Would recommend for fans of…
🕵🏻‍♀️ Mare of Easttown
🕵🏻‍♀️ Tana French
🕵🏻‍♀️ Hannah Morrissey

Granite Harbor has an interesting and gritty premise that initially hooked me, but as the story progressed, I quickly realized this book was a miss as there were a few big things that ultimately didn’t work for me:

– It’s a mystery that spends a lot of time focused on the people within the community and their relationships with one another. That might be a great thing for people who love character-driven stories, but I needed a little bit more of the investigation
– The mystery itself was pretty underwhelming, especially at the conclusion
– This book deals with some heavy and dark subject matter (specifically around animal cruelty), which made it difficult to read. Use caution and check out content warnings.
– I read a good portion of this book via audio and if you’re able to read a print or Kindle copy, I’d suggest doing that instead. The way the male narrator voiced the female characters gave me the ick in a major way, and I don’t want anyone else to be subjected to that. 😝

Granite Harbor is out now. Thanks to Celadon and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed this book. It had a good mystery to solve, with interesting extra information mixed in.
The characters were likeable and the plot was well articulated.
I did figure out who the killer was pretty early in the book, but will still give it a 4 star overall, because of how much I liked it.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Granite Harbor is a STUNNER of a psychological thriller, one that could easily make a blockbuster film.

Peter Nicols does a wonderful job portraying complex characters in a tourist town where people come to visit a simpler time. However, in this family community someone is picking off the best and brightest teenagers, a close band of friends, one-by-one. This serial killer has a unique signature that is the stuff of which nightmares are made.

An excellent well-crafted thriller set in a sleepy community, Peter Nichols has created a story you won't readily leave behind - even if you'd prefer to...

Granite Harbor tells the story of Alex, a novelist and detective, trying to solve the murder of a teenage boy in his town. When the boys friends start going missing, can he stop them in time?

The character of Alex was fun to follow and read. The mystery elements were really good and the modern day/ colonial setting elements really added to it. The serial killer MO were extremely original and very good. I loved the use of dual POV's to highlight the killers origin story. You really got to have an understanding of how he got there. The thing that makes this mystery stand out among the rest is the empathy that you feel throughout. The emphasis on motherhood and the loss of your child really sat heavy with me in a way I wasn't expecting. The only reason this isn't a five star read for me is because I guessed who did it. That's it. Everything else was top notch. Cannot wait to read more from this author!

Peter Nichols' latest book is Granite Harbor.

The cover appealed to me - the lone figure on the somewhat iffy jetty. For me that man is Alex. This is his first murder case as both a parent and detective. This is also frightening to Isabel - a single mother to Ethan.

I liked how Nichols unfolded his plotting. Each character has a voice, their thoughts explored, and the possibility of what they might know, hold back or/and more. This includes the killer. Definitely unsettling...

The social fabric of Granite Harbor is also explored from all ages. Don't be overwhelmed by the wealth of details. Around the halfway point things get grisly. I quite liked the slow burn of this one

Very well written and intriguing. I enjoyed the plot of the book as well as the ending. I will be recommending this book to others.

In the quiet town of Granite Harbor, crime is always been at a minimum/much of the community knowing each other well. Then the unthinkable happens and a teenage boy is brutally murdered in a very specific manner. The town rocked by this event, they are fearful that it’s also not an isolated incident.

The story focuses on different residents of the town-how they know each other and how they react to what’s going on. There are a lot of characters to keep track of, but once their personalities and connections are established, it becomes far easier to become immersed in the mystery.

Just as the town tries to connect the dots of the first murder, another boy is killed. With time running out and few leads to go on, it’s up to everyone to put the pieces together before-it’s too late.

Granite Harbor is a slow moving mystery that takes a minute to get going. Once it did, however, I found myself hooked-eager to find out what happens next. After the initial sluggish start, it was a quick read, and one that I could easily see being turned into a movie or miniseries with all of its complex characters and their convoluted back stories.

An interesting mystery - a high school student is found brutally murdered and Alex is tasked with finding the killer in his small Maine town. The method of the victim’s death was unique and overall it was a good mystery.

I would have liked the killer’s backstory to have come out a little more - Alex kind of falls into who the killer is, but in the end no one really pieces the entire story together. We, as readers, can see it, but I found it curious that it never plays out with the characters.

Thanks to the publisher for a review copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Happy to include this title in “Cool It,” a recent round-up highlighting notable new mysteries and thrillers in the Books section of Canadian national culture and lifestyle magazine Zoomer. (see column and mini-review at link)

This book started out as a slow burn, but quickly picked up pace. It is a dark thriller/serial killer/detective novel. I loved the setting of Maine and I really liked what I consider to be the two main characters. Alex is a detective in the small town. Isabel is one of the mothers of the teens who are the focus of this book. The chapters from the killer’s point of view were so devious and disturbing. It kind of reminded me of a Peter Swanson story. I could see this becoming a series and I would definitely welcome that. This is a somewhat troubling story so check trigger warnings. I cannot wait for more books by this author. Thank you to the publisher and net galley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

This was immediately disturbing. Very graphic descriptions of the gross stuff if that's not your thing and also descriptions of incest so fair warning. Despite that it was a great story.

The sysopsis gives away a huge part of the story that doesn’t even happen until the last third of the book.

Don’t read the synopsis and then expect that story.

The murder of the teens in Granite Harbor was definitely predictable but it was still an enjoyable read.

I read a lot of crime novels but this one was too much for me and after looking at reviews I saw it would stay that way so decided to DNF. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the free ebook.

This was very good! My first book by this author and I really enjoyed it. I thought I knew the killer twice but the red herrings and twists kept me guessing. What more can you ask for in a mystery than well earned surprise?

Unpopular opinion, but this was one of the worst books for me. I have never read this author before. I honestly did not want to finish it. It was confusing to follow the different parts between the flashbacks from the psychopath and current story. The book also contained details that were graphic and not necessary to the story. It was also graphic and the way he murders was very sick and far fetched. The ending as well as the entire reasoning for his murders lacked for me. I do not recommend nor will I read this author again. This book was provided to me by net galley as an advanced copy in exchange for my review.

Among the many reasons I enjoyed this thriller: realistic and touching parent-child relationships, strong setting (small-town Maine), mild humor and a more literary writing style. The psychopath element is essential and the details are grisly, but the author makes that clear from the very first pages, so strap in and get ready!

"Granite Harbor" has been my biggest reading disappointment of 2024 so far. The book cover is stunning, and the description is captivating, featuring a serial killer similar to the one in "Silence of the Lambs." I was excited to start the audiobook, and it began decently, but I quickly lost interest.

I can't pinpoint what didn't work for me with this book and its characters. It could have been my mood or something else. It's worth noting that many other reviewers enjoyed it, so take my review with a grain of salt.

Sincere thanks to the author and Celadon Books/Macmillan Audio for providing ARCs through NetGalley. All opinions are my own and left voluntarily.

#GraniteHarbor #PeterNichols #CeladonBooks #MacmillanPublishers #macmillanaudio #netgalley

GRANITE HARBOR – by Peter Nichols

Nothing bad ever happens in Maine, right? ;)

As an avid fan of Horror, Maine holds a special place in my warm dark heart . . .

‘[Welcome to] scenic Granite Harbor, life has continued on―quiet and serene―for decades. That is until a local teenager is found brutally murdered in the Settlement, the town’s historic archaeological site. Alex Brangwen, adjusting to life as a single father with a failed career as a novelist, is the town’s sole detective. This is his first murder case and, as both a parent and detective, Alex knows the people of Granite Harbor are looking to him to catch the killer and temper the fear that has descended over the town.’

The story within these pages, though a slow burn, is disturbingly dark, with some scenes that made me cringe as I repeatedly guessed the who in this whodunit—Yes, Please, And Thank You!

Thank you, NetGalley and Celadon Books (Macmillan Publishers), for providing me with an eBook of GRANITE HARBOR at the request of an honest review.

Granite Harbor is a perfect town with a single detective. When a teenager is found murdered, its his job to capture the murderer--and the whole town is looking at him, pressuring him to solve the case. Its a slow burn crime drams with some graphic content. Trigger warnings for child abuse, SA, and animal abuse,

The characters are messy and lack anything to make me like any of them. The world building was great for Granite Harbor and I was picturing myself there in Maine. While there aren't many twists, its a true detective novel where we follow the detective as he solves the case. There were horror elements in the novel walking a thin line between thriller/horror.

Thanks NetGalley Macmillan Audio and Celadon Books for the advanced reader copies and advanced listener copy - I opted to listen to the audio and the narrator does a great job. It’s told in two POVs, Alex the detective and our unnamed perpetrator. Maybe it’s just me and my post-concussive syndrome, but I had some moments when I got a few characters confused so reading it either at the same time or solely may have helped.

The premise sounded intriguing to me, 1) because I enjoy thrillers/mysteries and 2) my background connection with Maine. However, this story gets gory, creepy, with some distasteful sexual content. Once you finish the story you can see why the author includes those things but it still can be quite hard to get through.

‼️There are tons of content and major trigger warnings, which include a descriptive murder scene of a teen, some profanity, references to sexual content (including a large age gap relationship and some detailed youth incest), death of loved ones (murder, lost at sea, cancer, etc), physical abuse and intense bullying, mutilation of an animal and later a human in a disturbing ritual, suicide, hallucinogenic use, and a character claims to be a clairvoyant.

Personally, this one was not it for me, primarily due to the heavy and at times quite disturbing content that fills it. I did ultimately finish it as I was curious about the overall mystery but had to take breaks throughout. I give it 1.5 out of 5.