, the small community members speculate on what they believed to have happened that day. Kieran has moved away shortly thereafter but has returned to help his parents move when his father show’s signs of early dementia. Little did he know that another young woman would be found dead on the beach during his stay: an event that has Kieran reexamining the mystery of what happened that day more than a decade before.

The book had me guessing on what happened on the day of the big storm and to the woman on the beach, leading me down several paths. The geography of the area is very well described and creates the perfect setting for a mystery. I found the characters to be well developed and the story flowed quite well. The conclusion of the book was surprising and satisfying. The book has a large cast of characters and much of the book is a slow burn setting the stage for a reveal of the true events. This felt a little too long at times for me and I found my mind wandering. Moreover, it should also be noted that the book shifts quickly between different points in time and this isn’t always readily apparent to the reader. Having said that, I enjoyed this book and would not hesitate to recommend it.

I listened to the Audiobook version of the book which was narrated by Stephen Shanahan. His Australian accent was lovely to listen to and he provided an articulate, enjoyable performance. His voice did not change when narrating different characters, but I did not feel this was necessary in this book. I listened to the book at my usual 1.25x speed, which felt comfortable. I would not hesitate to recommend the audiobook version of this story to those who enjoy this format.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC of this book in exchange for the honest review provided here.

Aussie author Jane Harper's fourth novel is a standalone mystery set in the fictional village of Evelyn Bay, Tasmania. The tightly-knit community was home to a tragedy over a decade before, when three young people, Finn, Toby, and Gabby died the day of a terrible storm. (While Finn and Toby drowned at sea, Gabby's death is a mystery, as her body was never found.) When Kieran Elliot returns to Evelyn Bay with his partner Mia and their baby Audrey, his primary purpose is to help his mother Verity move his father Brian to a home for those with dementia. But he is also facing a painful past in this small town, where everyone believes that his brother Finn and friend Toby died looking for him when he became stranded in dangerous caves along the Evelyn Bay shore as a high tide fatefully coincided with a historic storm. More than a few people including, he believes, his parents blame Kieran for what happened that day since the caves were known to be a dangerous place when the tide comes in. Coming home represents facing these past traumas for Kieran but also dredges up trauma for the locals, as well. Within a day of Kieran and Mia's arrival, Bronte, a young woman working at a local diner, is found drowned on the beach, shocking the Evelyn Bay residents and stirring up painful memories of Gabby's disappearance twelve years before.

This is an interesting murder mystery, and Harper does an excellent job of building a novel set in an insular community in which many residents cherish their views about their local young men being "great blokes." The investigation into Bronte's death (ruled a murder, of course) stirs up not too deeply buried feelings of guilt, anger, jealousy, and the lingering grief of the losses from twelve years before. Kieran is a character the reader empathizes with from early on, and his reasons for leaving Tasmania for a life with Mia in Sydney are abundantly clear. Locals seem bent on deflecting blame for Bronte's death onto tourists, but everyone is still pinning Finn and Toby's accidental deaths on then-teenage Kieran. They're all, not surprisingly, in the wrong. With her confident storytelling skills, Harper's The Survivors kept me guessing!

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Steven Shanahan with a lovely Aussie accent. It was a fine production of a book that's been on bestseller lists Down Under, since its release.

<i>I received a digital audio review copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.</i>

Kieran returns home after years of being away. His dad is sick and he can't ignore the fact it has taken a toll on his mother. When he comes home, secrets from a tragedy that happened many years ago are unearthed. Kieran's brother, Finn, was killed at sea during a storm, as well as his best friend Toby. Many of the locals don't forgive Kieran that, especially when another person died that night. Gabby was out in the storm as well, and she never came back. There has been speculation for years as to what happened, but only one person knows. How far will they go to make sure the secrets of that night never come out.
With rumors swirling, another young girl is found dead on the beach. The police are investigating this death and have some suspicions that it could lead to what happened to Gabby and the others all those years ago.
Honestly, I didn't see the ending coming. I had two theories in my head and thought if it were either I would be disappointed. These theories wer born from clues the author left me, and I am happy to say, she led me down the wrong path. I completely hate when obvious clues are left and I have figured out the twist early on in the book.
The narration was something I struggled with on this one. I feel like the narrator could have done better making the characters sounding different. I realize that it was mostly from Kieran's POV, but all in one tone made it really hard for me to know who was speaking when or if he was conversing with a man or a woman.
Thank you to MacMillian Audio, Netgalley and Jane Harper for an early copy of this audiobook.

If you like slow burn mysteries filled with family secrets, then you'll love this book. I think this just wasn't the book for me. I encourage you to read it and decide for yourself.

Usually I love a book with multiple timelines, but this one seemed to do so very suddenly, almost in the middle of a thought or sentence. In audio, that transition was sometimes difficult to follow. I think that made it a bit more difficult to connect with the characters and differentiate them in my mind. That required me to have a bit more focus to be sure I didn't miss the drama or clues as to what was happening.

I definitely wasn't expecting the ending, and that had me locked in!! So in the last 1/4 of the book, I would say that the pace and mood picked back up. I think it just took a bit too long to get there.

The narrator did a superb job although I'd preferred to have full cast audio or at least 2 narrators to speak the male and female voices. I think the connection to the characters would have increased.




*Thank you to Netgalley for the audio version of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

I love Jane Harper and this was just as good as I hoped it would be. Great plot and had me guessing the entire time! Highly recommend.

I received an advanced readers copy in audio format for my unbiased review. This is another enjoyable mystery from Jane Harper. I found myself involved in the variety of personalities in this small town where a tragedy occurred decades earlier. I highly recommend this book as a great escape.