A mystery within a mystery. Story within a story. That concept and the authors ability to weave together these stories is well done. Beautiful cover that caught my attention immediately. I wanted a little more out of it. Felt a little flat but there are some beautiful lines throughout the book. 3.5 stars out of 4 but rating 4 as we don’t get half stars.

Setting - library
Plot - woman screams and ends up dead
Characters - all four heard them while meeting for the first time at this library

This one was a wild ride filled will twists and turns. I enjoyed it.

I hadn't anticipated the myster(ies)y to turn out so amazingly freaky & astute. What in the world was that!! How can she take my heart out (not entirely literally, though)?

This bizarre crime story was everything I hoped for & didn't actually anticipate to be so wonderfully unputdownable. A puzzle within a puzzle with such a story-telling style is something I have never read earlier. So before choosing this one, know that you have to be ready to be totally ruined! ;)

Some adjectives to express this narrative are striking, quirky, twisty & clever. The writer definitely created a lovely view of Boston. I relished it simply sitting in another land in my residence (Boston visit pending since 2020, gratitude Covid). I wish the book is transformed into a film; I'm confident it'll be impressive.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author & publisher, for supplying me with an e-ARC. I'm voluntarily leaving this review in exchange for the complimentary copy.

4.5 Stairs to The Woman in the Library. This book was a story within a story, which was unexpected and so interesting! The heart of this book is a locked room-type mystery; there's a scream in the library and later a woman turns up dead - how did she get there? We follow the budding friendships of four strangers as they try to crack the case. And that's all I will say to avoid spoilers. :)

I thought this was cleverly written and I really enjoyed it. Definitely pick this up if you like classic crime or locked room mysteries!

I loved the story within a story concept, which really kept me curious and guessing throughout the whole book. The storyline felt really unique and I found myself wanting to avoid other things to continue reading it to find out what happened, which is always a good sign!

Wonderfully enjoyable. I found this to be a mystery inside a mystery. Adored the characters who started as strangers hearing a scream and became friends to solve the mystery. The plot moved flawlessly quickly. A good clean mystery . A whirlwind of twist and turns right up to the end. Addicting to see what comes next. As one mystery seems solved, another appears.

Brilliant summer read.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced edition in exchange for my honest views.

The Woman In the Library is a fun murder mystery (my favorite genre) that will keep you guessing. I love the setting and this who dunnit will have you guessing till the end with the blurred lines and great characters!
Thank you #NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A murder in a library? My kind of book. I was really looking forward to this one and thought that the plot of the book was imaginative and alluring however the story within a story, within a story, was not a narrative choice that I was interested in. I do think for many that this will be different and more appealing to other readers.

The desire to find out who did it did make me keep turning the page.

A so close to enjoying kind of book for me!

Thank you to NetGalley, and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!

While the way it was told was a bit odd, an author writing a book about an author, it was a really good book. I was a bit disappointed that it ended as it did (was THAT Leo a good person or a bad one?!?) but overall it was enjoyable with several twists and turns to keep you on your toes. I’d definitely recommend this book!

The Woman in the Library is a great story being written by a woman in Australia who communicates with a man here in the US. She is asking him for details about the Boston Library because her story is placed there. As the story continues the back and forth between them get a little more stalker vibe. Helen, the writer, has a story about four strangers sitting in the library where we hear a scream. There is no body to be found but their friendship starts here. The next day in the papers there is news of a body under a table in the room. The four reconnect to solve the mystery of the dead body. It was a book I read in 2 days. The author made the characters next door types, ones you can relate to and no one who you think can be the killer. It was a little back and forth between emails and the writers story but it was easy to follow, The dialogue was great, the pace was easy and the story was suspenseful. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to more books by Sulari Gentill.

📚BOOK REVIEW📚

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

When four people are bonded by a murder, does the bond make them blinded that one of them may have done it?

This story…wow! I’ll be honest, I almost put it down because I was not loving the format initially. It goes between story and correspondence, and the correspondence didn’t feel like it fit. However, about 1/3 of the way through the book it starts to make sense, and really adds to the story. So if you’re like me, don’t give up on it!

This story twisted, turned, and all of it propelled the plot and made sense. I didn’t feel like there were twists for the sake of twists. Fantastic mystery! Definitely recommend!

Thank you to @netgalley for the chance to read this! @sularigentill this was wonderful!

This ultra-meta murder-mystery novel is about a writer writing about a writer writing a murder-mystery novel. See? Super meta!

Winifred "Freddie" McKaid is from Australia, but living in Boston after winning a prestigious writer's fellowship. While researching her current work-in-progress at the Boston Library, she hears a blood curdling scream. Sitting near her are Cain, Whit, and Marigold. After a woman's dead body is discovered in the library, the four patrons form a close friendship as the race to find "whodunit" begins. All three of Freddie's new friends have secrets that take the mystery in interesting directions--most of all Cain, who Freddie starts to fall for. Is she falling for a killer?

Interspersed within this narrative, are letters from Leo, a fan and critic of Australian writer Hannah, who is writing the story about Winifred. Leo's commentary about Hannah's writing starts out observant and constructive, yet as the story within a story unfolds, his letters become more erratic and unhinged. Is there a murder mystery happening with Leo in addition to the murder mystery Hannah is writing about?

