Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
A rather strange and confusing book. I did enjoy it however and loved the atmosphere of it. Characters weren’t overly likable or easy to relate to.

I think the overall plot of the book is very interesting, and although not the same, similar to Locke & Key (but with houses instead of keys). I did, however, have a difficult time connecting with any of the characters.

I do think this would make an interesting show/movie, but the book was difficult for me to get through as I found myself picking up other books in its place.

I previously read and really loved Sara Flannery Murphy's novel Girl A, but her latest didn't work for me - I really didn't connect with any of the characters.

A layered horror/crime novel, The Wonder State follows two timelines: the school year of 1999-2000, and 2015. In 2015, Brandi Addams has gone missing - but not before she sends her former friends what can only be termed as a summons. A note saying “You promised,” and a picture of one of the houses they used to break into in high school. Jay, Iggy, Charlie, Hilma and Max are all called back, bound by the oath they made, and they begin to try to figure out what happened, through the distance of years between the Brandi they knew and the Brandi of now.

In 1999-2000, an unlikely group of friends is formed after they realize there’s some magic in their little Arkansas town. Jay and Brandi have been friends forever, so when they begin to spend time with Hilma and Max, and later Iggy and Charlie, things begin to shift. But not as much as the way the houses change their lives: a place for luck, a place for truth, a place to hide, a place to get more time, a place for promises, a place for duplicating items, and…a portal to somewhere else.

The Wonder State is a fascinating, tense novel. Sometimes the vagueness of how the characters referred to the events in 2000 was a little annoying, but overall, a strange and wild book.

For those of you that follow this author, it's worth picking this one up!! Although not my favorite of her their works, it was very entertaining! With a strong connection to the AR Ozarks, if you've ever been there, you will connect to the story. Full of mystery around every turn and a bit of magic, it was right up my alley. Well done, Sara!

*I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of this read. Thank you to netgalley and Sara for pointing me there.

4.5 rounded down~

i loved this book a lot. it was incredibly fun, suspenseful, magical, dreamy, sweet, sad n lovable. equal parts tender coming-of-age and page-turning mystery - a fun blend and just what i happened to be fiendin for! i loved the setting, the dynamics, the jumping back n forth thru time, the writing, the all of it, really.

thank u net galley <3

Book Title: The Wonder State
Author: Sarah Flannery Murphy
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux MCD
Genre: Mystery Thriller
Pub Date: July 18, 2023
My Rating: 3.7 rounded up

Story is told ‘Then 1999’ and 'Now 2015'!
Five high school friends all return to Eternal Spring their home town that they left after high school which was fifteen years ago and they all said they would never return!
As teenagers they broke into homes that were built by Theodora Trader an architect who claimed to be a traveler to other worlds. In fact, she brought back ideas from an alternate universe so her homes are all unique and magical. There are several homes with a theme “Portal House, The Duplication House, the Mirror House, the Luck House, and the Forever House.
The teens found the home interesting especially the Portal House however when something goes wrong, Brandi the sixth member of the group took the blame. She remained in Eternal Spring.

Jay (Jadelynne) and Brandi were best friends. Jay has been anxious to see Brandi and has been practicing apologies as she travels back to Eternal Falls. However when she arrives she finds a flyer with a Xeroxed pic and the one-line, two words: 'You Promised' which drew Jay and the friends here!

Finding out what happened to Brandi kept me curious. Well yes as did the magical houses. The mirrors were really fantasying. There is a belief that two mirrors reflecting each was supposed to allow ghosts to pass through.

A bit of a spoiler ~ Most of the friends are using the magic for profit but Brandi knows this is not how the magic is supposed to work and want it to stop.
She disappears but first sends a letter summoning her friends back. She has a plan in hopes they will learn a lesson.

Although not my typical read as my go-to books are psychological thrillers ~ but to me everyone needs a bit of magic; so when we cannot find it we can at least read about it.
Doesn’t a mystery with magic sounds like fun?

Want to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Struas and Girous MCD for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for July 18, 2023

I am 100% obsessed with houses. I look at houses and it seems like some have souls. Most of them have interesting histories. The architects and original owners are special to me.
So this book spoke to my spirit. I feel this book.
Teenagers with magical houses would be a disaster. Thank goodness we don't have these in my city, I checked.
I loved this so much! Every word was enchanting.

I really enjoyed this. I'm a sucker for stories about old friends coming together to reckon with their past and each other, and this was no exception. Jay and four of her closest friends from high school are summoned home to their small town in the Ozarks by Brandi, the one they left behind. Except when they arrive, Brandi has vanished, leaving only cryptic clues behind. The group must face up to the many betrayals they left in their wake, to the town, to Brandi, and to each other.

There's a sprinkle of magic throughout this book, but it's almost incidental. The real story is about Jay, about growing up, about wanting things so badly and what happens to a person when your dreams are shattered. The dual timelines are propulsive, the story of what really happened unfolds in a way that keeps you turning pages until the very end.

I would recommend this to anyone who loves coming of age stories about found family and small towns.

Thanks to Netgalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for the review copy.

