High Season is about Nina, who at 5 years old became the youngest witness to testify against her babysitter (Josie) for drowning her teenage sister (Tamara) during their famous mother’s birthday party at their vacation house in the south of France in 2004. 20 years later, there’s new found interest from a true crime influencer (Imogen) and a production company looking to create a documentary on the case. The problem is, Nina is begun to second guess her memory and what she saw the night her sister died. Told through third person POVs of Nina, Josie, Tamera, and other characters from both 2004 and 2024, the story unfolds and reveals secrets and missing details about the events leading up to that night.

I really really liked this. At first, I thought the pacing, particularly in the 2004 chapters was too slow, but it made sense why it was done that way. There also wasn’t really a twist as I could tell what would happen pretty early on. That said, I loved that the story explored so many different themes: friendship, first love, toxic relationships, memory - and heavier topics like abuse and manipulation (trigger warning there). I could understand where the characters were coming from and connected with them, and I enjoyed the way it was written. The TikTok chapters were also fun and helped to break up the writing style. It might feel a bit outdated in the future, but I still really liked that element. Oh, and the ending made me tear up a bit and was strangely quite sweet in a very sad way. There were a few areas of repetition and a spelling error or two but nothing distracting.

I’ve read a few 5/5 books this year and this is one of them for me! Thank you the Net Galley and the publisher for the arc!!

A very engaging mystery/suspense story. It's an interesting look into repressed memories and whether a 5 year old child can be a reliable witness, especially 20 years down the road. What is truly a memory and what is just the mind filling things in or trying to process the trauma in the only way a child that young can. Add into that a very dysfunctional family and the past colliding with the present, and you have a story that will keep you reading as you watch in all play out.

I must admit that even with all of the books on my shelf I felt compelled to jump into this one. I’m so glad St. Martins Press sent me this widget. Truly!

HIGH SEASON started off strong with Nina witnessing the murder of her sister but you quickly know that there’s much more to the story. I loved Nina’s character. She was vulnerable, and completely her own person despite the family she came from.

There were a few other characters to keep track of but not too many. The main ones were friends of Nina’s sister, Tamara and Josie (convicted of the murder), and Nina’s brother Calvin. I do wish the reader got to see more from Evelyn herself because I felt like I ended up hearing about her after awhile, but not hearing FROM her. Despite that, these were very well-developed multi-dimensional characters. My favorite would have to be Josie because she showed some serious humility.

The plot unraveled at an even pace that wasn’t fast but it kept my attention and that is *extremely* hard to do. This book should and will probably be on the must-read summer thriller list because it’s that good.

I must empathize that the writing in this book was truly stellar. I’m going to check out Katie’s previous book and I can’t wait to read more by her!

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my digital copy through NetGalley.

I would go 3.5 with this one if that was an option. The story is told in two timelines about two social classes and several families and friends and a whole lot of other stuff in between including the mysterious death of a twin. This death was supposedly witnessed by the twin's much younger sister. There's a lot going on here and it's very character driven but necessary for you to understand who each one of them are and what role they play in figuring out just how Tamara Drayton died.

It took me a while to finish this one, there's a lot to read here and it took me some time to get into it but I'm glad I stuck with it. Throughout the timelines and each character telling their part in it all, you start to draw your own conclusions and question did this death really happen as it was seen by little Nina? Early on I had a feeling that I knew what happened, I was right, but along the way I questioned my original thought and it did keep me guessing.

This is well written and I would recommend it, but you should go into it knowing it's a bit of a slow burn.

Thank you so much to Katie Bishop for a good story and to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read it.

This book took me a little while to get into, but once I did I really liked it. The characters were well developed, the plot was suspenseful and I was continuously changing my mind on who killed Tamara until the very end. Plot was well written. I recommend this book to anyone looking for a good mystery novel.

I zinged through this summer sizzler like a hot knife through butter.

What happened that fateful day 20 years ago when Tamara was murdered in her own pool while friends and fam partied nearby? Is Nina's account reliable even though she is 6 years old?

This is the perfect beach read!

Thank you to the publisher for gifting me a copy. It is my pleasure to write an honest review!

