Member Reviews

The Clinic by Cate Quinn A group of unlikable characters, both patients and medical staff in a story that was slow paced with flashbacks did not make sense at times. Interesting premise but not a good read for me. Have enjoyed the author's previous books more.
Thank you to the author, Sourcebooks and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.

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Meg and her sister Haley, have had several ups and downs. Meg hears that Haley died at a rehab clinic where she was trying to get clean. The clinic said Haley's death was ruled a suicide. Meg checks into the clinic to find out the truth. Told in POV of Meg and Cara, the manager of the facility. Will Meg find out what happened to Haley?
Mysterious, Twisted, and a Crazy Ride! 3.5 stars!
Be sure and read the acknowledgements written by the author!

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy!

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Meg is a professional poker player working for a casino when she hears of her sister Haley's death in rehab. Haley's death is ruled a suicide but Meg knows that something isn't right. Meg decides to check into the rehab to investigate Haley's death and learn about the people she spent her last days with. Meg has to confront her own demons and addictions while searching for the truth about Haley.
This book had an amazing premise and the cover is awesome. It seems like I am in the minority but this one was a disappointment for me.
What I liked: short chapters and quick pacing. Unique plot
What I didn't like:
The author's own experiences with rehab inspired some of the story, and while it was interesting to learn of some newer addiction treatments there seemed to be a lot of medical inaccuracies and unrealistic situations. Meg, as the main character, is unlikable and the side characters are not well developed. The relationships between the characters are also shallow and not explored- Meg enters rehab with strangers, doesn't really have any meaningful interaction with them, and then all of a sudden it is stated that she loves them. The story is also told through the viewpoint of the clinic manager. While I understand the author needed to provide details that Meg couldn't have known, the manager's character is also flat and unlikable. There is a lot of hinting about Haley and Meg's traumatic childhood, but when the details are revealed, it was very anti-climactic. Finally, the ending was so unrealistic that it bordered on ridiculous.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC of this book

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A casino investigator and addict enters a high priced rehab clinic….but not to be detoxed.

Working undercover for an LA casino to catch crooks and cheats, Meg lives an adrenaline=filled life. But a recent job nearly ended not just her career but her life, and left with with a painful energy and a major addiction problem. Her boss and her ex-boyfriend are concerned that she is spiraling out of control, and her boss wants to pay for her to get professional help. She’s that valuable an employee….and that messed up. Meg has no intention of admitting that her problem is that bad, nor of going to rehab. But then she hears of that famous (and famously out-of-control) pop singer/actress Haley has been found dead at a high-end rehabilitation center in a remote coastal area of the Pacific Northwest. Not many know it, but Haley is Meg’s sister. They survived a Hollywood childhood that was anything but a fairytale, and while they aren’t exactly in one another’s lives Meg can’t believe that Haley would kill herself. Neither, apparently, do the detectives looking into the death. Meg decides that she needs to get admitted to the clinic and use her undercover skills to find out what really happened to Haley. Everyone at the clinic, from the celebrity patients to the doctors and staff, have secrets and baggage. Meg will need all of her skills at practicing and detecting deception to hide the extent of her own addiction and gain the trust of the other patients if she wants to find out the truth of what happened…. and avoid meeting the same fate as Haley.
An interesting premise and some great characters make for a very good thriller. In this latest tale by author Cate Quinn. She paints a very thorough and disturbing portrait about addiction, its causes and the lengths to which those struggling with it will go to justify getting their next fix. The lies, the charm, the betrayals….whether it is liquor, drugs (prescription and/or illegal) or sex, in the end the only thing that matters to an addict is feeding the beast. I saw a great deal of verisimilitude in the depictions here, and feel that it adds a great deal to the story. The pace is quick, the plot full of twists and turns (at lease some of which are guaranteed to take you by surprise)., and the main character of Meg shows us all that we may be broken but we are not forever damaged. If you like Rachel Hawkins, Gilly Macmillan or Lisa Unger, you should definitely pick this up and give it a try. Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for allowing me access to an advanced reader’s copy, it was a great read!

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This one was a little been there done that. Not exactly the most original. The atmosphere was super creepy and suspenseful, though. I enjoyed it but it wasn’t my favorite.

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Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of The Clinic by Cate Quinn. This story is about two sisters with trauma from their childhoods. It’s full of twists and turns. I think it was a bit unbelievable but overall a good book.

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Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this Arc. Unfortunately this was a miss for me. I got to 40% and forgot about it and just never wanted to go back.

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Calling all psychological thrillers fans! This one took me a couple chapters to really get into, but once I did it was definitely a page turner.

Meg is in rehab (where she really does need to be) on the pretense of addiction, but really looking for her sister’s killer Med is addicted to oxy, but that’s beside the point. The rehab is beautiful and state of the art, run by Dr Lutz. Me begins to receive notes from her dead sister and starts to remember terrifying things from their childhood.

What happened to Meg and Hailey when they were kids? Who killed Hailey and why?

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As a reader, everyone has different things that work and don't work for them. Unfortunately this one wasn't for me, I couldn't get into the storyline in order to complete the book. I had initially thought the storyline sounded interesting and different. I do like the writers style, I think the author did a great job.

