“Double Indemnity” meets “The Big Lebowski” indeed! (Throw in a “Murders in Our Building”, but only i. the sense that there are “Citizen Detectives!”)

A terrific debut of suspense, murder and humor in Los Angeles and Malibu.

When “Psychic” Jenny St. John” is visited by the police following the murder of her doppelgänger, Gena… questions arise.

Did Jenny or Gena star in her only movie, “The Divide”?
Is Jenny actually Gena?
Does Gena exist?
Is Jenny a fraud or actually psychic? “I thought you don’t talk to the dead?”

Great characters - as the author writes, there even is a "Ten Little Indians" moment... of whodunnit?

A very fun read - and also a nice appreciation of good food and wine, the burgeoning art world and Hollywood’s dark side. Enjoyed it - and sped right through! (Always a good sign.)

Thank you @NetGalley for the advanced readers copy.

PS. Would make for a great TV series. Netflix, anyone?

Thank you to Netgalley and the editors for giving me a copy of this book!

I love me a murder mystery and some drama. The main character was easy to relate to. Escaping her life in the Midwest to chase her dreams of being an actress and failing like so many do. I loved the characters in this book! I do wish that some questions were answered for me before the end of the book. I recommend if you like a who done it story, you will enjoy reading this

This was a great book. I enjoyed the story, the characters, the plot. I recommend it to all readers on publication day.

It was good but the action dragged. I skimmed a bunch just to get back to the action. It's a good library read. Nit something I would buy.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but I was pleasantly surprised. The fake psychic angle worried me a bit because I don't always enjoy reading about con artists, so I was happy to see that Jenny was a really likable character. The side characters were also interesting, and the mystery was as well. I had no idea who the killer was, so I found the ending to be very surprising. However, a major part of the plot was not completely explained, and I didn't love that. Overall, I found The Divide to be unique and well-written with interesting characters and surprising twists, and I loved that the chapters had titles, but the lack of explanation for a certain part kept me from rating this book 5 stars. I would still recommend it though, and I look forward to seeing what Morgan Richter comes up with next!

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor for the ARC!

I was hooked on this one from the first chapter. The wonderfully quirky characters, the well paced plot, and the unique twists kept me reading late into the night. A quick read, I finished it in one setting. Highly recommended

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for an advanced reader copy.

Review of uncorrected eBook file

After starring in “The Divide,” a never-released independent film directed by Serge Grumet, Jenny St. John couldn’t find a way to keep her acting career alive, so she turned to giving psychic readings.

But the murder of Serge Grumet throws her life into a tailspin. Unbeknownst to Jenny, Serge’s ex-wife, Gena Santos, so closely resembles Jenny that the police think Jenny is Gena. Suddenly, Jenny finds herself entrenched into the search for Gena, who has vanished . . . and Jenny learns that Gena had been telling everyone that she was the ingenue star of Serge’s film.

What happened to Gena? Why would she claim to be the star of the film?

Could Jenny actually be Gena?

=========

With its unusual, compelling premise, a varied and intriguing set of characters, and a twisty plot filled with secrets and surprises, readers will find themselves pulled into the telling of the tale from the outset. As the mystery deepens, the suspense grows and an unsettledness keeps readers guessing.

The unfolding narrative slowly reveals its secrets as it races to a denouement the reader simply won’t expect. There is much to appreciate in this captivating, unputdownable tale. Don’t miss this one.

I received a free copy of this book from Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor/Knopf and NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
#TheDivide #NetGalley

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Jenny is living a quiet life until a detective pays her a visit. She sees a woman who looks identical to her. Jenny decides to do some digging and learns sone secrets from her past. A nice read.

***Will post Bookstagram review closer to pub date***

Thank you NetGalley & Penguin/Knopf for this advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

This book was very unique and unlike most thrillers I usually read! There were no crazy page-turning twists or any “action packed” moments (in my opinion), but that’s ok. I really enjoyed the main character, Jenny, and her backstory. She was quirky and smart, and I love a good female “detective” MC!
This definitely kept my interest, I finished it within 2 days. I predicted “whodunit” pretty early on, but that didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the mystery & the story itself.
Bonus points for the chapter titles!!! Lovedddd that.
Overall a really cool story. Loved the Hollywood vibes and the descriptive settings.
The premise of a failed actress-turned-psychic-turned-amateur-sleuth trying to search for her missing doppelgänger seemed a bit far fetched but it actually worked well. The author did a great job with the pacing.
There’s still one very big unanswered question at the end of the book which is a pet peeve of mine, but I guess it’s up to the reader to make their own assumption.

I enjoyed the guessing game component, trying to sort out, first, Jenny’s relationship (if any) to Gena, and then, of course, the mystery of the death of Serge and Gena’s disappearance. Jenny’s background as a psychic let her into the world of the Hollywood elite (a life she had been evicted from long ago), and I enjoyed hunting down the truth alongside her.

Okay now this book actually pleasantly surprised me. I love this genre and I love a good murder mystery type vibe. I loved this book and was hooked immediately! I finished in two days, probably one if I hadnt had plans!

My favorite kind of murder mystery is when I truly do not know who did it until it’s revealed. I almost hate the feeling of reading a mystery and figuring it out immediately. This book had me guessing till the end!

I will say it can be kind of confusing at times with the Gena and Jenny “flashbacks” and alternating versions of the same story but not enough to make me frustrated. However, I felt truly invested in this story and would recommend to anyone I know! Love love love!

