I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next while I was listening to this. I stayed up unreasonably late last night and then started again first thing in the morning. A very interesting and suspenseful game I book, with excellent narration. I recommend this to anyone who likes a good creepy supernatural mystery. I am adding this author’s past works to my to-read list!

I feel like this was a very well written book. Loved the narration and the two timelines. With both eventually coming together and finding out the secrets of the spring. I wish this had a little more to it in the paranormal department. Nothing about this made me gasp.

What's not to love? Excellent writing, seamless transitions between different time periods, interesting characters, intriguing storyline - - this book has it all. The story drew me in and the book was impossible to put down until I had finished it.

True, I had to exercise my 'willing suspension of disbelief' but I don't mind doing that at all when it's such a good and creepy story!

I didn't see the ending coming - - my jaw dropped and I was sitting here - - "wait - - what?!?!?"

Loved it.

The Drowning Kind is a paranormal thriller that will grab hold and not let you go.

The story is set in two different timelines. It has two different PoV's. Jax, is in the present while Ethel is in 1929. Both stories revolve around the natural springs in Vermont. It begins with Jax missing several calls from her sister, Lexie. Jax has distanced herself from her sister this past year. Lexie's mania has gotten out of hand, and Jax couldn't cope with it. The day after all of these calls, Lexie is found dead. She had drowned at the pool of their grandmother's old house. Jax arrives at the estate and realizes that Lexie was learning about the history about the estate and her family. At first Jax believes this is utterly ridiculous, until she realizes Lex might be onto something...

In 1929, 39 year old Ethel gravely wants a baby. Her husband brings her to a place in Vermont. There have been tall tales about the springs there, granting wishes. Ethel will try anything at this point to get what she wants. However, Ethel doesn't know that - the spring takes in equal measure to what it gives.

This one was deliciously creepy. Throughout the whole book you aren't sure of which direction everything is going to go. It had just the right amount of scare factor to keep your attention. You wanted to read faster so you knew what happened!

I really enjoyed the overall idea of this book. It makes you think, could you give something up in order to get what you've always dreamed? I loved the multiple PoV as well as all of the characters. In the end, both stories intertwine together into a beautiful masterpiece. This was a great quick read and highly recommended.

Both Joy Osmanski, and Imani Jade Powers did a fantastic job narrating this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Audio for an Arc copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

The Drowning Kind is a creepy and atmospheric paranormal thriller. The story is told in alternating points of view. In 1929, with Ethel and her desire for a baby. Ethel and her husband visit the hotel on the property at the springs and theirs lives are changed forever. In 2019, it focuses on Jackie and her family who own the house and pool currently. Jackie (Jax) ignores several calls from her sister Lexie after being mostly estranged for a year. Lexie's bipolar disorder has driven a wedge between them. The next morning, Jax gets the call that Lexie drowned in the pool at her house. The black, cold, deep pool is a character of its own. It is feed by a spring from water that has a haunting history. Legend is the pool heals and grants wishes but also takes what it needs to get its power. Several people have drowned there over the years and rumors abound that those people live in the pool and come out at night.
I enjoyed the story and the alternating timelines. The stories interwove well and the ending was a surprise. I listened to the audio and it was good but a bit slow. I didn't enjoy the narrator of Ethel as much as she spoke in a stilted fashion.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an audio arc for an honest review.

I have to start this off by stating that I did receive a copy of this audiobook from Simon & Schuster Audio through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Jennifer McMahon has been on my TBR for some time now, however, I have not had the chance to pick up any of her books until I received, The Drowning Kind to review and I was literally blown out of the water with the talent that was shown through these pages. The plot, characters, and the world were all completely fleshed so much so that you felt as if you were truly there with Jax, Lexi, and the rest of their family and friends. I also absolutely loved the narrators Joy Osmanski and Imani Jade Powers. I feel like they were able to bring this splendidly creepy book to life perfectly.

The synopsis of The Drowning Kind and the plot did not veer from one another. Many times you find an amazing synopsis that pulls you in and then once you get into the story you're let down because the plot does not match what you were told in the synopsis. You do not have to worry about that happening in this book. Everything matches up and you get to see the story from two different timelines that only add to one another. I did find that the story starts off pretty slowly but does pick up before the halfway point so you're not trudging through just trying to reach the end.

