The Note by Alafair Burke is a gripping and suspenseful novel that delves into the complexities of friendship, secrets, and the consequences of a seemingly harmless prank gone wrong. May Hanover, a well-behaved and rule-abiding woman, has always followed the path set for her by her high expectations and her close-knit bond with her childhood friends, Lauren and Kelsey. The three have weathered their fair share of challenges over the years, but a reunion in the Hamptons turns into something much darker when a drunken prank leads to an unexpected and dangerous situation.

When the fallout of the prank spirals into a police investigation, May finds herself questioning her friends' motives and the true nature of their past. As the layers of secrecy unfold, May grapples with loyalty, trust, and whether the friendships she thought she knew are built on lies.

Burke expertly builds tension throughout the novel, keeping readers on the edge of their seat as May navigates the murky waters of deception and betrayal. The Note is a compelling psychological thriller that explores the fragility of friendships and the weight of choices, proving that even the best intentions can lead to devastating consequences.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. I love Burke's novels. They're page turners that make you keep guessing. The Note, is about 3 friends who go on vacation. What could go wrong? So much!

This started out as a heartwarming story of three friends getting together after each one had some rough life experiences. It was going to be a fun and healing weekend. However, a simple prank (that one friend took a step further) started a series of unfortunate events. The complexity of the relationships and history between these women leads to some crazy twists. Once you understand the basis of their friendship, you understand how much they are willing to protect each other. You can't put it down until you've put all the pieces together, but then the big twist happens! Such an exciting read!

I loved this book! I loved getting to Maya and figuring out what happened! The story kept me interested and engaged. Burke is a great story teller and this book is in my top 3 from her.

Thank you @NetGalley for the ARC.
Friendship, lies & betrayal are the themes
of this murder mystery. Fast-paced, some good twists.

Enjoyed this more than I thought I would. A mystery, thriller type book. Three long-time friends get together in person, in the Hamptons for the first time in person after the pandemic. They are the cancelled crew, each found themselves in the midst of a scandal that went viral in the past few years. On this Hampton trip they find themselves involved in a mystery of a missing man.

The main character is May Hanover, we get her point of view for over a third of the book, when it suddenly shifts and shows other character points of view. That was jarring.

And yet, there's more to this book than on first glance.

I’ve read books by this writer before, but didn’t know what to expect this time—-but I really enjoyed it! It tells many stories with other stories, and I wasn’t sure just where the conclusion would be.

May, Kelsey,and Lauren have been friends for a long time. They’re all different, with varying backgrounds, ages, professions, and so on, but they some shared history, especially when they were at Wildwood, a fancy arts camp. Now they’ve reunited for a long weekend in The Hampton and they haven’t been together for some time. What could go wrong? Except for a drunken prank, followed by a murder! All three of them are keeping secrets, and slowly, layer by layer, the start to reveal them.

I remain a real fan of the author, and I’m eagerly waiting for the next one.

This one is four stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Note by Alafair Burke is less thriller and more a story of a hot mess of a friend group where everyone has had run-ins with cancel culture. The premise was interesting, but a bit slow to develop - I just wasn't sure what kind of book it was going to be. The characters were not at all likable, which is not typically a problem for me, but there's a fine line between unlikable and irritating, and they often crossed the line. The descriptions of each individual's backstory was generally interesting, but I didn't totally buy the closeness of their relationships in the past or the way they came back together. And they didn't really seem to like each other all the much, which made me question whether they would go through all of what was happening for each other. So, in the end, I kept reading and thought it was okay, but it's not something I'll strongly recommend to readers in the store.

This was my first book by this author and it wasn't super impressive. Oftentimes I found myself bored and couldn't tell some of the characters apart, which dampened the twists for me since I didn't care what actually happened to the characters at that point. I'm not sure if I would read anything else from this author or not.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Note by @alafair.burke
@aaknopf
Published today January 7, 2025

A drunken prank goes horribly wrong. Three women head to the Hamptons for a little vacation. Soon secrets will come to light. These nasty women aren’t as close as they thought they were.

A slow burn with unlikable characters. Fans of Alafair Burke will enjoy this. It was an okay read for me.

Thank you to @alafair.burke @aaknopf and @netgalley for the gifted arc!

At the invite of their friend, Three women- full of secrets- vacation together in the posh Hamptons.
Being long term friends they share secrets but have many of their own.
After a prank gone wrong- THE NOTE- these secrets soon come to light.

These ladies have many issues and they keep popping up! While I enjoyed the twists, I had a little trouble keeping the characters straight!

Three old friends who have not been together for years decide to spend a weekend together in the Hamptons, but from the opening of this novel we know that for some reason the police are going to be involved in what happens that weekend. The focal character is May, a former prosecutor and current law professor, who is known for her tenacity while her vulnerabilities are clear to her friends and boyfriend. Each of the friends has a traumatic and public past, so when a man goes missing and ties with past deaths are revealed, suspicions and accusations abound. There are many red herrings as May wrestles with the difficulties of her relationships and sorting out the mystery of at least 3 deaths. After a slow start, this became a page turner, but ultimately the inconsistencies of the characterizations left me not quite believing the resolution.

Initially going into this just based on the premise this book sounded like it would be extremely juicy and full of drama which is something I ABSOLUTELY LOVEEE!!!

As I was reading this; some areas of the story were too dramatic for me but I decided to stick through it.

Overall; the book was good but it didn't give me any wow factors or shock value I thought it would.

I would still recommend this book to a certain reader because I know a specific person that would love this style of writing as well as the tone within the story.

The Note is twisted, standalone suspense novel and my first read by this author. I’ve seen the rave reviews for other books by this author but I found this book just okay. The main characters aren’t really likable and definitely not very good friends. The ending was twisted and not expected but not really a saving grace in the overall story, more of a lip curling shock than anything. I’m sure the author long time fans will love this book but it’s just okay for me. My voluntary, unbiased, and non-mandatory review is based upon a review copy from NetGalley.

This book was an easy and enjoyable read.

May, Lauren, and Kelsey are best friends that haven’t seen each other in years. They’ve each gone through some life changing public scrutiny and are hoping a trip to the Hamptons will be just what they need to reconnect with each other. It doesn’t take long to figure out there is a lot of friction and toxicity between the three. When an “innocent” prank ends with someone dead, these three quickly start questioning who their best friends really are.

Super engaging! I read this in one sitting. I didn't love the connection between the three friends, but it did play out well.

I really really enjoyed this book. Very well written. Im extremely happy i read this book. Highly recommend anyone to read this book. Thank you so much for a chance to read this

Alafair Burke delivers another engaging and fast-paced read with The Note. As always, her writing is crisp, the pacing keeps you hooked, and the characters are compelling. It’s the kind of book you can devour in one or two sittings without feeling bogged down.

That said, while the journey was entertaining, the ending didn’t quite stick the landing. It wasn’t bad, but it left me wanting more—whether that’s resolution, depth, or just a little more punch. Still, if you’re a fan of Burke’s style, it’s worth picking up for the ride alone.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a readers copy of this book. My reviews never contain spoilers and are freely given.
Alafair Burke never disappoints. The Note is the story of 3 long time friends and how 2 notes delivered years apart affect their lives in profound ways.
All of the women are flawed characters, each in their own way. The story flows nicely, tying the past and present events together illustrating how events of the past can have a ripple effect that lasts for decades.

The Note was an average thriller for me. There were quite a few characters that I found myself getting slightly confused on who-is-who throughout the story. It was entertaining, but not memorable.