I have never read an Emily Shiner book and I have to say I was hooked from the beginning. I really felt invested in the main character Freya, a police detective. I also enjoyed her writing style with relatively short chapters that kept the pace quick! I was fortunate to have the ebook and the audiobook at the same time so I was able to enjoy the novel both ways. The narration was easy to listen to and the changes in voice added to the experience. There are many twists and turns that keep you guessing right up to the end. I will definitely read more Emily Shiner books and look forward to the next book in this series. The book and audiobook are expected to be released April 22, 2024.

Thank you Net Galley, Bookouture and Emily Shiner for the opportunity to preview this audiobook and the opinions expressed are my own.

#NetGalley #EmilyShiner #BookoutureAudio #ThreeDrownedGirls #Bookouture

Here is a link to my Goodreads review post: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6421071045

Something bad was happening in Fawn Lake.

Freya Sinclair, a Captain in the local police department, has just returned to the town where she grew up. She'd had to leave for a time after discovering that her parents were serial killers and getting them put in prison. On her first day of work, she is called to the scene where the body of a young girl has been discovered alongside the river. As the investigation heats up to determine that this was foul play, more young girls go missing.

This was a fast and entertaining crime thriller and the first in a new series featuring Captain Freya Sinclair and her team in this small North Carolina town. I read the e-book and listened to the audiobook at the same time enjoying the excellent narration -- especially the accents. I liked the characters and the backstory that revealed some of Freya's history. The plot was interesting and though there were a lot of characters to keep straight, the police investigation and their discoveries were really dark and wild. I'm definitely looking forward to continuing this series and will be looking for the audiobook before I dive in.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the advanced copies.

Three Drowned Girls had me hooked for most of the book. I thought I was going to finish it in one sitting! It got a little slow about 75% of the way through but the ending was solid and left me wanting the next book in the series.

Detective Freya Sinclair returns to her home town to solve a mystery of missing little girls. After a mishap 5 years earlier involving her serial killer parents, she has a tough time being welcome back. Freya proves she's woth a second chance by solving the case with limited resources.

I really am interested to see what happens with Brad and Paul's characters. What caused Brad to be so invested in the soccer team case and if Freya ends up with Paul. The lawyer, Mr. Jernigan was really frustrating as a character but I still ended up feeling bad for him at the end.

I look forward to the next book in the Detective Freya Sinclair series!

Three Drowned GirlS by Emily Shiner is another stellar triumph from this utterly incredible writer.

Freya Sinclair has been away for five years after her parents committed crimes that rocked the small town of Faun Lake (When I say I NEED this back story, I am not joking, the references to it throughout this story are intriguing) Freya returns to her job at the police department, this time as Captain of the Detective squad and on her first day back, the first call from dispatch is about a body, found floating in the lake. However, this is not the only body that Freya will find and as the mystery unfolds, a dark underbelly to the town is revealed, not from the areas you would presume however

Emily Shiner has a great talent of presenting the reader with little clues throughout the storyline, was it the blacked out pickup truck, the soft drink bottle, the white ribbon. All little clues here and there which do not necessarily take you down the right path. This is highly engaging, pulling the reader into the investigation. In addition, I found the characters utterly relatable. Freya has every right to be angsty, but while she is a closed personality, she begins to warm up. Candy, her Detactive is brave, smart and scrappy, her mom-figure Esther is a bean, Brad is a labrador cop who is there to work on the detective team temporarily. On the other side of the coin, there are characters that you will despise, on so many different levels and TW for certain themes surrounding these characters

I absolutely adore Emily Shiner's writing style. It is powerful, engaging, dynamic and relatable and Ijust cannot put her books down, everything else seems to mute out while I am in a Shiner novel. If you love thrillers and a strong FMC that is genuine, highly relatable characters with immensely immersive storylines, this is the author for you

Thank you to Netgalley, Bookouture, the incredible author Emily Shiner for this belting ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

First I want to say thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book and that all opinions in this review are my own.

Detective Sinclair returns home to her sleepy North Carolina town after spending five years away due to the fallout of her discovering her parents crimes and how the town of Fawn Lake reacted to them. Upon her homecoming and resuming her position at the local PD, Detective Sinclair is thrust right into a case of trying to find out what’s happening to the little girls in her town while also dealing with the stress of a not so warm welcome back by the locals.

While I did enjoy the short chapters that lended to the book keeping a good pace I personally did struggle with connecting to the characters. There was also a lot of build up surrounding her parents crimes and I felt a little let down that there was really no pay out in regards to what actually transpired there. I was invested enough to want to read book two and hopefully we’ll get some more answers regarding Freya’s family's dark past as the series evolves.

Again, these opinions are my own and if you’re looking for a quick read in the thriller realm I would recommend giving Three Drowned Girls a go.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Bookouture for an advance copy of Three Drowned Girls, the first novel to feature Captain Freya Sinclair of the Fawn Lake, North Carolina Police Department.

