Another sensational novel by the author. Eerie, haunting and immersive, the characters really drew me into this novel.

After a traumatic home invitation, Neve needs to escape with her daughter, to escape the horror back to her hometown, leaving her husband behind.But shortly after their arrival, a body is found in the lake near the home she is staying in and it stirs up old memories for Neve. She isn't the only one haunted by her past. Detective Jess Lambert is tasked with the murder investigation, only having just returned to work after suffering a great loss herself, the trauma still close by.

In the the author's true style, there were lots of questions looming as the story went along, keeping the suspense high. While I usually like some clue as to the basic elements involved in a novel in the blurb, this was still thoroughly enjoyable and I could not put it down.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for this gifted review copy.

I wanted to like this book but it was a DNF for me. The twist really didn't work for me- I'm not a fan of supernatural elements in books. It took me out of the whole story.

These Still Black Waters is the first book in a new series by Christina McDonald. I have read all of this author’s book and love them all, so I was excited to read this one but it was not what I expected but in a good way. It is different from her other books, you think you know what is happening but something else entirely is going on. I loved this book and can’t wait for the second book in the series. Thank you Netgalley for my arc.

I really enjoyed this book. A woman and her daughter take a vacation and things go awry. There are different POVs that kept me guessing and wanting more. I enjoyed the short chapters and found it easy to say “just one more chapter” until it was way past my bedtime.

Thank you Christina McDonald and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I did not realize this book was going to be a ghost / paranormal read. This book was a little far fetched and not what I usually read.

Christina McDonald is highly skilled in the art of teeth-gritting, goosebump-giving suspense. Fans of domestic thrillers - you will like this one!

I just finished this ARC and holy smokes was it such a good way to end 2022. The suspense, grief, twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat the entire way through. I loved seeing different views throughout the story. I fell in love with Jess, the detective, and found myself really sympathizing with her. I’m extremely pumped that it sounds like her journey will not be done. I loved all the detail in the story and it really helped me picture it all so easily. This is a must read when it releases in August 2023!

5/5 ⭐️

A huge thank you to Net Galley, Thomas and Mercer and Christina McDonald for the opportunity to read this awesome novel.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

The writing was great- I felt like I could very easily visualize everything the author was writing. I can very easily see this book as a movie! That being said, I was a little disappointed with the ultimate twist. The build up was great, but finding out the “who” of what actually was going on left little to be desired. But all in all, it’s a great book that kept me on the edge of my seat & I couldn’t put it down. I will definitely read other books in this detective series should the be

I really enjoyed this, giving it an overall rating of 4 stars. It was suspenseful and fast-paced, touching on grief, revenge, and a little of the supernatural. This story follows a mother who moves back to her home town with her daughter after a violent home invasion, hoping that it will keep them from being found by the intruder who was never caught. However, when they arrive, more tragedy awaits. Our main character Neve soon begins to question if something more sinister is at play. We also get the point of view of Detective Jess Lambert, who is dealing with her own past and present issues and becomes a bit of an unreliable narrator. There were a few scenes that seemed to be a little overly descriptive and took away from the suspense and main plot in the story, but overall I highly recommend this book!

Being a fan of Christina McDonald I was excited to jump into this one. Interesting story, but without giving any spoilers I'll just say that it had elements that I'm not a fan of. That being said it was still intriguing and enjoyable. Not my favorite of hers but still a great read.

Thanks to Netgalley for my first ARC of "These Still Black Waters" by Christina McDonald. This was my first book by this author and won't be my last! Neve Maguire and her daughter Ash return to Neve's Summer childhood home after a brutal home invasion. Neve hopes to get away from the dangers of home but quickly realizes she made a mistake when a body is found. Lead investigator Jessica Lambert is on the hunt for the killer but how reliable are her witnesses?
This book was easy to read although I felt it was a bit repetitive in parts. Full of twists and parts that made you go hmmm? I would definitely put this on your tbr list for 2023!
Publication Date- August 8, 2023

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC. So as to not leave spoilers, I will simply say I really enjoyed this book and although it isn't what I would normally pick, I am glad I got a free copy. A solid 4 star read. Writing was good. Story line maybe a bit quirky, but a solid mystery.

Loved it! The suspense in this book is incredible! Someone is killing women. How are they connected, and who is next? This book kept me turning pages like crazy!

I absolutely love Christina McDonald’s books and her latest is a true gem! One twist after another kept me on the edge of my seat. The main character, Neve, returns to a lake house where she spent her summers growing up. A murder in the neighborhood sets off a series of events with some jaw-dropping twists! Highly recommend this book!

