The Hive begins with a compelling mystery. A college journalism student is found dead. Police officer Lindsay is investigating the death. The victim was looking into the death twenty years ago at a self-help “cult” guru’s residence. Was the recent death an accident or murder? If the latter, could it be connected to the earlier death?

First of all, whoever wrote the book blurb is a genius! This plot sounds fabulous...until you actually start reading the book. It is s-l-o-w. Every character, it seems, tells her story. Many are either not relevant or only tangentially related to the main plot. And, dare I say it, they were boring. Like watching paint dry. If you can stay awake until the ending, it was actually rather good. But the rest? Ugh, hours of my life I will never get back. Don’t make the same mistake and avoid getting sucked into The Hive. 2 stars.

Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

Set in the Pacific Northwest, Detective Lindsay Jackson is investigating the murder of young Sarah Baker, a journalism student who was working on an expose of Marnie Spellman. Marnie, a charismatic woman, and well-known personality, who at the height of her influence (which has lessened over time), was considered a spiritual healer, a wellness and holistic guru, and who created a multi-million dollar cosmetic empire. Her followers were/are so devoted to her that they left their own lives behind to be with her on the farm. Her close inner circle of followers was called The Hive with Marnie, of course, being the queen bee.

As Lindsay investigates Marnie and her hive, she realizes the power that Marnie has over the lives of her followers; power she doesn't hesitate to use to her advantage. She also uncovers leads and secrets that Marnie and her hive don't want to come to light. Can Lindsay put all the pieces together before someone else dies?

The story is told by an all-knowing narrator, through three different views of time - 1999, 2019, and through the pages of a book (The Insatiable Heart) written by Marnie. It was easy to follow the flow of the different times, and interesting to view each of the main characters in different time frames. Olsen does a good job of drawing the various plot lines into an ever-tightening spiral as events progress and the truth is revealed.

My thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for allowing me to read a review copy of this book. All opinions expressed in this review and any errors are my own.

A suspense that is slow to untangle. Olsen offers a plethora of characters with varying degrees of depth but overall leaves the reader without a solid investment. The narrative alternates point of view and time lines too frequently, drawing much of the tension away from the plot. A okay read with interesting, cultish aspects.



Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC which was read and reviewed voluntarily; all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I forgot to write my thoughts out after reading it.
So writing this now, I've had a moment to reflect.
At first, I wasn't a huge fan. The story had a great premise but it took too long to get there. Once it did, the pace picked up and it got more interesting.
Did I love it? No, but I did think the twists in it were creative and not something I have read before. I appreciated the writing even if the story itself did not turn out to be for me.
I still think lots of people will enjoy this thrill ride!

I received this book from the publisher through Netgalley for review and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
I must admit to knowing, as a reader of the genre; this author as a true crime writer. I do have several of his books in print and kindle version that I just haven't read yet. After reading The Hive, this will change. His works of fiction read like true crime, ripped from the headlines. Careful thought and consideration have gone into this book making the tale highly plausible and the tension palpable. Excellent story of charismatic leader and the downfall of a movement based on hypocrisy and lies. The detective in this story is a character of note, personal tragedy touching her life makes her vulnerable. Much to discuss if using for book club. I enjoyed this book immensely. It left me with much to think about. I will be reading more from this author soon.

I think I chose this book on the premise alone. I’m always interested in cult-like storylines. Well, the love story ends there. Unfortunately, I had a big issue with all of the female “drama” and stereotypes. I don’t think any of the characters had any redeemable characteristics, except Lindsey. I would have preferred the entire book from Lindsey’s perspective as she unravels this case. But the book switches POV and timelines every few pages. There were a lot of moving parts, and it was challenging to keep up.

Not only that, for a thriller that promises twists and turns, I was surprised by one moment. Everything very slowly unraveled to the point that once Lindsey made the significant discovery, it didn’t deliver a punch. It was okay. But it felt obvious by the end. It felt obvious from the beginning. I was hoping for something much more sinister with Marnie.

In the end, I felt so meh about it. It was a big book with no reward. There is one string that was never even mentioned, and I’m still upset about it.

