Oh. My. God. Talk about twists!! Alex Marks spends her days following the same routine - wake up, shower, breakfast at the Bluebird Diner, back home to work her copywriting job, and a textbook definition of “girl dinner” to end her day. However, this routine is broken when she applies and is hired for the Dear Constance advice writer at The Herald - the position of her former idol, Francis Keen. Alex is apprehensive about changing her routine but is thrilled to be carrying on the legacy. That is until she starts receiving seemingly threatening messages at work. Are these meant for her or are they left over from Francis’s stint? If they were meant for Francis, will this help solve her murder? As Alex begins to dig, more of her hidden past comes to light. Alex must decide if exposing her past is worth finding out what happened to Francis.

I devoured this book! I have had The Golden Spoon on my kindle for so long and now I don’t know why I haven’t picked up one of her books until now. I really thought I had all of the twists figured out (maybe not completely) but I was SO wrong. I was truly left guessing throughout the book - often with my jaw on the floor. This was such a fun and fast paced read! I definitely did not think I would enjoy this one as much as I did. Plus, Jessa Maxwell is a local author (please come back to Brown to talk about this one)! Highly, highly recommend!!

I really enjoyed this mystery/thriller read!!! Some of it was predictable, but there were still some twists I didn’t figure out on my own! I really loved the FMC as well!! 🙌

Highly recommend this one to mystery and thriller lovers!! 👏

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books, and Jessa Maxwell for the opportunity to read the eARC in exchange for my honest review!! This was my first read by this author and it definitely won’t be my last!! ❤️

An enjoyable page turner for sure. I saw a lot of the twists coming, but I don't need to be surprised to enjoy the characters (Alex's diner companions added to the plot certainly, although I wish we'd learned a little bit more about Janice). It's an easy read thriller. The "Dear Constance" letters were a fun novelty.

I was very excited to read this book. Unfortunately I struggled through the first third of the book, finding the setup a bit slow. I liked the concept and the mystery meets thriller vibes.

Decent thriller, fast paced and easy to read. I’d say a bit too predictable, easy to figure out early on. Also the title doesn’t fit well, maybe just calling it Dear Constance would have been better. The writing was fine and flowed well. Ending worked out in a satisfying way.

This is one of my few 5 star reads this year and it is spectacular! Full of tension that twists you up and an ingenious plot driven by a protagonist who alternately frustrates the hell out of you then has you pumping your hand in the air yelling “go girl!” Every character is well-developed and plays their part to perfection. A verynearly perfect book.

title is misleading; i did not need to read this. honestly that's on me because i was expecting a thriller and instead I was delivered a sort of cozy vibe murder. like i should have drank coffee and watched the leaves change while reading this instead of reading this at the witching hours, praying my house is fortified enough to prevent a murderer from coming in. agatha christie raised me too well to not guess the ending. solid lukewarm 2.5 stars.

I enjoyed Jessa’s first book and this second book did not disappoint. At first, it felt kinda of surreal that this random person would be picked to be an advice columnist.

But as the story keeps going, you find out that Alex has a unique connection to Francis. The reader learns more about Alex’s past via letters she wrote to Francis.

Alex is a character that you can route for, but she isn’t without her own faults. She questions one relationship while not questioning another relationship.

Besides the mystery, there are also found family themes. Be sure to check the trigger warnings as there are some serious topics referenced in the flashbacks.

If you are looking for a solid mystery, add this book to your list.

Thanks to @netgalley and @atriabooks providing the ARC.

I really wanted to love this one because The Golden Spoon was so good. It was good but not great. I enjoyed enough but definitely not my favorite. It felt a little drawn out and overly explanatory.

An advice columnist is murdered, and her replacement, Alex, tries to find out what happened to her. Meanwhile, Alex is looking over her shoulder as her own past catches up to her.

I liked the premise, but I couldn’t get past some of the things I had to allow for it to work.
Alex getting hired at the Herald was absolutely bonkers. The application and interview process made no sense, and her concern that they brought her in to tell her she DIDN’T get the job… that’s never how it works! A salary of $125k to reply to one letter per week? And I’ve never heard of an “exploding offer.” The environment in the office also seemed ludicrous. What kind of newsroom empties out at 5pm? Isn’t that one of the industries in which people are always working around the clock?

