Typically I enjoy this author's books. This one just fell short. I wasn't able to connect with any of the characters.
I appreciate the ARC, thank you Net Galley.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I picked up this book. I had never read anything from this author. She is definitely a good writer who is grammatically correct and detailed. I’m sure being a lawyer helped that! This book delves heavily into the relationships of three lifelong friends. Each has a checkered past and present! I didn’t particularly care for any of them, and felt all of them deserved some of the misfortunes that came their way! The book was interesting from the beginning and kept that way at an even pace. It has a lot of convoluted details that serve to keep the mystery alive. I will seek out more by this author. Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Suspenseful with twists you won't see coming. Well written but felt a bit slow paced at times. Character development is very good. Secrets, lies, betrayals and even murder encompasses the lives of three friends from past to present. What is the truth? Who do you believe? Received a free copy from NetGallery and this is my voluntary honest review.

This was an extremely well written psychological mystery with a surprising twist at the end. I particularly appreciated that the three main characters were multi-racial (white, Asian, African America) and the author recognized issues that each woman faced and responded to in a realistic manner.

The book moves back and forth in time to provide background details critical to the plot and emotional responses of the three woman involved. Readers can easily identify with the strengths and flaws of one or more of characters.

I enjoyed the pace of the book including the false flags interspersed throughout. The book was a real page turner until the final satisfying conclusion!

Wowowowowow. this had me HOOKED. I could not stop reading this and every free moment I had was coming back to read the next chapter. The twisted world that May is embroiled in and her friends who may or may not be who they seem is such a ride. Little by little you are fed new bits of information until you think you know how it all ends...and then that theory gets blown to smithereens. I never would have guessed how this all wraps up and it truly fed my true crime soul. Don't hesitate, you will LOVE this!

4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this, reading all in one day. The premise was good, the characters different enough to be engaging, and the story just zipped along at a good pace.

My only complaint was the first 1/3 of the book -- it felt a tad disjointed and was a little confusing before the underlying issues of the main characters were laid out. Other than that, well done.

I received a complimentary copy of the novel from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being left freely.

I love Alafaire Burke and this is one of her most intriguing books I’ve read. This book is about three friends who have known each other since childhood who have all been at the center of their own individual scandals. This book kept me interested from the start and I'm looking forward to her next thriller.

May has always been the good, well behaved girl in the trio of long standing childhood friends that include Lauren and Kelsey. Now years later they meet up for a trip in the Hamptons after long absences from each other.

The daring one, Kelsey, leaves a provocative note on the windshield of a bickering couple's car, supposedly as a joke to get back at the couple for taking the girls' parking space outside a restaurant. The consequences of that note become complicated and more involved that it first seems.

The plot is intriguing, as well as the very different personalities of the three women. A suspenseful thriller that is very entertaining.

A super smart, fun thriller that had me turning the pages and finishing in a single day. I had to know what was going to happen! Some twists were easy to see coming, but others were a fun surprise that had me gasping. I had a great time!

A reunion trip to the Hamptons for May, Kelsey, and Lauren and a seemingly harmless practical joke turns into disaster when the victim of said joke goes missing the next day. On the outside, it would seem that these are merely unfortunate circumstances, but each woman has dealt with a social media onslaught and cancellation, which causes their reluctance to share what they know with authorities. Plus, their friendships are not what they were, and their trust may be more fractured than any of them are willing to admit.

This was a fast-paced read with some unlikeable characters each with complicated histories. I enjoyed the weaving of the origins of their friendships in the present-tense events of the novel. I sometimes struggle to enjoy thrillers because I'm analyzing the small details, looking for the plot twist. So, I can't get as wrapped up in the narrative in a thriller as I can in another genre. However, that's a "me" problem, not a problem with this or any other thriller. That said, I did guess the twist, but it wasn't due to any glaringly obvious hints. It was a satisfying ending for me, although I can imagine it wouldn't suit everyone's tastes.

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

The Note
By: Alafair Burke
Pub Date: January 7, 2025
Publisher: Knopf
Three friends decided to meet for a vacation in the Hamptons. Their past is complicated and the secrets are REAL! Do they trust each other? What is that saying “ Keep your friends close, your enemies CLOSER”?
May, Lauren and Kelsey were bonded at the young age of twelve after a tragedy.
The Hamptons is supposed to be a fun time, but after a drunken prank goes wrong, the police are now questioning them and May seems to be the center of their investigation. Why are they so focused on her? How well does she really know her friends?
Get ready for a wild ride. Be careful who you call a FRIEND!!!
Thank you, Knopf, for the gifted e-ARC. This was my 5th by this author and love her style.

Lauren, May, and Kelsey call themselves the cancelled crew as each had a blow up in social media affecting their lives. They have all been friends since childhood spending summers at camp together. Now, they decide to meet in the Hampton’s for a fun get away. One note on a cocktail napkin meant as a joke puts them under suspicion for murder.

This was a fun who dun it mystery. May will be torn in many different ways as she struggles with what to do and who to believe. Nothing like murder to test a friendship.

This author typically writes books that captures and enthralls. This one just didn’t do that for me this go round. It almost felt like someone else had written it. I managed to get through the first fourth and then skipped to the back to see what happened. I feel it was because none of the. characters were likable.

