DNF at 24%. I really loved the Woman in the Library, but I did not click with this story. I couldn't get connected with the characters and wasn't invested in the plot. There wasn't anything particular that I didn't like about this book, I just wasn't invested.

Once again, Ms. Gentill has written a very intriguing mystery. Even when you think you know what is happening, there are twists that will take you off on another tangent and will leave you guessing until the end.

Theo is the main narrator for most of the story. She is young woman who is a bit lost in the world, and at times it felt like she was a damsel always in distress and needing someone to save her. But by the end of her story she does begin to show some determination and grit in the way she chooses to save her brother. The author has given her quite a harrowing backstory, and some parents who are pretty out there, which makes her a well written and sympathetic character. There are many times in the story where she doubts herself and what she saw or experienced, so it makes her a little bit unreliable, but that just makes the story that much better.

Her brother Gus and his friend Mac are also well written characters with interesting back stories. I really liked Gus, he is an older overprotective brother, but he does at least try to give Theo her space. But he has a good sense of humor and I loved his dog, Horse. Mac comes from a family of preppers, who are a bit crazy but a tight knit group. Mac is probably the only sane one. I did love the banter between him and his family though. Both of these men go through a lot to help Theo.

The story is fairly complex, with conspiracy theories and the literary world coming together in very interesting ways. I really liked the aspect of a fish out of water in how Theo saw and related to Americans. I know some people will take issue with the depiction of everyone always having a gun or other weapons on them, and the generalization that all Americans are violent. But from the perspective of an Australian living in Kansas it can certainly seem that way. It sometimes seems that way to me too. Mac’s family was a bit over the top, but I found that somewhat funny, as I share that perspective of preppers. I don’t want to say much more about the plot, as too much is already given away in the summary, but it is fast paced, well written and hard to put down.

If you enjoyed previous works by this author, than I think you will enjoy this one too. This story is gripping and it will make you think about the literary world and how much books and stories can influence the way we think.

PUBLICATION DAY: March 19, 2024

Theo is finally following her dream of being a writer. Giving up her spot in law school and moving to another country to live with her brother Gus (and his dog Horse) is the start of her new beginning. And with a promising new friend and progress on her book, things seem to be looking up. Until her new friend ends up murdered and she and her brother are suspects. What will happen when Theo tries to find the truth? Is she in danger? And if so, why?

PROS and CONS:
I like the relationship between Theo and her brother Gus - very supportive and caring. Lots of characters to consider here. I found the pacing to be a bit off in this one however; in the beginning there were minute details of Theo’s day from what seat she chose to write in to what sort of pizza they were eating for dinner to a three year jump with a lot of things summarized a bit too quickly. Also, a pretty unbelievable plot and many unnecessary scenes.

READ IT?
I really loved this author’s The Woman in the Library (I gave it 5*) - but this one seemed a lot more rushed.

3 Stars

I liked this book a lot. It was definitely a bit of a slow burn and took me a little while to get completely sucked in. Once I was invested though, I flew through the story. I loved that the POV changed once Theo disappeared. The twists and turns came full speed towards the end of the book and I enjoyed it. I also loved watching Theo and Mac's relationship grow throughout the book. I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for Mac. The biggest investment for me throughout the book was making sure Horse was okay. I am a sucker for a dog companion in a book and Horse was good one. I also guessed the twist wrong and I always love when that happens. All in all, I enjoyed this book a lot but it took me a while to become totally invested.

Theo Benton, a former university student, leaves her career as an attorney and returns to Kansas with an unfinished novel. She meets Dan Murdoch, a successful writer in residence, at a cafe called "Benders." Murdoch becomes her mentor, but is murdered. Theo investigates conspiracy theories, but the protagonist is portrayed as a naive and naive person. The book also lacks a strong connection with the characters, with the author implying that all Americans are armed with guns. The last 30% of the book uses abrupt time jumps, making the ending feel rushed and overly dramatic.

Thank you to Poisonwood Press, Netgalley, and Sulari Gentill for the this ARC for an honest review.