When it comes to characters Jennifer McMahon definitely knows what she is doing. Jax was relatable on so many levels the grief and the guilt that she was going through were so palpable it made you feel as if you were in the room with her experiencing these emotions. The paranormal aspect was what really drove it home for me though. The entire time I was questioning if it was really real or if Jax was going out of her mind due to the stress and grief or if someone was behind all of the strange things that happen at Sparrow's Crest.

The idea of a magic spring-fed pool that is never-ending and can heal ailments and grant wishes makes you wish you could dive in yourself or get dragged down unexpectedly. I did find a few issues with The Drowning kind which is why I only rated 4 stars. I feel like there should have been a warning for self-harm because it happens quite frequently throughout the book. This could have an effect on someone that has suffered through this in the past and it was a little startling for me to come across it. The other issue I had was I wish that there could have been more detail given about what the journals said instead of just snippets here and there that didn't really cover much. Other than that I felt like this was a perfectly creepy paranormal horror book that stood up to others that I have read and loved in the past. I highly recommend getting a copy for yourself.

3-3.5 stars.

I'll be honest, this is one of those books that if I would've read this book visually versus listening to the audiobook, I probably would've DNF'd it because of its incredibly slow pace. Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy slow paces especially in gothic stories, but this one takes a bit to get off the ground.

The story unfolds with a dual timeline. The story opens in 2019 where Jax learns that her sister Lexie drowned in the massive pool on their Grandmother's estate that they spent so many years at as children. Everything surrounding Lexie's drowning is suspicious considering she was a phenomenal swimmer. Jax is unsure if this was due to Lexie's history of manic episodes or if there really is something nefarious at play.

In 1920s New Hampshire, we have Ethel Montrose who is newly married and wants nothing more to give her husband a child. They decide to visit the illustrious Bradenburg Springs hotel, which is rumored to be the home a fountain that is capable of granting the most desperate of wishes. But, as with all magic, these wishes come with a grave price.

I don't want to give anything away, so I'm not going to address the plot. What I will say is that I really enjoyed how the two timelines unfolded as well as how the stories became intertwined. There were definitely some twists that I didn't see coming. I definitely enjoyed the historic timeline a bit more than the present timeline.

One of the biggest issues that I had with the book was the way that Lexie's mental illness was addressed especially since Jax is a therapist. For the most part, Lexie was written off whenever she had one of her episodes, and the family just sort of dealt with it. The same went for their father.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC audio version of this book. I loved the way the author mixed the history of the springs from the '30s to the present time. I was hoping for more of a thriller than a ghost story as I don't tend to care for fantasy. . However, this was one of my more favorite fantasy stories. I will be purchasing this book for my library as I think I have many patrons who will enjoy it.

This book was weird/Crazy in a good way haha. I didn't really love a previous book from this author The Invited but this one was really good!

I have not read any of Jennifer McMahon's books previously. Several of them have made it onto my TBR, but for whatever reason none of them made it into my hands. When I saw this book on NetGalley as a "wish for it," I figured I'd give it a try. I never have wishes approved and had stopped trying for a long time, so I assumed this would get added to the pile of books that would be added to my TBR to maybe be read eventually. Well, color me surprised when I received an email stating that my wish had been granted! So, I was pretty excited to get this one from NetGalley and really looking forward to finally checking out McMahon's work, which always looks so interesting to me.

This book was tagged mystery/thriller by many readers on Goodreads and since that is my favorite genre, I thought it would be just my thing. Unfortunately, it is really more of a paranormal/horror story. I have no problems with those as a genre, but I was expecting something different so I didn’t love it quite as much as I had hoped.

This story is told in dual timelines, one set in 1929 and one in 2019. I struggled with the 1929 timeline at times due to some repetition. I started gritting my teeth every time I every time I heard, “I am Mrs. Monroe and…” I sincerely would have been happy if she drowned and I didn’t have to listen to her any more. It was so frustrating. Deep breaths…

Otherwise, I found the story to be relatively enjoyable. It was interesting and a good listen. I felt the narrators were both appropriate for the time periods and characters. I didn’t think it was super exciting, but I wasn’t bored either. So, unpopular opinion time - this was a decent, middle-of-the-road, average read for me. I will definitely be interested to read more of McMahon's work in the future now that I have a better idea of what to expect.

