Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I really enjoyed this book going into it, but the ending kind of fell off for me. I really enjoyed the twist of this book, but it felt rushed and did not make much sense to me. I think that there were several plot holes in regards to some of the characters. Overall, the book was not bad, but it was not my favorite either.

This book was different from any other book that I've read. We read chapters of a mystery that Hannah is writing in Australia. They are each followed by an email message from Leo who is in the USA to Hannah with suggestions that he has for her to make her book better. A character in the mystery is writing a book about a murder that took. place in a library. We are led to believe that the murder took place while the author was seated at a table with 3 other people that she didn't know. She makes these people characters in her book. So Sulari wrote this book about someone writing a book about someone writing a book. Twists and turns until we find out who the murderer is. Leo's email messages to Hannah get progressively stranger.

Ok wow! I really loved how this book pulled the along and kept me guessing. At first I didn’t like the secondary story line but then it added a level of suspense to the primary story and I couldn’t get enough. Only complaint is the ending left me with more questions and I just really want to know the answer!

What a nesting doll of a story! A novel about writing a novel about writing a novel! We open with a letter from Leo Johnson to author Hannah Tygone, offering feedback on her most recent work. Their communication continues throughout, chapter by chapter, as events play out in both the "real" world and the "fictional" story. While the meat of plot is contained within that fictional story, the letters exchanged between author and beta reader make for their own well crafted plot.

The meat of the story is so intelligently written. Four unlikely people are brought together when they hear a woman's scream in the library one afternoon, and relationships are forged when she is later found murdered. I highly recommend for fans of atmospheric reads or complex mysteries like the Silent Patient.

First, the cover of this book is great and it makes the whole book intriguing. Overall, this book wasn't great but it wasn't bad either. The premise of the book is this is a story within a story. Part of the story is fictitious and part is about a supposed crime that was occurring, but I found the different plots lines hard to keep straight especially when they crossed over. I think what the writer was doing was clever but ultimately, I found it difficult to get into and follow along clearly. I love the play on words of the name of one of the characters and I did like that the cast of characters was ultimately fairly small.

The reading room of the Boston Public Library is known for its complete silence, that is until the quiet is shattered by a terrified woman's screams. While the scream is being investigated, 4 strangers, who happened to be at the same table strike up conversation. Fast friendships are formed.

Written as a story within a story, which I think detracted from the main story. The side story of the letters between Leo and Freddie could have been totally removed and it wouldn't have changed anything. I feel like it was only there to bring up things like the pandemic and Black Lives Matter without actually talking about them. It was very off putting.

As a Bostonian, I wanted to love this, but besides the weird references to certain places throughout the city, I wasn't really invested.

Thank You to NetGalley for the free e-galley

I absolutely loved the premise for the book--four strangers sitting at a table in the library when they hear a scream. Later, a woman is discovered dead, and we're told one of them is the murderer. But what's not evident from the blurb is that this is really a book within a book. Between chapters, we have letters between the fictional author of the mystery and her beta reader, providing her insight into life in America. This aspect of the book reminded of the beloved Magpie Murders, though less involved and more brief. Ultimately, I found the plot creative, the characters interesting, and the interspersion of letters extremely compelling. There's something a little bit off about the voice, where it doesn't feel as smooth as it could be. A voice where you remember you're reading a book instead of being in the moment. But the rest of the elements were so stellar, a slight dislike of the style does not dissuade me from whole-heartedly recommending this fresh new mystery.

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for my eARC and finished copy! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

5 stars - 8/10

The Woman in the Library begins with a scream and leads the four main characters, seated next to each other in a library reading room, to begin chatting. Unlikely friendships develop, and the lives of the four strangers become increasingly intertwined. I liked how each character was slowly revealed, and the depth and attention the author gave each one. They all felt interesting and necessary. The story is interspersed with letters to the author from a source, and these letters, like the story, grow darker and more complex as the book nears its end. I’d recommend this one to thriller readers and those who like a character study. Five stars. I was provided an ARC of this novel for review.

I read such mixed reviews on this book but I was hopeful I'd be part of the group that loves it. Unfortunately, I gave up around the quarter mark! The storyline was plain confusing. What irked me the most was how these 4 people became best buds instantaneously. So unrealistic!

DNF at 25%. It was a little slow for me with unrelatable characters and plot. It is a story within a story.

The Woman in the Library was on my most anticipated release of the year list and I am incredibly thankful to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this one!
In this novel, we are following Hannah as she writes a murder mystery set in Boston. With her plans of researching IN Boston have been thwarted, she relies on a peer/fan who lives there to be her scout. As the reader, we are experiencing multiple dimensions all wrapped into one tale.
Honestly, this book was CONFUSING. A book within a book can be done but in this instance, I had such a hard time separating the fictional book from what the true story was. Her correspondence with her Boston peer did not add any clarity to the story, and could have been left out all together. I couldn't get into any of the character lines because I couldn't push past my confusion! If this had not been an ARC, I would have DNF'd it without a doubt.

I loved the back and forth from the story to the emails from Leo. As each part moved along, you could feel the tension growing and the situation escalating. Very well done, kept me engaged the whole time.

It took me a while to get through this one - because of all the sensory interruptions! Apart from the multi-layered story within a story plot, the descriptions of the numerous trips to local coffee houses and the vegetarian meal preps would trigger a hunger response in me and off I'd go to the kitchen!