Thank you to NetGalley and Morgan Richter for allowing me to read an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

Jenny is working as a psychic in Los Angeles, after her acting career failed to take off. She gets a visit from the police and learns that a famous artist Gena who looks exactly like her has disappeared and also taken credit for Jenny's only acting credit the lead role in a film from twentyish years ago. Jenny soon becomes a part of the mystery trying to solve who killed the missing woman's ex-husband and where is Gena. I really liked this story thought it had a lot of good twists and one in particular that you need to suspend a lot disbelief for. There are some things I wished were a little more cleared up but all in all a solid book I would recommend. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4. I want to thank NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Divide was a welcome read for me after reading two heavy memoirs back-to-back. The Divide is a psychological thriller that takes place in Hollywood. Jenny St. John is a washed-up actress struggling to make a living as psychic. Jenny knows she’s a fraud, but she’s desperate. When a local sheriff shows up at her business with questions about a missing woman, Gena, who looks exactly like Jenny, Jenny is knocked off balance. In an effort to learn more about her doppelgänger, Jenny meets some of Gena’s friends. Before she knows it, Jenny has been hired one of these friends who’s hoping Jenny’s psychic abilities can help find Gena.

This is a quick-paced mystery with an unreliable narrator. There are plenty of twists and turns and it’s easy to stay caught up in the chase. I was really rooting for Jenny to solve the mystery, despite a bunch of wacky choices and an over focus on her past, I found Jenny likable.

Recommended. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Talk about a strange visit from the police. Jenny is working as a psychic life coach when she’s accused of being the missing girl, Gena Santos. Not only do they look alike, but Gena has also taken credit for a movie that Jenny was in. It’s a messed up case of identity theft. One thought that actually hurt no one.That is until Jenny found out. It is the one thing in her life that she is proud of. Starring in The Divide, a movie that never was distributed, Jenny is determined to find Gena and get her most pressing question answered,why Gena stole a part of her life.
This book was full of lots of red herrings, that kept me guessing. Is Gena dead just like her ex-husband Serge? Even as Jenny’s already shaky life continues to fall apart, she just cannot let go of her search for Gena, without answers.
The story sucked me right in. Such an unusual situation. I thought it lost a little steam in the middle, though it did pick up again towards the end.
I did enjoy the character of Jenny, even if she made a lot of bad choices and decisions. I wanted her to find Gena and get answers. I won’t wade into spoiler territory. You’ll have to read The Divide to see if your questions get answered. 3.5 stars.

Jenny St. John moved to Los Angeles and was cast was cast in a single movie. After The Divide failed, Jenny never had another break again and resigned to grifting as a psychic (a psychic LIFE COACH). When she is approached by a detective she learns that a look alike, a twin of a kind, married the director of The Divide and claimed to be the actress he cast. When the director is murdered, Gena, the spitting image of Jenny turns up missing and is feared dead, a murderess or in hiding.

Jenny finds herself quickly tangled up with movie elites as she tries to find out what the story is behind Gena. I can guarantee you will not guess! As she gets closer, more bodies pile up and she is certainly next.

What a cool story and well executed. I enjoyed it so and look forward to Richter's next!
#knopfpantheonvintage #morganrichter #thedivide #metaverse

3.5 stars.

A woman named Jenny St. John finds out she has a doppelgänger, and even wilder, the woman has taken credit for a movie role that was Jenny’s. Since that role, Jenny had given up on acting and became a fake psychic instead. So, naturally, one of the wealthy people who knew the doppelgänger hired her to find out who the killer is.

Most of the story worked for me and was entertaining. Let me warn you, though, that there is kind of a supernatural element that gets brought in, and you’d never guess it from looking at the book. Although I’m quite open to the idea of a supernatural twist, this one just didn’t work for me. It’s a testament to the writer that I still gave this one 3.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

This book was very different than I expected. I loved the character development and slow burn of the plot. It was executed in an interesting manner.

I was intrigued by this book right from the beginning and I found things well-paced for the first 30% or so. Then things slowed down a bit in the soggy middle and I was a teensy bit bored until about 60% when things really picked up again. This absolutely would have been a 4 star read if all the mysteries had been solved. I simply *hate* it when at the end of a book, we still don't know why or how some things happened. I am beyond bothered. If even a sliver of an answer had been given to that question/mystery beyond here are a handful of things it could be but we won't tell you which one is right, I'd be much happier right now. It would have been great if some of the soggy middle was removed so there could be more of a denouement where this main mystery is solved. I don't even care which of the possibilities it ended up being, even the crazy fantasy explanation would have been better than nothing. But giving no answer at all really sticks in my craw.

I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor for the eARC.
Wos, I loved this, what a great read. I couldn't put the book down and finished it in a day.
Great setting, great narrator, good cast of characters and I could not figure whodunnit! Highly recommended!

Jenny St John is a bit of a huckster. A “psychic” life coach, she is doing barely enough to get in her LA practice. Out of the blue, a detective comes by and questions her to see if she is the same person as Genevieve Santos. Huh? Well it turns out she has a doppelgänger she has never met, whose ex-husband was found murdered.

This sets in motion a series of events and a mystery that searches for Serge’s killer and to find out what happened to Gena. And how eerie that they look so alike?

In the fashion of Agatha Christie, we have lots of characters with a variety of motives introduced, secrets uncovered, and a somewhat “reluctant” detective. This was a fun mystery, a grittier LA setting, and flawed yet intriguing suspects. If you like contemporary mysteries, this will be a fun addition to wrap up your summer reads.

Book to be published August 20
Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC.