Oh my word... I LOVED this! Packed full of intrigue and full of complicated characters - it's twisty, clever and SOOO good! The setting is incredible and the author's level of research and knowledge of the yachting community, the setting of Athens harbour was all so well done.
It's a pacy book that will keep you ABSOLUTELY hooked and I guarantee you will not see the final twist coming! I now want to go and read everything else this author has written!

The Crew is a "closed boat" thriller set on a luxurious superyacht a year after the accidental death of one of the crew. Part of the book rewinds time and tells you what was happening the year before leading up to the accidental death and then both timelines catch up with one another and you get to find out what really happened,

I really enjoyed the ending of this book. I feel like it brought everything together, which is exactly what you want in the ending of a book. The twist was good compared to the predictability of the rest of the book. The prologue tie in was my absolute favorite part of the book. I like multiple POV narration but this one was a little confusing for me with different timeline's on top of that. I think that added to the mystery and suspense of the book but it just fell a little short for me.

Rated up for 3.5 Stars

Thank you NetGalley, Canelo Books and JM Hewitt for the eARC of The Crew in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date for The Crew by JM Hewitt is 19 October 2023.

Ella works on a super yacht and is loving her life until a tragedy strikes and
the new girl she hired is killed in a horrifying accident. on the ship.
Ashley was sweet and capable - or so Ella thought until she starts doing some searching on her
own to try to find out exactly what did happen on the night she died.
The more she finds out, the more she wonders. Ashley and a girl named Annie seem to have some
strange connection and Ella is determined to find out everything she can.
The premise was good but it lost a little pizazz along the way as the Ashley/Annie storyline took some really
bizarre turns.
Okay for me but not great.

This was my first book by J.M. Hewitt and I already know I will be reading many more!! This is a thriller perfectly made for fans of Below Deck! The fact that this book combined the setting of one of my favourite shows with my love for suspenseful books is just perfection!

Readers are introduced to the crew of the superyacht, Ananke (who is the personification of fate or necessity in ancient Greek literature), they are all returning after spending a year a part after the tragic loss of their third stew. At the same time, two girls have escaped their rough upbringings in London and have fled to Greece to start over, searching for work wherever they can find it.

All of the characters were interesting to read and played their part in the story, I loved the overall sinister tone that follows throughout the entire book.

What ensues is a little twisty, a lot suspenseful and very addicting to read! I could not put this book down and binged it all in one sitting. There are some reveals you will see coming, and some that will completely shock you, but regardless I can guarantee you will enjoy this book!

Superyacht where a crew member was found dead twisted in the anchor. One year later all the crew, except the dead one, are back. Two teenage girls escaped from England and found their way to Greece without passports or support. One has the right idea of trying to get a job, the other prefers shop lifting. Enter various characters - stewardesses and other crew of the yacht, passengers, down and outs living rough on the old ferry boats (just after the main Covid pandemic). Chief stewardess Ellie goes a digging. New crew - one of the teenagers by now pretending to be someone else and with a stolen passport. Lies, deceptions, hope to go straight etc etc. Repeats of the story from different points of view, obviously repetitive but interesting to see the different thought processes. New crew then turns up dead as does a down and out. Moves along rather predictably and the ending is really just that. Much just seems unrealistic but not in the sense that you can suspend belief I'm afraid. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

I loved this book a lot. Not only does ie captivate you with the suspense,but it also provides insight in grief and the desire to get answers and justice. I really loved the plot and the characters. Increduble book and a must read

This was a fun, summer mystery. Really enjoyed it and found myself hooked on the whole strange mystery surrounding this Superyacht. Perfect for fans of Bravo TV's Below Deck. Highly recommended xx

I thought this book was ok. All of the different parts and jumping around confused me at times. I didn't read it word for word-there wasn't enough suspense to hold my attention throughout so I did more skimming until closer to the end. Surprising ending.

I thoroughly enjoyed "The Crew," a thrilling tale set aboard a luxurious superyacht where a mysterious death occurred during the previous season. JM Hewitt's storytelling prowess shines in capturing the unique atmosphere of this world, surpassing many recent summery thrillers set in maritime settings, be it on boats, islands, or beaches. This alone made the book a worthwhile read for me.

What I particularly appreciated was Hewitt's decision not to overcomplicate the plot with excessive twists. The mystery's solution is straightforward and guessable, but this simplicity actually enhanced the readability and engagement of the thriller.