Thank you, Gregg Olson, Thoms & Mercer, and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for the chance to read an advanced copy of The hive by Gregg Olsen. This is not one of his ongoing series, but a stand alone,
Police officer Lindsay Jackman is investigating the murder of a young journalist found at the bottom of a ravine. Lindsay soon learns that the victim was writing an exposé. Her subject: a charismatic wellness guru Marnie Spellman, who’s pulled millions into her euphoric orbit…
When she was a child, Marnie says a swarm of bees lifted her off the ground and toward the sunlight, making a
spiritual connection with nature— Marnie built a cosmetics empire on this story and became a legend, a healer, and the queen of holistic health and eternal beauty. In her inner circle is an intimate band of devotees called the Hive. They share Marnie’s secrets of success—including one cloaked in darkness for twenty years.
To solve the crime and uncover the deadly mysteries of the group, Lindsay focuses her investigation on Marnie and the former members of the Hive, who are just as determined to keep Lindsay from their secrets as they are to maintain their status.
I hate to say it but I had issues getting into the groove of this book. I love Gregg's books and love his Megan Carpenter and Nicole Foster series. This was a good book once I got going but it had a slower pace then the other series. Do give it shot, you may not have the same issues I had with it. But definitely give his series a read!

The Hive is a standalone cross between a police procedural and a psychological thriller centred around a murder and an exploitative cult. The characters come vividly to life and the dark, disturbing and wickedly twisty plot hurtles along gathering speed with every passing chapter. Olsen explores the allure of cults: the void they fill in people who wish for nothing more than to belong, the damaging, and often ludicrous, messages they spread as well as ideologies they abide by and cling to as a means of identity. It's a mysterious and deeply unsettling read full of enigmatic people and enough on the thrills front to keep you tearing through the pages. A compulsive, engrossing and rollicking good read. Highly recommended.

There are SECRETS and then there are SECRETS and then there are SECRETS!

A charismatic entrepreneur/leader/skin care guru/wellness practitioner - is she the real deal or is she a charlatan?

This book opens strong when the body of a young aspiring journalist, Sarah Baker, is found at the bottom of a ravine. Lindsey Jackman, the lead investigator, soon learns that the young journalist was writing an exposé on Marnie Spellman, a famous wellness guru.

Marnie claims that when she was a child, a swarm of bees lifted her up, and spoke to her. She has always stated that her experience with the swarm caused her to have a deeper connection with nature and inspired her bee/honey skin care line.

Let there be no doubt in your mind, Marnie is a queen bee. Her inner circle, made up of women who have walked away from their lives, relationships, and jobs to join her, are known as the “Hive". She ruled her empire and group of followers using charm, manipulation, and power.

As Lindsey investigates Sarah's murder, the plot thickens as layer after layer of secrets are uncovered. There is more going on than meets the eye. With everyone interviewed, Lindsey learns that this case is not cut and dry and to solve it she must go back to an earlier case and start there.

This book started strong and instantly had me intrigued. Who could have wanted her dead? There are a lot of characters, and we learn more when each tells his/her story to Lindsey. This slowed the book down for me. In the middle of the book, I wanted things to hurry up and bring on that reveal already! This book takes some patience. Everything will come together in the end.

There are clues along the way, and readers will soon learn that you cannot escape your past. Sooner or later, some secrets are dying to be uncovered.

This book is gripping when it gets moving and more clues are dropped. There are a couple of twists and turns, and revelations along the way. I enjoyed the story but the slowness of each character telling his/her story brought my rating down a little. I would have enjoyed the book more if this had been a little faster paced. Overall a solid book with a gripping mystery.

3.25 stars

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

At it’s center, The Hive is a suspenseful thriller, featuring a Washington detective, Lindsay, trying to solve a current murder of a young reporter, Sarah, with strange links to a twenty year old murder of a young mother, Calista. Reeling from the suicide of her mentor and partner, Alan, Lindsay pushes forward to reveal that both murderers relate back to a wellness guru and her close knit group of women, the hive. Can Lindsay untangle the web and solve both crimes?