Review of Uncorrected Digital Galley

On the night of the birthday party, five-year-old Nina Drayton is the only one who knows that there is a dead girl in the water. And she is the only one who knows what happened to her.

Or is she?

=========

Told in two timelines . . . the present and twenty years earlier . . . the unfolding story reveals the events surrounding the death of Tamara Drayton and the effect of her death on her family and her friends. Tamara and her twin brother, Blake, were twelve years older than Nina; other important characters in the story include Josie Jackson, the babysitter, and Josie’s friend, Hannah Bailey. Readers will find the characters well-drawn, all relatable and believable.

The narrative surrounding these characters explores the family’s dealing with a sudden death and the effects of a trauma on a young child. With the announcement of a speculative documentary focusing on Tamara’s death twenty years ago, Nina finds herself in the midst of unwanted attention. She believes she knows what happened, but is it the truth or is it what she thinks she remembers as having happened?

Everyone has secrets; plot twists and unexpected events readers are kept guessing as they as slowly revealed. Readers who enjoy family stories and mysteries will find much to appreciate here.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley
#HighSeason #NetGalley

3.25. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. It was a really gripping read and I enjoyed it. There was great character development and the plot itself felt unique for the mystery/thriller genre. There were definitely problems though. It often dragged on and unnecessary tidbits were brought up that genuinely had nothing to do with anything. Setting and timeline were sometimes confusing. They could have delved into the child psychology aspect of the story in regard to Nina way, way more. And then a really fatal flaw. What actually happened to Tamara, in particular how it ultimately got blamed on Josie, was explained in a choppy manner. When Hannah wakes up, Blake tells her she needs to leave and that it was her fault and that she pushed Tamara. Hannah doesn’t question this at all… even though she had been entirely asleep/blacked out and was totally aware of that even though she was not sure why she’d been that intoxicated to be in that state. But why? Yes she was afraid of what went down but it just felt like a huge hole that didn’t really properly explain the rest that ensued. I’m not sure what stage of the editing process this is in, but I would highly recommend it gets cleaned up.

Nina has some issues. Memory seems to be one. Since she testified at age 5 in a French murder trial. The murder of her seventeen year old sister. She was the only witness.

But memory isn’t always reliable at such a young age during trauma. So when they all return to their childhood home with her older brother, Blake.

But twenty years later, the girl accused is now out of prison and wants answers.

I thought this started a bit slow but the plot more than made up for this. I was glad I read all of the book as it was really good. Emotional, Confusing and just the best descriptions and characters.

I really enjoyed this one!

NetGalley/ St. Martin’s Press August 12, 2025

Wow! My first novel by this author and I was impressed. If you’re fans of Charlie Donlea, you’ll love this one.

A wealthy family in the south of France endured tragedy when their 17 year old daughter was found face down in their pool. She left behind her twin Blake and 5 year old sister Nina who testified that the babysitter killed her. 20 years later all the characters are back as a documentary revisits what really happened.

The characters were so well developed and I loved the setting of the story. I was captivated with this story. You are so back and forth wondering who the good guys/bad guys are!

Summary: Twenty years ago, teenager Tamara Drayton was found dead in the swimming pool of her mother Evelyn’s estate on the Cote d’Azur. The youngest child in the family, Nina, was permitted to testify at the time and stated she saw the babysitter, Josie Jackson, drown her in the pool. Josie was convicted at 16 years of age and sent to prison for ten years. Now, it is summer again, twenty years later, and the lives of Josie, Nina, and the Drayton family are about to intersect again with profound consequences.

Thoughts: As with her previous novel, The Girls of Summer, High Season has a spectacular setting and a cast of fascinating characters. There is exploration of wealth and privilege, class differences, and the struggle to make sense of difficult experiences in youth. Both novels switch between the past and present, and touch on the unreliability of memory and the ways in which young people can be manipulated. With High Season, however, I felt it just took much too long to reach the dark heart of the story, which is finally revealed in part three. Part four is a rambling explanation which should not have been necessary to make sense of events. As much as I wanted to love it, High Season didn’t quite deliver. Thanks to St. Martin's Press for the digital copy to read.