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This book appeals on all levels: the Boston Public Library, which the author describes in enticing detail, is now on my list of places I need to see BIKTB. Bookish people and wannabe writers will appreciate the discussion of the mechanics of writing a novel/thriller. Loads of misdirection, and not one but TWO budding romantic relationships - and, oh no! one of them, according to Freddie, is a KILLER!!! (This blind-siding clue is tossed at the reader very early on in the narrative, so no spoilers here.)

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Essentially, the author is having fun with all of the "tropes" and writing devices available to a professional story-teller. And to make things even more interesting, the main character (who is a celebrated author) has an Avid Fan. (Or is he really a delusional stalker? Hmmmmm!)

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Freddie, Marigold, Whit and Cain band together to solve the murder of a fellow library patron. Everyone is a suspect - heck, I even suspected Freddie! Things get complicated when these amateur sleuths become the main suspects in the case. In self-defense, they decide to sift through the evidence and clues that the police are so obviously oblivious to!

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What an action-packed, satisfying ending! Was that a cliff hanger, or yet again the blatant use of a standard trope? I suppose your guess is as good as mine, because this is my first read by this author - but not my last. The totally engrossing storytelling and the four attractive main characters kept me turning the page right to the very end. A very clever tale, indeed! Spoiler alert: (I'm giving this 4.4 rating, rounded down to a 4 because of that ending that had me scratching my head about who was the real author of this entire narrative... and did Sulari Gentill manage to pull her ruse off?.)

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

The Woman in the Library is a very cleverly layered, suspenseful contemporary mystery. The plot is excellent and kept me guessing up till the end. Character development is not exceptional but the plot, pacing and creative presentation carry the day.

While I enjoy the opportunity to read and review books on Netgalley, I did not enjoy this book at all.
The plot was silly. The fact that the characters became so close after meeting one day was not believable. The book within a book was confusing at parts. I just could not get into this book and put it down to read others. Sorry not a fan.

i really wanted to like this as i am a fun of whodunnits, 'confined' settings, and books that have to do with libraries. alas, i absolutely could not stand the book within a book format. they really ruined the experience for me, and the compliments that the person paid to the 'book' we were also reading were really cringe (on the lines of we read a chapter ending in a cliffhanger or whatever and the next one will have this character, who is reading this work-in-progress book, comment on how brilliant/clever that ending was). yikes.

I really loved the format of this book. Often with.a book within a book story we get only part of the book, but this one contains an entire novel within the framework of letters received by that fictional book’s author reminding us it’s a novel. The mystery within the novel and the subplot within the letters were both interesting. While I did have a good idea who was really guilty my other suspect was equally suspect and I loved the little twist at the end. The characters were interesting but they could have been better rounded out. That being said I really liked Freddie the best. I did wonder why the author of the novel in the novel Hannah was writing with her pen pal. I would have liked to know how he became a beta reader for a famous author. In general this was a story I could not put down and finished in one day as stopping was not an option.

There are plenty of suspects, bodies and subplots in this whodunnit, along with a bit of romance. As someone in the book attests, romance must be in every novel, even a thriller. Thanks NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press and the author for the advanced readers copy I was provided.

The woman in the kitchen…

made the perfect frittata. It was delicious and everyone had a great time.

Shrouded in mystery and a terrifying scream, The Woman in the Library did not have such an auspicious start. When four strangers find themselves sitting across from each other in the Boston Public Library a terrifying scream shatters the quiet tranquility. The murder that follows bounds the four together as they try to unravel the mystery of the screaming woman, and readers know that one of them is the murderer.

Sulari Gentill has written a rather unique murder mystery that just missed the mark for me. The one thing that kept me turning the pages was trying to piece together the author’s very intentional plot structure which centers not just around the main character, which sounds strange in itself, but it’s uniqueness is one of the shining attributes that I don’t wish to spoil.
Ultimately though, the actual mystery piece to it was lost in the shuffle. It felt like the author was trying to throw everything in, hoping that something would stick while having some incredibly poignant things to say about current affairs.
Also, the characters did not make the best life decisions. It felt like certain liberties were being taken in order to propel the plot forward and it sort of drove me batty. There I said it.

The Woman in Library by Sulari Gentill wasn’t quite what I was expecting. The review is allusive on purpose because it is in fact a mystery within a mystery. It would be perfect for a book club dissection (I mean discussion). I gave it a 3⭐️ rating.

Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

Four strangers are in the Boston Public Library when they all heard a woman scream. As they sit and wait until the police lets them leave, they begin conversing and start up friendships that drive the story.
Winifred (Freddie) Kincaid is in Boston as a result of winning the Marriott Scholarship. She is an aspiring author currently working on a mystery book. She becomes friendly with Marigold, Whitt and Cain. She uses these real people in her novel with nicknames “Freud Girl”, “Heroic Chin” and “Handsome Man”. They all get caught up in the mystery of the woman in the library who screamed and was later found dead. Who had connections to her? Who has secrets they are hiding? Why were these 4 people in the library that day?
The author implies in the first chapter that one of them is the murderer. As I was reading, my opinion of who it was changed frequently. The author certainly kept you guessing right up to the end.
The set up by the author was very clever and interesting. It left me a bit confused at first until I understood what was happening. You feel like you are reading three different books at times. She included the novel that the fictional author was writing, letters that this author received from a beta reader, and the Australian author, Hannah, who has to write from Australia due to COVID restrictions.
If you like a good mystery that keeps you guessing until the end, this novel fits the bill. The chapters are short, each one ending with the email from Leo, the beta reader, who loves to offer unsolicited advice to Hannah.
Thank you to both NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the advanced copy of The Woman in the Library in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.