A twisty murder mystery featuring crime writing, betrayal and manipulation. The writing is decent and the premise is good, but the pace is scattered and the big twists don’t hit forcefully enough. The interpersonal relationships are the star here, and I was impressed with the depth of the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for my copy. These opinions are my own.

The Writer was a solid three stars for me. It flowed well, was a quick and engaging read, and kept me turning the pages to see where the story was going. I wasn’t sure which direction it would take and never knew who to trust. Was it just one person responsible for the stalking and the other crimes or were multiple people working together? Was it one of the members of the writing group, Mystery Maidens, or was it one of the peripheral characters that populated Becca’s life?

I enjoyed getting to know the women in the writing group and appreciated that instead of one big data dump about each of them the author chose to give us small tidbits about them throughout the book. This allowed us to delve deeper into their characters, but also made it a little harder to pinpoint who the culprit might be. Just when you got enough information about someone in Becca’s circle to suspect they might be the one responsible you would learn something new about a different character and it would leave you second-guessing everything. Marley’s introduction into the group also had me a little skeptical. Being the newest member of the writing group was the perfect set up to make us think she was involved but it could also have gone in the other direction, being too obvious for her to be the culprit. I went back and forth on this one a lot.

The author does a decent job of making you suspect multiple characters. I didn’t guess who it was but I also wasn’t surprised by who it was. One thing that could have been done better was the big reveal, which fell kind of flat. It was a quick resolution and underwhelming after all the buildup leading up to it. The final twist was a surprise. It was totally unexpected and a nice way to end the book.

I would have liked a little more “thrill” in this thriller but overall it was a solid, enjoyable  read.
 
Thanks NetGally and Bookouture for the advanced copy.

"The Writer" had me hooked from start to finish. Picture a group of female fiction writers with hidden secrets, gathering not just for camaraderie but for something darker. The setup, narrated through Becca's eyes, unveils each character intricately. The mystery unfolds with every chapter, keeping me guessing until the end. Becca's struggles and the eerie occurrences kept me engaged, despite a slow start. The author's style and suspenseful storytelling made it a gripping read.

The Writer is one that caught me off guard and kept me guessing until the very end.

Imagine a group of female fiction writers. Sort of like the average American book club but instead of reading, they're writing. Each participant brings their materials, they have some drinks and review. What you don't know is that each member of the group has a secret, and they're at the meeting not just for the camaraderie.

I really liked the set up of the novel and learning about each character through the eyes of the narrator. I appreciate how the story kept me guessing until the very end; not many writers have this level of mastery at their craft.

Thanks for a fantastic mystery arc; I loved it!

What a premise! What a story! What a brilliant author -I love everything she writes and this book is just incredible. Loved it!

Becca becomes suspicious when the plots of her short stories start becoming reality, the only people she has shared them with have been the members of her writing group, the mystery maidens. She needs to find out which one is a killer and stop them before they kill again.

Loved the idea for this book, the idea that a writers plots could be influencing a killer and how it links to her in particular. I also like the inclusion of the snippets of Becca’s story, would loved to have read more of that weaved in.

My Review
Loved the cover to The Writer immediately...
A new author for me I'm thinking...
In this story people go off grid or keep to themselves in life for whatever the reason and her character Becca has struggled to get over the death of a college friend. So she works, she writes, then she works again not really leaving anyone in to her life.
She joins a weekly writing group The Mystery Maidens. She keeps them all at length never getting too close to any one in it.
But it's when the stories in the group start playing out in reality that Becca becomes concerned.
Leaving black hearts at each incident makes Becca feel they are in some way aimed at her. She doesn't confide in anyone that she has been getting these black hearts throughout her life since she left college but doesn't know what they mean.
When a new member joins the writing group, Becca becomes suspicious immediately...
A slow paced story for me at the start I felt with just the right amount of hair on the back of your neck moments to keep me interested.
I suspected everyone in Becca's life as I read the story...
I must admit I did like the authors style of writing...she kept my interest throughout...
Full of suspense and drama.....
Well worth your time..

I received an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley.

From the moment the body is discovered near the university, echoing the narrative of a story penned by one of the group's members, tension mounts as suspicion looms over each member like a dark cloud. As Becca grapples with the unnerving parallels between their stories and the grisly events unfolding in reality, a sense of paranoia grips both the characters and the reader alike.