This was the first book I read by this author and I found the writing magical. It was unique and well written.
A group of friends go back to Eternal Springs when their friend Brandy goes missing. It is full of mystery, magic and kept me engaged! It was a fantastic gem to read.
Thank you

Thank you to NetGalley for letting me have a chance to read and review this book before it was released. It was a good book I really enjoyed just being able to jump into the magical realm and forget about my everyday life for a while.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I am in love with this book.

I very much enjoy magical realism - the idea that magic is present in our everyday lives, and that we just have to appreciate it to be worthy of it. The Wonder State is an excellent example of this: Brandi, the girl who never left her hometown because she saw more to it than most, is worthy of its magic.

The six of them - Brandi, Jay, Hilma, Max, Charlie, and Iggy - all have very different reasons for investigating the possible magic infused in various houses throughout Eternal Springs. They’re about to graduate high school and go off into the unknown adult world. Why not take the last moments of their youth to discover if magic is truly real?

Their calls back to Eternal Springs after Brandi’s disappearance - and letters reminding them of their oath - remind them of their youthful enthusiasm for the magic in the mundane but at a cost: magic is fun as a child, duplicating glasses & playing Truth or Dare when you <I>have</I> to tell the truth, but magic is not inherently good or evil. That depends on the user.

Max uses the magic to make money. Charlie uses the magic to get his career off the ground. Iggy uses the magic to make sure his fiancée will never leave him. Brandi knows this is not how the magic is supposed to work and needs to shut it down. So she disappears, summoning her friends back for one last magical quest so they will learn their lessons.

The writing is fantastic, effortlessly weaving together two timelines (present day and their senior year at the beginning of the millennium). The characters are not always likable but they are dynamic and charismatic in their own way.

I cannot recommend this book enough. In fact, I think my husband will be reading it as soon as I put it down.

The complete package: a page-turning mystery, with all the thrills of blood oaths and magical houses (that reminded me of the Winchester mystery house). And maybe the book doesn't have the most developed characters, but still they're characters who I just want to be together and happy and have all of their dreams come true.

There are no words for how much I loved this, The Wonder State is incredible from page one I could not put it down. I loved the dual timelines with the mystery and secrets being unravelled slowly, it's incredibly unique and so skilfully written. I also loved seeing the slight changes in the characters personalities showing the time difference as well it intrigued me even more. The mystery and magic is so fun and reminded me a bit of "Locke & Key" however the magic was really unique - I wish the book never end so I could have just kept reading more and more. The only thing I didn't like was more of an exploration of Theodora and how she found this magic, but this does leave room a sequel. The setting, world building and characters are all beautiful written and the mystery is incredibly intricate and absorbing, I highly recommend this book I believe it is a must read.

4.75/5 stars! This mystery thriller had me in a chokehold from the very first page. I'm always on the fence about multiple timelines, but this book handled it well. This book incorporates supernatural themes with common mystery elements with an amazing result. The characters were so well developed and I found myself rushing to the ending to see how things turned out for them. Will definitely be reading more books by this author.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this delightful book by Sara Flannery Murphy. I had read the Possesions by this author years ago and loved it, I’m planning on going back and reading Girl one after this title. The wonder state is dual timelines from when a group of teens set out to find very unique houses in their town. Brandi and Jay are best friends in a small town in Arkansas. Brandi lives in a trailer park and has a difficult life to say the least. Her and Jay meet twins that are in town for a year with their artist parents. They come from very different worlds but they all want to escape their current lives. They start looking for houses that a very eccentric woman had built around town that all have unique offerings. The timeline shifts from 2000 to 2015 when Brandi is in trouble and summons her old friends back to Eternal Springs based on a promise made when they were teens. The story is very unique, I loved the different offerings of the houses. There were a lot of characters in this book but it was pretty easy to follow along as most of the novel is told from Jays perspective. I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read more from this author.

Wow! This is an incredible novel!
I love the town of Eternal Springs and I would really like to be there to see it.
There seems to be some mysterious little homes that create some magic when entered.
But... They are not always seen!
It appears that it is only when it is necessary by someone. HOW can this be?

When five high school friends decide to return to their hometown after fifteen years, it is at the request of their mutual friend who sent each a note with only two words "You Promised".
They go back to the town only to find out that their friend is NOT there. Where is she? They were not ever supposed to come back home!

There is definitely magic, suspense, friendship, secrets, and lots of fear amongst these pages!
This is really so well done that I was hooked from the first page, until the very last!
Thank you to @NetGalley and @Farrar,Straus and Giroux for this ARC and allowing me to read and provide my own review.

The Wonder State explores the time of your life when you want more than anything to live in a completely different world where no one knows you. Sara Flannery Murphy eloquently captures the drama, desire, and despair of being young and human. Her sense of place (Arkansas), her character development and her story telling skills are magical. A novel about friendship, loyalty, class, prejudice, and realizing that what's right underneath your feet might be the most valuable thing. Bravo!

This was one of those 'stay up until 1am' reads. Such a wonderful concept and the characters beautifully written in a way that allowed me to suspend my disbelief surrounding magic houses whose magic only works if you believe it does. I can see this one being really well received upon its release.

I was hesitant at first, but I ended up really liking this one! A beautiful study of human relationships, the writing was on point, the story surprised me many times. Highly recommended.