These Still Black Waters is a compelling thriller with unexpected twists by Christina McDonald, author of The Night Olivia Fell and Do No Harm. In this story we meet Jess, a detective who has recently endured a life-changing tragedy and is relying heavily on whiskey and vodka to help her cope. Jess is investigating the murder of Bailey, a beautiful but manipulative woman with a complicated past. Neve, Jess's most reliable witness, was one of Bailey's closest friends when they were teenagers but one devastating night tore their friendship apart. Jess has to uncover the secrets of their troubled past to solve the murder and to prevent any more lives from being taken by a killer intent on revenge.

I was drawn to this book when I read the synopsis and it ended up being a solid 4-4.5 star for me! The story is told through a few different viewpoints and it is done well. Without giving too much away, I thought the twist was well done. At first, I didn’t really love Detective Jess Lambert. I didn’t love her attitude, but by the end of the book she grew on me and I’m very interested to see what McDonald has in store for her in future novels. I will definitely be reading them!

Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for the ARC!

"We all carry our injuries, our dirty little secrets, burying them inside boxes we hide in the deepest, darkest parts of ourselves." Probably the first thing to say about this book is that, while the description doesn't mention them, this book uses supernatural elements. It's not my most loved genre, as I think real life throws up enough horror without needing to invent ghosts, but as far as it goes, this was reasonably well-handled. This is perhaps because it's balanced in the book by healthy skepticism about fantasy stories: "I never believed in Santa Claus. Never believed in God. I always though the task of these things was to soothe the young and plámás the old, to keep them hopeful, to stop their minds from caving into terror. Science now makes it impossible for any intelligent adult to believe in these things as literally true. I put my faith in science and data."

These Still Black Waters is the first Christina McDonald book I have read, but I wouldn't be adverse to delving into her back catalogue after enjoying this one. It's largely about living with the choices you make, bad or good, and not letting them define you: "I knew we could never go back to the way things were. Undoing damage like that is like trying to unscramble an egg." What McDonald is good at is describing the impacts of various events in a way that makes them easily explicable: "A home invasion, it turns out, is more about losing your sense of safety than about losing your stuff."

The dueling lead protagonists, Neve Maguire and Detective Jess Lambert, are both fallible and likeable humans, plagued by their respective pasts: "Memories I've locked away are stirring, clawing at me with sharp, pointed nails." The book touches upon their lived expertise of PTSD and grief, which according to Lambert "has a particular smell, like lightning strikes and burned paper". These Still Black Waters was an enjoyable out-of-genre last read of the year for me, devoured in just over two days.

I don’t want to give spoilers so here is the publishers blurb:

Neve Maguire returns with her daughter to Black Lake, her childhood summer home, hoping for a fresh start. But when the body of a woman is found floating among the reeds in the lake behind her house, she fears she has made a horrible mistake.

Neve is hiding secrets, though. Detective Jess Lambert can tell. Recently back after her own personal tragedy, Jess knows what it’s like to live with skeletons in your closet, and she’s sure Neve has a few of her own.

When another woman’s body is found, Jess and Neve are forced to confront a horrible truth. Because one thing is clear: the darkness of the past is waiting.

Oh boy, this one kept me on the edge of my seat with the suspense. It was fast paced and hard to put down. I really enjoyed how the story was told from Neve, Jess, and the killer’s perspectives. I always enjoy seeing things from different perspectives, especially that of the killer – and this book delivered. I would say that this one is thriller light, but heavy on the suspense. Normally I shy away from suspense but this one was so fast paced I didn’t lose interest. This one is fantastic and I can’t wait to read some of the authors others.

I can’t believe I have to wait until August 8th, 2023, to grab a physical copy of this one! Thank you to Thomas & Mercer, and @netgalley for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I didn’t like this book until I loved it at the end. The first 1/2 of it was hard for me to read. I wanted more of any character except Neve. The “mysteries” surrounding past events didn’t feel super suspenseful to me, but a little forced in the beginning.

As things picked up toward the second 1/2 and there was a bit more action, I found myself not wanting to put the book down. The last two chapters solidified a lot for me and had me in tears. It just really spoke to me as mother. Coming full circle in that manner, really bumped it for me and left me wanting to go back and re-read parts. The book itself deals with mystery, etc but more so with grief and pain and how it can unravel all of us in different ways.

I really liked the character of Jess and am excited at the possibility of a series devoted to her.

Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC and chance to review this book.

These Still Black Waters by Christina McDonald A slow-moving domestic thriller with supernatural aspects scattered throughout, which occasionally caused confusion. Had difficulty in empathizing with the characters. Although would be interested in reading another book with Detective Jess Lambert investigating.

Thank you to the author, Thomas and Mercer, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book