Theo quit her law studies to become a writer. She decides to finish writing her book at a café, where she meets an author, Dan, who is really into conspiracy theories. When he ends up brutally murdered, Theo wants to look into it, if only to take the cops' eyes off of her as a suspect.
This mystery thriller is the first one I read be this author. It started out great, the writing pulled me right in. I loved Gus, and Mac, and Horse, but I didn't relate much to Theo. She was way too oblivious and naive. And I started struggling at around the halfway point, I felt like the story was dragging, then something dramatic happened, then it dragged, then something else dramatic happened, the it dragged some more... the pacing felt off to me. It didn't need to be 400 pages - 300 would've been plenty and probably would've helped with the pacing. And after the halfway mark, it started to be even more unbelievable and wild. Also, I felt like the synopsis gave up way more than it should have.
I received an advance review copy of this book for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Sulari Gentill is a surprising, innovative mystery writer. As she did with THE WOMAN IN THE LIBRARY, Gentill explores the bounds of storytelling and craft in this new book. THE MYSTERY WRITER falls outside of my usual genre for review (cozy mystery) so I was not able to review it professionally, but I would encourage readers who enjoy mysteries, conspiracy stories, and books about the literary world to pick it up. It's fast-paced and Gentill maintains great tension throughout. Not the best choice for readers who are turned off by conspiracies or plots that are a little wild.

I'm genuinely upset that I had to DNF this around 25% of the way through. It's not a bad story by any means, but the writing just was not for me. I also was not able to connect to any of the characters. We are really thrown in to the story and while that absolutely does work for people, I felt like I walked into a movie 50% of the way over and couldn't catch up. So keep in mind my star rating is purely based on the 25% I did read and it could get a lot better with a stellar ending. I just couldn't continue. Thank you to all involved for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A mystery whodunnit mixed with conspiracy theorists and writers? I’m in. I was so invested in this story and how it would play out.
Theo just dropped out of law school and showed up at her brothers, Gus, house. Her dream is to be a writer and she meets a fellow writer, Dan. When Dan is murdered and fingers are being pointed at Theo, she gets the help of Gus and his friend Mac to figure out what happened.
Things get crazy in this book. And I didn’t know which direction it would go in with the weird publisher and murders. It was a fun mystery to get caught up in.

So, it starts off interesting but as time went on I had a difficult time believing the MC was a real person. She was basically a damsel in distress that needed everyone to help her solve each problem. It made it hard to root for her success when she seemed to be completely naive to everything. As the story progressed I questioned her actions and finally stopped caring about her. By the end I no longer cared what happened and story felt rushed. Not a book for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

I enjoyed the premise of this one. A young writer just starting out gets embroiled in her own murder mystery. Unfortunately it goes off the rails a bit while also keeping a relatively slow pace. I kind of had to force myself to keep reading. A few too many elements were tossed together without much payoff. It had potential but it just ended up not being for me.

This seems to be mystery meets conspiracy and thriller. Although a little confusing at times with regard to character relevance, the overall story kept me coming back for more. Would seek more from this author.

This book started off well! Very interesting, fast moving - but unfortunately it didn't end that well. The last third of the book seemed rushed, jumped forward in giant leaps leaving me confused as to what happened! It seemed to build to a great ending - but just fizzled at the end.

Could be a great book - but maybe after a revision of the last 15 or so chapters.

Thank you, NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC of The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill! What a twisty murder mystery book!! Let me start by putting this quote, "But others disappeared like the ghosts they'd become, leaving only their words to rattle like chains in the night". I mean come on!! If that doesn't hook you I don't know what will!

The story is about a girl named Theo who has recently dropped out of Law School in Australia and has moved to the United States to live with her brother Gus. Gus is a full-time lawyer himself and Theo is trying to discover what she wants in her own life. Gus helps her navigate her passion for writing by having her go and write during the day. Along the way, Theo meets a well-known author, Dan Murdoch, and forms a special connection with him. However, that leads to a crazy story in which conspiracy theories, crazy fans, doomsday preppers, and murder are all involved. That sounds wild, right? Along the way, one of Gus's close friends Mac gets involved as a private detective (former lawyer) to help Theo and Gus while everything goes sour fast. This story leaves you pieces here and there to gather and I loved that. Especially in the end, it all is explained and it is such a satisfying but also twisty feeling.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to reading more from this author! I liked the pace of this story and how each chapter left you wanting more. Highly recommend it if you are looking for your next murder mystery book! #mysterywriter #NetGalley

After "The Woman in the library" I didn't have high expectations, but I was hoping for some fun. Unfortunately "The Mystery Writer" didn't deliver even in that department, as the fun was lost somewhere between main character naivete, some weird misconceptions about the publishing world and ridiculous time jumps that completely ruined the 3rd act for me.
I couldn't get over the scene where the main character is offered a representation by a literary agency that is so blatantly evil, my teeth hurt that the protagonist couldn't see it. The agent told her that she had to give up all of her social media and contacts and basically hand her personal live over to the agency. That should ring a flashing alarm in her head, but she just assumed that's normal? I couldn't like Theo, as she was soooo oblivious to how publishing work - nowadays it's expected from writers to run their own promotional campaigns using their private social media channels, so an agency trying to cut you off from all social contacts and the internet should give you a major red flag.
The pace of the whole thing was off, especially when the main character suddenly disappears for two years in the middle of the 3rd act.
And the final reveal explaining what was the villain's plan was simply ridiculous. I actually laughed out loud when I read it.

