3.5 stars rounded up. Please check trigger warnings before picking up this book. It is dark, disturbing, and contains some make or break triggers regarding animals. This was my first book by the author and it was an engaging and fast paced story. It does get really dark at times and can definitely make your stomach churn. I was not prepared for just how twisted and disturbing this was going to get. I had no clue who the killer was but after finding out and remembered little clues that had been sprinkled through out and couldn't believe I didn't catch on. There are a lot of players in this book and you get a lot of POVs, but the chapters are short and it moves fast. This is a mix of police procedural, small town serial killer mystery, there are chapters that we experience from the killers POV and those are the ones that are exceptionally dark. The writing seemed choppy and overly descriptive at times but overall I didn't hate it. It's a really tough book to get through and I had to really push myself at times when I was just too disgusted to go on, but I'm not mad that I finished it.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.

Expected publication date: Apr. 30, 2024


My expectations for this ARC read was so high due to me reading the description before I opened the book!

Granite Harbor is an idyllic small town on the coast of Maine. Or at least, it was, until the body of a local teenage boy is found mutilated and strung up. Alex Brangwen has just returned to Granite Harbor, hoping to start over after a failed marriage and a failed writing career, and inadvertently lands the job as a police detective. The murdered boy is Alex’s first murder case, and the entire town is desperate for answers. The pressure mounts as days go by with no answers and a second body is found, turning the entire town against each other. Alex needs to find out who is doing this- because his teenaged daughter, Sophie, may be the next victim.

Honestly, this book fell really flat for me. It was really hard to follow because of the way the author structured some of characters that he tried to build. It began to get very jumbled for me to where I didn't really remember or understand who was who when it mattered.

The book started off very slow and I gave it a chance to build but with so much switching from the past to present and giving history so I can understand the Granite Harbor, it made me confused, bored and over reading it.

I would say, I see where the author was trying to go but he could have put the structure of the book in a way where the reader will be engaged fully and add the history so they can learn and really feel like their apart of the story once it gets to the part where the detective begins to investigate.

Overall, I know readers that will enjoy this, but it just wasn't for me unfortunately.

With a name like Granite Harbor, the coastal town in Maine is idyllic as it sounds. But when a teenage boy is found brutally murdered, all of that changes. Alex, a single father and the town’s only detective, is worried that he lacks the skills needed to solve this case. It doesn’t help that he has zero experience with murder cases. As failed novelist, he feels he has more skills with pages than with crimes. Meanwhile, Isabel finds herself at the center of the crime when she learns her daughter was friends with the victim. When another teen is found murdered in the same gruesome manner, both Isabel and Alex fear their child may be next.

I loved the premise of this story - a small town that never saw this level of crime before, and the idea of a failed novelist at its center. All the cards were stacked against Peter and as much as I love a good underdog story, I had a very hard time with this one. It was very much a slow burn story, and deeply atmospheric, and while atmospheric stories usually suck me in, this one I just couldn’t get into it. I ended up DNF-in about 30% in, and am only leaving this review per Netgalley’s requirement.

Thank you to Celadon for the ARC! “Granite Harbor” releases in April.

TW: animal cruelty

I can’t put my finger on what I didn’t like about this one but it was just meh for me. It might be because it was such a slow burn. It just didn’t hold my attention

Review Copy

What do you do when you like a book you've read but the ending disappoints? That's what happened with GRANITE HARBOR, I enjoyed the richness of the characters and the twists the novel took, but I felt the ending was hugely disappointing. Finally, I decided a one star deduction would do. Is that good enough? Maybe, maybe not. It will be interesting to see what others think of this book.

Granite Harbor is a small town along the coast of Maine that has nothing to offer except their history of English settlers arriving at the shore in the mid 1600’s. Ethan, Jared and Shane are teenage best friends. They love to skateboard and one evening, Jared stayed out later than his friends and he was found murdered in a bizarre fashion. Later, Shane also was found murdered. It’s apparent there is a serial killer in their midst. It is baffling because the locals have lived in Granite Harbor for a long time and are friends.

Thank you Celadon Books and NetGalley

It was a really great plot with a good twist at the end. The characters didn’t have much individuality so it was a little confusing separating them. I kept mixing up the relationships between multiple characters because they all just seem so bland.

This was a really really great novel! Well thought out characters, bizzaro killer, a freaky kill method. I hope there will be more of Alex in the future.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: Apr. 30, 2024
Granite Harbor is an idyllic small town on the coast of Maine. Or at least, it was, until the body of a local teenage boy is found mutilated and strung up. Alex Brangwen has just returned to Granite Harbor, hoping to start over after a failed marriage and a failed writing career, and inadvertently lands the job as a police detective. The murdered boy is Alex’s first murder case and the entire town is desperate for answers. The pressure mounts as days go by with no answers and a second body is found, turning the entire town against each other. Alex needs to find out who is doing this- because his teenaged daughter, Sophie, may be the next victim.
Peter Nichols is a new author for me, although he has quite a strong following after the release of his novel, “The Rocks”. Nichols uses his knowledge as a former yacht captain and boatsman in developing his stories, as both “Rocks” and his new one, “Granite Harbor” take place in and around water and heavily involve boats and boating. Of course, Nichols would use the state of Maine as the idyllic backdrop as, if you read any Stephen King, it also serves deliciously as the perfect setting for gruesome murder.
“Granite Harbor” is narrated primarily by Alex, but other main characters make occasional appearances such as Isabel, a mother of a teenaged son living in Granite Harbor and, of course, our murderer as well. All of the characters have a connection, as is common in small towns, and although Nichols does his best to introduce his players to the reader, I felt that they had backstories I was missing out on. “Harbor” felt, in parts, like a sequel where the personal histories of the characters had been told in a previous novel.
I loved the absolutely disgusting method the serial killer used to murder his victims (I won’t give anything away), and, although I didn’t know who he was right away, Nichols lets the murderer tell his story, which I ferociously devoured. The murderer seemed to have a very loose motive that set him about his killing spree but the twisted backstory of the unique method he used kept me pulled in. I never would’ve guessed the murderer because he played such a small role in the story, but I always enjoy an unexpected ending, however it is delivered.
Overall, Nichols’ “Granite Harbor” is a creepy read, with a very twisted serial killer stalking teenagers, and I enjoyed my first foray into Nichols’ world. I’m intrigued enough to keep an eye out for his next release.

While I did enjoy parts of this book, it just didn't flow smoothly overall. I felt, especially in the beginning half, that the chapters were choppy and introduced so many different characters it became a bit confusing. I did like the way the author ended the book.
I received an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I tried so many times to get into this book, but I just couldn't. There were so many characters that I couldn't keep track of them all, and that made the plot super confusing. The beginning is super slow and the timeline jumps around. DNF at 30%.

I had high expectations for this novel as I loved the excerpt. Unfortunately, Granite Harbor just fell flat.

The plot follows a whodunit trope. But the pacing was slow and the exciting parts were pretty sparse. With choppy transitions between chapters, I got lost several times where I didn’t know the timeline — past or present.

There were numerous characters. Too many to keep track of. And the different timelines didn’t help. The character count was just one of the reasons that I didn’t enjoy the novel as much as I wanted to.

I just felt that the narrative didn’t have to be so long winded. So by 46%, I was just bored. I skimmed a few chapters, then skipped to the end which wasn’t satisfying or redeeming. Two stars.

I was invited to read a DRC from Celadon Books through NetGalley. And I also won an ARC from Celadon Books through the Bookish First Raffle. The review herein is completely my own and contains my honest thoughts and opinions.

This book gives all the gloomy, rainy, coastal Maine vibes that I love. Peter Nichols brings you into the town of Granite Harbor, Maine, where a local teen is murdered and his body is found in the town’s historic settlement. Throughout the novel you become connected to the people in this small town, and you start to fear for them and want to protect them from whoever is plaguing the town.

The two timelines narrative gives you insight into “the boy’s” past, helping you understand why he is the way he is and why he may have done what he did. We are witnesses to the trauma the boy endures throughout his childhood and see the events that are formative to his character in the present day. Part of me felt a sadness and understanding for why he turns out to be who he is, although I am disgusted by his actions.

This book was perfectly paced and completely original from anything I have read before. The small cast of characters made it feel very intimate. I truly got to know and understand each person and their reactions to the unfathomable events they are living through. After feeling connected to the people of Granite Harbor, it was even harder to see the direct and collateral damage of the murders on their lives. I found myself really rooting for Detective Alex to solve the case, and do it fast, and worrying for Isabel, Ethan and Sophie, hoping nothing happened to them before the murderer could be stopped.

I did enjoy the ending and loved how everything was wrapped up well, and there were no loose ties.

Of note, there is a good amount of history in this book, including history of settlers in Maine, which I think went a little over my head (history has never been my favorite subject). I also had a big inkling into who the murderer was super early in the book (not sure if this was meant to be intentional or I just have good intuition), so the ending was not a big shock to me. Also, please do read the trigger warnings before reading!

Edited to add: I also loved the short chapters!!! It made it feel like I was flying through the book.

Overall 4.25/5, rounded down for GoodReads.

Thank you to @CeladonBooks for this ARC of Granite Harbor by Peter Nichols. Publishing date: April 30th, 2024.

#CeladonReads #GraniteHarbor

[arc review]
Thank you to Celadon Books for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Granite Harbor releases April 30, 2024

Let’s just say I’m glad my life does not depend on explaining this book… because I have no idea what I just read/listened to.