I wasn’t sure about this book when I read that it was about a cult, but I’m glad I picked it up because the main focus is not in itself the cult. The storytelling was perfectly paced to keep it intriguing and intense, with twists I did not even imagine. Gregg Olsen is a first time author for me, but it won’t be the last because I enjoyed his descriptive writing, and engaging characters.

The Hive is set mainly in the Pacific Northwest, where Detective Lindsay Jackman investigates a young journalist's murder. Sarah Baker had been investigating a cold case - a corpse found on a beach at Lummi Island.

Both victims had ties to charismatic cosmetics queen Marnie Spellman, with an estate on the island. Stunningly beautiful and razor sharp, Marnie had a legion of devotees, almost a cult, with an inner circle called The Hive.

The story has a shocking twist towards the end.

Thank you to the author, Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Both the blurb and the cover made me want to read this, and the premise had a lot of potential. Unfortunately, the book didn't live up to it. The story is told in confusing shifts of POV and timeline, which makes it hard to follow the plot. Despite being billed as a thriller, I found it completely lacking in suspense or tension, and the central tenet of the plot - this mysterious charisma of the "queen bee" Marnie and the effect it had her female followers - was never actually clear to me. The insipid self-help tripe she constantly spouted certainly wasn't the reason. The murder investigation seemed inept until the very end of the book, and by then I was just longing to have it over and done with.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author, for an ARC of this book, in exhange for an honest review.
I read "The Last Thing She Ever Did" by Gregg Olsen a few years ago & loved it & I said if I ever came across another of his books, I would definitely read it.
When I saw that his new book "The Hive" was available to review, I jumped at the chance to read it.
This book didn't disappoint my expectations.
It was another great book by Mr. Olsen.
It was a complex story with great character development, an interesting plot & an unexpected ending.
I can't wait to read what he writes next.

Published: June 8, 2021
Thomas & Mercer
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.

Gregg Olsen is the #1 New York Times and Amazon Charts bestselling author of more than thirty books, including If You Tell, Lying Next to Me, The Last Thing She Ever Did, and The Sound of Rain and The Weight of Silence in the Nicole Foster series. He’s appeared on multiple television and radio shows and news networks, such as Good Morning America, Dateline, Entertainment Tonight, CNN, and MSNBC.

“And even at the end.”

Lindsay is devastated when she learns her partner committed suicide. As she struggles to tackle her first case without him, she can’t help but feel his presence and everything he taught her to resonate. As she digs deeper and the truth gets closer to being discovered- everyone is in danger. The truth is deadly.

Holy hell. This was like Mean Girls for adults. Wowza. When female empowerment goes incredibly awry, what can you do?

The start is this book was slightly confusing, as things bounced back and forth, but as the pieces started falling into place, there is no way I could have guessed how the twists would land.

The characters in this book each represent something, and the way they are written is pretty genius. There is so much depth, deception, raw humanity, and pure ugliness throughout.

Gregg Olsen has such a talent for bringing characters to life in a way that captivates you from chapter one. Lindsay is such a beautiful character, and she represents what is truly beautiful in people.

Marnie and her ego represent everything that is wrong with people. Selfish and manipulative, Marnie is the classic “mean girl” in adult form. She is rotten to the very core, a skilled liar, and a brilliant pretender. She is everything you wish you could be. And she uses her charisma to prove that.

Dina is lost and desperate. She is willing to cling to anything that might give her a boost in the public’s eye. An aging actress, she has bitter feelings towards how her life has played out. It isn’t fair. Love wasn’t enough.

Patty is grieving. Her husband killed himself, and all she has now is their son, Paul. Paul and the secrets of her past.

Greta and Heather agreed when the hive went their separate ways that they truly cut all ties. Only now, secrets that were long ago laid to rest and forgotten and being discovered.

This is a deliciously twisted and darkly demented story that is told in a very creative way. The story indeed overlaps in an almost nonsensical way until the shuffle is complete and you are left staring at the last word utterly speechless.

Gregg Olsen has done it again- written something so genuinely terrifying, brutally dark, and insanely twisted that you will not be able to stop reading, nor will you handle the sinister truth. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Beware.