The writing was okay, but it did feel a little juvenile (makes sense since the author writes children's books) and some of the dialogue was awkward. I liked Alex’s friendship with Janice and Raymond from the diner - it was nice that, even though she was on her own in the city, she still had someone who cared about her. There were very few surprises in the story - it was pretty easy to figure out who was up to no good.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy, in exchange for an honest review.

Another gripping, twisty, and riveting page-turner that you’ll devour in one sitting—this book keeps you on the edge of your seat, biting your nails as you reach the shocking climax, packed with revelations. From the author of Golden Spoon, I have to admit this book is even better than her previous work.

The characters are captivating, including the supporting ones like Janice, the observant diner waitress, and Raymond, the old-school detective who feels like he stepped right out of a Raymond Chandler crime thriller. Alex, the protagonist, is equally engaging, a survivor trying to rebuild her life alone in the city that never sleeps. She faces her fears and past traumas while honing her consulting and creative writing skills. The advice columns in the book are especially well-crafted, making them just as enjoyable as the central mystery of who killed Francis Keen, the famous advice columnist known as “Dear Constance.”

To summarize the plot: Alex Mark, a pharmaceutical firm copywriter, is trying to start anew, connecting only with two people at a diner near her apartment—retired detective Ray and the overly friendly, talkative Janice. Janice always has her bagel and jelly ready before she sits next to Ray, who’s often covered in toast crumbs.

When Alex’s favorite columnist, Francis Keen of the Herald newspaper, is found brutally stabbed at her beach house, Alex is devastated by the loss of her icon. Keen was a lifeline to so many vulnerable people who sought her advice. When Alex learns that the newspaper is already looking for a replacement, she, like many fans, is outraged at how quickly they’re moving on. After a few too many glasses of wine, Alex checks out the job requirements and, on a whim, fills out the application, writing sample advice letters. To her surprise, she gets a callback for an interview with Francis’s famous editor, Howard Demetri. Amazingly, she’s offered the job on the spot, with a salary more than double her current one.

But Alex knows this job will be intense, demanding, and draining, with thousands of letters to sort through for her column. Luckily, she has the help of eccentric young assistant Lucy, though Howard’s other assistant, Jonathan, treats her like dirt, and Howard himself is acting strangely, engaging in long, mysterious late-night calls and drinking heavily.

Soon, Alex starts receiving threatening letters, raising the terrifying possibility that someone is watching her, digging into the past she’s tried to bury. Could someone have targeted her because she took over Francis’s column? Could the killer be coming after her too? To relieve the mounting pressure, Alex decides to conduct her own investigation into Francis’s murder, enlisting the help of her only friends from the diner—risking her life and confronting her own dark past.

Overall, this is a well-written, engaging, heart-pounding, and enjoyable mystery with some great twists that I highly recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for sharing this unputdownable book’s digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

I was a big fan of Jessa Maxwell’s debut novel “The Golden Spoon” and had rather high hopes for this next book of hers. While I thought that the story was unique and interesting, it took quite awhile for the story to really get going and I had a hard time keeping myself interested in what was going on.

I thought the anxiousness of our FMC Alex was super captivating and the portrayal of OCD through some of her tendencies was well done. I thought that the friendships/relationships of hers that we got to see were insightful to the kind of person she was, as well as what her level of trust and comfortability with other people was.

There were a few too many things going on in this book for me though. Firstly, there were a LOT of “Dear Constance” letters from the same someone throughout the book that you get to read, as well as other letters from other people that you also got to read. It got to be a bit much at times. Second, the ending had way too much going on in it. I feel like we got smacked in the face by a multitude of different plotlines colliding and exploding all at once. Third, there were a few too many characters involved to keep up with at certain times, and I do pretty well with large casts, so do with this info what you will.

Overall, it was a good thriller that keeps you uncertain of everyone and everything as you read through it. I would recommend!

Thank you so much to Atria Books for this advanced copy on NetGalley!

3.75 rounded up

Alex is clearly cautious as we meet her. She may even be hiding. But when she starts a new job her confidence grows and she stops looking over her shoulder.

Overall it’s a quick paced book with the story mounting little by little as it goes. Clues are dropped and the characters are developed, including Alex and her fear/nervousness. The end is full of a few twists that aren’t obvious but also don’t feel shocking either.

Advance reader copy provided by Atria and NetGalley but all opinions are my own.

3.5 ⭐️

When the iconic figure behind the Dear Constance advice column is murdered, Alex Marks leaves her dull copywriting job to take on the responsibility of offering life-changing guidance—and perhaps solving a murder.

Jessa Maxwell’s latest book is an atmospheric and cozy mystery that hooked me from the very first page. The novel is fun and a bit whimsical, which is exactly what I anticipated based on her debut, The Golden Spoon. However, I was pleasantly surprised by the more intricate mystery woven throughout this story.

I thoroughly enjoyed the characters, even if they leaned a bit into caricature territory. From Alex, our anxious and mysterious protagonist, to the array of side characters she encounters, each added something special to the narrative. My favourites were Raymond and Janice, Alex’s slightly older friends from the diner across from her apartment, who provided delightful comic relief.

The advice columnist subplot was another highlight for me. I loved the inclusion of past responses from the original Dear Constance, as well as following Alex’s experience as she stepped into the role herself.

While the plot was somewhat predictable, and none of the reveals truly shocked me, the book felt more like a cozy, warm read than the nail-biting thriller I expected based on the cover and description. It was a bit slow at times, but still a quick and enjoyable read.

Loved it! This story is full of suspense and had me flying through the pages to see what was going to happen. Perfect mystery!

I loved the suspense in this book
I was glued to the pages and couldn’t put it down! Late at night reading had me spooked a few times 😊. Some of the things I figured out but there were plenty of twists and I enjoyed the characters so much!

Thank you Netgalley for the e-ARC
Loved this one! 5 star
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5 rounded up!

When Frances Keen, the woman behind the Dear Constance advice column, is found murdered, her entire community of readers is devastated. When The Herald puts out an advertisement for her replacement, Alex jumps at the chance to take her hero’s place. However, with Frances’ murder unsolved and Alex’s own mysterious past, taking on such a public role may come with a cause for concern…

I NEED YOU TO READ THIS by Jess Maxwell is a slow-burn mystery set in the bustling city of New York.

I loved how Maxwell intercut the present-day timeline with “Dear Constance” letters from the past and the whole premise of this murder mystery being focused on an advice columnist was so so good.

There was a sense of dread woven throughout, which really added to the suspense and atmosphere of the story, making it incredibly difficult to put down!

Definitely recommend this one if you’re looking for a fresh take on a slow-burn thriller!

Thanks to Atria and NetGalley for the early copy for review!

Publication Date: August 13

Alex has stumbled upon her dream job- an advice columnist for a popular newspaper that she grew up reading herself. The former writer for the advice column had mysteriously been murdered, and she feels like she may be next.

This was a slow, slow, sloooooow burn. I felt like it took until the end of the book to really get into the meat and potatoes of the plot. The Dear Constance letters, while being somewhat important to the story, were severely long-winded and unrealistic for advice column letters. I can’t imagine a universe where I would write full conversations in search for advice.

I definitely had a few theories throughout the book, and it constantly had me theorizing what direction it was going to go in. Also what drew me to the book to begin with was the cover art. Definitely check it out if you like slow burns with quite a few twists! Overall, I will definitely be checking out Jessa Maxwell’s other work.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Jessa Maxwell, and Atria Books for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was a solid thriller - one that kept me engaged and I absolutely loved the Dear Constance element.
I didn't find this to be overly dark or scary, but it was truly engaging and entertaining.

An advice columnist at a newspaper is being followed by her past..

I think this is marketed so far as a thriller, but it felt more “cozy” to me! Character development, pacing, and plot layering were all there and consistent. The twists were there too, but I wouldn’t call the earth shaking. Fun, easy, with bonus OCD representation. Worth a read!