If this sounds confusing, it is. As much as I found the structure inventive, it's also convoluted at times. I never really warmed to Freddie, as her character seemed pretty wishy-washy and the romance between her and Cain lacked a significant foundation for the eventual declarations of love. I wasn't too interested in the mastery element either. The storyline definitely have twists and turns, but I felt like a lot of the "clues" were repeated again and again slowing down the overall pace of the story. The Leo/Hannah narrative didn't really serve much purpose, either. Leo's descent into madness seemed to happen rather quickly and seemed more like a whimper than a true "aha moment."

The relationships, mystery, and resolution weren't strong enough to keep me on the edge of my seat waiting for the end. That said, mystery/thrillers aren't my favorite reading genre, so if they are yours, you might enjoy this novel. Please don't discount it based on my reservations.

I will say, though, I listened to part of the audiobook and narrator Katherine LIttrell is wonderful! She switches from an Australian accent to a Southern accent to no accent with amazing ease. Well done!

All in all, I gave this one a 3.5/5. The structure is creative, the characters can be interesting at times, and I did like the idea of a scream in a library being the catalyst for a murder mystery. However, lackluster characters and a so-so mystery kept it from being a keeper for me.

Thanks to @netgalley for the gifted eBook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really good book within a book within a...well, it has a lot going on. So, the fan letters were something I thought just didn't belong...until I realized how they belonged. This is a who dun it set in a library and no one can understand why a woman was killed so close to them and no one saw it.
So, it can get confusing in trying to figure out what is the story and what is real life and what is even more real life? Great characters (I say with a grin) with a little eerie creepy vibe going on! Read it! I loved every minute of this page turning book! I can't wait to see what Gentill comes up with next.



Thank you NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this title in exchange for my review.

This is an interesting mystery centered on the relationships between four people, two women and two men, formed after they hear a scream while in the reading room at the Boston Public Library. Later, a woman is found murdered in a nearby room. We are set for a murder mystery as the narrator tells us one of those four is a murderer.

Th plot is complex and layered. At the center is Freddie, Winifred, who is from Australia and in Boston on a writing scholarship. She is the narrator of the events precipitating from that life changing experience in the library. Outside of that plot aspect, we find the library event and subsequent events are, in fact, part of a novel written by Hannah Tigone. She lives in Australia and because of travel restrictions, cannot be in Boston where her novel takes place. Her ongoing work is being reviewed and critiqued by Leo, Boston writer with whom she has struck up a correspondence. The narrative is generally a scene from Hannah's novel and then a response from Leo.

There are layers of mystery uncovered as Hannah's novel develops. Previous relationships are uncovered, some with respect to the murdered woman. Previous actions are revealed casting suspicion on one of the four, one of the men. Another murder happens and then an attack and all the evidence seems to point to the one man as the murderer. The outer part of the plot becomes more complex when Hannah suspects Leo's information about murders might be more reality than fiction.

The end is a quick one with a very short resolution. It is the same for the inner story and the outer, letters to Hannah, story. I liked the novel and the story within a story plot. None of the characters really grabbed me as they seemed a bit flat. Nonetheless, I did find the novel entertaining.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Wow! This book was great! I kept turning the page to find out more and more was actually sad when it ended because I was so addicted!

Thank you for giving me access to an advanced copy NetGalley!

I was not expecting or prepared for what I read. A book within a book is the best way I can describe things.

It kept my attention and it was hard to put down. I needed to see the next page, then the next, then the next, then the... what do you mean it is over?

A thank you to Netgalley for sharing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Forgot to write the review, so been more than a minute since I read it, but I recall both liking the book and being disappointed by it. I liked the story within a story as well as the unique one of the stories being a written account of the book, yet at the same time it made things a bit more conveluted and difficult to be sure which was which (real or written.) Complex and uniquely crafted to be sure, but also irritating at times. Overall fun, but final thought, good, but not nearly dark enough. What that says about me...

This mystery starts out with four strangers sitting in a library after when they all hear a loud scream. Later, they find out that there was a murder and the four of them put their detective hats on to figure out what happened.

This book started off very slow for me and was a little difficult to get into. Though once I got to about halfway it picked up and I really was interested in knowing how it would all tie up. I’m not quite sure if the multiple layers of the story really added much to it, though I appreciate the attempt. I do also wish there was more character development so I could have been more invested in each of them.

They mystery itself was not predictable, but still ended with a realistic spin. Once the clues started dropping, the story stared to come together in a really intriguing way and kept my attention.

4 stars
A book within a book (within a book?) - what I call book-inception. If you can get past the initial confusion this causes, it was a fairly interesting read.

Thanks to netgalley and poisonedpenpress for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book had an interesting concept, one that I did enjoy. However, I found myself not super invested in any of the characters, and I predicted the plot twist pretty easily. While this wasn't a horrible book by any means it didn't put a super lasting impression in my mind.

The prose of this book was so compelling, and the characters kept me wondering what would happen next. Such a fun read, very engrossing!