I genuinely enjoyed this book, mostly because Gentill’s prose is compelling and lovely. As usual for me, I didn’t solve the mystery because I’m the world’s worst detective, but I do always appreciate when it’s hard to decipher but all the clues are there for you to put together if you pay attention (and are smarter than me), which was definitely the case here.

For some reason, I thought this was going to be more of a locked-room story, so I was confused when I started but I’m glad it turned out to be more expansive. I didn’t enjoy the narrative choice of the letters because it didn’t add much to the story in my opinion, and I think the arc of the fiction part was a more cohesive tale. But I did appreciate the attempt by the author to try something new.

I did love the parallels between a character stating that everyone writes romance, and this having a solid romance storyline without taking away from the main action. And I appreciated the author did the research to make this almost perfect in its Boston representation (almost because no way does any Bostonian casually drive to Walmart). All in all, I found this to be an fun and captivating read!

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the ARC!

Thank you to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This story has a very interesting format and was more meta than I was expecting from reading the synopsis. The story you're reading of 4 strangers meeting in a library after a woman screams (and then eventually is found dead) is actually a novel being written, though you never really meet the author. Additionally, you get excerpts of a man writing critique feedback to the author after each chapter.

There are a lot of cool discussions in this book about the process of writing a book and the important decisions you have to make (i.e. Do you include the pandemic in a contemporary story? What does it mean if you don't? What does it mean if you don't address the race of a character? etc.), so if you're particularly interested in the art of writing then you may enjoy this one even more.

I enjoyed this story, but I had a bit of trouble feeling fully connected to it for a few reasons:

1. I thought this was going to be a locked room mystery (one of my favorite tropes) but it turns out to be more of a runaway train style story. The characters leave the library very soon after the scream, but they stay connected for the coming weeks as more threats are introduced into their lives. I had trouble buying into the idea of these strangers staying connected after a very brief encounter, and it made the story feel a bit directionless because I didn't feel a center of gravity to the story pulling them all together.

2. Because of the nature of the story being that you're reading what is presumably a first draft of a novel that a character is writing, it felt a bit incomplete as a story, even though it takes up the bulk of the novel (Are you tracking? I know, the meta stuff is a bit confusing haha.) If you remove the meta nature of it and the feedback letters from another character (which develops its own subplot) it doesn't feel fully developed as a mystery/thriller story.

3. I was left feeling unsatisfied by the end. As I mentioned, there is a subplot developed with the person who is giving critique notes at the end of each chapter and I expected that to have a little bit more significance in the story by the end. You also never really get much of a sense of the character who is writing the novel, and I was expecting her character to have a little more significance as well.

All that being said, I still enjoyed reading this one and think it was a fine story. I would pick something up from this author again.

Featured in this reading vlog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eV4woq8_0E

This is a brilliant thriller. It begins in Boston university library when four strangers happen to be together when a scream is heard in the library. Freddie is a female Australian graduate student, Freddie, Marigold, Cain and Whit begin an unlikely friendship based around the murder of Caroline. Was it her who screamed or was it a coincidence? The four start to look into what happened. Freddie begins to have a close relationship with Cain. He had been in prison and everything points to him being the killer. Freddie herself is not sure so starts looking at the other two. Whit is from an old and wealthy Boston family. Marigold just wants to be a good friend to Freddie and is attracted to Whit.
Leo is the person Freddie contacts with her theories He asks if Cain is black which would have made him more likely to be considered as the murderer. We are never told this by Freddie and Leo’s comments are an odd intervention to the story. The ending is very violent as the murderer is a dangerous psychopath.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for the opportunity for review. My review opinion is my own. I was intrigued by the premise of this book which reminds me of the best mysteries of the late great Agatha Christie. I was not disappointed. This is a fascinating story of four strangers in the Boston Library brought together by a murder. Unable to leave they bond under these strange circumstance and everyone becomes a suspect. Each very different yet they find commonalities among themselves. The sleuth was intriguing and kept me turning pages into the night. Very well done mystery with wonderful charcters. I highly recommend this book for your reading enjoyment.

Such a fun twisty read! This is a novel within a novel, and both are quite good. I love the character of Freddie (Winifred) and her new friends, Marigold, Whit, and Cain. They meet thanks to a scream in the Boston Public Library. Each have some secrets they are hiding from each other, some more dangerous than others. . . I don't want to say too much more about either plot, because I don't want to ruin it for anyone. Just read the book - it's good!