Thank you for this opportunity to read and I wish the author the best success.

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Meg, works undercover in a casino and is an addict, not wanting to change. She goes undercover to an clinic to investigate the suspicious death of her sister. This is told partly in her voice and in the voice of the administrative manager of the elite clinic, who starts feeling suspicious. It is a long, sometimes too long book but is an easy read. It had some interesting twists and interesting info about recovery and psychology and some moments of humor. Mostly I enjoyed reading it but tightening it up would have improved it. Meg coming to terms with herself was the best part

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I've read one other book by Cate and loved it! This one was just okay for me, but I love the cover and if you're new to thrillers, pick this one up!

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The Clinic was a welcome breath of fresh air after all the domestic thrillers I've been reading this year. I couldn't set this suspenseful mystery down and flew thru it in a day.


Meg has come to the Clinic undercover in search of answers in the mysterious death of her sister, Haley, a patient receiving treatment for drug addiction. Matters are complicated by Meg's own addiction issues and resulting withdrawal symptoms while searching for answers at the facility. 


The Clinic set a gothic tone from the beginning with our introduction to The Clinic, an exclusive rehabilitation facility located in a Victorian mansion on the Oregon coast. The vividly drawn setting and atmosphere had a cinematic quality that had the twisty story unfolding in my mind like a black and white movie. There were times I felt like I'd stepped into an old Hitchcock film, and I absolutely loved this old-school suspense vibe. 


This story had a cast of secretive characters, shady goings on, untrustworthy doctors with questionable motives, and a strong sense of paranoia as most of the characters are in the midst of addiction treatment and doubting the reliability of their perception. The sense of suspicion and things not being as they seem was tangible and placed me right next to Meg as she struggled to separate fact from fiction and find answers about her sister's death.  Did those around her have her best interests at heart, or was it a case of gaslighting at its finest? This was the question I asked myself over and over. Hanson and Meyers, the investigators looking into Haley's death, were such quirky characters, and I loved them. They brought to mind the old detective show Columbo and further added to the classic mystery feel this book gave me.


Overall, The Clinic was an engrossing mystery that grabbed my focus from the beginning and didn't let go. The moody Pacific Northwest setting, unreliable characters, and unpredictable storyline were exactly what I've been searching for in suspense books this year. I'll be looking up the author's other books and placing Cate Quinn on my list of authors to watch.


Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me a copy to read and review.

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Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC of this novel. I love psychological thrillers so I was really excited to have the opportunity to read The Clinic. I was definitely intrigued at the beginning of the book, a great setting and plot line. However I found there to be too many characters and not enough back story on some of them. I would have liked a deeper dive into some of the main characters, there seemed to be a lot of times past incidents were mentioned but not enough detail...what was the story with Cara, with Harry??

I felt the author was trying to fit too many characters into the story and sadly didn't make me interested enough to get attached to any. I think the book could have been a lot shorter, it seemed to go on and on. I did make myself finish it and the ending was good, but getting through it was a chore.

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This was a cliché ridden novel. The characters are irritating and stereotypical. Made it halfway and stopped.

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Whew - this was a trip. So many twists and turns with the main story as well as a lot of great delving into addiction and recovery and the shady dealings that happen all too often in that line of work.

Incredibly interesting and a definite page-turner whose ending you likely won’t see coming (I know I didn’t). Highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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The Clinic by Cate Quinn
Publishing date - 01/23/24
Rating (4/5) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thank you Netgalley and Sourcebooks for this eARC.

Synopsis - Meg, a professional gambler , is shaken up when her sister , Haley, a Hollywood star with substance abuse issues dies at a rehab facility center. The official results of the autopsy say Haley committed suicide ; but her sister does not believe it. She decides to enter the clinic as a patient to determine what really happened to her sister.

Great synopsis and overall a good read BUT it took me awhile to get into this one. The book picked up about half - way through. Some of the twists I enjoyed and didn’t see coming … but some were really far - fetched. It was impossible to predict the ending to this book! I recommend this one to anyone that enjoys a good thriller / mystery.

Be sure to read the author’s note at the end!

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Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher!
This story was fun and twisty turney. I love a book with multiple POV's and a Who-Done-It vibe and this book gave me all of that. I liked some characters and loathed others through most of the book which made it interesting.

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Oh my!!! The book was the best mystery book I've ever read and the plot twist came out of nowhere and left me what the hell? I was mind blown away by the story and the suspense. It was captivating and mysterious. I loved and enjoyed throughout the book!!

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I was hooked from the very first chapter… don’t start this if you don’t have plenty of time to read, because once you open its pages you’re not going to get out of your seat until it’s over.

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Thank you SourceBooks Publishing and Cate Quinn for this digital ARC.

I LOVED IT!!! This was the perfect thriller for me and loved the psychological twists and turns. As soon as I thought I had the murder mystery solved, Quinn threw in another twist. I loved the dynamic of the plot and how there was just the perfect amount of characters to follow along with; without being confused or turned away from the story. Highly recommend to multiple readers who also enjoy thrillers!!

- @brillsbooks bookstagram

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