As always I appreciate Net Galley and the chance to read the ARC!

What a fun read! I finished it in under 24 hours. I was at the halfway point when I started to suspect how everything was going to shake out, although when I reached the 90% mark and still had no indication that my theory was correct, I started to doubt my instincts. But the last 10% brought it all back and I was right! (Well, mostly right. I figured out who committed the crime and why, but I did not anticipate the way that character's story would play out.) IMO, this is not a negative thing… It means that the author has done a great job of laying the groundwork for the way the story resolves. I hate when there's some sort of a twist that doesn't make any sense to what has come before. This story was well plotted and a great time! I really enjoyed the way these ladies came through for each other, even when they were getting on each other's nerves. Nobody's perfect, no relationship is perfect, and all friendships have their ups and downs, but these three always had each other's back. I also appreciated the critical lens applied to the aftermath of both cancel culture and true crime superfans, and the way one person's casual hobby or clickbait post can absolutely derail the life of the person on the other end. It's a thing we all inherently understand to be true, but I don't know that I've ever seen it described in such thoughtful detail.

This is my first book from this author but I plan to head to my local used bookstore and see what else I can find from her.

I appreciate NetGalley and the publisher for access to a digital ARC. My honest review is my own opinion.

Review of Uncorrected eBook Proof

Despite some uncertainties, May Hanover is preparing to meet her friends, Lauren Berry and Kelsey Ellis for a girls’ weekend in the Hamptons. Perhaps it was the fact that she hadn’t seen them in several years. But they’d been friends since their summer music camp days [where Lauren was a counselor] when May was just twelve years old.

Each woman has had a negative social media experience that has colored their day-to-day lives despite some efforts to move forward. But their friendship has endured, as this weekend has proven.

But when a prank unexpectedly puts the women in the middle of a police investigation and May begins to wonder about secrets her friends may be keeping.

Can their friendship survive whatever lies ahead?

=========

After a bit of a slow start, the narrative gains momentum, becoming a fast-paced thriller. Some unexpected plot twists keep readers guessing leading to some unexpected surprises.

While the characters are well-developed, none are particularly likeable. Yes, they come from very different backgrounds; they each carry burdens from their pasts and the decisions they continue to make. But they make choices that are questionable at best and don’t necessarily seem to act like responsible adults.

But the mystery is compelling and readers may not see the twist coming, the one that changes everything. Readers who enjoy girlfriend stories with a strong dose of mystery and intrigue woven into the telling of the tale will find much to appreciate here.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Knopf Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor / Knopf and NetGalley
#TheNote #NetGalley

Three former child musical prodigies—one a successful Chinese-American lawyer, another a prominent African-American symphony director, and the other a stunningly beautiful blonde daughter of a fabulously wealthy Boston millionaire—in addition to being longtime friends, they also individually hide dark secrets; withhold knowledge about anonymous notes, messages, and relationships; just may be guilty of multiple murders in Alafair Burke’s gripping suspense thriller, “The Note.”

This is my first Alafair Burke novel; however, it definitely will not be my last because I am intrigued by The Note’s lybrythine twists and O’Henry surprises.

I love, love, love this novel. It's my favorite type of page-turner—ones that keep me up until 3 a.m. devouring each luscious paragraph.

NetGalley, Author Alafair Burke, and Publisher Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Knopf are graciously thanked for providing this advanced readers’ copy (ARC)—JoyReaderGirl1.

The Note is a fast-paced, page turner which I really enjoyed. I did figure out the twist before the Hamptons court date, but it was still an awesome Alafair Burke book! I also was glad to see May’s note on her upcoming date in the Epilogue! Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own. Publication Date: Jan 07, 2025

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the eARC.
Sadly, I didn't like the book and kind of rushed through the 2nd half to the ok ending. The 3 friends were not grown ups, they behaved like spoiled teenagers and I really had a hard time believing they cared about each other. This was my first book by the author, but after reading some reviews I decided I'd try another, earlier one.

The Note is an engaging story that I throughly enjoyed reading! Even though I figured out the main twist, the story still kept me involved as did the characters. Great job, Alafair Burke!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for this advanced copy.

The Note: A Novel by Alafair Burke

One-word review: Complex
Emojis: 😴🧐🫣
Rating: 3.5 🌟s

My Top-Five-style Review:

5. I loved that all the characters had very different backgrounds and remained friends. From a successful lawyer to a struggling artist, the diversity in their professions and personal lives added depth to the story. The friendship theme throughout the story is a nice touch and adds to the complicated nature of the thriller.
4. The setting(s) is my favorite, with characters spending significant time near the water - this story mainly occurred in the Hamptons. I haven't been there, but I have always loved coastal settings.
3. The characters are adequately developed for the genre, but they annoyed me greatly as I read. Their actions and decisions sometimes seemed unrealistic and forced, which detracted from the overall reading experience.
2. The story's first half read very slowly and struggled to hold my attention, BUT…
1. The second half turns unexpectedly, propelling the narrative into a twisty, turney, fast-paced adventure. The big reveal caught me off guard, and I loved that about it.