A noteworthy thrill.

4.5 stars.

When three friends who've known one another since they were all at art camp together - May and Kelsey still barely teenagers, Lauren one of the camp leaders - meet up at a fabulous rental house in the Hamptons to reconnect, it looks like an ideal, fun-filled weekend. Years have passed since all three of them have been together, and every one of them has been affected by cancel culture in the meantime. But then, a prank puts them squarely in the path of a police investigation - and their friendship is tested in ways they could not have imagined.

This was a fast-paced read that held my interest. I enjoyed the Hamptons setting and how the characters' backstories are revealed through various different means, such as newspaper articles. The pacing of the novel was great; it started out slowly and innocently, and then became more and more intriguing and fast-paced until the final reveal, which was not drawn-out unnecessarily, but resolved swiftly. As a lawyer, I especially appreciated that the thriller followed the rules of criminal procedure.

I also appreciated that the plot centers around three strong women who have (mostly) maintained their childhood friendship well into adulthood. May, the daughter of a first-generation Chinese single mom, is a former prosecutor at the DA's office now working as a professor at a law school, and in that, her career mirrors that of the book's author, [author:Alafair Burke|108774], which is always interesting in a work of fiction. However, Lauren, and to a lesser extent Kelsey, come across as less fleshed out, maybe because most of the book is told from May's point of view. And while the women's friendship is generally believable, their daily interactions make you wonder how deep that friendship really is.

I will say that I did not understand the whole hoopla around the note/prank at first (a near-fatal flaw considering this sets up the entire mystery), especially the women's refusal to go to the police. Once more backstory is revealed, at least one character's motives become clearer, but it still seemed like something that could have easily been explained by the women.

As for the whodunnit, it was quite obvious to me, including the "why", but I still enjoyed the suspense.

One final aspect that made this thriller less than perfect for me was the heavy focus on the pandemic in May's backstory. There's no denying that a lot of people were strongly affected by the lockdown. However, when this book goes to press it will have been almost five years since the world shut down. While the pandemic's effect on May's mental health is an interesting aspect of her character, it did not need to be mentioned quite so often in a story that had otherwise nothing to do with Covid 19.

Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor / Knopf for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"The Note" is slated to be published on January 14, 2025.

4.5 stars for this amazing book! I had the majority figured out but the twist at the very end had me shook! The only thing I could not get over were the ages of The Canceled Crew. I just can’t fathom women those ages to act like that. Maybe if they were 10 years younger but being almost 50? Either way, this book is a must read for anyone who loves a good mystery/thriller!

A little spoiler*** The minute she wrote that note, I knew there was going to be trouble. The three women together on a vacation, the slightly stalky fiancee, the rich girl/poor girl thing--it's all in there. This was a great story with excellent pacing that had me guessing, and most of the time I was wrong.

Three good friends who haven’t been together in years go back for some fun and sun in the Hamptons.
But a note and a prank will have deadly results.

This one was hard to get into. A good portion was rehashing the past and a lot of the pandemic. By the time we got to the current story, I had to go back and refresh my memory.


NetGalley/ Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Knopf January 14, 2025

This was a fast-paced, interesting read, that I found I did not want to put down! Great, multi-faceted characters. Vivid descriptions. I was glued with anticipation to my Kindle screen the whole way through! Kept me captivated from the first page to the last.

*I received a complimentary ARC of this book in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.

Woof. Being a fan of The Ex by Alastair Burke, I was really expecting this to be better. Five years after the start of the pandemic and the LAST THING I want to read about is pandemic problems. Not only pandemic problems, but then we have the race topics constantly being shoved down the reader's throats. We have the uber smart Asian American woman, the extremely talented Black woman, and the rich, spoiled, dumb White woman. Woke culture and all that.

Almost DNF. Solid Nope for me.

