While this book was a bit slow to start, once the action started it kept rolling along quickly. I loved the three main characters and their relationships with one another. Mac's family were secondary characters but hysterical. They added another layer to the story that was already multi-layered. The evil undertones and overhanging conspiracy theorists kept me guessing until the end. The Woman in the Library, Gentill's previous book, was also a rich and complex mystery. She is an author with considerable gifts.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

The Mystery Writer is a contemporary mystery about a writer, set in the small town of Lawrence, Kansas, by the author of bestseller The Woman in the Library. I had really enjoyed that, so was looking forward to another clever story about the publishing world. Unfortunately instead I got a convoluted mess of a plot about an irritating heroine and a frankly ridiculous conspiracy, that took me ten days to finish because the middle part was so boring.

Theo Benton has abandoned her law degree and fled Australia to visit her older brother Gus in America, in the hope that he will support her while she writes her first novel. She finds a local cafe in which to spend her days, where she meets Dan, a well-known older author who becomes her mentor. Things go well until she asks him to submit her manuscript to his publisher and he refuses, then is found dead - leaving Theo and Gus as the lead suspects, with paranoid conspiracy theorists closing in to avenge Dan’s death.

This had a good start - various POVs are introduced in the prologue, including that of one of the mad young people who believe that a secret organisation is resurrecting the dead, but then we settle into Theo’s story. Unfortunately she’s stupid, gullible, naive and easily led by whichever man happens to pay her attention - I found it hard to believe anyone let her into law school. I did like Gus and his loyal friend Mac, and there’s an amiable large dog called Horse who is mentioned a lot but doesn’t do anything. Mac’s gun-toting family are there as comic relief and to provide an Australian with the opportunity to ridicule certain aspects of American culture.

The plot takes a while to get going, as Theo and Dan talk a lot about books and fall in love - she’s so caught up in hero-worship that she fails to notice that he hasn’t told her anything about himself. Then the murder happens and you think things will get more interesting, but instead the main character disappears, and we awkwardly jump forward a few years to find Gus and Mac still picking up the pieces of their lives. The denouement and explanation of what’s been going on are preposterous, and I felt cheated by the inadequate ending. I’m sure some readers will enjoy this but I can’t recommend it.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and am posting this honest review voluntarily.
The Mystery Writer is published on March 19th.

Perfect for fans of literature and writing! If you like Lucy Foley this book is for you. Very athmospheric and exciting. Loved the premise and the characters were intriguing

This book blew my mind. Writers, agents, lawyers, conspiracy theorists, survivalists, and murder. All here in a twisty tale that moves like a car with no brakes down a mountain road. Hang on!

The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill is a new standalone by the talented writer. I've not read her Rowland Sinclair series but love her 'writerly' standalones (After She Wrote Him and The Woman in the Library). I'm sure being immersed in the world of writing and publishing helps inspire Gentill as she certainly writes what she knows.

Because I adored her two other standalones my expectations were higher than they should have been and I was a bit disappointed with this book. I liked the first half or even the first two-thirds, but the way this book pans out really didn't seem feasible and frustrated me a lot.

I liked Theo as well as her brother Gus and his colleague Mac. I enjoyed reading about Theo settling into life in the US and her writing. I was very confused by chapters interspersed throughout the book about the preppers. It felt like I was being dropped into another book entirely and I expected they'd be revealed as chapters of a book written by another yet-to-be-introduced author. We eventually get some clarity around the relevance of that storyline, though it's a bit too coincidental that the two plots collide.

I was suspicious of the older writer Dan and felt it kinda weird there was no backstory and he seemingly had no history. I certainly waited for a wife and kids to appear. I liked the element of mystery though as it proffered an alternative suspect to Theo and an opportunity to ponder his nefarious past.

But how this ultimately pans out was weird. I struggled with the leaps in time and I didn't believe Theo was gullible enough to accept the 'fate' she did, and it felt very unrealistic that such a scenario could exist at all.

Despite all of that I'd certainly still recommend this as I enjoyed much of it and am confident I'll love whatever Gentill next produces.

3.5 stars

3.49
Too close to home?

I was all over the place with this book – partly in my own head and partly the book itself. I love Sulari Gentill, most of all for the Rowland Sinclair series which is absolutely nothing like this book, other than the characters are Australian.

I selected this book ages ago but other things got in the way. I knew it was supposed to be a little bit of a thriller, but I read “The Woman in the Library” a couple of years ago and remembered liking it and being okay with the suspense level. I’m not a thriller/horror fan if you haven’t guessed. I am guessing that these books set in America are for the Australian readers who would consider it a bit exotic, not for those of us in America who think a story set in the states is a waste when the Australian author could set it in Australia.