However, the novel's structure proved somewhat frustrating. Although it starts in the present day with Ella, a current member of the yacht's crew, most of the narrative is an extensive flashback from the perspective of the deceased woman, shedding light on the events leading to her demise. While this approach provides valuable context, it somewhat diminishes the tension and leaves Ella's character arc feeling somewhat incomplete.

I encountered occasional amateurish aspects in the writing and editing, including unconvincing Victorian backstories for certain characters and a number of clunky sentences. Nevertheless, "The Crew" stands out from the crowd, and I particularly relished the vivid portrayal of crew life.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

My thanks to Canelo Press, J.M. Hewitt and Netgalley.
Oh, dear gods, this story just about broke my heart.
I have a love for books that are set in the Arctic, on deserted islands or on boats. This one hit my sweet spot!
I kept hoping that Ashley/Annie wasn't dead. That it was all a horrendous mistake, but it was not to be. Still, I really enjoyed getting to know the crew, and was completely envious of the life.
I loved reading how this all played out, and while I confess that the ending was satisfying, it still felt just freaking awful.
The ending of this story almost felt like it could be a beginning for a few characters, and I'd definitely be down for reading more!
Guess I'll have to check out some other books by this author.

Omg what a read I could not put this down fantastic thriller. Which was very different to many other thrillers I have read recently. It had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, action, gruesome murders, revenge, a bit of a who done it and some crazy twists and turns! I will be recommending this to everyone definitely one of my favourites this year fantastic. Thanks to netgallery and the puplisher for my advance copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Really great book. This one had quite a few surprises I was not expecting, especially in the true identity of Ashley and the identity of her killer as well.
The atmosphere was great and the yacht setting was different from most thrillers.
Some likable but odd characters and all around well told.

Even though I don't watch Below Deck, the superyachting world of The Crew immediately grabbed my attention. The author does a great job at acclimating readers to the rules and roles of the yacht, while also laying the groundwork for the story. Where I struggled, however, was with the way the narrative unfolded. There wasn't a lot of tension or suspense, which pulled me out of the mystery. This book ended up in my DNF pile, but hopefully it will connect more with other readers.

I loved this!

Thanks NetGalley for giving me a scoot for an honest review.

If you love thrillers/mystery AND Below deck, this is for you!

The captain gave me Captain Sandy vibes (if you know you know).
I love that we start at the present talking about about an incident that happened a year ago and then we go back and read through that whole time and how events happened.

I could not put this down! Fast paced, I loved the setting (Greece and on a Yacht ) and I loved the ending. The only thing that was upsetting was when it was over and I wanted to keep reading lol (which is a good thing). I know I will not be able to stop thinking about this book for a while!

I enjoyed The Crew, a thriller set on a luxury superyacht where a woman was found dead in mysterious circumstances during the last season. JM Hewitt does a much better job at conjuring up the atmosphere of this world than virtually all of the recent summery thrillers I've read set on boats, islands, beaches etc., and that alone made it worth reading. I also appreciated that Hewitt didn't distort her plot to deliver endless 'twists': the solution to the mystery is quite simple and guessable, but this made this thriller more readable and engaging for me. Having said that, the structure of this novel is a little frustrating: while we start with a current member of the yacht's crew, Ella, in present day, most of the book is actually an extended flashback from the point of view of the dead woman, filling us in on the events leading up to her death. This reduces the tension, and also makes Ella's arc feel oddly truncated (I had the same problem with Catherine Cooper's The Cruise, which introduced what seemed like the protagonist of the story and then basically dropped her). Aspects of the writing and editing also felt amateurish. I was unconvinced by some characters' Victorian backstories and, on the micro level, there were quite a lot of clunky sentences. However, this does stand out a bit from the crowd, and I loved the depiction of crew life. 3.5 stars.

Could not put it down. This was like "Below Deck" but with a mysterious criminal side, and I'm here for it! The author did their research on the subject of yachting, and it made for an intriguing read. I absolutely loved this book.

Whoa! What a book! Wow! This book had a bit of everything! It had suspense, intrigue, action, gruesome murders, revenge, a bit of a who done it and some crazy twists and turns! The storyline was so very interesting and had me glued to my Kindle! I highly recommend reading this book as it was well worth reading! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!

This book was the thriller of the year. Great plot and a twist I didn’t see coming. Highly recommend.

I LOVED THIS BOOK I COULDN’T PUT IT DOWN TILL I FINISHED IT. ADVICE don’t start read it on an evening igf you want to sleep!