. Two murders 20 years apart. How are they related? Lindsey Jackman sets out to investigate. How are the queen bee, Marnie Spellman, and her hive connected to these murders? Marnie is the leader of a cult-like beauty empire. Her products, made with honey and other secret ingredients. Her hive followers assist her in gathering stem cells and placenta for the creation of her beauty line. I love how all the characters connected and how the answer to these murders played out.

Sarah Baker, a journalism student is found dead, and it's upto detective Lindsay Jackson to investigate the death.
The quest for the truth takes her in the midst of a cultish group called the Hive, who are followers of Marnie Spellman, an advocate for bees, and the good they do, using their products to create a line of wellness and beauty. Lindsay finds that Sarah was trying to investigate the Hive and this hasn't been the first death related to it either.
I found this a tad too long, sort of going round and round in circles which may cause the reader to lose interest.
This was my first book by Gregg Olsen and I hope to read more by him soon .

The Hive by Gregg Olsen is a psychological thriller.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Thomas & Mercer, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.


My Synopsis:   (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Detective Lindsay Jackman just lost her partner.  She is confused and hurt that Alan had committed suicide.  His wife and son feel the same.

But the job doesn't end just because her partner is dead.

The naked body of Sarah Baker is found at the bottom of a ravine.  Lindsay discovers that she was a young journalist writing an exposé on Marnie Spellman.

Marnie was a charismatic wellness guru in the 90's and had millions of devoted fans, as well as many detractors who feel that Spellman Farms was really a cult.   Marnie says that when she was a child, a swarm of bees lifted her off the ground until she was flying, and then gently put her down, which provided Marnie with a deep connection to nature.  She built a cosmetic empire, became a healer, and the queen of holistic health and beauty.  She created an intimate circle of five devotees who are called The Hive.  She became their "Queen Bee".  That was all 20 years ago, but some things haven't changed.

The women that originally formed The Hive have been keeping a secret for those 20 years.  Although they try not to associate with Marnie any longer, their loyalty is still strong .  Dina is now a rather wealthy washed-up actress; Greta a wealthy hospital administrator; Heather a politician, and Trish is dead.  So is Calista.

Lindsay knows they are covering up something, and is determined that someone is going to give up that secret, but as she digs deeper, it seems the truth continues to get buried.


My Opinions:  
This book is basically about a cult run by a rather charismatic and bullying woman.  It is about vanity, greed,  lies, deceit,  and the need to belong.  It is also about murder.

Unfortunately, although the characters had depth, I didn't really like any of them (creating a difficult reading experience).  It took me a while to figure out the truth about Trish, so that was a great twist, and there were others.   As always with a Gregg Olsen novel,  the plot was really good, and of course the writing was great!

The story is told in different time-lines and  from different points of view.   I am generally a fan of this style of writing, but I think this book may have gone back and forth a little too often.  I did like the way Lindsay investigated, by going  through various newspaper articles and You-Tube videos, as well as reading Marnie's book.

Although I found it a rather slow read, and the characters unlikable, the story was interesting, and everything came together at the end, although not all were punished appropriately.

I will definitely continue to read Gregg Olsen's books!

In The Hive author Gregg Olsen gives the readers a lot of "main" characters and does a lot of back and forth in time. Fortunately Mr Olsen manages to mesh it together so it all fits perfectly. I want to thank NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an early copy to review.

Police Officer Lindsay Jackman, still grieving from losing her partner to suicide, must investigate a murder on her own for the first time. A young woman is found at the bottom of a remote ravine. As Jackman widens her investigation, she learns that the young woman was writing a book on a well-known wellness guru who is at the center of an almost-cult like organization catering to the millions of women who believe her teachings.

This book was hard to get into because the author wrote the opening chapters of unrelated material before introducing Lindsay Jackman and the murder victim. All of the early material was depressing and not particularly interesting. However, once Jackman is introduced, the author became focused and the early material then made more sense and the book became more interesting. However, a complicated plot and lots of characters introduced over the course of the book couldn’t be sustained by the lackluster writing. Had the author focused on his lead character, Lindsey Jackman, he might have been able to pull this one off. But alas….

My thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for an eARC.

This was a different story. I didn't think I would like it, turns out I did very much. Solving crimes and getting cult members to talk is my kind of good