I got into Theo’s story partly because I’m on a an Australian kick and partly because I thought it was interesting that they were in Lawrence, Kansas of all places. This is when I went back to the summary, which I didn’t remember from all of those months ago. As many have said, the summary tells a lot more than is generally provided. Between the conspiracy theorists, reading the summary (which made me think certain things would be happening sooner than they did), and my own head (but primarily my own head), I retreated. I tried to get the audiobook version instead because, in the audiobook, you can still keep going while you’re cringing and if you play it a little faster, it forces you through anything that might be scary or uncomfortable. In the mean time, even though I had lots of books I needed to read, I regressed and listened to all of the Rowland Sinclair books again. It started off as just one, but it became easier to escape into the dashing gentlemanly politeness where the enemies were the communists and fascists I know were defeated decades ago.

Running out of time to read the book, I put on my big girl pants and plowed in and quickly realized that “prepping” was also a part of the story. This and the conspiracy theories hit a bit too close to home. I live in a place much more remote and smaller than Lawrence, Kansas (which, as a college town, isn’t that small anymore). Here we have free preppers classes held at one of the local churches and hunting classes for kids after school. Not all the time, but still. A transplant with a worldly and diverse history, I now know too many people who truly believe in similar conspiracies.

Theo is a fun character, but it quickly becomes a vicious cycle of abundant naïveté. How many times does she need to get into danger hanging out with older men before she changes her pattern? How many times does she have to do stupid things that will put her or, those close to her, under suspicion? Thank God for Horse! I do wish there was a description of him though, other than he was a very large mut.

It is an interesting story, enough that I put aside my personal feelings about some of the storylines and was genuinely roped in. When the percentage tracker on my ebook was hitting 90%, the storyline suddenly went to warp 90. After days after days with occasional jumps of a month or two, suddenly years pass and we hear nothing of Theo–which I would consider a spoiler if it hadn’t been said in the summary–and everything we know has blown up (not in the literal sense, mostly). We don’t know what’s really happening when everything ties up quickly, despite the bad guys being so wealthy, connected, methodical, and not afraid to kill anyone in their way. That’s not an easy adversary to conquer. By the way, I don’t consider that a spoiler in this case because if you didn’t know that the conspirators from page one were the bad guys, I don’t even know what to tell you.

This book was, overall, an engaging, mind-opening read. I really did want to love it, or as much as I could for a thriller with a prepper-conspiracy theory plot line. Please don’t hate me for saying it, but I would have much preferred that writing time spent on the continuation of Rolly and Ed’s overdue romance.

As you can see by the excessively long review, this book provokes a lot of different emotions and responses. Too bad it’s being released one month too late for my “Australian mystery” pick for book club. Then again, in this part of the country, that might be a can of worms not shared!

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press in exchange for providing an unbiased review.

A unique plot that plunges the reader into a web of murder, mayhem, and conspiracy theory with a literary twist.

I thoroughly enjoyed the premise of this book; however, occasionally, I felt detached as if observing from 30,000 feet. One minute I was immersed and the next a sense of disconnection with dramatic shifts from character to character.

Ultimately, I was captivated throughout the book wondering what was going to happen next. I felt lIke I was stuck in the show "Ozark" where just when you thought things couldn't get bad enough, they got worse. The main characters Theo, Gus and Mac were well-rounded with intriguing backstories, learning more as time progressed.

Certainly not your run-of-the-mill thriller, blurring the line of believability and far-fetched theories.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sulari Gentill and Poisoned Pen Press for an advanced e-copy of this book. Check this one out on March 19th, 2024!

The Mystery Writer is a compelling read about the capabilities of social media to control those who use it. Its relatively short chapters ensure a snappy pace, whilst the main characters are endearing, albeit a little ‘sappy’ at times. I enjoyed reading this novel and read it quite quickly over a couple of days.

This book is an absolute gem of a mystery with a unique twist on the conspiracy theory thriller.

Theo has left law school and moved in with her brother to become a novelist. Unfortunately her friendship with Dan, a famous author is cut short when he is murdered right after receiving her manuscript. Now her brother has become the prime suspect. She must figure out what’s going on before it’s too late, but becoming embroiled in this mystery could be more than she can survive. Her only chance, follow the clues laid out in the writer’s story.

I love the twists and turns that kept me on my seat as I read this book. The author has a way of laying out just enough to keep you engaged but surprise you along the way.

