I really struggled with this one. I listened to about 40% before giving up.

I couldn't get into the mystery at all -- I didn't find a reason to care about Kara's murder, or who might have done it, and the police work wasn't particularly captivating. I wanted to care about Esme, because I love the concept of an injured ballerina figuring out what to do next, but she didn't grab me either.

Unfortunately, the audiobook narration didn't help. I found the narrators really overdid the acting for me, and the accents took me out of it too much.

I wish I'd had more positive things to share about What Waits in the Woods, because I was really excited for it -- love the title and cover. But it just wasn't the right book for me, at all.

What Waits in the Woods is a gripping, suspenseful mystery/thriller that had me interested from the start!

A woman is found dead in someone’s backyard and the secrets from a group of childhood friends begin to come to light… From the 50% mark, I didn’t want to put this book down! I had my guesses on how things would come together, but I didn’t quite get it right.

Overall, I’d rate this book 4 stars! The audiobook was entertaining and the narrators grew on me as I listened through it.

(I received an advanced listening copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review, thanks to NetGalley & RB Media.)

With this second chapter in the detective Rita Meyers series, I can officially say I love Terri Parlato. Wait Waits in the Woods is peppered with red herrings and clues that don't really let you guess until the very end who the wicked one is. I love both narrators in the audiobook, especially the one giving detective Rita Meyers her voice!

Thank you to netGalley and RB media for the audio arc!

I’m a sucker for high school friendship drama stories, they are always so full of high tension emotions. Secrets, jealousy, competition. This book certainly delivers all that. I’m also a lover of any and all New England settings, especially Massachusetts (my native state!). This book was set outside of Boston Massachusetts in a quiet, unsuspecting little town. It’s also a police procedural mystery, with a no nonsense detective who doesn’t quit.

I loved the audio book performance and the perspective of the two female leads, the dancer and the detective. It was easy to get through and the writing made me want to keep reading even when I had to stop.

Would certainly recommend this book and will definitely be adding this author to my TBR!

I enjoyed this story. It unfolded nicely and kept me guessing. I was absolutely constantly changing who I thought did it and why I suspected them. I have mixed feelings on the cast of characters but I'm fine with that. I understood them. I do really enjoy the character of Rita Myers. I have read the first book in this series. This is the second book and I enjoyed it more. I do plan to continue reading the series.

I read this book through Kindle Unlimited and by listening to a NetGalley provided audio copy. I really enjoy being able to immerse myself in the book this way. The narration was expertly performed by Christina Moore and Leah Horowitz. I enjoyed this combination of narrators more than the combination used in the first book.

Sequel to a book a didn't read, but an kinda interested in. Detective Rita was interesting. Esme is kinda boring, lots of things happen to her, she doesn't really activate anything. And the ending kinda comes from left field

I received this book from NetGalley in return for an honest review. As this was book 2 of this series, I did read book 1 first. I really enjoyed detective Rita and her coworkers and was happy to know the series follows her.

You do learn more about Rita's background in this book. The mystery of this installment was just as good. The characters are written with depth and the setting of the small Boston suburb of Graybridge is full of small-town secrets and mystery.

The author does a good job throwing you off the scent of the mystery and has you looking at everyone as a suspect. Even if you have an idea of who, the whys are pretty shocking.

I look forward to continuing on with this series.

I requested What Waits in the Woods by Terri Parlato before realizing it was the second book in a series, of which I had not read the first yet. So I quickly got a copy of All The Dark Places and read it RIGHT before starting this one. In hind sight, I do not think it was necessary to have read them in order, but I am a stickler for that. I might have liked What Waits in the Woods one star more if I had not just read All the Dark Places just before it. I felt All the Dark Places was just a bit stronger than this one, so I gave All The Dark Places 4 stars and What Waits in the Woods 3 stars, though a strong 3 stars. I genuinely did enjoy it. It was a quick, edge-of-your-seat thriller, and I adore the main character of Detective Rita Meyers. So great to see women of her age group get good representation...and quirks without being overly silly.

