Broken Bayou was a fast paced thriller. I really enjoyed the setting of Louisiana. It added a hint of mysteriousness and drama to the story. The story had two different timelines, the present and the past. The author tied in both stories masterfully. The characters were well done and quirky. I would love to see this become a series. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Broken Bayou is a great mystery suspense thriller debut book. It starts a little slow but it picks up and keeps you guessing up until the end. Dr. Willa Watters is a child Psychologist who goes back to her home town in Louisiana when her Great Aunts pass away. Her Mom, Sister Emily, and her used to spend their Summers in Louisiana. She had a troubled childhood growing up and she has tried to put her past behind. However, going back to Louisiana brings back those memories of her past, her childhood friend Travis and his family, hidden secrets, etc. There is also a Serial Killer in town while she is there getting her Mom’s things. Travis is a Cop now and she reconnects with him while she is there. He and Dr. Willa had similar family lives in that they both came from broken homes, they have remained good friends, and they trust each other. However, sometimes those people we think we know and can trust in our lives are not who we thought they were after all. Dr. Willa definitely realizes that in this book. Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for giving me a complimentary ARC of this book to read and review. All opinions are my own.

If the rest of this new author's books are anywhere near as good as her debut of Broken Bayou, then I'm sure I'll be reading them! Interesting and captivating from the very start. I loved seeing life through the eyes of the main character, Willa, as well as seeing other characters POV's. I also liked the flipping back in time, which helped to unravel the events occurring! Never a boring minute from beginning to end!

Wow! For a debut novel this was awesome! Dr. Wiilla Watters is a child psychologist specializing in young kids on the spectrum. She also hosts a podcast, Honest Healing that's popular--even more so when she accidentally humiliates herself and has her running back to her hometown. Her mother is in a rehab facility and family friend, Travis--now a police officer--comes to visit and they begin dating. But odd things have been happening there with several young woman discovered in the bayou--all dead in barrels with no clue how or why they met this gruesome end. Vacillating in time between 2002 and the present, the novel details the behavior of the killer as well as the unsuspecting victims and the "gifts" someone keeps leaving for Willa. It's a crazy, wild ride that kept me guessing until the last page!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

What a ride this book takes you on! It sticks you waist deep into the Bayou. The atmosphere in the book was superb! I am always a huge fan of multiple points of view in a story and I especially like the one's when the killer has their own POV as well. It was thrilling and emotional and sometimes gave creepy vibes. I would recommend this and Jennifer Moorhead will be an author I keep an eye out for her next books. It was a great debut thriller. I was finished in 2 days and at times was creeped out and worried about what was going to happen next! The suspect I never once guessed and I was kept guessing throughout the story. I do have an unanswered question at the very end that I would love to have explained.

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Love this thriller! I saw this on other sites and was so excited to read it. This thriller will have you guessing until the end.

I love suspenseful books that take place in small Louisiana towns on a mysterious bayou, and this book ticks all the boxes! It's written well, with a haunting sense of place, and I'm surprised it's the debut from this author. She paced the story well and managed a twisty ending. I look forward to future books. Thanks, NetGalley!

A compelling and atmospheric debut full of well crafted suspense, unexpected plot twists and deep, dark secrets. The pacing was great and so was the writing. If you're a fan of serial killer thrillers you're going to want to add this one to your list!

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for access to the e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

Jennifer Moorhead’s Broken Bayou is a compelling contemporary fiction novel that deftly weaves together elements of mystery and drama. The story is set in a small, tight-knit community and explores themes of family, secrets, and personal redemption. The characters are well-developed and multifaceted, with their personal journeys and relationships adding depth to the story.

The protagonist's struggles and growth are portrayed with sensitivity and insight, making them relatable and engaging. Moorhead’s skilful character development helps drive the plot forward and keeps the reader invested in the outcome. The mystery aspect of the novel is well-executed, with enough twists and turns to maintain suspense without feeling overly contrived. While some elements of the plot may be predictable to seasoned mystery readers, the story remains engrossing and well-crafted.

There are moments where the pacing slows due to extensive descriptive passages, but these serve to enrich the setting and character development. The resolution of the central conflict is satisfying, providing closure while allowing for some lingering questions and reflections.

Broken Bayou is a richly atmospheric novel that combines mystery with deep emotional resonance. It’s a thought-provoking read for fans of contemporary fiction and mystery who appreciate well-drawn characters and a captivating setting.

I picked this up for the Goodreads challenge to be the debut author, second half of the year. I like it, really good development of the scenes in Louisiana and the bayou areas, you could almost smell the air. I think there could have been a little bit more done with the explanation of what happened to Willa at the beginning of the book but overall the story tracked and the suspense built day over day. Great first book!

It's not often that a mystery totally dupes me but Broken Bayou succeeded and I enjoyed it all the more for it!