The characters were all well developed. I particularly liked Theo—we could be friends in another life. Something about her was engaging as well as believable and I was invested in the outcome of her story.

I was given a copy by Poisoned Pen Press through NetGalley. This is my honest opinion of the book.

This book was a bit of a mixed bag for me, that ultimately didn't work.
I struggled from the start. In the first three pages, we move through three different characters and points of view. This rapid shifting made it difficult for me to find the character and story of the novel. Even when I finished, I did not understand why the prologue was included, and was uncertain which character it had even been following.
Once we got to the character that ended up being the main character, things got better for a while. I did enjoy some of the aspects of a new writer trying to sort out how to make writing books work. When the big mystery of the story was introduced, I was still invested.
After the halfway mark, things took a dramatic turn. The main character was no longer present in the story, instead we were following two of the characters close to her in the first half. From that point forward, the main character did not drive anything that happened in the novel, instead becoming a passive character that things happened to.
In the end, I was disappointed in the overall arc of the story and the character development.

A unique and innovative plot. I just had to keep turning those pages.
Many thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is an interesting mystery, but I’m not sure it was totally what I expected it to be. I started with the audiobook but switched to kindle so I could finish it faster. It started and moved slowly but there were parts that jumped. Theo goes to stay with her brother after she decides not to finish law school despite what their grandparents’ trust wanted for her. He supports her and she decides to start writing and to achieve her dream of being an author. As she writes she meets another writer and they become friends and eventually loves. But when he murdered it looks like her brother may be the primary suspect. Theo is desperate to find out who killed her friend, but there are more secrets than she could have ever guessed. There is a lot of conspiracy theory layers to this one and while that’s not always my favorite it worked for the story. I do like my thrillers to seem a bit more realistic and I guess there is not enough of a conspiracy theorist in me to find this mystery realistic.

This story has just enough thrills and twists to keep you turning the page. We have some great, well developed characters and a little bit of romance to boot! If you’re looking for a unique story, look no further.

Thank to NetGalley for the ARC!

I really enjoyed The Woman in the Library and assumed I would love this one, too. I ended up with a DNF at around 15% --just couldn't connect with any of the characters. I did think the conspiracy theory aspect is really interesting, but it wasn't really enough to keep me reading.

When Theo decides to switch careers and become an author she is excited when she meets and befriends a well known author. But things take a dark twist causing Theo and her brother to uncover more than they ever imagined.

I really enjoyed "The Mystery Writer"! It felt like a modern day Agatha Christie with interesting characters and a well plotted storyline that kept you reading to the very end.!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in advance of publiation.

DNF at 10%

I've loved Sulari Gentill's last two releases and was so ready for another meta-murder mystery from her. The Mystery Writer definitely has the propulsive writing that Gentill is known for, but I couldn't find myself connecting with this particular story in the chunk that I read. Knowing that this also contains content that is personally triggering, I figured that DNFing this book would be the better choice for me in the long run.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!

I enjoyed this but not as much as I was expecting. I do love a conspiracy theory though! I felt the pacing was a little slow to keep my attention going.

Theo shows up on her older brother Gus’ doorstep with her unfinished novel and her unfinished law degree (and she only wants to complete one). After having a brief affair with an older writer and mentor she meets at the bar she likes to write at, she finds him brutally murdered and becomes the police’s main suspect. Now Theo and Gus are sucked into a dark, murderous literary world where one’s identity can be as easily rewritten as their next novel.


I half listened and half read this one and was just as engaged with both (the narrator was really great). Some parts may have gone too far in the conspiracy angle but it was definitely a fun read. I found the plot predictable but I still enjoyed the ride and got through it pretty fast. Theo’s character was not a favorite, but the ancillary characters (like Gus) made it all worthwhile. This probably won’t be a book I remember in 2 years but it certainly entertained me for the 2 days I was reading it.

3.75 stars

The premise of the book intrigued me as I have always loved writing mysteries. The main character, Theo, was okay. When her boyfriend died right after she gave him her manuscript to read, she started coming up with a lot of conspiracy theories. It was a bit too much conspiracy theory for my taste but i can see why others would enjoy the book. Overall it was a decent read

DNF @ 50% - I really wanted to finish this one as the initial mystery pulled me in… but the writing style just wasn’t for me. the characters were written as adults but the way they acted was so childish and idiotic (and not in a scary horror movie idiotic way, either). I couldn’t get pass it as it was disrupting my reading and kept pulling me out of the story. I think this would be great with a few more cuts and edits. thank you to netgalley and poisoned pen press for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!