The writing was rather choppy with rough transitions, and I think that largely contributed to why I was so confused with the plot. It felt like the characters kept going in circles with no clear sense of direction.

Granite Harbor reminded me a lot of Locust Lane (another title published by Celadon) where it focused on both a set of teenagers as well as their parents.

The bullying scene involving a group of students urinating and defecating on the face of another student really turned me off and I lost interest after that.
If I’m not mistaken, I think this included incest/SA between young minors and animal cruelty as well.

Thank you to the Publisher for the arc.


the premise of this started off interesting and the ending was kinda meh but i feel like this story could've been edited down by so much. you didn't need all the extra perspectives. some of them added literally nothing to the story.

Soooo many character to keep straight! It became confusing at times. This was just an ok read/listen for me. I did both and actually preferred reading over listening to the narrator of this one.

Mystery thriller set in Maine.

The setting for this novel is the fictional small coastal town of Granite Harbor. With a population of 5000, the unusual novelist turned only detective on the police force, Alex Brangwen, hasn't had much exposure to real crime and definitely not murder. It seems that there is a serial killer hidden in plain sight in the area and the targets are teenaged boys.

A ton of characters are introduced, and it takes a while to keep them straight. I personally did not care for any of the adults (parents, townspeople) and really disliked the depiction of the 16-year-old teens in the book. It baffles me how parents do not seem to have any ability to monitor and appropriately discipline and guide their adolescents (not just in this book but in many I seem to read). Of course, most of these adults are messed up too. Anyway, I was put off by the descriptions and activities of the characters which made me less inclined to worry too much about them running around making dumb decisions.

The plot, with a deranged and obviously weird serial killer whose history we get glimpses of, sort of drug on. As the small police force, along with temporary help from an FBI agent, struggles to align the few clues to identify a suspect, the parents who know there is someone in their town who is a bad actor, should be locking down their kids. There's some strange ritual stuff with animals and a bit of supernatural clairvoyance that sort of made me tune out.

Anyway, not one I will enthusiastically recommend as it really did not live up to the blurb description.

I both read the e-book and listened to the audio production. The narrator was OK. Thanks to the publishers for those ARC copies.

I cannot say that story was unique or earthshattering. It was a story of a serial killer after all. This serial killer was targeting young boys who happened to be close friends. Typical assumptions made a person very close to the boys a primary suspect but FBI buddy on the case forgot sometime circumstantial evidence was not enough.

What was unique about this story was the reason behind the murders. Call it witchcraft, call it ancient medicine, or call it total BS. This killer learnt from his master how to use toads to extract someone's "essence" and use it for his own benefit. I felt woozy just thinking that this dude is licking something off of a toad that was stuck in a dead person...

Interesting premise on reason for murder but otherwise it was quite underwhelming. There was some family drama attached to it, but it wasn't tied to the story very clearly. If you want to take a break from heavy books, you can use this one as a palate cleanser.

Unfortunately, I didn’t love this novel. I generally really enjoy crime novels, but this one was a miss for me. I didn’t feel any connection to Alex, and didn’t really care for him one way or the other. I felt the supporting cast lacked depth as well, and didn’t feel a connection between the characters either. I liked the small town setting, but I found the book to be a little disjointed at times, and was confused when the chapters jumped around to new characters. I think I may be the outlier here, so if you enjoy crime novels give this a try. But also, try to go in blind because I feel the synopsis gives away plot points.

Thank you to the publisher, Celadon Books@celadonbooks, for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

I want to preface this by saying: I did not like this book.

If we start at the beginning and we know this is a novel about murder and mystery located in a small town. I eat that shit up every time & I LOVED Mare of Easttown so I was sold. We get that small town feeling where everyone knows each other and there’s drama with the towns people and the main character, etc.

However, this reads more cinematic than it does as a book. I think where Peter Nichols excels is in his descriptions of exposition. I was very immersed all of the scenes where he was explaining what things look like, however, I was not immersed that well, because I didn’t know how things felt or I wasn’t like into how a particular character felt in those moments.

I really did love this book so much but I just felt it was lackluster. I thought, adding in the part about like Isabel’s clairvoyance was just a cop out to me. And I thought that at the end when we killed Chester, I don’t know like something about that just didn’t sit right with me.

I thought the writing was very juvenile, and I thought that the teenagers were written as just so angst, and very insufferable than they were helpful. I do know that teenagers are Angie I know that’s how it is. I was a teenager at one point, that was literally the only character trait they had was being insufferable and being teenagers. and the fact that they just ran over their parents and was OK. I was like please Jesus spare me.

And the mystery just wasn’t mystery-ing to me like i thought it would. I think they were obvious moments where they were setting up for us to believe the killer was Win person, but there was obviously no other person that it could’ve been outside of the second person that it actually was.

So I’m sure Peter did everything to try to bring up something new and make something new. It just felt very flat to me.