I enjoyed Three Drowned Girls, which has an unusual motive and solution. There aren’t so many twists because it is at heart a police procedural where it concentrates on narrowing down the suspect pool.

Much of the novel is concerned with identifying the young girl found drowned and that isn’t easy as several young girls have recently disappeared from the town. I found the obstacles put in Freya’s way as she tries to establish the victim’s identity enlightening and rather frightening, apparently dead and missing children don’t trump privacy. I think that the concentration on this makes the novel sag somewhat in the middle as forward progression is slow. The arrests are quick and not as tense and dramatic as they could be. Still, it’s a first in series so the author has plenty of time to work on the balance of the novel.

Freya Sinclair is an interesting character. She’s back in her home town after a five year absence and not all the residents are pleased to see her back. The reasons for this are not explained until later in the novel and the small hints spread throughout are more annoying than intriguing. She’s a smart, dedicated detective and that makes up for a lot.

Three Drowned Girls is a good read that I can recommend.

After being away for 5 years Freya finally returns home to be a detective again at her home town police department. She thought she would get a warm welcome but is not welcomed openly. Within days of returning a brown hair girl is discovered dead in the lake and another one is found soon after. Freya quickly realizes something more nefarious is happening and is pointing a cult of women wanting to cleanse their daughters. As Freya moves through her investigation she is met with secrets, lie, deciet, and skeptical community members. Will she figure out what is happening before another girl goes missing?

This was a fantastic book and one I would highly recommend to anyone who likes quick , thrilling murder mysteries. It was one of those books that makes you sit there for a moment to explore the true evil that can exist in the world. I really enjoyed it and thought it was a book that I could read again. The development of the main character Freya is interesting as she is known to be the daughter of a serial killer couple.

Three Drowned Girls by Emily Shiner. Over all I am giving this book 4 Stars. I absolutely love the characters and writing style of the book. Emily was able to hook me right off the bat and keep my interest until the end. However I was really hoping for a bigger finish for the reveal to be more twisty. And it kind fell flat for me. I love a bad ass female Detective and Freya was that for me. The rest of her team were relatable and easy to love. Over all it was good. And I am looking forward to the rest of the books in this series.

Three Drowned Girls, my introduction to Emily Shiner as an author and also to the new Detective Freya Sinclair series being released on April 22, 2024.

This was an easy read, the mystery was good but not edge of your seat suspense, and you could see where it was headed. If you are someone that gets hung up on procedure in these types of books, you might find it a little frustrating on that front. Without spoilers, the book overview, does mention a few things that I didn't see materialize in the story.

Book one introduces you to the key characters and provides breadcrumbs about their past without the full story, which left me wanting, wondering if we will actually learn about Freya’s horrific past. I will be reading book 2 and hoping that more details from the characters past emerge.

The cast you will meet include Detective Freya Sinclair, as per the book overview illudes, her parents were serial killers and she was the one to bring them in and suffered an injury in the process, however, that is about the limit of the detail you will get on that. She is dedicated to her work, it is her priority when there is a big case, while taking time for those who mean the most to her when she has down time. Candy is the other detective in the department and Brad is a Rookie aspiring to make Detective. Lance is the ME. You also meet the Chief, Esther who raised her from a teen and there is also Paul, aka the cutie neighbor.

Overall, the series has potential, so going with 3.5 stars for this one.

Due to some triggers I did not finish this one I do apologize for that I will give it a five because the half that I read is very well written and detailed

Freya returns to her hometown as the new police chief, a town she left years ago after a gruelling case. She was not popular with many and blamed for some aspects of the case although it takes many pages to get to that. The first day she is landed with a dead, drowned little girl. No identity, no-one missing apparently. She and her team ferret and investigate and found uncomfortable aspects of small town life. There are little snippets about Freya's past - presumably to try to hook us in for more. I found them just annoying. She has an able team and they all work well together which is a pleasant change. As a start of a series it was a fairly good read; I'd like to see more editing as quite a lot of repetition especially while driving. The woman seemed to dash off pedal to the metal an awful lot. There's some rather dodgy policing but maybe American policing does that, British wouldn't (or shouldn't); lines of evidence and all that. The storyline is certainly black and, in a small town where everyone knows everyone's business, seems implausible at times. Still, a reasonably good start to a series and I'd be happy to read the next story. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy.

thank you to netgalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy.

Captain Freya Sinclair returns to her hometown five years after some unfortunate and terrible events in her life made her flee the city. We only get a glimpse of the reasons why she left and her troubled past, but hopefully, we will find out more in the next book(s), which I will definitely check out.

So, the thing I enjoyed the most about this book are the characters and the dynamic between the main trio. Usually, the rookie detectives are overlooked and frowned upon by the main character, who has much more experience and is brilliant. This doesn't happen here. Freya treats her team with utmost respect, crediting them when it's due, listening to their ideas, allowing them to act one theirs right from the start. They actually are a team, always ready to support each other, and the other charactes play an important role in solving the mystery. Kudos for that.