First of all, thanks to Knopf and Netgalley for the eARC of The Note by Alafair Burke. Reading The Note was one of the best literary experiences I've had in a long time. An absolute riveting mystery that compels you forward, the narrative centers around a group of friends staying in an airb'n'b where an innocent prank brings very dark things to light. What makes The Note so successful is how vividly the characters are rendered, yet how much of them is left off the page. What that does is create an air of mystery surrounding the plot and keep you guessing as to which character is actually the culprit. The novel eventually ramps up the intensity until it lands its gutpunch of a climax that I did not see coming. I highly recommend The Note to anyone who loves a good mystery or thriller.

Three long time friends plan a reunion after not seeing each other for an extended period. They've been friends since summer camp many years ago, but all have busy lives in different cities and a reunion just hasn't worked out before. All three women have been tramatized by social media so avoid drawing attention when they can.

The story is built in layers, both past histories and present day interactions are revealed in small bits and pieces. A rude gesture during parking and a few too many drinks will lead the trio to make some very poor decisions that bring them to the attention of the police and of course.....social media. Burke does an excellent job of letting the readers see how the friends support each other but also show how anytime you have a group of people, competitions will show the ugly side of growing up. As the truth is slowly revealed, the clues will have readers changing their suspect list every gew chapters, until the suspense and tension present the only reasonable suspect.

Loved it. Did not see that coming. Kept me guessing wondering what each piece meant in the story until it was all tied up in the end..

I stopped reading about 35%. I found it uninteresting and was wholly bored with it. The characters felt flat and I just couldn’t immerse myself into the book.

The Note, by Alafair Burke, is another page turning thriller that I could barely put down! When three old friends vacation together in the Hamptons, what could go wrong? Thank you NetGalley for this advanced readers copy!

Unfortunately, I just didn’t enjoy this one.

I had to dnf after 51% because I just felt myself being so uninterested, annoyed, and dreading picking up the book. I personally wasn’t enjoying the characters, the setup, or the pandemic talk.

I can see other people enjoying this one, and I am still super grateful for having received a copy!

While I have read other Alifair Burke mysteries and enjoyed them, I did not like this one. It seemed like most of the book was filler. The first half of the book (really, 50% on my kindle) was just backstory of the three unsympathetic main characters. We could have done with much less.

The set up: The girls met at music camp . May is a Chinese scholarship student with a high bar set for her. Kelsey, a bit older, is a musical prodigy. Lauren is the daughter of a controlling father. She is rich but has a troubled family background. Their friendship is cinched by a tragedy at the camp. Much has happened in the ensuing years and they have lost real contact, They meet for a weekend in the Hamptons to reconnect, A lot has happened to them. May, an assistant district attorney, has a meltdown in the subway captured on camera that drove her from her job. Kelsey’s long term relationship with her married mentor goes public and almost costs her the job she loves. Lauren went into business with her father. Her husband was murdered. Nobody was ever convicted and Lauren was vilified as his killer on social media.

The girls go out drinking, have an encounter with a couple, and one of them pulls a prank that embroils them all in first a missing persons case and then murder.

It’s hard to say much about a plot that’s stretched thin. I really didn’t care who did it or what happened to the friendship.

Many thanks to Random House and Netgalley for allowing me to read and honestly review this advanced reading copy.

Book: The Note
Author: Alafair Burke
Publisher: Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor
Pub Date: January 14, 2025

I love Alafair Burke and have read several of her books. This one is probably going to be my least favorite. The beginning got off to a slow start and finally took off about the mid way point. By the time I finished reading it I felt like I had read two different books. The second half is much better than the first half. One thing I can tell you up front that I don’t want to read about in books is the C word. I don’t even want it mentioned. So that was an immediate turn off. Another thing with this story is there was a lot going on. Way too much happening when all it needed to be about was the prank. May was very annoying and I didn’t think her character was clearly defined. I realize it sounds like a negative but the second part redeemed the book as a whole.

Thank you Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor and NetGalley for this sneak peak! Publication date is January 14, 2025.