The narrative unfurls with expert precision, revealing tantalizing clues and red herrings that keep you guessing until the final revelation. Despite the occasional predictability of certain plot points, the story's strength lies in its ability to keep you on the edge of your seat, eagerly anticipating each new revelation.

The characters, though not deeply explored, serve their purpose well, each contributing to the overarching sense of unease that permeates the narrative. While the ending may feel somewhat rushed and leaves a few loose ends dangling, it does not detract from the overall enjoyment of the novel.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The Writer is a thriller novel centered around a group of authors who write thriller/murder mystery short stories and meet to share them. When people start ending up dead in ways weirdly similar to their stories, they start to become suspicious of one another and try to figure out which of them has been bringing their stories to life.

It was a fun, fast paced read that kept me guessing until the end. Every time I thought I had it figured out my theories were shot down! I really enjoyed this read.

My first book by Miranda Smith and definitely not my last, it kept me guessing all the way through until the very end!

Becca is an aspiring writer, while she waits for her first book “Night Beat” to be picked up by a publisher she works as a waitress at a local pizzeria. To keep ideas flowing she is part of a small local writers group called “The Mystery Maidens” who meet once a week to share support and critic each other’s work. When Becca has a bad dream about a traumatic event in her past, she finds it cathartic to write about it, however shortly after sharing the story with the Mystery Maidens a local university student is murdered in exactly the same way as Becca’s nightmare and Becca starts to worry that someone knows about her past and is out to get her. Can she figure out who it is before it is too late and who out of the Mystery Maidens can she really trust when everyone seems to be suspicious and are hiding secrets from each other?!

This was a really great read! I loved the style of writing, and I was drawn into the story very fast. When I discovered what Becca had been through and was hiding my heart went out to her as she was blaming herself for something that was, essentially, not her fault. The pace was a little slow at the start, but I understand that as the scene needed to be set for the second half of the book which I whizzed through! Miranda Smith did a good job of constantly putting out red herrings and I fell for all of them (which I loved). I had no idea who the perpetrator was, I was completely in the dark without even a tiny inkling until they were unveiled which was just brilliant, and I also really loved the twist right at the end of the story.

Ultimately a really great psychological thriller that I definitely recommend for anyone who enjoys this genre. I can’t wait to see what Miranda Smith comes up with next and I will be going through her back catalogue and buying a few more of her books. Totally deserved 4 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley, Miranda Smith and Bookouture for my advanced reading copy. Out now.

The Writer plot is literally every authors nightmare. Can you imagine writing a book, only to find someone is reenacting scenes from it and people are being killed?

My poor kindle took quite the battering as I couldn't flip the pages fast enough. It's brilliantly twisty, gripping and you will not want to put it down!

The characters, all aspiring writers are part of a writing group called the Mystery Maidens and they all have something in common - they have a secret! Unreliable narrators are always a win for me, it adds to the suspense and tension.

The Writer is my favourite to date from Smith. It's a great thriller and I would recommend both book and author.

The Writer is one of those books with an intriguing premise that doesn't fail to deliver. Becca has her flaws, but she is also relatable and has some likable traits. We're thrown into a mystery with her, with all the same clues that she gets, helping us put together the answers. Yet, the ending surprised me, and it's not often that happens. One thing I adored was that this focused on a group of women who supported each other, and while one of them may be a murderer or messing with Becca, the rest of them are still supportive, showing us how women should be.

My only complaint is that it was so short!

Ooohh I love it when there are just no loose ends anymore. Miranda Smith thought out really well every piece of information she gave and it got all rounded up at the end when it came down to the big plot! Also this book read really easy, I loved the writing style!

I do have to say that for me there was a bit of a pacing problem. The beginning felt a bit slow, even though I get that there needs to be a built up of the world and especially (and this was really well done) some depth into the characters. For me the pace picked up around halfway through and that was also the time where I really couldn't put it down anymore. Nevertheless the end/the plot felt a bit rushed to me.

