Thanks to Atria & NetGalley for providing a digital arcin exchange for an honest review,

This one starts off slow, then becomes a banger, and then settles down and disappoints in the ending. Alex Marks is in the big city, dreaming of a writing career, with no friends except the waitress and one regular at the diner she goes to for breakfast, when she is presented with an opportunity to replace her heroine, the late, great "Dear Francis," a sort of smarter version of Dear Abby (way less judgey, and so, so wise), who was murdered some time before in her beach house (murder still unsolved). Don't ask why a woman bears the male version of the name "Frances," it'll just slow you down (or irritate you every. Single. Time you read it, if you're me).

It's not long before Alex gets the job (natch), idolizes her famous Editor/boss, is confronted with literal mountains of unopened letters to Fear Francis, and is embroiled in solving the mystery of Francis' murder. Oh, and she meets a guy! The chapters are interspersed with letters to Dear Francis written by some poor soul who is sinking deeper and deeper into an abusive relationship and looking for advice (who, who would it be? I'm stumped).

Lucky that Maxwell has developed some writing chops since her last book (a lukewarm suspense treatment of Great British Bakeoff, but make it murder. It had some moments). As previously stated, the middle of the book is an entertaining whirlwind. I am willing to overlook the central casting minor characters during this period of the book, but the end is resolved a little too neatly for my taste. Maxwell needs to get just a tiny bit grittier for me to completely fall for her. Maybe next book?

3.5 stars rounded up

I would like to thank NetGalley and Atria Books for providing me with an advance e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Look for it in your local and online bookstores and libraries on August 13, 2024.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this arc.

The mystery and the romance of this book were fine. I was just never thinking about this, so it was just fine to me.

NYC

Alex Marks, a copywriter for a pharmaceutical company, is a lonely woman who works from home. Really, the only things that make her happy are her two friends - Janice, a waitress at a diner, and Raymond, a former detective who is a regular at said diner - and reading. One of her favorite things to read is a weekly advice column in the New York Herald, called “Dear Constance”. For decades, Francis Keen, aka Constance, has given advice to a national audience - an audience that is stunned when they hear that she was murdered at her summer house.

Alex is one of her readers who is devastated by the news. She looked up to Francis, and never missed her columns. It’s not until she sees an advertisement from Howard Dimitri, the paper’s editor in chief, that she decides to come out of a shell she’d imposed on herself, and applies to be the new Constance. When a snooty secretary named Jonathan calls Alex with the news that Howard wants to meet her, she almost backs out. Luckily (or maybe not), she decides to go ahead with the interview, where she is hired on the spot. They loved her sample columns, and want her to start right away.

After months of having no advice columnist, the letters have piled up, and Alex is looking through all of them, trying to find the perfect story for her first column. She finds many letters signed by “Lost Girl”, asking for advice about how to leave her abusive relationship, but she decides to go with a different person - and her first column of advice was a hit. “Dear Constance” is back, and Alex is loving her new job, despite it putting her in the spotlight. Soon, she has made a couple of work friends, and she also met a man at the coffee shop by her office. Tom just happens to be a banker with an office directly across the street from Howard’s, and has seen some interesting sights when working late. Howard is married to Regina, whose father owns the building and the newspaper. Is he risking it all by having an affair?

This was a great mystery, with an ending I definitely did not see coming! This also makes me nostalgic for the job I had in college, writing news briefs and obituaries for the local paper. I, too, had a boss who had liquid lunches. I, too, had to occasionally go to the old part of the building, where everything felt scary yet amazing. And I, too, loved everything about it - the smells, the sounds, the grueling hours and how delicate the pages from over a century ago are. This book took me back there, while also giving me a page-turner of a story. I absolutely loved it! 4.5 stars, rounded up.

(Thank you to Atria Books, Jessa Maxwell and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review. This book is slated to be released on August 13, 2024.)

{3.5 stars}

Thanks to Atria Books for gifted access via NetGalley. All opinions below are my own.

After the murder of a storied and respected advice columnist, a young woman gets the opportunity to fill the role. It is a big move for her and she is both enamored with the role and the idea she can solve the murder. Quickly she learns there are some secrets lurking in the hallways of her new office.

I liked the structure of this story. There are some twists but I feel like I saw them all coming. The people who are suspicious turn out to be just what you’re suspicious of them for. It’s a good read for the beach or the pool where you don’t want to think too hard.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of this ebook to read for free in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I loved The Golden Spoon immensely, so when I saw I Need You to Read This I couldn't wait to jump into it.

I was absolutely not disappointed. Alex is running from her past, but in the meantime finds her dream job as an advice columnist.

While she's used to questioning the motives of everyone around her, she should really be more discerning. Paranoia catches up to her in the end, in a drastic way. Her few friends really comes through for her though.

I loved this book from start to finish.

(enclosed link will go live on publishing day.)

4 stars 🌟
This was a great book with twists and turns that kept me engaged the whole time.
This book follows Alex. a woman who applies for the job of her favorite advice columns after she dies. What Alex doesn't know, is that after getting the job, things will go away and her dream job may be filled with secrets and lies.
I really enjoyed the advice column piece of this book and enjoyed Alex as a character. I also really enjoyed her companions Raymond and Janice as characters. This was my first book from this author, nut I will be reading more.
Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!

What a good book!!! Such a good story and great writing style. This was my first by this author and will not be my last! I live a good cozy mystery!!

Note: Thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC.