I love this story, it kept me thoroughly entertained, and I highly recommend it for people who love mysteries. I have autoimmune conditions and am in a flare, including vision problems, the only reason I said that is to reinforce how much I enjoyed this book, reading it when I was having blurred vision during the day, as soon as it would clear I was right back with the girls, Lauren, May and Kelsey. They have been friends since they were young and going to Camp, where Lauren was a Counselor, being ten years older, the big sister of the group, with May and Kelsey brought together by their adoration of Lauren. Their diverse backgrounds making no difference to their feelings of sisterhood, even as all three went through separate issues that gained them notoriety on Social Media, they had been through it all still friends. May is engaged and preparing for her wedding when Kelsey texts with the idea of getting together at the beach in Sag Harbor, the cost was too much for May, her wedding plans taking her resources, Kelsey having a wealthy father generously offers to pay for the rental home on the water with a pool, bring on the fun. However, into this alcohol fueled get-together a parking incident gets blown out of control, then The Note, then The Murder! Could three murders from their time at Camp to the alcohol fueled get-together be connected, could it be one of the besties? As I said, this will make my Top Ten, my number one hate is the use of profanity, especially the f bomb, I really hate it, there is no justification for intelligent people to resort to gutter language, if you can't think of a better adjective then that's on you. I do deduct at least one Star for the f bomb. This is not me being sanctimonious, it's me saying what turns me off in a story, I look at least one protagonist as a friend, hopefully there is at least one, then when that spills out, there goes my compatibility with that protagonist. The story is interesting, entertaining, I highly recommend it.
Thank you #Netgalley #PenquinRandom #AlafairBurke
carolintallahassee

I absolutely loved the characters in this book. Set predominantly in the Hamptons, the story revolves around three women who find themselves entangled in legal troubles and some strange murders. The plot twists are unexpected, but everything falls into place perfectly.

The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is due to the pacing at the beginning. The initial chapters drag a bit, making it somewhat challenging to get into the story. However, once the narrative gains momentum, it transforms into an utterly addictive and compelling read. The slower start is quickly forgotten as the plot thickens and the tension builds, leading to a climax that is well worth the wait. The intricate plotting and character dynamics create a reading experience that is both engaging and rewarding.

Overall, this book is a fantastic blend of mystery, drama, and suspense, with characters that stay with you long after you've turned the last page. Despite the slow start, it’s a highly enjoyable read that I would definitely recommend to fans of the genre.

I’m a longtime fan of Alafair Burke as well as a native east end Long Islander. This book seemed like it would be a can’t miss for me. Alas, though I finished it, it was not the gripping read that some of her previous titles were. I didn’t particularly like any of the main characters, especially May. The deep, long standing friendship between her, Lauren & Kelsey wasn’t believable and didn’t read organically to me. There were a grab bag of sub-plot lines thrown in (pandemic!, crime rate in NYC!, Me Too!, Karen-ing!) that made for a cluttered read. The big reveal was also perplexing, as in really?? You had no idea??? Overall, I felt vaguely irritated throughout my reading.

I love all of the books she has authored and co-authored as well. I really enjoyed the friendship that the 3 women had. I could actually visualize where they were and their personas were like people we’ve actually met. I didn’t see the twist coming so it was extremely suspenseful and the ending was spot on. I couldn’t put the book down because it kept me intrigued throughout.
I highly recommend everyone to read not just this book but all her others as well.

The Note is about 3 old friends getting together in the Hampton’s to catch up. But what was meant as a relaxing vacation ended with a prank note turning it into a nightmare when the recipient of the note turns up dead. Secrets are spilled and relationships tested is one of them a murderer?
I enjoyed Alafair Burkes writing style snd how he added in the criminal procedures. I found the killer to be obvious, but I enjoyed the twist and how he wrapped it up. I plan on checking out more of his books.

Alafair Burke is a treasure. Her crime novels/mystery thrillers are smart, well-crafted, and unputdownable, and The Note is no exception. Kelsey, May, and Lauren, three friends with complicated personal and collective histories, reunite in the Hamptons for what is supposed to be a carefree and fun girls' weekend. Unfortunately, things quickly go terribly awry, and the women find themselves wrapped up in a police investigation. Relationships are put to the test, loyalties are called into question, and is one of the friends to blame? Burke is a master of storytelling and suspense, and The Note kept me guessing until the very end.