3, maybe 3.5★

I do think we've had a lack of supernatural thrillers over the last few years, so I've had The Drowning Kind as my top priority for a while now. Instead of the standard haunted house, The Drowning Kind is a story of a pool that has been haunted for centuries with mysterious powers.

Just by looking at the cover, you can immediately get a taste of the atmosphere of this book. It's a dark, cloudy, and tragic story of family and their ghosts. I think the flashbacks and the alternating timeline works especially well for this writing in a backstory that is shrouded with mystery.

I loved the sort of dark fairy tale aspect to The Drowning Kind, the "be careful what you wish for" are classic words of wisdom. My only drawback would be that I was a little bit less invested in the "present" timeline because the historical element works so well for the atmosphere,

All readers can take something from The Drowning Kind, I think this could also be a great audiobook choice for a stormy spring day.

Thanks to @netgalley audio I listened to the majority of this one! I never speed up audio, but I had to speed this one up to 1.5 because I found the narrator so slow. This is definitely a slow burn too, so if that’s not your thing, you will probably feel yourself getting bored. The story is told in dual timelines 1929 and present, but I struggled to pay attention to either. It came off as repetitive to me as well. This is my first read from her, but I’ve heard good things about her previous works. A lot of people loved this one, so I’m definitely in the minority.

When it comes to The Drowning Kind, I was hooked from the freaking dedication! I mean, come on!

“For everyone out there who has the good sense to be a little afraid when swimming in deep, dark water.”

The Drowning Kind is the first book that I have read by Jennifer McMahon. However, before sitting down to write this review I checked out what other reviewers had to say about the book and so many of the reviewers had nothing but praise for McMahon! After reading The Drowning Kind, I’d have to say that I agree with their love! This book was interesting, fast paced and spooky enough that I found myself constantly holding my breath during the more suspenseful parts. The Drowning Kind was full of twists and turns and an ending that I had me reeling! I’d highly recommend this one and anticipate myself reading much more from Jennifer McMahon in the near future!

The Drowning Kind
Jennifer McMahon
In 1929 Ethel Monroe is impatient for a child. She and her husband make a weekend excursion to a contemporary resort in Vermont. The picturesque property has four underground springs that bubble up and form a pool with healing minerals. When they stop at a store a woman attempts to warn them of the danger of the spring. Could the spring be cursed, creepy, and eerie. Ethel was willing to risk everything for a child. The spring grants her wish but in return her family is trapped…”Spring does not give without taking.”
In 2019 Jax ignored her sister Lexie’s phone calls; Lexi’s manic episodes were becoming more frequent and more intense. The following day Jax learns her sister is dead; she died in the pool at the property she received from their grandmother. Lexie was an excellent swimer. As Jax goes through her sister’s things she discovers Lexie has been exploring the history of their family tree and estate. Jax quickly discovers the sinister past of the land and pool. Several women had drown in the pool. Lexie repeatedly claimed there was a woman at the bottom of the pool reaching out to her. Jax never believed her…what if she had been telling the truth.
Author Jennifer McMahon grabbed my attention at the onset of this tale and never let go. Jax is a rather sad character: she moved across the country to get away from her sister and out from under her shadow. Jax seems fragile; I was beginning to suspect she had some deep rooted mental problems. Lexie, although deceased, was the dominant character. There were two secondary characters that stood out: Aunt Diane and Ted. Ted is Jax and Lexie’s father; he is an eccentric character. Aunt Diane is rather loveable and yet she is bossy. This book is part gothic, a lot horror, suspensful, and down right creepy.
This is the first book I have read by Jennifer McMahon, it won’t be the last.