Although this novel read as cozy mystery rather than a thriller as advertised, I was fully engaged. Having read The Golden Spoon previously, I found this novel to be even better by the author. Maxwell brought in a unique concept of advice columns and some loveable characters to the story (Janice and Raymond) that made it more relatable. It was a fun, quick read.

While there were parts of this book that were very well done, ultimately the pacing was too slow to me. I never connected with Alex and had a hard time caring about her situation. I did really enjoy the advice column part of this!

This was a fast-paced thriller that allowed me to sit back and go along in long sittings. I was intrigued by this book’s concept of an advice columnist mixed with murder, and I think that the letters and this aspect made the book interesting. I will say, I found the plot slightly predictable (I knew one of the major plot points right away), and I semi-guessed the ending. However, I really liked the characters that Alex befriends and how she grows throughout the story.
Would rate 4.25/4.5 stars if possible

Overall I loved this book. I loved the idea of a take on dear Abby. Although there was some things I guessed pretty quickly there are others I didn't. I really liked how it was written with letters thrown in,

** spoiler alert ** This was a well-written, entertaining book I sped through in a few days. The inclusion of letters to advice columnist "Constance" was my favorite part, I think, although I figured those out relatively quickly. Our main protagonist, Alex, clearly has some past trauma she's dealing with, and there's the whole murder mystery thing going on, as well. I think this book is a great starting point for people unfamiliar with the genre, and who don't mind (or notice) characters written just slightly off. Because I think they were slightly off. The way Lucy was written, Jonathan, and most certainly Tom, just kept making me think, "Real people don't actually talk and act like this." The ending, especially, really took me out of the story. I felt that the villain got his perfunctory bad-guy speech, plot things happened for plot, and it just went way too fast. The confession made me frustrated, as well. While I found the ending unsatisfying and juvenile, and the writing style a little off, I did still enjoy this novel, and I'm convinced this author will get much better with practice. I'm eagerly looking forward to her next book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for my free ARC. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this one! Thinking back through the hundreds and hundreds of books I've read, I'm not sure I've ever read one centered around an advice columnist. This was such a fun premise made even better by the history of "Ask Constance." Alex Marks was a a great protagonist - just enough mystery and mess to keep the reader wanting to learn more. I also appreciated how she owned up to her own stupid moves, or the way she ignored red flags. It made the character feel more genuine and left me satisfied instead of frustrated with certain choices. Janice and Raymond were delightful sidekicks and I'm jealous I can't join their breakfast club at The Bluebird!

I was impressed with Maxwell's ability to weave heavy themes with an overall feel that leans closer to a cozy mystery than a dark thriller. Passages felt appropriately serious but mixed well with the lighter, and even funnier, moments mixed throughout.

Another win from Jessa Maxwell!

An extremely well-written thriller, I Need You To Read This is captivating from the first few pages. A woman running from her past ends up in her dream job, a very public-facing dream job. From there, the thrills begin and we are dragged along for a fun ride. A few of the twists were easy to spot, but a couple really knocked me back. And all of the advice column pieces were so well written and engaging, it felt like Jessa Maxwell was talking to me directly.

I loved The Golden Spoon by Maxwell so I was so excited to start this novel. Alex Marks moved away to New York City to escape a secretive past and attempt to find a new life. Since she was a child, she followed and adored the column Dear Constance and its writer Francis Keen. When she hears of the shocking murder of Keen, Alex is beside herself with grief. So when she hears they are looking for a replacement writer for the column, she decides to apply. Now a writer herself, Alex pours her heart into the application and to her surprise she gets the job. But she finds out all too soon that there is someone out there who may know her secrets. She starts receiving threatening letters and fears it may be Keen’s killer now coming after her. Every one around her seems suspicious, including her new boss Howard Dimitri and even her new love interest Tom. This was an edge of your seat ride that was so entertaining from start to finish. Loved the cast of characters and loved the “twist” at the end! I highly recommend this novel.

Interesting look at advice columns, and bow they might actually give comfort. Having never read an advice column, this was eye opening to me. Well written with compassionate and believable characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to Atria and Netgalley for the ARC

This was a fast paced thriller that is easy to devour in one sitting. Unfortunately it's not anything groundbreaking or fresh in the world of thrillers and I think avid thriller readers will be able to guess the twist even with the red herrings. It was a fun read though and I'd recommend it as a good poolside/beach read. The characters were ok but I didn't develop any connection to them. There was some suspenseful moments but I think it could have been more creepy/scary than it was.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced reader copy of this book!

4.5/5

General Description: Alex Mark's always looked up to the advice columnist in The Herald, Francis Kean. Francis gets murdered and a few months later, her job is posted. Alex decides to apply and get selected for the position. Now, closer to Francis than ever, Alex can't help but see the signs that Francis's murder can't stay unsolved for long. Can Alex uncover what happened to her hero?

The good:
- The twists in this book were immaculate. I saw nothing coming and loved every minute of it.
- The way you learn about Alex's backstory is creative and definitely on brand with the book.
- Every side character in this book add a unique element to the story, everyone felt so unique and it was easy to get lost into the world of the characters.
- A lot of tension is built, which keeps you on your toes, but...

The loss of a half star:
-...with all the tension, it does make the book a bit slow, especially in the beginning. It was hard to get into.

Overall: If you love a twisty mystery, this is your next read. I can't wait to see what Jessa does next!

This book had some pretty good twists for me. I can not say more without spoiling. I liked that it included a few Dear Constance letters and the other letters too. I am really happy with the ending all around and the Tom situation too. I really loved Jessa Maxwell's first book and this one was just as good.