"In every person's story, there is something to hide...

The ornate reading room at the Boston Public Library is quiet, until the tranquility is shattered by a woman's terrified scream. Security guards take charge immediately, instructing everyone inside to stay put until the threat is identified and contained. While they wait for the all-clear, four strangers, who'd happened to sit at the same table, pass the time in conversation and friendships are struck. Each has his or her own reasons for being in the reading room that morning—it just happens that one is a murderer."

Thanks to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I had a really great time with this book! And that cover is stunning. Having lived and worked and attended grad school in Boston for about 3 years, it was fun to read a book (within a book) that was set there. Obviously the real interest of this book is the format, with the emails from Leo escalating to a terrifying point, and the way that the author of the book-within-the-book uses her draft chapters to try to aid the authorities in capturing Leo. It's a really neat idea, and I think that Gentill pulls it off really well. The mystery in the manuscript is also quite engaging, although ultimately I don't think it really did it for me in terms of writing style. However, that was easy to overlook because I was hooked on the mystery (mysteries, I should say). I'll be buying this for my library and I'm really hoping patrons pick it up! I'm in NH, so anything with a New England connection usually stirs up some interest.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher for an advance reader's copy of this book.

Mysteries and thrillers rarely work well for me, but I found this one to be clever and engaging and most of all just a lot of fun. I thought the story-within-a-story would feel too gimmicky and take me out of the mystery, but I really enjoyed how it progressed and found the structure to be pretty smart. I love an epistolary novel, so the frame story being in letters also made me happy. I could pick at a few flaws, but I'm just going to enjoy the fact that I had fun reading a mystery.

This was... not for me. If it wasn't an arc, I might have DNF'd it around 20%. The one positive is that it was reasonably fast-paced.

The beginning was slow and wasn't at all like I expected. I thought they were going to remain stuck in the library until they found the murderer but they left almost immediately.
The book within a book didn't work for me. It really confused me at first and later just didn't like it.
I didn't enjoy the emails from Leo. I felt like it took away from the story.
It was predictable, especially the mystery. Although, I didn't 100% know who the killer was until the end.
I didn't find it relatable/realistic that these 4 strangers became instant friends to the point of having a sleepover after barely knowing each other. I'd never invite someone I don't really know to sleepover at my house.
I didn't care about any of the characters. Leo, in his emails, kept saying that he loved Marigold and I just didn't relate. Marigold creeped me out. She's supposed to be likable but I just couldn't with the fact that she stalked Whit and it was never addressed nor seen as a problem. It made me uncomfortable.
Freddie and Cain's romance wasn't good. I hated that in every chapter there was some sort of miscommunication.
The ending, and/or the reveal, was boring and anticlimactic.
Overall, was it good? No. Did I like it? Not really. Is it forgettable? Yes. Do I think others might enjoy it? Possibly.

Book Review:

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentil

I loved this book! It's like a story within a story within a story! Four strangers meet in the Boston Public Library and are brought together when a murder occurs while they are there. Freddie is a writer herself and uses her new friends and situation as the basis for her new novel, but where does reality stop and fiction begins? Then the story you're reading are actually chapters of the "authors" new novel and each chapter ends with emailed notes from a friend (who is also a character in the book), but the friend's story gets more and more intriguing as well.

There's a lot going on, but this book is so well crafted and I couldn't put it down. If you need a shot of intrigue and mystery to shake up your TBR, this is the book!

Thank you @netgalley and @sourcebooks for this Advanced Reader.

Make sure to catch The Woman in the Library when it releases June 7th!!

#BookReview #Bookstagram #SulariGentill #TheWomanInTheLibrary #Sourcebooks #BookishLife #reading #InstaBooks #BookPhotography #BookRecommendations #Bibliophile #GirlsWhoRead #BookNerd #ThrillerBooks #MysteryBooks

Overall, I enjoyed this book & would rate it 4 stars.

The characters were cool, the story interesting, if not a tad far-fetched, but I can easily deal with that.

I kept guessing the perpetrator, but was wrong! That was a fun twist.

I do have to mention that I did not fully understand or felt the need of including a couple of the side characters, which did not seem to really anything to the story and if anything, make it a little convoluted.

Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC!

Reading The Woman in the Library felt like curling up by the fire on a cool night to play a rousing game of Clue or to dive deep into an Agatha Christie novel. There was a library (obviously 😆), a woman’s scream, various suspects and a writer trying to solve the so called murder mystery.

What made this story unique was the cleverly formatted way of telling the story. A story within a story if you will.

The chapter endings left me wanting to read more, the characters had me becoming more suspicious, and the back story had me intrigued.

I love when an author leaves little nods to other books or shows I love, so when there was mention of Stephen King and Criminal Minds, my eyes lit up like a Christmas tree 😁.

Overall I enjoyed this one and I give it ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

NEW FAVOURITE AUTHOR ALERT!!!

If, like me, you have no idea what a ‘locked room mystery’ is, fret not because Sulari Gentill is here to teach you just that, but in reverse. Yes, you heard that right! This is a reverse locked room mystery, cleverly set in an epistolary format.

Hannah, an Australian writer starts a correspondence with her Boston based writer friend, Leo Johnson, in order to get more information about Boston where she is apparently setting her new novel - a murder mystery. Leo is a highly enthusiastic friend who is more than eager to help Hannah while struggling to publish his first book alongside. As Hannah keeps sharing her manuscript with Leo, chapter by chapter, she realises that Leo is taking a suspiciously dangerous interest in her work.

But that’s not it! Hannah’s manuscript is the story nested within Hannah and Leo’s story, and has an even larger presence. Four strangers sitting next to each other in the Boston Public Library are united by fate when they hear a woman scream in the library. The police finds a body of a woman later in the night who is later linked to the four strangers, now turned friends, which makes one of them the murderer.

There is a very fine line between the real and fictional stories, as characters, and situations, jump off from one to another, making the plot both chilling and fascinating. Gentile’s writing is clever and latches on to the reader’s mind. The one-sided emails from Leo to Hannah were brilliantly crafted and in my opinion, are the backbone of this thrilling book. I promise that I’m going to dig into this writer’s previous works and also put her on my radar for any future works.

Okay, so if I loved it too much, why not rate it at a 5 🌟? One, I didn’t like the romances brewing in the manuscript. Unlike Leo, I don’t think all books are basically romances hidden in other genres - No sir! I can make my peace with one love story, but putting two of those is outrageous. Second, the fictional Leo Johnson’s role in the manuscript remains undisclosed. We are made to believe he is up to something shady, as in the real story, but the climax of the manuscript was abrupt. I wanted to know how much freedom does an author have when they’re closer to the climax. Can they change storylines, or characterisations, based on what’s happening in the world around them, or are they at times forced to go along with the initially conceived idea? Hannah knew what Leo was up to - we see a change in the fictional Leo’s demeanour, but what was Hannah planning to do with him in the end? Can we have a sequel please?

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for this incredible ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Publication Date: June 7th, 2022.

4.25/5🌟.

TW: Murder, or better-said serial killings, sexual assault, and substance abuse.

trigger warning
<spoiler> stalking, domestic violence, rape attempt, trauma, grief, homelessness, mental illness </spoiler>

Four strangers get to know each other in an unforgettable way: They sit next to each other in the Reading Room of the Boston Public Library when they hear a woman's scream - and then, later in the day, a corpse is found and they become witnesses.

A story of three layers: We have an Australian author who writes this book, and is in communication with a Bostonian who is able to do some fact-checking and beta-reading for her. Then the story they're talking about, with the woman in the library and the four strangers who become friends - and of course, the first-person-narrator is also a novelist, an Australian, in Boston because she won a scholarship with room and board for a year, and we get glimpses of the book she's writing.

I had no easy time getting into this and by the end, I still wasn't a big fan.
There is a distance between reader and characters, and the only one that felt real was the beta-reader from layer 1, and he was increasingly becoming creepy until we get further involvement from other parties.

Layer 2 in parts felt like the author was unsure themselves who was the person responsible, casting doubt on everyone and I guess you could say it's down to the first person narrator perspective and Freddy becoming increasingly confused and unsure about whom to trust.