This was a great mystery involving Willa, a child psychologist, who returns to the small town where she spent her childhood summers. Returning sparks up old memories - good, but mostly bad - and when barrels start emerging from the bayou with human remains, secrets from her childhood come crashing back. Thrills, chills, and mystery abound in this page turner and I didn't want to put it down.

I liked all the different storylines, unique characters, and the setting. Broken Bayou was almost a character in and of itself and I could picture the town collapsing in on itself between the drought and the devastation of the barrels.

I'm impressed that this is a debut. It was well written, well paced, and had a complex but tidy plot. I highly recommend!

Thank you to Amazon First Reads and Thomas & Mercer for the copy.

3.5⭐It is a well-written psychological thriller set in a small town with compelling, flawed characters, many of whom struggle with mental illness and harbor lots of secrets.

Willa is a child psychologist at the peak of her career. However, her reputation is jeopardized by a viral video of a disastrous television interview. As a result, Willa retreats to her former home in Broken Bayou. In this town, mysterious barrels containing human remains have surfaced, along with something from Willa’s past that she never expected to encounter again... I enjoyed the strong sense of place, the twists and turns, that will keep you guessing until the very end, and how the author portrayed mental illness and the impact of emotions on our decisions...

The book started slowly, lacked action until the end, featured some characters making ridiculous decisions, and included scenes that didn't make sense... However, it was ultimately an interesting story and a decent read, a page-turner, and a good summer thriller with some suspenseful and scary moments.

*4 Stars*

Copy kindly received via NetGalley for an honest review.

A very interesting read with great characters. Dr Willa Waters was determined to find out what happened to her sister and the other missing girls. The story pointed to a lot of suspects. Willa put herself in a fair bit of danger throughout the story. The ending surprised me. Would recommend.

This book actually shocked me at the end! It had a lot of twists and turns and things that I didn't see coming. I did want to yell a bit at her to lock her doors and be more safety conscious when there is a killer on the loose. But other than that this was a captivating mystery!

SUCH a good thriller! It kept me guessing the entire time and I couldn't put it down!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc in exchange for an honest review!

Nice little thriller.
I decided to pick up the book mostly because of the setting.
I enjoyed getting to know these complex characters.
I did guess the killer near the end but it didnt really take away from the suspense.

This has multiple layers to the storyline. Willa's relationship with her mother and sister, Willa's summer love and the story with his family, Willa's divorce scandal and the possible downfall of her career. It was a very good read and an easy pick for someone who may be in a reading slump.

The only reason I gave three stars and not more is due to personal preference. This was an overall good story and kept me entertained but this just wasn't one that I LOVED compared to others. This is strictly personal and do believe this will do well.

Thank you Net Galley, Jennifer Moorhead, and Thomas & Mercer for allowing me to review.

Broken Bayou is a wonderfully creepy atmospheric novel that scratched an itch I didn't know I had. We start the story out by witnessing child psychologist, Willa, seemingly have a mental breakdown on Live TV. After the incident, she decides to head back to a home she spent many summers at during her childhood with her twin aunts and her wild and flaky mom.

Once she shows up in town, barrels of human remains start showing up and Willa's past comes back to haunt her. Staying at her aunt's home (which is fantastically creepy), she hears sounds and thinks someone may be watching her but she's on a mission to find something that may be hiding in the house which would put the pieces together on an incident that happened years ago.

4/4.5 stars. This was a really solid thriller that had me totally freaked out multiple times throughout the book. I had an amazing picture in my head of the bayou and loved reading about the town an Willa. I would absolutely recommend this book to friends and family.

Thank you NetGalley for my eARC. All opinions are my own.

If you are looking for an intense, attention grabbing book, then this is the book you need to read next.

This book has everything from theft, murder, and small town secrets all intertwined together with some interesting but seemingly broken people.

The story was very fast paced and the story was easy to follow along with. There weren't so many POV's that made it hard keep track of what was going on.

This book had me hooked from the first chapter and had great character development.

I will recommend this book to all of my friends and I am looking forward to reading more from this author

Broken Bayou focuses on Dr. Willa Watters trip back to her Aunts' home after a disastrous tv appearance. In addition to seeking refuge from the embarrassment, Willa wants to get some of her mother's things that were left with her aunts after their hasty exit years prior. The town of Broken Bayou is simultaneously dealing with the discovery that serial killer may be amongst them. Police have started recovering many secrets hidden in the bayou and the chain of events begins to unravel.

I really enjoyed this one. Moorhead did a solid job with the main character and creating a "quirky" but not comical small southern town. The twists in the book did surprise me which is rare these days so even more kudos to the author. Highly recommend for mystery thriller fans who want a straight forward story that tackles a lot of difficult topics.