This is a great book about friendships and how deep they can be!
I loved how the author can tell the story of a main character but can also kill a tangent in the same paragraph what the future holds for the “extras” in the story.
The story is so well written and makes you feel all emotions throughout.

The characters are meaningful and the relationships even more so. It’s a great story with lots of depth.
My highlight is the role of the donkey, my favourite character by far!!

"Tell Me Something Good" ~ Court Steven's
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Audiobook

"Bent Tree" a town known for it's disturbing murders of 9 women over 20 years ago and the locals that will go to any depth to keep its secrets quiet. A man's accidental death at the hands of a friendly donkey set off a chain of events that cannot be undone.

Court Stevens delivers a heartfelt and thrilling story in "Tell Me Something Good", blending mystery, murders, friendship, and personal growth in a way that keeps readers hooked. Anna/Jack/Murray's journey's are compelling, and the small-town setting adds a layer of charm and intrigue. The writing is sharp, with just the right mix of humor and emotional depth.

While the pacing lags in a few spots, and some plot points feel a bit predictable, the strong character development and touching themes make up for it. Overall, this is a great read for fans of murder, mystery, and mafia like families that will go to any lengths to protect their own. #book #books #bookshelf #bookshelves #BookLifestyle #bookishlife #bookish #booktoker #ilovetoreadbooks #bookrecommendations #booksworthreading #booksgoals2025 #bookreviewer #booktok #booktokfyp #fypviral #fyp #fypviralシ #fypシ #tiktokviral #tiktok #booknow #reader #reading #bookrecs #bookstoread #readinglist #bookstagram #booksbooksbooks #BookWorm #netgalleyreviewer #NetGalley #netgalleyreads #goodreads #goodreadschallenge #mystery #thrillers #suspense #crime #thrillers #fiction

The power of having friends who read is that you can have entirely different interests and reading styles, but a sliver of Venn diagram overlap at a certain author. When a friend suggested that the writing style was Fredrick Backman’s I knew I would read it. Even though it was mystery/thriller. Even though it scared me from the first chapter (CW: mention of a school shooting, but not actually very prevalent throughout).

The power of storytelling is capturing a reader - making them care about fictional people in a setting they would’ve never thought to invest any concern. In Tell Me Something Good, it’s a cast of characters at a hunting lodge. Nearby, but set apart by a river, state line, and a massive economic divide is a poor, small town where a mother and daughter are being pummeled by life in just about every way. A wide cross section of people interact at the lodge, between the guests and the employees. There is a long ago unsolved mass murder, which has domino effects or violence and secrets toppling into the present day.

Keeping an open mind is worth it - I read outside my comfy genres and also enjoyed a fiction on audio for once! I will try to remember these lessons.

What a great debut. A good blend in this story with complexity and emotions throughout. Can't wait to read more from Court Stevens.

This is a story of the rich and the very poor. This is a story of an illegal auction with dire consequences. This is a story of murders past and present. This is a story of intertwined relationships and the silent ripples they leave behind, where love becomes a guiding force, revealing the lengths one will go to protect those they cherish.

Over twenty years ago, a young hunting guide in rural Kentucky was driving his boat in the early morning mist when his peaceful cruise was cut short by a scene so disturbing, he packed up and moved away. Nine women died early that morning, but it was linked to a similar crime in Texas, so the locals quickly wrote it off as having nothing to do with them.

Now, all these years later, when everyone has nearly forgotten about that grisly part of their past, one man's accidental death will bring everything back up to the surface. The locals who knew better can no longer claim it had nothing to do with them, and one woman, desperate to do whatever it takes to save her mother's life, will learn that nearly everyone in her life has been lying to her.

This story is filled with lots of twist turns and lots of people to keep track of! It's easy to lose track! It is a very good story tho! I love the story from start to finish! It crazy how all the characters where connected in 1 crazy tale and the author did and amazing job putting them all together and making the ending so great! I would get this book in pyshical copy!

I enjoyed this, with the various integral topics and the well developed characters. I irked the underlying unsolved murder that is now on everyone’s mind. I enjoyed the dynamic between the individual characters.

At the same time, I felt daunted by the amount of characters we had to meet. While it wasn’t exactly clunky, every time I felt that I was getting a handle on one storyline, the book jumps to something else. At times this worked for the story, and it hindered my enjoyment at other times.