[arc review]
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.
High Season releases August 12, 2025

2.5

<i>“She can visualize the entire thing. Whether or not that is the same as remembering it, she isn’t exactly sure.”</I>

At the age of five, Nina found her older sister unconscious in their pool, and went on to be the youngest to testify in a court case in France.
Now that there is a twentieth anniversary documentary coming out with speculation of an unreliable witness, Nina is questioning whether her memory of that day was as solid as she really thought.

This story is told across dual timelines and multiple perspectives, with some additional pieces of mixed media and a lot of gaslighting!

I think I would have enjoyed this story more had it delved deeper into child psychology through the lens of Nina’s degree and childhood trauma, rather than the teen relationship drama we got.
If you read a lot of books, it becomes very easy to recognize certain writing styles and patterns — the intentionality of leaving out one specific character pov in order to not put the spotlight on them, actually had the opposite effect, and made for a predictable reveal.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this story. A five year old witnesses her sister's murder and testifies against her former babysitter., leading to her conviction. Years later, a podcast into the murder raises questions as she starts to question all she used to believe about that night. The novel was well-written, characters fully formed, and the ending was satisfying. A great overall read.

I freaking loved this book. It captivated me from the very beginning and kept my attention all the way through. I didn’t want to put it down, I even found myself reading between patients at work. I loved how even when I thought I knew what was coming I still couldn’t be sure that it wouldn’t be something or someone else. I was kept guessing and I love that because usually I can tell what’s coming from a mile away! I can’t wait to read Katie’s first book and hopefully there will be many more to come.

Oh my. There is so much here to unpack! A young woman is dead. Her little sister believes she saw it happen. Someone is sent to prison but did they really do it? Years later the truth is slowly revealed with twists and turns you expect in a well-written mystery. Easy one to promote!

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★ ★ ★ ★
𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: August 12, 2025
𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪:

This was my very first book by Katie Bishop and I loved this. I love a very well written domestic thriller that keeps you on your toes flowing flawlessly to the end. The setting is so fitting for the storyline and the characters were well developed and well written. We have secrets in here, twists and turns and you may not see the ending coming. This is releasing at the perfect time for the vibe of this read in August of 2025. This is one that you will want to put on your TBR. I am now headed to read her previous work—The Girls Of Summer. I will now have Katie on my radar for reads.

𝗧𝗥𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗦: Domestic Thriller, Secrets, Fast Paced, Mystery

Large thank you to our Author, NetGalley as well as St Martins Press

Thank you to Minotaur Books for my arc.

So I love Katie Bishop's writing so much, I loved her Debut " the Girls of Summer" so much and so when Minotaur reached out with her next book, I jumped on it immediately. I'm a huge fan of thrillers whose stories center around memory and how it can become distorted as it goes from person to person.

High Season was no different, you're following Nina who " witnessed" her sister be murdered as a young girl. Or did she? With the looming documentary focusing on her sisters death. Nina returns home to find out what really happened.

I loved this so much, i loved getting everyone's perspectives focusing on one event in the story, its actually something i would've really loved to see in The Girls of Summer because i feel like it adds so much more to the story and this was so heartbreaking and yet tragic at the same time. High Season really makes you feel for every character and makes you have empathy for why they did what they did.

rounding up from about 3.5 ⭐️ Like my partner said when i chose this book from my (very long) TBR…..it sounds like the books you read. This book was a quick read that definitely kept me coming back to actually find out the answer which is always what i’m looking for in a book. From the beginning i sort of figured it out, but you gotta finish it to be sure. 😂 overall i enjoyed this book!

A very quick read, with many twists that kept me guessing as the mystery unfurled. I"m likely not the ideal reader for this, as I struggled a little with the prose throughout, but I enjoyed the plot and its resolution at the end.

High Season is the first book I've read by Katie Bishop. Overall, I liked it. Although I felt the first half was slow. The second half made me not want to put it down. I typically don't like when there are sections of a podcast, such as with true crime girl I tend to skip over those. I would consider buying another book by this author depending on the subject..