The mystery was very engaging with a well-maintained pacing, and the reveal of the culprit was not what I expected it to be but very shocking and enjoyable nevertheless

A detective series involving a strong female lead with a secretive background story. Yes, please!

Detective Freya Sinclair returns back to her hometown after a five year hiatus following the arrest of her serial killer parents. It's barely a couple hours into her first day at her former precinct when a child's remains are found at alocal lake. Little does she realize, she'll be lead down a dark road of suspicious parents and missing children.

Slightly predictable but also still very enjoyable. Great storyline that is left open ended for additional bokks. I love how the author weaves in some of the story involving Freya and her serial killer parents. Just a taste of the story, but not the full entrée. I NEED MORE!

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book and allowing me to get a sneak peek.
#threedrownedgirls #netgalley #emilyshiner

Obsessed with this book!! I know this is soon to be one of my favorite series!! I can’t wait to see what happens next! Thank you #netgalley @emilyshiner for letting me read the ARC of this amazing book!!

Leigh comes back to her hometown and the minute she is there she gets thrown into a case. Why are local young girls missing and why are some being found drowned? It is up to Leigh to find out what is going on in her hometown. This is a first book in a series and I really enjoyed following Leigh around trying to figure out this case. Look forward to the next in the series.

I absolutely love Emily Shiner! I gave this read 5 stars as her books will always hook you right in. This is a first book in a serial killer series by her. I was hooked from the first page. You will not be able to guess the twists and turns ahead of time so buckle up!

Detective Freya Sinclair #1

After five years away from her hometown of Fawn Lake, Detective Freya Sinclair isn't expecting a warm welcome from the people she's sworn to protect. She became a detective to bring serial killers like her parents to justice, but the tight-knot North Carolinian community can't see past her twisted roots. Minutes after stepping foot back home, the body of a dark-haired young girl is pulled from the river, and Freya races to the scene. She's determined to identify the child and finally prove herself, but before Freya even has the chance to search through missing persons, another girl is reported missing.

Freya Sinclair is a fascinating character. She is a detective and her parents were serial killers. I was hooked from the first page. The crime is shocking. The pace is fast, it's intense and compelling. It's also gripping and well-written. There are twists and red herrings, and the characters are well-developed and believable. Filled with suspense, this character driven story is a promising start to a new series. The story cover child abuse/neglect. I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Published 22nd April

I would like to thank #NetGalley #Bookouture and the author #EmiltShiner for my ARC of #ThreeDrownedGirls in exchange for an honest review.

Three drowned girls:
I loved the characters, especially Detective Freya Sinclair. This book kept me on the edge of my seat!! I couldn’t put it down! 5 stars!!! Really enjoyed this book. Can’t wait to read the next one with Detective Sinclair. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc.

Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC copy of this book. Three Drowned Girls is book 1 in a series about Detective Freya Sinclair set to be published on 04/22.

Detective Freya returns home to NC from Texas after being gone for 5 years. Freya is a detective who discovered her parents were serial killers and now her return isn’t so welcomed by the people in town. Outside of the stress of being back home, her first day back in the force becomes consuming and hectic when a young girl’s body is discovered in a river.

I loved the short, quick chapters that immediately got to the crime so the mystery of who and why begins. Within the first 20% of the book other details and clues are revealed. While I did appreciate this aspect of the book I don’t feel the suspense was built very well. Things were a little predictable in my opinion. Without spoiling it I had an idea of what was going on prior to the reveal so there was no shock factor for me which I enjoy in my mystery/suspense reads. While reading I was hoping for more on her parents being serial killer’s and the full story of the arrest, but it was vague. This could be the lead up to book 2 in the series. The ending also obviously tried to set that up and I feel they crammed details about it in the end.

This was my first read by the author and while this wasn’t mind blowing it did keep my attention enough for me to want to read the 2nd book in the series. That and the fact that I did like the characters (Detective Freya, her small team Candy & Brad, and Esther) in the book and feel they have a lot of potential.

3.5 STAR

Whilst, I loved the concept behind this book and the characters involved, I found some parts of the storytelling unnecessary, whilst, some parts were not talked about enough.

I found this book to be very fast paced, yet slow at the same time. Throughout the book, every time the main character is driving, the scene is very descriptive, which whilst, I was getting through the pages, it didn't seem like I was getting anywhere in terms of the actual story. I felt the same way towards every time Esther entered the scene, I adored the character, however, was not a fan how she was constantly described as an elderly women in nearly scene she was in. One of the main reasons why this book attracted me was due to Freya's backstory of her parents, whilst, in the book they are briefly mentioned every now and then, it slightly annoyed me that there wasn't a conversation or even a small chapter dedicated to exclusively to Freya's background, as more information on them was provided on the blurb.

That being said, I look forward to getting to know more about Freya, Candy and Brad, in the upcoming books.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.