I did enjoy the narrator. She was able to jump between tones and cadences well by character.

Loved the way the story lines entertwined to tell a compelling mystery ! Also handled a controversial subject in a compelling way. Really liked the narrator too.

It was just okay for me. The narrator was great, but the story felt like it started in the middle, as if I had missed the introductions to the characters. I struggled to keep track of who was who and felt like an outsider the whole time. Maybe it’s just my scattered brain, but the flow felt off. There were definitely some solid moments, but overall, it didn’t fully click for me. I’m left with so many unanswered questions, and I’m not sure I fully grasped what the author was trying to convey.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for the ARC.

I submitted a request for this book on a whim and boy am I happy I did so! Part murder mystery, part social history of the American South, part second chance romance, this book hits all the right notes, blending in wonderful descriptions of human nature and its quirks, together with an endearing audio trail a dad leaves to ensure he is a part of his son's life.

This was a quick-packed dual-timeline story I would dare liken to Miracle Creek by Angie Kim, and that is high praise indeed, because I've read both of that author's books and eagerly awaiting the third one.

Pick this up if this motto intrigues you: 'We don't live to see all the ripples we make, but we must make them all the same.'

Please make sure you check out trigger warnings, as they abound.

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Muse Audiobooks for this ALC.

Such a great audiobook. Couldn't stop listening to it. Thank you for my advance reader copy. Can't wait to look up other books from this author.

Weapon trafficking doesn't really interest me but this story held my interest, despite that. There are many characters, storylines and moving parts but I loved the ending.

Tell Me Something Good is an emotional story about grief, healing, and connection. Court Stevens does a great job creating deep, realistic characters, and there are definitely some powerful, heartfelt moments throughout the book.

That said, there are a lot of characters to keep track of—sometimes it felt like too many. It was hard to remember who was who and how they all connected, which made the story feel a little overwhelming at times. On top of that, the book jumps back and forth in time with flashbacks that aren’t always smoothly introduced. It made the timeline a little confusing, and I found myself rewinding just to figure out when things were happening.

Even with those issues, the story has some really moving parts, and the emotion is definitely there. If you love character-driven books and don’t mind a bit of a challenge keeping everything straight, you might enjoy this one. But if you prefer a more straightforward timeline and a smaller cast, this might not be the best fit. A touching story, but a little messy in how it’s told.

This book was not anything I expected it would be. Honestly, the synopsis doesn't give this book the credit it deserves for being layered with details upon interesting storylines that all weave and connect. This is my first book by this author and I see that it is Court Stevens's adult debut, she delves deep into the heart of a community, where some will learn that we don't always live to see the ripples we make, but we must make them all the same.
That ripple is felt throughout various parts of the book and I believe is what makes this special because your brain has to continue to make all the connections. These connections can sometimes get confusing and reading the book on audiobook can lead to some moments of rewinding and replaying to figure out who is connected to whom. I think this would be a great book to listen to AND read the physical copy of.

I was really riveted and look forward to more books by this author. That said, I am rounding my 4.5 stars down for the rating system only because the ending had me with mixed emotions. I preferred a different outcome but understand the direction the author took to tie it all up to that "ripple effect". Anyway... great read!

Thank you to Harper Muse for this gifted ALC!

Was this book written by Fredrik Backman under a pen name? Because wow. It had the same wisdom. The same warmth, depth, way of summing life up in such a simple and profound way.

Tell Me Something Good is a story about murder, but it is a study of a poverty stricken town in Southern Illinois and the community in it. Which is also a Backman trait: community.

Maybe I have Backman on my mind because the narrator of this book is Marin Ireland, and she is the narrator for the Beartown Trilogy. Her voice will forever be cemented as Beartown vs Hed. And that’s a little bit of the vibe this book gave me, too. A poor town and a rich town fighting amongst each other.

It was tragic. But it was cozy. Is that weird? Maybe it’s Marin Ireland’s voice. It’s hard to not fall into her trance. She is hypnotizing.

I loved this one, to be frank. Something about it resonated with me. It clicked. I loved all of the moving parts, and how they all eventually came together as one beautiful machine.