I had to give this a lot of thought and doubts, but I ended up at:

3.5 stars

I just started this one and was immediately pulled into the story of a struggling writer. I can so relate! The Writer by Miranda Smith is a page-turning suspense that moves quickly and is the perfect book to get you out of a reading slump. The writing flows, the character is sympathetic, and her struggles are real. I love books like this that deliver on the promise of being a fun, quick thriller.

Towards the second half of this story, I kept reading faster and faster. I stayed up late just so I had answers. I HAD no know who and why!

Here’s the synopsis:

Her body was found close to the university. She was on her way home after a night out. Just like in the story I wrote…

Every Monday, I meet my writing group in a warm, lively bar to drink a glass of wine or two. It’s the highlight of my week. But now something terrible is happening.

At first, it didn’t seem like a big deal. My tires were slashed. A woman was hit by a car outside my apartment. Then, yesterday, someone was murdered. And all the details are copied from the stories we shared.

Am I going mad, or is someone in my group a killer?

I thought they were the only people I could trust, since what happened ten years ago. But now I’m terrified one of them knows the truth that lies buried in all my work—the secret I’ve tried so hard to hide. And they want to make me pay for it.

I have to know who’s bringing my stories to life… but will the answer cost me everything?

This book is out now! Borrow it for free with Kindle Unlimited.

This one just wasn’t for me. A good thriller for those who have never read a thriller before, but I was unfortunately bored.

I’m sure someone out there will love this one, but I’m definitely not the target audience.

I think I’m past the “down on your luck and struggling for money” main character.

Becca is part of a writing book and the murder book she is writing seems to be happening in real life...
What and who are the black hearts Becca has been receiving for years,..
This is an enjoyable thriller with a great ending which i didn't see coming

The Writer was fairly entertaining. I wasn't a huge fan of Becca until pretty far into the book. There were some intense themes covered-sexual assault and blaming women for the acts of men amongst them. I was pleasantly surprised to enjoy the twists and turns in this book. I sometimes couldn't keep the supporting characters straight- I could tell you there was a mom who did...but don't ask me which one she was. The MC and her roommate along with the newcomer were well developed.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Thank you Bookouture for inviting me to be part of the Books on Tour for “The Writer” by Miranda Smith. She is a MUST READ author for me!
This is a twisty, quick paced thriller. Becca is in a writing group and some pretty bad things happen around her. This book really had me guessing until the end.
Many thanks to the author, Bookouture and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
#TheWriter #MirandaSmith #NetGalley #Bookouture #BookLove #Bookstagram #NewBook #ILoveBooks #BooksOnTour

🔹 My take: 4/5

🔸Becca is a fiction writer and along with 3 other budding writers, they have formed Mystery Maidens club where they consult each other, bounce their ideas and keep themselves motivated to continue writing. Becca has a secret and once in a while she gets this black heart from someone who seems to stalk her over last 10 years. New entrant joins their group and post their first meeting; strange things start happening. The stories read by each of them during their last meet is coming true one by one and only Becca realises this since after each encounter a black heart is left conspicuously for her to notice. Becca’s story was about a murdered woman and she checks papers everyday praying the worst to not happen. And then it happens. Someone is found dead exactly like her story details. Is Becca going mad or someone is the group is the killer or is the stalker trying to frame Becca?

💖 Wows - For a reader it is always exciting to read on themes about libraries, writers, book clubs, book stores etc. So reading a thriller based on writing experiences, challenges, evolving thought processes was very refreshing. Like many thrillers, ‘The Writer’ is written in first person and thrill moments at the climax as well as mystery around black hearts was very chilling. I did guess the culprit early on but the motive and the manner just blew my mind. All in all a good thriller.

💔 Ows - While thrill part was good the suspense could have been better. The blurb, the start gave lots of hints and hence regular thriller readers will not find it at all difficult to decipher lots of twists. This could be a reason that the ending might feel underwhelming to many readers.

💫 My first from Miranda Smith and looking forward to reading more of her DRCs in future. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thanks to @mirandasmithbooks @bookouture and @netgalley for sharing the DRC in exchange for honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I received a free arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Becca is a wanabe writer who joins a creative writing group for ladies who want to get published, but when some of their stories start to become reality, the group starts to look over their shoulder and look at each other differently.

I really enjoyed this book, it was was really easy to read and follow. I did not find it a psycholigical thriller, but it did creep me out.