⭐️

DNF at 20%. The narration is so dull! That, combined with the slow plot, meant this book just doesn’t make me want to finish it.

* ARC from Netgalley *

I really enjoyed the multiple perspectives and narrators in this story. The first voice is Esmé, a retired ballerina whose career was derailed by injury, who returns to her hometown to find police scouring the woods behind her childhood home and interviewing her alcoholic, failing father and brother. The body of her childhood friend, Kara, was found and the second narrator, Rita, a police detective, is on the case.

I LOVED all the twists and turns, and it was the suspense and shock that really earned this book the 4 stars. I found that I couldn't relate to Esmé or her decisions and couldn't for hte life of me understand the situations she was putting herself in. I also really enjoyed Rita and the narrator's voice for these chapters of the story. She is relatable, impressive, and very well developed.

The story itself was probably a 3/5 stars for me - the red herrings were a bit too much at times, but at the same time, that was part of the intrigue. Truly any character could have been culpable.

Thank you to @recordedbooks and @netgalley for access to this story that published on December 26th.

I was excited to have the opportunity to review What Waits in the Woods because I adore twisty thrillers and mysteries. When I finished the book I decided the detective, Rita, was the singular enjoyable character. I see now that is because the author, Terri Parlato, was writing a series with her character. I did not realize there is a Rita Myers novel before this one. I’m planning on reading it next. I appreciate the books can be read as stand-alone novels as this is a great way to introduce someone to a character such as Rita.

The book itself was slow to start out and later on I struggled to keep up with the many characters. Detective Rita Myers kept me engaged and I soon realized this was the main character. I enjoyed the dual perspectives between Esme and Rita. The book finished strong and I was pleased to discover another Terri Parlato novel I can read next!

I could not get into this book. I picked it up and put it down multiple times. I just couldnt get into the characters nor the story.

This is a 3 star for me, which means I liked it. The first book in this series, All the Dark Places, wasn’t my favorite. My main gripe was that it was a debut that really *felt* like a debut… but What Waits in the Woods doesn’t have that problem. It was a solid mystery with a good twist! I think both narrators did a great job and their narration really reflected their characters.

The story follows detective Rita Myers, and we get a fair amount of backstory about her personal life - but for whatever reason I just didn’t connect with Rita and wasn’t very invested in her personal life. But that’s just me.

We also get our other POV in Esme Foster, who has returned to her hometown only to learn that one of her old friends has been murdered. If you are a seasoned thriller reader, then you’ve read the beginning of this story before. So if you are going to use this plot line to start your book, I think you really have to hit it out of the park. And this was good! But it just wasn’t quite on the level that would propel this book to a 4 or 5 star read for me personally.

Thank you NetGalley and RB Media for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Esme returns home after being away for a decade in search of her dream of becoming a professional dancer. When she returns to her hometown, she stumbles into a murder mystery in her own backyard when a childhood friend is found dead. What follows is the search for the killer or killers in a small town that has more secrets than the Vatican. There are grudges that are long held and small town drama that may never end. Lots of twists in this one but not many likable characters. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for this read.

The narrators in this one were not my favorite. They were both a little on the over performing side.

I feel like this was more police procedures rather than a thriller novel and it got hard to follow and enjoy in some areas because of it. The twist wasn't completely out of left field but i still wasn't a fan with how things ended up. The narrator of the novel was great

🌲 What Waits in The Woods - Terry Parlato

3 ⭐️ - This was a good cat and mouse whodunnit that kept me on my toes and guessing until the end! I didn’t realize that this was the second in the Detective Rita Meyers series, but it can definitely be read as a stand alone if you’re looking for a new murder mystery.

Esme Foster left Boston and headed to Syracuse to follow her dreams of becoming a professional ballerina. Now, 11 years later, she’s back. But her return coincides with the death of her best friend Kara Cunningham. In Esme’s dreams, she sees a figure of a man hunting her down telling her he’s going to kill her. With Kara being killed, Esme realizes they kind of look alike. Could Kara’s death be a mistaken identity? What secrets will unravel as Esme returns to town and the case of Kara’s murder is solved?

Overall, this was an engaging murder mystery. We had family drama, personal issues, a few creepy characters, and a storyline with lots of twists and turns. I did feel it had some plot holes that were never filled in and some of the story dragged a bit for me. I’m becoming a bit of a stickler when it comes to mysteries and thrillers as it’s my favorite genre. This one was just okay and engaging for me, but I generally wanted to love it more than I did. If you’re a fan of Detective Rita Meyers, definitely pick this one up.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
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What Waits In The Woods is told in a dual POV through our main character Esme and Detective Rita Myers. I loved getting the dual POVs on opposite ends of the murder mystery. ThIs one is full of so many different tropes - its a police procedural, its a murder mystery, its a thriller and there is so much family drama your head will be spinning.
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The characters are so well developed in this one that I actually had no idea that this is the second in the Rita Myers series, which means this can easily be read as a standalone. Also, now I have another book I am going to have to add to my list because I really like Rita and her crew.
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Throughout the story there are many charcters that you will suspect and many reasons as to why you would suspect them - my favorite. The ending was totally not what I was expecting and I am not going to lie, I loved it. I thought the story wrapped up nicely.
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I listened to this one via audiobook, and was able to read along with it via my copy from Kindle Unlimited. The narrators Christina Moore and Leah Horowitz were great, they each have distinct voices that really differentiated the two main characters. Highly recommending the audiobook.
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Overall I enjoyed this one, it was mysterious, suspenseful and had great pacing throughout. Will be going back to read the first in the series soon. What Waits In The Woods was just released on 12/26, be sure to check it out! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Terri Parlato and RB Media Recorded Books for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

I got free copy of the audiobook from the publisher and NetGalley, so I’d like to thank them.

I love mystery books and bonus if it’s set in my home state of Massachusetts, so I was looking forward to this book.

I have to agree with other comments that the book sort of falls short. The characters are odd. They’re stereotypes and nothing more. The drug dealing neighbor, the prodigal daughter, the man with a past who’s suddenly back in town, the artsy recluse with secrets. But really the ending is just bad. I’ll admit I’ve been reading mysteries for decades and I’m still no good at figuring it out before the end. But once it’s revealed, you can go back and see the clues you missed. Not here! It’s just wham! Killer’s a character we barely mentioned! You just wasted hours of your time investigating other people!

I’m not a cop. I don’t get paid to go down the wrong path.

Pros: the back and forth style between Esmé and Rita was good and helped move the story along. I liked that format. The narrators were very good.

Great thriller with a strong start! I thought it was a good pace to begin with, but fell about halfway through. The audio was good but it didn’t catch my interest the whole way through. I did end up liking the end though!

Captivating from the first chapter, detective Rita Myers leads the investigation for the death of Kara Cunningham. Rita’s perspective takes the reader through numerous potential suspects. She pieces together the suspect board with motives and alibis. There are lots of twists and turns keeping you guessing the whole way through. This novel reads as more of a detective procedure than a thriller.

The storyline alternates with another other perspective from Esme, a girl who recently returns home to find that the victim was her best friend. And this friend who closely resembles her was murdered in the woods behind Esme’s house. Scared of a mystery man who threatened her years ago after her mom was killed in a car accident, Esme is scared the killer took Kara’s life when it was intended for her.

With all of the anticipation and unexpected turns during the story, I expected more from the ending. I thought it could have been hidden throughout the story in a lead that re-emerged for either Rita or Esme to discover. But instead, this ending was basically given to the main characters making the ending seemed rushed.

The audiobook version is well done with two readers, one for each perspective. The chapters are short allowing for the perspectives to alternate quickly. It is easy to start and stop at good transition points.

Thank you to RB Media and NetGalley for the gifted audiobook copy. I greatly enjoyed listening to this quick paced and intriguing thriller that kept me guessing the whole time.

Recently released on 26 Dec 2023. Get your copy soon!