May and Kelsey were childhood best friends and attended the same music camp together where Lauren was the music director. All these years later, May and Kelsey have had a falling out and Lauren is the glue that holds them together when they’re each infamous online. But they reconnect during lockdown and agree to get together in person for the first time in years. They’re reunited for a girls trip in the Hamptons. Kelsey foots the bill for the expensive rental and the three set out to have a great time, but a man turns up missing and they’re shocked to learn they have ties to him from the music camp. So many secrets in this story, but they weave together so effectively.

Such a great beach thriller!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my feedback.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book! At this time I will not be reading or reviewing. I will update if I do read in the future!

𝕋ℍℝ𝕀𝕃𝕃𝔼ℝ 𝔹𝕆𝕆𝕂 𝔽𝔼𝔸𝕋𝕌ℝ𝔼

Special thanks to @knopfpublishing @alafairburke & @netgalley for the #gifted eARC.
This was a highly anticipated thrillers, earlier this year. I can't believe it's taken so long for me to get to it. This one sounds so good, and I can't wait to start reading this one!

𝙎𝙔𝙉𝙊𝙋𝙎𝙄𝙎
It was meant to be a harmless prank.

Growing up, May Hanover was a good girl, always. Well-behaved, top of her class, a compulsive rule-follower. Raised by a first-generation Chinese single mother with high expectations, May didn’t have room to slip up, let alone fail. Her friends didn’t call her the Little Sheriff for nothing.

But even good girls have secrets. And regrets. When it comes to her friendship with Lauren and Kelsey, she's had her fair share of both. Their bond—forged when May was just twelve years old—has withstood a tragic accident, individual scandals, heartbreak and loss. Now the three friends have reunited for the first time in years for a few days of sun and fun in the Hamptons. But a chance encounter with a pair of strangers leads to a drunken prank that goes horribly awry. 

When she finds herself at the center of an urgent police investigation, May begins to wonder whether Lauren and Kelsey are keeping secrets from her, testing the limits of her loyalty to lifelong friends.

What had they gone and done?

𝙋𝙐𝘽 𝘿𝘼𝙔:
January 7, 2025

ℚ𝕆𝕋𝔻❓️⁉️❓️ Have you ever played a prank? What did you do?

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#mysteryandthrills #thrillersandsuspense #thrillerfriendsunite #thrillerlover #thrilleraddict #thrillerjunkie #thrillergirlie #bookbuzz #thenote #knopfpublishing #alafairburke

The Note was tough to get into and stuck with. I did finish but… brought me nothing.

I found too much repetition in the beginning that annoyed me. Then just overly heave on social issues. The plot seemed less important.

Thank you to netgalley and Knopf, pantheon, vintage and anchor for the copy in exchange for my honest review!

The Note is a high-voltage thriller ideal for fans of Harlan Coben or Karin Slaughter. It delivers suspense, emotional complexity, and plenty of surpriss though readers who prefer streamlined narratives might find its interwoven threads a bit tangled.

I give it a 4 star. A bit slow first half but once you get about 40% in, I couldn’t put it down. I thought the story line was good. The slowness was only because of how each character was described, past, etc and it became a little too much but then came the drama!

Premise sounds great but it is too slow and too woke for me. I like other books by Alafair Burke and was looking forward to another thrilling read, but this one doesn’t do it for me.

I liked this but it definitely wasn’t my favorite. The thriller/mystery part I enjoyed and is what kept me hooked. The dramatic canceled entitled woman aspect was too much. I’ve enjoyed other works by Alafair Burke and do look forward to more from this writer.

Thanks to Knopf, the author, and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 I enjoyed the premise of this book, 3 best friends all who have been cancelled at some point in their life find themselves in hot water after pulling a minor prank. Mayhem ensues.

Loved the vibes here, but afraid the story went quite a bit woke! It ended up being pretty extreme, and distracted quite a bit from the story. The ending also lost me, sadly!

This was a new to me authors but after reading this author is going to be added to the tbr list. The suspense in the book kept me in the edge of my seat the whole time

Slow burn popcorn thriller that sneaks up on you. This one dives into cancel culture, touches on racial tension, and keeps secrets simmering just beneath the surface. The pacing is deliberate, with suspense building slowly but surely. Twists drop when you least expect them, and while not all of them land hard, they keep you turning the pages. Think domestic suspense meets media drama. Not mind-blowing, but definitely entertaining. Perfect for fans of layered scandals and slow unravelings.
3.5/5 stars

Alafair Burke has given us the rare whodunnit in which all of the plot twists are earned and the reader is left guessing who the real culprit is until the very end. An absorbing tale of friendship and trust played out in cancel culture.

The plotting of the novel is intricate without being overly complex. Alafair covers all of his bases without confusing the reader or requiring them to reread previous chapters to understand the story. I did find some of the supporting characters to be a little flat, which made some of their actions seem a little extreme based on what we are told about them.

Overall, an excellent read that I highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the opportunity to read and provide feedback.

I've been really looking forward to this book. Yes, I'm someone who judges a book by its cover. Not in the sense that it will be good or bad, but it will make me read it or not. And this one had me drawn.

This had potential, but it wasn't great.

The characters were insufferable and at the beginning I was confused by who was who.

The writing style was weird and boring. The pov's switched but didn't say who it was, so you had to guess.

I was curious about the whodunit aspect, but then found myself not really caring as it was so obvious.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

What started as a popcorn thriller took a seriously dark and unexpected turn in the third act. Beyond the whodunit aspect, The Note touches on important themes of racism, consent and privilege. Don't overlook this as a fluff thriller, it makes some important points.

3.5 stars

I absolutely love Alastair Burke’s writing! Although this isnt my favorite book, I did enjoy it.

I love how everything was woven together and mysteriously put into place. But to get to the end was a slow burn with a few hard to get through parts. I did like the multi4 views to help get the different sides of the story.

I can’t wait for Alafair’s next book!

***Thank you Netgalley and Knoff, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor for the ARC copy***

An electrifying page-turner, this thriller grips you with a fierce intensity from the very start. The twists are smart and relentless, each one more satisfying than the last. Its atmospheric writing and tightly wound plot create a world you can’t look away from. A brilliant, breathless read that exceeds every expectation.

This book was twisty and secretive, in all of the best ways. It was a wild ride between the lives and secrets of May, Kelsey, and Lauren, three friends who have known each other forever. However, throughout the book, you really start to question how much they ACTUALLY know about each other, considering the secrets they have been keeping from one another (no spoilers!). Who knew that one "girls weekend" in the Hamptons could turn into such a wild ride of death, police investigations, and untold secrets coming to light.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

The book was fun to read but I didn’t connect with the story like I needed to in order to love the book. The author did a great job creating the setting and characters full of secrets but I had a hard time keeping track of the characters. I think if I read this book again I may enjoy it more.

This had potential, but it wasn't great.

The characters were insufferable and at the beginning I was confused by who was who.

The writing style was weird and boring. The pov's switched but didn't say who it was, so you had to guess.

I was curious about the whodunit aspect, but then found myself not really caring as it was so obvious.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!