This twisty mystery from Gentill had a lot of good things about it - conspiracy theorists, a young writer, an engaging plot - but ultimately the female lead was such a drip that I struggled to stay invested as her situation got more and more dire. Theodosia has left law school in Australia to descend upon her beloved older brother living in Kansas, and she has plans to write a novel. When an older writer befriends her, romances her, and ends up brutally murdered, both Theo and her brother Gus end up as suspects. Things keep going downhill and Theo keeps being painfully naive and in need of constant rescuing. Add in a huge time compression/time jump in the latter half of the book and this just didn't quite work for me. Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for a digital review copy.

This cozy mystery is like an Agatha Christie whodunit with a twist. The first half of the novel was the most compelling, while second portion diverted off into a whole different direction that was less believable and interesting -- but that's just me. Many will whip through this story quite happily.. Thanks Poisoned Pen Press and Netgalley for the ARC.

This was my first book by Sulari Gentill and I absolutely loved it. Theo is a law student and decides to drop out to finish her novel. She flies across the ocean to Lawrence, Kansas and shows up on her brother’s doorstep. During the day she goes to a local bar and begins a mentorship with a famous author. Everything is going great until that author is murdered. I enjoyed the pace of this novel and of course the revelations. One of my favorite parts was the sections from conspiracy theory message boards.

Australian author Sulari Gentill’s last novel, The Woman in the Library, featured a mystery writer from Down Under working on a whodunit set in the U.S. Now she’s returned with another standalone, about a writer who is a mystery—as in, who is this guy?

Theo Benton has just dropped out of law school in Australia and moved in with her older brother Gus in Lawrence, Kansas. Gus left his homeland several years ago after he stabbed a man whom he caught molesting then-10-year-old Theo. Gus is happy to have a career as an attorney, but Theo’s dream is to become a writer. When she meets a bestselling mystery author named Dan Murdoch in a local coffee shop, the two strike up a friendship, and Dan becomes a mentor to her. It seems odd, however, that even after they form a pretty tight bond, Theo doesn’t really know much about Dan. There are only a couple blurry photos of him online, and he never volunteers any information about his past.

When Dan is murdered, Theo discovers his body—and quickly becomes a suspect. It seems that he had been active on QAnon-type message boards, and once the conspiracy theorists realize that Dan was the poster known as “Primus,” they descend on Lawrence and start harassing Theo and her brother.

In a Q&A at the end of the book, Gentill declares that she’s a “pantser,” not a plotter (i.e. someone who works without an outline or even much of an idea where the story’s going). I can believe that, because The Mystery Writer veers off in some pretty bonkers directions. At one point, Theo completely disappears from the narrative with no indication of what happened to her; Gus and his friend Mac are left to investigate and try to track her down. The resolution is wild, and perhaps a little too farfetched, but I must admit that it was quite a page-turner—I couldn’t put the book down until I’d discovered what happened to Theo and Dan.

Desperation makes Amanda jump on an offer of a cheap apartment that sounds too good to be true and she was right.
The charming owner of the building shows her around this fantastic place that she KNOWS is way off price, there must be a hitch. There is. He leaves and locks her in. She’s trapped. But she’s a smart girl who’s spent time in other bad situations, she thinks she can outfox the fox.
Her captor becomes enamored w her. He finds it strange, she isn’t his first victim. He has experience subjugating women but this one is special. He likes her.
It’s a back and forth issue, Stockholm Syndrome for her and he thinking of himself and a possible relationship with this woman. Even after how he abuses her , he thinks this could happen.

As the reader I can’t believe he loosens the reins so often; believing her promises to be good only to find himself wrong and outsmarted. And she, while knowing her dire situation still has a twinge of enjoyment in his brutal advances.
Two strange characters that don’t resolve their situation in this book………..stay tuned.