I guess it was an okay read, all in all.
Probably won't read more by this author and would only recommend it if you really, really want to read a mystery set in Boston or starting off with the library meeting.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

A well written mystery with great characters, a creative approach, and a unique premise. A story within a story about a novelist who is receiving written feedback at the end of each chapter as she writes about a couple of novelists who are caught up in a crime drama. Well developed characters, unexpected twists and the intriguing approach kept me reading late into the night. Highly recommended

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for an advanced readers copy.

Four strangers' paths cross in the Reading Room of the Boston Public Library after a shrill-scream-turned-murder rattles their worlds. Little did they know, one of them would turn out to be the killer.

The story weaves in and out of narrator, Freddie's, point of view amidst the aftermath of the mysterious library murder, as well as author Hannah's email exchange with beta reader and friend, Leo, providing feedback on her novel as it unfolds.

I enjoyed the the story within a story concept and how the emails unfolded with just as much of a head-tilt-intrigue as the murder mystery itself.

The Woman in the Library is fast-paced and sucked me in right away. I found myself wanting to come back over and over to finish the story because there were so many different ways I tried piecing together the whodunit.

While I overall loved the writing style of the author and enjoyed the book as a whole, I was somewhat disappointed in the way things panned out - though I think mostly because it felt rushed in the end. However, I'd still recommend this story for anyone with a love for mysteries. And I hope to read more from this author in the future!

I've rated this one 3.5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley & Poisoned Pen Press for an advanced e-copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I got really bored, really fast. I skimmed most of it. It just wasn’t for me. And the additional letter storyline seemed distracting.

The layers of this book were so fascinating that I found myself searching while reading for any hint to the other layers. Leo being present in both the “real” and “fictional” stories made for a twisty and suspenseful ride as you tried to determine what traits were hints and what were simply artistic license. And, as time passes, both stories grow more and more complex and frantic until they come to a head all at once.

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC for this novel. I really enjoyed it.

At first, I rolled my eyes and couldn't decide if I wanted to continue, but I realized I just needed to read a little more. It starts out a little cheesy, but quickly evolves into a more well written and detailed read.

Then I COULDN'T STOP. I obsessively read this one, and I haven't found a book like that in quite some time.

Be prepared for layers as in it's a story within a story within a story. It isn't as complicated as it sounds, but it really made it more interesting than a standard mystery story.

The Woman in the Library is a breath of fresh air in the form of an original twist on the classic mystery/thriller. A scream in the Boston Public Library draws four strangers together in a shocking whodunnit that has a story in a story. The main arc revolves around Freddie who is a young Australian writer visiting the USA to research a thriller she is trying to write. The scream in the Library introduces her to writer Cain, rich boy/failing law student, Whit, and Psych student Marigold. Freddie sparks a friendship with each of the colorful characters and uses them for inspiration for her story. They all have secrets that unfold slowly to Freddie until the surprising reveal of the real villain. In the background there is a story running between the author of the main story and an increasingly unstable critic of her work. Suspenseful and entertaining, the story drives at break-neck speed to a shocking conclusion. Sulari Gentill is another addition to my must read shelf. My voluntary, unbiased review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

From the enigmatic Emily Dickinson quote on page one to the startling conclusion, The Woman in the Library, by Sulari Gentill, is an engaging and entertaining literary cozy mystery.
Hannah Tigone, a successful author in Australia, is writing a novel set in Boston. Her fellow writer and casual acquaintance, Leo, lives in Boston and, through their email correspondence, becomes her de facto researcher of landmarks and colloquialisms of the area. This sets the stage to launch the cleverly executed “book within a book”.
The author beautifully weaves the mystery novel’s story of murder at the Boston Public library and its characters with the “real-life” critiques by and musings of Leo, even finding him a spot as a character in the book. As this is a mystery, there are murders, characters with secrets, and questionable motivations, with a bit of a love story included.
In the mystery novel, Winifred is the likeable Aussie writer protagonist who tells the story from her first person POV. The other three main characters are interesting and believable, and contribute to the forward movement of the plot. But the standout character is Leo—his appearance is left to the reader’s imagination, but his observations and pithy commentary at the end of each chapter all add to his fascinating characterization as a “super-fan” and, perhaps, someone more sinister.
I recommend this book to readers who like intelligent, accomplished writing while they enjoy a cozy mystery, with the added pleasure of the literary device of the “book within a book”. This novel was a pleasure to read and review, and I will seek out more of Ms. Gentill’s books.

Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my unbiased review.

4.5 stars