Be careful what you wish for! I have been pretty disappointed with the selection of NetGalley audiobooks so far but this one was fantastic! I have not read anything by this author before so didn't know what to expect but this one was just creepy. It takes us back and forth through time from 1929/1930 to present different family members but the same land and springs. Jax is a social worker and thinks scientifically or tries to but when her sister calls her repeatedly one night she doesn't pick up her calls and then the next day she finds out she drown in the pool. Strange since she was such as good swimmer. Of course, Jax is riddled with guilt because she didn't pick up the phone but also because when she was younger she made a wish at the springs (not telling you what) and now she suddenly all kinds of superstitious. Secrets and superstitions and all sorts of creepy abound in this story. I highly recommend it...but don't turn out the lights.

**Received this ARC for review in audio form from the publisher via NetGalley**

Lexie and Jax grew up going to their Grandma's every summer. They loved the pool there. They spent countless hours swimming and playing. Their parents never stayed when dropping them off. Their Grandma never played in the pool with them either. The girls just figured it was because their aunt had drowned in it when she was younger so it brought and memories to their mom.

Now, Jax is a psychiatrist. Her and Lexie haven't talked in awhile. Alexis has been labeled as big-polar and refuses to take her meds. Max wants no part of watching her sister go down a dark tunnel. Then Jax receives a call. Lexie has drowned in the pool. Jax goes home and starts to find clues about her family's past. Was Lexie really crazy? Was she wrong for turning her back on her only sister.

This was a good audio book. It goes back and forth between Jax trying to figure out the truth to the beginning of the history of the land the spring fed pool is on letting the listener in on the past. I won't say there is a big twist or shocking ending but it's still a good read.

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the chance to listen to this audio book in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book tells the mysterious story of the springs in Brandenburg Vermont. The springs are rumored to have healing powers but there is a dark side to the pool’s power. Told from 2 points of a view, Jax in 2019 and Ethel in 1929, this book warns you to be careful what you wish for. Many tragedies have taken place at the springs so why do people keep returning? And what is so alluring about them?

It kept me on the edge of my seat from the first pages. If you are looking for a spooky book that will hook you quickly this is the book for you.

If you like ghost stories, real ghost stores...not the Scooby Doo variety, then this is the book (and author) for you.

There is nothing like the sudden death of a sibling to make a person search for answers, and ease any lingering feelings of guilt. Jax heads back to Vermont to deal with her sister's drowning in the family pool. Only Lexi isn't the first family member to drown in the pool, in fact there is a startling number of deaths pool related both in the family and with close friends.

The story has a second timeline told from the creation of the natural spring into a pool, and from their house's history as a highly sought after hotel and vacation property. Both storylines will keep you up reading or listening into the wee hours of the morning.

The audio book was very engaging. I listened at 1.25 speed in order to find the most enjoyable pace.

Format: Audio
Narrators: Joy Osmanski and Imani Jade Powers

Thank you to Netgalley and the pusblisher for providing me an advanced copy of the audio book in exchange for my unbiased review.

Just wow. Jennifer McMahon truly knows how to take her poetry background and fluidly write an atmospheric, somewhat creepy tale, that captivated me unlike any suspense fiction I’ve read in a while.

While I can be skeptical of books with duel timelines, it adds a different element to this particular story. It builds the suspense in the way that you’re not quite sure how the two timelines are going to converge and when they do its a steady race to the end.

While most of the book could be described as a “slow burn” it never feels that way; with particular details and elements being woven in it’s easy to consume them all and get lost in the story. The character building is splendid, even side characters are given some backstory, can you get an emotional draw from each of them.

The ending may not be what you expect nor what you’re wanting. But it works.

Thanks Netgalley and ScoutPress for my gifted ALC

Rating 4.5/5

🎧 Atmospheric! Thriller/mystery with a side of gothic horror.

Dual narrators & timelines. 1920’s forward & present day.

2 separate families consecutively own a piece of land in the New England area & all of the darkness that surrounds it.

This isn’t a fast ride! The stories unfold slowly & the characters are well developed, I was hooked!

The overarching story lured me in & it got me! At one point I was thinking huh, maybe I’m wrong. DOH! Nope.

Great, fun, spooky story!! The author stuck the ending!! 🖤

Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster, I loved the book!! (I also review on Litsy)